Latest update

The docs feel I am fine to go home and the girls, as they say, are healthy. They wanted to discharge me today but I was uncomfortable doing that without having Mishu there to sit down with the doc and ask all the questions that I didn't and still don't have the where with all to ask (ie. please explain bed rest, can she drive, specifics, how often for doc appointments, how long do you reasonably think she will carry) and to voice our concern with his work. He is working 4:30a(which means he leaves the house at 3:30)-7p (at the earliest, usually 9p) every day M-F. And they are on full recall status. So if he gets a call, doesn't need to be a legit mission, even if they are just doing a surprise, keep-you-on-your-tows thing, he has to be in formation before 2 hours has passed. He is worried about me being home alone all that time and lack of transportation if I cannot drive. So yeah...that is what we are talking with the doctor about tomorrow.


I had a BioPhysical Profile test done today and both babies scored a 10 out of 10, perfect. For those that don't know what it is, here is what I found on About.com

One of the major parts of the BPP is a detailed ultrasound. During the ultrasound the technician is looking for movements of your baby's arms and legs (muscle tone), movements of the body, breathing movements (moving chest muscles), and the measurement of amniotic fluid. Your baby will be scored on five things during the test. A score of 0 (abnormal) or 2 (normal) will be given in each of these categories:

    * muscle tone
    * body movements
    * breathing movements
    * amniotic fluid levels
    * heart rate 

Mishu asked to look at my chart, which I was fine with and so were the nurses and charge nurse. He has almost never been here when they come back with the test results or even when they are ordering the tests and he'd like to know the results in a more detailed way (that's his brain and he is a medical background and undestands the technical terms) I asked him to look at about how big the girls are, because I didn't catch that this morning during the test (the bed was SO uncomfortable and I'm just in general sore all over.) Both girls are measuring about late 32-late 33 weeks (a little ahead of the doc's schedule....which is what I've been telling them all along!!! ) and each weigh around....get this......4.6lbs!!! OMFG! NO freakin wonder my body is so sore! In the past week, one gained a whole pound and the other gained at least half a poind. GAH! 


Well..I guess it's good they are growing so well! So if that is right, I'm carrying almost 9lbs of baby already. UUUGGGGHHH!  :huh:  :faint: Mishu was 10+lbs when he was born! He is predicting I will have a 6Lb'er and a 7lb'er. I am totally blaming him, because I was under 6lbs when I was born! Damn chunker!


Oh, and I've got a whole bunch of belly pictures to show off, since it's been a while since I've posted a recent one! But that is a post for tomorrow! Toodles! 

I know I know, it's been a while.

Ok everyone, I know I haven't been on much but a lot has been going on this week. Monday morning I was violently ill. More than my gall stones ever made me feel. I ended up going in to the docs and with way too much protein in my urine and my blood pressure skyrocketed, they called me into the hospital ASAP. I went in extremely dehydrated and they started testing me for pre-eclampsia right away. I am still in the hospital. Probably will be for a while but we are taking it one step at a time. I have been diagnosed Pre eclampsic. So far though, since yesterday, my levels (all sorts of stuff, including protein and keetones (sp) in urine) have become more "normal" again and the girls' heart rates have become more normal as well. My blood pressure is still high but they are giving me another 24 hours with the urine test and letting me be off the heart and blood pressure monitors for now. I'm still hooked up to IV but I'm pretty sure that's because I'm still a little dehydrated. As of this morning, I was supposed to go in for a c-section anytime after noon, but after re-checking some of my levels they decided to try to wait another 24 hours. Now, that's not saying that if something turns back the way it's been the last 2 days that they won't put me in for surgery ASAP. As for the girls, they are healthy. It's just my body that seems to have decided to get sick. If they docs can keep me stabilized, they want to keep the girls in as long as possible since the best incubator is a mom's body. But if my levels go wacky again, the only cure for the pre-e is to deliver them. It would put my health and their health in too much danger.

Just wanted to let you all know what is going on in my neck of the woods! <3

Who doesn't love sending holdiay mail?!

This is really the first year I've even considered sending holiday (pretty much Christmas for us) cards. Even though Mishu and I were married last year, we weren't living together and it just, well, didn't seem right. Plus, I was too busy preparing for a cross-country move at the time. Not that I am not busy this year, preparing for the Squiddies' arrival...I just seems the right time now to start sending out the cards.
There are a lot of different card companies and well, it's also real simple to buy the standard cards from the corner drug store. I've done those a couple times and they are nice and fine enough but I always loved getting the photo cards from friends and family every year. We usually got them from friends and family that lived far away and it was great to get to see their faces again. With us being so far away from all of our family, I figured I'd start our own family tradition of sending our smiling faces with warm Christmas greetings.
It just so happens that Shutterfly is doing a promotion with bloggers where you can get 50 cards for free! And well, if you don't feel like blogging about it, you can save save 20% off the cost of the cards!
The design Mishu and I have chosen is this card because it's simple yet traditional.
Shutterfly has a ton of other great stuff as well, not just cards or holiday cards. We actually ordered some photobooks for my mom and mother-in-law for Mother's Day. They also have address labels, gift tags (which is awesome), and much much more!
I also noticed on there that they do Christmas birth announcements...which hey, we might be doing depending on when our Thing 1 and Thing 2 decide to grace us with their presence!

So yeah, go get your Holidays on!

25 week bump update and a lot of other updates!

I know it's been a while but I've been super busy. :)
I went to Chicago to see family and friends and my mom threw me an awesome baby shower. It was Dr. Seuss themed with a lot of emphasis on Thing 1 and Thing 2 from The Cat in the Hat. I was thrilled. I promise I will have more pictures soon but here are a couple pictures that I have so far:
A friend of ours made the diaper cake:

And here are some of the cupcakes that my mom bought for the shower: (These are from a local bakery in Skokie that I LOVE! Sweety Pies Bakery

The cupcakes were red velvet (I LOVE!) and they were just to die for! There were only a couple mini ones left over, so needless to say...everyone loved them! I feel so blessed. We were given so much and so much great stuff for the girls! I had to put it all into storage for the time being until Mishu comes back. Honestly, right now, we don't have the room. We still have to get the house in order. There are boxes everywhere and we need to clean this place up before we can bring the baby stuff in here.
That brings me to the next thing. Mishu is *sigh* playing soldier in the middle of nowhere until sometime around the end of the month. I was able to have my friend Jessica (It's a beautiful ride...) and her husband unload my truck full of baby stuff into our storage room, but there is just soooo much that needs to be done around here that I need to wait for Mishu for one reason or another. I know this is minor in relation to the time he "could" be gone for a deployment...it's just that any time away sucks. There really is so much we need to get done before the babies get here.
And I will use that to lead me into the next subject: the twins! I'm getting bigger and bigger and I will show a picture again but I was getting more and more worried there for a little bit. Before Mishu left, I would have him feel for the babies all the time. I knew they were moving and what not but I just couldn't feel it all that much. Well, he would always feel Thing 1 but it was harder to feel Thing 2. A short time after he left, I started to really feel Thing 1 move, but again...I barely felt Thing 2 move at all. When I got to Chicago, my mom and everyone else (I honestly love the attention!) were feeling my belly and I think we got 2-3 kicks out of her the whole time. I was there Thursday evening through Sunday night. I get back to NC and again...I still barely feel her. I was getting anxious. I finally had the referral approved for a new OB and was just waiting for them to approve me and schedule me. It was taking some time so I mentioned to them my concern about Thing 2. They had me go in last night (I told them about Thing 2 earlier that morning) and they did an ultrasound and cervix check. Both of the babies looked good and Thing 2 was moving well, just for whatever reason it's not coming through to me. It did put my mind at ease though, and they were able to definitively tell me that there were two amniotic sacs (which the other OB office couldn't tell me one way or the other. ) My job isn't going to like it, but they have me coming in again this next Tuesday for a full ultrasound (1 hour or so) which they said I will be getting one of those for every "regular" appointment so that they can measure and track the babies. This made me happy because the other OB office said they would do this but never did it. I am also going in on the 25th for a "high risk" appointment. I asked about being/going on bed rest and I was told that bed rest would be talked about during this appointment. I am not liking the idea of bed rest but as I get further along, I see the need for it. My hips and hip/leg joints are really starting to hurt, especially late at night. The last 2 days I have been limping on one side or the other almost all day due to the pain. My lower abdomen is also feeling sore, more so towards the end of the day. I also talked to the doctor about how the babies are positioned and if it's possible to give birth naturally (without surgery). He said that the babies are in a "yingyang" position and that makes it pretty impossible to do a "natural" birth. He said it is too risky and explained the risks. So while I do NOT like the idea of a C-Section...I understand that it is almost positive that I will have one and I understand the reasoning behind it. Not just the "no, we don't do that and you are going to have a c-section" that I was told at the other OB. So it was basically the same answer, I'm aware of that, just handled with more tact and professionalism. Which makes it a much easier pill to swallow! I'm still crossing my fingers that Thing 2 will flip over and be head first but it doesn't look realistic. But hey, one can dream right?

And after much promising...here is the latest baby bump picture!

MilSpouse Friday Fill In

1. What are some things on your bucket list? (from New Girl on Post) 

I want to go travel Europe, go to Puerto Rico, see the Mississippi river and beyond, um….I know there is more but this is what I can immediately think of!

2. How long have you been a MilSpouse and where have you been stationed so far? (from Raising Roscoe)

Mishu and I were married in June of ’09. When we got married he was stationed at Ft. Gordon, GA and I joined him there this last January. In May, he was reassigned to Ft. Bragg, NC and that is where we are at right now!

3. What is a list of songs that sums up your life so far? (from Confessions of a Sailor’s Wife)

Etta James: At Last

….

That’s all I can think of right now! LOL!

4. What is your favorite kind of pizza?

Pineapple, pepperoni and onion! NOM!

5. What are three good things in your life right now?

I am married to the man of my dreams. We are expecting twins, who will be here in the next 2-3 months! I have family who loves me dearly.

Apple Pie

'Tis the season, right? I've never baked a pie before, I'm the Cookie Girl. During the holidays, other family members would bring the pies, I would just take care of the cookies. But...I figured that a) I should get my first pie baked before the girls come and b) Mishu loves pies, especially apple pies so yup.
So here is the recipe. It's the Pillsbury one off of allrecipes.com, but I will share it with my pictures. :)
Here is the prep stage: Peeling and coring the apples:

Then I had the pie crust. Yes, I did get the pre-made stuff.

Here is the pie, pre-baking.

AAANNND here is the pie all done being baked. :)

Here is your recipe:

Prep time: 30 minutes, Cook time 40-45 minutes, Cooling time: 2 hours. 

Ingredients

Crust:

• 1 box Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box

Filling:

• 6 cups thinly sliced, peeled apples
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Place 1 pie crust in ungreased 9-inch glass pie plate. Press firmly against side and bottom.
2. In large bowl, gently mix filling ingredients; spoon into crust-lined pie plate. Top with second crust. Wrap excess top crust under bottom crust edge, pressing edges together to seal; flute. Cut slits or shapes in several places in top crust.
3. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until apples are tender and crust is golden brown. Cover edge of crust with 2- to 3-inch wide strips of foil after first 15 to 20 minutes of baking to prevent excessive browning. Cool on cooling rack at least 2 hours before serving. 

 

Here's the link if you want it: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Perfect-Apple-Pie-3/Detail.aspx

The pie tastes great! I used Macintosh apples and the pie is good. A little tart but good. :D I took a picture of the finished product but I guess it didn't completely take and well...it was eaten quickly after! Maybe if we have a slice tomorrow I'll snap a picture.  

PS it completely annoys me that when I adjust the size of the pictures on photobucket, it doesn't really show up that way. :p 

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

1. What is the silliest get-up you have ever worn outside of a Halloween party? (from To The Nth)

Well, I've never dressed up other than for Halloween and Renaissance faires.  So I guess that.

1. What is something that you gave up in order to live the military lifestyle? (from Pennies from Heaven)

I really haven't given up anything...other than a solid job in my home town. But that job would have been eliminated, so that's why I figure that I didn't give up anything. 

1. If money wasn’t a factor and you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be? And why? (from Life and Times of a Displaced Jersey Girl)

I would go to Europe and travel all the countries and cities where my family is from. Why? Because I think it would be cool to see where my roots are from!

1. If you were going to join the military, what branch would you join? Or which MOS/rating would you choose? (from And You Never Did Think)

I would probably have chosen the Marines back when I was physically able to and when the physical (height) requirements for pilots was different (shorter). I'd probably join the Army otherwise. 

1. What is your favorite thing to make for dinner? (from Armendinger Party of 4)

Meatloaf probably. OMNOMNOM!

Recentness

I know, I suck. I haven't updated in a bit. starting work has been a major adjustment. I'm definitely starting to really feel pregnant again. I've taken some bump pics and wow...I didn't realize how "pregnant" I look! I've got some pictures to update here so I will post those now. :)
Here's me at 18 weeks, 3 days:


And here is me today, 20 weeks 0 days:



And here are some updated pictures on the babies:

Here is Baby A:


And here is Baby B:


According to the doctors, there is one placenta and 2 sacs. Both of the babies, according to the ultrasound on August 19th, are girls! :D


Work is going well. It's kicking my butt being back but I enjoy it and and glad for it.

MilSpouse Friday Fill In

1. If you could be a fugitive from the law for whatever reason, what would your crime be? 

Probably from owing people/places money. Though I finally start getting income in 2 weeks!

2. How long do you think you will be a military family?

Not sure really. When we found out we were pregnant, we were thinking he might get out but now that it's twins, we are really unsure.

3. What’s your favorite recipe? 

Probably my meatloaf recipe. You can see it a couple posts back!

 

4. What would you want your last five words to be when you leave this life? 

Wow...that was really cool!

 

5. Where do you hope to retire? 

Probably some place in WI or Charleston, NC.

 

 

OB appointment

So I realized that I did not update from my OB appointment on Thursday. It went well, of sorts. I did not like the doctor at all. He was not conversational at all and I didn't even get to see the babies! Thankfully Mishu was able to see them. The doc found both heartbeats easily and said he did not see a membrane between them but the ER U/S said she saw one. I am going in this coming Thursday for a more in depth full anatomy scan one and we will see then. (And hopefully we will get to see their baby bits and find out genders!) Mishu and the doctor did say that they were super active and Mishu said that they were beating the snot out of each other again! He told them to "Go to your womb!" I giggled but the doctor didn't get it at ALL!
Can't wait to update about the Squiddies next week!!!!

ETA: Oh, they ended up moving my due date sooner by a week so far. :) 

MilSpouse Friday Fill In

Yeah, I know it's late in the day but my internet has been FUBAR recently. :P

1. What is ONE thing you’d like civilians to understand about being a military family?
Um...most of the civilians I know and have in my life now are pretty understanding. I guess that the one thing I say most often is "No, Army Wives is about as far from reality as it gets." Does that count?

2. What is your favorite mistake?
Hrm. Probably leaving Mishu for the first time back in '03. It really gave us the opportunity to grow and realize our love for each other.

3. What indulgence could you give up for a year?
Hrm. Another tough one. I would say chocolate but that is damn near impossible for me! Probably Coca-Cola.

4. If you could be a winged animal, what would you be?
I'd be a humming bird. They are just so pretty and mysterious to me!

5. What is one question you’d like to see asked in a future MFF?
Oh I have no clue. Um...this is only my 2nd week doing it so maybe (don't shoot me if this has been asked before) What is the favorite thing about the post you are stationed at currently. If you aren't at a post, what is the favorite thing about the city you live in?

Stir-fry shrimp

Yesterday I made this dish. It was pretty good, though I think next time I will get better shrimp. These were good but they could have been better.

Enough shrimp for however many people serving. I go by 3-5 shrimp per person. I got fresh shell-on shrimp.
3 small-medium zucchini
1 summer squash (I would have used two but Mishu isn't hot on it)
1/4-1/3 cup sliced onion
whatever spices you want (I used a couple garlic mixes)
Teriyaki sauce to taste
1/4 cup water
olive oil
(you can also add water chestnuts and snap peas, carrots and whatever else, this is just what I had in the fridge)

Coat the bottom of the fry pan or wok in the olive oil. Start with the zucchini and as it starts to soften, add the onions and a little bit of the water. As the onions start to become clear, add the summer squash. A couple minutes later, add the shrimp and the teriyaki sauce. Cook for no more than 5-7 minutes more based on the size of the shrimp.
The last minute, I drained most of the liquid off and used it to garnish once on the plates.

Recipes

I've had a few people ask me for recipe's that I've been making lately so here goes:
Meatloaf: (if the picture is still huge here is a direct link: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v502/arielanna/39783c22.jpg )


-2 lbs ground anything (preferable beef extra lean)
-one egg
-one package onion soup
-four slices of bread (broken up into approx. 1x1 pieces)
-one can (12-16 oz, no larger) whole tomatoes (use some of the liquid in the mixture, but not a lot.)

Glaze: 2 parts ketchup, one part light Karo syrup.

Mix ground beef (or turkey or tofu or veggie burger or whatever), egg, onion soup mix, bread and the can whole tomatoes. As you are adding the tomatoes, squish them and slightly pull them apart. Don't mash, just mix. Put into loaf pan. Just before putting into oven, poke several holes with your finger, at least 2" deep with your finger. Mix the glaze. Brush glaze over meatloaf, making sure that the holes get filled.
Bake at 350° for 45 minutes.

Stuffed Peppers:


1 lb ground anything (brown on stove)
1 cup rice (cook)
onion to taste (sliced, added to the ground beef as you are browning it)
1 can condensed tomato soup
salt and pepper to taste
provalone cheese
4 peppers (green, red, orange, whatever) that have flat bottoms and are fairly symetrical

Combine everything but the peppers and cheese in a bowl. There are two ways to cut the peppers. You can cut the peppers in half (along the equator part of it) and clear out the seeds and bitter spines and this uses almost the whole pepper. You can also just cut off the cap of the pepper and clear out the seeds and spine. The latter option gives you larger peppers over all and makes about 4. The first option gives you 6-8 peppers but are smaller portions. You can boil the peppers for a few minutes before filling them for them to be softer. (I prefer them to be a little firmer so I don't boil them.) Fill each of the peppers to the brim and "dome" the filling a little over but not to overflow the sides. Bake in a cake pan (or something that has higher sides than a cookie sheet) with a small amount of water in the bottom (no more than half an inch) at 350 for 30 minutes. At about 5 minutes left, put the cheese over the top of each pepper.

Pico de Gallo Salsa


2 whole (large) tomatoes, diced
1 large or 2 small bell peppers (any color, I used red and green), diced
1 white, sweet or vidalia onion, diced
1 large or 2 small (I used 2 small green and red) jalapenos, diced (include a few seeds)
salt, lemon juice, lime juice and cilantro to taste

Mix in bowl, cover and chill until served.

Tortilla chips:


As many corn tortillas as you want, cut into quarters
Mix salt, lime juice and warm water until it tastes how you would like it to. It will taste much less strong on the chip than the mixture does.
Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray (I use butter flavored).
Submerge each chip into the mixture and then set on cookie tray.
Spray chips with spray before putting in oven.
Bake at 400 until desired crispiness. They will still be a little bendy in the middle but are great for dipping.

MilSpouse Friday Fill In

So I've decided to give this a try. Yep...this is one of those "everyone else is doing it" things so :p!

1. What is something you wished you’d learned to do earlier in life?

I wish that I had learned to stress less. I always worry about everything and it’s something I’m working on now to try not to do but it would have helped a lot more if I had learned while younger.

2. What is your biggest pet peeve with the military?

Hrmmm…Right now, really nothing. I’m peachy fine with the military. My husband on the other hand…I love him to death but he has all these grandiose ideas and those ideas change like the weather in Chicago.

3. What tourist attraction near you have you never seen?

I haven’t really been in NC very long but probably the Outer Banks. It’s something we’d like to get to see eventually though. :)

4. What are you avoiding doing right now?

Taking a shower! As soon as I’m done writing this though, I will go take one. I’m shtinkie!

5. Wine, beer or liquor?

Right now, nothing. :( But normally either beer or wine. Or amaretto. So um….all 3! :D

I know it's been a while...

So here are some updates:
Finally moved to NC and am in the house. :) Still in the process of unpacking but a lot of that revolves around when Mishu is able to be home. The last 2 weeks he was out in the field training so not much got done. The kitchen is slightly more usable than it was before so YAAAY!
Still nothing on the job front, though I did have an interview with a local school that I am feeling fairly positive about! Though, I've resigned myself to the idea that I might actually not find a job because:











Wheeee big surprise! We are pregnant! Found out mid-May that we were pregnant. Last Tuesday I was in the ER with abdominal pains and we found out it was gall stones. During the ultrasound, the tech looked surprised and said, "Has anyone told you that you are having twins???"



Color me shocked! I have no twins in my family at all and only Mishu's grandma is a twin. So yeah! Now we are expecting Thing 1 and Thing 2. We both love Dr. Seuss and the book The Lorax so we are doing the walls in the Lorax theme and Dr. Seuss throughout the room. Originally, we weren't going to find out genders but now we think we are going to. I have an appointment next week and maybe we will find out then.





But until then, here are a few pictures I have so far!


2 heads are better than 1, right??


And here, I introduce to you Thing 1:

And now, Thing 2:






I will be sure to put more pictures up later when I get them!!!! :D

OK so...

I know I haven't been on here much but I do have a post that I would like everyone to re-post if possible and if you are in the DC area, please go participate!

Please re-post: If you are free on Memorial Day morning, what better way to pay honor to all who have been lost in service to our country...The Westboro Baptist Church will be outside Arlington National Cemetery attempting to spread their hatred. Please come out from 9am-11am to stand in FRONT of them to show your support of the US military and their families. Please bring flags, signs, etc. to show your support.

 

 

Yes, I know by posting this, and by people showing up, we are giving them attention. But we are also showing them we will NOT stand for the desecration of these brave souls' memories. 

Just a lil update.

We are fully moved out of the townhouse! I am staying with a friend here in GA until the house in NC closes. :) Trying to find a job up there again but it looks like I will have to wait until I get up there to do so. :) That's pretty much it!

Ugh.

What a way to start the day. I wake up at 2:30AM because originally I was going to take Mishu to work (he's on the ambulance today and they are doing a long distance transfer) but then I realized there was no reason I would need the truck, so I told him to just take it. Oh, mind you, my car is down and out right now, brakes are shot. Whheeeeeee! Well, I get out of bed at about 9:30 AM because our realtor called me. OH, btw, we got a house! It's in Southern Pines, NC. It's not big or anything but it's good for us for now. :) The lot is a nice size. Well, I wake up to go check my email because there are more documents that the realtor needs signed. I open my door and OMG there is the worst smell ever. Hope (little dog) had the poopies yesterday and apparently had massive liquid diarrhea this morning. :( So I shoo her and Holly outside, wipe up what I can from the floor and take the kennel floor outside and hose it and them down. Then Hope decides she is going to dig. Not a happy fur-mama right now. I like letting them dry off outside but nope not today. They are drying off in their kennel and the house is airing out. Blah.

The movers were originally supposed to come today to move our stuff. Thank goodness Mishu was able to stave them off for about a week. The house still isn't closed on and probably wont be until the first week of June. So after they move our stuff, Mishu will have to check into post next month around the middle of the month. I'll probably be staying around here in Augusta until we close on the house. We have a friend here who is fine with me staying there. It's actually really a good thing because it allows me to continue working here until right before I go to NC. :) I can't wait to get to the new house though! It won't be a constant mess like this one was. One of the main reasons I can't wait to move...Fayetteville and the area have the Aldi chain! AHH! I miss my Aldi's! I can't believe how much I've been spending on groceries without being able to go there.

Ok, back to life. Blah.

If you could go on vacation for the next month with an unlimited budget, where would you go?

I would tour Europe and visit all the cities of mine and my husband's heritage with him, which would include, but not limited to: Hungary, Poland, Germany, Denmark and France. If it won't take up the whole time, I would love to go on a tour of a handful of the old catholic cathedrals in Europe.

Ask me anything

This should be fun!

I decided to add a formspring account. It'll be interesting I think. Here is the address if you ever want to ask me anything!

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/CoriePam

House update...

Well, Mishu and I decided not to pursue the house I talked about a couple posts ago. The current owners apparently owe more on the house than what they were asking for it and are refusing to pay any closing costs, so that is a major deal breaker for us. We have one more house that we definitely loved and another we just found online that I hopefully will be going to see soon! It looks less and less likely that we will be able to get a contract written before the April 30th deadline for the tax credit. :( Well, all we can do is stay positive and hope it all goes through!

Support them...

I found this from a friend and I think it should be shared. :) Please pass along if you agree!



Minorities

We need to show more sympathy for these people.
* They travel miles in the heat.
* They risk their lives crossing a border.
* They don't get paid enough wages.
* They do jobs that others won't do or are afraid to do.
* They live in crowded conditions among a people who speak a different language.
* They rarely see their families, and they face adversity all day ~ every day.

I'm not talking about illegal Mexicans ~ I'm talking about our troops! Doesn't it seem strange that many Democrats and Republicans are willing to lavish all kinds of social benefits on illegals, but don't support our troops, and are even threatening to de-fund them?

A big update. Kind of. I think?

Mishu and I have been looking at houses in Fayetteville. Neither of us are opposed to the idea of settling there for a little while, and knowing the 82nd Airborne, we could easily be there for a while. Between the two of us (he went on his own, then we went together, then I went on my own) we looked at over 30 houses. At least. Not even counting the ones we drove up to with the agent and just said NO to before even getting out of the car. We liked two and are putting an offer in on one after getting some local input. The offer should be getting to the current owner s today and we put in the stipulations that we want to hear back on or before Friday.  I really hope we get this house. If we can have a contract settled before the end of the month, we will qualify for the $8,000 tax credit for new home buyers! That would help a ton in paying off some bills and buying some household items we don't own currently (like a lawn mower!).

I've started the arduous task of applying for jobs again. Already got turned down for one. It's probably for the best. Now I can focus on getting a job in my degree field. :)

Lesson for the day:

ASTHMA SUCKS!

I'm sitting here trying to recover from an asthma attack right now. I took my inhaler 3 times over the last 15 minutes and have not been able to stop coughing. If anything I'm typing is spelled wrong or does not make sense, i'm sorry. I've had to backspace a ton and I cannot stop shaking.



My dog, Hope got out of the front gate of my mom's house. I'm assuming she either a. jumped it or b. crawled under the front gate. She is known for jumping fences and the front swinging part of the gate has about a 4-7" gap underneith it.

I realized she was gone by the time she was about a half block away from me and she just kept going. I ran and she just kept going. She slowed down a little bit and another lady in a car circled the block looking for her. about 4 blocks away we found her and she tried luring Hope with Cheetos and Hope finally came back to me, she doesn't like strangers.

OMG my lungs feel like they are burning. I'm still coughing but I'm coming down a bit. Some people cant get air in with their asthma, well, I can't get air out. So the next breath can't take in enough air. and it just keeps getting worse. Ugh. So not in a good mood right now.

Chicago-area trip so far...

I got in safely Friday evening. :) Stopped by my favorite local bakery, Sweety Pies. I missed their stuff so much! Friday night, my mom and I watched Precious and Did You Hear About The Morgans. Both were good in their own ways.
Saturday my brother had his regional swim meet for the IL Special Olympics. The team did well, and I will get full results from my mom later this week. My brother's relay team got a silver medal (2nd place).

Then, on his individual races, the 100m Freestyle/Front crawl and the 50m Backstroke, he got gold (first!)!


This means that he will be going downstate in June for the Summer Special Olympics IL games! :)

Saturday night we watched Twilight: New Moon. I saw it in the theaters before but definitely was not upset about seeing it again! ;) I'm not one to turn down some nice eye candy! :D


Sunday, I met a friend and her daughter for breakfast at Sweety Pies. Her daughter was the flower girl for my wedding and they had not seen the pictures yet, so I used that as a nice opportunity to catch up with them and eat breakfast again at one of my favorite places. :D Later that day, the bro-dude had hockey practice at which a couple of the Hawks' Girls came and signed autographs for the kids and ex-player and ex-coach Dennis Savard came to play with them! It was all pretty cool. :)



My brother is in is in the red jersey:



A friend, Candace and my uncle and cousin came over for dinner yesterday. We ordered pizza and had fun watching tv and talking. :)

So far today has been just a relaxing day. I need to start loading the pick-up soon with the stuff I came back up here for. There was a lot of stuff that the movers did not take and with my mom buying a house soon, I need to get it out of her place. I watched The Princess and The Frog. Another cute movie. My great-aunt will be coming over this evening and we'll be grabbing dinner. :)

Tomorrow I leave first thing to go back to GA. I'm hoping to make it in one day. If not, I'm hoping not to stop for the night until at least Tennessee or so. 

A few updates!

I cut my hair again! It was growing out unevenly and I needed a change so here it is:
Front:


Back:



I am trying to grow out my hair but I don't want a dye line so I will probably keep cutting it short until it's fully fresh hair. :)


Other than that, we finally found out what is going on for us moving-wise. We definitely will be going to Ft. Bragg, NC and will be there for at least a year. Mishu will still be putting in his Flight packet before we leave Ft. Gordon but won't be elligible to go until at least May '11. He is still looking into Prime Power but it's the same situation. :)

I'm going to Chicago over this next weekend and will be back Wednesday or so. :) It's the Special Olympics regional swim meet and I am going to root my brother and his team on. I am sure I will update again at some point this weekend! :)

For giggles....

Start your favorite playlist, set it on random and assign the songs one after the other to the following questions. Dont skip! To get the Movie Title in the end, just take the next song after the End Credits' song and replace one word of it with your own name!

Opening Scene: The Long And Winding Road- The Beatles
Main Theme: Get Over It-The Eagles
Someone dies to: Witchy Woman-The Eagles
Club/Bar Scene: I Believe In A Thing Called Love-The Darkness
Dance Scene: Addicted-Sean King
Taxi Driving Scene: Dance Dance Dance-Steve Miller Band
Empty Apartment Scene: Good Vibrations-The Beach Boys
Love Scene: Here Comes The Sun-The Beatles
Hero Theme: Remember When-Alan Jackson
Night Scene: Sad and Lonely-Secret Machines
The Villain appears to: Octopus's Garden-The Beatles
The Big End Fight: Life Without You (Live)-Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble
The Villain dies: Surfin' USA-The Beach Boys
Goodbye Sequence: Forever-Dropkick Murpheys
End Credits: Signs-Five Man Electrical Band

Your Movie is going to be called: I Fell In Love (Susan Tedeschi)

YipYipYippie!

I gave my 2 (technically 1) weeks notice yesterday at the Home Depot. Working there just reminded me every day of why I left. The working almost every weekend (both days), the constant stress, the bringing stress home with me. It's not what I need right now. On Monday, I met with the Adapted Aquatics Director at a local YMCA and she was super thrilled. I start there sometime after I get back from Chicago. :) The program there is huge compared to the one I am used to. She has 15+ Adapted Aquatics Instructors on staff versus the other Y I worked at had not even 15 instructors total! It will be great to get back to working with what I love.
Other than that, the Army front is even more confusing than ever. Mishu's Flight packet won't be getting submitted for the next board, which will be a pain in the ass because it just screws things up even more. YAY! When I get more information, if I'm allowed to talk about it...I will. :)
As for right now...that's about it. :)

Hey, if you want...ask me a question, and I will do my best to answer it. Ask me anything!

Wheeee

Today should be interesting. I get to meet the district manager for the first time. I'm hoping he likes me and likes the fact that I have been stellar with customer service and have gotten mentioned on the customer surveys (positively) for two weeks in a row and I've really only been out on the floor for less than a month. :) What I'm really hoping for is a raise! LOL! Yes, yes, that is my overall goal. That would be kick ass. But...I'm not holding out hope. The company isn't the same it was 5 years ago...hell...it isn't the same as it was when I left in 2007.

In less than a month I will be in Chicago for a long weekend. My brother is swimming in the IL Special Olympics again and I am going to cheer him and the rest of the team on early one Saturday morning. I've also got to pick up some boxes and things left behind from when the movers moved my stuff. I'll be taking Mishu's truck up, which should actually be a little easier ride; it's got cruise control! Yay! I'll probably get together for lunch and dinner with some friends so that should be fun.

Well, it's off to work I go. Have a great day!

Productive/lazy day so far.

I know...that doesn't sound like it makes sense but it's fun!

Yay for being successful at relaxing (for the most part)
Sleeping in-check
Snuggle with the puppies-check
Play Super Mario Wii-check
Read some more of Army Wives-check (though I had to stop at a point because it's too emotional)
blogged-check
Now it's time to spend time with the hubby!....Oh wait...it's Mario time for him now! LOL!

Army Wives, the book

I started reading Army Wives yesterday or the day before and I'm about half way through it. I'm liking the book so far, and I will try not to give any spoilers away. But here is what I think of it so far: (There may be some topics here I discuss that may be sensitive to some so I caution you not to read if death and the situations that go along with it are somethings that will make you upset)























I have never...NEVER had to put a book down because it made me cry so much. Never ever. I finished a section I was reading and I just had to put the book down and walk away. I can only say..."There but for the Grace of God go I." I am going to continue reading this book, and I am sure I will get to more parts in this book that make it very hard to get through but wow. I guess it's just that this is so close to home sometimes. Mishu isn't out deployed but he has been. I know that fear of that phone call being the last. It sucks. I hope to never have to experience it, as I hope those I know never have to experience it. I can't even imagine the pain and anguish that spouse must endure. But Mrs. Biank (the author) describes it in such a heart-wrenching way that, like I said before, I almost found myself sobbing at her descriptions of it.

My heart truly goes out to those that have lost a service member.

Funny little quote for the time being...

Women are angels. And when someone breaks our wings, we simply continue to fly....on a broomstick.. We are flexible.



I got this from a fellow Army wife, who got it from a friend of hers who posted it on Facebook. Just figured a nice little tidbit this morning. (I have one minute til the morning is over!)
I promise I will post more later. :)

Last math update for a while!

I passed my math! :D Finally! I am so happy! This was the last "real" math I should have to take until my Masters! Yippee! The only other thing having to do with math that I will need to do is curriculum and possibly with student teaching. YAY!

Nervousness...

Eeep! I have a math test tomorrow and I'm getting a bit nervous about it. I always get that way before a test so this is nothing specific to math or anything. I always work myself up about it. I'm actually relatively calm about it right now, but I know that it will get worse tomorrow morning as I'm getting ready to go to the library to take it.
For those that might not remember or know, I go to school online, to Western Governor's University. They are the only online school that is NCATE accredited. :) Which means my teaching degree, once I actually get it, will actually be worth something! As an Army wife, that was something that weighed heavily into my choosing what school to go to. I knew we would be moving around a lot (this year alone I will be moving at least twice) and I didn't want to lose credits with transfers again. The only thing I have to do offline at WGU is certain tests and PRAXIS exams along with my student teaching. They work really well with military members and spouses so far as I've seen.
They also work with the MyCAA program. ;) So I've had one year of school payed for so far through the military. Awesomeness!

But I digress...I have my test tomorrow morning at 9AM EST. I'm nervous but I will do it and I will do well. Well enough to pass at least!

Other than that, I signed all my tax papers and what not at the Home Depot so I am now an official employee there again. I should be getting a call tomorrow afternoon telling me what training I will need to do and what time I need to show up on Wednesday. I'm kind of hoping it's in the afternoon/evening because there are a group of ladies here at Ft. Gordon that want to get together for coffee (I will be having tea, I hate coffee) and I would like to get to meet them.
So yeah...that is all...carry on!

Haven't posted in a few days.

Saying that though...there really hasn't been much to say. Let's see...
I bought and picked up my new Wii. :) This is thanks to the Sears Heroes at Home program. I also bought some work clothes and Mishu is going to be using his portion to buy some tools. It's really helped out a lot, seeing as I've been out of work since before Christmas.
I finally heard back from Home Depot and I go in Monday to sign all the final paperwork and I will be officially hired there. Hopefully I will get some idea of a schedule.
I have my math test next Tuesday so that will be interesting. I know I will do good. :)
Mishu and I will be spending St. Patrick's Day in Savannah so that will be nice. He went there last year over St. Patrick's day and really enjoyed it so he wanted me to experience it with him this year.
Then later that week, probably either Thursday or Friday I will be in Chicago for the weekend. It's the regional meet for swimming with my brother's Special Olympics team so I am going to go see him and the rest of the team swim. It'll be good to see family and maybe some friends again!

How my mom taught me to cure my hiccups!

I had the hiccups a couple times today. The first time I thought they went away on their own...but no, they came back with a vengeance! So...I gave in and decided to do the old trick again of drinking from the other side of the cup to get rid of my hiccups. Now, I've had a couple people ask me how to do this. It's a lot more complicated to describe than it is to actually do. I've described it to people over the interwebs before and had my mom take pictures of me demonstrating it. Now...it was late at night and I was SUPER tired when these were taken. I normally don't look that bad! :)

1. Locate "the other side of the cup." It is the far side of the cup. The side that is NOT closest to you!


2. Put your mouth on that side of the cup. You will need to bend over forwards. If you need to, brace yourself with your hand against a wall or a table.


3. Bend over far enough that the water reaches your lips. Start drinking. Drink as much of the water as you can.


4. Return yourself to your upright position!




It's always worked for me.

To do list for the day

This is more for my own benefit:

•Call Home Depot about test next week, cannot be scheduled.
•Do Goddess workout
•Boxes in Kitchen
•Clean up Kitchen
•Go through some boxes in front room
•Find the screws for dining room table
•Find EA Active accessories
•Eat Lunch
•Drink glass of Tazo/Green tea
•Drink glass of White iced tea
•Drink glass of White iced tea
•Drink one glass hot white tea
•Call Sears about Wii
•Call moving company back about move
•Call Macy's about giftcard

Busy!

Tomorrow (or technically, later today) is pretty busy. Or rather not...but it's a lot of waiting I have to do.
We bought a new washer and dryer and it's being delivered today. It isn't top of the line, but not bottom either. We were originally going to buy a used set off of Craigslist, but we ended up thinking better of it. We've both have limited schedules, mostly Mishu, but we would have to move them ourselves and hook them up. Hooking them up wouldn't be a big deal, we both know how to follow directions, but the laundry room is on the 2nd floor. Both Mishu and I have finnicky bakcs and if we ask a friend, we have to rely on someone else's schedule. Also, we wouldn't be able to fit both the washer and dryer in his truck. We would either have to take 2 trips (and waste gas) or borrow a friend's heavy duty, which is fine and all...but again we run into schedule issues.
So...it's getting delivered tomorrow and they are hooking it up. I just have to be home and available any time between 11A-5P. (I think...LOL! I can't remember if it was 5P or 8P!)
Other than that...I have more packing (the landlord's stuff away, he left a crap-ton of stuff here) and unpacking to do. I want to find my EA Active for the Wii accessories. I found the game but I need the band and nunchuck holder.
Which leads to something else I might be doing tomorrow. Mishu and I qualified for and recieved gift cards through the Sears Heroes at Home program. It's made it possible for us to get some nice things that we couldn't have afforded otherwise. Some nice "after Christmas" presents so to say. :) He is getting some tool stuff (man-toys) and I got some work clothes and I am getting the Wii. If I get a chance tomorrow, I want to go buy it from the store. THANK YOU SEARS!
Oh! Mishu, while going through some boxes, found my Goddess Workout DVD. It's belly dancing, so I think I will start that tomorrow. That is, if I can't get to the gym on post. They have a few classes that I want to try out, one of them being belly dancing. The others are Zumba classes and spin classes. I'm all about losing the extra pounds this new year!

I am now...

gainfully employed! I got the job. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. :) I know that I need to stop worrying about these things. I'll be back at Home Depot. Not doing full design like I used to, but kind of taking some of the pressure off the designer that is there. So mostly countertops, special orders...stuff like that. It'll be good to get back working again and I have to admit...I did miss designing. So...we will see where this goes!

I have an interview tomorrow!

I've been ready to tear my hair out since I got her to GA. I'm used to working at least one job, usually 2. I've been off of work since the middle of December! So, I pre-gamed. I applied anywhere and every where I could down here, starting as soon as November. Unfortunately, no one wants to talk to you unless you are in the city where you are applying. I got a couple places that said no, but good luck and one of the local Home Depots sounded genuinely interested in me. They asked me to call them back when I got down here. Well, the lady I needed to talk to was a PITA to get ahold of, but eventually, I finally did.
That leads us to today. She called me back (they were having some big shot meetings so were swamped for a few days) and said that they want me to come in for an interview! :) Awesome! I really hope this works out!

Movers...part whatever!

So the movers came today to drop off all of my stuff. :) YAY! Went pretty well, they were on time. There are at least 2 scratches on the hardwood floor, so I will have to do a claim for those at least. We still have to go through all the boxes and make sure nothing is broken but it looks (so far) like everything is good. The china cabinet does have some damage but I am not sure if that was from before or not.

:D

Got a call...

So as I was typing up that last blog post, I got a call from the mover. :) He said he should be here tomorrow morning, between 8A and 8:30A. We shall see how this goes, and believe you me...I will be updating! Seriously though...I cannot wait to have my couch back!

MilSpouse of the Year is back!

It's that time of the year again. Military Spouse Magazine has a contest every year where you can vote for a military spouse from every branch to be the Military Spouse of the Year. I personally know one of the nominees this year. Her name is Nicki B. Back in July, I posted a blog about Bubba's Belly Run (http://arielanna84.blogspot.com/2009/07/bubbas-belly-run.html). Well, that was Nicki and Bubba was her husband. The race was a huge success, raising over $50,000 that benefited Bubba's children's education, The Fisher House®, American Widows Project and Flat Daddies. She is such a strong woman and I personally and completely feel she deserves this honor.


Voting is at http://www.msoy.milspouse.com/ and she is under the Army icon. You can vote every 8 hours, so please vote often! You can also vote for spouses in all of the other military branches as well. :)

Movers update

So the movers came, packed and took all my stuff away on the 28th. I hadn't heard anything so I called them today. The guy at the office had NO clue and had to call the driver. Then he called me back and tells me Thursday or Friday and that the driver would have called the day before and will still call the day before. Well...um...thank goodness I DONT HAVE A JOB YET! Ugh. That really annoys me. Is this normal?

So far

The job hunt, so far, is painfully annoying. I've been here 5 days and nothing but call backs and "no". When I say call backs, I'm not talking, "oh, we are interested, come back for another interview," I'm talking "Please call back another time, the person you are looking for is not here right now/today." I have to call one place back tomorrow and maybe drop off a resume there. I should hear back from Home Depot on Wednesday as to when they want me to come in to meet with them. I put in an application with the local school district today. So here's to hoping something comes through.

Our family has a new addition! Her name is Hope and she is a Golden Retriever mix. We are not sure yet what she is mixed with but I'm thinking Chow Chow maybe.


Also, I talked to my mentor at Western Governor's University and we set up my classes for the next 6 months. I will be taking the approximate equivalent to 16 credits. EEEP! That's a lot! I was taking about 12 before and could barely balance that but I really think I have my life in order right now and I KNOW that I will be able to pull it off. If I continue at that rate (16 credits, or as WGU calls them, competency units) I will graduate in December of 2011. That is 6 months earlier than originally planned! I know I can do this...I know i can!

That's about it for now... :D

Move Pt. 2

So I'm down here at Ft. G right now!!!
Most of my stuff fit in the car. A couple things didn't so I just put that in a pile of stuff in my mom's basement. There were a few boxes that the movers did not get because I did not know they were there so in the next couple of months, I need to head back up there to get them. :)
I left the Chicago area Wednesday morning and drove through to Chattanooga. Spent the night there and started out to finish the rest of the drive Thursday morning. In Chattanooga I discovered that my fish, most if not all of them...had died. I was really upset about this. But when I got to Gordon, half of them were alive so I was still upset I lost half the tank, but happy some of them survived the move! I've got a makeshift tank set up in their tote I have them in.
It's nice here so far. We went to a party last night. One of Mishu's friends was having his birthday party and New Years party, so we rang in the new year with them.

I hope the New Year has found everyone in good spirits and in good health!