Life is...

It's almost October...

2011-09-29T02:24:00.003-04:00

And this poor blog hasn't been updated since MAY! This little girl has completely changed since those last few photos and it's amazing to watch her grow and grow and never slow down!

She will be 8 months old on Oct 7 and weighs 18lbs 13oz and is 28" long! She's an amazing eater, a professional crawler, stander, and she pulls herself up everywhere she can. She's been working on standing up without any hands and has succeeded a few times without falling. She'll be walking in no time at all.

Isn't she...

2011-05-21T07:23:00.002-04:00

BEAUTIFUL?!?

While "Daddy" is Away...

2011-05-05T08:46:00.003-04:00

the girlies will play!

Arden and I have been keeping super busy since David left last month. Too occupy our time we:

Do lots of little photoshoots:

And go to the park:

And shop at the markets:

And take the puppies for a walk, visit our friends at Newborn Network, Baby Wearing, Le Leche League, and we even visited MOPS once. We have our friends over for dinner and visit friends in the hospital with new babies! We've gone to Easter dinner with friends and Jr's 2nd Birthday Party too! Once in awhile we even stay home and have a lazy day now and again. I don't have pictures of these events but I should really remember to do that in the future!

Almost 3 Months!

2011-05-05T08:35:00.002-04:00

So, I sat down to write a new blog last month to say I can't believe it's already been 2 months....and then I never got around to it and it's already been almost 3 months since my last blog!

These last three months have been amazing, sometimes difficult, and have gone oh, so fast! I can't believe this little girl is mine! She's the most amazing little creature and I've gotten to know her so well over the last few months and I think we'll keep her. :)

David left 2.5 weeks ago to head back to the states for school. Fortunately, it's been a lot easier/better than I expected it to be! We've kept ourselves busy and she's been an awesome little thing helping her mama stay sane! <3 The days go by so quickly but the weeks seem slow. We still have 4 weeks to go. :( We're doing well though, we just miss him! It's a bit easier getting to be on our schedule only and not have to worry about his. And having a car all the time is nice too! (Not that we use it much.)

Arden is growing up too quickly. She seems to always think she's older than she really is and I'm sure she'll be sitting up on her own in no time at all. She's been rolling over since before she hit 2 months, holding her head up on her stomach since the same, etc, etc. She loves to pull herself up to a stand and bounce/jump on her feet. She doesn't seem to care about toys too much yet (except her play mat, she loooves that) but she loves cuddling with blankets and covering her face. Now I'm trying to teach her peek-a-boo! She's just the sweetest, happiest baby and we love her so much!

Here are a few pictures from the last month:

A Birth Story (Part 1)

2011-02-10T12:26:00.001-05:00

Saturday February 6th:
We woke up that morning and I decided I wanted to spend the day making sure the house was clean, taking the dogs for a long walk, and I wanted to go out to dinner with a few friends before baby arrived. I didn’t feel any different but we always spend Sunday’s relaxing and this was the last Saturday before our due date to take advantage of having David’s help. I was starving for lunch so I ate a big lunch but by dinnertime I could only eat a couple of bites before I just couldn’t eat anymore. We went over to our friend’s house after eating and around 11:30pm I told David I was ready to go home because I was exhausted. We got home, went to bed around midnight.

Sunday February 7th:
An hour after going to bed I woke up with some cramping and nausea. Earlier in the evening I had noticed the first (very small amount) blood after peeing. I tried to lie back down and started feeling what I assumed were contractions but I wasn’t sure because they felt nothing like the Braxton Hick’s I had always felt. At 3am I finally woke up David and asked him to hand me the iPod off the dock so I could start using the contraction timer because I felt like they were getting regular. They were coming 7-10 minutes apart and each one of them lasted over a minute—usually about 80 seconds. I kept timing them and around 5:30am they started to taper off of the 7-10 minute mark and by 6am I was having them less than a few an hour. I was very tired and uncomfortable throughout the day so I pretty much lied around and soaked in the tub. I made sure to take a few short walks with the dogs too while my contractions were inconsistent. I also ate very lightly (wheat toast with jam, a couple bites of vegetable soup, more toast with jam) and drank a ton so David went to the commissary to get me some sport drinks to go with my water.
Around 5pm my contractions finally started getting consistent again—around 7-10 minutes apart—and I eventually decided to soak in the tub. I got back out and we already had made up our mind that we were going to be heading into the hospital at some point that night, at least to get checked out but we wanted to wait until my contractions were 5 minutes apart before we left. Once I got out of the bathtub they were ranging between 5-8 minutes apart but I told David that I wanted to go sooner rather than later because my contractions were getting stronger even though they weren’t getting much closer. We timed the next 4 and they were close to the 5-minute mark so we dropped the key off at a friend’s house so she could let the dogs out while I was laboring and headed to the hospital.

We arrived to the hospital just before 10pm and they immediately set me up to monitor baby’s heart rate and contractions. David really liked watching my contractions on the monitor and seeing what they “rated” and watching them taper off. Everything was looking good and they did the internal exam. We were shocked to learn I was already 7cm dilated! The midwife told us that we did an awesome job laboring at home, especially for our first pregnancy, and we had to agree. I was so proud of myself for being so far dilated, which I thought was funny. We were the only ones in the delivery ward that night and she asked if we wanted the purple labor room or the yellow labor room and I chose the yellow because that’s the one I had toured and I knew I liked the feel.
We settled in and they set me up to the wireless monitors so I could still walk around during labor. Even though I had made sure to stay super hydrated all day, I was having a tough time drinking enough during labor without feeling nauseated so the midwife told me she wanted to give me IV fluids because the baby’s heart rate was going a bit higher than she wanted. David said I ended up getting about half a bag of it and she eventually took it off because the baby had calmed down and I was able to move around again.
Around 1:30am the midwife checked me again and I had only progressed to 8 centimeters so she decided to break my water while making sure to mention that the last 2 centimeters are always the strongest/most difficult. Within 10 minutes of my water breaking, the contractions got extremely intense. Sometime after that I got nauseated and started dry heaving/puking (nothing to puke up though) which she said was a good sign (sure didn’t seem like it at the time though, ugh!) I started to get the urge to push and she told me I could push lightly but not too hard. The doctor came in and I started pushing. They asked me if I wanted to feel her head and I told them no, I could feel it just fine where I was. David told me she had hair…dark hair! A round or two of pushing later, I asked them if I could feel her head because I wanted to make sure I was actually making progress! It felt so weird and I was worried what shape it’d be once she was out. I am not sure exactly how long I was pushing for but it couldn’t have been for more than 20-30 minutes.

At 3:33am, Arden Elise was born! She came out healthy, beautiful and perfect! We were both very surprised she was almost completely clean and not covered in “newborn goo” like we were expecting. She was 8lbs 2oz & 20.5”. David was a wonderful partner throughout the entire process and I don't know if I could have done it without him. I was so proud of him and so proud of myself being able to have the natural childbirth I wanted. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect pregnancy, labor, and baby! I'm very fortunate and very grateful for all of it.

A Birth Story (Part 2)

2011-02-10T12:25:00.003-05:00

Just got to the labor room. This is the "yellow" room:

Welcome to the world, Arden Elise Provost:

Daddy cutting the cord:

Already in love:

Breakfast the next morning. I love the little swing bassinet:

My squishy little girl:

Her hospital bracelet. They are very lax on security in Germany--I didn't even get an ID bracelet! She didn't leave my side though:

Her stat card:

Heading home!! Her hat makes me giggle--I forgot her knit ones at home so we used that one and it looks like her form of the backwards baseball cap, hehe:

Goodbye, January!

2011-01-31T02:27:00.003-05:00

Bring on February...I'm ready! I can't wait to meet this little girl who has been growing inside of me for the last 8 1/2 months, the little girl who has been kicking my ribs, pushing on my bladder, and made me sick those first few months.

We met with the photographer on Saturday to go over our pictures. It makes me more anxious for my little one to get here so I can photograph her! I've never photographed a newborn before but fortunately, I'll be able to take all the pictures I want so hopefully I can get a few good shots before she's no longer a newborn. *sigh* She's already growing up in my mind and she hasn't even been born yet.

8 Months Down!

2011-01-10T01:19:00.003-05:00

and only 1(ish) to go until we get to meet this little girl!

This past weekend we went and got our pictures taken so I could have some "maternity pictures". We drove out to a beautiful little village and met with a photographer. Somehow, the weather was *perfect*. The ugly snow that has been accumulating for the last month or more melted away earlier in the week from all of the rain but there was no rain that morning and it was 50 degrees!?!? What a drastic change. By the time we got home in the afternoon the clouds and rain were settling back in but for those couple of hours we were with our photographer it was perfect. We'll meet with her again in a couple weeks to go over all of the photographs but she posted a couple of sneak peeks on Facebook for me and they're gorgeous! I don't know how she was able to get *these* from what we gave her to work with because I am NOT a "model" by any means. I was just hoping to get a couple of decent shots because of my lack of cooperation but I have a feeling she was able to do a lot better than that!

2011

2011-01-01T08:54:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year!!

As of today, we officially have 40 days left until our due date! Not much longer until we get to meet the little girl that's been rolling around in there, causing chaos! <3 I'm now trying to get the house in order for her and finish unpacking and settling into this house. I don't think I've had any nesting yet but I'm trying to force it on myself because I know we NEED to get it all done! My goal is to be completely prepared for her by mid-January, no later than the 20th when we're officially considered full term.

We've been on weekly doctor's appointments for a couple weeks now and last week she was measuring HUGE!? Apparently, she gained a pound from the week before and went from 5lbs6oz to 6lbs7oz!? I am terrified to see where we stand at our next appointment on Tuesday but hopefully the measurements were off...way off even! I don't need a 10lb baby, no thank you!

34 Weeks

This Year, in review...

2010-12-18T10:04:00.006-05:00

-January started off good and then an unexpected earthquake in Haiti changed so much for us in 2010. David was sent down to Haiti with no notice and ended up staying for 2 months. That being said, we knew our PCS to Germany in April was not going to happen as planned. It was changed to September.

-February came and I decided to take a trip back to California to visit my family and friends I hadn't seen in over 4 years, not knowing how long David would be gone.

-March came and finally by the middle/end of the month, David came home!

-April brought to us a necessary R&R. We took the pups and went up to the mountains of North Carolina for a week to stay in a cabin and visit some of David's family while we were up there. I also went to Virginia Beach to visit Le'Anne!

-May brought a trip to West Virginia and Ohio to visit Nikki and we went up to Ohio for Kristina's baby shower!

-June brought with it a big ol' positive pregnancy test! I guess this could technically go in May too but we didn't "know" yet, so I will call it June. The rest of the summer was spent being pretty sick!

-July I don't remember being too exciting. The one thing that sticks out to me is getting to see our little alien baby for the first time!

-August brought with it a visit from my Nikki! She threw me "the earliest baby shower ever" and we got to spend some time together before I left. We also found out the sex of our little alien girl later that month! <3 We also put our house on the market for sale.

-September ended up being our final trip to the mountains to visit with David's family before we left for Germany. He left for Germany on the 13th and I was stuck in NC indefinitely and stressed out trying to get everything figured out around the house. Both cars were sold by the end of the month. I think we got rid of the Tacoma in August though I can't remember for sure...or maybe earlier?

-October 1st the pups and I landed in Frankfurt, Germany! It was a long trip but it's been amazing ever since. Fortunately, we're all adjusting well (minus my husband hating his job!) We also bought a new car (2011 Ford Fiesta...Lime Squeeze!)

-November took David BACK to the US for a week for schooling. Ridiculous! At least it wasn't longer. And we got our first snow!

-December isn't over yet but Lucas turned 5, our 5th wedding anniversary was this month, and we'll see if anything else happens. We had hoped to go on a little mini vacation but that hasn't happened. Oh well! We've gotten the snow I've missed for the last 5 years though! Plenty of it! And we'll see if I can pass my driver's class/test here...ugh.

I'm anxious to see what 2011 holds for us. I can't wait to meet our baby girl and I dread mid-April when David returns to the US again for 6 weeks of schooling. I'm anxious to see how the weather is year-round here also because I know it will be a lot more bearable than the 100 degree days I won't be missing in North Carolina.

Hello, December!

2010-12-01T05:45:00.002-05:00

I can't believe how fast this year has gone by! And I can't believe how much life has changed in these last 11 months.

At the beginning of the year we started out with David going to Haiti for 2 months and it feels like it wasn't that long ago. We expected to be in Germany by April and ended up getting here in September/October instead. I wasn't pregnant and we weren't expecting a little baby girl in just about 2 short months! This time last year it was in the 50's and 60's, blue skies...and today it's 22 degrees and snow on the ground, more expected to fall today! We were living in our own house last year and this year someone is renting it out while we live in an apartment.

But, we are all happy and healthy and that's all that really matters! So I say...Hello, December! I can't believe how quickly you came.

Best. Week. EVER!

2010-11-16T02:49:00.003-05:00

Well, that's how I feel next week will be. :) Hopefully it all turns out as well as anticipated.

David left for Kansas on Sunday. He'll only be gone for a week but I told him it's not fair because he gets a nice, comfortable bed and I'm still stuck here on this miserable thing. He spent yesterday out shopping and picked up a few things for himself and baby girl. :) Lucky! He leaves Kansas on Saturday and will be back Sunday morning.

My next doctor's appointment is next Tuesday and it's my last monthly appointment! After this one I will be in my biweekly appointments. I can't believe how quickly it's all moving! I've been having a lot of dreams about her lately and it's getting more and more real. I can't wait until I can hold her and see her face but for now I'll settle for feeling her kick and squirm. <3

Next week we should also receive our household goods...FINALLY!! They came into Belgium on Nov 11 and should be leaving customs today so I'm anxiously awaiting the phone call telling us what day they'll be coming. I really wanted to get it this week while David was gone so I could get the house ready and it'd give me something to do to make this week fly by. I can't wait to start on my projects! I have plenty of baby projects to start as well as trying to get my "December Daily" scrapbook together to document our first December in Germany as well as our last December without a baby. :)

And getting our household goods means...I'll get to start on the nursery, finally!! I told myself I am not allowed to start on it until after I unpack the rest of the house which is no fun but I know if I had it my way I'd do our bedroom first, then hers, and then the rest of the house which isn't very helpful so I have to do it that way. As soon as our stuff gets here I'm going to find our sheets and blankets, shove them in the wash so they'll be nice and fresh, and make our bed! I can't wait.

And then we have Thanksgiving!! Assuming our household stuff doesn't get here ON Thanksgiving we were invited over somewhere for dinner and we'll probably end up there. I already bought a turkey but it's frozen so it will be fine. We can have our own Thanksgiving any time or I can even push it back for Christmas, even though I usually do ham for Christmas dinner. It's all good!

And Thanksgiving means...4 day weekend for David!! Good timing to get the house settled into and probably put up the Christmas decorations so we don't have to bring them downstairs to storage and then bring them back up in the next couple weeks. I'm so anxiously awaiting making this place into our home. It's pretty much just felt like a long, uncomfortable hotel stay at this point.

Having said all this, assuming all goes as planned, I don't see how next week could get any better!?!

Goodbye, October!

2010-11-01T06:56:00.002-04:00

Our last day of October was GORGEOUS! We took the pups for another walk through the fields...a different set of fields this time...and enjoyed the warmer weather! It was mid-50's and a comfortable, beautiful day!

While walking through the fields I noticed something gold and shiny in the mountains...a castle!? I wish so badly I had my zoom lens with me but I did not. I tried to get the best pictures of it I could but they are definitely lacking. Oh well...my view wasn't any better than this anyway, right?

On our way back I saw this bird...Roxy's new FAVORITE birds. Her prey drive and instinct kick into full gear when she spots one of these things and she pulls, jumps around, and BARKS!? Anyone that knows Roxy knows that she doesn't bark very often so it amazes me that she is SO vocal when she sees these bad boys. I lose all control of her mentally and she doesn't listen to a single thing I say...or even realize I'm on the same planet as her, let alone right next to her.

And lastly, I had to take advantage of the gorgeous colors in the fields and I had David take a few "belly shots" of me in the middle of one of the fields. He kept taking tons of random shots...the most random shots...but one of them caught my eye for some reason. And of course I tried to get one with my puppy dogs and they did a bit better than I expected...they're both looking at him! 25.5 Weeks! I can't believe how fast it's going.

I can't believe it's already November! Today marks ONE MONTH since I've been in Germany!! I can't believe it and it's been pretty awesome. And!!! This is the month we should be getting our household goods, yay!! I'm really trying to keep my optimism for an early delivery as opposed to the Nov 30th we've heard but at least I know it should be here this month!

And David goes to school for a week in the middle of November. I'm not looking forward to that but it's only a week...nothing compared to what we've done before so I can't complain. I've never been in a foreign country without a license during any of those deployments/time apart but still...it's only a week, right?

Happy Halloween!!

2010-10-30T23:38:00.003-04:00

Last night was trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. It was supposed to be from 5-7pm but we lasted from about 4:50-5:30pm before we ran out of candy! After that we came back in and decided to order pizza and watch "Nightmare Before Christmas" since I was too tired to cook. (So last night's dinner will become tonight's dinner.)

Our clocks changed today so we officially "fell back" a couple hours ago since it's not even 5am and I'm awake. Hopefully I can fall back to sleep in a bit also!

This afternoon I will bake some pumpkin spice cupcakes and we will watch the original Halloween. That's about all we will do to celebrate but it's more than we have in the past!

(photo from google.de)

First Appointment in Germany!

2010-10-27T02:43:00.002-04:00

I had my first OB doctor's appointment in Germany yesterday and it was an amazing experience! It was much longer and much more thorough than anything I've done in the US and they told me this is what I will go through every appointment. I can't believe I only have one more 4 week appointment and then I start my every 2 week appointments! The receptionist already planned out our next three appointments to get us through the rest of the year so I have another the week of Thanksgiving, one the first week of December, and one the week of Christmas!

When I first got there they took blood work (which I won't always do the vials they did today), pricked my finger, tested my blood sugar, iron, etc., did the weight, and urinalysis. (I know some places back in the States would do some of these things but the only thing I ever had done at each appointment with the military hospital was my weight and blood pressure.) If you're 25 weeks or further along they bring you into a little room and set you up to a machine that checks the baby's heart rate and to see if you're having any contractions for 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes was up we got to see the doctor.

We went to his office first since it was our first visit and he explained EVERYTHING with us which was awesome because our other doctor didn't do a whole lot of that. I asked him how long I should expect to stay in the hospital after birth because I've heard mixed things from people (5-7 days!) and he said 3 days is average but if you're feeling good you may ask to be discharged early but most people stay the 3 days with a vaginal birth.

Then, we went into the exam room and every appointment they will do an internal exam to check on the cervix and make sure it's closed nice and tight. I will also get an ultrasound with every appointment! We sat down and he basically did an entire anatomy scan again and showed us everything including the blood vessels to check the blood flow in baby's head, my arteries, and the umbilical cord which was pretty awesome! I was so glad David got to be here for this one because he missed my anatomy scan before I got here but I told him this one was a million times better because a) I could barely see the screen and b) she didn't explain what she was doing at all, just did her measurements and pushed me out the door. The machine also does 3d and he tried so hard to get us a good face picture of her but of course, as always, she wasn't cooperating. She wouldn't show us a gender shot either but he said they always check so maybe next time we'll get better shots. Sure...because she's been so cooperative thus far. Speaking of gender the receptionist asked me when she was taking my blood if we knew the sex and I said yes, it's a girl. She asked if I'd had an ultrasound to confirm that and I said yes. She was like "Ok, just asking because on your chart it says "Patient thinks it's a girl." I was like uhh...

So, after a good 5-10 minutes of trying to get a good shot this was as best as he could come up with. She was all about her thumb (she always has her hands in her face, ALWAYS...but I can't blame her because I touch my face all the time too) and he was trying so hard to get us a cute thumb sucking picture and this is as good as he could get since she was facing away from us. I told him we've only had one good profile shot because she doesn't like to share it with us so not to take it personally.

I can't wait for my next appointment! He said baby looks perfect, I look perfect, my blood work is perfect, etc so that was great news because back in my mind I've always wondered since I knew they didn't check everything so it was really just an assumption up to this point. Baby is still a BIG girl and he said she weighs in around 2.5lbs (I'll be 25 weeks tomorrow) and is measuring about 2 weeks big at Jan 26. Last time she was measuring Jan 31 and my due date is Feb 10. I told David she's not allowed to gain more than 5.5lbs at most because I'm trying to do this naturally and I don't appreciate her trying to make this as difficult as possible. I hope I have some good karma coming my way because my mom said I was born within 30 minutes of arriving at the hospital and was the easiest birth she could have asked for. However, I'm sure David wasn't quite as nice so if she takes after him I should be scared...he never likes to make anything easy.

Sunday

2010-10-24T10:39:00.002-04:00

Outside my window... is a cloudy but at times blue...cold, fall day.

I am thinking...about how badly I wish our household items would get here. I'm getting so stir-crazy not having any of my crafting stuff or scrapbook stuff or baby stuff to work on and give myself a creative outlet. I desperately need that! I can't even find a craft store around here to buy a few things and get me by. I really want to start my "December Daily" album in preparation for December but I worry I won't get my stuff in time to get that done.

I am thankful for...everything in my life. (Aside from not having household goods...) I wouldn't change a thing.

I am wearing...dark gray sweatpants and white tank top. Occasionally my maroon hoodie if I get cold.

I am remembering...what it's like to have MY stuff. It's been 6 weeks tomorrow since I packed it all away...so sad.

I am going...to have pizza for dinner and watch the Panthers play football via the internet in a of couple hours.

I am currently reading...the first Harper Connelly book by the same lady that wrote the Sookie Stackhouse books.

I am hoping... to get our household items sooner rather than later but I figure I can't complain as long as they are here by Thanksgiving. (Using this from last time...same holds true except I expect it's a definite possibility we won't have them by Thanksgiving. Ugh. )

On my mind...I need to make a few phone calls tomorrow. I can hopefully finally schedule my doctor's appointment! And we finally found a "Mommy and Daddy 101" class that's held here on the first Tuesday of every month. It says you need to pre-register 2 weeks in advance so I guess we'll be going to the December one! It's from 9am-4pm and it's only one day so we'll see how that goes...sounds long! David will get to/have to take the day off work for it though.

Noticing that...today is MUCH warmer than yesterday. It says it's 53 degrees and yesterday we didn't even get past 34 degrees.

From the kitchen...I made pancakes for breakfast and we found flavored syrup at the commissary so David had strawberry and I had blueberry! And (actual) strawberries on top!

Around the house...still not a whole lot. One day...

One of my favorite things...delicious food! Mmmm.

From my camera...I finally got a picture of a red squirrel! One of the first things I noticed here and it still makes me look twice because all the squirrels I've ever seen before were gray or brown but they are bright red here! And they have big, fuzzy ears. Cute!

Diaper Days are Coming!

2010-10-19T04:50:00.003-04:00

I've sat down on occasion over the last few years and started researching cloth diapers, knowing one day I'd want to use them. Well, now the time is drawing closer and I need to pick up my research and figure out what I want to do! There are SO MANY options these days that I've just been overwhelmed so after an hour here or there I give up and put it off for another day.

This morning I woke up at about 530am and I've basically been researching diapers again ever since (with breaks to make breakfast and check other websites). It's now 11am and I may just be about done for the day. I've finally decided what I'm going to do and it's a good feeling! We will be buying some BumGenius diapers, we already have 3 on the way and 1 free diaper (unknown brand) that I got with a coupon. I just bought 1 dozen Diaper Rite pre-folds (free shipping!) and I will be buying a few different diaper covers to try as well. I'm thinking of trying a Thirsties Duo-Wrap, a FuzziBunz, a Flip (used with pre-folds not the inserts more than likely...although I may buy a few to try for trips out of the house), and possibly a Bummi's. (I LOVE the pattern so it's tough!) I also want at least one wool soaker for nights.

The BumGenius will be the easy, daddy-friendly ones and the pre-folds will probably be solely used by me unless he decides to feel brave one day. I'm SO glad I haven't had an issue finding websites that will deliver to APO addresses! I'm anxious to start getting them in the mail! After checking prices we decided it would be better for us to buy a few here and there (every time the website gives a free diaper, preferably!) and spend the $49 it takes to get free shipping as opposed to buying them all out right because the price difference only ends up being about the cost of 1 BumGenius diaper and considering we're getting a few free ones it's worth it to us.

PS: (picture from google images!)

Our Weekend

2010-10-12T02:38:00.002-04:00

Last weekend was a 4-day weekend for Columbus Day. We had a very nice weekend exploring the area around us. We haven't done any traveling through other parts of Germany, nor do we really have the desire to just yet, because we are still enjoying finding out what's around us. I can't believe I haven't even been here 2 weeks yet because we've definitely adjusted well.

Friday we ran a bunch of errands we've needed to do (we keep knocking them out but they keep coming!) and had dinner with a few of David's new co-workers at a Chinese restaurant. They called us around 3pm (while i was finishing my sandwich from lunch) to see if we wanted to go that evening but I was still not hungry by then so I didn't eat anything. We went over to their apartment afterward and sat around talking and watching The Karate Kid.

Saturday we started our day off with a weekly trip to the Farmer's Market. We got such amazing stuff but we spent over 30 Euro in the process! It's all been yummy but we'll have to figure out who has the best for the cheapest soon because our grocery bills add up fast. We also went to the DFAC to eat breakfast and they have it buffet-style so I got a little bit of everything that I wanted. Yay! One of the couples we went to dinner with the night before happens to live the building over and they were having a cook out that afternoon so I cut up a bunch of fruit from the farmer's market that morning and we headed over there for lunch and the rest of the afternoon.

Sunday we ran to the commissary for our weekly shopping trip and when we came home I made pancakes (and some yummy berries!) for breakfast while we watched some True Blood. Afterward, we got the pups ready and went on a nice, long walk across the street from housing. There is a huge field of farmland with small paths/roads throughout it that a lot of people walk, bike, ride their horses, etc through and we wanted to head out there ourselves. We ended up out there for about 2 hours and instead of cooking we headed over to the bowling alley and grabbed a pizza to go. In the states we always had pizza on Sunday nights (or often afternoons) during football season while the Panthers played. David is able to watch the game via the internet so we are probably going to keep up that tradition for the most part. The games don't start until around 7pm here (for the 1pm games) so we won't get to watch the 4pm (10pm) games when they come about but better than nothing!

Monday we had to run a few more errands (they never end!) and knew we had to turn in our rental car. We were expecting/hoping to pick up our car but when we got there they said there was a problem with the battery and they needed to go through the warranty process to replace it and it'd take another day or two. I was really bummed and tired and not in the mood to walk home (which is only a 10-15 minute walk) but off we went. An hour and a half later we received a call from the guy telling us the battery was actually fine but they found the cable wasn't tight so he was going to stop by and drop off the car for us in a bit. I was so glad we ended up getting it anyway! I didn't want David to have to ride the bus again (it's cold in the morning and it adds an hour or two to his day having to wait around with the bus schedule, depending on when he gets off work) so I was very happy. We also received our unaccompanied baggage which included the 19" tv David bought while in Iraq the second time so we have some tv. There are only 9 or 10 channels but they're free and in English so they will do.

And now it's Tuesday. I think I will start a crock pot meal for dinner this morning so I don't have to worry about cooking dinner after cleaning all day catching up from this weekend of laziness. I'm thinking pot roast, carrots, potatoes, and green beans. I broke down and bought a Swiffer WetJet to clean these floors (which I really didn't want to do) but I can't keep doing the kitchen by hand and having to ignore the rest of the house. I have a steam mop which I much prefer to use (no chemicals) so I can't wait for that to get here but for now this will have to do! I wish I could have fallen back to sleep this morning after David got up for work but sadly I did not so hopefully I can get what I need done around here instead of laying on the couch and napping!

Our New Car

2010-10-12T02:26:00.002-04:00

I gave David the task of finding us a "new" car for Germany. I told him what I was comfortable spending every month and other than that I left it completely up to him. I had to deal with plenty on the North Carolina end without him once he left so I didn't even want to concern myself with vehicle talk. Well, after a couple weeks of looking at lemon lots, used cars, and new cars he settled on a brand new (our first brand new and possibly our last, haha) 2011 Ford Fiesta.

He went a little higher monthly than I had hoped for but it's not bad, especially considering it's brand new. It's still a lot cheaper than we were paying on our 4-Runner even though we owed less on it but having the house on the market and a baby on the way we were trying to find ways to save money here and there and this works. We'll save money on gas and car payment although sadly the insurance rate for Germany is almost the same for one small car as it was for both of our vehicles in the US. I guess you can't win everywhere though!

Hopefully I can stop being so apprehensive and nervous and work on getting my German license...especially considering that we learned David may be headed to Kansas for a week at the end of October. At least it's only a week but seriously?!

Hello, Germany!

2010-10-06T05:02:00.003-04:00

The pups and I arrived in Germany on Friday morning/afternoon! We all had a very good trip and the pups made it through no worse for wear. I had a nice flight and was able to sleep long enough to get me through the rest of the day and went to bed around 830pm, woke up at 830am and haven't had any jet lag--go me! I had a Turkish Pizza for lunch (which I will have to take a picture of next time) and went to our new house to see how the pups were doing and see my new place! I really like it a lot and it couldn't be any better, aside from having a yard, but there are tennis courts around for some off-leash time and the pups enjoy getting lots of walks. We walked to the commissary for a quick trip to pick up some stuff to get us through the weekend (and went back again Sunday to get a few more things.) Now all we need is our household goods to arrive so I can set it up and really make it feel like home!

Saturday morning we woke up and took the bus downtown to the markets! They are AMAZING and maybe next time I'll take more pictures. It was drizzly and I wasn't ready to look like the tourist I basically am at this point so I just stuck with a few quick clicks of the point and shoot as we were walking around. We didn't buy too much but this coming weekend we will definitely be stocking up on our fruits, veggies, and probably some bread and possibly cheese too! A million times better than anything the commissary has to offer but from what we've heard it may only be open on the weekends so we'll have to see if we can get away with buying it all on Saturday and making it through the week.

We finally sucked it up and rented a car on Monday evening and hopefully by next Monday we will maybe be able to pick up our own car. David bought a 2011 Ford Fiesta in "Lime Squeeze" but the way they do it here is they won't allow you to take it home until 5 days after they receive payment from your bank. So...we're still waiting...and waiting...and waiting. Last update was Monday evening and they hadn't received it yet but our bank mailed it Thursday night so hopefully they have it by now. We went to IKEA (for the first time I might add!) and bought some curtains, a couple of cutting boards (the borrow kitchen gave us one but I needed some for my fruits/veggies and not just my meats) and we will hopefully go back on Friday to exchange a couple of curtains (we bought too many, oops!) and pick up a few more things. David should have a 4 day weekend this week for Columbus Day (yep, he should still get States holidays off yay!) and we will have the rental so we'll see where the weekend leads us! I think we're going to take the pups out to one of the farms and let them run around in the fields for a bit. The tennis courts are nice to have but I know they really crave some "real world".

Hopefully by next week I'll be able to schedule my first OB appointment which I am anxious for. I have no idea how different it is in Germany but I've definitely heard some things. From what I've been told by either neighbors, nurses, or people that have been here before it's a bit different but many of the differences are good. The nurse told us they tend to do ultrasounds every visit so maybe it won't be so bad that David missed out on our 20 week ultrasound because they may end up doing it again here anyway! (I never did get my ultrasound paperwork. My former doctor gave me all of my records but it was the morning before my ultrasound so I don't know if they'll even bother transferring it.)

It's 11:15am and baby says it's time for lunch! It's weird not having most website updated much when I wake up because it's still either "yesterday" or the middle of the night for everyone! Oh, and thank goodness for Google Chrome! It translates all my websites to English automatically, even Blogger!

It's been awhile...

2010-10-02T13:23:00.001-04:00

Outside my window... is a beautiful, fall day!

I am thinking... about how yummy the beef vegetable soup (and baguette!) I have warming up from last night's leftovers sounds right now.

I am thankful for... finally getting to GERMANY with my husband and pups!! <3

I am wearing... dark gray sweatpants and a maroon t-shirt.

I am remembering... how to cook and clean and take care of my family and house! It's been awhile with feeling like crap at the beginning of the pregnancy and then this whole PCS process.

I am going... to enjoy the rest of my Sunday with my pups and love!

I am currently reading... the last Sookie Stackhouse book. I took a quick break to read the new Nicholas Sparks book "Safe Haven"...I liked it but I always like his stuff.

I am hoping... to get our household items sooner rather than later but I figure I can't complain as long as they are here by Thanksgiving.

On my mind... For once my mind isn't cluttered with a ton of randomness as it has been the last few months. It's quite free right now!

Noticing that...I need to buy some slippers because these floors and cooler weather will not be comfortable!

From the kitchen... beef vegetable soup I made yesterday and whole wheat spaghetti with garlic bread for dinner. Maybe some zucchini too.

Around the house... a big ol' mess of randomness that will soon head down to our storage. And dirt...plenty of dirt. I'll definitely spend tomorrow getting things settled around here because even though we have nothing, we have plenty to mess up this place!

One of my favorite things...having my family together! <3

From my camera...a delicious pretzel we bought downtown yesterday at the market! Along with some ciabatta, pineapple, the most amazing grapes, and a small cantaloupe!

Almost There!! (Turning over a new leaf...)

2010-09-25T21:53:00.003-04:00

This entire stressful ordeal is *almost* behind us and it can't get here soon enough! I still have a busy week ahead of me getting the dogs to the vet for their paperwork, meeting with the real estate office to put the house for rent instead of just for sale (for sale or rent but I'm 99% sure it will rent out before it sells), selling the 4-Runner, and making the final preparations around the house. Wednesday I'll pick up the rental car, pack it up, and head to Raleigh because the dogs and I are staying in a hotel since they have to be at the airport at 630am the next morning. My flight doesn't leave until around 7pm that night though but fortunately the hotel let me have a half day so I can go back to the hotel and stay there instead of sitting at the airport for another 12 hours! No thank you!!

Fortunately, it looks like I got an excellent flight so as long as the plane isn't too entirely uncomfortable I will be flying all night and arriving in the morning (well noon German time!) so hopefully I can sleep through much of the trip and it will go by quickly for me. I wish I could say the same for the pups! :( United's pet policy is AWFUL and they would only allow me to fly with one dog!?!? They don't even have cargo coming from Raleigh so I couldn't send them that way either so I had to go through Delta. Sadly, they will be traveling for about 20 hours with their needing to be there 2 hours early and the layover down in Atlanta. I hate this for them but I just hope and pray that they will make it through unscathed emotionally and physically. I feel selfish making them go through all of this but I know it's what is best for them in the end. In order for them to get ANY time out of their kennels in that time slot I had to get them on an earlier flight (otherwise we would have had to be there by 830am), pay a bit more (which at this point doesn't even matter because it's so ridiculously expensive) and add a few hours to their schedule so they could get out in Atlanta, be brought to a kennel for a couple hours, and get to run around, eat, potty, etc. I worry that with me not being there to stand up for them they will be forgotten in the Pet Area and not be taken to the kennel so I'm going to see if I can find any way I can call and check to make sure they're being taken where they should be. I honestly feel like the airlines are saying "If you pay us $3200 we will be glad to torture your pets for you!" For that price they should get the VIP treatment NOT expected to sit in their crates without a potty break for 20 straight hours. In my book that qualifies as abuse. I wish I could do more for them but I'm grateful I was at least able to get them a short jaunt at the kennel, if all goes as planned.

As I said before this entire experience has been beyond stressful. It would have been bad regardless but I know throwing pregnancy on top of it just makes it worse. I've always been a person that stresses out easily and this has been very difficult. Many times I have just broke down emotionally and bawled and I have a feeling I will do that a few more times this week before I get there. Once I get there though I can't see a reason that I will need to cry for a very long time (at least not out of sadness or frustration) so I'm anxious to feel that sigh of relief. As stressful as this has been I can't wait for it to be over. I can't wait to see my husband again and start our new life together!! And I wish I got to see the pups reaction when they see David pick them up in Frankfurt. (They leave 12 hours before me and arrive 4 hours before I do.) Wish us luck because it's going to be a long week! But this time next week I should be snuggled next to my husband, sleeping in our borrowed full size bed with my two gorgeous chocolate butts and kicking little baby belly, and hopefully her daddy will have felt her kick for the first time! <3

Has a house...

2010-09-21T08:25:00.003-04:00

And what a nice little house it is! Well, apartment. But we got lucky and got a 3-bedroom apartment in the housing area David said was the best looking and where he wanted to live! It has everything I could have asked for...except a yard, but I knew that wasn't happening. I'm so beyond thrilled right now. I should have updated orders in the next day or two and once I get them I'll be rushing over to Port Call to get my ticket and find out when I get to leave!! Once I get my ticket I can book the dogs flight and hopefully the weather will be cool enough not to cause us any issues with that. Then, I can set the rest of everything up to get turned off, work on selling the 4-Runner, and make sure all is well and ready to be taken care of before I go! I have a list written down that is ready for things to be crossed off of it, that's for sure!

Now, the biggest question is...will I be there in time to bid farewell to Oktoberfest?

It's a Love/Hate Sort of Thing...

2010-09-20T21:04:00.003-04:00

I hate that I'm so emotional. I hate that I'm so sensitive. I hate the pain I've been going through and that I've allowed it to make me feel this way. I hate how lonely I feel. I hate feeling left out. I hate that I allow people to affect me so easily. I hate feeling unnecessary and not missed. I hate when I hurt others. I hate that I allow myself to stress out so easily. I hate that I care so much what people think. I hate not having close friends to share with. I hate feeling pessimistic.

I love the loyalty I feel to others, even if they sometimes don't deserve it. I love the way I love. I love the relationship I have with my husband. I love thinking of what our future holds. I love my pups and the loyalty they feel to me, even when I don't deserve it. I love the stress relief I feel soaking in the bathtub. I love the feeling of a crisp, fall day. I love hoodies, cardigans, leggings, and comfy Ugg boots, no matter how ugly they may be. I love the feel of a fireplace on a cold, winter day. I love thinking of an idea in my head and having it turn out perfectly the way I imagined. I love the mountains. I love the beach. I love being home. I love rainy days. I love sunny days. I love stepping on crunch, dry leaves. I love feeling optimistic.

Frustrating...

2010-09-11T13:23:00.000-04:00

I'm waiting on the relief I felt when I finally made it to the top of the mountain and the amazement I felt looking over the edge and then again on our climb down.

So far, I'm still climbing the mountain that is this PCS and I'm sooo ready to feel the relief at the top. I have a day and a half left to finish up around the house before the movers come on Monday and I'm losing all motivation...not that I had a lot to begin with. I'm anxious for Monday to come because I'm hoping to hear some news...preferably good news...on what is to come. I tried to check the housing list but of course it hasn't updated since it's a Saturday so I'm really anxious to see our name on the list come Monday and see how many people are in front of us. If it's not on there I'm going to be bummed because while I know our name is on the list I really want to see it with my own two eyes. David said there were about 5 ahead of us and I'm hoping it goes quickly. I'm just ready to move on and get on with our life! Once I get over there we still have a good 45 days until our household items make their way over there but I will feel a lot better being in our new home and being done with this end of it. I'm sick of this end of it. I can't take much more of this end. I'm ready for this end to be finished. Oh and selling the house would be a huge benefit too.

Another Goodbye...

2010-09-09T09:00:00.000-04:00

Hoping this "goodbye" isn't for long though! I guess we'll find out soon since he'll be able to start on the paperwork to get me over there once he is over there himself. Bittersweet! I don't want to say goodbye again but I want to get over there myself! Fingers crossed all goes well and quickly and I can be over there in a couple of weeks.

The movers are coming next week to pack up our house! (Another reason it better be quick process!) I'm anxious to get that part out of the way so I can get the house deep cleaned and the carpets cleaned also. Then, we'll only have left in the house what the pups and I will be flying with and maybe a few things for unaccompanied baggage. I have a foot locker that David had left that I plan to fill with a pot, pan, a few kitchen utensils...and who knows what else? This will get there a few weeks after I do so it's not stuff I need immediately but would be better off with sooner rather than later, when all the rest of our household goods arrive. I'm hoping to pack a pillow and a towel or two in my luggage along with my clothes and hygiene products. And of course chargers for everything...and the router since that won't be getting packed up with household goods.

I need to empty out one of our rooms and sit everything in there that I don't want the movers to pack up because from what I've heard, they will pack up EVERYTHING...including your trash if you don't take it outside before they come. I'm interested in figuring out what I will do with the pups while they are here but I'm thinking of baby gating them into "empty bedroom" I mentioned earlier until they get to the point where they need to pack up said baby gate! Otherwise, you know they will be in their faces the entire time. It's going to be a longggg day, I can tell you that already!

I'll have plenty to do before I go: get the house cleaned, the carpets cleaned, the 4-Runner sold, satellite turned off, internet turned off, cell phones turned off, go to port call to get my own flight figured out, set up yard maintenance and a way to pay them...among many other things. I really need to start a list so I don't forget anything!

Nursery Ideas

2010-09-07T20:04:00.001-04:00

I can't wait until we get to Germany and our household goods get there so I can start working on the nursery!! I have so many ideas and I know I need to find a few more.

We already have the furniture (and have for awhile now!) so that part is done (photo from ToysRus.com):

Bedding Set (photo from buybuybaby.com):

Wallflutters! I was going to use wallflowers but I found these at Bed Bath and Beyond and since the bedding set has a few dragonflies in it I thought they'd be perfect. Plus, with the wallflowers I would have had to spray paint them matte because I didn't like the shininess of the chrome. (Photo from Artonwalls.com)

Maybe a few pom-poms hanging at different levels (in coordinating colors, of course...maybe rose and mustard?) (photo from elizabethannedesigns.com):

I also have some name blocks I plan on making...these are ones I made for a friend a couple months ago:

There are also a few pictures I want to make for the room...I'm thinking of using butterfly shaped paper cut-outs in various designs on either a canvas or matting and framing it. I also have a few flower photos I've taken over the years I may print out and frame in there also. Awhile back I started working on some sewn wall-art that I may or may not work on more. Also, we're not sure if we'll be able to paint there or not so I haven't even started to look at paint colors.

It's a Girl!!

2010-09-07T19:16:00.000-04:00

Second attempt at gender determination...good! She is still a girl and this time she was much more cooperative! We got to see her squirm around, her little hands were all in her face (again!) and she just looked like she was dancing. So sweet!! We had planned on a 2d ultrasound this time around BUT found out my coupon was only good for 3d/4d ultrasounds so the price difference ended up being $5 so we just did the 3d/4d again. I'm so glad she shared with us better today!!

2nd Attempt at Gender Determination

2010-09-02T09:42:00.000-04:00

(or is it...)

Considering we only have a short time before the movers come and pack up our house we are very eager to find out if this little baby is a boy or a girl! We have lots of girl stuff we've purchased and need to know if we need to return it before we go or if we're safe to keep our purchases!

2nd attempt at Gender Determination: The afternoon of Sept 7.

My medical ultrasound isn't until Sept 22nd and while that's a fine and dandy date, it's long after the house will be packed up and therefore it won't be very helpful for us to find out the gender then! This is just bad timing all around and I wish we could be more patient (not that I ever am) but time isn't on our side so we have to do what we have to do! I just wish my doctor would have had the labs run my blood work in the many vials they stole from my body to test for gender because then I'd know for sure and wouldn't need my little bug to cooperate with us because apparently, "That's just not "her" thing."

So please, everyone keep everything crossed (or maybe uncrossed??) for us that our little bugger will cooperate and whore herself out while she's in the womb! Once she leaves I will expect her to remain the lady she has been known as up til now. And if she is indeed a he, then he better share this information with us because otherwise he will be dressed as a girl until he grows out of the 9 month clothing we've purchased where he will then undergo a gender reassignment in wardrobe. It will be all his fault...he can't say that we didn't try our hardest to find out! Also, he may have a pretty girly nursery because the nursery I have picked out for our little girl is a bit too girly to pass as a gender neutral or boy room.

Oh, and happy 17 weeks to me and baby today!! Lookin good, baby!! <3

It's a...Girl?!?

2010-08-29T19:59:00.000-04:00

"She" was very uncooperative but hopefully it stays as said and we have a little girl on the way! I'm hoping she'll be a bit sweeter and less lady-like and cooperate more at my 20-week scan for confirmation but we'll see! We had a 30 minute ultrasound and we were barely able to get any kind of peek but hopefully it was a good enough peek!

I already have the most perfect nursery planned out in my head for our little girl and I can't wait to get to Germany and get started on it! I'm going to start pulling the pieces together soon but hopefully I can get it just how I picture. We already have the furniture but I need ALL of the decorations! I have a few projects I want to work on when I get settled over there so they better get a move on on figuring out how to get us a house so I can head over there! Otherwise, I don't know what I'll do. In the future, once we know for sure "she" is a girl I will share some of my ideas for the nursery. I can't wait!!

Doctor's appointment tomorrow...I hope all goes well! :)

Getting There!

2010-08-18T10:02:00.000-04:00

Now that David is officially off work until he gets to Germany we were able to start a big ol' purge of our house this weekend and decided we're going to have a yard sale in the next week or two. After doing this I am feeling SO much better about downsizing to an apartment. It's not going to be easy but we've decided to get rid of a lot of bigger things and it will make it at least more manageable to live in less space. We've also decided to get rid of our dining table and I'm only going to bring our 2-person set instead since we don't really use our dining set much anyway. We're also saying goodbye to our papasans which will break Roxy's heart! (She will also loose all but 2 beds which she won't appreciate because she loves ALL of her many beds, including those papasans.)

We met with our Realtor yesterday and filled out all of our paperwork. Today, she's coming back to put up the lock box and the sign in our yard so we'll be officially "For Sale". It's definitely bittersweet but I believe it will be more sweet than bitter in the end. (At least I hope so!)

Hopefully we will find out soon (this week would be nice!) about the updated orders so we can schedule my flight information and the pack up of our house. Once we get those two pieces in order, I think it will be a million times more real. Those are our last steps! In 3 weeks I will be saying goodbye to my husband for a short time and finalizing everything else here...shipping the dogs (scary!), selling our 4-Runner (sad!), and hopefully the house will already be packed up so I don't have to deal with that myself.

In other news, only 9 more days until our 3d/4d ultrasound!!!! <3 I can't wait and it seems like it's taking FOREVER to get here!! Tomorrow I'll be 15 weeks along and I can't wait to find out if it's a boy or a girl! We decided last week to buy a doppler on Amazon and we heard a very strong heartbeat last night before bed!! It was VERY reassuring to hear that and I'm so glad to "see" everything is indeed going well in there! My doctor's appointment is a few days after the 3d/4d ultrasound so I'm not sure what we'll be having done then but I believe it should be my last appointment before heading off to Germany! (It certainly better be, at least!!)

I think that's enough of my randomness for now! <3

Embarking on the Unknown

2010-08-02T12:45:00.000-04:00

Even though I've known our move to Germany was going to happen for quite some time now it's finally starting to sink in. I think it's getting more real now that we're getting dates and everything is finalizing. We know when David is leaving and we're hoping I can go shortly after, if all my paperwork goes faster rather than slower. We've done passports and he is going to set up a pack-up date with transportation but we can't release household goods for shipment until my part of the paperwork finishes up. So...we'll see...but it is coming together slowly, but surely!

It's just hitting me how much everything is going to change. It doesn't look as if we'll be allowed to get housing off-post which really upsets me because I wanted more than anything to live off-post and make the most out of the experience. Plus, I wanted more room and a yard! Instead, we'll more likely than not be downsizing to a 2-bedroom apartment with no yard. While our family will be growing our house will be shrinking. It's going to be a big adjustment, that's for sure! And I feel awful for the dogs. They're used to having a huge yard and being allowed to sniff around and enjoy themselves at their own pace and they'll have to get used to being on a leash every time they go outside. I'm also terrified of once the baby comes and having to leave the apartment every time they need to go out...in the cold, two big dogs, a baby which may possibly be sleeping and I may possibly have to wake up so I can take the dogs out. I don't know about you but it doesn't sound like much fun to me!

I feel like we're going backwards instead of forward. We're going from owning a 3-bedroom house, a yard, 2 vehicles, etc...to a small apartment where we have to sell so much of our stuff just to fit into. Our big freezer, our riding lawn mower, all of our yard equipment, our sectional, our grill...everything we've spent time and money building that created our house! And I'm sure once we get there we will realize we don't have room for other things either. Where will our office furniture go? Or should we get rid of our dining table and make the dining room an office? Or just not have office furniture (but it's newer and I looove it!) But we were also thinking that when we did have company visit the dining room could second as a "guest space" if we put up curtains? Who knows?

I know in the end it will be worth it and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity that I'm really looking forward to but it's really just sinking in how much we'll be losing to embark on the unknown. We have so much here and so much freedom and it's going to be an interesting situation to lose all that and figure out our new lives but we'll figure it out, we always do. Not much longer now!

Boy or Girl?

2010-07-29T12:30:00.001-04:00

That is the question.

Hopefully, we'll find out the answer on August 27th!!! I scheduled a 3d/4d ultrasound so David and I could hopefully find out before he leaves for Germany since it looks like I'll be following behind him at this point. Fingers crossed little alien baby will open some legs for us! <3

Hello, Baby!

2010-07-20T11:17:00.000-04:00

I am 11 weeks 4 days pregnant! I can't wait until the second trimester and I really hope it helps with the nausea and exhaustion!! I could really use it...especially with our move coming up! We went to my first real appointment yesterday (July 26, 2010) and I asked the doctor if we could see baby and he agreed! He didn't do any measurements or anything, just gave us a little peek. He really liked the "alien face" so he took a picture and printed it for us. I preferred a couple of the profile pictures but at least I got one!!

My due date is February 10, 2011 so we have a little German baby in our future! I can't wait! <3

Our little alien...or as Nikki calls it, our little Chalupa!:

An update!

2010-06-04T09:37:00.001-04:00

I've been pretty bad about updating lately but everything has been so busy so I just haven't sat down and taken the time to write.

*Just got back from my Ohio/West Virginia trip. I had a great time and I'm glad I went! My flights ended up being delayed on the trip back home due to bad weather in Charlotte but I didn't end up being too late, fortunately.

*I'm finally done with work it seems!! I am meeting with the realtor next week to walk through the house and see what we need to do before we put it on the market. I have plenty to do!

*Looks like we could be heading to Germany in 3 months or less! Eek. We have so much to do to prepare and I know I need to take Roxy to the vet and get her new rabies shot a bit early because it has to be at least 30 days old and she's not due until August. Lucas had his 3-year shot earlier this year so he's good. I also need to take them on post to get new microchips for Europe but that can wait until they get their health certificates.

*Lots of changes coming in the future and I'm excited and nervous for all of them!!! <3

Life is...Beautiful!

2010-05-13T09:11:00.000-04:00

This sunset from a couple weeks ago was very inspiring to me and I just love the colors and have been toying with a few ideas using that color scheme. It was absolutely beautiful and I was surprised to see that here, of all places.

I can't believe we're already halfway through May! This year is going so quickly and it's starting to sink in how few months we have until we're in Germany (or not?) and I just wonder what's going on with that. Maybe one day we'll find out! Ha.

I'm heading up to West Virginia and Ohio in less than 2 weeks and I'm excited! I wish it was a different weekend (traveling for Memorial Day weekend is no fun, plus David has a 4-day and I'll be gone for all 4 of those days!) but it will be great nonetheless. I can't wait to see people I haven't seen in awhile and...yeah that's about it! Yay! I'm not looking forward to flying on small planes the entire way but fortunately it's only 2 1-hour plane rides and a 1-hour layover so that's easy enough.

It looks like work might finally be coming to a close, who would have thunk it? I didn't have to work this week so I've been catching up on things I've been needing to do (none of that being housework...but hopefully I'll tackle some of that today) and I still have a few projects I need to work on as well. Hopefully when Week One rolls around I won't have more than a day or two of work that needs to be done and I'm okay with that! I'm not sure what to do with myself if my time finally comes to an end with the company and I won't have that to deal with?? I feel a bit lost but in a good way...a very good way.

Homemade Pizza = Love

2010-04-24T19:02:00.000-04:00

Anyone who knows me knows I love to photograph my food! This was our second attempt at homemade pizza lately (it was years since we tried it before) and it was delicious! I think next time I'll use a little less dough because we pre-cooked it this time and it was definitely thicker than I prefer. The last time we didn't pre-cook it and it was nice and thin. We have a lot of fun making it though!!

And... we're back!

2010-04-18T19:15:00.001-04:00

My life now...in list form!

-We've been back from our vacation for a week now and we had a good time! We were all ready to come home though.

-Lots of photos from Saluda, the Biltmore Estate, puppies, and flowers.

-I got my tattoo last week. That makes our "corresponding tattoos" complete! :) I also got my stars on my toes retouched so I hope they heal a bit better this time!

David's:

Mine:

My toes:

-Heading to Virginia Beach tomorrow morning! I'm going to stay just one night but I get to see my friend Le'Anne and her little boy! :) A day of sitting on the beach and relaxing is exactly what we need!

-Hopefully this will be my last month of work...hopefully being the key word. My boss has had a lot of problems in her territory but hopefully she'll have new employees trained by the next cycle. *fingerscrossed*

-My brother in law is getting married in May! We were hoping to be able to go back to California for that but he gave us about 2 weeks notice so David is very unlikely to be able to take time off that quickly.

Vacation Time!!

2010-04-03T07:44:00.000-04:00

It's almost vacation time!! David and I had a vacation planned for the first week in February to make up for him not taking any vacation days for the winter holidays. However, he was sent to Haiti and we were obviously unable to do that. So...we were able to reschedule for next week and I can't wait! We're taking the pups and ourselves up to the mountains for a little getaway and as far as I can tell now the weather is going to be perfect! Lots of relaxing, reading, and photo taking will be done! And for the pups, lots of swimming! (Maybe a little for us too...) We'll have some very tired puppy dogs, yes we will!

David's grandma lives about an hour from where we'll be so we'll head over and visit with her while we're up there. According to her, there may be a birthday party we will be attending too so we have to head to the store and do a bit of shopping beforehand. I have a lot of stuff to get prepared...clean the house, clean out the car, do laundry and pack, a little bit of shopping, and preparing my work stuff for my boss to take over while I'm gone so I can drop it off at the shed. Aside from all of that stuff and the 4-5 hour drive, I can't wait!!

The Big 2-5!

2010-03-27T03:04:00.000-04:00

It's true...I am now the big 2-5. I don't have many photos from my childhood but my "cousin" (My dad's cousin...so my cousin once-removed, I believe? And her children are my second cousins? I don't know...I never understood that) found a few photos of me in her albums and posted them on Facebook for me. So...a few years of Amber. I was so much cuter then!

I think 25 may just become the best year of my life. We shall see...

Another Gorgeous Day...

2010-03-20T19:17:00.000-04:00

And it was amazing! We didn't do a whole lot (had breakfast, went to Sam's Club and Redbox, watched said Redbox movie and tv, grilled out!) but it was a great day. We bought some ground chicken earlier this week when we went to the commissary and I knew I wanted to make burgers out of it but I wasn't sure what kind.

I randomly decided I would attempt buffalo chicken burgers and they were delicious!! I just used 1/2 lb ground chicken, 1/2 ranch packet (the kind you use to make your own dressing) and some hot sauce (we love this organic habanero chili kind) to taste and that was all. We grilled it on foil first to make sure they didn't stick to the grill since chicken is so wet and then grilled them off the foil after to get the grill marks. Yum!! We had sweet potato "fries" (they weren't quite fries in the grill but still tasted good) and roasted veggies (zucchini, yellow squash, asparagus, broccoli, and green beans) on the side. We will definitely have the burgers again...and often! Yummm. And for dessert...strawberries and angel food cake. Mmm. Can't wait!

I think tonight I will take a LUSH back and read some Aurora Teagarden! I'm on the third book in the series and I am really loving it!

2 more wonderful days left. I love 4-day weekends!! Sadly, it looks like tomorrow night will end our beautiful, sunny weather and bring in the rain but we'll still be together so that's all that matters. <3

Hello, Spring!

2010-03-19T16:55:00.000-04:00

This weekend is a wonderful weekend! It's long (4-day!!) and we have GORGEOUS weather! Mid-high 70's and sun through the weekend. Hello, Spring! Fortunately, it's early enough the bugs aren't out too much yet which is awesome.

We woke up this morning and had lots of fresh fruit for breakfast (as well as some Greek yogurt and David had granola too) and went and played some tennis. Well...playing is a loose turn but we volleyed the ball back and forth for about an hour. He decided to run around the track and up and down the stadium stairs too but I just sat in the car and watched him, haha.

Then we decided to walk downtown for a little bit and check out all of the shops we always pass and have lunch. We went to Hamburger Heaven for no other reason than it sounded fun. There was a guy with a parrot eating hamburger and fries outside but I didn't get a shot of that. He did however, ask me if I wanted to take a photo of David holding the bird. Heck yes I did! We also bought some blackberry wine, fudge (chocolate and peanut butter chocolate) and I found a couple of cute cards I fell in love with.

Now, we're home and I'll be starting dinner here shortly (I'm thinking lots of roasted veggies (asparagus, zucchini, green beans, broccoli, yellow squash...or something?), roasted sweet potatoes, and grilled chicken. Mmm... And of course, more fruit! I think I am going to pull out the fondue pot tonight and melt some chocolate for dipping...strawberries, blackberries, cantaloupe(?), pineapple, and angel food cake! Yummm.

Ooooh, and...we booked our cabin vacation for next month!!! We're going to take a week up in the mountains and spend time with just us and the pups! David has some family in the area too (Grandma and Aunt/Uncle/Cousins) that we'll visit while we're up there too. The cabin has a private lake so the pups will have a blast there, I'm sure. I can't wait!! We had intended on doing this back in February but when he was sent to Haiti we had to postpone our plans for awhile but we finally found another cabin (the ones we originally wanted were booked) and a reasonable week for us to go. Yay!!!

Well...

2010-03-18T08:09:00.000-04:00

It's been awhile since I posted anything! David came home last Friday around 1:30am and I've been so busy spending time with him, getting my work done, etc that I haven't thought much about my blog. Not that there's anything worth writing about anyway. I'm so grateful to have him home and we're going to try to spend this weekend doing something (maybe just going downtown and walking around...maybe going to the beach?) but we haven't decided just yet. Last weekend we just laid around the house, watched movies (Dear John, finally! and Alice (in 3D)) and caught up on rest because he was completely exhausted.

I'm supposed to go to the commissary this morning but he stole my 4-Runner so I guess I'll be going later this afternoon? He gets Friday off work this weekend (I'm not sure about Monday?) so we'll have a bit longer to do stuff. The weather is supposed to be gorgeous!! 70's and mostly sunny!! Bring out the sundresses! <3

Oh, and you're running out of time to figure out the perfect birthday present for me...just to let you know. ;)

Coming to an end...

2010-03-08T10:09:00.000-05:00

David's "tour in Haiti" is finally coming to an end!! Hopefully, he will be home in about a week or so but the first plane was supposed to land here yesterday and it's been postponed indefinitely so...

I hope they get everything figured out ASAP so his flight won't be pushed back who knows how long but I have a feeling it may take longer than expected. *fingers crossed* it won't.

Bloggity, Blog, Blog, Blog...

2010-03-02T16:28:00.000-05:00

In 10 years...

*I will be happily married to my husband for 14 years, together for 17.

*I will be 35.

*I will have 2 children.

*I will be living wherever the Army has put us at that time. David will have been in for 16 years so we'd only have 4 more years until he is "of retiring age", whoo hoo!

**************************

I was tagged by Nikki to do this meme.

Rules are simple:

1. Post where you want to be in 10 years

2. Pass it on to 10 of your bloggy friends!

I don't have 10 friends so please, feel free to tag yourself in this! Tag, you're it.

I miss this!

2010-02-28T18:25:00.000-05:00

I've been back in NC since Tuesday and I miss California so much! I forgot just how much I missed it since I hadn't been back in over 4 years but it was really hard to leave again. These pictures were taking on the rim over the course of the day. It finally cleared up Monday before I left and I went to the rim three different times just to capture these views. Gorgeous, no matter what time of day!!

Oh, California...

2010-02-20T13:47:00.000-05:00

Why did you have to greet me this way? Cold, wet, rainy, foggy...none of the things I wanted to see!

I landed around 11pm last night (2am my time!) and immediately headed about 30 minutes out of the way to my FIL's place to pick up a vehicle so I could be "free" while I was here. Of course since it was raining "down the hill" it was foggy and rainy and slightly snowy going UP the hill. Fun, fun, fun. It's only been over 4 years since I drove the mountain roads, not to mention in the dark, wet, and crazy foggy night.

Fortunately, it somehow only ended up taking about an hour or so to get to the house but there were a couple of times where I almost had to come to a complete stop because the road completely vanished for a few moments. By the time I got home though it was about 1am (4am my time!) and I got my stuff, brushed my teeth, got ready for bed, and ended up taking about 45 minutes to actually fall asleep, eesh. I was sooo tired.

I woke up this morning and I thought I checked my phone (which the time changes automatically) but I guess I looked at my laptop (which I did NOT change) and was like "Man, it's already 10am but I'm soooo tired. I need to get out of bed." So I call my mom and talk to her and said something about the time and she was like "You should probably go back to sleep, it's only 7am." Oh. Duh. Go me. Of course, I couldn't fall back asleep but I got up and had a little something to eat (considering I hadn't eaten anything aside from a mini bag of peanuts and pretzels since 1pm yesterday afternoon).

Now I'm dressed and waiting. I was supposed to meet my mom first this morning but she told me to give her a couple hours to get ready and do some stuff so I told her I'd just head over there this afternoon after I go to lunch with a friend. I think we're going to head over to the village and take some pictures and eat some pizza from "The Deli"...mmmm. I miss California food. I want some Mandarin Garden, Deli pizza, In n' Out, Bakers, Chipotle, and so much more! Oooh and Round Table Pizza has yum bread and sandwiches. Of course I won't get to eat all of this because I'm only here until Tuesday morning but hopefully I can at least get a few of these things! I may end up gaining back all the weight I've lost while David's been gone. It seems he may be gone another month or month and a half though so I guess I'll have time to lose it again.

Off to spend my day in (not so sunny) California! I hope the fog goes away enough that I can take some pictures on the rim. So pretty!! (When you can see it...)

2010-02-16T15:04:00.000-05:00

I'm heading home to Lake Arrowhead, California for a few days! I haven't been home in over 4 years so I'm excited to visit, even if it's only for a few days. I can't wait to see people I haven't seen in many years and take photographs of things I always wanted to but didn't have a camera. Well, now I do! I'm off on Friday!!

(Photo found on cardcow.com)

Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T08:54:00.000-05:00

Happy 14th of February!!! Although there's not much to celebrate here today, it's still a good day. The sun is out, the snow we got on Friday night is 99% melted (except in the shady areas) and I have my two puppies! Even if you don't celebrate today as "Valentine's Day" be grateful if you get to spend it with the one(s) you love! Even though David and I never gave much thought to Valentine's Day I had planned on doing something this year since he hasn't been home for it the last two years. Well, now it's the last three years. Let the people you love know you care about them today and every day!!

Friday was my "Valentine's Day" and I received not one but TWO special deliveries! The first was from my wonderful, amazing husband. In our almost 7 years together I've received flowers less than a handful of times. He knows I tend to find them wasteful but he wanted to give them to me anyway. I have to admit though that flowers are gorgeous and smell oh so beautiful! They always brighten up a room and a mood. I told him I would have been fine heading over to Sam's Club and buying myself some for cheaper but he said no. Fine, fine. Hehe.

The second was from my super amazing (Nikki Nikki) Bo Bikki! She bought me (and herself!) a dozen beautiful roses. I was watching Gilmore Girls last night and saw that their arrangement of roses had the same colors as the ones she sent me! My living room now smells like a ton of beautiful flowers! So nice and oh so pretty!

Long, Hot Bath...

2010-02-11T20:51:00.000-05:00

That's one of my all-time favorite things. It's so relaxing, so calming, so wonderful! Especially a LUSH bath! Give me any LUSH product and odds are, I'll love it. Last night I decided on a piece of a Holiday Bubble Bar (I had a piece lying out from awhile back so why not) and paired it with a continuation of another Sookie Stackhouse book I'm currently reading. I think I'm on Definitely Dead? I can never remember which one! (Do you see the little "heart" in my bath? I saw it after I took the picture and said "Aww".)

If I had it my way I'd take a (LUSH) bath every night but I at least get a few good baths in a week.

Never heard of LUSH? www.lush.com It's amazing...promise!

Here's a couple of pictures I took a long while ago of some of their stuff...beautiful! I really need to start photographing my LUSH again. It's been awhile!

Fresh Face Masks! (In my fridge with asparagus and pineapple, LOL. See...fresh!)

Lots of stuff from a trip to LUSH Raleigh with Nikki back in 08! I haven't been back since and I really want to go. I've only done mail order since...so sad. No, I lied...I stopped at one in Columbus, OH but it was inside a Macy's.

Freeze shower gel! So pretty.

I wish

2010-02-08T22:22:00.000-05:00

...I had friends here! I'm usually okay being alone but every now and again I could really use some girl time! Ugh.

...I knew what was going on for my future. Something solid. *Anything* I like to plan things and it's very difficult to plan when it's so up in the air!!

...I had a date of return for my husband. I'd be okay, regardless of when it was, but I wish I had a date to count down to!

...we had perfect weather. I miss our sunny days and 50-something degree temperatures. I really took them for granted but they'd be *wonderful* for my mood right about now. The pups and I could take more walks! We were doing so well for a few weeks until the weather turned on us again and work started up again. Tomorrow would be great except it will be raining. *sigh*

...I could see Dear John! I had plans to see them but now that David is gone, I have to wait. I took myself to see The Lovely Bones last week but David wants me to wait for him to see Dear John because it was supposed to be our "date movie".

...I could see my old friends! It's been so long and it is MUCH needed!

...I could go back to Cali. I plan to SOME DAY but is that day ever going to come? Ugh.

...our live was done being on hold. I know it's going to some day soonish but soonish just isn't good enough, LOL.

...I had a job I loved.

...I wasn't obsessed with steak tacos (with black beans) and no-bake cookies (a *bit* of a healthier version, of course)...I think I would lose a bit more weight without them, haha. The steak tacos aren't THAT bad but I seriously can't get enough of them. Specifically from Salsarita's. Mmmm. It's not so great for the wallet either, haha.

...it was warm enough to wear my spring/summer dresses! I know it's still winter and it's Feb but bah on you! This is the first year I've actually looked forward to Spring. Pollen overload, humidity, bugs...none of the things I tend to like.

Me, Today Pt. 3

2010-02-06T10:55:00.000-05:00

Nikki reminded me I need to do this again...it's been awhile!

Outside my window...it's cold, wet, and cloudy. Blah. Seems like a lot of people are getting snow but it's not even raining here today...just wet from our rain yesterday.

I am thinking...a lot of things. Mostly about what the future holds for us because everything is so up in the air right now. EVERYTHING!

I am thankful for...my wonderful husband and our relationship. I'm grateful I have love and trust and all of the things so many relationships lack.

I am wearing...Ugg slippers, pj pants, and a hoodie. I was wearing jeans until about 10 minutes ago.

I am remembering...all the good times I've had in the last 7 years with my love.

I am going...to get the house clean today. I am going to get the house clean today. If I keep saying it, maybe it will come true?

I am reading...Nothing, actually. I just finished The Lovely Bones and I haven't decided which book to start yet...hmm. Maybe go back to Sookie Stackhouse for a minute? Not sure...

I am hoping...David gets to come home from Haiti before March 1st! There's no real rhyme or reason (or even word that it will happen) but I think it would be good! I can hope, can't I!!

I am creating...a memory book of sorts. Not sure where it's going yet, but that's what's spread out across my coffee table at the moment.
On my mind...what I'm going to make for a very late breakfast...or should I just start with lunch? It's already 11am, hmm...

From the kitchen...I just came back from the commissary and I stocked up on lots of fruits and veggies. I have asparagus, zucchini, broccoli, snow peas, spaghetti squash (new, never tried it before!), acorn squash (just tried it the other week, yum!), sweet potatoes, one potato to make some potato wedges out of, a mango, cantaloupe, grapes, and....is that all? I hope I can eat it all! I plan to make some stir fry this week, yum.

Around the house...a mess. I need to clean it today then get through little parts because the realtor is coming on the 16th (10 days!) to check everything out, assess it, and see what we need to do before we put our house on the market.

Some of my favorite things...nail polish! I just went and bought new stuff yesterday and painted my nails "Suzi says Feng Shui" and I got have "Dim Sum Plum" but I haven't used that yet. And steak tacos...I've been obsessed with steak tacos the last week or two. I don't usually get steak, usually chicken, but I really want steak tacos...and still do! I had them...4 times last week? 5 if you consider the first attempt that was awful. Steak tacos and black beans (with a tiny bit of rice)...yummm.

A few plans for the rest of the week...it's Saturday so the week is pretty much over. Cleaning the house today and taking a bath...that's about it!

A photo to share...My handsome boy in some of the snow we got last week...not much, mostly ice...he looks like such a little puppy boy here!

Random

2010-02-02T08:30:00.000-05:00

Random things about me:

* I've never had a job I truly enjoyed.

* I cry when I laugh.

* I'm truly a pathetic, hopeless, romantic.

* My first car was given to me my an ex-boyfriend's parents (years after the relationship ended.) They were like my "other" parents.

* Every time David and I go on a trip somewhere we make sure to order pizza at least one night and always a local pizza place, of course. We want to find the best pizza but many times this has been a major fail. We still love Elizabeth's Pizza from behind our house the best though. That's one thing I will miss when we move. I realize the only things I will miss are the few places we really like to eat around here, actually.

* I've never been out of the country. It took me until the summer between 6th and 7th grade to leave the state of Ohio.

* Even though I lived in Ohio for 16 years and California for only 5, California is more "home". I don't even think I have a place I truly consider "home" anymore though. Maybe one day we'll find it!

* I love my dogs more than most would find normal.

* I really enjoy pole dancing for exercise and even own my own pole but it's been awhile since I've done much with it. I'd really like to start classes again but am nervous to join a class with a lot of people. Last time I did it she was just starting out and I was lucky to have a class either to myself or with one friend and it was great.

* My husband and I are high school sweethearts. We've been together for 7 years (next month) and I still feel more and more every day that he is absolutely perfect for me and I know we're meant to be together. I couldn't ask for anyone better.

* As much as I love photography and art I have very few pieces hanging in my home. One day I want to print out a bunch and hang them up but for some reason it's very hard for me to decide which ones. I even bought a ton of frames last year so I could do this and I tried and failed miserably. I think I'm finally up to 4 pieces hanging up...2 in the bedroom, 1 in the livingroom, and 1 in the hallway.

One Word

2010-02-02T08:03:00.000-05:00

I stumbled upon these dresses at American Eagle and they're SO comfy! I originally just bought and wanted the blue one but when I realized how comfy they were and that we weren't leaving Ft. Bragg this summer, as intended, I decided I needed one of each they carried. This will be my "uniform" for the summer, ha.

And now onto something different...

Answer in ONE word:

Your Cell Phone? Xenon.
Your Hair? Blah.
Your Mother? California.
Your Father? Ohio.
Your Favorite Food? Pizza?
Your Dream Last Night? Unremarkable.
Your Favorite Drink? Tea.
Your Dream/Goal? Move!
What Room Are You In? Livingroom.
Your Hobby? Photography.
Your Fear? Death.
Where Do You See Yourself In Six Years? Away!
Where Were You Last Night? Bed.
Something That You Aren’t? Confident.
Muffins? Delicious.
Wish List Item? David.
Where Did You Grow Up? Around.
Last Thing You Did? Water.
What Are You Wearing? Pj's.
Your TV? Off.
Your Pets? Loved.
Friends? Where?
Your Life? Stuck.
Your Mood? Lonely.
Missing Someone? Wholeheartedly.
Vehicle? Toyota!
Something You Aren’t Wearing? Bra.
Your Favorite Store? Depends.
Your Favorite Color? Hmmm....?
When Was The Last Time You Laughed? Days.
Last Time You Cried? Weeks.
Your Best Friend? Away.
One Place You Go To Over And Over Again? Commissary.
Facebook? Fine.
Favorite Place To Eat? Lots.

(Questions Taken from: NotebookDoodles)

In the Army now...

2010-01-28T09:46:00.000-05:00

(Isn't he so little here!!!)

It's been 6 years today since David joined the Army. He/we have been through a lot in those 6 years including 2 deployments to Iraq and now this time in Haiti. They aren't calling it a deployment but a TCS. It's close enough to me!

On Feb 1 he will be promoted to E-6 and then known as Staff Sergeant Sexypants! He found out about a week ago that he made points and I'm so proud of him!!

Oh, and as of now it looks like Germany will be pushed back until at least August. We have no official word yet though. He's going to try to push it back a bit further, maybe Octoberish, if he can get a spot in BNCOC at that time to push it back. We want it to be later in the year since it's not March/April like it was initially planned, so that way the pups can fly without issue. If it's in August, we may still have a problem and I may end up sitting here waiting for the weather to cool down enough for them to fly safely and comfortably, but hopefully not.

Also, if we can't get a military flight please feel free to make donations to the "Get the Chocobutts to Germany" fund because it's going to be quite costly, LOL.

I'm good now!

2010-01-22T20:22:00.001-05:00

(A few pics of his soldiers that David has taken in Haiti.)

It clicked yesterday and I'm good now! I'm over my hump and I'm no longer super sad. Of course I miss him and will continue to but I'm in the "good place" now, lol. I'm very happy and ready to take on this deployment, however long it is. Well, it's a TCS or whatever technically because it happened so quickly but we'll call it a deployment because I want to!

And...David made rank!!!! Official on Feb 1 he will now be known as Staff Sergeant Sexypants!! We'll be saying goodbye to Sergeant Sexypants. I will miss him, hehe.

So, with the emergent "deployment" I completely forgot my ID expired on Jan 18th!!!! I went on post earlier today and everything was fine then I came back home and went back again for an FRG meeting. Well, the gate guard stopped me and took my ID, oh nooo! I don't have a POA because he went way too quickly but fortunately after being turned around at the gate and getting inspected I was able to talk to his commander at the FRG meeting who apologized because most guys got POA's but the first guys out the door (ie David) weren't able to get them done, apparently. He said he'd call me in the morning and if the office was open tomorrow he'd take me to get it taken care of tomorrow and if not we would definitely do it Monday. I'm very grateful he's going to help me but I was like oh crap!! It completely slipped my mind, eesh. I wonder if they'll let me put his new rank on, hehe. Just kidding.

Oh, and the commander let me know that David is first on his mind because he knows he's within his 90 days of PCSing and he said hopefully by Monday we'll get some answers and let me know if we're still on for Germany or what's what. Again, I'm SO grateful for him! I plan on letting him know that I'm sure David would like to finish what he started as oppose to being pulled (but I'll talk to David about it tonight, HOPEFULLY) and if that is the case we'll be okay to open up our slot to someone else. I know David was talking about if we lose that slot he was going to ask for orders to Colorado and as excited as I was/am for Germany, I think I'd be okay with that too. As much as I'd love to have him home ASAP I'm 99% sure he will want to stay down there and help, at least awhile longer. I'm not sure if the Commander will allow it though because he knows how much we want Germany and he said he's going to do everything to make it happen. So again, as I always say...we'll see!

Things I Love...

2010-01-21T11:20:00.000-05:00

And now, after a walk with my puppies I will list a few things I love to brighten my day a bit.

* The sound of a dry leaf beneath my feet. I'm still a little kid in that regard and I try to get all the "good" ones.

*Gilmore Girls reruns on ABC Family. I watch them all the time.

*Our little indie movie theatre, the Cameo. It's one thing I'll miss from here...if I ever get to leave.

*Snow. Oh, how I miss the snow! And snowflakes and snowmen and all things snow.

*Pretty bras and undies. I never let myself buy the really pretty ones and tend to go for the more "functional" ones but this year I let myself buy a few pretty ones just because.

*The mountains. I miss my California mountains and the way that it's always cooler up there when it's sweltering down the hill or if you to get away from the snow for a bit you can head down the mountain. There aren't many places you can snowboard and surf in the same day (not that I've ever done either and I regret it so much).

*The smell of bread baking when I pass a Subway. Mmmm. It always makes me want to eat it. Just the bread though...they can keep the rest if they wish. (Although I'll eat it to get the bread!)

*Fresh cut grass. Grass between my toes. The smell of it. And the smell of blossoms...especially orange blossoms. Mmm.

*Cool summer nights. We never get to spend a nice summer night outside here a) because of the ridiculous amount of mosquitoes that will attack us and b) because it's always super hot and humid regardless of the time.

*Long, hot baths. LUSH baths are even better. And a book to read during.

I'm miles from where you are...

2010-01-21T09:57:00.000-05:00

"...I lay down on the cold ground. I pray that something picks me up and sets me down in your warm arms."

Being an Army wife (or military wife of any form) means being ready for the unexpected. Well, I wasn't. I wasn't prepared to be alone in the same place I was last year, sitting here waiting for the end of a deployment. Sure, this one isn't 15- months but at least I had a date to count down to and feel that I'm getting closer.

It's only been a week so far but in the last week I've heard 72 hours to 90 days and now it's being moved up to possibly 6 months. 6 months I wasn't prepared for. 6 months that may change the entire course of where my life was headed this year. 6 more months of waiting and putting my life on hold. I just spent 15 months doing the same thing and I finally got him back for 9 months only to be torn from me so quickly and without any notice. I have been holding out hope for weeks or a month or two but I'm slowly losing it. Every time I talk to him I hear something different, something possibly longer, and it's breaking me down piece by piece. Sure, it could be much shorter but it could be longer too and that unknown is killing me.

I should be stronger at this point but I wasn't ready for this. I was living in an ignorant place, excited for our PCS to Germany, quitting my job and going through the house to throw unneeeded stuff away, painting the house and getting ready to move, etc. All of this was ripped away from me and I hate that I'm feeling so sorry for myself but I can't help it. No, I am not sitting around crying all the time but it still hurts, bad. I'm fine 90% of the time but the other 10% of the time I just sit here wondering what's next? When will I see him again? When will we finally be able to move on with our lives? I know being in the Army you sacrifice a level of stability but this is just too much for me right now.

I wish I had someone here. I don't. No family, no friends. Nothing. I have my puppies and I'm so grateful I do because without them I'd be lost. I'm prepared now to sit and wait until the day I hear the word he's coming home. I'm prepared to sit and wait for word on our orders to change and what's ahead for us. I'm prepared now for these pieces but I wasn't prepared for this. (Not that anyone was.) This really sucks.

He was able to email me last night and tell me some of the little things that just sound so horrible. I wish I could be there for him so he could have someone to let it all out to. I'm so grateful he's strong and I wish I could be stronger for him. I am going to be I'm just not there yet. I'm still getting the shock out of my system and I know I should be over it by now and there but with so much uncertainty it's taking that much longer.

And on top of all that I am now responsible for the tax return this year. I'm meeting with a realtor today to start the process of selling our house although that's now also going to be put on hold a bit until we find out when and where we may be moving. Even if he gets his orders pushed back 90 days or so that pushes us back to July. The dogs can't fly in July, it's too hot. I am not going without them so I would either have to sit here and wait til September or October or whenever it's cool enough to fly or figure something else out. I'd rather be somewhere else happy with my family then sitting here waiting for life to begin somewhere I've dreamed of living this past year.

This post is really just for me to let out my frustrations that I can't scream to him and won't scream to him but I still just need to scream it out somewhere. And this is the place I'm doing that.

So many changes...

2010-01-18T21:55:00.000-05:00

This should have been my last week of work but now that David's down in Haiti it no longer is. My boss also just lost another rep in our territory so I can't abandon her right now, I know she needs help. I really need to get the house in order though...go through stuff, get my work stuff collected to turn in, deep clean, paint, get the yard done, etc. That's not including the getting the dogs ready for going overseas and getting us ready too. Fun! I really wish David was here, ugh.

I've been able to talk to him a few times, mostly just one or two texts a day but he was able to call for a minute yesterday so that was good to hear his voice. He still sounds like he's in good spirits so I'm grateful for that. He texted me this evening that he gets to sleep tonight and they're hoping to have the internet up and running tomorrow so if so he'll write me an email. I really hope they do! That's the one good thing about him being in communications...if there's a way to communicate he can find it! It will be nice because these texts are 50 cents per text to send and $5.99 a month international calling plus $1.69 a minute!! Wow. We only talked 2 minutes and 36 seconds and have had maybe 10 texts so hopefully it isn't TOO bad yet. And again hopefully he'll be able to call via landline or email here shortly which will be nice. Plus we'll get to say more than the bare minimum. He better be taking those pics for me! I know he said he's trying but it's been a bit hard so he better try harder, hehe. He told me his orders say 60 days but it's not certain and could be shorter than that (which I'm counting on!!). Also, I was finally able to get a ride on post and pick up his truck today too. Yay!

I've decided to take this time to jumpstart my attempt at losing a bit of weight and it started today. I did pretty well today and am already planning out my meal plan for tomorrow. I don't do "diet foods" or fake sugar, etc. but I'm figuring it out. I have to up the walks with the pups too because I know they love that exercise and need it too! I know I need to work out more too but aside from walking and the Wii fit I haven't found anything I can do right now. I wish I had a pool...I love swimming! I need to get back on my pole and do some more pole fitness too, actually. It's been awhile but it's also been way too hot or way too cold in the sunroom to practice. The weather is perfect right now so I think I'll do that...yes, I'll do that!

Haiti

2010-01-16T10:48:00.000-05:00

Well, this week took a very different turn from what I expected at the beginning. Wednesday morning I sent my husband off to work for a "normal" work day (well...kinda) and by 11am I had received a phone call telling me he was leaving immediately and he couldn't tell me where to or for how long. He told me to watch the news but I was at work and had no access to anything so I called about 6-7 people and finally someone called me back. I asked her what the heck was going on and she went and investigated and came back with an earthquake in Haiti.

Fortunately, by 7pm he was able to call me and tell me they hadn't yet left and were being allowed to go home for the night but were on 2 hour recall. I was so grateful because I hated to think the last time I saw him for who knows how long was at 3am when he kissed me before heading off to work. I was very heartbroken about not getting to say goodbye before. He had to be to work at 6am the next morning so I got a proper goodbye since we had no idea when he was leaving or if I'd see him again before that.

Then, he called me again around 9pm and told me they were being allowed to go home for the night but again were on 2 hour recall. Well, 15 minutes later he called me back and said he was on his way home when they got called back so it looked like he was leaving this time but he'd call me from Green Ramp if he could. He never got to call me again so I assumed he was gone at this point. Yesterday afternoon I finally received a text telling me to call AT&T and get an international plan on his phone. Man, those are expensive! For $5.99 a month we can get it for $1.69 a minute...nice. And texts are .50cents a piece. And of course he left his cell phone charger here so oh well! I just hope they get their landline and internet set up soon and I can find out what's going on. At least for now I have 2 texts a day and that's more than I can ask for!

As it stands now (last I heard) this can be for 72 hours to 90 days...good timeframe, no? I just hope like heck this doesn't interfere with our orders to Germany. I will be SOOO disappointed and I'm really nervous it may. Keeping my fingers crossed for days or weeks rather than months at this point!! Oh and I sent him with a camera so hopefully he takes some pictures for me. So as history repeats itself I'm sitting here alone, waiting for my soldier, in the same place as I was this time last year. At least this time it won't' be for 15 months, lol.

Thinking...

2010-01-11T08:35:00.000-05:00

It's been over a week since my last post, oh nooo! Nothing worth posting about has been going on in my mind. I've just been so overwhelmed with work and trying to figure out the logistics of our move to Germany (which is just about 2.5-3 months away!) and getting myself and the dogs there. Oh how I'd love to go right over there with David and stay in a hotel until we got our housing but it is often very difficult to find dog-friendly accommodations for that length of time. I really hope it doesn't take long to get us into housing but we really have no way of knowing that until we're there, making it make most sense financially for me and the dogs to stay back until we find out something.

I'll be missing my favorite part of the moving process though...house hunting! It's not quite the same in the military but if we choose to stay on post we may still have a few houses to look through and pick our favorite. I'd also love to walk through the villages and see if anything jumps out at us from the list of available houses. Oh well. Hopefully, it doesn't take more than a couple of weeks and definitely not more than a month for us to meet him over there. I'm so disappointed by this but again, it just makes the most sense. I really hope we can come up with something else though but as of now, this may be it.

The next on the list of overwhelming-ness is working with someone to sell or rent this house, ugh. I really just don't want to think about it but I know we have to. I have someone that was recommended by a friend so we're going to have a meeting later this month but again, I'm just dreading it so. Can we just be packed and moved to Germany already? Why do we have to go through the stressful part of the process? I'd rather just skip it if you don't mind.

P.S. I'm very excited to live in a place where it SNOWS again! We've had plenty of the cold down here in the south but none of the white stuff that makes being cold worth it.

(Photograph found at weheartit.com)

The End of Football Season...

2010-01-03T08:03:00.000-05:00

At least for us! Every (other!) Sunday during football season we order pizza and watch the Panthers play. Today is the Panthers last game of the season and David and a friend are going to the game!! Panthers vs Saints at the BofA stadium in Charlotte. I'm very happy for him (and really wish I got to go too, haha) and I'm glad he gets to go to a game before we leave. I really wanted to take him to one but it just never happened so I'm very excited for him to get to go! They left just before 8 this morning for a 3+ hour drive before the 1pm game. Go Panthers!

(Now that their season will be over I'm sure he'll still find a game every Sunday to watch until football season is officially over though.)

Pretty!

2010-01-02T18:08:00.000-05:00

I got some pretty, new Corelle dishes today! Knowing Corelle, I plan to have them for a long time coming! After using a gift card I got service for 8 for only $9.98! Sounds like an amazing price to me, hehe. I wanted two different designs but they only had this one at the store that I liked so we got two of these instead. So pretty!

ETA: And I'll add a photo of their first meal, hehe! Pork schnitzel with asparagus and zucchini...

(and) Hello, 2010!

2010-01-01T10:45:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!!!

A few of my goals are:

-Leave the country! And even move to a different one! (Let's hope that one sticks!) Hello, Germany! I can't wait to meet you!

-Learn to sew (and use my sewing machine)!

-Keep up with my blog! So far, so good!

-Learn how to use my camera, inside and out!

-Learn German! At least enough to get by...haha.

-Go through the house and throw away everything we don't need anymore before the big move!

-Explore a bit of Europe.

-Eat out less, cook more. I cook a decent amount but we still eat out too much. Mostly pizza. Oops!

-Get healthier! Eat better, work out a bit, lose some weight, drink less soda.

-Scrapbook more! I've done a bunch of little projects in the last few months but I want to scrap my journey in Germany better. It's a once in a lifetime chance!

I have run out of time to decide my "Word of the Year", aaah! I was trying to decide between "Changes" and "Possibilities". But...after looking at my list of goals a couple more came into mind and those are "Learn" and "Explore". Which to choose, which to choose??? I need some help!

I can't wait to see what 2010 has in store for me! I'm very excited!

Goodbye 2009...

2009-12-31T17:05:00.000-05:00

2009 has held a lot for me! It was a decent year but I for one am happy to see it go! I can't wait to see what 2010 holds for me but I have a feeling it's going to be a good year!

Here are 6 random things from the last 12 months:

1 Homecoming:

2 Pretty new Morelle purses:

3 Items sold in my Etsy shop (better than none!):
4 Years married to my love:

5 Mini-trips:

Ohio/West Virginia:

Ft. Jackson, SC:
Myrtle Beach, SC:
Ft. Gordon, Georgia:
Montreat, North Carolina:
(More than) 6 photoshoots:

Old Friends

2009-12-24T19:39:00.000-05:00

One of my oldest friends came down from Virginia Beach to visit yesterday! She brought her very adorable little guy and husband along with her and we had a great time! We went downtown and I took a few pictures of them (well, mostly Elijah!) and then we came home, cooked dinner, then baked and decorated some cookies! I miss her already! I really wish we lived closer but we haven't lived close to each other since we first got to know each other in middle school. She moved away and then I moved to California...then her to Japan...and California...of course right after I left California to move to North Carolina! It's gone on like that since then. Maybe one day we'll be closer...

Four Years

2009-12-16T08:28:00.000-05:00

The last four years have been the most wonderful years of my life. I'm so blessed I get to spend the rest of my life with you. Even when we are physically apart I am a stronger person when I am with you. Happy Anniversary, my love. I'm so happy I get to spend this one with you! To many, many more!

My First Present!

2009-12-13T21:08:00.000-05:00

Isn't she beautiful!? We went to Sears on Saturday and using a giftcard we bought a beautiful Kenmore sewing machine!

My first project was a laptop sleeve for David. He wanted Panthers sleeve so I made him a Panthers sleeve!

To show the lining:

I really want to go to JoAnn's today and get some fabric to make a few throw pillows or throw pillow covers...I haven't decided which one. We'll see if I can stop myself from going until later in the week, lol. I should get housework done today but I have a feeling I'll be sewing. Oops!

Busy, Busy, Busy

2009-12-11T16:44:00.000-05:00

Oh, man. Today has been SOOO hectic and last night was too. I ended up with about 3 hours of sleep last night which didn't help any with the craziness that was today. Fortunately for me, it's almost over and even more fortunate, it's Friday! That is the only thing keeping me going. Hopefully David will get home at a reasonable hour so I can get dinner started soon too.

Before the craziness of today began I decided to go to Joann's to look at sewing machines and get some fabric to make some pretty file folders (found here: http://www.katherinejalaty.com/2009/08/tutorial-vintage-sheet-file-folders.html) I ended up making just 4 today but I plan to make 4 more later on with the rest of this fabric. (The purple one isn't stained, just a bit wet still!) I thought I had some leftover colored folders but I couldn't find them so I just used plain ones. Aren't they beautiful!? I think they will look great on my desktop! Simply gorgeous.

Lucas

2009-12-07T08:16:00.001-05:00

My boy is FOUR today! 4!

I can't believe he's getting so old. It breaks my heart! He's such a big, wonderful boy though, I couldn't imagine my life without him! He was born 10 days before David and I got married and we brought him home just over a month after we got married and moved to North Carolina.

He's the goofiest, most fun-loving dog I've ever met. (Just ask anyone that's spent any time with him!) He has a very unique perspective on the world and he is all "dog". He's the epitome of a Labrador Retriever in every which way too.

(Just 3 weeks old and already so big!)

It was love at first sight! We went to get a female weim and I asked if she happened to have ANY chocolate labs. Turns out she had ONE left. The biggest of the litter and a male. She brought out my boy and David saw the look on my face and said "We'll take this one." I told him we could look at the weims if he wanted (we never even saw any) but he said no, he could tell I wanted him.

I love you my Lucas! You are the best "first dog" anyone could have! (Even if you can be the biggest butthead I've ever known! You're lucky you're absolutely adorable and way too cute for your own good!) Thank you for "protecting" me from everyone because everyone is completely terrified of you when they walk up to the door! That's my boy!

And one more of my puppy when he first came home!

A cold Sunday morning...

2009-12-06T13:42:00.000-05:00

It's the second night in the row we've slept with the heater on...and the second night in the row I haven't slept well. I don't enjoy the heater but when it starts to get cold I really have no choice but to freeze or deal. I deal. It's a big reason I don't turn the heat on unless I truly have to.

This morning I made my version of a breakfast "Monte Cristo" and it turned out pretty good. I'd never had one before so I just faked it.

Now we're watching the Panthers and that's about all we have planned for our Sunday! Tomorrow, David hopefully goes to the board (they better not push it back again!)

Hello, December!

2009-12-05T16:42:00.000-05:00

We finally put up our tree! We were going to do it last week but we figured we should wait since the movers were supposed to come last Monday to pick up Kristina's stuff but since they didn't come (but will be here this coming Monday) we didn't want to wait any longer. Well, I didn't!

It's a rainy, cool Saturday but it's been wonderful. We took the dogs for a walk this morning then went out to breakfast and ran over to Target and Pier 1. When we got home we put up the Christmas Tree while listening to my most favorite Christmas cd EVER...Nsync Christmas, yep. You heard it right! Now it's up and gorgeous and I'm so happy! We also went to the commissary and bought our groceries for the week and also stuff for fondue tonight! We'll be enjoying fondue and wine (although I also have sparkling juice for after because I'm not a huge fan of alcohol) while watching "Four Christmases" next to our beautiful, lit Christmas Tree! I love this season!

And here are a few things we bought this morning. *LOVE*

Our pretty little table tree (with the real tree in the background!):

My "2009" ornament from David:

My "2009" ornament for David:

It's December!

2009-12-02T09:08:00.000-05:00

Which means...I can finally start my (very first!) "December Daily" I've been hoarding stuff for since October! I bought a Christmas Art Journal from "Evalicious" (shopevalicious.com) and broke it down, moved it around, and added other pieces to it to make it "mine". I still haven't come up with a unique way to do my numbers for each day and I really don't like my "1" but oh well! I also haven't finished my cover yet but I started it, lol. FYI: The star is on its own acrylic, not on the chipboard underneath. I haven't quite figured out what I'm doing yet but I have a few ideas.

Unfinished cover:

Day One (journaling on the back of the picture):

HAPPY DECEMBER!!!

Vilseck, Germany

2009-11-29T09:10:00.000-05:00

It has come to my attention that our arrival date to Vilseck, Germany is only 4 months away!?!? Oh my! It went from 10 months to 4 months overnight, it seems. If only we knew that it was REALLY going to happen and that the military wouldn't take those orders away we could get started with everything we need to do...such as sell the house! The housing market is way down still but hopefully it should start to look up here shortly with the influx of the tens of thousands of troops expected to come to Ft. Bragg in 2010 but if not, I'm a wee bit worried. We'll just have to wait and see what happens! I think we've decided we may sell back our beloved 4-Runner and just keep the old Tacoma to bring with us. That will save us a decent amount every month that can go towards a mortgage payment instead of selling a car that is already paid off. Again, we'll see!

Since I haven't been there myself, I ran to "Google Images" and came up with this photo of what will hopefully be our newest duty station!! It's just so beautiful! Definitely a step up from Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, lol.

(http://www.flickr.com/photos/postscriptedlove/79773936/)

Isn't it beautiful!?!? So picturesque and gorgeous. I can't wait to *hopefully* be able to explore Germany and take pictures of all that is offered there! *fingers crossed* And look at that photo....SNOW! We've had maybe one dusting of snow here each year since I moved here in 2005 and I really miss my snow. Back home in California they just had their first snowfall of the season and it looks so beautiful! I miss my mountains.

*Stole this photo from my brother in law.*

Lake Arrowhead, California

Thankful

2009-11-26T08:48:00.000-05:00

Although it still doesn't feel like Thanksgiving for me (it kind of snuck up on me!) I have many things to be grateful for. Here are just a few...

I am thankful for...

-My wonderful husband and the love we share.

-My two chocolate puppies and their unconditional love and friendship they've offered me throughout the years.

-Good friends that are always there when you need to complain about something.

-Our health.

-My husband's job stability, given to us by the US Army.

-Having a (mostly) warm house to come home to. (I'm quite stingy with the heater.)

-Having a (mostly) wonderful family and knowing who I can count on.

-Not having to wonder where my next meal is coming from. I've been there growing up and it's never fun having to worry about food.

-Being able to spend this Thanksgiving with my husband. We usually have a decent sized group but this year it will just be the two of us and that sounds absolutely wonderful to me.

-Both of us having off work from Wednesday until Monday! I LOOOOVE long weekends!

And I'll be throwing our tiny 3lb turkey breast in the oven here shortly, starting sweet potatoes (David's favorite part!), mashed potatoes, green beans, carrots, rolls, gravy, and the pies I cooked yesterday! We're not doing stuffing and cranberry sauce because neither of us really care for them and I only make them when other people are coming since I assume they expect it. Since it's just us this year there is no need for the formality. Am I forgetting something? I have felt like I am for a few days now so we'll see if I am or not.

Fall Colors

2009-11-25T15:21:00.000-05:00

A few of these colors I just honestly don't expect to see this time of year but here they are! This was just a quick glance around my yard to see what there was to see. I always go out when the spring flowers are blooming but I try to pay attention to the less obvious too. Most everything is already brown here already but there are many colors too. Looking out my window now I see two different tree barks that I overlooked earlier. I may have to head out there and snap a few pictures of those too! They look quite amazing from here.

Isn't it cute?

2009-11-24T13:30:00.000-05:00

This is a picture of my husband pulling his little brother towards the ocean when they were just little kids! Aren't they just so cute!?

The weather is cooling down and it's feeling like fall again! I think it's for good this time...hopefully! This time of year we usually have quite a few guests over for Thanksgiving but this year it will just be myself and David. All of the guys that usually join us are either out of the Army now or able to head home for the weekend. I bought a 3lb turkey breast and I need to pull that out tonight to thaw! He's working CQ tonight so he won't be home until tomorrow morning but after that he's off until Monday! Yay!

I think Friday we may put the tree up. We usually wait a bit longer but s

ince he wasn't here last year to join in I really want to do it. I'm thinking of fondue, hot chocolate, and...my guilty pleasure...Nsync Christmas. Yes, you read right. It's my favorite Christmas CD and I love getting to listen to it. "Don't knock it 'til you try it!" (And no, I don't listen to any of their other music.)

I've been working on getting my "Daily December" journal ready for well, December! I'm very excited about it and I hope it turns out as well as I imagine it to. And tonight I get to play Animal Crossing on Wii with my Nikki! We haven't been able to play since January/February and we finally set a date to do it tonight! I can't wait! I miss her. I can only imagine how ridiculous my "town" will be! Yeah...we are THAT cool.

And finally...my TV stand is indeed done!! It's been done for awhile now but I finally brought it into the house on Friday and attempted to get everything set up. I didn't get very good pictures of it but here it is!

Weekends

2009-11-15T14:56:00.000-05:00

Weekends are never long enough.

David got home early on Friday which was wonderful! We went to Sam's, HHGregg, and Gander Mtn and we came home with a Water Wubba for Lucas to use for water retrieving. He has gone through a handful of Water Kongs in the past and we keep pulling the rope out (he loves to tug) so we thought we'd try something else this time. I made some delicious buffalo chicken pizza (with broccoli...we don't like celery) and we shared his chicken salad from lunch since they had an NCO lunch and he didn't get to eat it. It just looked too good to throw away! FYI, it was! We watched "The Ugly Truth" and it was okay but neither of us were captivated by it. We have "The Taking of Pelham 123" to watch too, but we haven't yet. Maybe we will tonight.

Saturday, we ran a few errands in the morning and we had a wedding to attend at 3pm. It was at a little church out in Raeford and it was so beautiful! The ceremony was short and sweet...perfect. It took maybe 15 minutes at most. I wish all weddings were so short...including mine. (Our pastor talked way too much though so that didn't happen.) They had their reeption at their new house, in a tent in the backyard. It was all very beautiful and we had a good time. I didn't grab my camera as we ran out the door (we were running late!) so I'll have to wait for someone to send us a few pictures if we want any, which I do!

This morning the newest Mario came out for Wii! We pre-ordered it back in August and I was so happy to be able to pick it up this morning. After that, I went to the commissary and bought groceries for the week then came home and ordered some pizza for lunch/Panthers game while David went to get his haircut. He got home in time for us to play a bit of Mario before our pizza arrived and we ate and are now watching the Panthers. (As I write, we are into the 4th quarter and the score is 21-19, Panthers in the lead.)

This week is going to be exciting though!! Thursday, the latest Twilight movie, New Moon comes out! I've loved that book series for many years now, since my friend told me to read it, between New Moon and Eclipse, I believe. The first movie was pretty disappointing but because I loved the books, I still loved it. New Moon looks SO much better though so I'm excited! Plus, David will be here to go with me! We have tickets, along with two friends, to go at the midnight showing, yay! Well, 12:02 because the 12:01 showing was sold out before we bought our tickets (which I bought maybe 3 weeks ago?). There were no 12:01 shows. My friend is picking up her husband from AIT on Wednesday and they may be heading up to New York this weekend to start their lives together. She's been living with me since the beginning of this year while he went to Boot Camp and AIT and he graduated a couple weeks ago and has been doing a special class which he finished this past week too. His orders were for Germany but he decided against going Airborne and that changed his orders to Ft. Drum, NY. I'm very happy for them!

My Husband, My Hero!

2009-11-11T13:00:00.000-05:00

I'm so grateful to be able to spend my Veteran's Day with my husband, my hero! He became a war veteran at the age of 19 and recently returned from his second deployment to Iraq March 31st of this year (15 months) and there is not a day that goes by that I am not thankful to spend with him and have him home with me. It may seem like it's been awhile since he returned home but it still feels like he just returned sometimes.

This January he will have been in the Army for 6 years. At this time his intentions are to re-enlist and eventually retire so we will have to wait and see what the future brings for us. I'm so proud to be his wife and will stand beside him through everything.

Even if you don't support the war you can support the troops and all that they have gone through. As one of my favorite quotes go "If you don't stand behind the troops, please, by all means, feel free to stand in front of them!"

Puppies and Spaces

2009-11-09T15:49:00.000-05:00

Since the weather has started to cool down the pups want to spend more time outside BUT the mosquitoes are still AWFUL here so they don't really get to yet. We've had a couple of very cold nights/mornings but nothing cold enough to kill them. Yesterday, I let him sit outside in the dirt for about 10 minutes before I called him in because I could see he was being attacked by mosquitoes. A few minutes after he came inside, I noticed his eyes were super swollen from being bit!! It's happened a few times in the past but it's so sad. I gave him a bit of Benedryl and it went down within a few hours but I just hate those evil things! I can't wait until it gets cold enough to kill the majority of them (we still end up getting mosquito bites for Christmas annually) but it hasn't come yet. The bad part of living in a "warmer climate". I don't know if Lucas is just more sensitive to them than Roxy or what but Roxy never seems to have issues like this. Luc's had it a few times on his eyes and his snout.

And then, as promised, a few pictures of my "new space"!! It may not look like much to most but to me it's pretty darn perfect! It's still not done yet as far as organization goes and I want to buy a few more things but it's good enough for now!

And just in time for my shipment from Scenic Route!! I'm so sad they are going out of business but they were SOOOO SWEET and sent me a few extra chipboard albums with my order!! I am so excited! I really wanted to buy some more but I couldn't spend that much and chose paper and accents/embellisments instead of albums since they are harder to come by. Thank you, Scenic Route Paper Company!!! You can hardly see anything in this picture but I didn't take a more detailed photo, sorry!

I Love Sundays!

2009-11-08T12:15:00.001-05:00

My favorite day of the week in my favorite time of the year!! Sunday has always been one of mine and David's favorite days of the week for many reasons. Today simply consisted of grocery shopping, breakfast (biscuits and gravy...so bad but so good!), and football with the Carolina Panthers (which always includes pizza) and since the Panthers didn't play until 4 we watched a movie and went to Lowe's to grab a few things for my latest project..."A Place to Scrapbook".

For about $20 I went from dining room table/living room coffee table to my very own place. Granted, it's a closet...but it's amazing! I'll upload some of those pictures tomorrow because it's still looking quite disheveled at the moment. There's A LOT of stuff to go through...a lot. I found the idea in a blog I read (I didn't save it to link back, sorry!) and thought "Duh, why didn't I think of that...I have the perfect place!" I already use a closet to hide all of my scrapbooking stuff...and it's always looked awful and I can never find anything I need.

Now, I'm cooking up some chicken for David's lunches this week (well Monday and Tuesday...I will cook some again Tuesday night) and getting that ready to be packed in the morning. This week...spinach salad with chicken and naan on the side. He had the same last week and really enjoyed it...but I forgot to cook the bacon so he won't have that for tomorrow.

And a few random pictures of me before I went to the commissary this morning. I don't know why I feel the need to share them but here they are anyway! I do love this shirt/jacket!

Thrifty Days!

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We (Kristina and myself) have been doing a lot of thrift store shopping lately but specifically for furniture, not clothes. You can see one of my super finds a few posts down (which is almost complete! It shouldn't have taken this long but work, life, and weather have gotten in the way a bit) of a dresser turned tv stand for our livingroom but today I went specifically for clothing. I found a few pieces that I love! Each of them were $1 a piece so not too shabby (chic, ha)!! Don't mind me though...I usually prefer to be behind the camera, not in front. I just took these real quick with David's point and shoot camera instead of attempting to mess with mine. I can't find my tripod mount and I'm so sad!! That may be a future investment if I can't find it...hrmm.

First up, Navy blue polka dot jacket/shirt thingy:

Next, Black and White long skirt converted into a dress:

And thirdly, a longer green skirt turned skirt/dress type thing? I think I'll like this with the black top though but I was already wearing the white one. No leggings...maybe tights? Who knows.

There are a few other ones I would love to go to so maybe I'll make it to one or two in the near future! I was really hoping for some cardigans and sweaters but I didn't expect to find any and of course, didn't!

Me, Today Pt. 2

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*I'm going to give this a shot again!

Outside my window...is the cool weather I've been waiting so many months for!

I am thinking...that I really should head out and finish up my work soon. It will only take about 3 hours but I haven't even made it out of my robe yet. Soon!

I am thankful for...my wonderful husband and our relationship. There's nothing better out there!

I am wearing...one of David's t-shirts and a robe. My feet are cold.

I am remembering..all of the information I have to input for work when I get back home.

I am going...to be out of the house before noon! Hopefully sooner...I'm so lazy.

I am reading...7th Heaven. The seventh book in "The Women's Murder Club" series.

I am hoping...we can go to Raleigh next weekend! My purse comes quickly! And Paypal hurries up so I can pay Eve (Evalicious) for my Christmas Journal!

I am creating...a "November Daily" journal/scrapbook. And I'm working on my "December Daily" journal/scrapbook, too! I can't wait to get back to that...hopefully today when I get home from work!

On my mind...not too much, surprisingly. Well, at this moment.

From the kitchen...dirty dishes!! It's a wreck so hopefully I can get back to that after work too. (Before or after my journal/scrapbook? Haha!) Maybe spaghetti tonight. David isn't going to be home for dinner so it's just Kristina and me and she'll be asleep unless I wake her up so we'll see.

Around the house...it's full of furniture! Not my furniture...Kristina's furniture! She'll be moving by the end of the month so we've started picking up her furniture and it's

all sitting in my dining room right now. We almost had the couch/loveseat too, but they said they can bring it back the day the movers are here. Once she moves out I'll have a lot of cleaning and rearranging to do at the end of this month. And then come the Christmas decorations!

Some of my favorite things...well, I just did a blog about that yesterday! (Can't wait for my purse!!)

A few plans for the rest of the week...Today is my "Friday!" so I'm pretty happy about that. I think I have cleaning, catching up on some tv, and scrapbooking to do tomorrow. And maybe a bath and my book, too! Sounds super to me! I need to make puppy treats for my choco-butts so I should do that too.

A photo to share...My handsome husband! We went and saw his cousin's soccer game last weekend so I took this pic before the game. <3

See my previous blog about this! Taken from the "Simple Women's Daybook"...again!

These are...

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a few of my favorite things (right now!)

1.) Morelle! (And her beautiful creations!) I can't wait to own my 2nd Morelle!! <3

Photo taken from "Morelle on Etsy" :

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=33813683&ref=em

2.) Great prices! While working today, I found Scott Naturals on Closeout while I was putting up $.75 off coupons for them so I grabbed 6 packs and they ended up costing $1.50 each (as opposed to the $4.49 original price (not that I ever bought them at that price). Hopefully, it doesn't feel cheap...I've never used this brand before.

Photo taken from "Scott": http://www.scottcommonsense.com/Themes/Default/Images/Products/STisNat4pkBeauty_full.jpg

3.) Laughter! And--finding out that one of David's favorite comedians is going to be in Raleigh next weekend. Hopefully, we can figure out a way to go (pending David's work schedule)!

Photo taken from: http://www.goodnightscomedy.com/

Blogs and Bloggers

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It's November already!! I can hardly believe it. So many things are going to be going on this month (and the rest of the year) so I'm quite a

nxious to see how it all plays out!

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately. Some about photography, some about scrapbooking, some about cooking, and even some by a few of my favorite Etsy shops! With my new venture into blogging, one of the blogs I read (Evalicious) mentioned taking a "Blogging for Scrapbookers" class and I checked it out and thought it was a great idea. Well, today was Day One.

For Day One I was told to "Include a scrapbook page, a craft project or some of your favourite scrapbook supplies in the photo, so both messages are clear: using the computer to blog, but this is also about scrapbooking." so that's exactly what this is!

Another blog I read, Ali Edwards, has a "December Daily" journal, journaling every day of December. With so much possibly going on this November, I decided I would practice for December with a shot at November too. So yesterday I ran out and grabbed a few supplies and bound my own little "November Daily" book. We'll see how that goes, too! And of course, my new BFF, my MacBook Pro!! (Don't mind the bit of dog drool on my laptop...it tends to make an appearance everywhere.)

Honorable mentions:

http://aliedwards.typepad.com/

"Vintage Finds"

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Yesterday, I was out working when I stumbled upon an “antique store” going out of business. I decided to stop in and see what they had to offer. They didn’t have much left but I saw this dresser and thought it would look great if I painted it and changed out the hardware, so I bought it. For $20 I figured it could make a really nice TV stand to replace the one we have now that my friend is going to buy when she moves. All of the TV stands I’ve seen that I like are between $250-$500 so if this one looks like I hope it will it will only end up being about $50-$60 after new paint and hardware! I’m excited to see how it turns out!

I forgot to take a real “before” photo but I remembered before I started the last drawers. It was all dirty white when I bought it and the red/brown paint is primer, not the color I’m going with so don’t worry!

I’ll update when it’s all done! Right now the drawers have their first layer of paint and the dresser portion is mostly primed and I think I need to run back out and get another can of primer and paint to finish up.

Before:

Me, Today Pt. 1

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Taken from the blog of: shopEvalicious.com

Outside my window...is a beautiful North Carolina fall day!

I am thinking...about the many changes coming our way in the near future.

I am thankful for...my husband being home.

I am wearing...comfy pants and a black tank top. And my Ugg boots when my feet get cold.

I am remembering...how very different everything was a year ago.

I am going...to go to work later? Or Hobby Lobby? Be good or be bad, hrmmm?

I am reading...Dead as a Doornail...still. I haven't had a whole lot of time to read lately and it saddens me.

I am hoping...when I actually get out to work that it won't take too long and I can get it all done in a day.

I am creating...a lot of stuff lately! I've just been in a very creative mood. I just finished a little book from our trip to Myrtle Beach back in August...picture below!

On my mind...a lot! A few things I don't feel like discussing, all of the stuff I should really do around the house today and this upcoming week...how busy my next Week 1 will be...how much longer everything will be...and so much more.

From the kitchen...Korean Beef! I put it all in the marinade less than an hour ago so we'll see how it tastes. It's the first time I've ever made it but the recipe has good reviews. I should really get my MIL's recipe.

Around the house...it's not too bad. Not much going on. I have a bit more cleaning done so the kitchen is good (except the floor) and the living room is good (except for dusting). I have a lot more to do but it's good enough for now...kinda, sorta.

Some of my favorite things...weekends! Chai tea (soy, please)!

A few plans for the rest of the week...I'll have to meet with my boss tomorrow? Start/finish all of my work today and/or tomorrow since it's due by 9pm tomorrow! Writing a paper. Sounds about it!

A photo to share...

Love

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David, Lucas and Roxy...the three loves of my life. I think that says it all!

Etsy Shops I Love

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**Sorry, for some reason the typing won't format well. I apologize in advance!**
So, let the record show that I LOVE ETSY! I've been a huge fan of it for the last few years and I think it's just

an amazing place to find homemade and unique gifts (for yourself or others!) It's always the first place I go

when I need a baby gift, especially. I just thought I'd show a few of my favorite people!!

First off, 3 Dirty Dawgz. I LOVE Lori and I LOVE her collars too! When I first got my Lucas I fell in love with

her collars from a board that I was on and we became good friends. 3.5 years and 2 dogs later I own well

over 20 of her collars (and a few matching leashes!) She has an amazing product (VERY WELL MADE, even for

my 100lb chocolate pulling machine macho man) and the are so unique and very well priced. The biggest plus

for me is her customer service is absolutely amazing and she's such a wonderful person!

www.dirtydawgz.etsy.com

or you can check out her website at

www.3dirtydawgz.com and you won't be sorry!

Second, a bit for my creative side we have Evalicious! When I first stumbled on her Etsy shop back in January this

year I fell in love with her creativity and unique scrapbooking products. I've always been a huge fan of scrapbooking

but all of her stuff is so different than anything I'd ever seen before (in a VERY GOOD way, of course!) and I immediately

fell in love. I bought a "Scenic Route Kit" and turned it into my "wedding scrapbook" because over 3 years later I still hadn't

worked on that. (OOPS!) She just opened her shop off of Etsy too so definitely check her out (and subscribe to her blog too!!)

http://www.shopevalicious.com/

And last but certainly not least, Morelle! If you love purses (or even if you don't) you'll love hers! I bought my first back

in February (while overseas my husband told me to get one for myself for Valentine's Day so I did!!), a wool Morchella and I

LOVE it. It's beautiful and original and absolutely wonderfully well made. I have my eyes on a new bag, a Truffle (or a Tulip?

I think I've "decided" Truffle solely so I can put my new MacBook Pro in it...and everything else I own!) because just one bag, and

a smaller bag at that (I've always been a big bag kind of gal) just won't do it forever. I can't imagine loving another purse

that isn't a Morelle again though! I'm in trouble...

http://www.morelle.nl/blog.html

www.morelle.etsy.com

These are my favorite people...who are yours???

My Etsy Shop

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I decided a few weeks ago to re-open my Etsy shop. Before, I was going to attempt dog treats from a shop I had last year called "Chocolate Dog Barkery". It was getting pretty successful but the only reason I started it was to keep me busy while David was on his 15 month deployment to Iraq. Once he returned, I decided to "shut down shop". Now I'm getting the "itch" again to do something, anything! I would love to bake dog treats again (and if you're interested, let me know and I can send you a product list!) but I do believe my life is going to be a bit too hectic for me to be able to do that without making myself a complete mess. I still bake for my pups and friend's pups too and would love to do some for you if you want! As I was saying though, I decided to re-open my Etsy shop and this time I'm selling a few of my photographs. I figured it was a less stressful way to still be creative and get myself out there and so far I love it! I've only made a couple of sells but that's fine with me...I didn't really expect any! As the weather is cooling down I hope to get back out and take more pictures which will end up being added to my Etsy shop, of course! If you'd like to visit me, please do!!

provosto.etsy.com

Here's a little preview of a few of my favorites! I also have postcards (which I LOVE! They turned out beautifully) and I threw in a few tags, just in case anyone was interested.

Downtown Photoshoot

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Yesterday we went out and did a little photoshoot downtown and I think a few of them turned out really well. None of them are necessarily "big winners" but I know that they will love them. The weather wasn't cooperating all day and my camera was acting up (not to mention the "male model") so we kinda just had to go out there and do something and were happy to get anything at all!