Thankful

To say things have been hectic lately is an understatement.  We still don't have a house to move into in Meridian and are moving the 13th. . we just got our movers finalized, I need to inventory all of our high value items and update our renters insurance, and I've just been having horrendous heartburn.  Oh, it's also the last week of my school semester and shoot -- I feel like all I've been doing is work!

Needless to say it has been a bit hard to just take a break and sit back and feel grateful and thankful for the things around me instead of stressed and overwhelmed.  Our original plan was to drive home for Thanksgiving but our last trip home made me realize that sitting in the car more than two hours is going to result in misery, and when you're on a tight leave schedule you can't take two days to make a 7 hour trip. .  We therefore changed everything up and around and invited everyone up for the holidays.   Nic's family already had plans and in true fashion, my parents weren't able to figure out if they could come until the day before, but at noon they were heading on up for less than a 48 hour visit.

It can be so easy to just get overwhelmed and lonely in this lifestyle.  Are we making the right decisions?  Am I not being a big enough of a trooper and should we just drive home?  So many questions are constantly running through my head and this pregnancy seems to have just eliminated my ability to come to a conclusion and let go.  I just hone in on something and bring it up about ten times (bless Nic for dealing with me) until it's too late and the decision is already made.

As I was waiting for my parents to arrive I realized a few things. . Nic and I have been together eleven years and this would be his first time spending Thanksgiving with my family.   I haven't spent Thanksgiving with them in four years.  And even though it was a fast trip, there truly isn't anything better than being able to cook with your parents and just make memories.

We woke up super early Friday to go get poinsettias, and then Starbucks, Target and Petsmart and it truly was the most pleasant Black Friday shopping experience in the world. Target was less crowded than it is on a normal day.  After breakfast we were home and my parents were on their way back to Orlando and life began to resume again.

But we had that time.  And while we're moving in the middle of December, Nic is still home. And I still am able to have a mini fake tree in the interim. And most importantly, little girl loves to give a solid kick or two when I seem to be having an extra hard moment.

So here's to taking a step back and truly enjoying the little things. Whether it's a phone call from a loved one, a quick visit, an email or just a hot coffee -- they really are the little things that get us thru the hard days.

Changes

A few months ago my husband made a decision for himself and our little, but perfect, family.  Since then a lot of changes have been going on in our lives from the small and simple things to the bigger.

Everyone says you find out who your true friends are in tough situations, and that has been nothing but the truth.  We've been truly blessed with the chance to learn who our true friends are verses those who were just there because of situational convenience. I'll be honest and say thats been the hardest thing for me. I never thought we would experience shitty friends in this lifestyle, but they were there all the same.    True friends are friends no matter what you do in life, if not doing something anymore means you're no longer a friend, obviously there was not trueness in the friendship to begin with.  We are grateful for those who have been there for us the last few months; we appreciate you all more than you know.

All of the changes have brought about some much needed time spent together.  We've been able to just sit and re-prioritize our lives and what's important not only to us as a team, but also us individually.  I'm a hopeless romantic and often find my head up in the clouds and it seems I married my perfect counterpart who's the same.

As for the news; Nic's now the gunno on the USS Preble and we're moving to Oahu in August! We honestly cannot be more excited!

Aloha.

While I hate reading little notes pre and post blog posts, I do feel like it's necessary to add one with this.  Every relationship both in and out of the military are different and therefore need different things. This blog has always been a space for me to share our experiences as well as keep family and friends updated on things that are going on.  Please respect his decision, and now our decision, to share this with everyone. 

Stella Rose

So, we got a puppy.

Well, we've actually had a puppy for almost three months now (!) and I'm just getting around to fully introducing her to everyone in internet world. We weren't supposed to get a puppy. Nic and I have been on opposite ends of the spectrum with getting another dog for quite a bit and during our honeymoon we made a bet. And I won. And we therefore were supposed to wait until we found somewhere to live in California, move, and then possibly get a puppy.  But my husband somehow has a way of convincing me and no one can really say no to a cute little puppy.

On our stop home after our honeymoon we ventured to the pound with my parents, found a dog named Benjamin who I absolutely loved and pray got adopted and then realized we couldn't get an already full grown blue tick hound home with us on an airplane without paying an arm and a leg. And so poor Benjamin had to stay behind and it still breaks my heart.  Then we started looking all over and found some really cute Australian Shepherds but couldn't find one with a tail (a necessity), some adorable hound mixes but we didn't want any part of pit in a dog we got and they seemed to have a little bit. And then one evening we found an ad for Stella and her sister.  And, well, the rest is history.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't think she is absolutely adorable and a great dog. I'd also be lying if I said we got off to a perfect start, it was actually pretty rough.  The first two days we had her I was horribly sick and stuck in bed all day so she became super attached to Nic. Which is fine, except we didn't bond at all. I thought she was cute but she'd pick on Eevah which I wasn't okay with. And then we had to fly her back to Maryland with us -- which was fantastic (I'm telling you, the calming tablets I mentioned in our cross country trip work wonders). Nic started work the day after we got home and all of a sudden it was just Eevah, Stella and I and we ran into some hefty problems. She cried as soon as he left at 5am and wouldn't stop, she wouldn't listen to me for potty training and she was trying to eat Eevah constantly.  I will forever have a scar on my knee from her horrible puppy claws and inability to understand she isn't allowed on the couch.  I called Nic crying more than once that first week.

Thankfully some homemade toys (aka water bottles), teaching her how to take something without acting like a blessed piranha and Eevah sticking up for herself got us all on the right foot. The cross country trip and this fabulous new house and yard has helped SO much and I'm so happy she's here.  She also learned how to give paw which is just the cutest thing ever.

It's crazy to look back at photos and see how much bigger she has gotten. Eevah got bigger, but her change was from 1.6 to 8.1 pounds. Stella has gone for 16.8 to 55! It's absolutely crazy.  Both of her parents were bigger so she should get to a pretty decent size once she's full grown.  I LOVE the differences of her barks. When she's playing with us and/or Eevah, it's a softer and more playful but as soon as she hears something she doesn't like she has such a deep and scary sounding bark.  It's fantastic.

She adores swimming which we encourage and digging which is a constantly battle. A dog that actually LOVES to dig and isn't doing it because she's "bored" and looking for an outlet brings forth a major issue when renting a home with a gorgeous yard. I feel like grass like ours isn't something you encounter a lot in Cali and we'll probably not get back out security deposit if it's all dug up. She also adores real bones or bones that have some kind of flavoring on them, the smell of which makes me want to gag. But we're figuring it out (aka I'm sitting far away from her while she's chewing on the bones).  She loves to sit with me in the yard and she's realized she can pull pieces off the palm tree to chew on.  She's really a cutie pie and a perfect addition to our little family.

Our Christmas Break

This Christmas was a hectic but really fun. Nic and I spent out first Christmas Eve/Christmas Day together and it was fabulous!  We went to Christmas Eve mass with his family in St.Pete and then came home and had Christmas Eve dinner with my family followed by a midnight mass. It was so nice to wake up next to each other and open presents together. Nic's family doesn't do the silly underwear and sock type presents so it was amusing to see 

We've never really talked about our individual families Christmas traditions before so it was fun to learn how differently we celebrated it throughout our childhoods. For example, all of our presents as kids were from Santa, while all of Nic's were from his parents and only one came from Santa. Interesting. . I can't wait until we have kids so we can smooth everything together. 

We made homemade peppermint vodka as gifts and it was awful. Darn you Pinterest. But hey, at least the thoughts were there. We also actually went out for New Years Eve, weird, but fun!

Family Time

I'm the type of person who tries to hold off on the "social media trends" for as long as I can. It took me forever to get a twitter (and even longer to actually use it) and the same goes for instagram. But just like twitter I'm now becoming obsessed. I bring this up because my family recently flew up to Pennsylvania for a wedding and I was lucky enough to meet them at my grandparents for a few days. Their home was jam packed with two toddlers, a puppy, and five adults so it made for quite an interesting time. 

I forgot my camera so I relied on my phone and instagram. The pictures came out quite cute and here are a few of my favorites.

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Have a fabulous week and take lots of pictures!

Ciao. xoxo.

Visiting Home

As I sat on my flight I realized quite a few different things, the main being that I’m going home and that’s not Orlando. . strange concept. When we were moving me up to Towson mom made a funny comment about how I’m never going to live at home again. I’ll be honest, I blew it off as an emotional mom moment but this past week has made it concrete. I won’t.

:: cue awkwardness as I start to tear up on an airplane ::

I needed this vacation. . not like that was a secret from anyone. Almost four months away from the familiarity, the beach, and having “no worries” was killing me. I missed my old job and coworkers, my eighties nights, being tan, and most importantly – my family. My missing my niece’s birthday party, and knowing it’s not going to be the last big event that I’ll miss was killing me. And knowing that’s a part of “growing up” doesn’t make it easier.

Walking out of the MCO I was greeted with the familiar heat that I miss, a few rays of good strong sun and my adorable niece, nephew and older sister. Kaiden and Vivi were as excited to see me as I was to see them but as soon as I got in the car I didn’t receive a “Hi titi!” but instead it was a “Where’s Eevah!?!?!” – it felt good to be home. Things worked out were I was even fortunate enough to go house hunting with them as they found their new home!

I ventured out with my sister and brother-in-law to re-celebrate my 21^st birthday and their house signing only to almost be denied entrance into I-Bar. My first time out in Orlando as myself and not my alter ego Amanda and my REAL id is almost denied. . . the irony.

The weekend was spent frolicking around St. Pete Beach. I got to soak up some sun, drink some desperately needed lava flows (pina colada and strawberry daiquiri mixed together – oh my lanta delicious) and just relax with my parents. I got to be home for my dad’s birthday.

I saw my old coworkers and hung out with some of my closest friends. I didn’t get to see everyone I wanted to, nor do everything I wanted to, but I’m walking away from home contented. Things change. Sometimes we sadly lose some of our closest friends and we can’t change that.  You can try to change it but sometimes it won’t work. And at least I can say I tried.

I already miss everything about home, but at the same time I’m excited to be back at this “home”. The air is getting a little crisper and I can honestly say I'm quite excited for scarfs and footballs game. Both places seem to be my home now. And as one of my favorite friends pointed out "home is where your heart is, and yours is in Annapolis". 

To part, here's what I saw most of my flight home. My dog is such a diva. (Please note the paw)