Army Wife Post

TLC Update

2012-02-07T05:34:00.000-08:00

Here is the conclusion to our time on season two of A Conception Story. After the season wrapped up Jason and I were asked if we would be interested in continuing our journey with TLC. After some thought about closing this chapter in our life we felt we couldn't do that just yet. Being on this series has not only been an experience for us, but we have reached out and connected with so many other couples who felt just as alone as us. So TLC is teaming up with us to bring this series to our location! They will be casting for other couples in our location to be a part of season three and we can't wait!

Booties yay or nay?

2012-01-23T08:16:00.001-08:00

Last year when I first saw "booties" I wondered who in the right mind wanted to wear a half boot. Now the more I look at them I wonder if they are something worth wearing...

What do you think? Are "booties" cute with dresses or maybe even shorts in the spring or are they a complete no?

The Convenient Post

2012-01-21T08:38:00.001-08:00

I am finally enjoying the world of the iPhone. My problem with Blogging regularly is I had to take time out to get on my laptop and upload pictures and moan, moan, moan. When I switched the Blackberry for the iPhone I discovered "there is an app for that."

December was hard lets face it. After all we had been through having a miscarriage was devastating. What I didn't mention in that post is after my doctor called I got another call that my grandma had passed away. Rough day that left me in denial for weeks to come. Both my grandmas death and the realization of my early miscarriage didn't hit me until after Christmas. It was without a doubt a crash waiting to happen.

Now we are busy figuring out the future again. Hopeful for more chances and hopeful for some success. This next time around I haven't felt as being open with things as before. Maybe it is because of the end result or the fact that it is not as exciting anymore for the what-if.

I continue to remain hopeful though and hold the thought in my head and heart that one day I will be a mom. For now I have these two precious fur children....Lawwwd knows if it doesn't work again I will be back in the puppy business. I may end up the crazy dog lady ha ha.

Cheerios Cheer Giveaway! Today Only

2011-12-15T07:11:00.000-08:00

Last year I was a USO Ambassador. I am a HUGE advocate for the great things that the USO does. I have been to plenty of homecomings and farewells representing the USO and the satisfaction of giving our troops phone cards before they go or gift certificates for new boots when they get home is huge to them. The USO has many facilities around the US and abroad for our military and their families (like you and me =)). They provide care packages, food, services, and so much more to those who sacrifice the most.

Cheerios has teamed up with the USO already donating $150,000 and is donating an addition $100,000 based upon the number of postcards that were sent last month from specially marked boxes during their Cheer campaign.

We love Cheerios in our house and always have a box so when I saw this giveaway I had to bring it to you!

I could use some "cheer" too so the person who tells me the best quote to live by OR what one should do to cheer up and makes me laugh wins the following:

1 Cheerios cereal bowl

1 Cheerios cereal spoon

1 cereal dispenser

1 “Cheer” box of Cheerios

This giveaway ends today and the winner will be contacted by 7:00pm EST and MUST respond back by the end of the night with their shipping address so I can get your package out to you!

Disclosure: Cheerios cereal, information, and giveaway have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

The end result

2011-12-06T05:59:00.000-08:00

Eleven days ago I found out I was pregnant! I can't even begin to describe the excitement we felt as the tests got darker each day and the doctor's office confirmed my pregnancy. As planned we kept quiet to make sure the numbers doubled before we told our families the exciting news. To know after all of this I was finally pregnant and to actually see a positive test read "pregnant" after all of the tests over the past few years say "not pregnant" was extremely exciting.

We went back to the doctor again yesterday to make sure everything was looking good through my blood work. When our doctor called yesterday afternoon and not the nurse I knew right away it wasn't good. Dr. T called to tell us it wasn't good and I was losing the pregnancy. My numbers (hcg) went all the way down to the single digits just like that. So through lots of tears I asked what the next steps were, but there are no steps until we confirm that I am no longer pregnant and my body naturally does what it should do.

So now we know I can get pregnant. It was the most exciting few weeks of our lives together so far. I can't even describe how it feels after struggling for so long with infertility, paying over $15,000 dollars, finally getting that call to say we are pregnant, and then having it all gone the next day.

A lot of sorrow and sadness. It is not the end of our journey though we do know that. Hopefully I will get pregnant again and be able to stay that way in the future :)

XOXO,

Nothing to report...yet

2011-11-30T05:07:00.001-08:00

Okay, I really thought I would not be anxious for the blood test but I am. I have gone from the fear of not having eggs, to none of my eggs fertilizing, and now that I can't get pregnant. When does this madness end!! I am driving myself batty counting down the days until blood. I will be the first person there when the day comes AND will have to threaten not to have me waiting all day. ;) Isn't that the worst? Waiting ALL day for results?

Every little cramp and backache now matters and I will read into anything.

My blood test is REALLY soon...

I have a good feeling today but every day changes ;)

Ohhh the torture...

2011-11-25T07:05:00.001-08:00

I have read of people getting positive pregnancy tests at four and five days past a five day transfer. So I tested this morning...

It was negative.

Why do people like me do this?! Just pure torture. I always say I WILL NOT test until blood work and then when I get a chance to I justify it to myself and I do it. First Response has provided me with a stockpile of pregnancy tests for doing TLC's A Conception Story and I have yet to have a chance to use them so this is how I am justifying it.

I say I won't but I will probably test again...tomorrow.

I am still having my back and forth days that this will work or that it didn't. Today is a didn't and I blame it on the the negative test.

And so it begins...

2011-11-23T05:49:00.000-08:00

We had ten embryos as of Monday. A little less than I had hoped for, but still more than enough to be thankful for. We sat down with the doctor and went over the two best ones. They were clearly the best and looked different than the rest. They grade the embryos and the ones that were picked had a grade AA and the other an AB. Really good! So I thought the transfer would be painless...ha.

You have to have a full bladder and I ended up laying there so long that they had to cath me to empty some of my bladder before continuing. Ahh the joys of baby making. The actual procedure lasted about twenty-five minutes. It is a little like having a pap mixed with an IUI (for my infertility friends). It is all ultrasound guided and afterwards the "tube" is checked to make sure the eggs have gone into the uterus. When the embryologist confirms that they drain your bladder and put a wedge under you for thirty minutes while you lay in recovery.

So I am officially two days past my transfer. I will be honest and say I am nervous and not looking forward to or am I antsy for the two week wait to end. I know the devastation if this is a no especially after how miserable I have felt the past week and the overly swollen beached whale look has really added to my mood. I have a good feeling that some of our embryos will freeze and we will be able to use those for future cycles and another chance. I guess I have just never had a positive pregnancy test so it is hard to think that could happen in a few weeks. I have plenty of thinking time on my hands now that I have to lay low through Thanksgiving...can you tell?

I could use some good vibes and well wishes. Let's hope something has decided my uterus looks cozy.

Love,

Egg Count Update

2011-11-18T09:29:00.000-08:00

Well the Duggar family sized egg amount has changed. The nurse called yesterday and we now have SIXTEEN fertilized embryos. Woah! Although this number will likely change it was great to hear. The egg quality will be tested throughout the weekend as they are monitored to see how many are growing and developing. The hope is we won't get anymore calls and will go in on Monday to see pictures and talk about which ones are best to transfer and hopefully which ones are of a good grade to freeze.

Now for some more waiting....

The kids are in the "playground"

2011-11-17T07:56:00.001-08:00

I survived! Yesterday was our egg retrieval and I really started to freak out and nerves kicked in as soon as the IV was in and the nurses came in to take me away to the procedure. Thank gosh for the anesthesiologist gracing me with some valium via the IV.

Everything went smoothly and when I woke up in recovery the doctor came in and told us the egg count. Ready for it...

TWENTY!

My ovaries really haven't shriveled up and died like I had previously thought. Although this is great news we still aren't sure of the quality and how many will fertilize. We should be getting a series of phone calls over the next few days with updates on the embryos in the playground. We are so very hopeful at least half will be of good quality and fertilize and we will have some to freeze incase the transfer does not work.

So today they are at this stage...

Pretty neat. Hopefully the doctor calls soon and eases some of my anxiety that not only do I have eggs now, but that a few are keepers.

IVF Fun!

2011-11-12T07:58:00.000-08:00

I am in the midst of all the medication and fun currently. I feel blotted, miserable, and emotional. J is on this emotional roller coaster ride with me...lucky man. He has been great and has kept the jokes pretty minimal. I am currently going to the doctor every other day and working my way up to the retrieval.

I am on a cocktail concoction of fertility medicine and could probably open my own pharmacy (seen above). Currently my daily dose looks something like this...

I am taking Gonal-F right now (my dose was 225iu but is now at 150iu). I am also taking three 75iu vials of Menopur a day (I started with one, moved to two, and am now on three). Also, 20 units of Lupron both morning and night. Slowly but surely I am becoming a pin cushion.

I have thought about putting a picture of my bruised stomach up as well but I will save you all the glory of that. Some days I feel hopeful and optimistic and other days I have a hard time believing we are in the 50% of this working. It has been a long hard road so far and I do not believe this is the end, but some days I wonder if we have waited long enough for good things to come and now is our time. It is a "ride" for sure over here. One minute I am having a conversation cool calm and collected and the next I am biting J's head off for upsetting and and then I am crying. Lawwwd I bet J is glad to be on duty tonight ha ha.

I don't want to jinx the progress and will know more tomorrow, but currently I have 17 follicles the doctor could see as of yesterday growing. I know all of those won't catch up when it gets to retrieval time or they won't all include an egg, but I am very blessed even with such aggressive treatment that I am somewhat responding. My biggest fear has yet to come. Nope, it was not the responding part it is the retrieval part. I am worried my eggs won't be of good quality, they won't fertilize, or something. We have never had a "step" go smoothly so it is really hard to think the biggest questionable part will.

Ahhh! Until next time,

Ahh So Nervous

2011-10-10T06:46:00.000-07:00

I started taking birth control two days ago. It is the first step before our IVF process. I swore off birth control pills a few years ago telling J I would never take them again thinking that was my issue for not getting pregnant (insert laugh). I was really nervous taking it the first night because I am seriously worried about blood clots or something bad happening. I dislike any medicine in my body lol.

I have been talking to a few people that have gone through IVF in my area and listening to their medicine list has me freaked out. I actually couldn't sleep last night thinking about the amount of shots and things I will be taking for two weeks. I am extremely nervous going forward and putting my body through this. I actually almost woke up J to tell him I didn't want to anymore :(

I have a lot of what if's going on. What if it does not work, what if my FSH is too high and the cycle is cancelled, what if I do not produce follicles, what if all the embryos never turn out to be good ones, what if, what if, what if....Augh!

I am hopeful this is our answer, but even Jason asked the other night if I was nervous for all of it. I played it off cool and said, "Not really." Seriously though lol who wouldn't be? Continued prayers our way would be great.

Gosh if this did work I would be a mama! :) If it doesn't maybe we could get another dog? Then I would be well on my way to that crazy dog lady with all the dogs lol....

TLC Update

2011-09-28T14:08:00.000-07:00

You can still follow our story over on TLC. We have just updated our blog over there a few weeks ago and a new video will be uploaded sometime soon...

For now here is our most recent video on TLC...

Almost at the finish line

2011-09-28T14:02:00.000-07:00

Remember when I decided to go back to school last summer? Well that decision has made me pretty MIA around the blogging world. I couldn't sleep last night and jumped on to read and catch up on some of the old blogs I use to read. Wow! I sure have missed a lot.

The good news is I finish school in just a few weeks (ahhh so excited!) and I have a running list of all the things I miss doing that I can't wait to have time for...

-Sewing

-Baking

-Crafting

-Blogging

-Zumba

-Running

-Learn how to use my camera (so sad)

I am still working and between that, school, and my volunteer commitments I am pretty strapped for time. However, the end of school is near and that means the majority of my computer time can now go back to this space that I call mine. :)

Circle+Bloom

2011-08-31T15:47:00.001-07:00

Susan over at Circle + Bloom™ was so awesome to let Army Wife Post try out her great fertility programs. I have been sharing the information with my friends, but wanted to tell you guys all about it too!

Circle+Bloom has multiple meditation CD's available for purchase or download. It is super quick to decide Circle+Bloom is awesome and to quickly download it and get started. Here is the buzz:

My cycles are EXTREMELY crazy. Sometimes they are normal (30ish days) and sometimes like the last it is more like 45 looong days. I have been using Circle+Bloom's Natural Cycle for Fertility Program:

It includes twenty-eight unique audio meditations that are fifteen minutes each. If you are a

"regular girl" this is perfect for you. If you are not one of those blessed vixens that is okay too because Susan is amazing at what she does! I listened to repeat days for days at a time just guessing where I was in my cycle. I took the fifteen minutes each day for myself to just lay there in bed and relax before I got up for the day. Sidenote: Next time I will do this BEFORE I go to sleep for the night as I was always so calm and relaxed that bed instead of work sounded better.

I feel like my life is full of stress and not just the stress of getting pregnant, but my job, school, the FRG, volunteering, wives group, etc etc etc. This fifteen minutes each day allowed me to focus on ME! and not everything else. I also couldn't believe how great I was at switching my mind to focusing on me and the relaxation of my body instead of thinking about typing six pages for a paper, running J lunch, picking up packets for work, etc.

Now let's say you aren't trying to get pregnant like me....who doesn't want babies? ha ha. Circle+Bloom has something for you too! Happy Mind and Healthy Body focuses on a better you and even what any of us need...a Blissful Sleep Program plus so much more!

Susan was also kind enough to let me stock my iPod with meditation program for an IUI/IVF program cycle. I am so antsy to start not only our IVF cycle but that as well to keep me relaxed and hopefully worry free!

One more thing!!! I love Circle+Bloom so much I keep imagining where else I can use the programs. Maybe I can start having sleeping problems so I can use her blissful sleep program ha ha or when I get pregnant (one day!) I can try the one she has made for pregnant women. Genius!

Ohh wait even ONE more thing!!! Susan and Circle+Bloom love the military :) Love it SO much that if you go there and enter the coupon code "military30" at checkout you will be relaxing even more with 30% off EVERYTHING!

Do it and come back and tell me you loved every minute of it :)

TV, newspapers, magazines, oh my!

2011-08-14T13:39:00.000-07:00

In between the craziness of work, school, FRG, wives club, and anything else I can fit on my plate we have been super busy doing press stuff for TLC. I never realized how time consuming that would end up being, but we have made such great friends out of it and have meet some pretty awesome people in our same situation.

We have had great feedback and articles/videos/news pieces done for us and we did our first live TV show the other day. Ohh gosh was I a nervous wreck! Not so much about the live TV part, but more so about J being raw and uncut lol. We have gotten use to being able to start over on camera because we know it will be cut or edited out. However, it did turn out okay with not many mistakes although it has been our least favorite piece of press yet.

Our friends have started an IVF Support Page for us. They have been pretty great about keeping people up to date on what we are doing and we just had someone start a fundraiser through Scentsy for us. We are so blessed to have such awesome friends! Now onto the find of the day/week/month/months...

I found this little gem as I was "browsing" Etsy (like always). Not much is made in the way of all the cute stamped jewelry these days for infertility. It actually brought tears to my eyes when I saw it (true sign of having to have something ha ha) and after my mom saw it she knew it had to be mine too. So she surprised me with purchasing it. :)

I bet it is even cuter in person,

Maybe Baby By IVF?

2011-07-18T09:45:00.000-07:00

We finally had our consultation with our doctor to discuss all things IVF. We went in with an open mind and even the thought that we may not do IVF. We laid everything out there and talked to our doctor about the chances of me producing enough eggs and/or the cycle being cancelled because of poor response and even the percentage that we could conceive from it. Chances aren't as high for us as for other couples because of our fertility factors.

We were originally scheduled for next month but we ended up saying no to that. I am still trying to find that happy medium where I will be strong enough if after the whole process we still are not pregnant.

Soooo after some talking things look like this:

We will apply for a loan within the next month.

We will begin our IVF cycle at the end of September.

In the middle of November if all goes well we will have everything completed...

and then we will wait...

and wait...

with fingers crossed.

Love,

Oh so shiny and pretty

2011-07-12T04:45:00.000-07:00

Oh hello love....

I have been on the begging train for a Kitchenaid for the past four years. It made an appearance on our wedding registry and for the past two years I have asked for it for my birthday. Those requests were dismissed and instead I was given a gun and a GPS system. Gifts that only my husband would think a woman would be thrilled about.

My kitchen is in brown and Martha Stewart blue. This Kitchenaid is a hard find these days because it is in the Martha Stewart blue and has been discontinued, but I found it...

and ordered it.

and didn't tell my husband.

and it should be here this week.

Ohh secrets I have secrets.

I wonder how long it will take him to notice it on the counter?

A mini vaca!

2011-06-19T17:24:00.000-07:00

J and I haven't been away for even a weekend in almost two years! We have gone to see family a few times since our last big trip, but with our schedules and life in general it just hasn't been an option for the two of us to have alone time (away from home). However, this weekend we are going away! It is just a short little trip, but we are heading to the beach and are planning on lots of sun, fun, togetherness AND it is dog free. I love them but there was no hunt for a pet friendly hotel this time around. That means we can go out to dinner and take our time coming back not having to worry about if our two terrorists are barking up a storm at the hotel...

Bring on the cocktails and bikinis,

Watch our newest TLC video!

2011-06-06T05:55:00.000-07:00

You may have to go to TLC to see it in a little wider version. Please feel free to "like" it to Facebook, post it on your blog, and share our journey with others. As I mentioned before our reasoning for sharing our own story was to let others know they are not alone.

XOXO,

Gift Basket Giveaway!

2011-06-06T05:51:00.000-07:00

Army Wife Post finished the Circle of Moms top bloggers at 38. Thank you for everyone that voted!

Congratulations #17 Kari you are the lucky winner! You will be receiving a gift basket filled with OPI nail polish and accessories!

Ahh OPI! Send me your contact information so I can get it in the mail to you.

Thanks again,

Click, Click, Click!

2011-05-22T09:09:00.000-07:00

Don't forget to vote for Army Wife Post over at Circle of Moms!

Just simply click the yellow thumbs up and let me know that you did so in the original giveaway post. You can vote once a day for AWP!

The gift basket I am giving away is stocked with stuff from one awesome company to one lucky winner and I can't wait to spill what is in it. :)

TJ lands TLC!

2011-05-20T06:10:00.000-07:00

I have gone back and forth about sharing this on my blog, but I have vented AND ranted in here for awhile now about our struggles with infertility.

J and I were approached a few months ago about being one of the six couples this season in TLC's, "A Conception Story" and we are so excited!

TLC will be posting blogs, videos, and updates on us as we document our journey to conception. We obviously hope at the end of this we will have exciting news that we have a baby on the way, but we remain optimistic and hopeful that if anything it brings us one step closer.

The most exciting part?

My other half (pictured above...obviously) blogs too! Yes, he comes out of the shadows and merges as the next reality star as he cracks jokes, can't keep a serious face on camera, and blogs about his love of all things Army. So that means you get to hear from him as well and see us at our best in the videos that will be posted. From time to time I will post the links to videos and blog updates here so you can head on over there and follow our journey.

We are excited for all of the great things in our life right now and the things to come!

Love,

Army Wife Post Surprise Giveaway!

2011-05-08T07:34:00.000-07:00

Please vote for Army Wife Post on Circle of Moms...

You just have to click the thumbs up tab (under recently added) and when you do come back and comment that you have. You can vote once a day and comment here once a day that you have done so.

I will be using Random.org to pick a winner from the comment section for a surprise gift basket giveaway on May 29th.

Ohh I love (most of the time) surprises,

Baby Babble

2011-04-07T05:58:00.000-07:00

In February I took some much needed time off from the doctor. It was good for my own sanity because I was at the point that I was on the verge of tears EVERY day.

So in the six weeks we had off from the doctor it was so refreshing not to discuss babies, medicine, take shots, bills, how will we afford this, what is the next step, etc. etc. We did come to an agreement that we would have IVF. I have tried to get into a military facility that does do it, but Tricare has been denying it even though they wouldn't be paying for it.

We have discussed having our current doctor do it, but it will cost us an arm and a leg. We will have to take a loan out for something that isn't 100% guaranteed and that is what hurts the most. Between school, the doctor, and every day life and bills I am constantly stressing out about the money. It makes me sick to think we will fork over an estimate of $15,000 for something that could just put us back at square one. Ohhh gosh I need a benefit spaghetti dinner lol...

I went back to my doctor on Monday when I thought we would start a new cycle with him. He crossed his arms after looking at my chart and my progress and said, "I am going to be honest with you..." The whole time I was thinking to myself, "Be strong don't cry, be strong wait until the damn car." He then went on to say we have tried a lot of cycles with injectables, IUI, and my follicle stimulating hormone just continues to rise and at this point he isn't sure of my egg quality. Sigh. I knew what he was going to say and in my heart I have known things just are not working.

We know that we have to try IVF that anything else just is not working because I am not super producing eggs when being stimulated and my FSH is very high for my age. I just have such a heavy heart to put myself through so much more heavy medicine and injections plus debt for something that may not be it. I know if we don't try it I will regret it and I know if we do try it and it were for some miracle the answer that worked it would be worth all the money in the world. In that should be my answer, but the only thing I am left thinking is how much heartbreak can someone handle?

So I put our name on a list...

If we do IVF here it will be in August. The doctor has warned us that the chances aren't as high because of my follicle stimulating hormone, but it is the only way they can look at my egg quality under a microscope. Until then I will continue to keep pressing Tricare to give me a referral to a military facility that offers IVF as well and explore any other option we may come across to help us pay for this.

Even on my weakest days I get a little bit stronger,

Bags For All

2011-04-07T05:23:00.000-07:00

I love bags. I have a bag for everything and whenever I am purchasing a new one I have excuse for it too. We have a closet dedicated to suitcases and bags....okay, maybe I shouldn't admit that. When it comes to Emmie and Eli, my two cute traveling companions, they often take mini road trips with me now that we live closer to some family. They have been using the good ol' reusable grocery bag as thier travel bag. So the question came up, "Do the dogs need a travel bag?" Yes, you may be wondering dogs DO need travel bags. So when Simply Bags offered to send me a bag for Emmie and Eli I was excited! They sent this pretty little gem with "Emmie and Eli" personalized on the front....

Ohhh I died....

It was/is so cute. Of course my husband ruined the moment with, "Why do Emmie and Eli have their name on a bag?" Pfft.

In it is a ton of room and this is where I will explain why they need the bag. This classic tote bag as Simply Bags calls it has a ton of room. It is 28 inches in height so not only do their travel accessories fit in the bag, but if I ever needed to smuggle two cute dogs somewhere I could. In it fits their blankets, toys, treats, water, soft food, hard food, kongs, AND even a dog bed ha ha.

I'm in love with the chance to justify the need for another bag. Thanks Simply Bags!

Vacation? Riiight.

2011-03-18T13:14:00.000-07:00

I spent last week in Michigan for work. It was 200 miles away from where my family is so it by no means was a time that I was able to go see them. I was excited for the training thinking I would get done early and have time to shop at the huge mall by where I was staying, order room service, watch TV in bed, and not have to wake up for Eli’s 2am potty break. I was completely wrong…

When I arrived after traveling all day (five minutes prior to registration) we were given a schedule of the week and on it were scheduled eleven hour training days! So the whole week looked something like this…

Wake up at 5am to get ready

Catch the shuttle by 7am

Presentations, certifications, paperwork, speeches, etc. all day

Catch the shuttle at 6pm back to hotel

Do surveys and “evening assignments”

…and then do my own homework at 9pm until sometimes midnight for school

My nights were nothing like the fantasy I dreamed of. In fact by the time I packed to catch my ride at 5am for my early flight home I realized I only turned the TV on in my room ONCE the night I arrived.

Phew, I was exhausted. I did learn one thing…

I hate to admit it, but I have no idea how J gets up every morning at 4:30am and gets home at 9:00pm or so at night AND has school. You’re my hero mister.

Ohh and Eli no worries mama is programmed for your 2am wakeup call because I woke up every night that I was away like clockwork…

…and I thought that was going to be a vacation? Ha!

Hello Happiness

2011-03-05T06:48:00.000-08:00

When we were first married our house consisted of nothing...no really, nothing. When we moved J into our new home from the barracks before household goods got there we had a TV, laptop, a few plates, two pots, a pan, and some random broken silverware. Life was beautiful...especially when payday came and we could afford a futon to sleep on...

We spent hours each weekend at the laundromat doing our laundry. It was six weeks before our household goods from my apartment finally arrived and although we didn't have enough to fill a house we were ecstatic to finally have more AND a mattress to sleep on. That futon was going to be the death of me.

It was a few more weeks until we decided to splurge and buy a washer and dryer with whatever savings we had because of how much we were spending on the laundromat each week. That was our first big purchase together other than the Sportage J bought right before we were married. Life was good!

It is hard to believe that was only a few years ago and how far we have come since. Today we have everything we could desire to have and no longer have to wait until payday to purchase something or pay one of our bills or debate if we have enough money to go out to dinner this weekend. However, I am forever thankful for those struggles at the beginning of our marriage because they came with a very important lesson…

Happiness isn't about the material items it is about the people you spend your life with. Sometimes it is hard for others to imagine that as they play the "poor her she can't have kids card" on me, but honestly at the end of the day if I have nothing, no babies (two cute dogs though), a futon for a bed again, three dollars in savings, I know that I have the person I love to share my life with.

I could go back to nothing and do my laundry forever at the laundromat if it meant I was doing it with J,

How about fitting something else on the plate

2011-02-16T14:33:00.000-08:00

Some days I joke about where I would fit a job {let alone a career} in because I am always on the go. I spend a lot of time apart from J because his job is demanding, but that leaves me with all the errands, groceries, bills, meals, cleaning, etc. I also volunteer and I am in school full time along with the doctor THREE days a week. So before life got “hectic” last summer I applied for a job. I felt like there was no chance I would even get an interview, but I ended up giving it a shot. I remember in October they emailed and said the start date had been pushed to early next year instead of November and if you were selected for an interview you would hear from them then. So when they called last month for an interview I had no idea who it was and I was trying to remember when I applied for a job ha ha. However, when everything clicked I was very excited.

I received an email a few days ahead of my scheduled interview with a script I would be presenting along with a summary of the other tasks I would have to do at this said interview. Needless to say the day of it was the longest interview of my life. I spent an hour and a half there performing timed computer tasks, presenting that material they sent TWO days before, and answering questions. When I was leaving they said that they would be in touch by the end of the week…

Well two hours later they called and said they felt I was the “perfect fit” for the job. Yes! I by no means was looking to be working too, but I felt like this was the perfect opportunity as I have decided to take some time off from the baby making. So I will be working with soldiers on some really great things. I will also be traveling a bit for my job. That is really all I can say other than I am excited and never thought I would have a shot at landing this.

I went this morning for blood work to see if I was pregnant. Again, I knew I wasn’t, but no matter how many calls you get saying, “I am sorry it was negative.” It still feels like a kick in the stomach. It hurts…really, really hurts. I am also exhausted. It is hard to explain, but my body is tired and I am mentally drained. I get eight needles a week, three ultrasounds, spend about ten hours a week at the doctor’s office, and a medicine that makes me extremely sick every four weeks. It isn’t the end of the road, but it is time for a break. We would really love to have IVF by the summer, but it is a joke at how much it costs without insurance coverage (always a thank you to Tricare!) for something that may not work for us. *Sigh* If I could only win the lottery. As things develop I will blog again on that with some decisions, but as of right now I am looking into grants/scholarships, loans, anything to help us out.

I just hope in the end it will all be worth it,

A Piece of Advice

2011-01-22T14:03:00.001-08:00

If you take any advice away from me take this piece…

NEVER TAKE A BREAK FROM EXERCISING.

Okay, don’t just take this piece, but listen up…I was not suppose to do much physical activity after both my IUI’s and between that, Christmas, family visiting, birthday celebrations, J having leave, and pure laziness on the other two weeks I am out of it.

I have worked out every day this week and my endurance isn’t where it should be (or where it WAS in November). I know my doctor is going to make me go back to “light exercise” in another week, but this time I am not taking that piece of advice as walk around the neighborhood with friends and eat ice cream sundaes with my husband at 9pm (sorry babe!).

Some of my favorite things...

2011-01-18T05:00:00.000-08:00

I have always been so jealous of the big towns that have Groupon. I would often browse at the daily deals especially for Atlanta to see what was being offered. When Groupon added more cities last month I had my fingers crossed that they knew their biggest stalker needed one in her own town. It happened!

I love Groupon, not only can you switch the cities to get other deals somewhere else or online, but you save a ton of money. I have bought Groupons to places like Soap.com and for You Bar (where you design your own granola bar) and all of it has been more than half off. Now you are wondering, "Soap.com, really TJ?" Yes, really with free shipping and paying $10 dollars for $25 I stocked up on the TP and paper towels ha ha.

This post in no way shape or form is sponsored I just want you to know that Groupon may have your city now too! If you are a Groupon user tell me what kind of deals you have been lucky to get.

If not click the link and sign up so you can be stockpiling your TP too. :)

Happy Tuesday,

Baby Babble

2011-01-11T05:41:00.000-08:00

I think the saddest part of turning twenty-six for me was not being a mom. I have always told J since the day we started talking about children after we met that I wanted to be a mom by the time I turn twenty-six. Well little did I know that life doesn’t happen like you plan it to happen or according to your timeline. Every time we try something new I feel like “this is it!” and then when the phone call comes that the blood work was negative I feel hopeless. This time around I feel extra hopeless. It is so hard to understand why you can’t do something that should be able to happen naturally.

I didn’t mention it in the last jibber jabber of baby talk, but at the time we were undergoing our first round of IUI. For those that are unfamiliar with what this is it is intrauterine insemination (with a name like that of course it goes by IUI). The procedure is performed by threading a very thin flexible catheter through the cervix and injecting washed sperm directly into the uterus. I know, sounds fun, right? We have now attempted this twice. Both times we have paid for a double IUI meaning you take a shot that makes you ovulate (and makes me EXTRA sick) and the following two mornings you go in for the procedure. Tricare doesn’t pick up a dime of the tab and the whole procedure can be very pricey. By no means are we “broke", but the joke is this baby is using his or her college tuition before even being conceived.

I asked J to go with me after the second one to get a referral to at least get on the waiting list for IVF. This procedure is in vitro fertilization. This essentially means that the meeting of egg and sperm that result in a fertilized egg or embryo occur in a laboratory and then are inserted into the uterus. Sounds like even more fun, right? This is the last option after trying everything else for many couples including us. : ) From what I understand the waiting list to have this done where we would have to travel to can be very long and the procedure can be timely. Of course we will have to pay out of pocket for this as well so at this point I hate to stop “trying” so we can save, but between infertility costs, the dreaded bills of life, and paying for school we really need to save for the possibility that IVF is our next attempt to try to have the family we are dreaming of. After the last IUI attempt I have felt completely hopeless and never wanted to get to the point that this was the last option before adoption, but now that feeling is starting to sink in.

It is so hard to not feel punished as you continue to ask, “Why me?” We have so much love and a stable home to provide for a child of our own and hopefully one day it will happen for us.

Until then keep calm and carry on,

Mmm Cupcakes

2011-01-07T18:06:00.000-08:00

I call it happiness in a box...

J calls it the smell of diabetes in a box...

Tomorrow is my 25+1 birthday. I haven't come to the point in the road where getting older is harder especially when I will continue to turn 25 each year. :)

We have plans with some of our friends for dinner and drinks tomorrow night. Should be a great time and a perfect rare WEEKEND birthday!

Yes, I will be hitting the treadmill after the weekend too,

Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T10:44:00.000-08:00

I would like to call this "The Year of the Baby" for us and we will see how well that plays out ha ha.

Did anyone make Resolutions? I have never been a fan of them and have never made one, but I always love to hear everyone elses.

I hope you had a fabulous New Years and that this year brings the best to everyone.

Love,

Some of my favorite things...

2010-12-18T05:54:00.000-08:00

Years ago (gosh that saying makes me feel old) my mom and I decided to take a yoga class a few days a week. We thought it was going to be this enjoyable experience, but the hairy armpits of the instructor and her loud breathing and seriousness made my mom and I just laugh. We truly tried to enjoy it and I felt the stress relief I remember that part, but the instructor was just off the wall. Ever since then I do yoga at home...

Every year I say I will find more time for myself and it never seems to happen. I have a running list of things I want to do next year, but one thing is for sure and that is to fit more time in for exercise, running, and yoga.

I have this yoga mat...

What I love about Aurorae Yoga is that each mat they sell has a different meaning by the color. This mat is also thick and extra long for those who are tall...I am of a normal height, but ya know it is good for the taller model types as well.

If you are thinking yoga Aurorae Yoga is the place to buy your stuff. They have some really cool items as well like the slip free rosin bag that makes it easier to stop slipping on your mat when you are sweating your stuff off. Check it out!

Enjoy,

Thank You!

2010-12-10T06:17:00.000-08:00

I just want to let everyone who has emailed me and messaged me to tell me thank you how much I really THANK YOU. I know I am not alone and neither are you! I haven't had time to email everyone back as I am working on finals right now in school, but you will all be hearing from me. :)

I know personally that reading a story that reflects your own life and struggles can sometimes make you feel like you are not alone and that is why I have shared mine. I have kept my struggles a secret for well over a year and knew by sharing it others would be able to relate because believe it or not 1 in 4 couples will need help to conceive! That is a big number.

So know I am thinking of you all and as soon as school slows down I will be answering each of you that have reached out!

XOXO,

Jaw Drop Part 2

2010-12-04T06:30:00.000-08:00

Of course the day my appointment fell on was a day J couldn’t go with me. I was nervous after one of the nurses took me to the consultation room and I waited for the doctor. It was better than I thought though when he entered the room and we discussed everything that had been going on. He talked to me about treatments and then we went right to ultrasound. Everything looked good by ultrasound and blood work was taken and I was put on Prometrium to induce a period.

When my period came that month I called on cycle day 3 like they said and went in to what I had no clue was the start of going to the doctor every week three times for a very long time! That month I also had an HSG which is a dye test to make sure your tubes aren’t blocked and that everything looks good. I wouldn’t wish one of those upon my worst enemy. I laid on the cold metal table crying as I felt the dye move into my ovaries. Augh!

At this point I started Femara as well to try to help my follicles grow and to try to get me to ovulate in a timely fashion. Femara is a drug used most often to treat women with breast cancer and is much stronger than Clomid. When I went in though I found out that too didn’t work. I tried a higher dose of Clomid with Femara back to back and my ovaries weren’t having it.

I went back onto the medicine to induce a period because the cycle was now a bust and what my doctor didn’t want to do we had to do. I started taking daily injections in my stomach (yep, every night I give myself a shot). The Gonal-F injections worked!! After almost two months seeing the specialist I was so excited to finally find out follicles were growing and it was only a matter of days until we would be able to “try” again. Then just days later at my next ultrasound my ovaries had over stimulated! Augh…

I was in tears as the doctor told me I had to take a month off and go back on birth control to shrink the size of my ovaries because they were starting to twist and it could be a dangerous situation. I came home and cried…and cried…and cried. This is where I felt the heartbreak and began to question why we were being punished. What did we do to make it so hard to have a baby? What can we “fix” to make things better so we will have a baby? I gave myself a good few days to sob over everything and then I took that month as a time for me. I went home to visit family since I could because I didn’t have to be at the doctor, I worked out harder, spent quality time with J without the baby talk, and felt really positive by the time it was time to go back. Maybe I really needed that?

This brings it closer to today. Although I do not want to discuss my current treatment as I feel like I will somehow jinx myself (ha) I will say Tricare is a blessing (or not). We have self-paid for the treatment we need and what I will say is the cost without insurance is pricey. We feel positive though and I am still taking those shots each day. I have ovulated too! So we are making progress and I will update again in the future.

A lot of people ask me if it has brought problems to my marriage. What I have to say to that is no. : ) This has actually brought J and I closer than ever before. I believe no one is given more than they can handle and the two of us were strong enough to deal with something like this. He is an amazing support system, a shoulder to cry on and above all a fabulous husband carting me around on days I have major testing or need him at the doctor too.

I appreciate everyone’s well wishes and good vibes! I don’t want sympathy or suggestions (the worst is when someone suggests, “Have you tried green tea?” or “Have you tried fifteen minutes with your legs in the air?” Oh gosh it never ends). I don’t want to feel different (when people don’t share their own joys with me because they are worried it will hurt my feelings or the conversation of their own pregnancy will be “awkward”). I am a normal human being still because this doesn’t make me different from anyone else. No one ever knows they will be on this kind of journey themselves until it happens.

One day Baby J will be on the way there is no doubt about that,

Jaw Drop Part 1

2010-12-03T08:36:00.000-08:00

I have gone back and forth about making this public and sharing my story with everyone. The truth to this is too many people don’t talk about it (but someone needs to!) because they feel ashamed, punished, or different from everyone else…

Hi, my name is TJ and my husband and I are infertile (yep, insert mouth drop for a lot of you who know me in real life =)).

When we were married we had always planned on children. We decided to spend time together before that step so we could enjoy each other. We took two honeymoons, traveled to a bunch of states, added a few dogs to our family, paid off our debts, J went to Iraq x2 and purchased all the things we had dreamed of purchasing before the expense of a child. We felt like we did it the right way and the time came for a little bitty baby.

We tried…and tried…and tried. Nothing. I took my temperature, charted my temperature, became best friends with those little ovulation sticks, took Fertilaid/Preseed/anything anyone “trying” becomes familiar with, read a ton of books and nothing was working. I went to the doctor a few times because I knew something was wrong. I just had this gut feeling, but every time they told me to “just hang in there.” So we continued on and then it became disappointing. Each test that was negative and each time my period showed up I would cry. It took a toll on me and mentally knowing something was just not right and not having any help ate at me. I watched my friends have babies, the friends I was “trying with” get pregnant and have their babies…it was heartbreaking.

When we moved I scheduled a doctor appointment the day J left for another school. FINALLY someone wanted to hear my story. She looked over my cycle timelines I had and asked a bunch of questions and sent me for blood work. She was the start of the help I needed and I can’t thank her enough for finally being the one who listened. When my blood work came back fine they referred me off post to a doctor in town. Again, I sat there and discussed everything with her and she started me on Clomid.

I took the Clomid feeling like that was going to be the magic trick. However, when I went for blood work to make sure I ovulated I already knew in my heart I hadn’t. I went back to the doctor and she gave me a higher prescription and a referral to a fertility specialist just to talk about things and see what he thought. I thought, “Fertility specialist? Really? Could we be infertile?” I discussed with her that I felt like maybe the problem wasn’t just me that something was tugging at my heart that it was both my husband and I. She put in an order for him to have his blood work taken and an analysis just to make sure everything was okay and we could rule him out and put my mind at ease.

A few weeks later she called me and said it was not just me now it was my husband too. Great! The good news was there was something there and as we all know it only takes one egg and one sperm so the results were a relief, but also a bit saddening. She encouraged me to go to the specialist again so I called and made an appointment...

Renuzit Winners!

2010-12-03T08:32:00.000-08:00

Congratulations girls! Please send me your contact information so I can get your cones out!

#3 Chambanachik

#6 Random Musings Of My Life

Renuzit Giveaway

2010-11-24T10:03:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Renuzit sent me one of their new holiday collection adjustable cones. I have to admit I am a candle girl so I was a bit skeptical of having one of these in my home and it actually working. I was given the Apple & Cinnamon adjustable and put it by the front door last night before bed. When I got up this morning I could smell it when I came downstairs. Then I moved it...I put it in a warmer room upstairs and the smell is even better there!

The cones come in many more Holiday "flavors" including Festive Snow which I want to try next.

Renuzit was also kind enough to send me coupons for two Army Wife Post readers so you can enjoy a Holiday adjustable cone too!

To win this giveaway leave a comment telling me what your favorite scent is.

This giveaway will end at 11:59 P.M. EST on December 1st. Winners will be chosen and contacted on that day. If no response is heard from the winner within five days another winner will be chosen using Random.org. Winners must be a resident of the United States!

Traditional Turkey Day?

2010-11-16T16:12:00.000-08:00

In our married {few} years we have never been able to go home to spend Thanksgiving with family. There was a few with J deployed, a few with family but without J, one with my brother visiting and the other few have been up to me to plan for the two of us. Honestly, I can’t even remember what we did last year? Ha ha

This year the Army is throwing a little wrench into the mix again. J will be early in cycle so Turkey Day will be spent at work for him. I am one step ahead though (HA HA Army!) because Thanksgiving in our house has been bumped up to Saturday the 20th. I am excited to cook a big meal for us (okay and the leftovers so I don’t have to cook again for a few days) and put together my grocery list.

So far I have decided on:

-Turkey (obviously…)

-Mashed potatoes and gravy

-Cranberry (I admit I like the canned stuff)

-Sweet potato casserole

-Pumpkin pie

Pretty unique, huh? My husband is picky. He likes to think he isn’t but the guy doesn’t eat cheese, ham, white sauces, cream sauces, oh gosh. So I am still trying to decide on a vegetable dish and maybe another dessert or bread.

I am curious as to what YOUR Thanksgiving menu looks like. Anything daring you are trying or usually serve us? I would love to introduce a new dish to my meat and potatoes husband so throw them my way!

Cheers,

Odds and Ends

2010-10-27T05:40:00.000-07:00

In my last post someone asked me where I got our new bedding. It is by Bliss Living and I got it online through Inmod They have some really cool stuff too we used if you are into the modern look.

We are getting ready for some even more changes with J's job. There is never anything steady with the Army, huh?

I am going home for a few days to spend time with my family and relax. I can't wait to see my brother and his girlfriend especially. It has been six+ months since I have seen them. Hopefully I will be able to slip some time in with some friends from high school too before I am back to the grind here.

Everything else is wonderful! The weather is changing and fall is almost officially here. :)

And I will leave you with this bit of cuteness...

Eli has completely outgrown Emmie, but he sure loves her and she doesn't mind some cuddles. ;)

Growin' Up Part 2

2010-10-10T05:44:00.000-07:00

I REALLY wanted to do our bedroom in yellow accents and I was greatly surprised when J agreed to it. However, there was nothing I could find that had a small amount of yellow in the bedding and then the solid browns I was looking at just felt like it would make our bedroom a lot darker especially now that everything is in espresso finish. So as I was browsing I really feel in love with this...
It can be reversed to an all sage color as well. So we splurged...and bought it. We also bought new sheets. For our first anniversary (cotton) we wanted to buy sheets, but J left for Iraq and I just wasn't in the mood. So a little over two years later I finally bought the sheets I have been wanting. Pure luxury but wait that isn't it...

We have never had a TV in our bedroom. I couldn't for the life of me talk J into one and I understand why; most people (men) say the intimacy leaves when the TV arrives lol, but after a little convincing I am the proud new owner of a television in my bedroom!!! J is gone many nights a month and that was the easiest way of convincing him I needed one for the "company". Hey, if it works it works. :)

Our bedroom is going to be the best room in the house now,

Sublime Stitching Winner!

2010-10-06T16:19:00.000-07:00

#9

Congratulations Jennifer! Please contact me so I can get your pattern to you!

Sublime Stitching Giveaway

2010-09-19T06:10:00.000-07:00

One winter in Alaska I was bored...beyond bored. Husband had video games and I had the computer. That got old very quickly. I was looking for something crafty that I would really like. I was browsing the internet when I came across Sublime Stitching. Ahhh *love*. I had NO IDEA what I was getting into, but because the patterns were so fun I just ordered a few of my favorites, a kit and a few textiles and hoped for the best. When everything came in it was super easy to pick up on and now I am hooked!

Embroidery is FUN! I have done so many projects using Sublime Stitching from an apron for myself to dish towels, pillow cases and baby bibs for others. Once you start you won't stop I can promise you that...

My next project is this...

The people at Sublime Stitching were cool enough to send me this new Dream Garden wall hanger to stitch up. I am so excited to get started on it in between all the madness in my life! Ahh I just love her. I will post pictures once I am done.

But that is not all. Sublime Stitching wanted to make sure we gave one Army Wife Post reader a chance to try out the whole stitching phenomenon. So one lucky reader is winning a Fantasy Flowers pattern.

You can iron them onto whatever your little heart desires and stitch away. Sublime Stitching offers all the help you will need on their website in the How-To section so no worries! The coolest part? These patterns can be used over and over again. So if you like one flower use it multiple times to make a set of something!

• Go to Sublime Stitching and pick out one pattern you really like. Come back and tell me which one you picked.

• Grab my button and post it on your side bar or add a text link on your side bar. Afterwards come back and leave a separate comment.

• Blog about this giveaway and leave a link in the comments section here.

• Post on Facebook with a link back here and then leave a comment with your Facebook link.

This giveaway will end at 11:59 P.M. EST on September 30th. Winner will be chosen and contacted on that day. If no response is heard from the winner within five days another winner will be chosen using Random.org

All opinions are my very own and products were provided to me by Sublime Stitching for review upon request.

Growin' Up

2010-09-15T04:56:00.000-07:00

Our bedroom is the only room that we really haven't invested any time in. This summer I was in there thinking about how if we had storage I would have a place to put stuff. Our bedroom looks like a preteen room. We have two night stands, a bed frame and the chest J made me. We have always thought about maybe upgrading or buying a bedroom set, but we have always put that money aside for other future things.

It really didn't take long to decide that it was time to upgrade to the adult world. I have looked everywhere online and in store and although I have found things I really like I always go back to the first one...

Isn't that how life works? I always go back to my first choice after hours of searching for something right.

So now it is all about decorating. What new bedding will we get? What color will I paint the room? What color can I put in accent pieces? Can I talk J into new mattresses too (ha ha)? Ohhh I am so excited to have a love nest with furniture!

Ideas? Throw them my way!

Happy Hump Day,

3 Years and Counting

2010-09-08T04:08:00.000-07:00

09.08.07

Still the best decision I have ever made.

Happy Anniversary mister :)

We are back!

2010-08-23T06:37:00.001-07:00

Ahh it feels so good to be back home! We drove Thursday night after J's graduation and the drive is dreadful, but I was so excited that he was in front of me driving home too. :) Now we are both back and settling into the new routine. Never in a million years did I think I would be married to a drill sergeant and then again he never thought he would be one ha ha. Life is good though. We had the weekend together to unpack, be lazy together, catch up on the DVR and he worked a little in the yard because it sure needs it.

Today it is back to the grind. He went to check in and I can't wait to see where he will end up and what the rotation is looking like right now. We are planning a vacation the week after Christmas, but I have NO IDEA where we should go. Any suggestions? You can throw them my way.

I am busy this week with the final week of class and final paper so things will be slow getting up, but I will say the next giveaway is super cool if you are a reader. :)

Until next time,

CHI and Hana Products Winner!

2010-08-20T06:08:00.000-07:00

#8

Congratulations Laura!

Please email me your contact information so you can get your awesome products too! :)

Strep and Pride

2010-08-11T05:34:00.000-07:00

Remember that fever I had? It ended up being strep throat! That was my first time having that and I can only hope it was my last. Strep and the summer just don't mix. The last few days of my family being in town I had to lay low after a trip to the ER. I was really feeling horrible. They left on the 31st and only a few hours later my husband showed up. He drove all the way home just to see me and spend the night before having to get back up super early and head back to school. Reason #495767421 why I love him. :)

Speaking of him I have to take a minute to say how proud of him I am. My husband is a wallflower. He may have a hard time admitting it, but he doesnt like to stick out or prove to be the best at something. Before he left for drill school I told him to never be afraid to be the best at anything and if he knew he could do better than do better because who really cares what others think, right? So when he called last week to tell me he was picked out of his platoon to go to the board for the leadership award I was so proud of him! Even if he didn't get it he stood out to someone. However, he went and he got it! He is also in the top of his class and I am so very proud of him. I can't wait to see him graduate in a week AND have him back home.

Other than that I am busy with school, trying to figure out some great things for my readers on here and vacationing. :)

Don't forget to enter the giveaway for some really great hair products!

Until next time,

Hair Products Giveaway!

2010-08-01T11:26:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love hair products? Misikko has tons of options when it comes to hair products and hair essentials. They carry some of the best straighteners you could possibly find. I use my hair straightener all the time. Let's face it with this humidity I need it! One of the most popular hair straighteners out there is CHI. LOVE this straightener, but what I really love is this...
CHI Silk Infusion contains no alcohol (many products do) so it doesn't dry out your hair. With all of the heat damage my hair faces this stuff makes me feel a little bit better about running my straightener through my hair...sometimes more than once a day. :/ The best part is it makes your hair look shiny and smooth like you didn't just spend 20 minutes putting heat directly on it! :)

Then there is this...

It is the best of the best. Hana Shine Shield even has the Customer Choice label over at Misikko. It is a serum that can be used as a leave-in conditioner and it never looks greasy. Oh praise heavens because most products make my hair look greasy and this one is all the things my hair needs without the noticeable something extra is in there! I love Chi Silk Infusion, but what I really love is Hana Shine Shield.

Which one would you love? Ohhh how about you just win both of them and decide for yourself!

That is right! One Army Wife Post reader will win both the Chi Silk Infusion and Hana Shine Shield from Misikko!!

To win this giveaway leave a comment telling me what your heat offense on your hair is. Do you blow dry every day or are you the devil like me and blow dry then straighten it every day?

For extra entries...

• Grab my button and post it on your side bar or add a text link on your side bar. Afterwards come back and leave a separate comment.

• Blog about this giveaway and leave a link in the comments section here.

• Follow Misikko on Twitter (@misikko) then leave a comment here saying you did so.

• “Like” Misikko on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MisikkoBeauty) then come back and put in for another entry on the comments section.

• Interact with Misikko’s Facebook – Comment on a post or picture, or write on their wall (www.facebook.com/MisikkoBeauty)

This giveaway will end at 11:59 P.M. EST on August 15th. Winner will be chosen and contacted on that day. If no response is heard from the winner within five days another winner will be chosen using Random.org. Winner must be a resident of the United States or Canada!

Good luck!

Just a small update

2010-07-28T07:38:00.000-07:00

I finally did it! I started going back to school to finish my last year. I was originally going for my degree in Elementary Education since I already have my associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education. Well I switched things up and decided to go for Early Childhood Education Administration. I figured I would make a good boss, ya know. I feel like I(and I know I do!) dedicate a lot of my time to the people and things I love most. I love volunteering, taking care of our home, being a part of wives groups and anything that gets me involved more in my husband’s career (yes, I do like the FRG).

“Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile.” – Albert Einstein

For awhile I have felt like I needed more “me” things in my life. More time to enjoy the things I love and am passionate about. This is also how Army Wife Post started because I felt I could do more than just rant and rave about my rollercoaster life. I decided in less than a week to go back to school and enroll in my first class. I didn’t want to take the time to think twice, wonder if I would have the time for everything else or do the wondering of finances. I just went for it. It feels good to do more for myself and I have a few other things I am hoping to add to my plate including a women’s soccer league. With all these changes in my life I have to applaud my husband. He has never been afraid of change and instead of worrying or questioning anything he just supports my choices and my new endeavors. So cheers to him! I sure picked a good one ;)

So I am grabbing the bull by his horns (good thing this is just a saying because who would really grab a bull by his horns? ha ha). I am working on the site and little by little you should notice more of the tabs and pages are working and I am also about to start another giveaway.
On top of all of this I have family in town visiting so my free time has been spent with those I love and the 102* fever I am currently holding. Augh!

Talk soon,

Seventh Generation Winner

2010-07-26T05:11:00.000-07:00

#13 - JLS

Congratulations Jamie! Please email me your address so you can receive your Seventh Generation package! :)

Don't Forget the Giveaway!

2010-07-21T05:10:00.001-07:00

Today is the last day to sign up for the Seventh Generation Free and Clear Starter Kit! If you haven't done so already make sure you do because you are going to get the full size products delivered right to your door if you are the winner. :)

Good luck!

A month!

2010-07-14T05:15:00.000-07:00

Holy wow! When I woke up this morning and as I was fixing my first cup of coffee I noticed that it has already been a month since J left. He isn't gone long this time (isn't it sad when anything less than a year isn't long ha ha), but time must be flying. I think I am getting good at this alone stuff too...I wonder if you can eventually be an expert at it? lol

Don't forget to enter the BIG giveaway! :)

Seventh Generation Giveaway

2010-07-08T19:16:00.000-07:00

Seventh Generation was very kind in sending me products to sample in my own home. They came at the perfect time as we were just starting to get settled in our new home. Some of the things I had never tried before, but being a fan of Seventh Generation I was without a doubt excited. The kit they sent included:

- Disinfecting Multi-Surface
- Disinfecting Bathroom
- Disinfecting Wipes - 35 ct.
- Laundry Detergent
- Liquid Fabric Softener
- Dish liquid
- All- Purpose Cleaner
- Auto-Dish Pacs
- Glass Cleaner

One of the greatest products for Military families Seventh Generation makes is their laundry detergent. They do not use optical brighteners in their detergent which are not supposed to be used on combat uniforms! I love having this on hand when I wash my husband’s uniforms.
Another great product I must rave about is the multi-purpose disinfecting wipes. These are great all around the house and without all the harsh chemicals found in many other brands.

One Army Wife Post fan is going to win the exact same package from Seventh Generation!

• Pick one Seventh Generation product you would be excited to try and tell me why (feel free to use the Seventh Generation website and find something not listed in this kit).

• Grab my button and post it on your side bar or add a text link on your side bar. Afterwards come back and leave a separate comment.

• Blog about this give away and leave a link in the comments section here.

• Post on Facebook with a link back here and then leave a comment with your Facebook link.

This giveaway will end at 11:59 P.M. EST on July 22nd. Winner will be chosen and contacted on that day. If no response is heard from the winner within five days another winner will be chosen using Random.org

All opinions are my very own and products were provided to me by Seventh Generation for review upon request.

Good luck,

Introducing...

2010-07-08T19:06:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Army Wife Post!

The new site can be accessed still from astrykerwife.blogspot.com as you are already viewing it or you make access it through the new address www.armywifepost.com

There is still a lot of work that needs to be done around here and I am so excited to share with all of you many good things to come (and surprises along the way)!

My mission with Army Wife Post is to provide more to you than just a blog. In the next few weeks all the sections will be filled and I hope you find the website useful and resourceful to help find information, connect with others and share a few laughs with me in my daily adventures.

Let me know what you think and don't forget to enter our very first giveaway! :)

*Cheers* to the start of something great,

...

2010-06-24T07:56:00.000-07:00

It is coming I promise! I got something in the mail yesterday too that I am excited to share with you and have someone receive the same in their mail ;)

Anyways, really I just want to update on life as Susan finishes up the last little pieces on the new website. As you can tell on here things are under way, but we haven't set the page yet and today we find out when we can actually set everything in place and launch it. I hope in the next few days!

Husband is now gone to school and has been for almost two weeks. The first few days were that normal lonely feeling, but I had my dad come visit and have been keeping very busy with get togethers and plenty of volunteering. I feel very lucky to have so much to keep me busy as it passes the time and I enjoy all of it. I do have to brag a little though and say when I went to visit family on the other side of the state last weekend we all went out to dinner and I thought I saw my husband out of the corner of my eye and when I went to do the double take I DID!!! He drove all the way just to see me and have dinner with us before having to turn around and return to school. :) Love him!

It is super hot here and compared to Alaska I am loving the weather change and having it always hot or warm instead of being unpredictable. We are still (now I guess I could use "I" instead of "we") working on our house and making it a home. I can't wait to finish painting and finish the little details I want to do to make it ours.

That is that in a nutshell. I have laundry to do!

I hope you are almost ready!

2010-06-09T10:08:00.000-07:00

Girls (and a few boys!) -

I just wanted to take a minute to let you know that I finally got a sneak peek at the new blog and it looks AWESOME! I have been working with Susan for a few weeks now and she has done an amazing job so far on the design and layout of it.

I can't wait to launch the new site and share it with all of you {hopefully} sometime next week. I have lots of surprises in store (ohhh I can't wait! Have I said that yet?) and a few giveaways for some lucky readers to win!

Things are hectic and Jason is about to take off for the summer so the next few days will be spent with him. However, look for an update next week (or maybe just a whole new something something!). I'm tellin' ya be on the lookout!

Rewind ---> Part 2

2010-05-24T07:28:00.000-07:00

We were in Yellowstone a week before they opened all the roads so we were only able to use one of the main roads to view the hot springs and some of the wildlife. It was a little disappointing, but we were able to still see some nice areas in the park.

After we left Yellowstone we headed to Battle of Little Big Horn. My husband could have spent hours there reading everything while I sat in the car watching all the prairie dogs pop out of their holes. We also saw Devil's Tower that night before heading to Rapid City, South Dakota. Again, Devil's Tower was also a week from opening. Good thing it is big enough to be viewable from the road ha ha.

The day we planned for Crazy Horse and Mount Rushmore ended up being a snow storm and the visibility wasn't great. We stayed at the hotel that day instead and hung out. We were worried it would put us behind schedule, but the next morning we got up earlier than planned and went to both before hitting the road to Wisconsin. Mount Rushmore is such an amazing sight! I went as a child, but because of the visibility that day it wasn't viewable on deck. We both really loved it and it had us more interested than the other monument that day (Sorry Crazy Horse!).

Then we fell behind schedule and didn't make it all the way to Wisconsin before having to just call it a night in Minnesota. At this point I couldn't wait to get to my parents house because we had been living in hotels since the 28th of March and this one was by far the worst when it came to cleanliness. Ewww...

The next day we arrived in Michigan just in time for dinner. Eight days on the road, eight states, three Canadian territories, four monuments and 4,300 miles! :)

We spent two weeks in Michigan being with family and starting an exciting future chapter in our life! Nope, no babies! We are in the process of purchasing a piece of land to build our future home on when Jason gets out of the Army. We spent most of our days searching for the right area and with a ton of listings from our real estate agent we found this place on accident when we went to turn around. :) Now it is just matter of all the fine details and paperwork!

That now puts us in Georgia where exciting things are happening! We have our own HOUSE. No more attached home/condo/duplex/apartment like we have always had. We have a three bedroom two and a half bath stand alone home. So far we love it and the backyard is fenced in making the dogs happy too. One of them loves the sun and being able to be outside now and the other one cries at the door to come in. He must miss Alaska and the cold weather ha ha.

Jason is working looong hours and six days a week as of right now. It is a little hard to adjust to, but slowly I am. I just have to continue to be thankful that his days are spent safely across the street (literally) and not in a foreign country. :)

Ohhh yes and exciting things are still happening to the blog. It is in the works and I can't wait to reveal it to you all. I will say that the blog will no longer be titled Across the Ocean, but will have a new name. :) Stay tuned...

Rewind ---->

2010-05-12T06:35:00.000-07:00

Does anyone update this thing on their phone?! I just cant find the patience to do so. Now that we are finally starting to get settled in our new home and the cable man came I am connected back to the world I love oh so much...online. :)

I promise to make this a two part series because it would be super long in one AND I have been begging my husband to upload the pictures off his new camera so I can share them...and he hasn't yet.

We spent eight days on the road traveling from Alaska to Michigan. The first day we ended up leaving later than planned and had agreed on not driving at night on the Alaska Highway so we drove close to 450 miles and we ended up stopping 50 miles out of our goal destination of Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. That was my first real experience with the wilderness ha ha. Jason pulled over at a rest stop (think dirt side road with a wooden cabin restroom) and we brushed our teeth and walked the dogs before trying to sleep for the night. J did well as I laid on the floor in the backseat of the truck listening the wolves howling and my dogs growling. I was so uncomfortable and couldn't wait until morning. We had to turn the truck on and then off every hour or so to keep warm. The northern lights were out and I was able to watch them from the back of the truck around 3am. They were absolutely beautiful!

As the sun came up we made our way into Whitehorse and drove towards Fort Nelson for the night. That day we stopped at The Sign Forest That was by far the coolest thing I think we saw in Canada. That day we also saw a bunch of stubborn buffalo crossing the road or more like standing in it. There was so many buffalo that it got to the point my dogs were spotting them before we did. We also saw caribou, deer, moose, bald eagles, a fox and surprisingly no wolves or bear.

We made it to Fort Nelson on the 1st just as it was getting dark and I was going to ask Jason if we could possibly get a hotel room as the thought of another night listening to wolves howl really didn't sound delightful to me. Instead as we were feeding the dogs Jason suggested he would drive as I slept and we could switch in the night. I gave in to the idea and had to take a xanax...no really, I had to. The road was dark and no one was on it during the night but us. Around 4am we stopped and switched. As we made our way into Edmonton the northern lights were again dancing in the sky and as I drove I could see them ahead of me. It was just an amazing sight and one I already miss from Alaska.

We were out of Canada in less than three days totaling over 2,000 miles. Phew! We were ahead of schedule at that point and ended up stopping in Great Falls, Montana for the night. We were exhausted!

The next day we took our time getting up and heading towards Yellowstone. We took lots of pictures (insert no pictures) and drove through a lot of country. Think no cellphone service and prairie dogs ha ha. We had reservations in Gardiner, MT and little did we know that nothing is really in Gardiner except the entrance to Yellowstone. When we got there and checked in at the hotel we found out someone stole our credit card AND that it had been shut off. Always a bump in the road, right?

So the next few days were spent in humble Montana. They had a gas station, two restaurants, a bunch of souvenirs and our hotel ha ha. It was then that I decided the country life just wasn't for me...

GEORGIA or BUST!

2010-03-31T10:00:00.000-07:00

Did you know...

That I am originally from Georgia and not Michigan? :)

Jason and I are packing up now to leave Alaska. I can't believe this is it and we are about to drive away and probably never be back. Alaska is one of those places that you just don't pass through on the way to another.

It has been fun and I am going to miss the summer here and of course my friends. However, I am so ready to head south and start a new chapter with the mister and our two crazy dogs.

I shall return with pictures and an animal count after Canada haha.

The countdown is on...

2010-03-17T11:03:00.001-07:00

The house is a disaster, the to-do list is long and the countdown has started!

We are in our final two weeks of Alaska and soon we will be hitting the road to the lower 48! We have planned our trip with stops to include Yellowstone and Mount Rushmore. Jason is the history buff so he really wants to see as much as possible as we make our way to Michigan. I am more excited for the wildlife especially in the Yukon Territory. IF you have anything along the states of Montana, South Dakota, Wisconsin that you think we should see please let me know! I am up for adding more to our list especially if it includes a little something other than history now. ;)

I have been putting a lot of thought into the future of Across The Ocean and I am currently in the market to find someone who does a great job on blog design and can help me develop THE NEW Across The Ocean. I have had a lot of ideas floating in my head the past few months and just not enough time to act on them. I am planning on expanding the website to more than just a blog online and officially getting our own domain. Although astrykerwife.blogspot.com has been fantastic after these next few weeks I will no longer be a stryker wife and need a little something that will roll with my ever changing life. The blog/website will still be called Across The Ocean and you will still be able to access me here so no worries. I still need to get the creative ideas flowing for our domain name and a little help to develop the new site.

If you know anyone with great talent when it comes to blog design please tell me! I have a lot of great ideas and can't wait to expand this website to be more useful and fun not just for me but for YOU!

Happy Wednesday!

Month of Madness!

2010-03-01T20:56:00.000-08:00

Sunset by the Arctic Circle. Beautiful Alaska!

Packing houses and moving is like a second language to me. In two and a half years of marriage this is going to be my FOURTH move. We had the foreclosed landlord wasn't paying the bills house,my move to Michigan while J was deployed, the move to this condo last summer and now the trip to the lower 48. Let me just say when we get to Georgia we better find something we really like because my butt is staying parked for the three years we are there!

Jason and I gave our thirty day notice to our landlord and she has been really great. She said she would list the home again and start showing it towards the end of the month, but tonight she has informed me she already has people wanting to come Wednesday. Now that means this place needs to be clean and ready for her to show and it is just starting to becoming a scene of complete madness.

We are doing a full DITY move where the Army pays us (trust me this was not my choice) and we are responsible to hire our own moving company and pack our own things (can you tell now it really wasn't my choice). We are planning on being packed and out of here in four weeks when the movers come to pick up the trailer and spending the last few days on post before we head out. We have decided to spend two weeks traveling so we can see a little bit of the country and truly enjoy it as the road trip of a life time. Then we will spend two weeks seeing family in Michigan before making the final drive down to Georgia.

Jason doesn't go to school for a few more months and part of me is already sad to have to say goodbye for 2+ months again in less than a year of him being home. Hopefully we can work it out that I can go visit him a time or two before he graduates. :)

So between working, packing, Jason clearing, planning our trip, spending time with friends and family before we go and all of those other things that come with moving this month is going to be crazy! Ohhh yes and eating our way through the pantry. Isn't that always the worst part of moving? :)

Phew!

Across The Ocean Crosses...

2010-02-18T14:18:00.000-08:00

the country and heads south!

Jason got orders this morning! We are heading to Fort Benning, Georgia at the end of next month. :)

Ahhh finally the waiting is over!

I'm Still Alive! :)

2010-02-11T10:40:00.000-08:00

I can't even begin to believe that I was able to blog every day for 365 days at one point. Every time I get a chance to sit down and write I am always telling of the same things that life is hectic and we are busy bees. Same goes for today! I have a little bit of time before getting ready for work and running a few errands beforehand. Jason and I are doing fabulous. He has been so busy at work that most days he is home after 6pm and is asleep after dinner. His company isn't even at 50% so he has been pulling a lot of extra weight for things like staff duty. Never did I think my husband would have to do that twice a week every three weeks. Eww. The days of him having it every few months seem so glamorous now.

I have been busy with work, house stuff and a few FRG things here and there. I feel like I always have somewhere to be especially on the days I have planned to do nothing. I mostly enjoy the days I get to see the kids I work with. They make life seem so simple and very rewarding. My brother and his girlfriend will be here next week for a visit and I am mainly looking forward to that. I haven't seen them in almost four months so it will be exciting to have them here.

Believe it or not we still have no orders. I know...it is such a sore topic with us I cant even talk about it without being stressed out haha. We are suppose to leave NEXT MONTH as in less than fifty days. Eeek! Unless they push things back (they havent yet) we are set to drive out the last few days of March. That means when we get orders we still have to pack our house, plan our trip, look for housing, send our guns to the new location and Jason will clear. Of course there is a bit more to PCSing, but we are considered overseas here so we should have had orders long ago. Very frustrating!

That is it in a nutshell. Emmie and Eli are finally best friends. I think Emmie had t give in to that once Eli got bigger than her. Yep, our baby boy is pushing ten pounds at five months old! Emmie is right at 7 full grown. This could get interesting. :)

Goodbye 2009!

2010-01-01T00:50:00.000-08:00

Another year has come and gone. I would say it seems so fast, but I know for 75% of 2009 it really just dragged along for me.

2009 included a lot of tests and trials where my patience was tried beyond belief and my worry/stress gene probably added a few wrinkles and the start of gray hair. Maybe that was the Army though and not 2009. :)

January- A birthday with my family! I haven't spent a birthday with them since my 21st and my parents and brother did everything they could to make that day special. It was by far my favorite day during this month. We had dinner together completed with cake and ice cream. Another favorite piece of that day was the runaway balloon Jason sent.

February- Ohh I am so spoiled. The piece that really sticks out is the big box of Godiva chocolate I received on Valentine's Day haha. This month I stayed busy by starting up back at the gym and was lucky enough to rekindle an old friendship with a great friend from high social. I remember how great it felt to know someone else was back in the small town I grew up in too.

March- Halfway!!!! By March I was truly counting down until R&R in April, but I was also excited for the deployment to be half over in the middle of the month. That day my mom and I went out to celebrate and I had a SoCo with Sprite. Liquor is something I don't usually do but by then it was completely necessary! Again, another great family moment this month when the four of us got together for St. Patrick's Day and had dinner out completed with a few green beers for not only my brother, dad and I but mom too!

April - Ahh the month of mid tour leave! The date changed a few times but I remember how calm I was the day I drove to the airport to pick up J. My nerves never set in until the plane pulled in and it finally hit me that after seven months he was about to get off that plane. That month was pure bliss waiting on him and an amazing two weeks spent with him :)

May- I recovered from my surgery at the end of April and began to work more hours at work. This month was a little sad trying to get back in routine but also the final countdown began and that felt like a new accomplishment.

June- Last day of work, last time living with my parents, J's birthday and the month of another move. I went to Michigan with two suitcases and came back to Alaska with four boxes, two suitcases and three carry ons. I was so excited to get back here and into my own space again.

July- I had a blast the first two weeks of July with my mom still visiting after helping me move in. I was so sad when she left to head back to Michigan. This was when the pep talk kicked in and I had to remind myself on my way home alone that we were in the homestretch.

August- One of my best friends from high school came to visit. We had a blast and I could never thank her enough for helping pass those last few weeks before Jason’s arrival. Then of course the day Jason FINALLY came home. Ahhh I waited a whole year for that moment and it felt amazing driving onto post to pick him up.

September- This month was spent reacquainting with each other. We had our first big purchase this month as a married couple of the truck in the driveway. J had a lot of half days and four days weekend. We spent so much of the time watching movies, catching up on TV shows ands spending time outdoors before the cold hit. It was another month spent in bliss.

October- We went home to see family and took our second honeymoon to Antigua.

November- We decided this month to add to our family and bought a playmate for Emmie. I was so nervous about the addition of a second dog, but Eli turned out to be nothing short of a bonus to us. We also went to Jason’s redeployment ball and spent Thanksgiving with my cousins here in Alaska!

December- Jason took leave and we spent the most relaxing time together at home without any plans and the rush of being here and there like any other leave. We took a short road trip and together we spent the last few days of 2009.

Now excuse me while I go kiss my husband at the beginning of 2010! : )

I dedicate this house to the Griswold Family Christmas...

2009-12-25T22:24:00.000-08:00

Clearly Emmie loves Eli =)

First of all Merry Christmas! We spent the day withuot rushing and taking our time this morning getting around to opening gifts. I even cooked our dinner last night instead of today and it was so nice to not have it be all over the place this year. Of course having Jason home was enough of a gift and to make the holidays even more special even if it was just the two of us. :)

I truly have been meaning to update. I am working on putting together lesson plans for after Christmas break with my kids and Jason and I have been pretty busy. Mentally things have been exhausting around here and we really haven't had much of a break with him pulling a few 24's by the week and everyone clearing post and leaving. Not to mention I have been squealing inside at the idea of taking a little vacation from our home for my mental sanity and for some new scenery.

So why not, right?! Exactly. Jason is on leave and we are getting up early in the morning and making the 6+ hour drive down to Anchorage to spend a few days. We really haven't made any big plans other than spending time together without work, without technology, without our loud neighbors and away from this place. :) Emmie is already shaking over the fact that things are being packed and she might not be going but little does she know that mama booked a pet friendly hotel so they could go too! Hopefully it will be scenic, relaxing and just what we need.

I shall return before the new year!

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

2009-12-07T08:34:00.000-08:00

Ahh the holidays!

I just love this time of year where everything is decorated, more time for family, everyone seems happier (minus a few Scrooges) and all the food. Yes, I love food.

We are anxiously awaiting orders to where we are going next. We should be leaving by April and so the clock is ticking. We originally waited SEVEN months for orders that never happened because of a fabulous waiting list. That gave us only a week to decide on something new that was offered before the Army did for Jason. Sound familiar? Nothing is ever set in stone, right? Now we have a few change of plans and I hope by the end of the week we have something on paper so I can share it with you. :)

Our house is put back together after the incident a few weeks ago and last night we put our Christmas tree up. Eli is making himself at home already and terrorizing Emmie on an hourly basis. It took a little while for her to warm up to him, but I think now she does love having someone her own size to play with.

Pictures to come soon! I hope everyone is doing well :)

An Unwanted Visitor

2009-11-25T10:46:00.000-08:00

A week ago today we were planning on dinner at home, but after a long day at the range and work J called and said he would pick me up and we could go grab something because he was starving and so I could get out of the house (with the darkness and everything). He came home and changed his clothes and last minute we decided to let Emmie ride with us so we took her as I grabbed my purse and turned the night light on in the kitchen.

We ran to Walmart, literally it was very short to the point J sat in the car while I ran in to get some fabric. After that we just went to Wendy's and he wanted to come home to have a beer and relax. We came home around 7:30 and Jason unlocked the door into the house for us as he went back out to plug the car in. I started taking off my shoes and Emmie ran to the back door. Like normal she barked out of it and then her barks because more furious. At this point I am putting food in the kitchen and she is running to me barking and back to the living room.

SOMEONE WAS ON MY COUCH. Apparently in that time frame we were gone he had came in the back door and was drunk and helped himself to my house. Jason immediately noticed the jacket on the floor and saw the man and grabbed Emmie and told me to go outside. He shut the door and went up to get his gun....

Jason asked the man what he was doing in our house (more choice words in there haha) and the guy wouldn't leave. I was on the phone with 911 so I didn't know what was going on but the man then jumped my husband and tried fighting him. At this point J is hitting him in the head with the gun and calling for me to come get the gun. I went back in, took the gun and this is where it helps that my husband is a certified instructor in hand to hand combat. The man was a lot bigger than J and the two fought all over my living room. FINALLY, the cops showed up with guns drawn running into my house and the man was arrested. J was covered in blood, the guy was covered in blood and my living room was torn apart with blood on everything.

We have no idea who this man is. I am thankful for two things that night; One thank goodness we decided to let Em ride because what would he have done to her if she was home Would she have left out of the back door or would he have hurt her for her constant barking knowing he didn't belong here? Secondly, thank goodness J had come home to get me and came back with me.

This man was charged with aggravated assault in the fourth degree and criminal trespassing in the second degree. We wanted whatever we could have him charged with because he told my husband he was going to kill him during the fight. Jason had the next day off to be with me at home and we called the insurance company for our coffee tables, the landlord for a new deadbolt on the door and the association to clean the hall and laundry room from where the police took this man out.

If we had more than four months to moving day we would be moving the hell out of this house.

We are still in the process of everything, but he has been charged with four years probation, $5,000 in fines and 150 days in jail. If he serves the full term of that we will be gone before he gets out. Thank goodness!

Another...dog?!

2009-11-06T10:55:00.000-08:00

Meet Eli :)

Emmie's new brother...oh I can smell the jealousy already when he arrives next Thursday.

Things just never slow down around our house!

I feel like I am reporting old news when I tell you about our second honeymoon but it was nothing short of fantastic. We spent a week in Antigua relaxing, eating too much food and soaking up the sun. It was the perfect way to end the deployment chapter and begin our next chapter together.

We also visited with family in Michigan and I spent two lovely days in bed at my in-laws house sick with food poisoning. Not to mention Emmie was also sick those few days and laid up with me too. Jason was a great nurse though haha and took good care of both of us. Like always we wish we had more time to spend with family because it never seems like enough.

Now we are back in Alaska where winter has already hit. The ground is frozen and temperatures are no higher than 20*! Oh thank goodness this is our last winter here because it is the one thing I wont miss when we move.

We are currently busy with holiday events and gatherings including Jason's redeployment ball tonight and a holiday bazaar tomorrow.

I have a little time right now to catch up on some of you before I have to hit the shower and begin to get ready! I hope everyone is doing great! <3

Ohhh Bad Blogger!

2009-10-26T13:24:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, I have been a horrible blogger...but I have been on an island far far away with this guy. Can you really blame me? ;)

We will be back in the freezing cold of Alaska on Wednesday. Be back soon!

'Tis the Season

2009-09-30T12:34:00.000-07:00

...of babies!

As of right now we are excited for the arrival of SEVEN babies in 2010 from some of our best friends and family.

This doesn't even include some of our friends here currently participating in the deployment is over baby boom haha.

I will say though that I am super excited for three of my closest friends; Jessica, Cassi and Kristene who will all be having a new addition by summer. Ohhh I must think about baby gifts for my three favorite girls! :)

So in honor of all the babies Jason thought he needed his own...

Ta-da!

We are officially the proud (okay, truthfully he is way more excited) owners of a new Ford F-150 Platinum.

This also means my husband can now be found more often in the driveway playing with all the bells and whistles in it.

He has to come in soon though Alaska is getting cold. :)

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Five.

2009-09-19T21:27:00.000-07:00

September 20, 2008

365 days complete.

It was a year ago tomorrow that Jason kissed me goodbye and got on the bus to leave for a year.

Emmie and I spent a few days in Alaska before we headed to Michigan to be with family...

We spent nine months at my parents house counting the days, week, months until the move back to Alaska and the time closer to Jason coming home.

I can promise you I probably looked at the counter AT LEAST every other night to make sure my week total was correct and the estimate on R&R and his arrival home.

I spent many holidays I had previously missed with my family although each one seemed dreadful knowing where Jason was. No matter what I tried to make the best of it.

Jason spent his time in I-town where communication was few and far in between because he was on an outpost not an actual FOB.

We spent 345 days apart and if you add R&R in that year it was technically 330. ;)

I spent many nights crying, praying, sleepless, stressed and hopeful.

It was ALL WORTH IT leading up to this very night...

I am nothing but proof that a year apart IS survivable. I used ours as a learning experience to find new interests, accomplish things I have always wanted to try, go back to school, church, join a gym, travel, you name it I used the time to do it.

Most importantly though that I am proud of my husband. He holds his head high each and every day no matter what the task at hand is and he is my strength whenever I feel like I just cant push myself anymore he is always pushing for me. He is truly the love of my life and although I know this probably isn't the last year apart it is another chapter closed.

September 19, 2009

Mission complete!

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Four.

2009-09-18T23:42:00.000-07:00

I don't care where we go next as long as we are together, but I can only hope where ever it is we find friends as amazing as the ones we have here. <3

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Three.

2009-09-17T22:21:00.000-07:00

Yay for four days! Jason is off for four days and I cant wait to have a relaxing weekend with him.

Only two more darn days until this year of blogging is finally over and I am taking a much needed blogger-vaca haha. :)

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Two.

2009-09-16T23:16:00.001-07:00

"When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us."

-Helen Keller

Day Three Hundred Sixty-One.

2009-09-15T22:08:00.000-07:00

Ohhh vacation why are you four weeks away?!

I cant wait to see our families when we hit Michigan and of course our trip to Antigua. I'm already envisioning drinks with umbrellas and floating around in the pool all day.

Mmm mmm mmm.

Day Three Hundred Sixty.

2009-09-14T22:06:00.000-07:00

(click to enlarge)

Oh commissary trips! Jason and I headed to the case lot sale yesterday for great deals on toilet paper and paper towels. We had five items by the time we browsed the ice cream section and picked up the necessary coffee creamer. Express lane or self checkout? Ohhh no not for case lot items. We were stuck in a line that wrapped around to the frozen section with a bunch of screaming children and moms pushing up to two carts full of bulk items. We both asked each other at one point who's idea was it to go haha. One day when we have children there will be another couple just like us wondering the same thing standing next to us in one of those God awful lines. ;)

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Nine.

2009-09-13T21:48:00.000-07:00

I just blew up plenty of red, white and blue balloons for a friends husband and helped decorate her hotel room. Super excited to see her reunite with her husband tonight as we stood together crying on each other the day they left last year. :) Jason and I are off to our last homecoming tonight for friends and his guys. Super excited that everyone is finally making their way home and even more excited for a little relaxation with hubby next weekend instead of this go go GO stuff. :)

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Eight.

2009-09-12T23:34:00.000-07:00

I have been such a bad blogger let alone follower. I have so much to catch up on and today I caught a few extra minutes to check up on a few of you and I was so behind. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind and when my 365 days are complete I will only post when something is really newsworthy haha AND be able to keep up with everyone else a little better.

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Seven.

2009-09-11T22:30:00.000-07:00

As always a day like today makes me proud to be an American. <3

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Six.

2009-09-10T22:43:00.000-07:00

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsion, habit, reason, passion, and desire."

-Aristotle

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Five.

2009-09-09T22:43:00.000-07:00

Ahh I love seeing my friends prep for their husbands to finally arrive too! I feel like J and I lucked out that he was home closer to the beginning of arrivals and now everyone else is coming home too. I love feeling their excitement and being able to go with them to their homecomings to take pictures. I am just so glad everyone is being reunited and the feeling of cloud nine everyone is sharing. :)

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Four.

2009-09-08T22:04:00.001-07:00

Happy 2nd Anniversary Hubby!

I love you and am so glad you are mine. :)

Life with you is amazing. <3

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Three.

2009-09-07T22:39:00.000-07:00

I love having my best friend home. It has been a little over a week now and having him here to take Emmie on walks, cooking dinner together, playing games, watching movies and everything else has been fabulous. Of course there are the small things falling into routine that drive us both bonkers like how I am not a fan of video games all over the coffee table and how Jason didn't feel the kitchen made sense so he rearranged it. The way the living room furniture he felt needed to be angled (I own that one haha) or me being a little more easy going about owning a gun...or two. We are taking it day by day but being back together and having him home safe is all that matters. I realize we are lucky though to pick right back up where we left off as some other couples are struggling with it.

Day Three Hundred Fifty-Two.

2009-09-06T22:44:00.000-07:00

Hubby has the next two days off and he is coming down with something.

Poor hubby.

I hope he feels better for our anniversary on Tuesday!

Day Three Hundred Fifty-One.

2009-09-05T18:01:00.001-07:00

Date night. <3

Ohh how I have missed these. :)

Day Three Hundred Fifty.

2009-09-04T21:31:00.000-07:00

This whole 72 hour pass thing when you get back from deployment is a bit r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s. I mean really?! lol. Jason works ALL weekend. At least he has our anniversary on Tuesday off I guess. Silly Army.

Day Three Hundred Forty-Nine.

2009-09-03T21:38:00.000-07:00

The adjustment period has been a breeze really. Jason and I have never had a problem adjusting to being back together and although he has came home to a new home he seems to really be falling into place himself.

Life has been amazing together without any speed bumps. It feels like he never left although seeing his surprsise face at new items in the grocery store or new construction always makes me realize he really has been gone.

Day Three Hundred Forty-Eight.

2009-09-02T22:39:00.001-07:00

Remember the sprained ankle?

Three weeks later it still is pretty painful.

Remember my husband coming home?

His suggestion of finally going to the doctor this morning has me in an ankle brace and starting physical therapy next week.

Uh huh and he always says to, "put a little man on it" when something hurts. Look how far that got me hubby haha now I am sporting a hot new accessory.

Day Three Hundred Forty-Seven.

2009-09-01T22:49:00.001-07:00

Life is amazing. <3

Day Three Hundred Forty-Six.

2009-08-31T20:06:00.000-07:00

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
Simply amazing.

Day Three Hundred Forty-Five.

2009-08-30T17:20:00.000-07:00

Across the Ocean and Back Home.

Tonight is the night.

That is right folks...

My hubby is coming home!!!! <3

Day Three Hundred Forty-Four

2009-08-29T23:19:00.000-07:00

Love is on the way
I've been so good while I wait
It wont be another day
Cuz your love is on the way

I saw your face in the book of love
It stopped me in my tracks
I couldn't move at all
I wrote the longest letter that I ever
composed
Told you all of my virtues
Only loneliness knows

CHORUS

Got my soul back in swing
Yeah I dusted it off
Corrected my posture on some
years that I lost
I cleaned my kitchen till the
shine burned my eyes
Got my best suit tailored for my
current size

CHORUS

And I'm so excited I can't contain
Your love is on the way

I got a chance at a life of love
I'm turning it on
Gone are the nights alone in the dark
Your love is on

I'll paint your favorite colors on your new
front door
I read your difficult past
I learned some words you may know
I state my intentions for you
I sent away
Now it's forever after in a matter of days

Love is on the way
Goodbye all those yesterdays
Cuz my new life starts today
Oh your love is on the way

And I'm so excited I can't contain
Your love is on the way.

I got a chance at a life of love
I'm turning it on
Gone are the nights alone in the dark
Your love is on
Will Dailey - Love Is On The Way

Day Three Hundred Forty-Three.

2009-08-28T23:35:00.000-07:00

Something is different about this homecoming. Usually I am stressed out about the things I need to get done or the preparation before J is home. This time around I just have an overwhelming feeling of wanting him home that I don't care so much about the outfit or the super clean car. Maybe it is a sign of having enough time apart? haha.

How do you feel before a homecoming? :)

Day Three Hundred Forty-Two.

2009-08-27T23:23:00.000-07:00

Of course the waiting cant come without a push. The anticipated date is now a day later. That normally doesn't sound like much but in the end of deployment terms it is foooorever.

No call yet foooorever lol.

Day Three Hundred Forty-One.

2009-08-26T23:15:00.001-07:00

...is waiting on the official calls to begin.

Not the one saying I can go pick him up but the one confirming the date since it is pretty common knowledge now and pretty darn close might I mention.

Eeeek! <3

Day Three Hundred Forty.

2009-08-25T23:43:00.000-07:00

Wine + good friends + power wheels + a barbie helmet + lots of laughs = good times to make any stressful week better.

Pictures tomorrow. :)

Day Three Hundred Thirty-Nine.

2009-08-24T21:26:00.000-07:00

More reunions today! We weren't a part of them but I can see the end although it seems a little fuzzy since the days are just dragggggging I do know it is almost over.

I am going to be talking to my nurse tomorrow for more information but my biopsy came back abnormal. I am not sure what the next step is but I do know whatever it is I wont have to face anything else without my hubby here. Trying to always find the positive. Sigh.

Army Wife Post

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Booties yay or nay?

The Convenient Post

Cheerios Cheer Giveaway! *Today Only*

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Nothing to report...yet

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And so it begins...

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The kids are in the "playground"

IVF Fun!

Ahh So Nervous

TLC Update

Almost at the finish line

Circle+Bloom

TV, newspapers, magazines, oh my!

Maybe Baby By IVF?

Oh so shiny and pretty

A mini vaca!

Watch our newest TLC video!

Gift Basket Giveaway!

Click, Click, Click!

TJ lands TLC!

Army Wife Post Surprise Giveaway!

Baby Babble

Bags For All

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Hello Happiness

How about fitting something else on the plate

A Piece of Advice

Some of my favorite things...

Baby Babble

Mmm Cupcakes

Happy New Year!

Some of my favorite things...

Thank You!

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Growin' Up Part 2

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3 Years and Counting

We are back!

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Strep and Pride

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Just a small update

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A month!

Seventh Generation Giveaway

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I hope you are almost ready!

Rewind ---> Part 2

Rewind ---->

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Month of Madness!

Across The Ocean Crosses...

I'm Still Alive! :)

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I dedicate this house to the Griswold Family Christmas...

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

An Unwanted Visitor

Another...dog?!

Ohhh Bad Blogger!

'Tis the Season

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Five.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Four.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Three.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-Two.

Day Three Hundred Sixty-One.

Day Three Hundred Sixty.

Cheerios Cheer Giveaway! Today Only