Operation: Get Prepared

I have been neglecting my blog for the past couple of weeks. My husband has been on leave and I have been soaking up every minute of time I have with him.  He goes back to work tomorrow. Today we are just lounging and relaxing... and recuperating. Seems he and I both caught some kind of little sick bug going around.

As I sit here, I'm thinking about Deployment. I realize we have only 1 or 2 more short underways before the big "D". And so much is going to happen in the short time we have before then.

Does it scare me? Yes and No. I'm not scared of what will happen to us. I know that our relationship will only be strengthened by Deployment. I'm not scared of the time apart. Yes, I know I'm going to have bad days, but I'm going to have good days too. I know I'm strong enough as an individual to bring my own happiness and make the best of every day that comes. The part that scares me is the things that can happen on deployment. The risks he will face... the same risk every service member faces. But it's part of it.. this is his job- the job he and I both signed up for when he joined. Time to put on those "Big Girl Panties".

Before deployment comes, like I said earlier, there  is so much that will be happening.. and things that have to get done so I can say that I'm prepared to be on my own for a bit without the help of my husband.

We are moving.. yet again. But this next place we will be staying for the next 4 years. The place is absolutely perfect... and We can have Riley and actually say she is a Pit bull. We lucked up with a friend of his getting orders to Florida and the guy owns a house... Townhouse, 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms Living Room, Den, cute kitchen, dinning room, washer & dryer, BACK YARD! :), huge bathtub.. and an attic- OH, and a garage that we are converting to a studio for my photography! Heck yes. I can't wait to move. We are using deployment orders to break our lease to get out of this place we're in now.. I love the size of our place now, but we're having more and more trouble with this place and we don't feel safe with me being here alone during Deployment. The neighborhood we will be moving to is nice, quite and SAFE! We will have neighborhood watch. Awesome. But now.. the boxes that I seemed to just have unpacked, need to be packed again. We will be moving at the end of November toward the beginning of December. I cannot wait. I'm seriously IN LOVE with this place. Not to mention it's location. I actually saw barns in the area.. In the little over a year we have been in Hampton Roads, I have not seen a single barn until the other day. I seriously got "kid like" excited. For a split second.. I was reminded of our hometown in TN. Anyway.. enough about the new place.

There is a lot to do to get prepared for the big D... Some of which we have already done.

• Power of Attorney- Check, We have 2 different types- I'm more than covered in this area. 
• A will- Not real sure how much we need this.. we don't own much and everything we do is in both our names.. other than his car, and we don't have kids. But might be best to get it anyway.
• Review life insurance Policies, gosh I hate thinking about this.. but it's part of being adult, not just military.
• Get switched to TriCare Prime- I should have already done this forever ago.
• Set up a second savings account for the 1973 Dodge Dart my husband wants to fix up.
• Have the Car serviced, and any problems that need to be fixed.. fixed.
• Sell my 2000 Cavalier- Less than 60K miles if you want it! ;)

I think that's it as far as the physical preparedness.. But Considering this Deployment will be my first.. I could be missing some "Must Do's".

As far as emotionally, and things to accomplish... I have several.. Here are some:

• Have 3 friends (obviously I have more, but to me.. these are the musts)- 1 person that will tell you to "Get over it", "Put your big girl panties on".. Believe it or not- I think everyone needs this person to keep you thinking straight. 1 person to be your shoulder to cry on, the person you vent to.. your "Therapist" in my opinion. We all need someone to listen that doesn't judge you. and 1 person that is a wife from your husband's command, that is going through the same exact things your are for the same amount of time... because I believe that at some point you feel as if others not associated with your husband's deployment don't understand.. even if in all actuality.. everyone who is going through or has gone through a deployment definitely understands.
• Write a list of goals to accomplish.. So far I have things like- Decorate our *new* place, Do training classes with Roo (our Pitty), Get on a set workout routine, make a list of carepackage ideas.. etc
• Blog more about how the "PreDeployment" is affecting me.. or how it's not affecting me because I created this blog for things related to military life- and what I think.. and to hopefully give insite from my view of how things happen. 
• Read more- because I realize how much I love learning new things. 

I have so much planned and what not.. just kind of drawing a blank right now.. might have something to do with the dayquil.. feeling a little "Medicine head".

Neglected

I haven't been keeping up with my blog and the 30 days of me...
My husband is on leave and We have been spending TONS of time together. No time for blogging- But hey, I'm not complaining. We've been having a blast!

Friday night we went to a Country Western club/ bar with some friends. My husband is not a fan whatsoever of country music. I know.. I know.. He's from Tennessee and doesn't like country music.. anyway, We get in and we con a couple of our friends to ride the mechanical bull. It was hilarious. Everyone tried to get my husband to get on it.. he just wasn't drunk enough I guess... well, wasn't really drunk at all at that point.

The husband drank a little more, and well.. the true Nashvillian came out. SOMEHOW.. for someone who despises country music so much.. he knew a lot of the songs played there. Caught him singing many of them. Then, my husband drug me to the dance floor.. to line dance, which I hadn't done since I was about 12- eek. He had never line danced in his life and did far better than I did. He was a hoot to watch. Our whole group got a kick out of him.

And around 1-130am.. we got kicked out. Ha. Husband had one too many Jack and Cokes.

Since then we've helped a friend move, hungout with some friends- watched tons of football, went out to eat... and well, just enjoyed the time we have just being together.

Tomorrow is our 2 year wedding anniversary. Not real sure what he has planned, but I do know we are going to act like a couple kids and go to an arcade where I can whoop his butt in some Skeeball! Oh yes. Definitely not your traditional anniversary- but this is SO us. We love having fun together and laughing. We can watch a movie and go to dinner anytime we want, tomorrow is a day for just us to have fun and enjoy each other. What better way than to bring the kid out in each other? I think it's a great plan.

He has the majority of the rest of the week off. So, I will again be neglecting my blog for a bit more. But I will jump back in where I left off with my "30 days of me" and maybe a little bit about his leave and our time spent together. Oh, be sure to keep up with Goodnight moon. I'm guest blogging over there next week ;)

It's only Astro Turf

Do you know people who are always, "I wish I had this", "You have it easier".. etc? I think we all atleast know someone who is this way... also sometimes known as a "One-Upper". The, "Grass is greener on the other side" person. Sometimes, unknowingly.. it may be us. 

I try my best to NOT be one of those people, because honestly.. They get to me. Too much negativity. It's one thing for theses things to cross one's mind, but to constantly vocalize it.. Is that not complaining? To me, that person just seems so unhappy. Why would you want people to perceive you that way? I don't want people looking at me as a "Debbie Downer".

I admit it, I have thought, "I wish my husband had your schedule", or "I wish my husband was only gone for a weekend of training like yours instead of 6 weeks..", BUT I don't say that. I Refuse to say anything of the sort because WE ALL HAVE IT HARD being affiliated with the military. Who am I to say you have it easier compared to my husband and myself? And vice versa. YOU don't know what it's like on my end, and I don't know what it's like for you. You don't know what our schedule is like... etc. What's sad is when "Friends" are the ones "One Upping" you. I think some people think their husband.. or their husband's job is God's gift to the military branch they are associated with. These are the people I believe we need to separate ourselves from, Get rid of all negativity.

No branch is more important than the other. No Rate-JOB is better than any other in the military. And by better, I mean more important. I'm going to use a Ship as an example. Every Rate on the ship is there for a reason, they all work together for that ship to move. Your husband's job isn't the only thing that can prevent them from pulling in or pulling out. Something goes wrong with the Nukes- It can change the schedule.. If something goes wrong with the Hanger-bay Elevators- it can change the schedule. If something goes wrong with the Weapons elevators- it can change a schedule.. If Security isn't on the boat- it's going to change the schedule.. You get my point. EVERYTHING has to work together.. for the ship to "Run". From a Undesignated Rate, to a Nuke, to an Ordnanceman, to an IT to the Captain- They all have a reason on that ship. If they didn't have a purpose on that ship, they Navy wouldn't waste money on them. So don't put your husband's job on a pedestal and say it's "more important".

Coming up on Deployment, I realize these are the people I need to stay away from. These people can affect your mood, and I'm seeing them start to affect mine.. to the point where I anger easily, and I'm usually really good with controlling my anger. I need to surround myself with people who aren't saying "You have it easier" to bring me down because IT'S HARD ON ME TOO. Not just YOU.. Military Schedules are tough on EVERYONE. I'm going to take myself away from the negativity and  keep with the ones who are positive, and are uplifting rather than a downer.

The point I was trying to make is that The grass may look greener on the other side, but its only AstroTurf! You've been dealt your cards, now play them the best you can.. stop wanting someone else's hand.. Hope I said that without sounding crazy.. and hopefully you got the gist of what I was trying to say. Appreciate what you have, appreciate any time you have. Make the best with what YOU have!

My husband works 14+ hours a day, comes home eats.. and then sleeps- then we start it all over again. I'm not complaining. Yes, It's hard. BUT I'm extremely grateful for that hour or two I get a day to see my husband to talk to my husband. I am also grateful that because of his schedule, I am strong enough to not break down when he's gone for a 6 week underway (predeployment training) Because I'm use to not seeing him. We get to talk more when he's underway, even if it's just through email. Some people don't see their husband at all right now... And won't for a year or more. There are women who have children with Deployed husbands... Not to mention, think of the kids with deployed dads.. and mothers.

Noone should be One-Upped. We are all in tough situations. After all, are we not all in this together?

Giveaway Winner!- Final Notice

  Jessica- Me, Him and The Army- please contact me by Friday
ChristinaLRush@yahoo.com

I'm Re-posting this because the Winner never contacted me. Giveaway winner was announced September 6.

**If I receive no contact by Friday, Then Sarah from Confessions of a Sailor's wife will receive the book. 

Jessica over at Me, Him and the Army is the giveaway winner! :D You will receive the book: Surviving Deployment: A guide for Military Families" by Karen M. Pavlicin.

Please send me an Email with your full name and address so I can get your prize to you (email ChristinaLRush@yahoo.com).

Thank you to all of you who entered. I will do another book giveaway soon!

PS- I love "The Hat", I put in the names.. Hit shuffle.. wahlah- Winner! :D

Day 09 – Your beliefs

I have a post similar to what this one will be. But, I'm going to go with it- and hopefully kick it up a notch.

It is my belief that we all have our own opinions and beliefs, with that being said- we shouldn't attack each other for our thoughts.

I believe marriage is more than just a piece of paper. I think my ring is more than just a piece of frivolous jewelry. Both are sentiments to me. Both are proof of my promise to my husband, to my marriage. Yeah, sure- anyone can get married, but not just anyone can keep their promise. Sure, a girlfriend can love her boyfriend just as much as a wife can love her husband. But, in my opinion, a girlfriend is the trials to what can turn into a great marriage. A fiance is the next step- saying "I want to spend my life with you", "I'm ready to make that lifelong commitment". Marriage is forever- Well, it should be, it's supposed to be.

I believe in God, but I'm not the best Christian. Yes- I do question a lot of things. I'm a questioner. I was raised with Christian Values, and although I stumble a lot with my faith, my beliefs that were instilled in me growing up stand strong.

I believe that homosexuality is wrong. Men and women are like puzzle pieces- they fit together the way they should. Homosexuality, to me, is forcing two pieces together that aren't supposed to be a match.
With this subject, I also believe that the Military "Don't ask, Don't tell" policy should stay. I believe this for several reasons, but am not going to explain them here. Search a few blogs back to find my post on DADT. I Do not believe people are born gay, I do think it's a choice. You don't have to agree with me- that's your belief, this one is mine.

I believe in ghosts/ spirits. Too many crazy things have happened to me and my family for there not to be.

It is my belief that the death penalty is not used nearly enough... or even better- instead of the death penalty, we should torture those who without a doubt have committed murder, rape.. etc. Death is an easy way out, but I don't think that locking them up with cable TV, recreation time, better food than the military gets.. etc. is punishment. It's a vacation for some. Not to mention they get free health-care, dental and education while there.

I believe the health-care reform is a load of crap. Refer to post from many months ago.

I believe this whole "Pull out of Iraq" is an empty lie. Yea sure, it's being said that it's no longer a "combat zone".. so that means we're "pulling out". Ha. Yeah right. Lets just label it a "Training Zone" and make everyone think Obama fulfilled his promise. People are still deploying to Iraq, and doing the same darn thing they do in a "Combat Zone".... guess this is 'live' training.

I believe that people who drink and drive should have harsher punishment. Especially celebrities- sheesh, some role models. Know too many people who have lost their lives, or have taken someone else's because of this selfish act.

I believe that I should have been born in the 1940's.. Pretty sure I belong there.

I believe you make your own Happiness- Too many people blame someone else, and even more-so.. I see people blaming the Military. Pure stupidity in my opinion.

I believe in the Right to Bar Arms- Don't try to take away mine and my families guns.

I do not believe hunting is immoral. I once saw an picture of an advertisement. The ad said "Hunters should be ashamed of themselves, shooting an animal is so inhumane. Why not go to the store and buy meat the humane way?!" hmm.. ok, I think I prefer the taste of a happy, free, non hormone induced animal that was killed in a slaughter house. I have been hunting myself. I have shot, gutted, cooked and ate a deer, and squirrel. I grew up eating meat that was brought in by my family- and not from a store. I have ate deer, cow, goat, pig, chicken, turkey, pigeon, quail, dove, squirrel, rabbit, frog legs, crawdads..  Lord knows what else. My parents rarely bought meat from a store. Just one deer would feed my family of 6 for months growing up.

I believe in Freedom. So many take that for granted.

I believe that Google has the answer to everything.

I believe abortion is wrong, except in cases of Rape and situations where it could/ would kill the mother & child. I think being in the perspective of someone who has had multiple miscarriages, that child could have been given to someone more deserving.

I believe that Sunday's Titans game against the Steelers was complete crap. Titans straight up gave it away.

I believe I'm done with this post.

Day 08 – A moment

I should have posted this two days ago, so forgive me for trying to catch  up.

A moment, I assume this means to talk about any moment?

I'm going to write about a moment- a time that was so hard for me, but at the same time, I got one of the best feelings ever imaginable.

In July 2008- Mine and my husband's first miscarriage. No, I'm not saying that the miscarriage was the best feeling ever imaginable, because it was just the opposite. Keep reading.
When I found out I was pregnant, my husband and I were extremely scared. We didn't want anyone to know until we were ready. So, it stayed between us, one of his friends and one of mine. When he and I were alone- I could see the excitement in his face. He would place his hands on my belly and would talk to it. It was the most amazing feeling in the world. It was a moment when I know his whole world had changed.

When he and I first met, he didn't want kids, it was a big question to him. When I found out I was pregnant, I saw that his whole view of wanting kids had completely changed.

When I miscarried, it was the hardest thing I had ever faced. I think it was for my husband as well. But it was the moments of embracing each other and being there for each other that got us through, that kept our heads up- and brought us even more closer.

Day 07 – Your best friend

How cute is this picture?!

My best friend.. well this one is Easy-smeazy.

First off, What do I think defines a "Best Friend"?
To me, a best friend is someone you trust more than anyone else. The person you feel you can talk to about everything, the one you can always count on no matter what. This person can put a smile on your face in no time. They know everything about you. A best friend is the one who knows you best, the one you can be completely yourself around and be totally comfortable with. This person doesn't judge you, they are your shoulder to cry on, your therapist at times. It is a person you want to call or talk to immediately when something exciting happens, and when something bad happens as well. You Love this person like family- sometimes, that person is family. 

I could continue on with my definition, but I assume you get my point.

My best friend is also the love of my life- he is my husband.
He fits every bit of my definition of what a best friend means to me. I consider myself lucky to have such an amazing husband and best friend-This is when he would tell me "It's not luck if it's meant to be".. See why I call him Mr. Amazing?!

I am blessed.

Day 06 – Your day

Today was a pretty good day. The husband and I slept in, well for some it's not sleeping in, we woke up about 0645, we typically get up between 0200-0230 every morning. So, 0645 is definitely sleeping in.

We had to go to Norfolk to try and figure out what is going on with the RPP with our complex. Everything is set up- Housing is just waiting on the Navy to release money to them, for some reason they are not. Now our complex is threatening to change our lease and charge us the deposits that we got out of by signing up for RPP.  Did we get everything sorted? No.. we have to find the PSD building on base and noone can seem to give us accurate directions to it. The husband is going to go the the small PSD on his ship, but it's not definite he'll figure out anything there- I've called and talked to 3 different people with housing, We went to Fleet and Family.. So, fingers crossed that someone on the ship can tell him what he needs to do- and tell him right this time because his chief told him wrong.

After all that fun stuff- We went to the NEX and then realized the husband forgot his patches at home he needed for his new dress blues we needed to buy- so, now that's been put off until Sunday. But we got to check out all the new renovations they have been doing to the NEX.. It's looking pretty nice, so much bigger and the upstairs is a really nice version of Sears in my opinion.

Then it was time for groceries. The commissary wasn't that busy when we first got there, and it started getting crowded and we decided to get out of there. So, now we have food for a month. I love buying bulk meat. Saves us so much money!

We came home, put away the food and then my husband prepared the food to be grilled this evening. He grilled some hot wings, shish kabobs, grilled corn on the cob.. It was delish! He invited a buddy over to enjoy it wish us.

Now we are all sitting here taking turns playing video games- Broke out some scene it on the xbox, now I'm watching them go at it on the original Sega with NBA Hangtime.. and we're about to play some 007 on the Nintendo 64.. It's been a fun night. They don't know what they have coming with the 007 ;) I own at that game.

Hopefully, we will be off to bed soon. My hubby is helping me finish my photography home studio (room we're using as a studio) tomorrow. Just gotta set up the lights! :D

Day 05 – Your definition of loveDay

LoveDay? Honestly, I have never heard of it.. So, instead of looking it up.. I'm just going to go with what my head is telling me to type out. If you are reading this, and you actually know what that day is.. do share.

LoveDay, Is it another Valentine's day? Why do we have just one day to express our love for our significant other? Although I do enjoy Valentine's day, I feel like sometimes there's too much pressure to make the night perfect and to go over the top- my husband and I just enjoy the time we have together, maybe go to a movie or rent one, maybe go out to eat.. or maybe eat-in. It's not about how flashy the night is, it's about the each of us just being together.

Or is LoveDay something completely different? Is it a day where we all show appreciation for one another and have a caring and helpful heart? Not just for your significant other, but for everyone- as in helping them out, lending a hand where needed?

I guess it could be many things. I didn't want to look it up and make this blog post seem like a research paper.

Day 04 – What you ate today

I meant to post this last night, but my husband was home and I like to spend every minute I can with him.. especially with Deployment on the horizon.

What did I eat yesterday? Honestly, Yesterday I didn't eat so well. Was so busy, everything was just quick meals. We are in need of a commissary trip.. That comes tomorrow. 

I skipped breakfast, which I know I need to stop doing that. I started doing very well eating granola and banana for breakfast- I guess I'll start back on that. I really should!

For Lunch I had a small bowl of Chicken noodle soup and I had an itching for some chicken nuggets, and I happened to have a bag of the Tyson chicken nuggets in the freezer- I know, totally unhealthy.

For dinner, The husband and I went to McDonalds- and I ate like a fat kid. I had a Big Mac.. again, totally unhealthy.

Writing this... I see that yesterday was a totally unhealthy day for me.. Today was no better. But starting tomorrow- I am going to get back on my health kick!

When the husband is at sea- I thought I wasn't eating that well.. but I think I was eating better than what I am now.. Plus I was doing P90X.. gotta figure out how to maintain all this WITH him being home too.