Sloooow Down!

YES, I'm talking about deployment. I'm wanting time to slow down a little bit. Time is going by so fast that I can't keep up! He will be home very soon and I have SO much planned for him- for us and time is going by so fast that I can't keep up!

I'm anxious, excited and well.. FREAKING OUT!

Freaking out because we're about to close on our house, I still have  A LOT to pack, I have to schedule the movers.. then unpack and decorate in a matter of ___Days!

Yes ___ Days!  (Insert relatively low number in the blank!)

On top of packing, planning and moving.. I want to make a birthday surprise for him.. I want it to be PERFECT.. By perfect, I mean totally cheesy, over the top- and well.. so us.

I have bought him entirely way too many gifts, and I'm sure I will be buying more (I go shopping for me and only buy for him- go figure). Half of them are already wrapped in obnoxious "Happy Birthday" paper. I Have "Happy Birthday" balloons ready to blow up and throw all over the dinning room. I need to get obnoxious streamers.. and lord knows what else I'll end up doing for decor. I plan to have all the wrapped gifts on the table with all the pretty decorations around.. plus some sweet snacks. I've decided on making Cake Pops because they are totally awesome.

See, Awesome right?! Imagine them with a bunch of colorful sprinkles... Oh yes, I'm going to have a blast making them!

Then there's the bedroom I have plans for- but that's for a different blog/ giveaway to be hosted very soon!

Not to mention I have some kick ass ideas for homecoming signs I plan to put up everywhere around our new house- which he has yet to see aside from pics sent to him in email!

I have so so so much to do.. and a very small amount of time to accomplish it in. So days, Please slow down because I want to rock this first deployment coming to an end!

Oh how I wish I could just snap my finger's and it all be perfect. If I could do that, I would so hope that homecoming was tomorrow!

Cheater, Cheater, Pumpkin Eater..

Answer me this, WHY get married if you can't stay committed to your marriage?

And please, don't anyone tell me that "Cheating doesn't mean you're not committed to your marriage." That is utter bullshit. If you're committed to your marriage- to your relationship... You are NOT going to cheat.

There is no justifying cheating. It is never okay to cheat. If your significant other cheats, it doesn't mean it's okay for you to cheat too. Two wrongs definitely and most obviously don't make a right.

Cheating is selfish. Cheating always hurts someone.

If you can't stay faithful and COMMITTED to your relationship- Leave. Grow a pair, be an adult and get out of your relationship. You want to be with someone else and also stay with your SO? Well, you can't always have your cake and eat it too.

Reverse the roles. Do you want to be cheated on? Does anyone ever really want to be cheated on? C'mon, noone is honestly going to say, "I would love to have the person I'm dating/ married to to cheat on me". Seriously?

If you're offended by this post, then quite honestly.. You probably shouldn't read my blog because we surely don't share that much in common as far as Morales. We can never be friends. I refuse to associate or be friends with someone who is going to cheat on their spouse.

I know deployment is hard for some. But Cheating?
"I didn't mean to, it just happened". Bullshit. If you feel tempted- why in the Hell would you put yourself in a situation to where it could happen? Own up- you suck, end of story!

If you feel "Lonely" and you need company- Go to Fleet & Family- or the like for your husband's branch. GET HELP. OR just tell your significant other that you can't handle a long distance relationship and that you need someone catering to your physical needs all the time. Because isn't that what it really is? YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE OTHER NOT BEING THERE PHYSICALLY.

Again, If you cheat. You suck.

That's my take on it.

Before You Know It...

My husband JUST left.. that's how it seems. How can it be so close to homecoming? It's crazy.

Time has Flown this deployment. Very soon, I will be welcoming my amazing husband home.

Deployment day, I watched the ship leave. I watched the ship until I could no longer see her anymore. It disappeared in the distance. I thought, "This is it, deployment is official now". I had wondered how hard it was going to be. Wondered if I would be one of the sad girls.. even wondered if I would end up being one of those on Depression pills as another blogger had posted about me.

I'm proud to say- I'm not sad. I don't think deployment is hard (again, this is speaking about myself). I am most definitely not on any Depression or anxiety medicines [So, here's the middle finger to you Mrs. I don't know you but I'm calling you out on some bogus BS].

Deployment doesn't have to be a bad experience. You don't have to be sad, and miserable- no matter what the length of your deployment is. I'm obvious proof of that.

I didn't think that deployment would go this fast. Honestly, I thought deployment would drag on and most days would seem long. Man O'man, was I wrong. Deployment has flown by! Now, I'm having trouble keeping up!

People say, "It'll be over before you know it!". I've seen a few ladies get mad at the statement.. but you know what? Homecoming is almost here and now I'm running out of time to do all the tings I have planned for homecoming. It snuck up on me- Before I knew it.. BAM! It's seriously right around the corner!

Seriously, keeping busy and giving yourself relax days is definitely how to make time pass by! Good communication is key to making your relationship work through phone and email.

Now, I have insane butterflies. I'm getting anxious and overly excited. Someone says homecoming and I smile insanely big. I look at the countdown I have here at home.. and wonder, "Where did all this time go?!".  Where did May go? Didn't we JUST hit the halfway point?! We're almost there.

Now, I really need to figure out what I'm going to wear! If I end up on anxiety meds, it's going to be because shopping for a perfect homecoming dress is STRESSFUL! ;)

Home is Where YOUR Heart is

"Home is where the heart is". Where is YOUR Heart?

For some, it may be their hometown, wherever their mom and dad are, where their kids are.. Or like me, Where their husband is.

My home is wherever my husband is. My husband has my heart, completely. So I guess you could say, "My heart is on the Enterprise". But also thinking about the subject, my heart is here. Here in VA, even though he, my husband, is thousands of miles away.

Why in Virginia? This is where OUR home is. This is where we are together, this is where we live. Anywhere I am with him, is HOME.

I may still refer to Tennessee as Home, but really- it's not home anymore. Tennessee is where I grew up, where I met my husband, were we were married... etc. It was home in the past, it may be home in the future. But for now, Virginia is home. It is where my husband and I are currently making a home.

But that's more on a physical standpoint. But what is "Home" to me emotionally..

Home to me, isn't just about Where we live really. Home is where he and I are together. "Home" to me is a feeling. Feeling complete, feeling comfortable, feeling warm and feeling loved. My "home" isn't complete right now. A big piece of the puzzle is missing. Although I know I have his heart, his physical presence is missing, leaving my home incomplete.

Where is home to you? What defines home in your eyes? What makes your home complete?

Dear 16 Year Old Me

This video really makes you think.

Halfway there!

Friday night was USS Enterprise halfway party. No, that does not mark the exact halfway point of deployment, marking the exact halfway point would be a violation of OPSEC.

I had a lot of fun. It was very well planned. The food was pretty good- although, the servers took the food away way too soon (this gal likes to eat!). The cookies made up for it though ;).

The FRG planned it wonderfully. Something like 50 items were donated for door prizes (I donated 6 items- 3 shirts from CRushGFX, A Print of the Ship and a Free session from Christina Rush Photography, and Sailor LEGO Keychain made by Boxhounds from this website, The Journey of a Navy Wife). I am unsure who all one my donations, but I hope they all enjoy them! I won a $25 giftcard from Lowes- which works out perfectly since we are closing on our house next month!

The gals and I danced the night away, just let loose and had fun. Great conversations, lots of laughs and me dancing like a chicken. Yea, I can't dance.

I broke it down to "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice- Yeah.. That I can do. I then dedicated "Jump On It" to a friend, and we got out there and did the Carlton dance. We had a blast.

Of course, I took a break to email my husband from my phone while catching a water break. Telling him about the party some and about winning the gift card. I'm sure he got a good laugh out of some of the emails.

A few friends had a little something to drink (alcohol) and they made the night even more amusing. I can't count how many times I was laughing so hard that I couldn't breathe!

They played a shout out video from the ship- it was nice. My husband wasn't in the video, unfortunately- but that's ok. He emailed me right around the same time the video was playing.. so We emailed back and forth for a bit.

We stayed at the party til about Midnight. We then decided it was iHop time. We went, ate and chatted. Before we knew it.. it was after 2. I was exhausted. I dropped off the gals and I headed home. I got home a little after 3am. I hit the bed and was out. I slept pretty good that night!

Now, We're getting closer to being with our loved ones again. We're on the downhill slope of deployment. We've got it on Cruise control, and it's going to be here before we know it. Get out, have fun.. and things will just fly by. They have for me! Seems like he just left, but he'll be home soon.

Here's a few pics!

Before the dress and before the party

All dressed up- Dress I purchased from Goodnight Moon! (Thanks Amber!)

I love this woman!

Hi! (Yes, completely sober- I don't drink!)

Dancing to "Ice Ice Baby" Old school!

One of my Absolute BEST friends!

Some of our group for the night

It's Deployment, You're REQUIRED to be MISERABLE!

It's becoming more clear to me that during deployment you are expected to be miserable. It is a requirement. It seems to be Politically incorrect to be Happy.

I say {earmuffs} FUCK that!

Being happy, being independent is OK. And DO NOT let ANYONE tell you otherwise- Do NOT believe that you have to be miserable every single day of deployment, that every day that your Significant other is away you have to be curled up at home crying your eyes out. You DO NOT have to be depressed, and sad. You CAN be happy.

Deployment isn't about being sad. Your S.O. is doing a job for Months away from Family. YOU have the ability to make yourself happy. Deployment has no ability to make you happy nor does it have the ability to make you depressed. YOU DO. It is up to YOU.

YES, being away from your loved one is HARD. NO ONE said it was easy. BUT HOW you deal with it can either make it harder on you or easier. I CHOOSE to make it easier on myself and easier on my husband. If I were making myself miserable every damn day- do you think the time apart is going easy to deal with for you? Better yet, what about your service member? He (or she) has ENOUGH to WORRY about with his/her job! The last thing they need to be worrying about is your Mental state of being, or worrying about if you can take care of yourself.

Well guess what! I AM HAPPY. I Choose to be happy and make the best of my time apart from my husband. He is PROUD of me for making my day to day life run as smoothly as possible- and his.

IF someone happens to tell you that YOU'RE supposed to be miserable.. or that because you're HAPPY that you are a "Slap in the face to those who are weak". Know that they are making themselves miserable. They choose to attempt to belittle you because they have it in their puney little brains that you HAVE to be miserable during deployment. Guess what. YOU CAN BE HAPPY. It IS a choice.

Winner Winner!

I was supposed to announce the winner on Thursday. However, I got sidetracked (it happens a lot!).

So, Today.. Right now, I am announcing the winner of the Sailor LEGO Keychain from boxhounds.

And the Winner is.... {Drum-roll please}....

Alyssa!

(Alyssa, I will be emailing you shortly!)

If you weren't the lucky lady from the USS Enterprise halfway party last night to win the Sailor LEGO keychain, or you're not Alyssa- Check out boxhounds to get yours today!

Give Away, Give Away! (Sailor)

It's been quite some time since I have done a giveaway. I think the last giveaway was my 200 followers giveaway. Look at my blog now! More than 300 followers on here and more than 450 on my Blog fan page.

*blushes*

Thanks y'all!

The item I'm giving away is a LEGO Sailor keychain.
It.Is.Awesome!

I know, I know.. It's branch specific- BUT I love it, and I just couldn't help myself.
Just look at how awesome it is:

I found this little booger on Etsy. Yes, I'm addicted to Etsy. The site is Boxhounds on Etsy. They were actually out of the Sailor keychains, so I put in a custom order for them. I ordered one for me.. and one for this giveaway... and a few for friends. The turn around time was so incredibly fast! Seriously- go check them out.

The site also makes them for Marines! So- Check it out!

So.. Now you're wondering. How do I enter?

Ways to enter:

(multiple chances for entry!)

1. "Follow" my blog (click the follow button up top)

2. Comment this blog post with how you found my blog.

3. "Like" The Journey of a Navy Wife on Facebook.

3. Follow me on Twitter @NavyWifeLife

4. Tweet about this giveaway!

5. Post on Facebook about this giveaway!

6. Blog about this giveaway!

There are 6 chances to enter! :D

Post EACH entry in a Separate comment to this blog post.

Also, Put your email address with your comment!
(if you don't put your email address, you MUST check back my blog to see if you win, I will not track you down! :P)

Entry to this giveaway will End May 5 at Noon- eastern time. 

Ready, Set, Go!

Talk To Me

In my nearly 3 years as a Navy wife, what is the one thing I have learned that is Key to a Military Relationship? Not even just a military relationship, Relationships in general? Communication.

Without communication what do you have? Nothing really. Without good communication, You can't have trust, can't have full honesty.. You don't have a Solid foundation for a relationship. You're left with a relationship that is set up for failure- UNLESS you improve on both partner's communication with each other.

Lack of communication causes couples to grow apart. I'm not talking about the long periods of time that a service member CAN'T contact you due to deployment. In your casual emails, phone calls.. day to day life together.. How much is really said between the two of you? How often does he tell you how he's doing? When in port, does he tell you about the things he did? Things he seen? How included in his or her life are you without being there? And reverse it.. How included do you keep them in your life while he or she is away during deployment? It all falls back on communication with each other.

My husband and I didn't always have good communication skills- making periods of time very tough for each other. We weren't together physically, he was away to a-school and I wasn't allowed to live with him. Aside from boot camp, it was the first time we had ever been apart from each other. We thought our communication was good, but in reality, we had a lot to learn.

A-school, as some of you may know, was our big challenge. What made that so challenging is because our communication with each other was rather horrible. It led to trust issues and little lies. I had honestly wondered at times if our marriage was going to be broken due to the military (Military not to blame, but only ourselves- didn't see that then).

Both of us wanted things to work, and work well. We loved each other too much not to. We started to work together and find the root cause of our trouble. It came down to communication. We started discussing more, talking things out- every situation, every issue we faced from there on out. Then the Workups started at his permanent duty station. We knew it was going to challenge us again.

I'm proud to say, that all the work we put into learning to talk to each other and work together paid off. It also totally proved my point to me and to him. Communication is KEY to a relationship. You NEED it. Here we are more than 2 years later, and our communication skills are as strong as ever. I don't hear from him every day.. sometimes longer, but I'm apart of his every day life and he is mine. He writes to me when he can, sometimes they are short emails.. but he will go out of his way to write me to make sure I know he loves me and that he needs me. I tell him about all my little endeavors without him (minus homecoming surprises) to make him feel like he stays apart of my life here at home without him. This allowing our trust to stay strong.

I could keep going with this post, but I feel I'm starting to ramble.

Just talk to your SO, get them involved. Communicate.