Coming Home

He's coming home, he's coming home! You'd think he was gone for a long deployment. Nope just a week. I just miss him like crazy. I was 'nesting' for the past two days, the house is pretty clean and ready for his arrival.

 

T-minus 63 minutes til Mr. Sexy Pants plane should land. OHHHH I guess we better head to the airport!

 

Later!

One Year Later!

It's the one year anniversary of hearing those horrible words... you've got "the c word". (I still don't like to say it or claim it!)

 Here is a brief photo calendar for my life since May/June 2011.

Sunset over Waikiki Beach Hawaii

Zip lining through Okinawa's wilderness! So beautiful, breath taking views of the East China Sea!

I kissed Santa Claus and I liked it! (aka he's Mr. Sexy Pants!)

I wore a funky bug contraption on an EPIC Geo caching adventure w/ Katie in Alaska's wilderness!

Junior and I along one of the braided rivers in Denali National Park. (BTW: It snowed that day too!)

Member of the 3% club of Alaska. We got to see Denali twice on our trip up there! God blessed us on that trip!

Mom and I at Diamond Head, we didn't hike it I was just a few days post surgery, but gotta see the beauty of Hawaii not just my stinkin' hotel room!

Mark and I at our first Luau. We danced, slowly but danced (again a couple days post surgery!)

My girl, Maureen Domery (great friend from 2nd grade) chaperoned me (my medical attendant) to Hawaii. She took me sea kayaking, my abs hurt so bad I couldn't sleep for two nights and I walked funny! (my abs hadn't recovered from my first surgery, but we didn't know that prior to our trek) Oh yeah, we also got 'yelled' at by the lifeguard for going out way to far past the 'safety zone'. Great times... Love this girl to pieces! (Thanks Maureen for memories, friendship and desserts!)

I got a job as a Transition Assistance Program Trainer (I help active duty transition their career into the civilian world).

Mark and our tall kids at Maeda Point (great scuba spot) on Okinawa, no Caleb is NOT taller than Mark he's standing on a rock!

I held a giant snake, it was creepy fun. Would I do it again, yep if it would make Katie smile like that again!

Hiked a waterfall w/ my beautiful family and great friends, the Mitchell's!!!

I was blessed with another year filled with breath taking moments, many tears and lots more laughter with three blessings from God.

I can go on and on and on... but I won't that just wouldn't be fair. Ya'll would be so jealous, but I need to ask this question.

How was the past year of your life? Did you make an impact on YOUR World? in THE World? Have you lived with significant passion that other's can see, feel and touch?

I think I have, but there is always room for improvement. 

You don't have to wait until January to make an impact, start today!

Daddy's Gone... what's for Dinner?

When the kids were littler I could get away with PB&J & Carrot sticks for dinner when Daddy was away on business (Yes that's what we call it, not war, not war games, nothing that would cause alarm or instill fear!).

This week Mark's in the stinkin' states (can you tell I'm slightly jealous! Thankfully there is NO Chipotles for 100 miles from where he is at... so I win on that account!). Mark gone meant I could get away with easy peasy dinners! Now that the kids are teenagers they require real food. See menu above! I hope Mark's jealous b/c tonight's dinner smells YUMMY!

We'll have leftovers... that means super delish lunches for me this week at work!

I may have to take a break from Facebook for a few days. Many of you have given up FB for lent and are just getting back on. Congrats to you but please see my heart and understand why I'll have a temporary hiatus.

There are posts, and I mean a lot of posts about "The Passion of the Christ". If you don't know it's a movie about the last days of Christ Jesus. It's extremely realistic and the truth as to the brutality of Christ's final days and hours. If you know me, my heart and my life you know that I have a very personal relationship with Christ and my heavenly Father. However, I personally cannot handle the movie or the photos from it. I've never sat and watched the entire movie. I've watched scenes from the movie and obviously screen shots of it. Once I sat in a church where they showed several clips of the movie. I cried and had nightmares for weeks.

My family has seen first hand the brutalities of war. Christ was at war for each and everyone one of us. I don't take that for granted but I can't watch it, I don't want to watch it. I know the sacrifices that Christ made for me, I thank Him daily for them.

I know the postings are to share what Christ has done, and there are many non-believers on Facebook. So go for it, but please know I've not deleted anyone. I'm not running away from my faith. I'm protecting myself and my family. Images like this have a profound effect our on daily lives. We don't live in a bubble, we don't turn a blind eye to Christ. It's really the opposite. We know that we know that we know ... the sacrifices of Christ, we know the hell He went through for us. He did so, so we don't have to live through it ourselves. Praise God.


I love you, and I'll see all of you on Facebook in about a week!

Potty Adventures!

I bet your thinking this is about my potty adventures! I'd never post such a private thing on my blog. However I will blog about Mark's potty adventures.

But first let me tell you about this photo! He's completely out of regs and doesn't care (vicoden was his BFF). He didn't shave or cut his hair for 10 days and this is what he looks like. He's ruggedly handsome! The best part, he's got a multicolored beard! He's got some reds, browns, and GREY hair in there! He's so stinkin' cute. The Apache hair on his head (a patch here a patch of hair there!) is also getting to look quite sexy with salt and pepper! (Thus the name fits... Mr. Sexy Pants!)

This is not what this blog post is supposed to be about!

Mark's got this great brace on! It's extremely functional when you go to the bathroom. Especially when you're in town. (notice he cut his hair, the above picture was taken yesterday, this was taken today!) He's still beautiful, cranky but beautiful!

So my love decided he need to go to the bathroom. He does his business and his arm with the lovely brace taps the buttons on the seat.

First, the seat warms up! Then he hears music, followed by a refreshing rinse of his hind end. He's scrambling to turn it off when suddenly he gets a free blow-dry.

The man may never go potty in public again! Or at least never sit down again...

THE END!

Seth my Hero!

Sunday morning we are rushing out the door before church like most people. The reason we rush is I think I can do a half an afternoon's worth of chores on our to do lists on Sunday morning before we leave. It's been almost 19 years and it hasn't worked yet, but each Sunday I do my best to try! I am not a QUITTER! But that is another tale... you're wondering about this photo... allow me to explain!

So Sunday morning arrives, we head out to the van. I'm driving as Mark's been on heavy duty painkillers for his shoulder (can't wait for surgery and we are on the road to recovery!) I open the driver's door to climb in... Seth shouts...

"Mom, there's a spider on you!"

I leaped out of the van, did the jig and slapped myself like crazy!

"MOM! The spider's still there, it's on your thigh!"

Mark graciously smacks my thigh and brushes it to the ground, and he steps on it. But NOT before I saw it... it was HUGE! I wanted to squeal like a girl, I opened my mouth and Mark gave me the don't you dare "Daddy Look!" It was a MMMOOONSTER SPIDER, not really but it was almost the size of a quarter! Which is big enough for me!

I kiss Mark, get back into the van, thank my sweet Seth for saving my life and begin to drive away. It was then when I noticed all of the spider webs on the steering wheel, on the gear shifter thingie and wiper stick thing... it was gross. I can't concentrate on driving under these conditions. I swerved all over the road until Mark helped me swipe them all away. He's such a gentleman and I truly appreciated him... until he laughed at me!

I couldn't concentrate in church. I felt like I had spider babies crawling all over me. It's a gross feeling. I have no idea what the sermon was about. (holding my head down in shame... "I'm sorry Pastor John.") I don't deal well with creepy crawling things! I love camping and the outdoors but not in my house and certain NOT in my car!

I now find myself praying before I get in the car, asking my Jesus to get the bugs for me. He'll do that. He loves me and unlike Mark he doesn't laugh at me! (well at least I can't hear Him if He does!)

Moral of the Day... check the car for spiders before entering the vehicle. It could save your life.

Every Life {is} BEAUTIFUL

Tooling around online I discovered this video.

It sums up so vividly the relationship our heavenly Father has with us!