New Years Eve at the Beach

We made it back to Pensacola Tuesday night. What a long drive that is. I'm glad we don't have to do it again until we move. The dogs were excellent...all the humans did well too. There wasn't a sign of snow or rain this time. My sister is here visiting for a week and a half-ish. Very exciting! Today it was so warm and sunny that we went to the beach, took off our shoes, rolled up our pants and walked along the waters edge picking up sand dollars and other shells. There were more people than I thought would be at the beach and many more in the water. Lots of kids swimming and building sand castles. I often wondered where these people have come from to think this weather is so hot that they will get in what I think is freezing cold water. I mean are they from say North Dakota where today was truely a hot day. Anyways, just a thought that pops in my head. 

Tonight, we are going to downtown Pensacola to watch the Pelican Drop. It is a mini version of the ball droping in New York. There will be music, food, activities and fireworks. funfun!

Happy New Year!!

Virginia Beach Vaca

I can't believe it's Christmas Eve! We made it up to Virginia just fine last Saturday but the snow storm that we drove through was just crazy. Luckily VDOT was prepared this time and there were plenty of snow plows and salt trucks out. The worst of the storm was in the DC/Richmond area. That's where we used to live and never had any snow!

We had an early Christmas celebration with the in-laws. It was a lot of fun. We celebrated birthdays in the afternoon. My someday SIL's is the 13th, mine was the 17th and E's is Jan 5th. Then I went to a cookie exchange with my mom in Virginia beach. I think it's fun to spend time with old friends we don't see very often. After dinner we celebrated Christmas. Let's just say I will be making some fabulous scrapbooks come the new year!

We spent tuesday in Va Beach visiting friends and family. E's brother just bought a house there so we had to go visit it! One of E's best friends had a baby in and we haven't seen the little cutie since she was two weeks old. So of course I got my baby fix in. She is just adorable. We went to outback and passed her all around the table and she stayed happy the whole time. I wish I had been smart enough to take picture but I wasn't.

Last night we went to the celebration of lights in Newport News. My mom told me that 24 years ago when I was first born she wanted to take me to this christmas event. And this is the first time we have been able to do it....we haven't always lived around here so that's why it took so long. That's the life of a military family.

I think we are about half way through our vacation and having lots of fun. I'm really writing all this so next year when I can't remember what we did...I'll have this to remind me of where we were.


I really hope everyone out there is has a little time off from work and has a chance to relx, enjoy some cookies and enjoy the holiday season!

Today I'm 24

Today is my brithday! and everytime I say the number 24 it weirds me out. I get that a year has passed but I don't feel any older. I actually feel like I should still be around 18...I mean who is this grown up that graduated high school and college and got married. I'm pretty sure I will forget and tell someone i'm 23. I believe though that you aren't really a grown up till you have kids of your own. In this point I will not count my lovely animals as my babies...even if I treat them that way. I am not a grown up.

Why is being a grown up such a bad thing? When we are really little everyone says don't be in a rush to grow up, enjoy it. It's as if we are programmed from very early not to want to be an adult and have responsibilities and all that goes along with it? But I suppose really we should embrace it because no matter what it happens...and I suppose it's not so bad. So here are some great things about being a grown up. At least I think they are great.

* Living with my husband and all that implies ;)
* Making my own schedule
* Being able to eat dessert first
* No bed time
* No curfew
* Alcoholic Beverages - all kinds
* Money - at one point I made a lot more then I did at 17. One day I will again.
* Family -  I think you appreciate them more as you get older or at least can show it in a more productive way.
* My own house and car  - to keep as clean/dirty (more on the clean side for me) as I want

One thing I do miss terribly from when I was say below the age of 19 is the feeling that you are invincible that you can do anything and you don't stop and think about the consequences. At some point you start thinking before you do and that's when you become a grown up.

Happy Bithday to anyone else born on this special day!!

 

A Soldier's Christmas Poem

My mom sent this to me and I just loved it so I had to post it! It came in perfect timing because I am baking cookies for my adopted soldier. :)

TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS,


HE LIVED ALL ALONE,

IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE MADE OF

PLASTER AND STONE.



I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY

WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE,

AND TO SEE JUST WHO

IN THIS HOME DID LIVE.



I LOOKED ALL ABOUT,

A STRANGE SIGHT I DID SEE,

NO TINSEL, NO PRESENTS,

NOT EVEN A TREE.



NO STOCKING BY MANTLE,

JUST BOOTS FILLED WITH SAND,

ON THE WALL HUNG PICTURES

OF FAR DISTANT LANDS.



WITH MEDALS AND BADGES,

AWARDS OF ALL KINDS,

A SOBER THOUGHT

CAME THROUGH MY MIND.



FOR THIS HOUSE WAS DIFFERENT,

IT WAS DARK AND DREARY,

I FOUND THE HOME OF A SOLDIER,

ONCE I COULD SEE CLEARLY.



THE SOLDIER LAY SLEEPING,

SILENT, ALONE,

CURLED UP ON THE FLOOR

IN THIS ONE BEDROOM HOME.



THE FACE WAS SO GENTLE,

THE ROOM IN SUCH DISORDER,

NOT HOW I PICTURED

A UNITED STATES SOLDIER.



WAS THIS THE HERO

OF WHOM I'D JUST READ?

CURLED UP ON A PONCHO,

THE FLOOR FOR A BED?



I REALIZED THE FAMILIES

THAT I SAW THIS NIGHT,

OWED THEIR LIVES TO THESE SOLDIERS

WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT.



SOON ROUND THE WORLD,

THE CHILDREN WOULD PLAY,

AND GROWNUPS WOULD CELEBRATE

A BRIGHT CHRISTMAS DAY.



THEY ALL ENJOYED FREEDOM

EACH MONTH OF THE YEAR,

BECAUSE OF THE SOLDIERS,

LIKE THE ONE LYING HERE.



I COULDN'T HELP WONDER

HOW MANY LAY ALONE,

ON A COLD CHRISTMAS EVE

IN A LAND FAR FROM HOME.



THE VERY THOUGHT

BROUGHT A TEAR TO MY EYE,

I DROPPED TO MY KNEES

AND STARTED TO CRY.



THE SOLDIER AWAKENED

AND I HEARD A ROUGH VOICE,

'SANTA DON'T CRY,

THIS LIFE IS MY CHOICE;



I FIGHT FOR FREEDOM,

I DON'T ASK FOR MORE,

MY LIFE IS MY GOD,

MY! COUNTRY, MY CORPS.'



THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER

AND DRIFTED TO SLEEP,

I COULDN'T CONTROL IT,

I CONTINUED TO WEEP.



I KEPT WATCH FOR HOURS,

SO SILENT AND STILL

AND WE BOTH SHIVERED

FROM THE COLD NIGHT'S CHILL.



I DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE

ON THAT COLD, DARK, NIGHT,

THIS GUARDIAN OF HONOR

SO WILLING TO FIGHT.



THEN THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER,

WITH A VOICE SOFT AND PURE,

WHISPERED, 'CARRY ON SANTA,

IT'S CHRISTMAS DAY, ALL IS SECURE.'



ONE LOOK AT MY WATCH,

AND I KNEW HE WAS RIGHT.

'MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIEND,

AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT.'



This poem was written by a Marine.


GOD Bless Our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen This Christmas!!!

Raining Cats and Dogs

It's raining here...it rains a lot more than I ever thought it would. I normally hate rain and would rather have pretty snow than rain but the past couple of days the low has been 65* so I'll take warm rain. The biggest problem with rain is that I don't take the dogs for a walk...selfish I know. So here we are the 4 of us all all couped up in the house. This gives me time to work on some projects and make sure I have things in order before Christmas vacation. This gives the animals time to go wild! Bear is the only one brave/dumb enough to want to spend the same amount of time outside as if there isn't a torrential down pour happening. He seems to actually enjoy it outside. It's like one huge water bowl outside. *Yum*

This is early in the afternoon. This was the first outing in the rain I can't believe how flooded it is!

Obviously Bear wasn't sure what to think at first.

Nothing like the taste of muddy water!

And my two little girls who refiuse to get their paws wet watch from inside.

Notice all the towels there to help dry him off.

While I'm not a huge fan of the rain at least I have something to amusse me

I won!

Near the end of November I posted about an ornament giveaway hosted by Leslie at A Blonde Ambition! I love ornaments that mean something to you or handmade ornaments. Don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with a couple of plain round ornaments but there's just something special when you have a story to go along with the ornament. Anywho, when I saw this I knew I had to enter because well I already told you I just love ornaments! One of my sorority symbols is the Dove and so therefore I am slightly obsessed even as an alum with Doves. **Born and bread Sigma Kappa**

I just got the ornament in the mail yesterday and I love it! It is much bigger than I expected but perfect nonetheless. I hung it on the tree immediately. And here's the picture.

 

Thank you Leslie!!!

I got the job!

I just got a phone call and I got the job. :)

I really wasn't expecting that because they told me at the interview if I didn't hear from them on Monday than I wasn't choosen. Since I didn't get a phone call on Monday I just assumed that they picked someone else and that was that. Ony my way home from the gym today I got the call saying they picked me! So exciting. in just a few short weeks I will be a working woman again. And it's a job that uses my degree. Can you tell I'm really happy!

Laughs at the Craft Store

Husband and I had a date night tonight...dinner and a movie. We went to Olive Garden and then to see The Blind Side. What an AMAZING movie. I just loved it! If you haven't you should go see it.

Between dinner and the movie we had time to kill. I just found a Michael's Craft Store near the theater...I know I can't believe it either that I have lived here for 5 months and never been. But we just don't go that way very often. So I dragged him in there. As always when E is bored he starts acting goofy. We were just laughing and looking at christmas crafts. I'm determined to find something that we can make a tradition. Anywho, this woman walked by us a couple of times before saying in a not very nice tone "wow you have fun together" As if that is a bad thing! I was a bit taken aback and we both kind of looked at each other laughed and said yes we do.

This brought up another topic that was disscused in E's class on Friday. We have been married for 1 year and 7 months. Apparently, the guys (who have all been married longer than we have) say that you only have fun with your spouse for the first 4 years and after that there's no fun. That would mean we are almost at our halfway point of fun! haha I think this is very funny and would really like to know what the wives of these men think. I'd like to think that I married someone who I will always have fun with. But perhaps that doesn't always work out....and that's why the lady in Michael's was so shocked by a married couple having fun together. ;)

Nike+ SportBand and shoes.

When it comes to Christmas presents this year I had a hard time of thinking of things I really wanted. Normally, thoughout the year I see something in the store or on tv and think oh that's great but this year I couldn't seem to recall many of those items. I like reading about what others were asking for because that gave me ideas for myself and for gifts for others.

I'm really getting into this whole running thing. First things first I know I need a new pair of real running shoes. The tennis shoes I currently have were purchased for looks alone, comfort second but definently nothing to do with exercising. So now I'm on a mission to find the perfect pair. Oh boy, are there a ton of sites that will try to help you find the perfect shoe. I normally wear New Balance I think they are cute and comfy. So that's where I started looking....but then started looking at other running essentials.

Now skip to the next item I would like. A watch that keeps track of how far and fast I've run, my heart rate, and how many calories I've burned. There are quite a few choices too. And one could spend anywhere from $300 to $50. The one I really like right now is made by Nike. The only catch is you have to have a pair of Nike's to go with the band. Seeing as I'm in the market for new shoes this really isn't a problem. What I love about the this watch is that you can load all the information to their website and they have different challeneges and logs to keep track of my running. There is a place to create routes and look up others running routes in the area.

Tomorrow we are going to the Nike store and see what they have. I really hope that I find a shoe that I like so I don't have to keep looking for another running watch and a pair of shoes.

Does anyone have any shoes suggestions, Nike or other brand that they just love...or hate??

Job or Jobless

The interview was supposed to be on Wednesday but was then moved to Thursday (today). Since I turned the application in so long ago I really didn't remember what I had applied for. Doesn't really matter because job summaries always sound so much more interesting than what the actual job is. Mainly because most people wouldn't want the job if they knew what they were doing. This would be a good starter job...as in the potential jobs that come after would be nice to have. The down side is that it is nights and weekends. That would limit my time with E considerably but at least the puppies lifestyle wouldn't not change because someone would always be home with them. I told them I would be out of town for Christmas. That may have ruined my chance but like I said before nothing is stopping me from going home. I should know by Monday if they liked me better than anyone else. If not, well better luck next time. I'm trying to be indifferent about the whole thing...is it working?

Job Offer

I wanted a job more than ever when I moved here. Up till about October I was still kind of looking to see what was available out there. Now as we move into December I'm finally content with my routine. I work out a lot, read blogs more than most probably, and I've done a lot of crafting! With that being said no one in this economy really turns down a job, but I am really not out looking for one. So to my surprise yesterday I received a phone call from a place I turned an application into in the very begining of September asking if I would set up an interview. What!?! I think that it's just bizzare that they still had my application after 3 months...but hey i'll take it! So I have an interview tomorrow. The only bummer would be if they don't let me have the week of christmas off because nothing is stopping me from going home and see my parents!

Wall Decal Giveaway - By The Design Girl

The Design Girl is having a great giveaway for a wall decal of a chicken! How cute for a Kitchen, Mud porch, kids room I mean the possibilities are endless. So go on over there leave some love and enter into the giveaway. You only have until December 7th.

Thanksgiving...Christmas Tree...Ornament Wreath...Weekend Recap

The visit with family was way too short! I miss being able to see our family as often as we did when we lived in the same state! Oh, how I hope we get orders back to Virginia. Anyways, we went to dinner at Lambert's in Alabama on Wednesday night. Here's all of us!
 

 Always a lot of fun when we are together. And now it's even better that there are 3 ladies!

E's mom and I are no longer out numbered!

And because it's mandatory to have a picture of your thanksgiving table here's mine :)

Yea, that's right I never got a table cloth...I'll hit up the sales after the season to be better prepared for next year. E cooked all the food with a little assistance from the rest of us. The only thing that kind of went bad for a minute was the mashed potatoes had too much milk...but because I love to cook from the box...had instant mashed potatoes so we just added a little and then it was perfect!

Mandatory family shot! except I don't have a tripod or anything like that so my camera is on the dog crate! We make do.

We didn't go shopping on Black Friday much to my displeasure. No one wanted go and it's just not the same if you go alone. We did venture out later on Friday because we needed to get a car top carrier for the trip home this Christmas. But I don't count that as real shopping. Everyone left on Saturday morning and it was quiet again. So we headed out to the store to pick up some Christmas lights and a few other decorations and started decorating. Here's our little tree. Because we are going home again we are putting off getting a real tree again till next year. Perhaps one day I'll be able to decorate a full sized tree!

I saw this on a couple of different blogs. The first one was Eddie Ross and he made it look so easy and simple so I wanted to try it. I've seen a couple of other blogs who had done it and no one seemed to say anything about the difficulty of retwisting the wire. Until I just read this one at Thrifty Decor Chick. I wish I would have seen her's first. But let me back track for a moment. The wreath is made out of ornaments and a wire coat hanger. So you untwist the coat hanger to get the ornaments on and then at the end you are supposed to twist it back again. This was pretty much impossible, I must have had the thickest dry cleaning hanger ever. I ended up using hot glue and a little prayer that it doesn't come crashing down. So far so good.

I got the ribbon and silver door hanger from the dollar tree and spent $8 on the ornamnets.

I'd love to make more I just need to find a different kind of wire. :)

In The Company Of Dogs

It's nothing new that I Love my animals. My MIL brought a magazine with her that she thought I would appreciate. It's called, In The Company of Dogs. It has some great things I would buy them and it has some crazy things I would never purchase but I sure some dog lovers with lots of money do. One item I really want to get them but am patiently waiting for them to get over the whole chewing everything because i'm teething stage is a new bed....like this one

I think this is pretty great but I'm not sure how long it would last being inflatable and all.

Now, on to the slightly impractical items...don't get me wrong if you own any of these things for your pets i'm not judging. Because if I had billions of dollars there would be nothing stopping me from buying any and everything for these little rascals.

These food dishes start at $39.95 and increase to $89.95!

Now, this is totally something useful in Florida because we have prickers/sticker (don't know the real name for them) PAINFUL little balls of thorns. When I walk the dogs I have to make sure they don't spend too much time in the grass otherwise I spend a good amount of time picking these painful things out of there paws. Yup, I think other dogs may laugh at mine as we walk by and the other dog owners may scoff at me and my pups with their boots...but the last laugh is on them cause we're not hurt by prickers!

Needless to say, the pups aren't getting that lucky this Christmas but it's a great website/catalog and it's a lot of fun to look at.

Vinegar Cleans Anything!

I learned a valuable lesson yesterday. It all started when we got our sofa's from lay-z-boy and got the five year warrenty with it. I have a cat that likes to have hairballs every once and a while in the most incovenient places...ie the sofa. This is a great idea if you are buying any furniture anytime soon. If pretty much anything happens to the sofa they will come out and clean/fix it for free. Minus the $65 at the time of purchase but we have used the service way more than that price! Yesterday, was the first time it was cleaned here in Florida. The nice older man told me that I did a good thing by purchasing microfiber. (I thought that it was a terrible choice because I can't figure out how to clean it on my own.) He told me that a little vinager mixed with water will get almost any stain out. WHAT?! It's that simple. The only thing not covered on the warrenty is general dirt. Lame. But if you just spilled a little OJ on it and claimed that then they'd have to clean it - therefore getting rid of the dirt. Not that I did that...however, I did think that after they informed me they wouldn't clean the dirt off from the puppies. Because the in-laws are coming on Wednesday morning I got to work on the first sofa. Let me tell you it looks like a brand new sofa! I am so excited! Because I was so excited about getting started I didn't take before pictures. So only I know the big difference. I am super excited over this because the in-laws are the ones who purchased them for us when we got married and I would be harrassed to no end if they didn't look perfect. .....no it's just a matter of getting the bite marks off the wood foot! Anyone know a remedy for that? Brown marker perhaps.....

Holiday Mail for Heros

This time of years is when the marjority of people find a way to somehow give back to others. So here's another easy chance for everyone to thank a hero. The Red Cross and Pitney Bowes have created a program to send Holiday Mail for Heros! Click the link and you can find out more information.
For those of you who are crafty make a few cards and those of you who aren't a store bought card is just as great. It's really the thought that counts here....not how much money you spend! Here are a few guide lines I have taken stright off the website.

Do...
Sign all cards

Entitle cards “Dear Service Member, Family or Veteran”

Limit cards to 15 per person or 50 for school class or business group

Bundle groups of cards in single, large envelopes (there is no need to include individual envelopes and postage for cards)



Don’t...
Send letters

Include personal information such as home or email addresses

Use glitter – excessive amounts can aggravate health issues of wounded recipients

Include inserts of any kind as they must be removed in the screening process'
 
 
 
Here is the address you can send the cards to until Monday, December 7th!
 
Holiday Mail for Heroes
P.O. Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

You still have two weeks to participate...so why not make someone smile today!

Ornament Giveaway

Leslie at A Blonde Ambition is having a super cute holiday ornament giveaway. You have until December 3rd to enter. So go follow this great girl and of course enter in the giveaway. If you do please leave a comment so I know you're going! Thanks!!!

Like a Kid in a Candy Shop

In preparing for the in-laws to come visit for thanksgiving. I became overly excited about the idea of using the good china we got for our wedding. I am in love with my everyday dishes (from Target) but nothing compares to the way I feel about this china! So in order to really see what I have. Because I only opened the boxes once we moved here and then immediately put it all into the protective holder things. I've never really examined it outside of the showroom. So here is the set up! That really isn't a table cloth...it's a bed sheet. LOL but for the photo it works and I really do want a table cloth that color! Please take note that is my finished chair in the picture. :)

Here is the design...oh it's so pretty.

I don't like that it looks gold in the picture because it's really platinum around the edges. must be the awful lighting we have in this house and of course the camera/camera operator.

So in love!

New Moon Recap & More!

Last we left the house at 10:30 to drive 20 mins to get to the movie that was at 12:15am. I expected the theater to be full and that we would probably have to wait in line. What I didn't realize is that the line would be outside! We were allowed inside to buy snacks and then quickly rushed out after our tickets were checked multiple times. I suppose they didn't want us sneaking in to other theaters. Then we have to look for a little piece of paper by the exit doors outside. We were number 17 which was around the corner and behind the building. Normally, I would have felt creeped out to be back there but because I was with 20 then 30...40...of my "closets friends" I didn't really feel scared. We waited outside until 11:45pm where they let us inside to stand and warm up for a minute and then took out tickets. I have never waited in line like that for a movie or show...once on Black Friday. There were 3 showings at 11:59pm and 3 at 12:15am. All sold out! Surprisingly enough though we got good seats and the crowd really wasn't bad during the movie. I hate when people talk during movies and I was pleasantly surprised no one really did. When we left the theater there was like a normal day or even less crowded since we were the only group there.

I love the books I don't usually like that kind of thing....but for this series I make an exception. That being said I think the first book was way better than the movie. However, I had just finished reading the books at that point so part of that could be it was all fresher in my mind. The thing was I didn't care for the Kristen Stewart as Bella. I pictured someone much different or something. But I have to say she steped it up a notch this movie. I think she was a better actress this time around. I enjoyed the movie a lot. Well worth the line out side. I laughed and cried. I cried a lot at the book...I cry easily though.

My thought is you should go out and see it. It's worth it.

Robert Pattinson has a new movie coming out, Remember Me. A chickflick/drama looks like it has potential maybe because he looks way cuter with short hair and a more human like skin color!

Team E

We are going to see New Moon tongiht at midnight! I am not an obssesive fan but I really liked the books so I have to go see the movies! and of course I'm team Edward (that's Husband's name so haha that's really why!) I hope that anyone else going to see the movie tongith has a great night and lots of fun!

Post Puppy Surgery

Update: Post Surgery!

Here is little one with her cone on. She has to wear it whenever she is alone. That means at night and when I go to the gym. She is lucky that I am home so often. I can't imagine that it's comfy.
I think she was embarrassed that I was taking her picture. That's her bed area for now so that she is away from her brother and won't further injure herself. The door way is too big for the baby gate that's what the cooler is there for.

We move that cushion (from the popasian chair) around so she has a nice soft place to lay. This is her frist afternoon home from surgery. She was very drugged and drooling a lot! haha poor girl!

 This is how they currently get to play together

Because I won't let them play together yet...they often spend time at the door trying to play with each other through the glass...it's pretty funny. I'll be so happy we they can rough house again!
This is how they currently live. One stays in the living room while the other has the kitchen and dining room. They trade off because obviously the sofa is more comfortable.

Chairs are complete

This was my thanksgiving project. While it doesn't look very festive it was a necessity. We have 4 chairs and 6 people will be at our house for thanksgiving. I posted the chairs earlier at their half way mark but here is everything again...for those who didn't see or just want to see the whole transformation! And it makes my life easier.

I purchased 4 chairs for $5 dollars each at a garage sale. After all is said and done these were difficult to sand and paint and I should have tried to lower the price a little bit more...oh well lesson learned.

Here's my oh so pretty chair all painted...except for the inside cause no one's going to see that part and I'm not that much of a perfectionist.

I had a very hard time picking out fabric. I have no real style design. I like dark colors, browns, black, gray. But E wanted something light and fun. We kind of compromised on this fabric. He likes the stripes and I like that there is a "grown up" detail hidden.

Here's a closer look at the hidden "grown up" detail I was referring to...I just love it!

This will not be a tutorial on how to cover a chair...because I don't really know how I just wing it!
With that being said here are my supplies and a new staple gun that didn't make the photo.
I love staple guns!

And this is where I got stuck/confused/frustrated/finally accepted defeat.

And here is the final product. It looks good. It will work for it's purpose. But I can't help thinking maybe I should have used a fabric I liked more...even if E didn't. Oh well. With our visitors arriving in a week...these are the best this first time chair make-over can do!

Viynal Giveaway

There is this fabulous blog, Loulou, that I love to read....even though I just found her recently. I think you should go over there and leave her some love and enter in her awesome giveaway! But only if you like to help support Etsy shop owners and you love Vinyl decals.


Yes, I do realize that this is the thrid giveaway that I have written about...but what can I say I'm usually very unlucky...and so I'd like to think the more I enter the better chance I have at winning something pretty!

6 years ago...

Six years ago yesterday, I went on a blind date with a guy who was friends of my best friend. At the end of the night I recapped with my sister and told her I met the guy I'm going to marry. She proceeded to roll her eyes and tell me I was crazy! Now, after boot camp, 4 different duty stations, 4 years at college, almost a year and a half of marriage here we are! :) haha I'd just like to take this moment and say "I told you so!" to my baby sister.

My plan for the next six years, move at least 3 more times. Maybe have a baby.

Find a career I love & E will be an officer. And continue to be as happy as we currently.

At our wedding we danced to Brad Paisley's "I Thought I Loved You Then"

Here's a little clip why...

I remember trying not to stare the night that I first met you

you had me mesmerized

And 3 weeks later in the front porch light taking 45 minutes to kiss goodnight

I hadn't told you yet but I thought I loved you then

Now you're my whole life now you're my whole world

I just can't believe the way I feel about you girl

Like a river meets the sea

stronger than it's ever been

We've come so far since that day

And I thought I loved you then

Rachelle's Holiday Giveaway!

I'm going to give this hyperlink things another try...

Rachelle over at Finger Prints on the Fridge

is having a super cute give away. The winner will be picked on Nov. 22nd. Check out her cute blog and enter in the giveaway!

Aly's Giveaway!

Aly at http://keepinthefaithh.blogspot.com/2009/11/ladiess.html

is hosting a giveaway! You have until Wednesday November 25th to enter...so get over to her blog and check it out!

Dog Beach

I love dog beach. I think this area of Pensacola is just pretty nice it's near an older neighborhood that has classy neighbors and it isn't getting all run down like the rest of Pensacola seems to be. This is clearly a pre-needle trip as I would not let little one be near any other dogs or even close to that dog water with her stitches. But I just need to say how much I love this park.

That little darker tan dog is a Corgi. I've never even heard of this breed before. But after seeing it with Lavender I think she maybe mixed with corgi rather than doxin.

He's so talented! ;)

People of boat docks right off their backyard!

In Search of a New Hobby...Can you help?!

I need a new hobby ASAP! I'm bored. I need a new challenge. I really like redoing furniture but I don't really need anything else. Well that's not true there are a couple pieces out there I'd like to work on, but until I find them I've got nothing. I was working on cross stitch but since little one ate the needle I'm scared to death to work on that around them! I did the jewelry thing before my wedding and I made all my bridesmaid's necklaces and earrings. That was fun but not something I'd like to do again unless I have a specific project to work on...and I don't. I put a puzzle together that was fun while it lasted. I love reading all the crafty blog posts I think there are so many talented people out there. I have a lot of scrapbook stuff and a honeymoon trip that I should work on but I'm not really in the mood right now. See idea's don't always just come to me. I thought maybe knitting might be a good time passer...but it seems like it would be hard to teach myself. Those needles scare me less because I'm pretty sure she can't eat one of those...maybe not impossible but much safer in my mind. I'm about to search the local craft stores to see if they have any classes coming up. I just thought I might turn to all you thoughtful bloggers and see if you have any suggestions....

Spin a B!tch - anyone?

While in the car with some friends, who are originally from Wisconsin, we missed the turn to the restaurant. E and I were in the back seat and our friends were in the front...so nice of them to drive! Anyways, as we passed the turn and the driver said "It's okay I'll just spin a Bitch" I started laughing because I've never heard anyone say that. E says "Flip-a-bitch" in reference to making a U-turn. But never spin. Is this something only said in the Midwest? or whatever Wisconsin is considered. Because I lived in Northwest Ohio for 4 years and never heard this saying. So I was just curious if anyone else says "spin"?

** I believe they may have just made it up and that they are the only people who actually say this!

Vet Emergency

Yesterday was a pretty normal day. I worked out, cleaned the house a bit and then we went out to dinner with friends. We went to The Crab Trap. Pretty good food if you're int he Pensacola area. When we came home I worked on my cross stitch and E played some video games. Very normal. Then I turned my back on our little yellow lab for about 30 seconds total...and she ate my sewing needle and thread. We tried to get it out of her mouth but she swallowed it before we could get it out. Luckily, when she got bitten by the fire ants I had searched for a 24hr vet in the area and knew the number and address already. We rushed to the hospital where we waited what felt like forever to get the x-ray. It was indeed in her belly. The Dr. said we had two options we could try and get her to vomit and hope that the needle came up with the food and didn't get stuck in her throat. or he could operate. I don't know how many people have had animals go through surgery but it's expensive! However, she is my baby and we just didn't feel like we could take the risk. {{I was beyond freaking out at this point.}} We went ahead with the surgery and she stayed the night at the hospital. At 1am the Dr. called and said the surgery went well. At 7am I called to see how she was doing and when we could pick her up. We were about to get her around noon. She was still drugged and very sleepy. She has to wear a cone around her head so she doesn't lick her stitches.She looks pitiful in it and I've yet to get a picture of her with it...but I've got another 7-10 days to snap one. She has been sleeping almost all evening. This has been one of the scariest moments of my life! So here I sit with my baby while she recovers and I get caught up on allllll the posts I have missed. So if your pet eats something unusual and makes you feel scared to death come talk to me after...I understand!

Support Out Troops Past & Present

Remember those who serve and their families.

Son of a Soldier

A Prayer for My Dad

Now I lay me down to sleep,

I pray dear Lord, my soul you will keep.

My mommy says I need to pray,

For many others on this day.

But my daddy- he is a soldier,

Of this I am sure you know,

He helps protect our freedom,

I was sad to see him go.

Although I know he is safe with you,

I would rather have him here,

Because he is the one who always said

With prayer, there is no fear.

Dear Lord, I know you hear me,

Way up in the sky,

Please protect my daddy,

And comfort me when I cry.

I know he has a job to do

And protects our Country

With all his might

But, I can't help but wishing, Lord

That he could be home with me, tonight!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It is the

Veteran,

not the preacher,

who has given us freedom of religion

It is the

Veteran,

not the reporter,

who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the

Veteran,

not the poet,

who has given us freedom of speech

It is the

Veteran,

not the community organizer,

who has given us freedom to assemble

It is the

Veteran,

not the lawyer,

who has given us the right to a fair trial

It is the

Veteran,

not the politician,

who has given us the right to vote.

It is the

Veteran who

salutes the flag

It is the

Veteran

who serves under the flag.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Military Wife

The good Lord was creating

A model for military wives

and was into his sixth day of overtime

when an angel appeared.

She said, "Lord, you seem to be having

a lot of trouble with this one

What's wrong with the standard model?"

The Lord replied,

"Have you seen the specs for this order?

She has to completely independent,

possess the qualities of both mother and father

be a perfect hostess for four to forty

with a hours notice, run on black coffee

handle every imaginable without a manual

be able to carry on cheerfully,

even if she is pregnant and has the flu,

and she must have six pairs of hands."

The angel shook her head

"Six pairs of hands? No way!"

The Lord continued, "Don't worry,

we will maker other military wives to help her

And we will give her an unusually strong heart

so it can swell with pride

in husbands achievements,

sustain the pain of separation

beat soundly when it is overworked and tired

and be large enough to say

"I understand" when she doesn't

and "I love you" regardless

"Lord", said the angel, toughing his arm gently,

"Go to bed and get some rest,

you can finish this tomorrow"

"I can't stop now," Said the Lord

"I'm so close to creating something unique

Already this model heals herself when she is sick

can put up six unexpected guests for the weekend

wave good-bye to her husband from a pier

a runway or depot and understand

what it's important that he leave."

The angel circle the model of the military wife

looked at it closely and sighed

"It looks fine, but it's too soft"

"She may look soft", replied the Lord

"but she has the strength of a lion

you would not believe what she can endure"

Finally, the angel bent over and ran her fingers

across the check of the Lord's creation

"There's a leak," she announced

"Something is wrong with the construction

I'm not surprised that it has cracked.

You are trying to put too much into this model"

The Lord appeared offended

at the angel's lack of confidence

"What you see is not a leak," he said,

"It's a tear"

"A tear, What is it here for?" asked the angel

The Lord replied, "It's for joy, sadness, pain

disappointment, loneliness, pride and dedication

to all the values that she

and her husband hold dear."

25 Goals To Complete Before Turning 25

On December 17th I will be turning 24 which gives me just a little over a year to complete/continue working on all of the following goals. Since moving here I have tried to work on things I always put off or never thought to do because I didn't have the time. Well now I have plenty of time, and I'm going to continue this even after we move again. So here is what I have come up with so far....I'm sure I'll be able to add to this list but this is a great start.



25 Goals To Complete Before Turning 25



*Complete a 5k

*Become a better photographer

*Run a little everyday

*Learn to cross stitch

*Loose the extra weight

*Become a more patient person

*Scrapbook our honeymoon photos, and Pensacola life

*Try a new DIY project

*Find a hutch and paint it

*Build a chest/bench

*Keep in better contact with friends far away

*Become a better Wii MarioCart player

*Find a job I love..or at least like

*Eat more fruits and veggies

*Learn basic Spanish

*Be a tourist for a day in the city(ies) I live in

*Try painting

*Train the puppies to do a few more tricks

*Bake something from scratch

*Read at least 1 book a month

*Go Horseback riding

*Stand under or at least near a real waterfall

*Get CPR Certified

*Really understand what is going on when watching football

*Go on a real vacation

Rain Updates

Today momma #2 (better known as my mother in law) called to check in on us and asked me if I had my hurricane supplies ready...uhhh no I don't think so because I don't know what that means. She told me I needed to fill my bath tube with water so that if something happened at least the dogs would have clean water to drink...and if it was really bad I suppose I would drink it too....glad it's not really bad! Not that the bathtub isn't clean I did a good wipe down with a Mr. Clean magic eraser but I'm sure you understand. So while I was waiting for the tub to fill up I decided to take some pictures of the bathroom. This is our guest bathroom in case you're wondering. I am in love with this bathroom because all the pictures are from Aruba (our honeymoon location) and that just makes me so happy every time I see a picture of that beautiful island.

I love the chocolate brown in this shower curtain!


This is what the front looked like in the AM before the storm really hit.



This is what it looks like now. Yes, I realize that you can't really see much but doesn't it just look scary out there in the dark!

I wish that you could really see in this photo that our backyard is flooded! As in when I step out in the grass water covers my boots up to my ankle and probably more toward the fence as we are on a slight hill. I had to walk out there in an attempt to get the dogs to go out to potty. The rain isn't supposed to stop for hours but so far there isn't any water in the garage....let's keep it that way!

This hurricane/tropical storm turned out to be nothing more than a really bad rain storm...the wind is intense and the rain hasn't let up all day. The power went out for about 30 seconds as soon as E started to make dinner...which was really just plain funny.

I was once again nervous for nothing

Ida Go Away!

There's a Hurricane comming.....nope....now it's a tropical storm! But people are still being asked to evacuate and E's class has been cancelled for tomorrow and he's coming home early today! wooohooo....cause I do not want to do this alone or rather just me and 3 wild animals! I've never been through a hurricane without my mommy! haha yes, I'm nervous. But I did bring all of our stuff in off the back porch. I was able to get a hold of the vet to make the reservation for the kitty over Christmas time. *sad face* She cant' come with us when we go home. And I scheduled to have the sofas cleaned before the in laws get here at thanksgiving. I am being very productive while I try not to sit and wonder how hard the storm will hit us!