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Friday, January 30, 2009

I PASSED!!!!! :-)

As I mentioned in the previous post, I will be heading to nursing school come Monday morning. Well, one of the requirements was to take an assessment test. This wasn't a test to get me into the school, just to simply see if I may need an additional math, English, or reading class. Brown Mackie isn't the typical college where you have to take a bunch of pre-reqs. before you even start your major. But they do have intermediate math, English and reading if needed.
Well, I was pretty confident going in with the English and reading....but the math was a whole different story. In school I was HORRIBLE in math, it was by far my worst subject and really the only thing I struggled with. So, you can imagine my nerves since it's been 9 years since I've done any of this.
Well, I'm very proud and excited to say that I passed all 3 sections and I'm able to start in on Intro to Nursing on Monday!! In fact, the instructor said myself and 2 other girls had the highest scores in the class!
God truly answered my prayers when I asked for his help to let me pass! :-)

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Back to School!!

For those of you that have been wondering what's going on....here it is. I'm going back to school!!! :-)

This is something that I've been thinking about for the last couple of years, but do to financial responsibility and other things, it was never the right time. Well, Chris and I have decided that 2009 will be the best time! With him being gone, I'll focus better and I'm sure this will make the time fly by!

So, I'm sure you're asking yourself...what am I going to school for? I will be going to become an LPN!! Eventually I'd like to be an RN....but I haven't decided if I'll go straight through for that or take a break. I'll be doing an accelerated program through Brown Mackie, which is in Akron and only about 10 minutes from our house. The program is 15 months long and if everything stays on schedule, I'll graduate in May 2010. I will be working from home part time and going to school full time. So with going to school, studying, working 30 hours a week, and going to the gym 3-4 days a week (want to lose 30-40lbs. by the time Chris gets home), I'll be one BUSY girl!

I'm super excited for this big change in our lives, but nervous at the same time. It's been awhile since I've been in school, but I know I have to do something with my life that I get satisfaction out of! Chris supports me 100% and I probably wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't for his support and encouragement.

Classes for me start on Monday...wish me luck! :-)

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Windsor, Canada!!

It's always been a promise between my Aunt Diane and myself that when my cousin Brittany turned 19 we would take her to Canada. For those of you that don't know, it's legal to drink and gamble in Canada when you're 19. Well, that time came and that's where you could find the 3 of us this past weekend!
We left Friday evening after work and stayed till Sunday. We gambled, we ate, we shopped, we drank...it was a GREAT time! I've always been very close to my Aunt, more like a best friend and to my cousin...the 3 of us had a ball and I would do it again in a heart beat!
So if you ever want to get us laughing about our trip you can always ask about Chester or the way we figured out how you can tell a Canadian quarter from a nickel...it's the moose and the beaver!!

Caesar's Windsor!

Brittany & I


Brittany & Diane

Me, Brittany, & Diane having a goofy time at the bar!

Getting my eyebrows threaded. This is a way to shape without waxing...it was very cool!

Diane getting some experiments done on her!

Lobby of the Casino

Happy Birthday Britt, I can't believe you're already 19!

Diane, Me, & Brittany having some drinks!

Enjoying the band!

Waterfall outside the Casino!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Sleepover!!

Last weekend I had yet another sleepover with little Miss Isabella, giving mom & dad a break and a nice quite night out alone! We had a lot of snow last weekend, so we just kind of hung out. We watched some TV, played a lot with Zoe, watched Kung Fu Panda (which is very funny for those of you that haven't seen it), and enjoyed some popcorn!
I always love having Bella over, she always seems to keep my mind off of other things, keeps me very busy and we have a great time! You're welcome over anytime Bella for our special movie, popcorn, sleepover nights! :-)

Playing with Zoe!

Looks like Zoe's winning!

I love that big smile! :-)

Me & the greatest goddaughter ever!

She needed a catnap before starting the movie!

So Sweet!!!

Bella LOVESSSS Popcorn!

All ready to go to bed in her new 'sleepover bed'!

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Things you Never say to a Military Wife when her Husbands Deployed!!

I don't have a lot of friends, co-workers, etc. that know what it's like to be separated from their best friend, their partner, their everything. So when questions start to get asked, I don't think people realize what kind of questions their really asking or how it's making the 'wife' feel. Even though these kinds of questions are annoying, I don't think people mean them in a bad way. I always keep my composure and answer with the honest truth. I found a list of question/answers that make military spouses skin crawl...I wanted to share so the next time you ask a military spouse questions, you won't get an answer you weren't prepared for!!

I know it's a little lengthy, but I hope you take the couple minutes to read it. I thought this was very cute and VERY true!!!

1. “Aren’t you afraid that he’ll be killed?”
(This one ranks in at number one on the “duh” list. Of course we’re afraid. We’re terrified. The thought always lingers at the backs of our minds —but thanks brilliant, you just brought it back to the front. Maybe next you can go ask someone with cancer if they’re scared of dying.)

2.
“I don’t know how you manage. I don’t think I could do it.”
(This is intended to be a compliment. Though, its just a little annoying. Here’s why: it’s not like all of us military wives have been dreaming since childhood of the day we’d get to be anxious single moms who carry cell phones with us to the bathroom and in the shower. We’re not made of some mysterious matter that makes us more capable, we just got asked to take on a challenging job. So we rose to the challenge and found the strength to make sacrifices.)

3.
“At least he’s not in Iraq.”
(This is the number one most annoying comment for those whose husbands are in Afghanistan. What do they think is happening in Afghanistan? An international game of golf? Guys are fighting and dying over there.)

4.
“Do you think he’ll get to come home for Christmas/anniversary/birthday/birth of a child/wedding/family reunion, etc?”
(Don’t you watch the news? No! They don’t get to come home for any of these things. Please don’t ask again.)

5.
“What are you going to do to keep yourself busy while he’s gone?”
(Short answer: Try to keep my sanity. Maybe there’s a military wife out there who gets bored when her husband leaves, but I have yet to meet her. For the rest of us, those with and without children, we find ourselves having to be two people. That keeps us plenty busy. We do get lonely, but we don’t get bored, and drinking massive amounts of wine always helps keep me busy.)

6.
“How much longer does he have until he can get out?”
(This one is annoying to many of us whether our husbands are deployed or not. Many of our husbands aren’t counting down the days until they “can” get out. Many of them keep signing back up again and again because they actually love what they do or they VOLUNTEER AGAIN and AGAIN to go back to Iraq b/c there is work that needs to be done.)

7.
“This deployment shouldn’t be so bad, now that you’re used to it.”
(Sure, we do learn coping skills and its true the more deployments you’ve gone through, the easier dealing with it becomes. And we figure out ways to make life go smoother while the guys are gone. But it never gets “easy” and the bullets and bombs don’t skip over our guys just because they’ve been there before. The worry never goes away.)

8.
“My husband had to go to Europe for business once for three weeks. I totally know what you’re going through.”
(This one is similar to number two. Do not equate your husband’s three week trip to London/Omaha/Tokyo/etc. with a 12-15 month or more deployment to a war zone. Aside from the obvious time difference, nobody shot at your husband or tried to blow him up with an I.E.D., your husband could call home pretty much any time he wanted to, he flew comfortably on a commercial plane, slept between crisp white sheets and ate well, paying for everything with an expense account. There is no comparison. We do not feel bonded to you in the slightest because of this comment and, if anything, we probably resent you a bit for it. Comparing a 12 month combat deployment to a few weeks business trip is like comparing a shitty ford Taurus with Mercedes convertible.)

9.
“Wow you must miss him?”
(This one also gets antoher big “duh”. Of course we miss our men. There are some wives who do not and they’re now divorced.)

10.
“Where is he exactly? Where is that?”
(I don’t expect non-military folks to be able to find Anbar Province on a map, but they should know by now that it’s in Iraq. Likewise, know that Kabul and Kandahar are in Afghanistan. Know that Muqtada al Sadr is the insurgent leader of the Mahdi Army in Iraq and that Sadr City is his home area. Know that Iran is a major threat to our country and that it is located between Afghanistan and Iraq. Our country has been at war in Afghanistan for seven years and at war in Iraq for five years. These basic facts are not secrets, they’re on the news every night and in the papers every day —and on maps everywhere.)

11.
“Well, he signed up for it, so it’s his own fault whatever happens over there.
(Yes, ignorant, he did sign up. Each and every day he protects your right to make stupid comments like that. He didn’t sign up and ask to be hit by anything, he signed up to protect his country. Oh, and by the way, he asked me to tell you that “You’re welcome.” He’s still fighting for your freedom.)

12.
“Don’t you miss sex! I couldn’t do it!”
(hmmm, no i don’t miss sex. i’m a robot. seriously…military spouses learn quickly that our relationships must be founded on something greater than sex. We learn to appreciate the important things, like simply hearing their voices, seeing their faces, being able to have dinner together every night. And the hard truth is, most relationships probably couldn’t withstand 12 months of sex deprivation.)

13.
“Well in my opinion…..”
(Stop right there. Yo, I didn’t ask for you your personal political opinions. Hey, I love a heated political debate, but not in the grocery store, not in Jamba Juice, not at Nordstrom, not in a restaurant when I’m out with my girls trying to forget the war, and CERTAINLY NOT AT WORK. We tell co-workers about deployments so when we have to spend lunch hours running our asses off doing errands and taking care of the house, dog, and kids, they have an understanding. We do not tell co-workers and colleagues because we are giving an invitation to ramble about politics or because we so eagerly want to hear how much they hate the President, esp. while we’re trying to heat up our lean cuisines in the crappy office microwaves.)

last but not least….

14. “OH, that’s horrible…I’m so sorry!”
(He’s doing his job and he’s tough. Don’t be sorry. Be appreciative and please take a moment out of your comfortable American lives to realize that our soldiers fight the wars abroad so those wars stay abroad.)

If you want to say anything, say thank you. After all, we are sexually deprived for your freedom

Saturday, January 10, 2009

New Year's Eve '08!

Our New Year's Eve this year was spent with friends. A few of our friends had went into together and reserved the entire upstairs to a local bar. It was a fun night, with good food, and spent with great friends! Happy 2009!!

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

It's Official... :-(

As promised, I wanted to update everyone on Chris. As of today, Chris is heading over to Iraq. I will keep you as updated on him as I can and hopefully have some pictures to post as he sends them. Over the next 11 months, please keep him in your prayers and wish for a safe and quick return.


Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Floor Time!

As you all know, we're in the middle of remodeling our kitchen. While Chris was home we took the opportunity to get the kitchen floor done. It didn't take too long, about a day and a half. I think the worse part was ripping up the old floor and getting that cleaned up before laying the new stuff down, not to mention getting the new floor cut to fit around all the little ins and outs.
Thanks Chris and Dad, it looks great...I LOVE it, it makes a world of difference!


Ripping up the old floor!









Installing the new floor!



Finished Product: far end of the kitchen
Front half of the kitchen

Sunday, January 4, 2009

A Night with New Friends!

While Chris was home, we had a surprise party to attend. The party was for one of Chris's very good friends from his unit, Justin. Justin's wife was throwing him a going away/birthday party. While they are gone Justin will miss his 30th Birthday, so his wife, Jenn, wanted to make sure he got the celebration he deserved. The party was a lot of fun!
It was great to meet more people from the unit and some of the other wives. I'm very thankful that Jenn and I had got to meet prior to the party and became instant friends. We love to talk about how cute our husbands friendship is, Jenn and I feel much better that Chris has Justin & Justin has Chris.

Chris & Justin

The Maderas & The Milams!

Justin & Chris toasting the celebration!

Group shot time!

Chris & I

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Haynes' Family Get Together!

The weekend after Christmas, the family all planned to have a Christmas get together. With crazy schedules and the run of the mill everyday life, the local family doesn't get together as much as we'd like. So we took the opportunity around the holidays to make that happen. It was great to visit, see people we haven't seen in awhile, and eat great food.

Me & Chris

Rob & Kailyn

Attempting to get a picture of all the great-grandchildren....it was funny to watch getting them all together!

Catching up among family

The local brothers and sisters

The local brothers & sisters with thier spouses

The local 1st cousins

The local 1st cousins with their spouses

Uncle Chris teaching Bella a tune!

Friday, January 2, 2009

Iraq Bound! :-(

I'm sad to report that Chris is officially gone for the next 10-12 months. He had to report back to his unit this morning at 9am. By 10am they were all pulling out to head back to New Jersey. There, they have a few more training exercises to get through, pack, and get ready to bored the planes. There is no exact date yet of when they will actually head over, it's sounding like the end of next week, but I will definitely keep everyone posted. I know what some of you are thinking...yes we've been apart for a year before. However, we did get to see each other twice during that year and with him being in Cuba, I knew he was safe. For some reason, this time feels different, it somehow feels harder!

This morning was definitely not easy. As the alarm went off and I rolled over, all I kept thinking was how fast these 10 days went by. How there wasn't enough time to spend together and all the things we wished we got to do. The 40 minute drive to his unit wasn't all smiles either. I definitely kept my composure, but at the same time I had SO many thoughts going through my head. How will I ever get through this? Will he come home 'okay'? And then other thoughts like, I'm going to miss sharing our days together, I'll miss his smile and the way he makes me laugh. All the things he'll miss out on throughout the year...family birthdays and functions, his 35th birthday, my birthday, our 5th Anniversary, any holidays between now and November, all the summer activities we've always enjoyed doing, not to mention the things at the house that will change. However, he did give me his blessing on anything I want to upgrade or remodel...it's nice to know he trusts me 100% with those choices!

So as Chris goes off to war and I stay back to keep our lives together, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. The next year will definitely not be easy for me or Chris, but our relationship has been tested many times before and our love with conquer all!


My Heart


Thursday, January 1, 2009

Happy 2009!

We want to wish you a very happy & healthy New Year, from our family to yours!


New Year