Navy Wife, Navy Life. Watch me sink or swim.

Snowed in....

2012-01-21T19:29:00.000-05:00

And LOVING it!

We are snowed in! I kept little home from school on Friday due to our driveway being a skating rink. We had the best day at home together! We watched movies, ate popcorn and even did some super fun crafts together!(having the crafts room settled is AMAZING!). We ended the night with our signature dinner for the first snow of the year, Cocoa & Toast!

Today we got dumped on with tons of snow! It was coming down from the time we woke up until late in the afternoon. Just now, we went out and shoveled the whole driveway!(Little played, I shoveled). It's dark and it was quiet out there. It was perfect! While I was out there, my new neighbor Ami saw me shoveling and knew that the hubs wasn't home, so she came out and helped me! It was soooo nice of her! Her hubby wasn't home tonight either so in no way did she need to help me with my monster of a driveway on top of doing her little one! But she did. And let me say, it goes a lot faster with two!

Now we are back in the toasty house, getting ready for some movies and dinner. As much as trying to go anywhere in the snow sucks, it's great for bonding time!

Stay safe in the snow everyone!

Crafting!

2012-01-19T23:59:00.000-05:00

If you're my friend in real life(or just on FB) then you are sick of my posting pictures. Haha. I've been crafting sooo much the past few weeks it's been crazy!

I've opened a FB page and an etsy shop! They have the same things on them, but the FB page has pictures as I'm working on things, I ask for input and ideas and sometimes I'm going to give special offers to my FB fans!

Right now, I'm loving all things Submarine! I've made so many things with subs tonight it's crazy!

This picture is just one of them!

I can do the same kind of thing with planes, tanks, helicopters, hummers you name it! If you want one, just let me know on one of my pages and I will make it up for you!

To do:

2012-01-17T05:28:00.000-05:00

My to Do list for the week:

*Make the wrappers & toppers for Little's Birthday cupcakes
*Make a Valentines banner.
*Make Little's Valentines to give to his class.
*CLEAN the kitchen and put everything in its spot!
*Cook dinner every night.
*Read scriptures and go to church.

I feel like I've been getting a ton done lately....but it's not what I should be getting done. Hahaha. Maybe if I make this list and I have to look at it, it will force me to get stuff done!

Mad Science Birthday Party(Sneak Peek!)

2012-01-14T01:31:00.001-05:00

Little is turning 7! Eeekkkk!

His Birthday Party is going to be a blast this year! I've put so much work into making(yes making! The invites took forever to get done!) all of the paper goods and I'm so excited for it all to come together!

You can buy the party stuff at my shop on etsy! To take a look go HERE!

Show us Your life - Military Families

2012-01-13T00:25:00.001-05:00

I love reading Kelly's Korner and Have been reading it for years! I love the "Show us your life" posts and find some really great/amazing stories/ideas from them! If you want to join in this week....go HERE and join in!

This week, she's having Military bloggers link up! That's me!

For those who've been reading for a while you can skip this post. For those that are new, here is a little about my life and Navy Journey.

My name is Kim. I'm from Washington State and miss it sooo very much. I started dating a boy at 14 and was lucky enough to marry him at 18! Yikes! After we had been married a little(tiny) bit and had an amazing little baby boy, my husband threw the idea of joining the Navy into the mix of things. I was all for it!

A few months later he left for boot camp. Then later got stuck at boot camp for surgery. It was the hardest 6 months of my life. But, I did it! After that we moved to South Carolina for part of his schooling...then on to New York to finish it.

These pictures are from boot camp graduation.

Our first real orders were to Connecticut where my husband was stationed to one of the Submarines.

We've done 2 1/2 deployments and MANY underways.

(Deployment #1)

(Deployment #2)

I'm also that crazy wife that goes to every port I can(I've been to Bahrain, Drove to Florida, Georgia and Annapolis).

It's hard, but it also keeps our marriage fresh. He's gone so much that we always take every second we are together and make the most of it.

2012

2012-01-10T15:38:00.001-05:00

Here is my list from last year of what I wanted to do and the one for this year!

2011
(Things I want to do this year!)

~~1. Go on a big family vacation~~ Went to Mexico!
~~2. pay off my car~~ Yep!
~~3. Cook dinner more often and try new things~~ Yep!!
~~4. Get even more involved with Landon's school~~ Kinda. His teacher didn't want volunteers till now.
5. Get even more involved with Church. not really....
~~6. Read 75 books....? (50 for sure!)~~ I know I hat 50 but I don't know the exact number.
~~7. Strive to be the best mom/wife I can be~~ Yep!
~~8. Do something that makes me happy (join a gym, cooking classes...ect)~~ Yep!
9. Learn how to drive J's car!! No, but I will this year!
~~10. Learn something new and/or meet new people.~~ Yep! I learn how to use my Cricut!

2012
The things I want to do this year!)

1. Get more involved in Church
2. Read the WHOLE book of Mormon!
3. Learn to sew!
4. Learn how to drive J's car!
5. Get more involved with the boat.
6. Get rid of stuff that we don't use!
7. Go on another family vacation.
8. Read more! 50 books at least!
9. Be more involved with Little's school.
10. Have the best summer EVER with Little!

One year older!

2012-01-09T21:09:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was my birthday. It was as perfect as birthdays can get. The hubs had duty the night before so he came home early and jumped on the bed singing "Happy Birthday" as loud as he could until I was awake. Haha. As soon as I spoke, he pushed my gifts into my hands.(I think he was a little excited to give them to me!). He got me the most beautiful diamond earrings! I was shocked! I've been asking here and there for them but never expected him to get them for me! Especially this close after the holidays! I'm such a lucky girl!

After a few more minutes of sleep, we got up and got ready for church. The best thing I could have been give was fast and testimony meeting on my birthday. It's always my favorite week of the month and I always learn so much from the people who get up there and bare their hearts for all to hear.

After church we had breakfast for lunch(my favorite!).

It's crazy thinking that I'm one year older.....one more year being a mom and a wife, one more year that J and I have been together and one more year that I've been away from home. This past year was a good one. My husband was home more than he's even been home and it was so nice! This year is going to be a little more challenging. He's going to be gone quite a bit more than we are used to and I'm not looking forward to it. BUT I know we don't have much more time before we are on shore!

Along with my birthday, I have new years! I will post soon with what I hope to do this year along with what I did last year off my list!

Order(s) Up!

2012-01-07T23:53:00.000-05:00

In 8 weeks our sea term will be up. We've know this was coming for quite some time as I'm sure most everyone else has a countdown to shore, we just knew it was there.

A few weeks ago we were given options....

*Stay here on the boat. Do another Deployment and reenlist. Possibly do dry-dock in NH after for 1-2 more years.
*Guam. Go on the tender for 2 years then go to SC for proto-type for a few more years. Proto-type is the last thing on my list. I would rather be at a sea going command. Guam would be AMAZING though.
*Or home to Washington for shore. While this sounds like a sure thing, I don't know if I'm ready to go back yet since I know that when we do, we won't want to leave.

After a bit of talking, we are staying here for the deployment. Everyone keeps telling me I'm crazy for doing another one by choice...but here are my reasons.

*Reenlisting while deployed has a chance of getting us more money. Lots more. It's the difference between getting to buy a house and not.
*I LOVE our house we have right now. I don't know if we could get a single family home with a fenced in yard that is only 5 min from J's work in our next place.
*The job J really wants won't be available to him for another year due to him having to have a certain watch first.
*Doing dry-dock in NH would be a way to keep all of the sea duty money but have it be like a shore-duty. He wouldn't be going anywhere for a long while.(and I want to live up North!)

So here we will stay. I'm not ready to leave the East Coast yet and I don't want to leave NYC and Boston before I've seen EVERYTHING!

It just still stings a little knowing that we signed up for another Deployment and missed Holidays by choice.

Back again!

2012-01-07T03:18:00.000-05:00

So many things have been going on and I feel like I never have time to get on here and talk about it. I always promise I will be better and most of the time I am for a short bit, then it's back to nothing.

Here is whats been going on in the R household:

I've been crafting and getting ready for Little's Birthday next month! So excited!
We've been going to church and trying to get back to where WE want to be with God.
We've been spending a lot of time with just our little family.
After much talk, we've decided to extend Sea Duty and volunteer for ANOTHER deployment. This will be a post in it's own.....but it's sad to think our choices were Guam, back home to Washington(both Shore Duty), back to SC for prototype or stay here for 2 more years......I understand why WE chose what we did, but it doesn't exactly make it easy to stomach.

Christmas was wonderful, the best I've ever had. Little got everything he ever wanted and J went way over what he needed for me. We did a few great things leading up to it, but for the most part we stayed in and spent time together and relaxed. I will update soon with posts on all of the bigs things..

For now, I leave you with THIS link to the FB page I started for the crafts I've been making!

Ribbon Wreath

2011-12-10T23:42:00.000-05:00

Have you heard of ribbon wreaths? I never had! Someone from our boat was showing people how to make them and now I'm in love and want one for every season!

What you need

Ribbon!(at least 2 different ones. Works best of they are the same size)

Wreath ring/form

Directions

Tie a bow around the ring to get the size you want then measure it and cut all of your pieces.

Tie bows switching back and forth with the colors until you can't do anymore!

You're done!

The finished product!

I'm sure you could hang it on the door, but I love the way it looks on my table!

Very Hungry Caterpillar tree!

2011-12-07T20:58:00.000-05:00

Little really wanted a new tree for his room this year(since his last year was only about 8 inches tall!). So, while we were out shopping he say this 18in blue tree! He fell in love with it! I got this idea that I could make it match his room theme if I got the right colored ornaments, so we did! His blue tree is all decked out with red and green! I even added an ornament we had sitting on his shelf for the top! I love ow it turned out! I'm in the process of having clay Hungry Caterpillar ornaments made specially for it!

Do you have theme trees in your house?

Elf on the Shelf!

2011-12-05T09:43:00.000-05:00

This is Scout

(on his first day here!)

Scout came to our house all the way from the North Pole to watch over Little to make sure he's being good for Santa. He snuck into our house the day after Thanksgiving and every morning when we get up, he's hiding in a new spot! Little is in love with Scout and I find him talking to him MANY times a day and each morning he hunts to find where Scout is hiding!

If you've never heard of Elf on the Shlef, you should look into it! I love it. I feel that it really brings the magic back!

AND I do know the true meaning of Christmas is the birth of Christ, but I also love the enchantment it holds for little children and I will continue to bring both into our home until little is too old for believing.

Hello, Christmas!

2011-12-01T15:06:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited for Christmas this year! I'm always excited, but this year I'm just over the moon! Little is at that perfect age where he understands everything and is completely involved in the process! I'm sad to say that our tree was up 2 weeks before Thanksgiving....BUT i had a good reason! J was coming home the day before and I wanted it done so he didn't have to deal with the mess, just the joy of it being done! Haha.

Now I'm working on all of the other things I want up and slowly getting my crafting-skill on. I love making decorations for Christmas and filling the house with things!

I've been having fun with ribbon! I hang ribbon and ornaments above my windows and I learned how to make ribbon wreaths! So exciting! I'm going to be posting(too much) all of the things I've been doing to get the house in the Christmas spirit! Get ready for post-overload!

Thanksgiving(a little late)

2011-11-29T19:06:00.000-05:00

My husband has been gone for a while and was supposed to return the day before Thanksgiving....but, as things always go with the Navy, the boat broke and they were delayed. After much convincing, they were able to pull in on Thanksgiving morning! They got in at about 8am and got everything taken care of. A few hours later J was able to come home! He didn't get much down time though since we were hosting Thanksgiving dinner! EEkkkk!

My first time cooking everything went great! We had turkey & ham with all of the sides! I even made super cute cookies!(pictures below). It was also so amazing that most of our friends were able to make it to dinner. Spending time away from home for the holiday isn't so hard when your "Navy Family" can spend it with you.

I'm so thankful that Jwas able to be home on time and gets to spend the holidays with us. I couldn't ask for anything more.

Stripe cookies, mini Reece's dipped in yellow tinted frosting on top. (orange star burst buckles)

Stripe cookies(cut in half) with marshmallow cookie(cut in half) with candy corn heads!

Advent Calendar!

2011-11-28T22:48:00.000-05:00

I love making Landon a advent calendar each year.(We also buy him a playmobil advent calendar each year.) It's been something fun we've done and I think I'm going to keep doing it until he's too old to care. Haha. Two years ago I made THIS ONE. Last year I wanted to try a new one and I'm so glad I did! We loved it! I don't have the heart to do a new one just yet since I'm so in love with this one!

Here are the directions I made on here for it last year!

You will need:

Different colors of green paper(I had 5 different colors/textures)

Tissue paper(You don't NEED this but it's what I used)

Scissors

Glue(I used hot glue because it was faster)

Optional:

Different color paper for numbers/ornaments

Tape to help hold things in

Round objects to help you make exact circles(I had 4 different sized objects)

Trace object and cut out circles.

Cut each circle in half.

Roll each half into cones by "connecting" each "flat" end. You have to roll it a bit tight to get it to stand straight without dipping in the middle. I hot glues the whole side down then put a dot in the inside to let the flap hold better.

I cut out little red circles for the numbers but you could just write it on the trees if you wanted. I also ended up using a yellow star for the 24th. I used one hot glue dot to keep the circles on.

I cut the tissue in little squares and wrote everything on my scrap paper to put inside.

I rolled the advent paper and stuck it in the top of the cone then packed the tissue in there to hold it.

I used a hole-punch to make ornaments for the 24th then used hot glue to put them on.

Landon's Advent Forest! He loves it!

Somethings we have in our advent calendar:

Drive around to see Holiday lights

Polar Express theme day!

Christmas movies

Little toys/gifts (checkers, nutcracker, cocoa, chocolate spoon)

Activities(go to movies, have movie night, go to lunch, make Christmas crafts, make decorations, make Santa cookies...ect)

Stationery card

2011-11-26T12:01:00.001-05:00

Very Merry Moments Christmas Card

Customize your Christmas cards this holiday at Shutterfly.com.

View the entire collection of cards.

Thank you.

2011-11-11T19:04:00.000-05:00

To all those who have and are serving our Country.

We are the land of the free, because of the brave.

To my Husband: Thank you for not only sacrificing to protect our family, but every other family in the U.S.A. You might be gone a lot, and miss things you wish you didn't.....but we are so proud of you for what you do. Come home soon. Come home safe. We're waiting for you.

Moments.

2011-10-30T23:45:00.000-04:00

Have you ever felt like you had a 'moment' where you weren't at your best? When you didn't live up to even your standards let alone someone elses? I had one the other day and it's stuck with me. Really stuck.

While in Washington DC we were walking around with a couple that J was friends with the husband and I had just met the wife. We had been walking around for hours and Little was getting restless. We were walking to one of the last monuments and Little was running ahead of us and while I was alright at times, I wanted him to stay close and made it clear that I didn't like him running so far ahead. I know I wasn't being the nicest and I know I was being cranky and a little bossy.....but I was scared. Here we are in a huge, new city and my child isn't close enough for me to react if something were to happen. J got a little upset and told me to stop yelling(by yelling he means being bossy and not talking in a whisper).

Now, looking back I feel bad. I know I must have given this poor couple a pretty nasty first impression of me and I hate that. I hate that they could very well think I'm a mean mom for not giving my kid free-rein. But, all I can say is I was scared. Scared something would happen and it would be because I wasn't careful enough.

But I have to stop and think. In the end, as bad as I feel, I would rather be a bad mom for being too over-protective then be crushed if something were to happen because I wasn't careful enough. I hope I have another moment to prove to that couple that I'm really not all that bad. Contrary to popular belief.

I also want to add that I never once hurt Littles feelings or forced him to hold my hand and have no fun at all. I just overly expressed my need for him to stay close....and bickered a tiny bit with the husband about how far is too far.

Port Call!

2011-10-25T13:00:00.002-04:00

We've known for a few months that the boys were going to make a port call during this underway. I'd been begging my husband the whole time to let me drive down....he said it wasn't worth it since he wouldn't be getting off the boat.

Fast-forward to the day they pull in. He calls at 3 and says he is being forced to get off the boat for a few days but still doesn't want us to drive down since it's so far and it would only be for 2 1/2 days. I was bummed but I understood. L and I went home and ate dinner and were getting ready for bed when a strange number came up on my phone(at 9 PM). I answered and it was a sailor from the boat "I have a message from your husband(who was standing watch and couldn't call), he's requesting your presence in Annapolis tomorrow morning." I got a few more details and told L to start packing. At 10 PM we were on the road(after calling and booking a room to make sure I knew where we were going).

The drive went great! I've never driven that far by myself! L slept almost the whole time just waking up to tell me he loved me and fall back asleep. We didn't stop at all until we got to the hotel and we made great time!

J showed up to the room at about 11(which was nice since we didn't get in till just after 4 AM) and we headed out with two other couples that were there. We headed to downtown Baltimore where we ate lunch and went to the Aquarium!

Baltimore. It was such a neat city. I always love going to new places!

The bottom right picture is L sleeping with his elephant. That 2ft guy goes EVERYWHERE with us. To the left is the boys in front of the Aquarium, the next is L running to the Aquarium and the one above that is the Hard Rock Baltimore!

The big picture is a piece of the Twin Towers. Its a memorial for all the people from Maryland who's lives were taken on 9/11.

Baltimore Aquarium. This was the most amazing aquarium I've ever been to(it was kinda like a mini zoo!)! While they didn't have a lot of the big animals(like penguins, seals, otters and such) they had more than most do of other things! They had a ton of fish(all different kinds and sizes in TONS of tanks!), Dolphins, monkeys, a sloth, alligators, bats, turtles, sharks and Jelly's! They had hundreds if not thousands of Jelly fish! It was so amazing! L's favorite was Bob the fish(we named him) He was almost as big as him!

Washington DC. We've always said we were going to go to Washington DC while we lived over here, but we said we were going to wait till L was 7 so he could do everything with us since we don't like leaving him behind.....he turns 7 in 4 months so I think this counts! Since we were so close(only about 30 min) we decided to head down the next day!

We spent the day in DC walking around(we walked 7 miles and never once got a cab!). We went with a list of things we wanted to see. The Smithsonian, the Holocaust Museum, Washington Monument, Big Abe and the White house. And we did it all! AND we even went and ate at the Hard Rock to get L a shirt for his collection!

The Smithsonian Museum was amazing! We spent about 2 hours in there and while we saw everything we didn't stop and look at everything. My favorites(in the top left of the pictures)....were Julia Child's kitchen, the original Muppet's and the ruby red slippers! J liked everything about all of the wars and L LOVED the trains! The big pictures on the right were us before going in at the start of our day!

The Holocaust museum was nothing like I imagined. You aren't aloud to take any pictures in there so I don't have any to share, but if you ever go, check out Daniels story first. It's a beautiful exhibit and really paints the picture of what happened and feels nothing like a real museum but gives you the feel like you were walking through someones life. Everything there didn't hold a candle to it after we were done, we couldn't stop thinking about Daniels story.

After the museums we walked to all of the monuments. It was neat seeing them and I'm so glad we did it! But it was a TON of walking! Haha. L was perfect and J only had to carry him for about 3 blocks at the end! I was so proud!

It was so hard saying goodbye again the next morning but I'm so glad I drove down! I asked J the first night we were together what changed his mind and his answer melted my heart...he said that he was standing watch after we talked and all he could think about was how much he missed me and wanted to see us. He said it would have been sad to see tons of other guys with their wives, knowing I could be there to but he told me not to come.

I'm officially that crazy wife that drives to all of the ports. lol.

Morals.

2011-10-24T21:28:00.000-04:00

I'm having a hard time lately with friends and morals. Being LDS we have a high standard when it comes to morals. I've never had a problem being around people who's morals were different because I'm a big girl and I can make my own choices. But, as Little is getting older, I'm having to rethink a few friendships(or how quick I make friends). We don't say OMG in our home(but oh-my-Santa is a new addition) we also don't say I hate you or shut up...we choose not to. I've noticed that my sponge like minded 6 year old picks things up when we hang out with people who use those words or cuss often(he's never cussed with the exception of A-hole once and trust me that will never happen again. lol).

I also don't like having to explain drinking and smoking to him at 6! I feel bad when I have to say what they are doing and why it's "bad", then he asks if mommy and daddy do it, then doesn't understand why so-and-so does if they know its bad to. He looks up to a lot of my friends and I would hate for that to change.

I don't mind hanging out with people who have different morals(gosh, I sound like a broken record!) but at what point is there too much of a divide? I don't mind having a BBQ and most of the people are having a beer but when it's just Little and I and we have someone over, it's awkward when they want to bring a bottle of wine. Maybe they think I secretly want to drink? But it makes me uncomfortable and I don't always feel comfortable enough to really say no(though I will kind of hint about it as much as I can without being rude....because I think it's rude to tell them what they should and shouldn't be doing. Even if it's my home, THEY choose what they do with their body, not me)

Language gets me to. There is a time and place for the F-bomb(it's your right!) but i get embarrassed when I'm out with someone and they say it in a really inappropriate place.(IE. In front of our church missionaries, in a nice restaurant, at Little's school when they are there with me picking him up....ect.). It makes me cringe. I REALLY hate reading it on FB. I've deleted people for the foul things they were posting, but it was no one I truly care about.

I'm just at a strange place when it comes to this. I often feel like the 'odd man out' for choosing not to do the things that most of society does.

Fall leaves me happy!

2011-10-20T23:21:00.003-04:00

I love Fall. I really think it's my most favorite time of year. It's the end of the too hot summer and getting you set for the holiday! I love the weather and the changing of colors! Ahhhh, I just love it!

J came home from underway with just enough time for us to be a family. Then he left again.

We were able to do all of the great fall things while he was home since he will be gone for a while this time. The highlights were apple picking, pumpkin picking, hayrides & corn mazes, carving pumpkins and the Jack-o-lantern spectacular!

I made a few collages since we took SO MANY PICTURES! Enjoy!

I love going to this orchard. It's been my favorite for a few years now and I love that not a ton of people go to it(it's popular, but not as much as some...I think no one really knows about it and it's greatness yet....so shhhhhh). We always go and pick apples, then jump on the horse drawn "hay" ride to the pumpkin patch to pick our pumpkins, then we ride back up and walk to the corn maze.

Landon LOVES this corn maze! Even on a weekend it wasn't packed and we had a great time running in the maze trying to find all of the stamps. This was J's first year being home to go with us and he really enjoyed it also.

That night we got home and got to carving! All I cared about was the seeds! YUM! Landon carved Frankenstein, J's was a vampire and mine was just a "lady pumpkin" in Landon's words. Haha.

The Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular at the Roger Williams Zoo in RI is one of the most amazing this we've been to. We were told that the wait time on the weekends was bad, so we went on a Tuesday night and had NO wait time to get in! It just took us over a hour to see everything, but it was so worth it! They had a trail with 5,000 carved pumpkins! They were amazing! If you live in New England I recommend you go!

We had the best time walking around. It was the night before J left so we just soaked up every minute we could together. There is something about holding hands in the dark that just gets me.

Does anyone have any fun traditions that they only do during the fall?

Taco Pumpkin Seeds!

2011-10-13T17:55:00.000-04:00

I love the fall! I love anything pumpkin flavored also! BUT most of all, I love me some pumpkin seeds! Last year I made 4 different kinds of seeds. They were so yummy, but one was the best....so that's all I made this year! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
Ingredients

1 cup seeds from freshly cut pumpkin, washed and dried
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon taco seasoning mix
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Directions

In a skillet, saute pumpkin seeds in oil for 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer seeds to an ungreased baking sheet (if you have extra oil try to get as little of it as you can). Sprinkle with taco seasoning and garlic salt; stir/toss to coat. Spread into a single layer. Bake at 325 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until crisp. Remove to paper towels to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

Funk.

2011-10-10T17:18:00.000-04:00

I'm in a funk this month. I've tried to pull myself out of it...which leads to me just doing things for me. So, I've caught up on my shutterfly books and read a ton, but my poor blog got the shaft.

J is constantly coming and going with the boat which means we are trying to in squeeze every ounce of family time that we can.

As a result of all that running, I've had the migraine from hell for the past week that I can't seem to shake and to top it all off, it was my sisters birthday this week and I miss her more now then ever. I wish I could go lay flowers on her site like the rest of the family, but being 3500 miles away makes that a little hard. I wonder if missing her will always hurt this bad. Will I be better when its been 5 years? Or 10? Or will it always hurt this much? I've had some great talks with Taylor(her daughter) this month. Shes growing into such a lady. She's 13 now and in the 8th grade and at that point where she could really use her mom. I'm glad she has my mom and my other sister there to help her and she knows I'm just a call away. My heart just hurts for her.

Now that I've gotten that all of my chest I feel a little better. Sorry it's so 'all over the place'. I will be back to normal writing this week, I promise.

The winner is......

2011-09-25T17:47:00.000-04:00

CASEY!

Looks like those extra entries helped! Send me a message and we will work out getting the stuff to you and what scents you want!!!!

End of the Giveaway!

2011-09-23T22:34:00.003-04:00

I'm giving everyone until tomorrow afternoon(4 eastern time) to enter the giveaway! Go HERE to see the post and have your chance to win some Scentsy stuff!!!!

Movie Review: Dolphin Tale

2011-09-13T19:19:00.000-04:00

Our base has been doing free movie previews all summer(a week before the movie is released in theaters). We've seen some great movies! We saw Transformers 3, the new Harry Potter and now Dolphin Tale.

The movie is about a boy who finds a dolphin on the beach who has it's tail caught in the rope of a crab trap. The dolphin soon loses it's tail and it doesn't look good for the dolphin.....

We loved this movie! It was a great family movie(beware the time! 2 hours! enough to make the best child antsy) and it was not one of those movies where you don't believe what is happening, it's real.

I highly recommend seeing it(if you're into those feel good, family movies).

10 Years....

2011-09-11T11:11:00.000-04:00

"They tried to break us, but all they did was remind us that freedom is never free."

Today I won't talk about cleaning, or what I'm having for dinner. I will be silent and remember those who were lost. Today I will pray for those who are fighting to keep me safe in hopes that a tragedy such as that will never be repeated.

I remember.....

Show Us Your life - How do you scrapbook/keep kids art work?

2011-09-09T16:27:00.001-04:00

I love reading Kelly's Korner and I've been reading since she was pregnant with her first baby! I love when she started SUYL and I jump in sometimes.....when I feel like it's something I can add to.

Today it's all about memories!

I have two big things that I do to keep things(art and pictures).

The first is framing! I love picking my favorite pieces of art that Little brings home and putting them on the wall. Not only is he super proud of them being up there, but because they are in the office above my workplace, I get to look at them when I'm trying to be creative! It's win/win!

The canvas is from preschool, the bus from his first day of kindergarten and the rainbow is from the end of kindergarten is by far my FAVORITE piece he's brought home(mainly due to the "blurple" is has written on the purple part!)

(I also have a box full of all the other art that I loved but didn't make it to the wall along with all of the random papers I just can't let go of yet)

I'm also a HUGE fan of photo books! I use Shutterfly and if you haven't been to their site, you need to! I make a book for each year. I feel like I can add words to the pictures so we can really remember everything. They are one of my most prized possessions and I hope I can keep up with making them each year!

If you have a neat way that you keep memories/pictures go to Kelly's blog and join in the fun!

Giveaway!!!!

2011-09-08T20:02:00.001-04:00

I said I was going to wait till I hit 250......but my Scentsy lady(who is providing the goods for this giveaway) is moving and I want to make sure everything is taken care of before she goes!

So here it goes!!

One lucky winner will get

A plug in warmer with their choice of three of the flowing scents...
Pumpkin Marshmallow
Just Breathe
Happy Birthday
Amber Road
Jumpin' Jelly Bean
Flutter
Autumn Stroll

To get entries in the giveaway you can:(each much be in a separate comment)

1. Go to https://brittanyhatley.scentsy.us/Home (click on Kim's party) then leave me a comment on here telling me what your favorite product is! (1 entry)

2. Let me know if you are a follower or become one! (1 entry)

3. Post about this giveaway on your blog! (2 entries)

4. If you go to the site and you order anything before this giveaway ends, let me know and you will get 6 extra entries!

That's a total for 10 possible entries!

The giveaway will end 2 weeks from tomorrow on September 23rd!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar: Wall art!

2011-09-07T20:19:00.000-04:00

As everyone knows, Littles room is all Hungry Caterpillar. He LOVES it(and I do to). After the paint, wall decals and his shelf went up, I was lost to what "art" to put on his walls that would finish the room. We had a few canvases lying around from when my MIL was here visiting and I knew I wanted to use them...I just didn't know how.

Then I saw something like this and knew it would be perfect!!!! I used the color of paint that would match his walls(and I honestly thought that brown feet would be a little blah).

We painted his hand and fingers(not the thumb...and make sure you put more on the palm so it goes down!). Then went to town! For the red head, I painted a circle on his palm and that was it! The eyes and such were added after it dried.

I love how it turned out! I'm planning on doing the butterfly here soon to see if I can get it how I see it in my head!

Dear Landon,

2011-09-06T21:42:00.002-04:00

Dear Landon,

Today you started first grade. For some reason this was much harder on mommy then the past few years have been. You went to bed early last night and woke up to a gift from your daddy. I hope one day you will remember that he tried his best to be there for all of your special days, but when he couldn't be there in person, he did his best to let you know he was thinking about you and that he is SO proud of you.

When the rain was falling this morning in what you still say "cats and dogs" you didn't bat an eye! You picked out a new outfit and got your rain gear out of the closet. You are still the easiest kid I've ever met and nothing ever stops you from going on. My hope for you is that you never lose this. Stay strong and move on, even when things don't go the way you expected them to.

You stood in line a little too easy for me today. You don't need me quite as much as you used to. But, while you didn't need to hold my hand, you made sure I waited and waved to you many times before you were led to your new classroom. I drove home in a slight daze. Walking into the cold house was so different with you not in it. I've really enjoyed our summer together and I wish we had a little more time to enjoy it.

I will end this letter by telling you that I'm so proud of you and the little boy that you have become. I couldn't ask for a more amazing son. You are my world and watching you grow and learn has been the greatest joy I've ever been given. I love you.

Mom

Yesterday I took Little on our last day out of summer. We got breakfast at Friendly's(his FAVORITE place to eat). Then we went over to Mystic Village to his favorite toy store and to the pond to feed the ducks. It was one of the most special days we've ever had and I will remember it forever.

First day! It was raining so he had to chose a new outfit....but he looked adorable still! And he always loves a reason to wear his rain gear.

On the night of the first day of school I let Little pick anything he wants to eat. This year he wanted parm chicken and pasta with broccoli! I also let him eat on our "special" plate and made him a crown with all the goals I have for him.....the crown says "I WILL: do my best, be a good friend, always try, work hard and help others".....as a mom, thats all I can ask.

A day out....

2011-09-04T22:01:00.000-04:00

With Thomas The Train!

On Friday we went to RI to ride Tomas the train. Little has been talking about doing this for years! So when I saw he was "in town" we asked some friends if they wanted to drive up with us.

We had a ton of fun and I'm so glad we went! I just wish J could have been there with us.

They had a few fun things to do.....story time, building tracks, playing with trains.....

and Little's favorite...TATTOOS!

After all the playing, we went and stood in line to wait for Thomas to come.

Little & I on the train! He loved it!

Hurricane Irene

2011-09-03T20:07:00.000-04:00

I'm posting this from my neighbors house.....we still don't have internet.(which is better then having no power at all!)

Irene has come and gone. We are fine and had no damage to our home or cars. It wasn't as bad as it could have been, but we did get hit pretty hard. At times I honestly thought a few of the windows weren't going to make it! Thank goodness they did! Our power went out early on sunday morning before we were awake but thankfully we were one of the first ones to get it back. A week later, and most of the state is still out of power. We have an amazing ombudsman for our boat who has been feeding all of the families who are still without power(along with letting them do their wash and take showers). I hope that the power comes back on soon and that we don't get hit again anytime soon!(stay away Katia!)

The night before the storm hit, I moved Landon into my room just to be safe. He loves sleeping in there so he didn't mind one bit.

This was my "storm stash". I had water, flashlights, blankets, towels and all my food in there just in case we needed it.

My neighbors here are amazing! After the storm died down, we went over there for a hot dinner(since power was out). Landon loves my neighbors husband(who he calls Uncle Tommy) so he was out there helping him cook!

I hope everyone is doing well! I hope to have internet back at some point!

Here comes the rain!

2011-08-26T20:02:00.004-04:00

Hurricane Irene is heading right for us. This will be our 3rd hurricane since J joined the Navy.

We are ready. But, it's sad to say that others are not. People are just now(2 days before it hits) heading out to stock up. Stores have no bread, no water and no batteries. These are things I keep stocked in my home at all times(bread is a little iffy...but I try to always have it). Another crazy thing is people are calling TODAY to try to get renters insurance! TODAY! Of course they are being told that all new policies are on hold until late next week. I know not everyone knows what to do to prepare for a storm so I'm going to give a little run down on supplies to have and "tricks" i know.

Supplies
Water(they say 1 gallon for each person for every day. I don't have that much. But I do have 3 gallon jugs, a pack of water bottles, every pitcher and bottle filled then ice for the cooler.
Flashlights and Lanterns! I have 3 lanterns and 3 flash lights.
Extra batteries! I can't stress this one enough! Have every kind of battery at all times! You never know when the power will go out and you will need them! I always have AA, AAA and D on hand.
Food. You need food that won't go bad. Soup is a great one! Even if the power is out, soup has pre-cooked meat and veggies(and sometimes grain) in them. Make sure you have a can opener if needed. We also have about 4-5 boxes of granola bars in our kit. We have can veggies and fruits also along with bread, PB&J and dry cereal.
First aid kit. Ours just has the basics: band aids, neosporin, cleaning wipes and gauze.
Plastic cutlery. We keep a bunch of spoons, forks, knives and paper plates in our kit along with a few trash bags.
Whistle. My Dad told me this and I never would have thought about it! Keep a whistle in there so if you happen to get trapped you can make noise.
Blankets & clothes. Our kit sits in the linen closet in the hall so along with the blankets and towels I have a bag of clothes for little and I. Just in case something happens everything comes out of the closet and into our "safe room" AKA the hall bathroom.
Pet supplies. We have 5 days worth of food for both our pets in the kit(I admit I added it last night). But I need to make sure they are taken care of also!
Candles and lighters. Batteries die and you can only have so much of a backup stock.

"Tricks"
Have a safe room! Pick a room in your house that is strong and has no windows(or not many windows). Have your supplies in there or close enough to grab quickly. For us, ours is the hall bathroom. It's in the middle of the house, a decent size and has no windows.
Get renters insurance. This can save you in the end! Everything we have is covered! If Little's swing set doesn't make it, that bad boy is covered! It's a huge piece of mind knowing we won't suffer a huge loss.(we do have a fire box that the really important stuff goes into though).
Fill the tub with water. If the power goes out you can't flush the toilet(water pumps won't work)! If you pour water in the back it will flush! It also gives you water to bathe with if needed.
Walkie-talkies. My neighbors and I are all going to have a set just in case we lose cell service, then we will know if everyone is alright.
Have the car packed and ready to go. If you need to evacuate, you will need to go fast. You don't want to take the time trying to get everything together.
Take out cash and fill the car. If the power goes out you won't be able to get either.
Ice. Fill zip-lock bags with water and freeze if you don't have an ice maker. I'm going to have a cooler for ice and one for water(for toilet flushing in the "safe room"(the tub we are filling is the master since we will be in the hall tub if it gets bad.)
Pull blinds and curtains(tape if needed). This will prevent glass from going everywhere(or help it from going everywhere)
Charge all electronics. My cell phone and DVD player are charging as we speak. Little will get bored and I will need my phone, so it's pretty self explanatory.

I hope everyone who is going to be or has been hit stays safe! Keep us in your thoughts! It's times like this that I wish J was home! But at least I know he's safe under the sea.

Growing up is hard to do

2011-08-19T00:52:00.001-04:00

Summer is coming to an end. I'm sad. I feel like it went way too fast! Little was in summer camps almost all summer! And while he had the time of his life, I missed him being at home with me! Now with J being gone, I feel even sadder. Little is growing so fast and all I want to do is stop time. I want him to stay this little. I want him to still want to snuggle with me every night on the couch before bed time. I want him to want to kiss me goodnight! I don't know why it's all hitting me right now....

well maybe I kinda do......

J and I have "decided" that one child is all we need. We have decided to not have more kids. We've always thrown this around and after 4 years of "trying" we've decided to call it quits. We are perfectly fine with just one child. Our life is easy with just one. Family trips can be made on the fly and at this age Little is very independent and can do most things on his own. BUT sometimes I have this extra burden on me. This is the only shot I've got! I need to soak every minute of every age in because I will never get to do it again......and that scares me. I'm good at being a mom to a "Little". I can do crafts and games all day long.....what if I'm not a good "Big" mom?!?! Not many people I know only have one child, so I don't get much advice. I'm worried he will resent us for him being alone. I know we spend a ton of time with him, we take many family trips and we have tons of friends we hang out with.......I just want him to always be happy. The days of a sticker or toy doing the trick are over and hes a real kid now.

I guess all I can do is try my best. Maybe one day, when he's old enough he will understand the choices we've made and why they were made. It's not always our plan we have to follow and we've come to terms with the fact that a big family just wasn't in the works for us and we are okay with that. So from here on out it's our choice that he is our only even if the "choice" was planned out before we knew it.

It's about that time!

2011-08-15T20:50:00.001-04:00

I'm 5 followers away from 250! Which means.....it's almost giveaway time! (perfect timing! I need something to keep my mind off of J being gone!)

Once I get to 250 I'm going to be doing a Scentsy giveaway!!!! The lucky winner will get a plug-in warmer and 3 bars!! I'm so excited to do this one! Scentsy has taken over my house! I have a warmer in every room(even Little has one!). I love that I can leave the house with them on and not worry one bit about something(kitties included) catching fire!

Ahhh! I'm so excited! So keep a look out for the post and send anyone who might be interested on over so we can get to it!

Woman of my word.

2011-08-14T21:49:00.000-04:00

My big girl panties are now on and I'm moving along with the list of things I set out to get done before my sailor returns again. I'm still a little weepy and I cry watching stupid movies, but that's semi-normal in my life. Thank you all so much for being so kind and supportive. I love the friends I've made on here(and my real life ones to!).

We got a piece of good news this week! A while back I wrote a letter to the super attendant of the school district requesting that Little get to stay in the school he was in even though the new house would put him in a different one......it was approved! We are so excited that he will be going to school with all of his friends again this year! They sent out letters to all the the parents telling who the teacher was and I'm pretty sure ours went to the old address! Yikes! But I will get it all figured out. All of the friends got split up so Little will be in class with at least one of his 4 best friends!(thought it's sad they won't all be together again)

I hope all of you are doing well! I hope to be stopping by blogs to give some return love here soon! I feel like I just don't have enough time in my day to get things done! Thank goodness Little has the rest of the summer free of camps!!!!

Sink or Swim....

2011-08-10T21:31:00.001-04:00

It's been a long, hard day here today. I'm not much of a whiner, but today I can't help it.

After almost 9 months in port, my husband is back out to sea today. We were supposed to have a little underway to "break us in", but as things always do, it changed and we are in for a pretty good one.

Every time my husband leaves I drive him into work really early. We have this tradition(as a lot of other families on the boat do to) where we get DD and go down and park and eat while we say our final goodbyes.....today's was hard. I ugly cried. You know, that stupid cry where you can't breathe and snot is everywhere.....yep, that was me.

I should be fine with this. We've done this SO many times before. But this was different. It felt like the first time all over again. This will be my first underway in the new house, my first underway with a 6 year old......he will miss his birthday again(the big 25!) and he will once again, for the 3rd year, miss Landon's first day of school. Little things, I know. But I want him here to be there for them. I was a pro at this.....stupid 9 months in dry-dock!

So tonight, I'm having a mini-pitty-party. Lan and I went out to dinner with a friend and got our minds off of everything and tomorrow I will put my big girl panties on and be fine.....but not tonight. Tonight, I won't answer my phone, I will cry a little more than normal and I will most likely end up in bed with the little boy who reminds me so much of the man who just went under the sea. Tonight, I'm sad.

Camping goodies!

2011-08-08T16:13:00.000-04:00

We love to camp, but with hubbys schedule always changing, we never really get the chance to go. So we've taken to camping in the backyard or living room.

Here are a few of the goodies that we've been making for our make-shift camp outs!

Smore's rolls!

Crescent rolls

Marshmallows

Chocolate bars

Cinnamon

Powdered sugar

Milk

Cooking spray

Spray the cooking sheet and lay the rolls out.

Add a marshmallow and chocolate piece to each roll(L did two for each)

Carefully roll them up, seam side down.

Bake at 350 for 10-15 min until golden brown.

After they are out and cooled a little you need to make the sauce for the top.

You mix 1Tb milk with 1/2 C of powdered sugar. Then you drizzle it over the top!

They were soooo yummy!

For dinner we always make

Beanie-weenies

Cheese

Baked beans(any brand/flavor)

Hot dogs or little smokies

Foil

Each of gets a piece of foil. Lay it flat and form it into a slight bowl. Add as much beans, hot dogs and cheese as you like(we even use chili sometimes and ass onions).

Once you have everything in, pull the sides up so it looks like this^^

We always cook ours on the fire when we are camping, but here we use the BBQ. Just heat till they are heated through! Unwrap and enjoy!

Leftover room paint makes me happy!

2011-08-05T16:27:00.000-04:00

We have a little over 1/3 left in each of the gallons of paint we got for Little's room and I knew I wanted to do something with it....I just had NO idea what! So, while my MIL was here visiting, she got Little this really nice shelf at the craft store. It was just plain wood and I knew instantly what I wanted to do with it! So a few nights ago I went to town with the shelf and the paint!

Getting ready to start!

Little helping me!

(the paint we had for his room has primer already in it so it was SUPER easy to cover the shelf!)

Half way done!

Finished! Just needs to dry now!

Hanging on the wall!

My best tip for hanging things lately(especially in base housing) is those amazing 'Command' strips! The large picture hanging ones say they hold 20 lbs! I did 4 of the large ones and 4 of the small and even putting some pull into it, it won't budge! AND I love that it won't leave a mark on the walls when it's time for it to come down!!

While I was having fun with paint I also turned his UGLY black lamp into this.....

It looks soooo much better now!

And it goes with his decor so much better!

Ps. That little cubby thing....AMAZING! I feel like his room is finally done! One or two more(small) painting projects and he will have the room I've been hoping to give him for a long time!

Home-made bubbles!

2011-08-04T10:10:00.002-04:00

I'm going to take a break from the boring picture-over-load posts and show you a few fun things we've been doing around here!

A few days ago we decided to make home-made bubbles! We've tried the dish-soap and water before, but it didn't work out the best, so when I found this new recipe, I was all for trying it out! I'm so glad we did! It was perfect!

Pretty simple!

2 1/2 Quarts of water

1/2 a cup of light corn syrup

1 cup of dish soap!

mix the first two till they are blended then slowly put the soap in.

Then we went around the house to find anything we could use as "blowers"!

The whisk and slotted spoon were the best!

Sailing!

2011-08-03T10:03:00.000-04:00

One of the things I really love about living here is all of the different things they have to do(for all ages). Landon is trying so many different things this summer and he is loving it! One of the things hes really taken to is sailing! I never would have thought my kid would sail boats, but he now knows a little on how to do it!

This past week, he spent a few hours each day on a sailboat in the water a few miles from the house. He would come home and tell me all different things he learned. He even told me they practiced capsizing one day! I love it, and I love that he is so open to trying new things!

Here he is on his first day of camp leaving our house. He looked so stinkin' cute in all his gear!

Day 2 was a little nicer so he didn't need a sweatshirt.

One day when I got there he was so excited to show me all of the different knots he learned!

Picking him up on the last day.

It is so pretty out here, I just love it.

Landon is really finding his "spot" in all of the activities around here that J and I are talking about possibly staying here for good.....we shall see!

New House Part Three: Things!!!

2011-08-01T21:48:00.003-04:00

I love that everything is coming together. I feel much more at home in this house and I think it shows.

With the added paint in the two rooms, the themes we had picked out before seem to "pop" even more. Then with the added bathroom, we gave Little the freedom to pick any theme he wanted!

He picked sea life/submarines! I love it!

Here is the bathroom.

The shower curtain has subs on it, then a fish rug, sub toothbrush holder and a whale soap dispenser!

His bathroom is also a really good size! Big enough that you can get dressed in there and not feel like you are bumping against the walls.

Then I added decals! This little sub is L's favorite!

Crabs, sea horses, jelly fish and bubbles are all around the walls. We even have a dolphin and a school of fish somewhere in there.

With the decals and the sub holder on the toilet.

Now on to Little's room!

We really tossed the idea around of letting him pick a new theme(space was on the top of the list). BUT I asked him is he liked the hungry caterpillar still and when he said yes, I decided to milk it until we leave here in a few years. I promised him new paint, decals and a few new things to add to it and he was sold!

His bedding with the painted walls!

Decals! We added a border of the food that was eaten in the blue all around his walls, and a skinny caterpillar, fat caterpillar, cocoon and a butterfly are all spaced out to!

Little loves this one hanging from his TV hutch. Right next to it on the blue wall is the caterpillar like I just hatched and flew away he says.

He loves all of the things on his walls and this past weekend we bought some things to add to it all. We got a shelf that we are going to use his room paint on, some room letters we are going to paint and add things from the book to, some canvases that I hope I can paint decent scenes from the book onto and a big white piggy bank that I hope to do the same with! I will post them as I do them...if they aren't that bad. lol.

Now the living room!

We got these couches in SC when we lived there almost 5 years ago! They are still going strong and are in perfect condition! We've always had the red/brown theme and I haven't wanted to switch it up yet....so it stayed!

J and I picked out the same rug at the store!(I love when it's that easy!). Our living room is a little smaller then our old one was, but we also have it "turned" the other way so that makes a big difference.

All of our DVD's.....I swear we watch them! Haha.

Mine & J's chairs. His is the stupid brown bucket one that he RUFUSES to get rid of! One day I will win and it will be banished to a different room!

I hope you enjoyed our little tour! I might post the rest as I get them done, if I ever get them done. lol.

New House Part Two: Paint!

2011-07-31T17:07:00.002-04:00

I knew right away that I wanted to paint at least a few of the rooms. So the day we got the keys, I had paint for the living room and Little's room sitting in my car! We painted that afternoon with the help of 6 missionaries from our church! It was a ton of fun.

I do have to admit, that I was that crazy person, who taped paint samples to her wall weeks before hand, just so I knew what colors I wouldn't get sick of. Thank goodness It worked! I'm not sick of the paint I picked...and everyone else seems to like it to!

PROOF that the hubs CAN and WILL paint walls!

(He claimed he would never help me paint!)

The living room almost done!

Little's room almost done!

What 8 hungry boys did to my empty kitchen!!

All done! Just has to dry and be de-taped.

DONE!

Going into Little's finished room!

He LOVES it!

It looks great with all of his stuff and we even added Hungry Caterpillar decals to the walls!

For now, this is all the painting we are doing. A piece of me really wants to do the master....but I can't settle on a theme for my bedding let alone pick a color for the walls!

New House Part One: Empty!

2011-07-30T19:07:00.000-04:00

Here are the pictures I took of the house the day we got the keys! I'm mostly adding them so I can look back and see all the progress we have made. This is the first time we have ever made one of our houses a real home(it only took us till the 5th one!).

Living room from the entry way.

Dining room from entry way

Kitchen!

(still small, but bigger than the last one and NO pink counter tops!)

Entry way from dining room.

Little's bathroom.

Little's room(before paint!)

Master bathroom!

(I LOVE having my own bath tub! No, I LOVE having my own bathroom!!!)

Entry way from living room.

Dining room from living room.

It feels weird going back through these pictures after we've lived here for a few months! Every room is full now! CRAZY!

Part Two tomorrow!

Starting out slow......

2011-07-27T19:23:00.000-04:00

I never knew that something like moving to a new house could make the world of difference....but it has. I've never been happier! I LOVE not being attached to anyone. I love that we can listen to our TV as loud as we want in the livingroom and bedroom and not worry that we are waking someone up, I love that I don't feel guilty if my phone rings late at night and I have one of those conversations with my sister where I sounds like a dying hyena due to my laughing. Having a fenced in yard is a DREAM! Little and the dog are in heaven. The dogs just runs back and forth all day and I don't stay on top of little when he wants to hang out in the back yard. One floor is just as I had dreamed.....easy. The days of packing our groceries up a flight up stairs are now far behind us and boy am I happy about that!!!

We are still unpacking and I feel like it's a never ending supply of boxes, but we ARE getting there. My Mother-in-law is here now and is a great help with helping me get organized. My office now has visible carpet!!!!!!! Haha. I'm taking full advantage of her being here and making myself stay on track!

I have a ton of pictures of the new house that I will be posting soon. I also have a TON from Mexico that I want to put up.

I hope everyone is doing well! We sure are!

tap, tap, tap Is this thing on?!

2011-07-27T00:08:00.000-04:00

Why, Hello there!

It's been a while. While we were moving our computer crashed.......more like died. We sent it in and after what seemed like FOREVER, we have it back!!!!!

I have sooooo many things to post about! We moved!, went to Mexico, Little has been in all sorts of amazing camps all summer and we've done some really great projects!

I'm going to be overloading you with posts in the next month or so, so be ready! My silence wasn't something to get used to.

Author guest post! Lory Kaufman

2011-05-13T19:38:00.001-04:00

The vast majority of fiction writings are set in contemporary or past times. I think it's safe to say, then, that its main job is to act as a mirror to our society, reflecting what is happening currently and what has happened in the past. Most science fiction and fantasy, on the other hand, takes place in the future. This gives the writer the unique opportunity to be part of a discussion on how a better world could look like. Yes, I realize there's lots of schlock out there, where the aim of the writers and publishers is to write something that looks like something else, but that stuff doesn't count in this discussion.

You see, I'm a guy who takes his futurism seriously. I believe that every generation is responsible for the world that comes after them, so we must learn from the past and do things during our time on this little, blue sphere to leave the place in a better state than when we found it. I write so I can be part of that discussion."But Lory," you might say, "I've seen the list of what type of futuristic writing you like. Most if it is dystopian. How's talking about the world all messed up make the world a better place?"

Yes, I can see how one could think that. But we must remember that most dystopian fiction is a response to the exploding of the atomic bombs at the end of World War Two. Books like

1984,

Brave New World and

Lord of the Flies, to name the earliest and best examples to come out after that event. You see, they're cautionary tales by visionary writers to warn the rest of humanity. But at the end of most of these stories, sometimes buried deep within, there is always a ray of hope for the future. And so many of our contemporary dystopian novels are direct descendants of these books, including Suzanne Collins wonderful recent trilogy,

The Hunger Games.

But I too was very confused about this when I was working on the last drafts of what would become

The Lens and the Looker. For years I was under the impression that I was writing a dystopian story. But during its final drafts I began to see how it didn't quite fit the current definition. You see, the characters in my new series are born in a future time when the world has already gone through its dystopian era and the population has finally created a civilization that can last for tens of thousands of years. The action in the story comes from the kids being sent back in time to the 14th century, where they were abandoned and having to adapt to the harsh medieval ways. The idea is the kids have to learn to appreciate all that humanity has gone through before they achieved their perfected civilization.

After much soul searching, I finally decided on a new definition to describe this new type of science fiction/fantasy. Since it's what happens after the world comes out of its dystopian period, I came up with the label "Post-dystopian". It seems to be catching on.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Book review: The lens and the looker.

2011-05-12T15:01:00.000-04:00

I've been so happy with the books I've been asked to review. This book was no different. Its a great YA book.

I'm writing this from my phone and I'm planning to go back and add a few things tonight when J gets his laptop working for me.

This book is set in the future. Its about 3 kids who get sent to a "camp" where they've taken cities from the past and recreated them for the current time to learn more about what almost ruined everything. It was really neat to see them learn about things that they had no need for in the future(so they didn't know what they were). Then they are kidnapped and taken back in time where many twists and turns take place(and a boy from the future falls in love with a girl from the past!).

Its a great book and I'm really looking forward to getting the 2nd one in the series in the mail!

Go take a look if you want to read!
The lens and the looker by Lory S. Kaufman.

And keep a look out for a guest post by the author tomorrow!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Long time no post!(Ok, not too long)

2011-05-05T10:10:00.001-04:00

Our computer is on the fritz, and it will be up to 10 days till we get it back! Eeekkk!

Our move went well. We are officially in the new house and checked out of the old one! It has been the longest week of my life and I NEVER want to move ourselves again! I've never been so tired in my life!

For right now, we are living in a sea of boxes and random household things. But, I'm in love. The house is amazing and I feel so much more at home here. Little loves his room and the paint and decorations came out even better then I ever could have imagined! Hundley(our dog) is in heaven with the fenced in yard. I don't think he understood the first time why he didn't have to be on his leash. Lol.

I'm going to try to get on here as much as I can, but with no computer, the packing I have to do AND our trip to Mexico in two weeks I think I might be a little busy for a bit. But I will try to post from my phone every few days just to keep something going!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Guest Post: Poekitten

2011-05-02T09:20:00.002-04:00

When Kim asked for guest bloggers, I thought it would be fun to write for her blog, so here I am. She asked for a post about a duty station you've lived at. We're currently at Navel Base Kitsap in WA. Here's what it's like:

The area is GORGEOUS. If you enjoy hiking, camping, skiing, or just about anything outside, this is the place for you. The naval base in located on Kitsap Peninsula. We're surround by Puget Sound as well as the Olympic and Cascade Mountains. You can also see Mt. Rainer from different areas. It's breathtaking! And yes, it rains here. It's overcast more than rains and we do get sunshine. The winters are pretty mild which I love. We get snow too but it usually doesn't last long. Summer are nice too. There's often a week or two in August that's really hot but the rest of the time...perfect!

Naval Base Kitsap is made up of a few bases: Bangor, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS) and Keyport (I think they include it!) Bangor is the trident sub base. The Shipyard is the home port to a couple of subs and aircraft carriers. Other ships/boats come and go as needed in the shipyard. Bangor and PSNS are about 15-20 minutes away from each other. Both have a commissary, NEX, ITT, Gym with pool, bowling alley, etc.

Housing is available on Bangor and in Jackson Park. JP is by the Naval hospital and is not gated. There is officer housing available on Keyport and I think there is limited officer housing on PSNS (I could be wrong). People have different opinions on housing; we lived on Bangor for 9 months and enjoyed it. We had a 2 bedroom town house in West housing and it was nice. We moved because we bought a house but are willing to live on base again if we need to.

Base Housing

In Silverdale there is a mall and several shopping areas. Lowe's, Costco, Best Buy, Old Navy, Target and JoAnn's are all in the area. There are several chain restaurants; Applebee's, The Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Famous Dave's, Red Robin, Pizza Hut, Domino's, and Arby's are just a few that are present. One of our favorite places to eat is Fujiyama, a Japanese Steak House. There are many Mexican restaurants to chose from as well.

In Silverdale there is a great walking trail called Clear Creek. It's a great place walk/jog/run. Some parts are paved and other parts of the trail are gravel or have raised wooden planks. It reminds me of a boardwalk. Our puppy, Miss Molly loves to go here. Another place we enjoy going is Fort Worden in Port Townsend. It's about an hour away but it's well worth the drive. There is a nice beach, some fort ruins and a light house. Camping is available as is lodging in former officer housing. Molly loves going here too!

Fort Worden

We are an hour away from Seattle by ferry. It's located next to PSNS in Bremerton. You only have to pay when traveling from Seattle to Bremerton. Rates as of April 2011 for a walk on is $7.10. In Seattle you get off within walking distance of the aquarium, Pike's Place Market, Seattle Art Museum and the shopping district. From the shopping district you can take a monorail to the Space Needle. Harbor tours are also available. The ferry is also a great option if you'd like to take in a Mariners, Seahawks or Sounders game.

Seattle Sights

This post is getting long and I could go on and on! One last thing...for all you Twilight Fans, Forks is about 2.5- 3 hours away. If you do make it to Forks, I suggest visiting Ruby Beach which is just south. The whole area is beautiful.

Rub Beach, WA

Thanks for letting me take over you blog for a day Kim!

Hope you all have a great day!

(It's Kim now!) I'm so glad she was up to writting about where she lives! I think it would be amazing to get a list of all the different bases around here. It would be so nice if a new spouse could see all the good places to eat and visit when they are nervous about moving to a new place! If you want to write a post about the base you are at, please e-mail me kkrowan(at)gmail(dot)com.

Go over and give her blog a visit! It's super cute and I love reading it!

Guest post: Hapa Girl!

2011-04-30T09:14:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone! I'm Sonia aka Hapa Girl! I'm very grateful to be given the chance to guest blog for Kim today! I'm not even sure when and how I started following her, but I know why. Because we're both wives of Submariners and that was good enough for me!

A little background about myself! I am actually an Air Force Brat. I grew up overseas and came back to the great ol' US of A during the summer of my Senior in H.S. (yes, I still have issues...Mr. Clinton)

I met my sailor in October of 1998 and we got married in September of 2000. Soon, after our marriage we had our first child. Moved to Hawaii and had our second child. When we moved to Washington,we had our third! We've weathered through deployments onboard a Boomer/Trident Submarine, Fast Attack Submarine and an unaccompanied tour when he was sent surface side. Currently, we are back on a Submarine.

I actually started blogging after the birth of my third child. She was born with Down syndrome and it was a great outreach for me! Now,as our life is not being guided by everything Down syndrome, I'm blogging more about "stuff" regarding our lives and being a Navy Family.

I hope you enjoy what I have to write about and would love love love to answer any questions or your thoughts! This guest post is really my take on the topic on hand, so please add any advice that you may have as well!

So, today's topic of choice is:

How do you deal with deployment?

What keeps you going?

My answers are specifically geared towards me...since we all have to deal with deployment in our own ways. But, I hope I can help a few ladies (guys) out on the ways you can deal with deployment.

For me, my number one piece of advice would be to make sure you have some sort of network of reliable people surrounding you. This has to be very important! Especially, if you are far away from family and very close friends. During our first deployment (Yes, I say ours because we both are going through this together) I was close to home. I had my friends and family on call, so our seperation wasn't very stressful. Also, I only had one child to nurture and keep me busy.

Our second deployment, we were stationed in Hawaii. Need I say more??? Seriously, though, I was so far away from everyone I knew that I had to make friends fast. I say fast, because he was gone within weeks of our arrival to the island. My network, the people who helped me get through the deployment, were families in my neighborhood and some really awesome wives who's sailors were serving on the same boat as mine. Even, if you dread going to the family support meetings, just go and do it. You never know who you will meet and make a quick connection with. For me, I made some life long friends during this deployment and I was so grateful that I went ahead on got off my butt to go to my first spouses support group! Everyone one in my network helped me through the rough and sad times...especially since, my sailor left me pregnant with baby #2! My network of friends were very important to me when I needed someone whom I was able to trust and watch child #1 when I had to spend a couple of night in the hospital. I also find, that being part of the Submarine family, I know that somehow or another, I will probably see a familiar face at our next duty station. There are only a handful of places we can go! And for me, it has been true. During subsequent deployments and an unaccompanied pcs move, those fabulous wives from Hawaii have been there for me....from Washington State all the way back to Florida!

Another way to get through the deployment is by starting a new/old hobby and to start working out. Every single time we are seperated I took time and worked out. I was motivated to want to look like a hottie every time my sailor came back home to me...pregnant or not! And working out is also a great stress reliever...so you can look hot and blow off some much pent up steam! I also started crocheting and scrapbooking. It's amazing how much you can get done (even with children around) when your sailor is not there to occupy all your extra time!

So, what is it that keeps me going? That's a toughie. For each and every person, what drives them is very personal. For me, my children are the ones that truly keep me going. The thought of being with my man like it was the first time again really keeps me going! Knowing that I'm gonna be damn hot (OK...so maybe just hot) from all the working out really keeps me going!

I can't imagine falling apart and not being able to keep myself together when our family is seperated during a deployment. I firmly understand that my role as mother and spouse is a core ingredient that keeps this military family together. My children need me to be strong and to be their comforter, as my sailor needs to know that he can come back to a happy family and home that did miss him and is very excited and happy to have him home. BUT, this can only happen if you take care of yourself first. After, playing this role for so many years, I know when I need to keep myself in check. And by check, I mean, talking with a friend, seeking help without feeling ashame, fine tuning your coping mechanism. Because I know, if I crack and crumble, then so will my family. It's not always going to be easy, but I promise you that if you find the one thing that keeps you going, you will get through it.

I know that deployments are different for every branch of the service. There are differences even within the Navy...Surface vs. Sub. On the Sub side, I think our hardest challenge is the lack of communication. We don't get phone calls and emails are scarce. Which, is why I am a firm believer in having a "network" of friends. What are some of the challenges that families may have in other branches of the Military...including Surface ship families in the Navy. I'm just curious.

Thanks for your time! The Hapa Girl!

Hello there!

2011-04-29T09:14:00.000-04:00

I'm right in the middle of my move! Things are going good, but super stressful! We got the inside all painted, beds moved and the whole kitchen moved! Now we are packing the rest of the stuff for our furniture to be moved tomorrow! Eeekk!

After today I won't have Internet access except on my phone(which is a pain to work!). So, I'm leaving you with a few amazing guest posts! I hope you enjoy them!

A week of "NO"

2011-04-14T09:26:00.000-04:00

Next week Little has spring break. We have a few fun things planned, but I need to get the house done since we move the following week. I've decided that while spring break is in full swing, I'm going to do a week of "NO". Each day I will have something I've cut out of my everyday life. I want to take this time to focus on my home and Little.

Here is what I've come up with for my 7 days of "NO"

No talking!(Mostly because my throat hurts and I need to give it a break)
No TV
No phone
No computer
No driving
No spending
No cooking(meaning, all things fresh not cooked. No cooking appliances!)

I hope I can do it! No talking is going to be the hard one, but I know my throat needs a rest after all this coughing!

Wish me luck!

(wo)man in the mirror.

2011-04-09T23:39:00.000-04:00

Have you ever stopped at took a good, hard look around? Not only at your surroundings and the people around you, but at yourself?

I like who I am, but I feel like I'm lacking. I need to change things up and be a better/happier me. I've been so consumed with moving and packing(not to mention the flu that had me bed-ridden for a whole week!) that everything for me has been halted. I hate that. Tomorrow marks a change!

*Gossip. I do it too much. I'm done. No need for it.
*Gossip and venting are two completely different things. Make sure I know the difference.
*Telling it TOO truthfully. Saying the truth and hurting someones feelings can be just as bad as lying.
*I need to have me time. I haven't even been reading!
*I need to pick better things to watch and read. I need to fill my head with uplifting things.
*I need to focus on being friends with people who lift me up as a person.

I have some really great people in my life and I feel that I need to focus on my relationships with them. I used to think that the more friends I had the better, but I found out that most of them weren't worth my time. My biggest one right now is a friend who constantly "takes". Our whole friendship is her asking things of me, but when I ask for a favor in return, she finds a way out of it. I've finally got to the point of saying no and it feels great. Shes one that I won't be friends with any longer once we move into the new house. A good friend is one who will pack up and come over just because you are stressed and could use a little help not one who bails when they know you need them.

I just feel like I'm in a rut. Thank goodness everything with J and Little are as perfect as ever! I'm using this time before we move and when we get into the new house to start fresh.

Not so hot.

2011-04-06T10:12:00.000-04:00

I have the flu. Not just "hey I don't feel so good" but the full blown flu. The type people get vaccinated for. J has banished me to our room for the past few days and right now if the first time I've sat down at the computer in days! I spent yesterday in the bathroom throwing up with a 102 fever......it sucked. Of course I get the flu when I should be packing! I forced myself to go to the store to get medicine today after talking to the NACC nurse. I'm feeling a little better than I did yesterday but my throat and ears are on fire. Now I'm going to be rushed packing when I was doing so good on pacing myself!

Aquarium Sleepover!

2011-04-04T12:17:00.000-04:00

I love living here. We have so many amazing things to do and I want to do them all! One that we've been really excited about for a few months was the sleepover at the aquarium!

Landon had no idea where we were going since it broke his heart last time when they had to cancel because of the snow. This time, I thought it would be smart to not tell him since they were expecting snow AGAIN! If it happened to get cancelled we would be able to change plans and do something else. I had been giving him hints all day, like "Casey has to keep Hundley so he won't be locked inside all night" and "We have to bring our own pillows!".

After J got home we got ready and headed to dinner! Landon was guessing the whole time! But he didn't get it right until we pulled into the Aquarium parking lot! He was sooo excited! We grabbed all of our stuff and headed in!

After we found our spot(right under the shark tank!) and set our stuff down we went on a tour of the Aquarium! It was so nice not having a ton of people there so we could see everything inside without having to fight for a spot to see.

After we walked around we did a few great things. We got to go on an outdoor tour and see the Beluga Whales up close! It was so fun getting to walk around the aquarium in the dark! It's so different that late at night. After the tour we had a turtle class where Landon got to hold a turtle for the first time, Landon carved a soap craft, we had snacks, played a few games, watched a movie then got ready for bed.

I'm the crazy one who matched our pillows! I didn't do it on purpose at first then I just went with it. We brought a book with us and J read it just before lights out(at 11). After the lights went out Lan and I laid there and watched the sharks swim around their tank. It was so amazing. Lan told me that he had no idea the sleepover was going to be that much fun.

The lights turned on at 6 am! Eekkk!

After getting up and getting dressed we went on another tour of the place then came back and they gave us breakfast! It was super good and so fun to sit under the fish tanks and eat. We left there at about 9am. They stamped our hands so we could have come back to spend the day if we wanted, but we had other plans.

If you are ever in the area you need to sign up for this! Kids have to be at least 5 years old to go though. But it was so much fun and I'm so glad we got to do it!

Progress. Kinda.

2011-03-31T21:36:00.001-04:00

I'm packing....slowly.

Here is a list of things that need to get done.

3rd floor(I want this done by Monday!)
~~Pack all books~~
~~Pack closet~~
Bag clothes(wait till right before move)
~~Pack bathroom~~
~~Pack L's closet~~
~~Pack L's room~~(half done)
Pack L's clothes(wait till right before move)

2nd floor(I want this done a week from Monday)
Pack movies
Pack all shoes
Pack rest of living room
~~Pack hall closet~~
Pack kitchen closet
Pack pantry
Move kitchen
Pack desk/dining room
Pack Laundry room
Pack bathroom

1st floor(all closets are half done)
Pack closet A
Pack closet B
Pack closet C
Pack closet D
Move garage
Move backyard

I'm feeling a tad bit overwhelmed. Haha that's an understatement! I'm doing alright. I got Little's room almost completely done today WHILE HE WAS IN THE SHOWER!!!!!! I never knew I could work so quick! I wanted to be out of there so he could go to bed, and I was(he did go to bed late due to a school function though...). All I have left is some of his toys(half will be left out for him to play with...and his clothes). My room is almost done besides the clothes and the bathroom I hope to finish tonight! I'm just about out of boxes but I have a ton coming in tomorrow!

So, I'm sorry I haven't been on here much! I'm still alive!

Food Quest: Bleu Squid

2011-03-27T11:44:00.002-04:00

I LOVE this place! Mandy and I went on a rainy day and sat inside(they have picnic tables outside for warm weather). They have cute little seating inside(not much though) and we loved the decor!

They don't have a website so I'm guessing on what we got....

M- Lobster Grilled Cheese(It was AMAZING!)

-Assortment of cupcakes

K- Grown up Grilled Cheese(I've had it plain and with bacon! So good)!

-They always have the best soups! I've never not liked one.

-DIRT BOMBS! They are cupcakes rolled in cinnamon/sugar. I crave these! Haha.

L- Kids grilled cheese with bacon(He loved it!)

-Mac&Cheese(He would only give me ONE bite!)

What I liked:

GREAT service

AMAZING food

GOOD prices!

The owner really aims to please

Kid friendly food

Outdoor seating for warm weather

If you call ahead they will have it all ready for you!

What I didn't like:

The inside isn't the most child friendly(breakable jars and not much space)

Not much seating on an icky day.

If you want to join in on the food quest, read the section at the top of my blog, make sure you read the "rules", post on your blog then come back here to link up!

Book Review: Deed So

2011-03-25T09:44:00.000-04:00

This is the second book that I've agreed to read and review. I was really excited to get this book and it didn't disappoint!

From Goodreads.com

It is 1962, and Agnes Hayden Bashford, Haddie, a brainy Southern teen from a tradition-bound family, dreams of breaking free from suffocating expectations placed on girls and from Wicomico Corners. She vows to escape to the exhilarating world beyond its narrow borders, like her handsome, older friend Gideon Albright who is going to Vietnam. A series of shocking incidents brings the outside world crashing down on her peaceful village, exposing long-buried family secrets and setting Haddie on a collision course with an unstable firebrand who will have to silence her to protect his identity. Haddie witnesses the fatal shooting of a black teen by a white down-on-his-luck farmer trying to protect his retarded son. The resulting murder trial attracts outside agitators and political aspirants, and pits townspeople against each other. Excited about being a witness in the trial, Haddie sees her moment of notoriety dissolve into frustration and discomfort and tragedy claim the people around her. The racially-charged case exposes civic fault lines and secrets within Haddie's own family, shattering her comfortable home life, and unleashes an arsonist who terrorizes the community by night. In Deed So, a young girl and an entire town lose their innocence in the last year of innocence, the year before the Kennedy assassination, the civil rights struggle, feminist activism and the Vietnam War changed America forever.

This was one of those books that you don't know what to expect when you start reading it. At first I didn't know if I was going to get into it.....boy was I wrong! It was hard to put down! You get so invested in the characters! And not just the main girl, you find yourself thinking about everyone! It has so many little plots to go with the big one that you never really know where the book is going!

What I liked:
The flow. It was nice and easy to sit and read for hours.
How you feel so connected to all the characters.
The sub-plots.

What I didn't like:
I like all of it! I would say that some people could find it slow with all the added detail and extra plots. But, I quite enjoyed it!

Whoa there!

2011-03-24T07:15:00.002-04:00

I love my kid. He's nuts, but I love him! He's picked up a few things at school that I had hoped would have come at a later time. Language is one of them. We aren't big cussers in our home. We don't even say shut up to the dog! I'm not saying we are perfect, we cuss sometimes and Little has heard his fair share of things but he's NEVER said anything back.

On Monday we had a bunch of the single guys from the boat over for dinner and board games. It was getting late so J and I put Little to bed. He had gotten in trouble for not listening so he had gotten something taken away. He was upset and was throwing a minor fit about it, then started whining that he wanted J to stay up and snuggle longer. When J said that he couldn't because he still had company but would be happy to come up after they left Little got VERY upset. He kept asking over and over while J was saying no. It got to the point where J just tucked him in and left.

I was in my room folding some laundry and Little had no idea I was in there.

After I heard J go downstairs I hear out of Little's room "...Asshole".

I walked into Little's room and he KNEW he was caught. I called for J to come up and deal with it(since it was said to him not me I thought he should deal with it(How it hurts feelings and isn't nice)). Little knew he was in trouble and now his thing that was taken away for one day is now taken away for a week.

As I'm writing this I can't help but laugh. He's a kid and he will try to push us. I know this. After J got done talking to him and all I could do was laugh and say "At least he knows the right context to use it!" Haha.

After talking to little about it the next morning I found out it was the "problem child" in the classroom that had taught him the word on the playground a few weeks ago. I know these things are coming(heck I learned about sex on the school bus from a friend) but still, I don't know how to prevent it from happening again or being something worse next time.

He knows it was wrong(and why it's not very nice) and has promised not to do it again(until at least age 16). I hope he means it. For the most part he's wonderful and never does things like this, but I know every child does it at some point. I remember being his age and asking my mom what the Eff-word meant. Haha.

Kids.

Riddle me this

2011-03-23T10:25:00.000-04:00

I've been noticing a trend lately and I don't get it.

If you know you're not happy in your marriage(whether you just don't get along, one is cheating....ect) why would you try to bring a baby into it? I've seen a few people split up, get back together, have a baby THEN get divorced. I don't get it. Do you think a baby will fix it?

If a guy sucks enough to not be faithful, having another baby isn't going to change your mind when having the first baby started his cheating. I know it's none of my business, but why would you intentionally bring a child into a broken home?

If you treat your marriage like a high school relationship and you "break up" with your husband every few months then I would say trying for a baby shouldn't be on your list of things to do.

OR

Why do people post blogs or FB statuses saying how happy they are, how amazing their husband is and how much they miss and love them.....then a few weeks later, they're done, they don't want to be married anymore. I don't think a divorce comes out of nowhere(personally). Why be fake? If you're happy and post about it GREAT! But don't pretend to be happy when you're not.

Are we Military Wives so hooked on looking perfect that we can't reach for help when we are falling? Are they scared people won't understand? Maybe if they reached out, someone would have "been there" and could offer a helping hand.

I'm just sad to see so many people splitting up when they seemed so happy not long before......

I admit that I'm not one to post about the bad things. But, to be honest, I don't have many bad thins to post about. I also don't believe in "airing my dirty laundry" and possibly saying something I will regret. Do J and I argue? Sure! But I don't feel the need to post every time he falls asleep in the middle of a movie or forgets to take the trash out......I like to post about the good. That way, when he's gone I remember all the wonderful moments and the little bad ones are forgotten. But I am real. I won't post that I'm happy when I'm not. Here I am! I won't sugar coat anything just to make myself feel better, that's just not me.

WoooHoooo!

2011-03-19T12:01:00.000-04:00

We have a house!

After waiting, more waiting, get yanked around, then a lot more waiting.....we have an address!

The lady told me that she would call me this next Monday with our address since they were moving out on Friday. BUT, as I was driving to a friends house on Thursday I decided to do a little looking around for moving trucks. It wasn't hard to spot! I drove by a big ol' truck and saw them loading up. I called the housing lady with some news on something I needed fixed in my current house and we got to talking about the new house. I asked her if I guess the address would she tell me if I was right. She said she couldn't....so I told her how I saw a moving truck and I was super curious as to if that was going to be our house or not. She then asked what the address was, when I told her, she replied with "Yes, that's a mighty fine guess" and asked me if I was happy with it(I am!).

YAY!

Shes calling on Monday so we can set a move date! I'm so excited!!!!

Off to pack I go!!

Food Quest! An idea.

2011-03-17T08:51:00.002-04:00

Last year, a good friend of mine and I started the Food Quest. We started it as a way to get out and try new foods at new places. It was so much fun! Asking people(that we knew or didn't) where they like to eat and taking a day to go try new things. I tried so many new foods and found so many things that I now LOVE! I like the idea of posting on my blog so that other people who might move into the area(or already live here) can find new & exciting places to eat.

So, the point of this blog....who would be interested in taking part of a monthly link-up of a fun place to eat in your area? Or even, post about a resturant or even a new recipe that you tried? I think it would be so neat to see all the good places to eat all over are, and since we travel so much, it would be nice to have an idea of where to eat(or steer clear of!).

Let me know if anyone would be up for it!

Hello SPRING!

2011-03-16T09:43:00.000-04:00

I've felt so *blah* lately. This whole move thing is kicking my butt. They've been yanking us around a bit. Telling us we can't move, then we can. I know it's mostly because they don't want to move us within housing because they will lose money(to clean our old place to get it ready like ths new one is). Now they say they might have a house for us. We will know on monday.

It's been raining here, which I LOVE. Little has been enjoying the rain-gear wearing weather as well, and he's so stinkin' cute in his get-up! The snow is now all gone and flowers are stating to show! YAY spring!

I hope everyone is doing well. I hope to get back to regular posting here soon. And I want to set up some guest posts for weeks like this that I just don't sit down on here enough.

Now, I leave you with this picture of Little from our first rain of the year(2 weeks-ish ago)

Book Review: Semper Cool by Barry Fixler

2011-03-15T08:50:00.002-04:00

I was asked to read and review this book. I was a little hesitant at first. Being a Military wife and reading a "War Book" isn't always the best choice. After talking it over, the BBC decided to read it.

I've never read such a real book. So real, it was scary.

As a Navy wife I feel lucky that my husband never has to face anything like what the men in this book have to. I feel honored that we have men and women fighting for us each and every day, knowing their life is on the line. I'm truly proud to be an American.

What I liked:

It was REAL. No doubt this is what it was like.

It had a good flow.

It didn't drag on.

AMAZING message.(more about this at the bottom)

What I didn't like:

A LOT of cussing. I'm a bit of a prude and I read the "F-bomb" well over 100 times in this book.

At times it was a little too real. Vividly so.

At times I feel like he painted a not-so-great picture of others who have fought for our country....

All in all. It was a good book.

But, I think this is the most amazing part

(From Sepmercool.com)

THE BARRY FIXLER FOUNDATION

I have established a non-profit organization called The Barry Fixler Foundation. All of the royalties from Semper Cool will be paid directly to The Barry Fixler Foundation, which will then distribute the money to directly to wounded troops and their families, and to non-profit organizations on a case-by-case basis.

ONE MILLION DOLLAR GOAL

My goal is to raise at least $1 MILLION for wounded combat veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan. Well meaning individuals have cautioned me that publicly stating my goal may be perceived as naïve or pretentious—or both! I say to them: “You’re under estimating America!” It may be MY goal today, but I’m not doing it alone. I have already, with the help of the great Americans and patriots in my home county, raised more than $100,000 for one wounded warrior. When America gets behind this entertaining book and this great cause Our One Million Dollar goal will seem too low.

If you go and buy this book, you will be helping someone in need. Someone who had fought for you and put their life on the line. If anything, help get the word out to help our Vets.

Toy Story on Ice!

2011-03-12T15:03:00.000-05:00

For Little's big Birthday gift we got him tickets to go to Toy Story 3 on Ice in Boston. He had been asking for months if we could go and it just so happened that J's boat would be back in time!

We had to leave here early in the morning to get there in time. We got up, headed to the little store, got donuts and drinks then we were off! Even though we woke up to it snowing, the drive went great. We got up there with plenty of time to find our seats and settle in.

The show was cute. Little LOVED it while J and I thought it was alright. We were sooo impressed with the circus last year that I don't think anything can top it. All that mattered was that Little loved it. And he did!

I'm so glad we got the chance to do this as a family. I was so worried J wouldn't be home in time.

After we headed to Red Robin for dinner(Little's choice) and had a great time laughing.

After dinner I drove home! From Boston! I've come a long way with my fear of driving!

Rings!

2011-03-03T23:54:00.000-05:00

I've been watching people link up to this all day, so I decided to join in! Go HERE to link up and join in!

The link up is...Show me your rings!!!

Here is mine.....

On our wedding day!

Up close.

Did you look at rings together?
Nope. He asked me a few basics like white or yellow gold then did it by himself(without me knowing!)

Do you like your ring? Did you from the beginning?...and be honest!
100% yes! But, I think I would have no matter what...ok, maybe not. Sometimes I wonder if I would like a bigger one......but I don't. I love this one. I love that he picked it out and I love that I wore it when I said "I do". I'm not one of those girls who asks for an upgrade. If I trade up does that mean he can to(and I'm not talking about rings on his end)? Lol. Kidding! But I wouldn't trade this one for the world!

How often do you wear your rings?
Always, unless I'm doing the dishes or using harsh chemical cleaners.

Do you clean your rings?
I get them cleaned 2-4 times a year at the jeweler.

What went through your mind the very first time you saw your ring?
WOW! I was soooo surprised. I felt even more in my heart that he knew me. He picked the perfect ring without my help and I'm a pretty picky girl! I have to say I was more shocked when I saw my wedding band. It was the perfect set and I was over the moon.

Hello there!

2011-03-01T00:55:00.000-05:00

I'm going to be contacting everyone within the next few days about the guest posts. Sorry I haven't gotten to it yet.....BUT I've been cleaning like a mad women! We have our papers turned in to move and before we get a new house(or can even look at one) we have to prove we have taken care of this one for the past three years. Meaning, we have an inspection in 2 days where if the house is not perfect, we won't get a new/better one. While we've been cleaning. we've also been gutting all the junk we have so we don't have to move it. While this makes it take more time, it will be better in the long run for us.

So, I'm sorry. I will e-mail you as soon as this part is over I promise!(If you want it to go a little faster, you can email me and I will write back as soon as I can(since I have email on my phone I can reply to emails a little easier then getting on here to find the addresses and write them))

Want to do a guest post?

2011-02-25T16:24:00.002-05:00

Does anyone want to do a guest post on my blog?

I've been thinking about doing one on here for a while now....and if you want to, let me know! If you have an idea let me know what it is and we can go from there OR if you want to guest post but have no idea what to write about I have a few ideas on posts I would like to see.

comment or email me at kkrowan (at) gmail (dot) com

(I'm looking to do a few over the next few months!)

Here we go!

2011-02-24T22:15:00.000-05:00

I've been back and forth a thousand times on if we are going to move or not. If you would have asked me just three short days ago, I would have told you that we were staying. I would have said it was too much hassle for something I wasn't sure about.

Then a few things happened...

1) I took my husband over to a friends house to show him what we would be moving into(after I spent the whole day there picturing where my stuff could go).
2) My neighbor got new neighbors. Not only did she hear them getting it on, but she was woken up every 2 hours when their baby cried. This is my WORST nightmare living in housing...both of those things. I don't need to hear peoples sex lives lived out in person. ICK!

So, I went into the office today and I think we are going to do this! We are waiting on a paper from the command, then we are golden! Kinda. I know what we want to move into and I'm willing to wait for it. We could be moving in 2 weeks or 2 months....either way I'm fine with it! The lady isn't going to waste my time showing me houses I'm not interested in and I'm %100 fine with that! It shouldn't be long till a house like the one we want opens up!

We decided to completely move ourselves. No movers. I'm going to do short runs of the stuff I can while Little is in school, then we have a bunch of boys coming to help pack out the big stuff! J is alright with all this since we aren't going to be spending $1,000 on movers. It's just going to be a lot of work, but I think it will be worth it when we are %100 happy for the next 2-3 years we are here!

Wish us luck!

Book Review: I Am Number Four

2011-02-21T20:33:00.000-05:00

My book club(the BBC) just got done with another book! This month we read I Am Number Four.

Here is a little bit I found about the book.

Despite the amazing powers that many of the people of Lorien possess, the planet was defeated and its natural resources looted by Mogadorians in a matter of days. Only nine children escaped with their guardians to Earth, where they planned to hide until they developed their powers in order to defeat their enemies and revive Lorien. The Mogadorians hunt the Nine and have already killed three of them. And that's just the backstory. When Number Four, bearing the name "John Smith," moves to Paradise, OH, he runs afoul of the school bully, falls for the most beautiful girl in town, and befriends the local alien conspiracy nerd in short order. There is plenty of great action, but the dialogue is average, as is the character development. With its interesting premises and a fast-pace telling, the story will grab readers who are willing to suspend quite a bit of disbelief. Others, who like their science fiction with a bit more science and internal logic, will have to search elsewhere

I had high hopes for this book. Really high. It had been recomended to me by a few different people and I was excited to read it.

It was a let down.

What I liked:
The basis of the story was great!
It's different then other things out there right now
It kept me reading(for the most part)

What I disliked:
Under developed characters
Slow plot(in parts)
Undertones of "save the planet"
Lackluster ending

The book builds to the end(as all books seem to so), but it was a let down when you got there. I found myself being able to skim the pages IN THE MIDDLE OF THE CLIMAX OF THE BOOK! EEkkkk!

I feel like they could have done it a little better. BUT I have to admit my thoughts of the book might have a little to do with the Author. Does anyone remember the A Million Little Pieces by James Frey scandal? I do. For the most part, I don't let things like that cloud my judgement, but this did. Anyway, after reading this book, I found the autors name a little odd(even more so since it was used in the book!) so I looked it up. Come to find out Pitticus Lore is just James Freys pen name(probably because he's a dirt bag and knows no one wants to read his stuff).

If it weren't for the autor I think I would have given this book half a star more.....

I give it 3/5 stars.

Night Owl? Or just plain insane?

2011-02-20T00:41:00.000-05:00

I clean when I should be sleeping....and I sleep when I should be cleaning.

It's a vicious cycle.

Back to folding towels I go.

To move. Or not to move.

2011-02-17T22:27:00.001-05:00

We have been in this house for 3 years. I'm getting a little antsy. We have been presented with the option to move. Not to another duty station, but to another house.

Here is the break down.

Here is a little about the house we live in now

Pros
*Lots of space(3 stories)
*Nice backyard
*LOTS of main living space

Cons
*3 stories(lots of climbing...and falling)
*No fence
*Attached to other houses on both sides(even bedroom walls)
*1 1/2 bathrooms(works for us, but compared to the other house)
*2 bedrooms

Now on to the other house

Pros
*Single family stand alone house!(NO attached walls!)
*Single story ranch
*Fenced in yard for Little and the dog
*2 full bathrooms(mater bath)
*3 bedrooms

Cons
*We would lose main living space
*Lose storage space
*We would have to move a massive wood swing set. lol.

The biggest con.....we would have to move ourselves. Moving ourselves could cost anywhere between 400-1000(depending on how much of it we want to do ourselves).

Is it worth it for two more years? Should we just stay put and live with being connected to other people, and hope we get good new neighbors who aren't loud? I'm petrified of who is going to move in next!

The new house is right down the road so it wouldn't change anything like commute time or Littles school.

What would you do?

Giveaway winner!

2011-02-15T18:47:00.000-05:00

Is Mrs. JCD! Yay!! I hope you love your new flag and it looks great on your new house!

(make sure I get your address so the flag can be sent to you!)

My Valentine.

2011-02-14T13:14:00.001-05:00

I was 14 and a freshman in highschool when J and I met. He was a year older then me and had gone to a different middle school, so I had no idea who he was. We were on a bus headed to a basketball tournament and my cell phone wasn't working. He offered to help me.

He was quiet and didn't say much. We ended up writing back and forth on my phone(in the days before texting. lol). All I remember thinking is "Not only is he CUTE, but he's nice to!". We ended up sitting together the next few days on the way to the games. The last day I couldn't make it since I had a dance competition. He found me at school the next Monday and told me he was mad I ditched him and told me that I owed him. At some point a note was passed that had my number in it. It took him a few days to get the guts to call. But he did. While talking he reminded me that I owed him. When asked what he wanted all he said was "Just you". That was it. I was his.

We spent all of our days together. Normal high school stuff. He walked me to and from all of my classes, I wore his varsity jacket, I went to all his games and meets and we were together every weekend. It was perfect.

This is our very first picture together! I think we had been together 3-4 months?

We even went to all of the dances together.(and were always matching perfectly, I might add!)

We dated all of high school. At times I think I could have been a little bit nicer to him but what teenage girl doesn't have mood swings!? I loved him and I knew I did. My mom told me once while she was driving me to school when I was 16 "You need to treat that boy nice, Kimberly. You're going to marry him someday". I knew she was right.

When we were 17 he bought me a promise ring for Christmas. I loved it. I loved that when he gave it to me he told me that he loved me more then he ever knew possible and that one day he would make me his wife.

And that he did.

He proposed to me on a picnic(hence where our love for them really comes from) on a chilly day at our favorite beach on the Island. It was perfect. I cried and said yes and all he could do was smile.

We were married that June.

Saying "I Do".

A few months later he decided to join the navy. It was the first time we had ever been apart for more then a few days. I had never known what pain was until that time. I'd never felt heartbreak. But that was it. My heart broke for him. He came back a new man. A better man. I never knew what we had could be better, but it was.

2011 marks 10 years together for us(the end of 2011, but 2011 none the less). I fall more and more in love with him everyday. We aren't perfect, but we try our best. I love him with all that I have and I know he does the same. I never thought this would be our lives. The navy life. But it is, and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Today on Valentines Day, from under the Sea, I know he's thinking about me as much as I am him.

What I love (and hate) about blogs!

2011-02-11T21:51:00.003-05:00

Do you have pet-peeves about the blogs you read? I know I sure do! Even more so if I'm checking out the blog for the first time.

I've seen a few people blogging about this and I SOOOO agree! While I know my blog isn't perfect, I try to make it as user friendly as I can. I may post about books a little too much or my snark may not be some peoples taste. But, I'm me. And I love me!

Here are a few things I love to find when I check out a new blog!

* A face. I love it when people don't hide. I like to feel like reading your blog and commenting is making a connection with a real person. Fake names and no pictures sometimes make me wonder if the person is "real".
* I love when you are real in what you write. Everyone gets sad/mad. Don't be afraid to show it. We are all human(I think I need to listen to myself a little more on this one).
*I love when you have an assortment of things you post! I love reading crafty posts one day then about your family/life the next.

This list is a little bigger. Things I hate to see when reading a blog.....

* Lots of swearing. My husband said the best thing to me the other day when I was talking about swearing on facebook "Only psychopaths and unintelligent people cuss in type. smart people can think of a better way to express themselves". I NEVER get the urge to use the eff word on my blog. Ever. Call me a prude, but I think it really dumbs down my opinion on a person. I cansee a swear word here or there and I have a few that I will write sometimes....but the C word? NEVER!
* I HATE adds! I really hate the ones that pop up and you have to click on it to get anywhere! Most times it makes me close out the window and move on. I also hate the ones that are between EVERY post. I want to read your blog not know what Viagra does.
* I hate automatic song players. You see Little likes to play games or listen to music on the computer and because he's little, he doesn't turn it down. I get on here to read blogs and have quiet time.....not be scared out of my mind when some rock song starts playing louder then it needs to be heard. I x-out right away and don't come back for the day. Sorry. If you want a playlist, make it so they have to click on it to start it. I love hearing other peoples taste in music!
* I don't mind colored fonts AS LONG AS YOU LOOK AT YOUR BLOG to see if it looks alright. Back colored like THIS hurts my eyes. I don't know why you think it would look pretty. It doesn't
* Post with too many pictures get old quick, even more so when you don't explain them. I love picture posts and find that too many posts without pictures get on my nerves to. I'm hard to please I guess.
* 8-mile posts! If you say "and then" more then 5 times. You need to save some of it for another post. I'm all about rambling. It's how I get to the best conclusions! Seriously! But sometimes it's too much! Break it down. Post it over a few days if it was a huge thing!
* Comments saying follow me! No thanks, I'll pass.
* Word verification! I hate them! I hate going and writing out a nice comment just to guess what some random words are. It makes leaving comments so hard. If you worry about spam, in the almost 3 years I've been blogging I've never once had a spam comment! No, I take that back, it was "spam" but from a real live person who could type in the word verification. So I don't use it and it's been fine!
* My new gripe is when all people post about is awards they've gotten, blog hops, fill-in the whatever or guest posts. It's just not the type of stuff I want to read. At all.

Sorry for the whiny posts. If I get it out I can move on!

Do you have any blog pet-peeves I didn't mention?

Making the switch!

2011-02-11T20:54:00.000-05:00

My blog address is changing over! You should be redirected, but if not, know that I didn't mean to lose you!

It's switching over to www.sinkorswimblog.com

Easy enough, right?

So long, my friend.

2011-02-10T09:31:00.002-05:00

I feel like I don't have much to blog about. All that I have to blog about isn't on the happy side...it's on the "whiny military wife" side. So if you don't want to hear it, move on.

I'm not a complainer. Really, I'm not. Ask my family or ask my friends. I seem to be a "glass half-full" kinda gal. But not this week. This week, I'm sad.

This is the first station we have even been at for more than a year. With this comes knowing people for more than a year. With that comes them leaving. My neighbor and best friend for the past three years moves today. I'm heartbroken. She's been everything to me since we met. My photographer, my foodie, my late night vent sessions and all around just best friend. I've never had someone I'd been friends with so long leave me. Ever. I've know people for a year tops before they left. Not three. I know this comes with the military life, it's just one of the things I had stayed away from. I hate goodbyes. I had to watch her say goodbye to Little this morning and I was choking back tears the whole time. Now, when I should be over there saying my goodbye, I'm hiding in my house writing this, hoping I can get it out before I see her for the last time......because no one likes a baby.

We say we will keep in touch. Is it true? Do people really do that? Or do they cut their losses and move on to new friends in their new places? Is it bad that I don't want to make new friends? I just want to bide my time until we leave to, then start all over. See!?!?! This is sooooo not me! But I'm sad and I'm going to miss her. We've shared our walls and our lives for three years. In a few months new persons will move into a house that holds all the memories I have now. I will be nice and say hello, but I don't want new neighbors. I want the people who were supposed to leave AFTER us to still be here. I wanted to leave first.....it's so much easier that way.

I need to suck it up. I've been in denial about her leaving for weeks now. I should have spent quality time with her...but I didn't. I couldn't. It hurt too bad. I think by the time she gets settled I will send her a package. One that I should have given her before she left....but getting it in her new house would be nice to.

I will leave you with these pictures. They were taken almost three years ago. It was our first photo session and one of the funnest by far. Thank you to the random lady on the beach who was nice enough to take a picture of the three of us. It's the only one we have.

BBC new book!

2011-02-09T14:36:00.001-05:00

My book club is starting a new book tomorrow! Our first check in will be next Thursday! If you want to join in, click on the link to the left to be taken to the goodreads site, or leave me a comment if you can't figure it out and I will help you!

This month we are reading: I Am Number Four!

Not many people have entered to win a free flag! You still have a few more days to do it!

Giveaway!

2011-02-07T10:50:00.001-05:00

Hello! I've been saying that I was going to do a giveaway and since the weather is nicer(and I can come and go as I please(to places like the post office)) I thought I would do it today!

I was contacted by CVS Flags and they offered to give one lucky person a Flag! I'm so excited!

Here is a little snip-it of what was e-mailed to me.

"CVS is a wholesale flag distributor that has been around for over 30 years. In addition to great customer service, all of the flags are made right here in the USA."

I love that they make all of the flags here in the US and I'm all for everyone flying a flag for our country!

You can pick an America Flag or a Military Flag. You can pick a 3x5 or 2x3 flag (whichever you prefer).

They have a huge selections of flags! Even flags for your favorite sports team!(yes, if you clicked on that I did in fact, send you to the Eagles Flags....I can't help it!).

It's a really amazing company and they have the sweetest people working for them. So, even if you don't win, please go take a look and think about supporting them. (They even ship to APO addresses!).

Enough with that end of it...here comes the fun!

To enter leave me a comment for each of the following(separate comments, each comment gets you an entry!)

*Go take a look at the site and let me know what flag you would like.
*Become a follower or tell me that you already are one(don't lie...I will find you)
*Post about it on your blog and link back here!

That's three different entries you can get for an amazing flag! You have one week from today to have all your comments in and I will pick a random winner next Tuesday!

Military Blog Hop!

2011-02-07T10:06:00.000-05:00

I LOVE blog hops, it's a great way to find new blogs and find people who you connect with. Military ones are the best, since I love finding people who "get" what I'm going through in the crazy life.

If you want to join in, head on over and link up!

To those coming over to my blog from the hop, welcome! I hope you enjoy my blog as much as I enjoy writing it.

Cupcakes & Underways

2011-02-05T15:27:00.000-05:00

My husband is gone again. He shouldn't be gone long and I'm taking this as a time to get the house cleaned and ready for him to be home for a while!

Every time they leave, I go down to watch the boat go out to sea. It makes it a little easier to handle knowing he's gone and not just sitting down on the base(because they NEVER leave on time).

This time, I couldn't chase the boat all the way out. You see, it was Landon's birthday. While some would say that it sucks that they left on his birthday, my husband was overjoyed. They were going to leave a day earlier, which would have meant that he would have missed L's b-day for the first time. They left late and J got to spend the morning with our little boy. It's one of those small things that you are forever grateful for. Six Birthdays and not one of them missed.

I watched them pull out. Then headed on my way to Little's school.

He was so excited that I came in. I was there to help for a bit, then passed out cupcakes and juice.

I love the crown they made him! He was loving all the attention.

On their birthdays, the kids get to lead everyone in singing happy birthday. It was super cute!

Cupcakes and juice!

Normally I would have made the cupcakes, but due to the NASTY weather, preparing for underway and no school.....I bought them. Landon was excited that he got football cupcakes(his birthday always falls before/on Superbowl weekend. We decided when he was born that we are taking him TO the Superbowl for his 16th birthday...lets hope he likes football!)

When we got home he got a delivery from his Grandparents! He loved it! It's huge and only about half gone! Haha.

Nicholas Sparks Reading Challenge!

2011-02-04T16:16:00.000-05:00

So far, I have read two books! I'm trying to read 2 month until I'm done....so we will see if I can do it!

First I'm reading all the books that I have the movie versions of and watching the movies when I'm done with them! It's fun for me to see whats different about them, so I'm going to add what I likes/disliked about the difference! Don't read if you don't want spoilers!

First up!

A Walk to Remember:

I LOVE this movie and books. It's one of the first DVD's I owned. Haha. The book and movie are a lot alike. Here are the biggest differences:

*In the book the orphanage was a main part of Jamie's life, not so much in the movie.
*The whole "Money in the jar" thing wasn't in the movie at all and it was such a sweet part of the book.
*Landon's(no we did not get Little's name from this book/movie) Dad had a whole other part in the movie. I like the movie way a little better.
*The year of the movies was way off. Which made things a little different.
*Landon's roll in the play was for way different reasons.

I love this book. As with all NS books, it has a sad ending. I do have to say that that's maybe why I love reading his books. They aren't always perfect. It's not always a fairytale, but you will have learned something by reading it. This one taught you that love can come in any shape and size and sometimes when you're not expecting it, but it will take you over.

All in all I loved the book and I loved reading it again! I would give it 4/5 stars total!

The Last Song:

*Ronnie's image in the movie is a little "less hard" than in the book.
*The way people thought the fire started was different(I hated everyone thinking her dad did it!)
*Marcus was less creepy in the movie.

I loved them both. Not as many big differences in the movie but I think that's because it was done different. The Last Song was written as a screenplay before it was a book. Miley Cyrus had expressed interest in doing one of his "teen" movies, so he wrote this for her to play Ronnie. Then went back and wrote the book(or did he do them at the same time?).

I again would give this one 4/5 stars!

Six Years Ago.

2011-02-03T22:13:00.000-05:00

Six years a go today, I was having my little boy. I'm not going to go into his birth story since I've done it on here already. But just know that it was one of the scariest, happiest and most unbelievable moments of my life.

Here he is Year by year!

Birth Day.

(Everett WA)

Turning One!

(Camano Island, WA)

Turning Two!

(Orlando, FL)

Turning Three!

(Groton, CT)

Turning Four!

(Groton, CT)

Turning Five!

(Groton, CT)

Turning Six!

(Groton, CT)

It still hasn't hit me that my little boy is six! I know it will at some point.

We have gotten so very lucky that J hasn't missed a single birthday. I know it isn't common and we thank God everyday for the memories he's given us.

This morning J & I did a little dance in the car at the exact moment six years ago that our little boy was born. We were sitting at the pier waiting to say goodbye for another underway. They should have left yesterday, but they didn't. He got to be home for Landon's Birthday, even if it was only for a few hours filled with early morning donuts and cocoa. I will take what I can get and it was perfect!

Rainforest Cafe!

2011-02-02T21:06:00.000-05:00

Every year we take Landon to the Rainforest Cafe. I thought it was only since we moved here, but when we thought about it we realized it's been EVERY year! Crazy!

It's our little tradition to go up for dinner then we let Landon pick ANYTHING he wants from the Disney store.(this year we got off REALLY lucky. All he wanted was a $12 stuffed animal!)

This year the B's came with us. they had never been there before and it was so fun going with them for their first time.

Our view from our table. We had a huge table in the back right next to the elephants! (if you've never been, every 30 min they have a mock "storm" where the lights flash and all the animals move and make noise. It's great!)

This was right above out table!

My boys!

L is getting good at taking pictures! Haha.

For some reason, we never tell them it's his birthday. this year we changed that. He loved it! From now on we know!

VOLCANO!!!!!!

We ALL shared this since it's HUGE!!

Lan and I were taking a picture when Bitsy told us that she really wanted a picture with us to! I love her!

Future Mr. & Mrs? Haha.

Me and the Birthday boy!

J decided he wanted to drink L's ice cream. Grossest thing I've ever seen!

All of us after dinner! We had so much fun. Everything is better when great friends come along!

The elephant right by our table!

We really love going up there for dinner! I hope wherever we move next has one close by or I don't know what we will do!

It was a MONSTER BASH!

2011-02-01T21:12:00.002-05:00

I am not a sheep. I lead. My son? Not so much.

A few months back Little went to his first "friend from school" birthday party. He had the time of his life. So when it came time to plan his own party.....he wanted the same exact thing. I get it, having a birthday in the winter is hard for a kid. Not much to choose from. So we did Monster Mini Golf just like his friend did. Thank goodness I know the mother and she didn't care one bit.

You get the room for 90 minutes. Then all the kids get to go mini golf!

Little before the party started!

He wanted a Monster theme since it was Monster Mini Golf.

My rule on birthdays: Every even year we do a big party out in "town". When we do this I buy everything. I don't stress and make everything. On the odd years we do a party at home where I do EVERYTHING. It's crazy hectic when we do it at home(but cost a LOT less). So every other year is a perfect mix!

Coldstone cake! It was frozen solid when the poor kids were trying to eat it. I felt a little bad. lol.

Candles!

Our little family!

Golfing! So much fun!

Me and my little(not so little) boy!

Hahaha. Because it was his birthday he got to pull on the tickets! He ended up getting over 500 of them right here! He loved it.

The troll in the middle of the golf course.

Lan & Bitsy! I can't say it enough, but they are so close. I love that even with the age gap they are best friends.

L golfing.

Daddy & boy. I love that J got to be here for his party. We've gotten really lucky and so far J hasn't missed a single birthday(of Little's).

Me & Bri! I love her! They spent Little's whole birthday weekend with us and it was amazing!

Me and my man!

Done!

We had so much fun! After golfing we played games for another hour or so. Lots of money and a bunch of crap toys later we were home.

Little's birthday isn't for a few more days.....but it's sinking in that he's growing so fast. He's going to be our only, so I'm making sure to love every moment of this!

oh, snow.

2011-01-26T23:56:00.000-05:00

We are being hit with snow. AGAIN. We have feet of snow that's lasted a while and it keeps getting added to. Poor little hasn't been at school much because of all these snow days! It's crazy!

Thank you all so much for playing along with my games this past week! I have a giveaway I want to do but I don't want to do it yet knowing I can't get to teh post office! EKKK!

So keep a look out for it!

Also, if you want to join the bookclub, let me know! We are getting ready to start a new book here in a few weeks! We have a group on goodreads that's a lot easier then blogs now. Click on the link on the left side of my blog to be taken to the group and join in! You don't have to read with us each month if you don't want to, you can pick and choose what books you want to read.

Happy Holidays?

2011-01-23T14:10:00.001-05:00

We had the Boat Holiday party this weekend. They waited until everyone came back from leave and such to do it. We had a lot of fun. It's always nice to get to sit and talk with friends.

We don't drink, so it was fun to watch people get VERY drunk and dance.

This was when J came back from getting me a soda at the bar and yelled "Open bar for the Mormons!"

Then as the picture was being taken

L- J you look HAMMERED!

J- I AM. FREE SODA!!!!!

This is what I have to live with people.

Me & my love at the party!

Me & Bri. I'm so glad I have her! She's been a great help all these years dealing with the crap!(And I love her kid. It's win-win!)

We always bring cards to play during the party. It's a long running joke now.

A good friend went on vacation and found this cup for me. I about died laughing when I opened it!

Thanks Steph!!

I do have to add that some of the outfits were a little questionable. Some were soooo under dressed(in jeans and hoodies) then some way over dressed(in prom dresses)....the best was the few who decided to wear mini-dresses. I think I know a girl a little TOO well now.

Get to know me!

2011-01-21T13:41:00.001-05:00

Thank you for the amazing questions! Here are the answers! If you at anytime want to ask more, go for it! I'm always up for answering anything you want to know!

What are the best tips you have for surviving a deployment? Keep busy and set goals. I know everyone says it, but it's soooo true! If you have things you want to get done before they get home you will be busy. I always make a list of things I want to accomplish every deployment(find a new hobby, make a new friend, learn a new skill...ect).

Best things to put into a deployment box to surprise your sailor? The birthday box I sent my sailor was his favorite. I sent party supplies for him and his friends, hostess cupcakes(with a candle), a video of little and I wishing him happy birthday and a little gift. He LOVED it! He even has pictures of some of the guys with his party stuff. lol.

Best book you've read in the past year? It might be silly, but INKHEART. Something about that book made me fall in love. I got it(and the next two books) for Christmas from my best friend and I'm really excited to read it again!

What's your most irrational fear? I have two. One is serious and one is a little silly. Serious- my husband(and/or little) getting in a car crash. Fear overwhelms me when he goes anywhere in the car without me. I can count on my hands how many times he's driven with Little without me. I also only have a VERY small handful of people that I don't have a panic attack with when they take Little somewhere. It's bad. Silly- I can't look in the bathroom mirror at night without the light on. I just can't. It freaks me out way too bad! I reach in and turn the light on before I step in the bathroom. lol.

Do you have any career aspirations? Yes. I want to own a bakery one day. I LOVE to bake and I have to say I'm pretty good at it. Ever since HS I've wanted to own a little coffee shop/bakery. Maybe when we are out of the Navy I can make my dream come true.

Do you root for any sports teams? Sure do! I'm surprised I don't post about it much. While I grew up in Seattle and root for the Hawks.....we are die hard Eagles fans in this house. When my husband was growing up and getting into football he only had a few channels. He would watch McNabb play when he was in college and when he got drafted J kept with him and rooted for the Eagles. Now YEARS later(and McNabb gone) that is our team.

What is the oddest "quirk" you have? I have slight OCD.....I like things color organized. My movies and clothes are the worst.

If you're husband hadn't joined the Navy, which branch would you have wanted him to join? When my husband was getting ready to join, he went into every military recruiting office and asked what they could offer him with the ASVAB score he got. The Navy had the best deal. Not only does he make a little more because of his job, but the training he has because of it will be great once he gets out. I don't think any other service could have offered us what we have. Not only that but as strong as I am, I couldn't do 18 month deployments. I will take 6-8 months and little ones in between.

If you could do it over again, would you even opt for military or would you want him to be a civilian? We were married before he joined the navy so my answers won't be too amazing. I would 100% choose the military for our family again. I remember what it was like to struggle for money when we first got married. He made nothing compared to what he does now and he had a good job! I would have had to work and no way could we have lived in a nice place, it just couldn't have happened. We want for nothing now. He has a stable job and we're not worried about making rent. This life is amazing compared to what we were facing.

What advice or comments do you have for someone who has a husband about to enlist in the Navy? Keep your chin up. It will get better. Be as supportive as you can. Know that what he's doing is great and be proud. I see a lot of wives who hate it from the beginning. Yell about the hours and time away. I do my best to never do that. I tell my husband to stay late and help if he needs to, because in the end it looks good on him. He's known for helping out and not ducking out. If he plans on being a lifer, then he needs to do the best he can to do as well as he can. Does that make sense?

Ask Away!

2011-01-19T10:26:00.000-05:00

So, as part two of my "200 followers" posts, I'm going to let you ask me any question(s) you want! Could be anything(but lets try not to get too personal...no one wants to hear that). Leave me a comment with your questions(s) and I will write a post tomorrow and answer them all! You don't have to be a new follower to play along!

Also. Participation in these posts might earn you extra entries in the giveaway! *hint. hint*

200 followers! Part One! Getting to know you!

2011-01-18T11:12:00.000-05:00

It's a nasty day here. Really nasty. But Littles school got cancelled so I got to sleep in! wonderful when you're not feeling well! Now we are just hanging out for the day. I feel a nap coming on and I haven't even been up an hour! Eekkkk!

I have 100 new followers since I posted this time last year. I would love to get to know you! Unless people comment, I never know who is following. I love to find new blogs just as much as the next girl! Even if you're not brand new! Introduce yourself!

Leave me a comment with your answers and feel free to ask me any questions you have!

Getting to know you!

1. Who are you?(Military wife, friend in real-life....random stumbler?)
2. How did you find my blog?
3. What would you like to see more of on my blog?
4. What do you want to see less of on my blog?
5. How long have you been blogging?
6. Tell me something fun about yourself!

and leave me a link to your blog(if you want) so I can go check it out!

Sorry 'bout that

2011-01-17T23:53:00.001-05:00

I've been feeling a little under the weather the past week. So, my posts have been few...and a little lack luster.

Sorry.

I have a few things I want to post! Mostly me whining about why other people drive me nuts. Whats new. If you know me in "real life" then this is not new to you. Lol. Seriously. My charm exceeds me when people get on my nerves. Try as I might.......my wit and snark get away from me from time to time. Even more so when I'm not feeling well.

On a GREAT note! I've reached 200 followers! Yay! I have a few posts about that(hopefully starting tomorrow) which will include a giveaway!(jenny- leave it alone!).

I hope everyone is doing great! I will be back soon with normal posts that have nothing to do with books!

BBC

2011-01-16T01:44:00.000-05:00

I put a poll up on goodreads for the next book after the last hunger games.

If anyone wants to join the book club, let me know! You don't always have to read, just when you want to. The post below has a link to our BBC goodreads page which will have discussions and polls from here on out!

BBC ladies! Next book.

2011-01-15T01:12:00.000-05:00

No one has really been on to check but I hope you will soon. Do we want to start reading now? then have our first talk next week? That would mean we read half RIGHT NOW. I'm in for this but I want to make sure you all are to. If you don't want to do that then we will START reading next week and go from there.

I also started a new group on goodreads for us. Search the BBC(Blog Book Club) and see if you can find it, if not I will find a way to add you. If we are on there also, we can all chat and talk about the book as we are reading it and talking about all other things book related and really get to know each other. Let me know if you like it or not.

I just want to find what works for us. I know we have 5 every month readers and a few new ones. I'd love to get some more people to join us!

BBC Week4: The Hunger Games!

2011-01-14T01:04:00.003-05:00

Hello! Everyone finish? Was it what you expected?

Write a review of the book.

What did you like?

What didn't you like?

Then rate it! Each can have 5 stars.(mine will be at the bottom.

Plot: /5
Setting/Imagery: /5
Originality: /5
Ending: /5
Total Score: /20

I liked that it was so different then whats out there right now. It was a good break from vampires. Haha. I loved the plot in general, really.

I didn't like(and it may be odd) that it was sooo gruesome but there was no swearing. The author went to great lengths to not swear, they should have been careful about how vivid the violence was if they cared so much about who the reader was. While I don't like reading swear words, I could have do with the gore toned down a little.

Plot: 5/5(Great plot. No real holes and it reeled you in)
Setting/Imagery: 5/5(Loved the "end of everything" theme. Very vivid descriptions)
Originality: 4/5(while it was different I still feel it's a cross between City of Ember and Running Games)
Ending: 4/5(I wanted it to be "happier")
Total Score: 18/20

It was a great book that is hard to put down. One that I can read over and over again and not get sick of!

Umm? Burrrrr! (With some BBC news)

2011-01-12T00:17:00.000-05:00

New England is getting hammered with snow right now. We are expecting at least 1-2 feet within the next 24-36 hours. Ick. Some snow is great. This much? not so much.

Everything is closed down for tomorrow and it's only been snowing for about 30 min. Hahaha. So little is home from school for at least a day and even the base is shut down for now! Family fun-snow day!(AKA Mommy nap day!)

To all those in the BBC: It has been decided that we will read the next book of the Hunger Games next! We are going to try to pick up the pace a little bit and see how it goes. I will post for sure page numbers but we are going to try to do it in 2 weeks not 4. Sound good?

I hope everyone is staying safe in this weather!

Happy Birthday to me!

2011-01-10T00:17:00.001-05:00

Well. Kinda. It was yesterday.

The weather has been nice here. Not too cold for being winter in New England, but not warm enough for my liking.

We had big plans to stay the night at the aquarium the night of my birthday....then it snowed and it got called off. Not only was my kid heartbroken, but I was to. We hadn't planned anything else since it was going to take most of the day and all night. It was the first time my hubby had been home for my b-day and I felt like it was going to suck(yes. I had a girl moment when I whined like a little baby)

Boy was I wrong. It ended up being one of the best!

Of course I got the most amazing flowers from my husband and an IOU to get a cover for my new kindle when Vera releases them later this month! Then he suggested we all go sledding on our big hill by the house. I was a little ehhh about it. To tell you the truth, I've never really been sledding before and didn't really have a desire to do it. But we got ready. I was uber cranky. Not as bad as I could have been but I was bummed. We headed down our street and for the next hour and a half had the time of our lives!

This was the beautiful view going to the "little" hill. We were walking in almost a foot of snow at some points!

My boys.

Landon getting ready to go down on the sled for his first time ever!

He loved it!

Snow always takes my breath away. I always stop and stare at the wonders it exposes. Everything looks so magical.

Landon getting ready to go down the "big" hill.

Me and my little on my birthday.

Landon wanted to take pictures of J and I. He's so cute and I think they turned out alright...even if I wasn't wearing any make-up. Haha.

After the fun in the snow we headed back to the house for hot drinks(Cider & Cocoa). Then we went and got snacks, a movie and pasta from my favorite place, Pauls!

After we ate and Little went to bed, J and I had a movie night on the couch. It was the perfect end to a perfect day. The Best birthday by far.

Flowers from my love. He had them put all of my favorites together! and they were in the cutest vase I've ever seen!

My friend Bri even sent me flowers! So cute and had the sweetest car with them. I have such great friends. I don't know what I would do without them.

My flowers!

I'm a lucky lady. I really am.

Birthday....part 1

2011-01-09T12:41:00.001-05:00

This is just the videos Landon sledding today. I have a post that I will write up tonight or tomorrow about it all with pictures.

Where we live in housing used to have a ton more houses(like a few hundred more) that are now torn down. Whats left is a lot of land(that in the summer is all nice grass). It has tons of perfect hills for sledding. We had a few nice ones to pick from and where we ended up was perfect since it had a huge one and a smaller one for Landon to go down when he was sick of the big one.

We were out there for almost 2 hours sledding and it was so much fun.

Yes, I'm aware that my son screams like a little girl. He's 5. Give him a break.

We had a great time. I'm so glad we got the chance to go outside and sled for a while. It was the perfect thing to do on a birthday!

Exciting news(for BBC readers!)

2011-01-07T20:37:00.002-05:00

Before the exciting news, we are going to talk a little. Ready? I want to know where we want to go from here. Hunger games book 2? Or move on to a new book? Do we want to keep it at 100 pages a week or up it to a little more(to be clear...I mean read FASTER! lol)? I know a few of us are ready for more, but I don't know about everyone else. ALSO- We could change it to 2 books at a time. 1 at a slower pace and 1 at a faster pace to keep everyone Happy and reading....??

Please let me know!

Now on to the exciting news! If you are friends with me on FB then you've already seen a snippet of this, but I didn't elaborate much.

I was asked to review a book. A great new military book. I mentioned that I had a book club online(since it's an online/blog campaign) and was asked how many copies we would need!!! So, who's interested in not only reading but reviewing this book? We already review books in a sense anyway so it wouldn't be much of a difference. We would be given the books to read then review . Even if you haven't read with the BBC before but would like to be apart of this amazing opportunity, let me know!

I don't know how many books we will be given so it will be on a first come first served basis!

I'm soooo excited!

Here is what I was given about the book.

Semper Cool is the wrenching, sometimes hilarious and always thought-provoking true story of well-off Long Island teenager who enlists in the U.S. Marine Corps seeking adventure and his father’s approval and finds both, plus more danger than he ever could have imagined. Barry Fixler gets molded into a Marine at Paris Island and sent to Vietnam, where he is assigned to a company that would soon etch it’s place in Marine Corps lore. Fixler’s Echo Company defends a hill at Khe Sanh against overwhelming enemy numbers in a 77-day battle that is considered one of the greatest military victories in the history of modern warfare. With its vivid imagery, Semper Cool thrusts the reader into a “grunt’s-eye view” of the blood, guts, tears and laughter of war, as told by a Marine who returned home a man and a patriot. Be prepared to laugh and cry for the men and women willing to risk their lives for the freedoms that so many Americans enjoy.

Navy Wife, Navy Life. Watch me sink or swim.

Snowed in....

Crafting!

To do:

Mad Science Birthday Party(Sneak Peek!)

Show us Your life - Military Families

2012

One year older!

Order(s) Up!

Back again!

Ribbon Wreath

Very Hungry Caterpillar tree!

Elf on the Shelf!

Hello, Christmas!

Thanksgiving(a little late)

Advent Calendar!

Stationery card

Thank you.

Moments.

Port Call!

Morals.

Fall leaves me happy!

Taco Pumpkin Seeds!

Funk.

The winner is......

End of the Giveaway!

Movie Review: Dolphin Tale

10 Years....

Show Us Your life - How do you scrapbook/keep kids art work?

Giveaway!!!!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar: Wall art!

Dear Landon,

A day out....

Hurricane Irene

Here comes the rain!

Growing up is hard to do

It's about that time!

Woman of my word.

Sink or Swim....

Camping goodies!

Leftover room paint makes me happy!

Home-made bubbles!

Sailing!

New House Part Three: Things!!!

New House Part Two: Paint!

New House Part One: Empty!

Starting out slow......

*tap, tap, tap* Is this thing on?!

Author guest post! Lory Kaufman

Book review: The lens and the looker.

Long time no post!(Ok, not too long)

Guest Post: Poekitten

Guest post: Hapa Girl!

Hello there!

A week of "NO"

(wo)man in the mirror.

Not so hot.

Aquarium Sleepover!

Progress. Kinda.

Food Quest: Bleu Squid

Book Review: Deed So

Whoa there!

Riddle me this

WoooHoooo!

Food Quest! An idea.

Hello SPRING!

Book Review: Semper Cool by Barry Fixler

Toy Story on Ice!

Rings!

Hello there!

Want to do a guest post?

Here we go!

Book Review: I Am Number Four

Night Owl? Or just plain insane?

To move. Or not to move.

Giveaway winner!

My Valentine.

What I love (and hate) about blogs!

Making the switch!

So long, my friend.

tap, tap, tap Is this thing on?!