Memorial Day

Memorial Day this year was particularly great. Not only did I have the pleasure of being at home, but with Matthew being deployed I really sat and prayed for every service member I have had the pleasure of knowing. Memorial Day has a particular special place in my family's hearts. We come from a family of military members. Whether it be husbands, brothers, grandfathers, or good friends; we are so proud of our military members. We are especially grateful for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country. I personally have never known a service member who lost their lives while over seas, but I respect them none the less.

The first service member I knew was my Grandpa Dave. He was in the Navy and fought in the Korean War. We weren't close growing up, because I come from parents who split up when I was two so I only saw him occasionally when I was at my dads. I do know, he always had some soda for me to drink and that's the only important thing for a kid to have!


Growing up I had distant cousins enlist in the Army and all that jazz, but I never really knew them on a close personal level. The first person I really knew during and throughout the entire enlistment is my brother-in-law.

 My brother in law Mason was the first person I knew that I could actually see the sacrifices he made every day for his country. He may not have been deployed at the time, but he gave up everything for his job. He went days, sometimes weeks, without seeing my sister. Sometimes it was days before he could even talk to her, and that was while he was still in the states. He's currently deployed in Afghanistan right now, so prayers would be greatly appreciated. He's such a great guy, husband, father, and marine! While everyone is going about their day with their families, say a prayer for families like mine. Say a prayer for my sister who goes without her husband now so yours can stay safe, and for Parker who clings to his daddy doll so your children don't have to.

Along with insight to military life my brother also introduced me to some great guys, real characters that's for sure.

Since meeting them, many of them have or are going through their first deployment. Thankfully, God is watching over each and every one of them so they are safe. This memorial day I was thankful that I another year passed and I didn't have to say a special prayer to their families because they lost their marines. I have been so blessed to say that my brother and husband haven't lost any of their friends. Along with introducing me to some friends, more importantly he introduced me to my husband.

 
 

Matthew and I are currently going through our first deployment and although it's not an in-country deployment, it's still very hard and very scary. The best piece of advice I've received as a military wife? No news...is good news. I have met so many FANTASTIC fellow wives since being married to Matthew. My sister will always be the person that gets me, but I honestly don't know what I'd do without my best friends Tricia and Becky. As cheesy at it sounds when you have something to bond over like a deployment or crazy work schedules, you really do develop life long friends! But, 
I am so thankful that Matthew is safe, and so thankful for the prayers we receive on a daily basis. They help more than anyone could possibly know. Keep the prayers and good thoughts coming!

My favorite part of this memorial day? It's being with my family. This trip to Indiana was the first time all three of us girls were with both of the parents since last September. When you used to ride to school together every single morning, that is just far too long.

 So basically, what I am trying to say with this long post is; 1: I am so blessed to have great friends and family. and 2: I am so thankful for every single service member who has at one point in their life gave their time to protect our country. and 3: I am so proud to live in a country that we still have people who volunteer to serve their country, even though the risks can be so high.  Pray and be thankful for them! End military rant haha

Eh, it's "only" 12 hours

If you've been reading my blog, you know that I spent about two weeks in Indiana. It. was. fantastic! It wasn't even a bad drive. My friend Tricia and I have a running joke that you know you're a military wife, when you say "Oh, it's only a twelve hour drive". She and her husband were in California before coming to North Carolina so they had to endure a cross country drive. BIG kudos to them for that. We drive everywhere because, let's face it, plane tickets are expensive! Unless we can catch them at the right minute on the right day, we hardly ever fly anywhere. So when it was the time to make the trip back home, I got a book on tape from a good friend, also named Karen haha, and bit the bullet. The drive there was perfect! I left around ten in the morning. My outlook on things are that I can get up super early, drive tired and coffee dependent until I am forced to stop a hotel for the night. Or I could get a good amount of rest, eat a good breakfast, and leave when I'm fresh and ready for the day and if I have to stop then I do but if not I am good to drive the entire twelve hours in one shot. So I dropped Tricia off at the Raleigh airport around one and just made the trip back home from there. It was a beautiful drive through the mountains.

It was really funny because for a good couple of miles I hit terrible traffic out in the country. This sign really made me laugh, because I found myself saying "how much longer is this going on for" just before I saw the sign. I also took the time to stop when I needed to, and if I wanted to get a starbucks I stopped and got a darn starbucks! I was always that kid who had to stop an hour after the previous stop because " I didn't have to go then". So, it was nice driving by myself because I could stop as often as I wanted. I ended up getting into town around twelve thirty.


The drive back, however, wasn't so great. Mother nature was against me of course. It didn't rain at ALL until I got into the mountains. I absolutely hate driving in the rain. Yep, I am "that" person that if I have to put my windshield wipers on the highest setting I end up just pulling over.  I ended up adding two hours onto my trip. 

Then of course my dog is a chicken so as soon as the rain got bad I ended up with him laying like. He had a great set up in the back hatch with comfy blankets and goodies but still he sat here for at LEAST five hours. It was really cute....until he tried getting in the front seat.

Another thing that made the drive home terrible is that I had the pleasure to find out Buddy hates cops. Well, either that or it could just be strange men approaching my window at night. Either way, he was going crazy! And, by crazy I mean that he all but jumped out my window. Yep, that means I got pulled over. It was the same police car I saw a few miles back pulling over someone else. It's the end of the month, you know, they have to fill up their brownie points. Regardless, I knew I wasn't speeding so I was really curious to why the officer pulled me over. A little back story for a minute, I was using a borrowed GPS for this trip so I didn't have a mount for my window. Instead I just sat it on my lap and glanced down every now and then to see where I was going. Right before the officer pulled me over, I missed my initial exit so was glancing down a little more than I normally would since it was "recounting route". I got pulled over because he thought I was texting while driving because he just saw the glow of a screen. Of course the one time I didn't even have my phone near me, I was pulled over. After we got the fact that I wasn't texting out of the way he asked me how long I'd been driving. He asked me when he first got to my window where I was heading and where I was coming from. I say I'm heading to my house by Camp Lejeune and I was coming home from visiting my family in Indiana. So, I tell him at that point in time, I had been driving twelve hours and was only two and a half hours from my house. Apparently he was concerned by that statement so I had to endure the "follow the pin with your eyes" type of tests to make sure that I was safe to even be driving. I felt like asking if he would pay for a pet deposit at a hotel if he found that I wasn't safe to drive! But, I am trying the whole "being a lady" thing out so I kept my mouth shut. He eventually came back from his car with my warning ticket written out, gave me the "no messing with the gps while driving" speech and sent me on my way. It was stressful to say the least. That's all I need, is to tell Matthew that I got a ticket because the officer thought I was texting while driving. I think I was more upset because I was listening to The Help on CD and was cracking up laughing at a really funny part but the officer interrupted. I know, not a big deal, but at the time I was honestly upset about it! But God was watching out for me because even through the rain and me being pulled over, I made it home safely :)

Wedding Flash Back

 Every so often, when I'm really missing Matthew, I flash back to our wedding day. I think of all the details I put into my wedding and it makes me so happy. Well, other than my caterer and wedding Dj. They were absolutely horrible. But, that's a story for another day. Other than those issues, I was so proud that my hard work paid off. Matthew Proposed on October 13th, 2010. We had a rather short engagement because he was getting orders to a new duty station. I had a little over 4 and 1/2 months to plan the wedding. It was very difficult because we were stationed in Georgia, my family was in Indiana and his was in Louisiana. If it weren't for my sister, Coni, and my aunt, Jae,  I'm not sure I would have pulled it off.

Besides my dress, my absolute favorite detail of my wedding was my bouquet. As much as I would love to have have real flowers, it just wasn't me. I decided to make my bouquet out of old brooches, buttons and ear rings. My aunt and I went through a ton of antique and thrift shops looking for the perfect pieces. I wasn't really looking for the perfect matching pieces, just something that felt like me. It was also great that my mother had costume jewelry that belonged to my great grandmother that I was able to incorporate with my bouquet. Jae also gave me some brooches to add for a little something extra. I also added some beads and feathers to give it a little pizzazz. It took a lot of time, and hard work make it but it was beyond worth it. I now have something I can keep forever and pass down through my family. 

My Aunt Jae also gave me the great idea to put a cameo brooch on the sash of my dress! She bought me the most perfect cameo brooch that had a slight hint of blue for my "something blue". We also decided to have my bridesmaids wear cameo brooches too so that they sort of matched me in a way. It was a perfect idea!

Then of course I have to talk about my jewelry. My step-grandma amazing grandmother let me borrow a set of her pearls for my wedding day. It was actually great because my sister Coni wore than on her wedding day as well. We both laugh and say now our other sister, Kia, has to wear them too!

I am so thankful that even though it wasn't the perfect wedding, it was perfect to me. My friends and  family were there, and I married my best friend.  Plus, the little details made my day even better than if I had the finest jewels or most expensive dress.

BINGO!

Sorry for the lack of "Military Monday" post this week. I haven't made Matthew any new care packages since he hasn't even received his last care package! I know, it is ridiculous. I am hoping to think of some great idea's for care packages while I'm home. Maybe a day at the circus with all sorts of goodies? Or, a box of sunshine. Who knows, I'm open to suggestions though! But I did manage to do something great on Monday, something not related to the military which is a nice change of pace.

 In my family, for the older generation, bingo is life! They have different nights of the week that they play at different places and for different amounts of money. I remember being younger and getting yelled at because I got into my grandmothers bingo daubers. I would put them all over my arms because I thought they were just fun stamps. She always used to rub my head for luck before she left and she'd always win a little something. Flash forward to my 18th birthday and I was actually more excited about the fact that I was now old enough to go play bingo than the fact that I was a legal adult. I never got to go play with my great aunts though because I ended up moving and I refused to go play without them.


So last night, shortly after my 20th birthday, I accompanied my great aunt Bonnie and my great aunt Diane to Monday night bingo at the Eagles.  I was beyond excited and convinced myself that I was going to win something big. I didn't end up winning but I did have a great time! Bingo is for some serious people though. It took me a little while to get used to it and actually know what I was doing. I felt like I couldn't even really get a second to look at my card before they called another number.

All it all it was a really great night because I got to visit with my family I haven't seen in a long time!

Oh in a non-bingo related note. My dog is awesome. I have added a picture of my favorite co-pilot!

Home Sweet Home

Can I just say,I absolutely love being home! I’ll be posting more soon but I just wanted to let everyone know that all is well and I’m just enjoying a little mini vacation. Everything is exactly the same, which is so refreshing when your life is so full of uncertainty. I’m eating at all of my favorite restaurants that we don’t have anywhere new North Carolina or our future home in Louisiana! And, I’m just enjoying time with old friends and my amazing family. All in all I'm having an amazing time! More posts to come!

Military Monday: favorite care package!

First off, I have to apologize for the hiatus. It was finals week and I also took a mini vacation to see some great friends for my birthday who are at our previous duty station in Kingsland, Georgia. I will have a few blog posts about that trip soon. But, I am back! And for this “military” Monday, it’s another care package Idea!
 Oh! and we are officially SEVEN weeks down on this deployment! Next week marks the two month mark and I can honestly say time is going pretty fast for the most part. But, back to the care package :)
            I don’t know if any of you guys have read The Hunger Games series, but Matthew and I are HUGE fans! Matthew was the first to read it, and he eventually converted me. I am really into doing themed care packages so I got the best idea to do a fun Hunger Games based care package!

It was a really fun experience throwing the care package together, and I came up with a lot of great ideas. First off, was to decorate the box.

I decided to take the most famous quote and decorate the outside of the box with it. Next, for the amazing goodies! Since there are 12 districts, I decide to put something that represented each district in the care package.

District 1 is known for luxury items. So, for his “luxury” item I splurged and bought him instant Starbucks. And boy, was it a splurge! It just blows my mind that it cost so much!!

 District 2 is known for stone/rocks. So, I bought him pop “rocks”. I know, I’m so darn clever! Haha!

District 3 is known for it’s technology, so I decided to make a mixed cd. I filled the cd with all of the songs I listen to when I’m really missing him and am having a bad day.. 

District 4 is known for fishing. So, I decided to send him some tuna. He's been on a healthy kick since we've moved to Camp Lejeune and really enjoyed tuna for lunch. I thought it would be perfect for District 4.

District 5 is known for power. However, Matthew didn't take anything that needed batteries. Just my luck right? Well a flash drive plugs into a computer right? which kind of give is power I guess. I know, I know. I'm lame! But I send him another video giving him an update of what's happening on the home front. 

 District 6 is known for transportation. This was probably the hardest district because it's not like I could send a toy car or something. So I was really lame and bought this puzzle.

District 7 is know for lumber. So I decided to take a small plaque of wood, paint it a basic color, and modge podge a picture of us onto it. It's nice because it's small that he can keep it somewhere on his rack to look at before he goes to sleep :)

 District 8 is known for textiles or cloth. This one isn't very fun, it's more so practical. I realized when he left that he didn't take any wash clothes with him so I decided to add some to this care package.

District 9 is known for grain. Matthew made the comment that he'd really like some fiber bars so how perfect did it fit for district 9!

  

District 10 is known for livestock. He loves beef jerky and "cowtails". It fits perfectly into the theme!  

District 11 is known for agriculture. Matthew happens to love pistachios and sunflower seeds!

 District 12 is known for coal. So I made "coal" crispies! Matthew loves rice crispie treats so I thought I would get creative and send some edible coal!

This card really has nothing to do with the Hunger Games. But, I saw it on pinterest and decided to make it for him :)

Next, I assembled everything. I also added some things he requested like razor's and such.

I decided to add a little something extra to the top of the box :)

And there you have it! My favorite care package so far. I hope you all enjoy it and can take some idea's from it :)