Friday, April 29, 2011

Royal wedding extension

I will not feel bad for enjoying the royal wedding. People are upset that this had been all over the news instead of tragedies going on in our country, especially military related. Well as a military wife I am admitting that I thoroughly enjoyed watching that wedding not because of the glitz and glamour or even because it was on the news. I had no plans to watch it but I was up anyways and I'm so thankful I was.

It was a fairy tale and pure romance at it's finest. It is a reminder of the difference in culture of other countries. Also it was a good example of how crazy and dangerous our country can be. They had thousands of people flooding the streets, knowing the police weren't armed, they were curteous and didn't start a riot and none was assassinated. Can you honestly see that happening in America?

History is beautiful. Being able to witness tradition at its finest was a blessing. Stop trying to diminish it because it wasn't american.
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The Royal Wedding

Did anyone else watch it? I didn't have plans to watch it but I am so thankful that Abigail woke me up just in time to watch Kate arrive at the Westminster Abbey.

It was one of the most romantic and beautiful things I have ever seen. The music was incredible. Those little boys can hit some crazy high notes. I LOOOOVED all of the fantastically large hats worn by the women at the wedding.  Almost all of them were beautiful, except the beige one right behind the queen worn by Beatrice. She looked like she had gigantic antlers on her head. It was ridiculous.

Kate's dress was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!!! I wish I had a picture for you but google is currently not showing any. Google it later. It was simple and romantic. I couldn't have pictured her in anything more beautiful. Oh and her tiara? Yea that beautiful piece of jewelry was given to the Queen on her 18th birthday. She gave it to Kate as a gift. How ROMANTIC???!!!?!? I know I've used that word a lot but that is for good reason.

Pippa Middleton, Kate's Sister's dress was white as well...and also absolutely beautiful. I can't get over the simple elegance of the wedding. It was amazing. I'm so in love with this whole wedding.

If you asked my husband he would huff and puff and be a huge downer about this whole event. I don't know if men just really are pathetically masculine or if it's just my husband but you would think it would kill him to just keep his mouth shut and let everyone else enjoy this. He thinks everyone is enjoying this because of the money and extravagance of it all. I swear he is incapable of being excited about anything I'm excited about. Sometimes I wish I married a female. Then I'd be able to sit around and gush over things like this without feeling inferior.

On a different note, did anyone catch that fashion magazine editor's name? Plum Sykes. Probably not related but cool none the less.

If you didn't get to watch this try and find it online. It was such an amazing moment in history. It makes me want to move to Britain. The US is overrated. I want the beauty of history not the glam that we produce.


Anyways, I hope everyone has enjoyed or is still enjoying this incredible site.

EDIT: Apparently William first saw Kate's father and whispered " I thought we were just doing a small family affair?" For anyone who thinks these Royal's are all stuffy, seriously, think twice. Even the Queen seemed relaxed and just purely happy.

Something that baffles me, which shouldn't, is that all of these people can be flooding the streets without police with weapons pushing them back and having it become some gross happening. It's sad that as an American I associate high security and weapons to a public event. Another reason to move to Britain.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Zumba

Ok. I know this is my 3rd post of the day but I can't help it. I can only talk to a baby for so long before I go crazy.

So I've recently started doing Zumba. Have you heard of it? If not then youtube it or go to Zumba.com
It's a workout where you dance. It's AMAZING. When everyone first started talking about it I was intrigued and then my mom started taking the class and said how much she loved it so I got even more curious. I joined a class and I am in love.

I have to hold myself back from buying all of the dvds and cds and anything possible. I've always had trouble going to the gym and working out because let's face it, it's boring. But with Zumba not only is it incredibly fun, but it's like having a personal trainer. You just follow your instructor so you always know what to do.

Seriously, it's SOOO MUCH FUN!!! I might have to get the dvds so I can do it everyday since my classes are only 2 days a week. I'll have to talk to the hubby.

But seriously, if you are wanting to lose the extra lbs but find working out boring, get your but in a zumba class.

Have I told you?

Have I told you just how much I love country music? Well here is a damn good example why.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqrlhNmSZrc



Startled Baby

Have you ever startled a sleeping baby? It's probably the single most hilarious thing that could happen. I might need to record it and send it to funniest home videos or something.

Abigial can be sound asleep but certain noises startle her. Not noises you would think either. The dog barking, door slamming, vacuum going, thunder, or talking wont do the trick. So far I have discovered that sneezing and dishes clanking together will make her jump right out of her skin from a dead sleep.

Since I haven't gotten a video or picture of this yet imagine this: Sleeping baby (insert sneeze) baby arms fly towards the ceiling, eyes open and look as if the fan just stopped moving (or w/e is the worst possible situation to a baby), arms swing around for a second, then right back to sleep.

Seriously, if you haven't experienced this yet you need to find a baby and startle them in whatever manner works. Preparations such as bringing an extra pair of undies and pants might be necessary. Just saying.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Baby update

So Abigail Yvonne had her 2 month check up today. She got all of her shots. She cried, I teared up, and then she fell asleep. She weighs in at 11 lbs and is 23" long. She's doing great. Unfortunately she has a fever now due to the shots and I'm a very sad mama bear :-(

That's all for tonight. Fingers crossed that Baby girl sleeps all night. She seems like this fever just makes her tired so we will see.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Weight Loss

So it's almost been 2 months since our little girl was born. Here is the gorgeous little girl.



And here is yours truly as of today. Down 35 lbs. P.S. I only gained 30 during pregnancy ;-) 



Still working on the abs. I have that normal mom belly bulge that just needs to go. Other than that I'm actually really excited about how I look. Minus the boobies, but you already knew that. 

Monday, April 25, 2011

Military Monday Blog Hop

So I found THIS blog hop and it's a bunch of military blogs. If you are interested you should definitely check it out.


He's safe!

He just messaged me and he's safe. He hadn't even heard about it so I hope that's a good sign! He has been sleeping for 9 hours which is amazing. He hasn't been able to sleep for more than a couple hours at a time since he's been there. Thank you ladies for your prayers and support. My first freak out is officially over.

Please God

If any one has watched the news today you'd see this. Over 400 Afghan prisoners have escaped Kandahar's prison. I haven't talked to my husband at all today which isn't normal. I'm assuming the communication has stopped right now but I'm scared to death. I never watch the news and I happened to tune un right when this was on.

Please God, let my husband be safe.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Happy Easter!

From Afghanistan...

And New York...


Please pardon the fact that not only does my husband look 20 years older than he actually is but also like a super creeper with the hitler stache and bald head. He's normally a very attractive man I swear <3 ;-)

I would give you a picture of me on Easter but so far all the ones I have seen I look absolutely horrible. And I'm not just saying that. I almost posted one but then I looked at it a bit longer and realized I looked like a man in a dress. So not sharing that with the world. Hopefully my sister in law got at least one good one from today. I'll keep you posted on that...

Friday, April 22, 2011

To fight or not to fight...

I don't know if it's just me but I feel like there is no way my husband and I should fight while he is deployed. I mean we barely get to talk so what could be we possibly fight about?

Well, we found a way. I can't help but be sad lately. I mean come on, my husband is deployed and I have a new baby. I think I have a reason. Anyways, apparently I was acting miserable and when my husband asked me why I was being so miserable I said I didn't know I was just sad. He then said ok well I can't help you then and I replied with I didn't ask you to help me. And that's where it gets messy.

Anyways, long story short... He was pissed that I was miserable and I was pissed that he decided not to talk to me for a couple hours.

This turned into way bigger of an issue than it needed to be which really upset me. I've had it in my mind that we weren't going to fight because there couldn't possibly be anything to fight about... I was wrong. I wasn't just wrong I was shocked. I would understand a normal argument but this was over something so ridiculous.

I get so scared arguing with him because I never know when, or heaven forbid if, I'll talk to him again. I don't want the last thing we say to each other to be something negative. I know I'm being crazy but I can't help it.

I honestly think that there is no reason to ever argue anyways. Sure people make mistakes and disagree but I think that everything can be talked out without serious arguments or being negative towards one another. But when it comes to arguments during a deployment, they just shouldn't exist. Am I crazy?

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Blog makeover

In the next month my blog is going to have a make over. Right now I changed it just to take some elements out. It might be changing daily just to try and figure out what looks best.

Hopefully we can get it all organized soon :-)

The make over will be courtesy of Lindsey at A Freckled Life, owner of Serenity Effects Studios.

Stay tuned, for a while.

Big smiles!

I might just be on my own with this but I hate using the track pads on laptops. Especially because I am almost always using my laptop on a desk so I have been wanting a mouse for a while.

Well my Apple Magic Mouse came in today!! If you are a mac person you know how awesome they are and if you aren't a mac person, well look it up and be amazed. haha.

I'm so excited and I really needed a pick me up today and what better pick me up than getting a package delivered?

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Sometimes I hate being female

Why does being a female have to be so darn awful?

I still can't control my emotions. I can hold in my tears now which is progress but as far as my feelings they are still roaring strong.

The slightest little things upset me. My husband could give me the wrong response to something I said and I am thrown into such a horrible mood that I don't even want to talk to him which is ridiculous because I should be jumping at every opportunity to talk right now. Which is another big thank you to being female, expecting our men to be understanding and emotional. Doesn't happen. Men don't understand women and women don't understand men. Or more like men don't care about the same things we do and therefore we get upset when we don't get a particular response to something we think deserves a little more than an "I'm sorry."

Why the heck do we say that? We can't be sorry for something we have no control over. Sure, we're sorry the other person is upset but my gosh that is one of the most irritating responses anyone could give me. Right next to oic. Both of which are frequent visitors to my husband's vocabulary.

Can someone please invent a device to allow us to figure out what on God's green earth is going on in a man's mind?

Smile!

Abigail's first real smiling picture!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

What I wouldn't give...

What I wouldn't give for a big hug and kiss from my Mr. Sykes. Missing him really stinks. But on the plus side at least I have him to miss<3

Oh, and baby girl is cooing, ahing, and ah gooing. She's adorable.

Grandpa and Abi fell asleep after a long day of shopping. 

She wanted to try out Grandma's sunglasses. She's a fashionista already!

Monday, April 18, 2011

Oh the joys of parenthood

Actually, I should have titled this the joys of my post pregnant body.

Sure, I knew that I would have to make some sacrifices. I just couldn't comprehend until I saw the changes.

Let's talk pre baby first. I have been an athlete my whole life. I've had a thin, toned body for as long as I can remember. After high school I gained a little, not a lot, of weight. I didn't even notice so I couldn't tell you when I started gaining. All I know is that I bought a size 8 wedding gown in August of 2009 and by our wedding January of 2010 I was probably more like a size 4 gown. Thankfully my dress was a thick, poofy dress so it was hard to tell that I was swimming in it and literally had to push my stomach and boobs out to hold it up.

I was actually working on losing weight right before we found out we were pregnant. I was a little sad because at 135 lbs I was really close to my goal weight.

By the end of my pregnancy I was 165lbs and my muscles had completely disappeared.

As of right now, I weigh 140 lbs and my muscles are still non existent. Unfortunately this makes getting back into shape really hard. Ab work outs are nearly impossible. Boo.

But I'm not worried about my weight or muscles. I know I can get back to where I want to be within a couple months. My big concern are my poor boobies.

I thought I was extremely lucky because I didn't get stretch marks on my stomach. That was until I realized they had settled in on my boobs. I never got much bigger during my pregnancy it was immediately after she was born. I got so severely engorged that I looked like I had DD boobs. I'm talking huge pam anderson titties. Ginormous Jugs. You get my point. So anyways, I'm pretty sure because those suckers grew so fast over night that has to be the reason for the stretch marks.

I'm really sad about the marks but what's a real depressing fact is that my boobs are saggy now. Sure, this could be a huge tmi but it's my blog so click the little red x if you can't handle it. I went bathing suit shopping and none of the tops look good. I'm seriously considering a full piece.

RIP firm boobies :-(

And the last thing that really annoys me about my post baby body is this stupid linea nigra. Or how ever it's spelled or called. You know what I'm talking about? That dark line down the center of my belly. My mom and grandma said they never got it but I know others that have. It's due to increased hormone levels. I thought it would go away at most a couple weeks after she was born. Apparently it's going to be a couple months until it disappears. It's so creepy.

So I guess at the end of the day I have to be thankful for the lack of stretch marks on my tummy, even though they are on my boobs and a couple on my butt (which is also not as pretty as it used to be, but I'm working on that). Also that it was so easy to lose all my baby weight, I think because I was all belly, and should be easy to tone up again.

I will take not fitting in my pre baby clothes because they are too big over not having stretch marks any day.

But seriously none of it really matters. I have a beautiful daughter and a husband who loves me at my worst. Although we do have an agreement that neither of us can get fat. But that's another story.

Hello World

So I was doing my usual blog reading and I came across this post. She was seeing where her viewers are finding her page.

I remembered I have a stat counter so I checked it out to see if I could do the same. Not only did I find where people are finding my page but I can see where you are viewing from!! And let me tell you, I am impressed!

I have had people check out my blog from Brazil, Japan, Australia, even the Netherlands!! Sure, most of them probably just google searched and clicked my blog then realized just how exciting I am and exited out, but still... the internet always amazes me!

So here is my shout out to the world... Welcome to my blog! :-) Thanks for stopping by! The only other language I can speak is french (ironically one of the countries not viewing my blog) so Bonjour! Bienvenue!

Is there a way to type french letters on an english keyboard? I never thought about that before. Trickyyy.

Anyways, Adios! That's the only spanish I know. So awful I know, I just don't have the intelligence for another language.

Sunday, April 17, 2011

When the going gets tough...

My mom told me today about a woman who carried her baby to 7 or 8 months and then gave birth to a still born child. All I could think about was why God would put someone through that kind of pain. Of course I know that He has a plan. Sometimes horrible things happen just for the simplicity of appreciation to occur. I wonder if he is challenging our faith? Our ability to trust in His plan even though it feels like nothing good could come of this.

I've questioned my faith multiple times. I've battled feeling vs proof over and over again. Feeling always wins.

When things get difficult I always remind myself that He is taking care of me and there is nothing to worry about. I have to tell myself that everything happens for a reason no matter how hard it is to bear.

I believe that without my faith I would not be the person I am today. Every day I get stronger, nicer, happier, more loving, more respectful, wiser, and just better.  He has guided me to become the person I have always wanted to be. Sure, I've had some real struggles but through those struggles I've learned more about myself and who I wanted to be.

Some people say they have regrets. I have no regrets but instead mistakes to learn from. If we use our pasts to mold our futures then we have no choice but to become better individuals.

Alright, enough of my religion rambling. I'm just missing my husband a lot tonight and reminding myself that this is all serving some sort of purpose helps me get through it.

By the way, in no way am I or would I ever push my religion on anyone. I am simply spilling my thoughts.

North Carolina Ladies

Is everyone from NC ok? Does anyone need anything? I don't know what the damage is or anything really I just know there is damage and people are hurt.

If anyone needs anything please let me know.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Baby brain

Ok I thought that we were supposed to get baby brain while we were pregnant. You know, like putting the milk in the cupboard or forgetting to put shoes on and going to the store in our slippers. Well I never did any of that, until after the little girl arrived.

I did go to the store in my slippers on accident. It's getting worse and worse. I barely remember anything. I have to write everything down. I have a bad enough memory without this, now I'm just screwed.

My memory before only allowed me to have short term memories, now with baby brain I don't even have that. I feel like I'm living each day just to forget everything tomorrow.

I need a memory pill or something.

New hair, red lips

Here is a picture of me with my new hair cut and color.


You can't really tell the color. The lighting in this room is awful. But, it's a new do, similar to my old one just longer, and I've tried red lips for the first time ever. Probably won't be wearing the lip color much but I'm in love with my new do. 

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Opsec, from a Marine

This post is from my husband. He feels like we need to understand Opsec from a Marine's point of view and how they understand it. So here it is. 

Opsec: What you can and cannot disclose should usually be common sense but, as I read blogs there are more and more people getting bashed because of stupid little things and other people that don't have the common sense to not post sensitive information, I feel the need to write a little something. 

If you feel as though I am wrong and I am too loose with my interpretation that is fine you have an opinion just as I do hence why I am in Afghanistan right now, so you can use your opinion freely. I am going to start with the book definiton of OPSEC and why it is place both should be obvious but for my opinion/interpretation to be relevant we have to start somewhere. Operations Security is keeping potential adversaries from discovering our critical information. Even though information may not be secret it can be considered what we call critical information.  Critical information deals with SPECIFIC facts about military intentions, capabilities, operations, or activities. 

Now to be specific you would have to use things such as times, dates, number of vehicles in a covoy, capabilites of weapons, what weapons we are using where, location of troops.  Now I don't think my wife has mentioned on her blog where I am located or even what I do.  She has said that I have a desk job which is partly true.  My job is actually what brings your men home.  I know what can be said over a non-secure phone and what has to be said over a secure phone line, hence my educated (I feel its educated based on the training I've recieved) opinions on the matter. 

Now I havent been to a spouses pre-deployment brief so I'm not sure what they tell you you can and cannot say and the information you give is still up to you.  I know of wives that didn't care anything about opsec and some that I feel take it a little too far.  One thing my wife told me she felt was too much was one wife had a "countdown callender" on her blog.  I don't think that is too much because if you really know the date your husband is coming home 6 or 7 months beforehand I wish you wives would let us know because up until our bird lands in the US there is never a sure thing.  Sure you know when your husband left, how long the deployment is, and when he is supposed to be back, but that math never works out and you might be a month off.  

I know my wife edited her last post saying I would be home in 11 months.  Is that specific?  Not at all in my mind.  I might be home in 10 months, it might be 12.  She doesn't know, and until my plane takes off from Kyrgystan and lands in the US I won't know when I'll be home either.  To me a violation would be telling the world that tomorrow at 1030 my husband is finally landing back at Beaufort, South Carolina from deployment.  Or my husband is running the .50 cal in the turret of the lead truck in his convoy tomorrow, and by the way he is in Leatherneck.  

That is what opsec is about.  Don't give up specifics that will get us killed but you don't have to sensor yourself so much that you have to think about everything you are saying.  Blogs are very public I understand that, but so are flight schedules.  You can find flight schedules on the internet believe me and that is alot more specific than you saying your husband will be home in 7 months and you are excited.  Now don't get me wrong I think Opsec is very important.  I take my job seriously and I'm not going to tell you when a flight is going out over a nonsecure net you can ask me 20 times what time and I'll probably hang up on you lol, but I get annoyed when people take it so far as to say that something as broad as a month is a "violation" of Opsec.  

Afghanistan isn't what you think it is.  You probably think your husband is on the only plane with the only flight out of here that day or week or month so it would be very easy for a terrorist to track him down, at least thats how I feel when I read some of these posts.  There are hundreds if not thousands of flights around this country every day. 

Lets do some math.  You say your husband will be home in lets say 10 months.  He could come home early "probably not he's a Marine," or what most likely will happen he will be here longer than that.  So lets say that leaves a 6 week window the month you think he'll be home 2 weeks for before that, because who knows there may be a miracle that he comes home early and I am using two weeks after hes supposed to be home which is probably when he will show up.  Now lets say there are 500 flights a day across Afghanistan.  This is a very low number as there are at least a hundred a day, just fixed wing, flights where I am.  So here we go get out the calculators 500 x 42(6weeks x 7 days) = 21000 possible flights.  Is One in TWENTY-ONE THOUSAND specific?  I don't think so.  If you do that's fine I am not telling you to do any different, just use your head, don't give out specific times, dates, numbers of troops that type of thing, and don't go crazy or drive other people crazy over it.  

One last closing thing that was just brought to my attention,  If the terrorists really wanted to get at this flight your husband is on there is a website right out on the good old internet that tracks flights into the US.  Right now you are seeing what I think is Opsec.  Im neither going to tell you the website or tell you which bases it tracks flights to.  But I will tell you that it tracks military flights and you don't need any kind of clearance to get on it. If they wanted to know what flight your husband was on too late they already do.


"They think they are the stupid guys praying all day wearing weird hats but they are probably smarter than these wives who think they are oh so awsome bc they don't disclose any information that might hurt their man.  That information is already accessible.  They can go on soldiers facebooks and talk to these locals we have on base and get all of that information.  We got an email about opsec the other day it was a soldier he posted pictures from the air of the whole base he was on and labeled pretty much everything but you can't say that you're happy I'll be home in 11 months maybe they should talk to their husbands about opsec not other wives." (Inserted: From my husband when explaining why he was so blunt. haha)

Now, I know my husband is a bit opinionated and straight forward... I have to admit it's one of the many reasons I love him<3 I don't want this to become a comment war or anything negative. This is simply another view point from the other side of Opsec. I know personally I have only read things based on the homefront point of view. I found it helpful to understand Opsec from my husband's point of view. 


& Mr. Sykes <3

Things I miss about NC

Besides the fact that it seems like once I leave NC all the entertainment on base starts happening there are a few things I miss about living down south.

NUMBER ONE: Not having annoying Jehovah's Witnesses knocking on my door. I just had to dive onto my kitchen floor to avoid being seen. No one should have to do that in their own homes. I am now currently making a no soliciting sign for my front door.

NUMBER TWO: The weather, duh. If you haven't lived in NY you probably don't know how crappy our weather is. I didn't even realize how crappy it truly is until I lived somewhere else.

NUMBER THREE: Sweet Tea. They just have no idea how to make it properly up here.

NUMBER FOUR: The ocean. *huge sigh*

NUMBER FIVE: Not having to wash my car every damn week. It would be every day if I didn't understand how completely ridiculous that is.

That's all I've got for now on missing NC.

Oh, I thought I would be getting away from the constant sight of marines but boy was I wrong. Obviously they aren't every where I turn but I do see one every single time I go to Target and I have to pass a billboard when I go to my dad's house. The one's at Target are always so adorable though. They look straight out of boot camp and all proud and excited. The ones out in public in Jacksonville are usually loud and annoying so I'll take the exchange.

Got to go, baby girl is crying. Such is my life now...

OH! We got R&R dates! We'll see if they actually stick.

This is how adorable my daughter looks while crying... hahaha. 


Wednesday, April 13, 2011

One month down!!

Today marks one month done from this deployment! I can't believe it's been a month already. Part of me feels like it's been forever and the other part feels like it's flown by.

I love that we are done with this month but it's so sad to think that the last time I saw my husband in person was a month ago. Boo :-(

I Love You Papa Bear <3


Monday, April 11, 2011

I like all of you, love some of you, and am here for every one of you.

Like most of you I woke up today, jumped on blogger and was punched in the face with blogs about this lady,

You can go ahead and read that yourselves. I'm not putting my two cents in.

I want EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU to know something. Even if I have never talked to you in my life I am here for you. If all you need is someone to listen to you, get ahold of me. I will sit on the phone with you for hours or chat back and forth on email if you need me to.

You could never burden me with anything that could be essential to your well being.

If you read my blog and have wanted to get ahold of me, even just to chat, here is my email.

bresykes@gmail.com

I'm serious when I say I like all of you, love some of you, and am here for every one of you.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Oh just this and that.

I am being spoiled. Extremely spoiled. So much so that I almost feel bad about it...almost.

No, it has nothing to do with how much money is spent on me or anything materialistic.

I'm being spoiled with communication.

I'm knocking on wood for even saying this out loud but I get to talk to my husband at least once a day. Usually for hours or so at a time. I know this is extremely rare during a deployment which is why I knocked on wood.

I don't know how I would get through this without talking to him. I know that if he were infantry it would be no where near this frequent. That is one thing I have always considered myself blessed for; That my husband is a POG and not a Grunt. Thankfully we were together when he joined the military or else he most likely would have been a grunt. I salute any wife of an infantry man. You are tougher than me by strides.

We have almost knocked a month off of this extremely long deployment. I am praying that things keep going this fast and are this "easy." Nothing about this deployment is easy obviously, but the communication makes it so much easier to get through my days without breaking down.

Unfortunately I know that I am very close to a break down. I feel awful even thinking about it knowing how fortunate I have been comparatively. What reason do I have to break down? I can't imagine being able to make this deployment much easier, minus getting to spend time physically together. I guess nothing is ever really enough though.

It's enough to keep me going but it's not enough to keep my heart from breaking whenever I think about how much he is missing. Every day Abigail gets bigger and little changes happen. He doesn't get to experience any of this except through pictures. What is the positive side of that? I've been trying to figure it out so I can focus on it but I end up with nothing.

This isn't even about me getting to see my husband. I would give up all of my communication with him this year in exchange for him getting to be with our daughter and enjoy her as much as I get to.

This is what is going to cause a break down. I feel it every time I look at her.

 One day

One month. 

Saturday, April 9, 2011

The last 25

I can't believe I'm actually about to finish this. It's really hard to come up with 100 things about yourself. Sorry if I bore the heck out of y'all. If any of you even read these lol.


  1. Incase you didn't already know, I'm a mommy. 
  2. Another incase you didn't know, I am a Marine wife and damn proud of my husband. 
  3. I am currently going through our first and last deployment which is lasting a year. 
  4. I Love country music. Did I say this one already? Well if I did it's ok because I love it that much. 
  5. Josh Turner is my favorite artist. 
  6. Having a daughter with the man who has my heart makes me the happiest person in the world. 
  7. I'm really nervous about going back to college to finish my bachelor's degree. 
  8. Once I get my mind set on something, such as getting my hair cut, I have to do it asap or I get antsy. 
  9. I really love pizza. Not Pizza hut fake pizza. I'm talking a big, NY style, delicious pizza. 
  10. I'm extremely self conscious about how I look without make up on. I blame the fact that I danced as a child for 12 years and they loaded me with make up for every competition to make me look "beautiful."
  11. I am finally getting over my number 10 thanks to the constant reassurance of my husband. And a baby girl who doesn't let mommy take more than 5 minutes to get ready :-)
  12. I love Arnold Palmer. Not the golfer, the drink. 
  13. I believe that a little bit of patience goes a long way. 
  14. I met my husband my freshman year of high school. He was a senior but I knew there was something special about him when I first saw him. He'll say he though I was a fox but I think he's just trying to make me feel better ;-)
  15. Time flies when you're in love. I have to catch myself from saying 2 years when people ask me how long my husband and I have been together. It's already close to 4 years!! 
  16. I have a heart shaped Uterus. It's almost 2 separate uteruses but they are connected, just slightly. It's called uterus didelphys. I'm a mutant. 
  17. I'm almost a whole foot shorter than my husband. We look kinda funny but I love how tall he is and I'm perfectly happy with how short I am. <3
  18. My mom's a psychic. I'm not 100% sold on the whole psychic stuff but I will admit she has amazed me more than once. 
  19. My favorite smell in the world is my husband. He always smells absolutely amazing. Except when he's been in the field for a couple days and hasn't showered. That's kinda nasty. 
  20. I love my dog almost as much as I love my daughter.
  21. I have amazing in laws who probably don't even know it but have helped me become a better person just by being who they are. 
  22. I'm jumping on the zumba bandwagon this month.
  23. I just picked my daughters nose and I'm not grossed out in the slightest.
  24. I love when my daughter poops. No one else's kids though.
  25. I have the most amazing little family <3


Friday, April 8, 2011

Shut down info.

I know that a lot of people are worrying about this so I figured I would pass the word from my FRO.

"As you already know, we are facing the possibility of a government shutdown. I am sure many of you have questions concerning this situation so I will tell you want I know and provide some resources to help you continue to take care of yourselves and your families as we move forward and through this event.
What I know:
• Marines and mission essential civilians will continue to work to ensure that forward deployed Marine Corps operations, and operations and training for forces preparing to deploy, continue.
Civilian Marines in positions critical to national security, public health and safety, medical care, power and maintenance, emergency and disaster assistance, and vital areas, to include our Family Readiness Officers, will not be furloughed. Civilian Marines who have been furloughed will not be allowed to do their former duties on an unpaid volunteer basis.
Under the current Continuing Resolution (CR), a government shutdown at midnight on April 8th would mean Marines will receive midmonth pay (on April 15th) for the 8 days of April already covered by the CR. An approval of a 1 week extension (through April 15th) of the current CR would mean Marines will receive their normal midmonth pay for the first 15 days of April.
Marines will continue to work and will continue to earn pay for the period of the shutdown but will not receive that pay until the Congress provides appropriations.
The following is a brief list of some of the resources we can tap into to assist those in need if a government shutdown occurs:
Navy‐Marine Corps Relief Society: Remains open, implementing general disaster relief policy which is to meet the immediate needs of its clients. This situation will be treated as we would a natural disaster, requiring rapid financial assistance without reviewing budgets or providing financial counseling. The Society will assist with rapid, short‐term, interest‐free loans to avoid privation of essential items such as food, gasoline and other necessities. Pre‐approved financial assistance ($300 for single Sailors and Marines; $600 for
Under the tenets of the Feed and Forage Act (41 USC 11) all active duty Navy and Marine Corps Families) will be delivered in the form of a check. To obtain assistance, the client need only show a military ID card and sign a repayment document. Disaster relief policy guidelines do not require a power of attorney. Quick Assist Loans will not be available during this time.
Marine Federal Credit Union (MFCU): Plans to cover the 15th payroll for all active duty military members with direct deposit to MFCU. Check with MFCU for additional information: https://www.marinefederalhb.org/home/home
Navy Federal Credit Union (NFCU): Plans to cover the 15th payroll for all active duty military members and DoD employees paid through DFAS with direct deposit to NFCU. Check with NFCU for additional information: https://www.navyfederal.org/about/government.php
Note: If you are not banking with MFCU or NFCU, please check with your financial institution to gain insight on their Government Shutdown Contingency Plans.

In conclusion, I realize how stressful the doubt of impending financial insecurity is for our service members and their families. However, there is no doubt in my mind that you also have the resiliency to push forward, make it through to the end and persevere through this adversity. Remember: this is not permanent; our government is making every effort to ensure we are paid on time. And, if we are not paid, we will retroactively receive all pay due once the budget or a new CR is approved. I am also confident that we can each experience a lower level of duress by managing our expectations: plan for the worst while hoping for the best; support each other in those ways that you can support each other; and, most importantly, let us know when you need help because our leaders cannot assist if they do not know. I leave you grateful for your service and sacrifice and with a quote from one of our own spouses ‐her Marine is currently deployed‐ "We must choose to thrive while others survive!"
God Bless You and Semper Fidelis!"

This is from the commanding officer of CLR 27. I don't know for a fact but I have heard from others that USAA will not be paying in full on the 15th but will be helping with deferments. I would call them and ask yourselves if you bank through USAA. 

I hope this helps at least a little. 



Tuesday, April 5, 2011

25 more

Here are the next 25 things about me.


  1. I used to go to Myrtle Beach every year for spring break with my family so I thought it was pretty funny that I ended up living just 2 hours from it. 
  2. I would love to visit lots of other countries but it terrifies me to leave the country. I blame it on movies. 
  3. I went to high school with my husband. I knew there was something special about him way back then. 
  4. I can sometimes be quite the procrastinator. 
  5. Other times I am the complete opposite. 
  6. I have one older brother, 2 older step brothers, a younger step sister and younger step brother. 
  7. I am extremely proud of my husband. Not just for being a marine and protecting our country but for being such an amazing person. 
  8. This is my favorite number. 
  9. I don't like odd numbers. 
  10. My birthday is June 19. Yes, ironically an odd number. 
  11. I believe in God but I find myself questioning more than I would like to. 
  12. My perfect idea of a date night is putting on my comfiest clothes and snuggling next to my husband all night either talking or just being together. 
  13. I love the rain but I believe there is something magical about sunshine. 
  14. I believe that everything happens for a reason. 
  15. Sometimes I wonder how I ended up being blessed with such an amazing husband and daughter. 
  16. I believe in staying positive. 
  17. I also can't help but be terrified that my husband wont come home to us. 
  18. When I finally get my daughter to fall asleep at night I lay in bed with my fingers crossed praying to God that she will stay sleeping. 
  19. I'm running out of interesting facts. 
  20. I'm addicted to my blog. It's a wonderful form of therapy. 
  21. I was never a huge fan of working out but I am craving a good work out. Probably because I'm still in my 6 weeks of post op recuperation. 
  22. I wish I was way more artistic than I actually am. 
  23. I love singing but only when no one is listening. 
  24. I'm currently exhausted.
  25. I really need to hear from my husband one more time before I fall asleep tonight. 

Rules to live by

Being back in my home town I've been thinking about where I used to be and we I am now in my life. I've gown up so much in the past couple years. Unfortunately I can't say the same for most people around here.

I don't know why people feel the need to waste their time and energy focusing on other people's faults. Just live and let live.

I've decided to write down some of my rules to live by. Maybe the right people will read this and it will click for them.


  1. If you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all. I used to be one of the people who would complain to one friend about what annoyed me about the other friend. I realized how ridiculous this is. My rule now is that if I can't say something to someone's face then it shouldn't be said at all. This has really helped me stop focusing on the negative and pay attention to the positives in people. 
  2. Don't use the word hate. There is really never a reason to ever use the word hate. Sure, saying you hate broccoli or something is fine since you can't hurt broccoli's feelings. Have you ever really thought about what it means? In my eyes saying hate means that I will never talk to this person, there isn't one thing I like about this person and I would be happy if I never saw them again. It's a mean thing to say and I have never met someone I feel comfortable saying it to. 
  3. Patience really is key. Marriage has helped me realize how important patience really is. If you exercise a little patience you will see that the little things will stop bothering you and you are overall happier. It will help you listen better as well.


These are just 3. There is obviously the golden rule of treating others as you'd like to be treated which should cover everything in one. Let's be better people.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Baby girl

If this isn't the cutest picture anyone has ever seen then you're lying.



Next 25

Like I promised here are the next 25 facts about me...


  1. I feel as if I have two hearts. One is full of love for my husband and the other for my daughter. I couldn't imagine taking any of my heart away from my so the only logical explanation is I grew another one. 
  2. I love to snowboard but I hate snow. 
  3. I'm currently craving ice cream with the Reese's shell. 
  4. I'm allergic to cats but I really love a big fat snuggly cat. 
  5. I can't watch movies where the main character is put in a tough situation or does something you know is going to bite them later. It makes me uncomfortable to watch. It's hard to explain. 
  6. I have a self diagnosed form of mild OCD. Everything in my room must be symmetric and match.
  7. I don't find any other man attractive other than my husband. My mom says all the time "wow that is a good looking guy." And all I can think about is how my husband is way more handsome. Even compared to Brad Pitt, George Clooney or any other "sexiest man alive" celeb. 
  8. I hate flossing. 
  9. My favorite color is plum purple. 
  10. Strange enough, my least favorite color is another shade of purple, mediumish purple. I can't really describe it. 
  11. Sometimes I can be pretty darn smart and others I could be mistaken for a complete ditz. 
  12. I have a horrible memory. If there weren't pictures proving it I wouldn't even think I was ever younger than like 14. I honestly barely remember things that happened several days ago. 
  13. My husband and I can never make a decision. Dinner time is more like hell in our house. 
  14. I love candles. Especially when they smell like vanilla. 
  15. I have 3 tattoos and I want at least one more. 
  16. I would absolutely love to have a full sleeve but I can't bring myself to do it. 
  17. I wish I could have my hair be any other color other than brown but I don't think I have the complexion or what not to ever be anything other than a brunette. 
  18. I'm terrified of sharks and spiders. Snakes too. Ick. 
  19. I'm a very censored person when it comes to my personal life. 
  20. I love sleeping. 
  21. I don't use the word hate lightly when it comes to people. I think people are too quick to speak these days. I always think before I say I hate someone because 99.9% of the time I don't mean it. 
  22. I'm a die hard romantic. 
  23. I love string cheese. 
  24. My husband is truly my soul mate. 
  25. It bothers me that most people I tell I am from NY automatically assume I mean the city. NY is a big state people, a lot of which is rural not the city. 

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Balboa baby

My daughter is in a phase where she can't be put down for a second. This makes doing anything difficult so I finally broke down and bought a baby sling. I was completely against these at first because they first of all look like you are squishing and suffocating your child and secondly I was sure I would have to buy tons of them so that they would match all my outfits.

Well after doing research and actually looking at them I decided on the Balboa Baby adjustable sling. The other choice was a Moby sling I think and that one looked like a huge ace bandage wrap and way too much work. The Balboa just slides over your head and baby pops right in, kinda like a kangaroo. Man they really have something with that...

Anyways, I LOVE IT!! It's soooo comfortable and there are so many different positions for baby to be in to make it comfortable for them. Plus my hands are free for doing everything I need to get done.

Yea, it was a good chunk of change but so far totally worth it. And I only bought one style. Who would have known after becoming a mom and wiping poo and spit up on my clothes daily that matching would not matter? ha.

Oh, and the diaper geniie. AMAZING.

That's all for now. We are headed to the in laws to have lunch and do a photo shoot of Abigail.

Have a great Sunday!