**Sigh**

I got a phone call at 4:40 this morning. It was Jason. I have been on edge since yesterday afternoon, after not getting a phone call or an email (you see, when the phones are down, he can usually still get out an email from work). By last night and still no email by 1 a.m., I was feeling a bit panicked. The phone call early this morning started: "I'm ok, but..." Never what you want to hear. Jason has been doing martial arts training (they do this in the marines to train them for hand to hand combat), and yesterday during an exercise, they thought he broke his neck. It popped 3 times, and he could barely move it without a large amount of pain. He was taken to the hospital out there by military ambulance on a flatboard in a neck brace and headblocks. Thank our good Lord above, that after x-rays, they ruled it a bad strain with no fractures. They are letting him do guard duty in the tent (it's a big circus looking tent that his unit is staying in), and they have him on muscle relaxers and Vicodin if the pain gets too much. I figured they would let him have the day off, but I guess not over there. He's not one to take medicine very often, but he will when he is hurting. We are so close to the end, I'm getting very nervous about any type of injury. We've made it so far. It could've been worse, I know, but I just have a helpless feeling because he is thousands and thousands of miles away, and there is nothing I can do. It's completely out of my hands. I know this is where I have to turn it over to our most loving, and caring God, but by nature, I am a worrier. It's my downfall, and the sin that I battle with more than anything.

On the brighter side, we went to a post-deployment brief for the spouses of deployed marines in our unit. AND, I now know the flight "window" for Jason's company and unit. He will be departing Iraq between September 16 and the 19th. After travel time, he should be here several days after. Not as soon as I'd hoped, but the 1st of September is tomorrow. So, approximately 3 weeks, and my heart will be whole again! Thank you all so much for your continued prayers, it really has meant so much to both of us.

The Ball

This year we finally get to go to the Marine Corps ball! The first year, we were traveling cross country from California. The second year (last year), he was gone for training for 6 weeks. And this year...he will be back, and we get to go!!! The date this year is for November 17th. Just a quick note...the Marine Corps ball is to celebrate the birthday of the Marine Corps;o)

Well, I don't know many girls who don't like to buy a new ball gown and feel like a princess for a night. I have a certain dress in mind, it's simple, but I think it's quite elegant, and black is always classic, what do you think??? Everybody and their sister wears red to the ball, so I'm trying to stay away from red! (Sorry the picture is not very good quality, but you get the idea.)The dress has pockets, how ingenius is that!? Plus, I already have ideas for my hair including a matching black satin head band;o) I called yesterday and made reservations at the hotel where we will be staying that night. The ball is going to be in a different town about an hour from here. The ball will be held at the same hotel that we are staying in. We figured it was going to be over late, that there will probably be some stupid ones who drink and think they can make the hour long trip back, therefore putting ours, and many other lives in danger, and of course, it will be nice to stay away from home for a night. I love staying in different cities, in different hotels...if they are nice of course. This hotel has a pretty reputable name, so I'm not too worried. Any place you have to pay $9.00 daily to park has to be pretty upscale, wouldn't you think?

I'm a little exctied, but I bet you could never tell, lol.

Wowie!

I am in, I am unpacked, I am EXHAUSTED! If you read my mom's post, we got in even with us all being sickly and my dad feeling awful (thank you to all who were praying for him). Dan was our last saving grace by Friday evening. He helped us get everything from storage here and unloaded. Ashley and Austin came down Sunday after Daddy, Momma, and Alaina went home to get Dad to feeling better. They stayed with me until yesterday, and last night I finally unpacked the last box, and hung up the last curtain. Last night was my first night alone, and it was loooooong. I heard every bump, scratch, and of course it had to thunderstorm. But I made it through and feel much better today. Of course, it's not dark out yet, so we'll see...

The yard men are here today, trimming our horendous yard. Maybe the bugs will clear out a little...yes, BUGS! And lots of 'em. I sprayed the whole perimeter of our townhouse, and doors and windows today. After I saw my 4th black widow spider (all outside thankfully), I had to do something. Daddy killed the first one on the front door, then today I found one in the garage, and 2 underneath our sliding glass door in the back. EWWWWWWW! I hate bugs, especially spiders, and especially, ESPECIALLY poisonous ones!

So, moving along...it's picture time:)

Welcome to our home!

Our living room:

The door on the left is the bathroom, the door on the right is our storage closet:

The kitchen:

Our Guestroom:

Guest Bath:

Our Computer/Craft Room:

Our Bedroom:

Our Bathroom:

So, that's most of the house, the more interesting parts anyways, the washer and dryer are in the garage, and I didn't figure that was a super exciting photo opp. The downstairs half bath is really cute too, it's done in an Outhouse theme, I just forgot to take a picture of it. I hope you enjoyed the tour as much as I am enjoying it all being DONE!

I will be around to visit this evening and tomorrow hopefully:)

It's time, It's time!

The time has come. It's moving day. We have a busy, yet exciting weekend ahead of us. I cannot believe its already time to move. Many of you asked me if I was excited. I'm ecstatic! But, I am also a tad bit nervous. I get nervous very easily, hoping everything will go smoothly, and hoping and praying everyone in our family can stay well and that it will be a good trip. Nerves always get me, and when nerves set in, I don't feel like eating, my nerves always make my stomach knot up, I eat enough to stay nurished, that's about it, lol. After helping with all the lifting and setting up of the electronics and appliances, Daddy and Alaina plan on having a beach day either Saturday or Sunday to get a little R&R while me and mom decorate, grocery shop, and make a few stops at our favorite quaint little coastal shops. We are pulling out at 5 am!!! We have to stop at the realtor's to get the key, and then it's off to unload load #1, then to the storage unit to empty it out (this will probably take a few trips). I have the cable/internet company coming out between 1 and 3 (don't you just love the 2 hour time window?), and then Dan, a friend of mine and Jason's, is coming over after work to help my dad get the heavy stuff up the stairs. Dan used to do the same job as Jason in the military, but switched jobs, and therefore, did not deploy at the same time. He will actually be with the group going out next. My dad, mom, and Alaina plan on staying through until Monday. Ashley will be coming down Sunday for almost 2 weeks, and my friend Mandi is coming in for the 3 day weekend for Labor Day. I think they will all do a great job at keeping me company:) So, hopefully I will be back early next week with moving day and progress pictures! Until then...hope you all have a blessed weekend, and stay cool!

Ashley's Newest Edition

Today we traveled an hour away to an animal rescue farm. Ashley went with the intent to get a new kitty, which she did, but also came home with a new puppy. A little 7 week old Pomeranian. The kitty she got is a little gray and white one who wouldn't let us take her picture, she would barely come out of the carrier, she a bit skiddish, so when she adapts a little more, we'll post some pictures of her too. The kitty who is long and lanky has been named Slim. This little girl is named Daisy. She looks like a little black bear:)

This little lady already has such a personality of her own. She is completely trusting of us, as you can tell. She seems to prefer to lay on her back during all times of rest. She is quite lazy, as most puppies are I guess. She is the chillest little thing I've ever seen, we all already love her!

Packing, Packing, Packing

Have you ever seen these??? They are the off-brand of the Space Bag. But in my opinion, they are better, and cheaper! I went and got myself 2 at our local Wally World store for my bed linens today. I got a queen sized comforter, a standard sized pillow, and 2 decorative throw pillows into one Jumbo sized bag, then vaccuumed all the air out and it is now teeny tiny...only about 3 inches thick!

Back when we were packing up our house before Jason left, we used the Space Bag brand to store all of our quilts, blankets, towels, and guest room linens. Out of 6 bags, 3 had holes in them...grrr, how frustrating.

Ok, I will stop raving about these most ingenious bags now. I am all packed up...all except packing my computer, printer, and dvd player, and re-packing my t.v. in it's original box. I can't believe I only have 4 days before I move!

HI!

So, I'm not completely back, but I've missed blogging and am going to try and catch up a little. I know I have missed so much that has gone on with all of you, and if I missed anything major, pleeease fill me in, I'll be visiting blogs, but as you can imagine, I couldn't possibly read every post that has been posted in the last month and a half!

As for me, life has been a whirlwind. I know my momma has kept y'all posted on alot of things, so thanks to her:) My room is full of boxes, totes, and suitcases and I'm so excited about my new house! If you haven't seen on my mom's site, we had a wonderful gals trip (started out quite interestingly...but that's another post!), and I found us the cutest townhouse towards the outskirts of our town where the traffic and noise aren't as bad. It's 2 story with a single garage, 3 bedrooms, and 2 1/2 baths. I move in next Friday!!! I absolutely cannot believe it's time. My wonderful family is helping move back next weekend, so things will still be super busy for a while. I have family and friends coming down to visit and keep me company until Jason comes home. (I don't like staying alone). Jason still does not have a set return date, but they are saying mid-September. All that is for sure is the month.

I ordered my living room furniture back in July and it came in today, my dad and I picked it up and I am very happy with it. I finally decided on a set from Ashley furniture. I will post pictures once we get it all in the house. Thank goodness I will have my mom down for 3 days to help put her touch in on the decorating!

I have been struggling with migraines for about 2 months now which was a big part of why I've been gone from here. They were getting to the point where I was having them 2-3 times a week. I've had a head scan, and seen a neurologist and we've narrowed it down to hormonal migraines due to the fact I came off of my birth control pills. This is very frustrating due to the fact that I came off to have a baby. I had to go back on them to get through finding a house, moving, and getting my husband home. My biggest fear was that I'd come down with one the day he came home. Since I've been back on the pill, my migraines have been gone for 11 days and counting. My next step is to get in with a high risk OB-GYN and go from there. I'm very aggravated and worried as one of my biggest desires is to have children, and this is making it more difficult than it already is. I guess my internal clock is ticking...loudly.

Other random news...I went brunette, dark brunette. If you're interested, you can see the new look in my new profile picture:)

Anyways, that is a brief overview of what has been going on during my M.I.A. period. I guess for the most part I will be trying to catch up with all of you over the next week and once we get me settled, I will be posting plenty of pictures. Thank you for your patience while I try to get back around to everybody. I've missed y'all!

Thank you for all of your sweet birthday wishes!!! You are all so kind! I had a wonderful 25th birthday:)

Like my mom said, these past two weeks and the coming months are going to be a bit of a blur, and I really am sorry I haven't been around much, my heart is just not in blogging right now. I feel like I'm rushing all the time, and when I do sit down at the computer, it is to talk to Jason, and then I usually pass out as soon as he gets off! I hate that I'm so far behind on everybody's posts and daily happenings, but I promise to catch up with y'all soon! So, I guess this is my official leave of absence. I want to do blogging because I enjoy it, and right now with life being so nuts, I feel like it's become more of an item on my to-do list! And, please don't take it as reading y'alls posts is a chore, I have still been running by here and there and reading here and there, but not so much on commenting. I will be back, not sure how long, but I will be back! I hope you all are having a glorious summer! Big Hugs...

And the answer is...

Okie Dokie...the answers to my Balderdash post are:

1. True. I do not and have never dealt well with stress. I tend to push things down and try to ignore them, and this is the way it comes out. My first one happened when I was working at a daycare. They are very few and far between, thank goodness, but still no fun when they do happen.

2. True. LOL. I am a certified nursing assistant (not currently practicing) and while I was in school for this, we had to do clinicals at a nursing home. One of my patients for the day was a woman in her 90's who was bedridden. I was assigned to give her a sponge bath. Long story short...she didn't let me.

3. True. First time when I was five, they got infected even though my mom cleaned them and took very good care of them (I'm not a good healer), we let them grow up, got them done again at 8...they did it again, waited until I was 18 and they finally healed up, got my second holes when I was 19, they were fine, and got my cartiledge pierced when I was 20.

4. True. My dad was pulling me with his boat with my mom and sister and another couple who were friends of my parents on board. I fell, and the drunk people thought it would be funny to scare my parents and came straight towards me, I was told that they came within feet of me. My mom was in the process of jumping out of the boat to get to me when they cut away, laughing. Needless to say, we found them on the lake later and my dad's friend drenched them and their boat with a wall of water from his kneeboard (he was pretty good, lol).

5. True. 4 times for passing out, once by ambulance when we lived in California because Jason couldn't wake me up and I had a seizure, the other time I was taken by ambulance was from the daycare when I had my first panic attack, I couldn't breathe.

6. False. I WISH! He has been at our base, but unfortunately, we did not get to meet this wonderful man.

7. True. We had not seen our family in 7 months and we were putting the pedal to the metal. We switched off driving and got cross country in 2 days. We only stopped in East Tennessee b/c it was 10 at night and everyone at home would be asleep when we got there, so we slept...slept hard, got up at 8 and finished the drive.

8. True. I petted a wolf when we lived in California (remember, we lived in the desert), he had been caught by animal control roaming people's backyards, and they didn't have the heart to put him down since he hadn't harmed anyone, so they were holding him until a wildlife place came and got him, he was there when we were looking for dogs, and they let us pet him. I held a snake in 5th grade at a reptile show that came to our school. And, I hand fed dolphins at SeaWorld...it was awesome.

9. True. I have NEVER flown, nor do I want to!

Balderdash

Jennifer has tagged me to do the post where I tell you nine facts about myself, one being untrue. Your job is to pick out the one that is not true:) Good luck! I'll let you know the answer in a few days.

1. I suffer from panic attacks.


2. I've been smacked by a 90-something year old woman.


3. I've had my ears pierced 5 times.


4. I learned to water ski when I was seven years old and not long after, was almost hit by a boat full of drunk people while skiing.


5. I've been taken to the Emergency Room 5 times, two of those times were by ambulance.


6. I have met President Bush, he came to visit our base last year, and he did a meet and greet.


7. We (my hubby and I) drove all the way from California to eastern Tennessee without stopping to sleep.


8. I have petted a fully grown wolf, held a snake, and hand fed dolphins.


9. I've never flown in an airplane before.


Happy guessing!


If you would like to play, consider yourself tagged!

Yikes!

My sweetie just sent me some pictures of one of the sandstorms they just recently had. When we lived in the California desert, we encountered a sandstorm, but it was not even half of what this one looks like! Wow!

All Gave Some...Some Gave All

Let us remember the ultimate sacrifice that many men and women have made for our freedom not only on this Memorial Day, but everyday. They will never be forgotten.

This Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day is about remembering and honoring those who have served and died for our country and it's people. I also think it's about remembering those who have served and are serving. My husband being one of them. I love you, my hero. You are making the sacrifice to defend me, our nation, our fellow Americans, and I am so proud of you. There is not a day, a minute that goes by that I don't think of you and miss you with all of my heart.

Yay, Yay, Yay!!!

So, a quick update! Jason has informed me that rumor has it that his unit will be leaving Iraq by the end of August, and that he will be stepping foot back on our American soil, at our base, no later than SEPTEMBER 5th!!! I am trying not to get too excited, but...oh...too late, I'm SO excited! Now I know that the military is infamous for changing things at any time, but usually it stays close to what they say. My mom and I are going back to look for a rental house (or condo or apartment...whatever God puts in our path) on July 31st and will stay until August 3rd. If y'all don't mind too much, maybe pray that we will find a place quickly, and that everything will go smoothly, oh, and that Jason will be back by the time they are talking about. Tentatively, my parents and I will be moving us back the weekend of August 18th, so that I will have time to set up house before Jason gets home. That way, he can just be happy about being home and not have to worry with anything:) It's getting much closer! A little over 3 months to go, we're almost half way!!!

AND...I just want to say thank you to all of you that have been continually praying for and keeping up with us. It really does mean the world to me. Every single one of you have touched my life. Y'ALL ARE FABULOUS!!!

Wordless Wednesday

My New Hair Color!