This blog is written as a way for me to express my feelings, thoughts and emotions as I go through life as a proud Air Force Wife!

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May 30, 2010

No, Freedom isn't free

When I think of Memorial Day I think about all those soldiers who have lost their lives. I really don't like it when people say Happy Memorial Day. I am not one who is ever happy about memorials and funerals. I guess with my husband deployed I think even more about what that means and could mean to me.


 History of Memorial Day:

Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) — established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.
The first large observance was held that year at Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.
The ceremonies centered around the mourning-draped veranda of the Arlington mansion, once the home of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Various Washington officials, including Gen. and Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, presided over the ceremonies. After speeches, children from the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Orphan Home and members of the GAR made their way through the cemetery, strewing flowers on both Union and Confederate graves, reciting prayers and singing hymns.
Local Observances Claim To Be First Local springtime tributes to the Civil War dead already had been held in various places. One of the first occurred in Columbus, Miss., April 25, 1866, when a group of women visited a cemetery to decorate the graves of Confederate soldiers who had fallen in battle at Shiloh. Nearby were the graves of Union soldiers, neglected because they were the enemy. Disturbed at the sight of the bare graves, the women placed some of their flowers on those graves, as well.
Today, cities in the North and the South claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day in 1866. Both Macon and Columbus, Ga., claim the title, as well as Richmond, Va. The village of Boalsburg, Pa., claims it began there two years earlier. A stone in a Carbondale, Ill., cemetery carries the statement that the first Decoration Day ceremony took place there on April 29, 1866. Carbondale was the wartime home of Gen. Logan. Approximately 25 places have been named in connection with the origin of Memorial Day, many of them in the South where most of the war dead were buried.
Official Birthplace Declared In 1966, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., the “birthplace” of Memorial Day. There, a ceremony on May 5, 1866, honored local veterans who had fought in the Civil War. Businesses closed and residents flew flags at half-staff. Supporters of Waterloo’s claim say earlier observances in other places were either informal, not community-wide or one-time events.
By the end of the 19th century, Memorial Day ceremonies were being held on May 30 throughout the nation. State legislatures passed proclamations designating the day, and the Army and Navy adopted regulations for proper observance at their facilities.
It was not until after World War I, however, that the day was expanded to honor those who have died in all American wars. In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a national holiday by an act of Congress, though it is still often called Decoration Day. It was then also placed on the last Monday in May, as were some other federal holidays.






I watched the flag pass by one day.
It fluttered in the breeze.
A young Marine saluted it,
And then he stood at ease.
I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud,
With hair cut square and eyes alert
He'd stand out in any crowd.
I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers' tears?
How many pilots' planes shot down?
How many died at sea?
How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?
No, freedom isn't free.

I heard the sound of taps one night,
When everything was still
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.
I wondered just how many times
That taps had meant "Amen,"
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend.
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No, freedom isn't free.


©Copyright 1981 by CDR Kelly Strong, USCG (Ret).

May 27, 2010

Watched an F-15 get refueled

OMG!!!  I cannot explain how awesome it was to watch an F-15 get refueled. WOW!

The base had a spouse incentive flight and I was able to go. I missed the first one and they rescheduled because they never got up in the air. So I was able to make the next one- thankfully. They had 4 F-15's scheduled to come and refuel from us while we watched from the boom area. We took turns taking tons of pictures and watching the action. I HIGHLY suggest you take the opportunity if it comes available to go on a spouse flight. You can ask around and maybe someone will set one up. A commanders wife set it up and asked if they could make it happen. They were happy to do it since they want the spouses to be excited about the Air Force so we encourage our hubby's to stay active.  Here are some of the photos that I took.  :-)

Before we got on. It was VERY windy






                                                    He's just hanging out waiting his turn




Video I took while the plane was leaving.

May 26, 2010

Deployments are so expensive

Good Golly deployments are expensive.

I should have kept a tally on the amount of money we have spent and are spending. We bought the Magic Jack for $30 so that he could call us from his computer (new one $$$with web cam) at his convenience. We all know 2 15 minute calls a week is not enough. Anyways, that is now not working, so I looked into Skype calls but they are $35 a month for only 120 minutes. That's NOT going to happen. So- we will try to figure out the Magic Jack that ain't so magical anymore.

That doesn't include the $100 a month we pay for him to have internet so he can call us. Plus all the supplies he needed and the packages I send. Good thing we get seperation allowance. LOL

May 24, 2010

Spouses Social

Had a great social this past week. We had a progressive dinner at 3 local restaurants. It only cost $10 and was a BLAST. We started out with chips, salsa, queso and margarita's at On the Border. We then progressed to pizza and a salad at another restaurant and ended with desert and coffee at yet another restaurant. What fun!  It was great to go to restaurants that I probably otherwise would not have visited. There were over 36 ladies there. A great way to talk to different people since we always sat around different people.



It was also our induction time for next years club officers. I am pretty excited because I am going to be secretary. A new adventure I haven't tried.

What have been your funnest spouses social or event that you went to? I am looking for social ideas for next year. 

May 19, 2010

Our weekend

Well another weekend went by. They seem to go so fast. We had a gloomy weekend because of the weather but made the best of it. My daughter didn't get to have her softball tournament because her coached forgot to get them signed up! Not a good thing. So since we didn't have anything planned until Sat night we enjoyed our day just hanging out. Sometimes those rainy gloomy days are the perfect days to make you just lounge around and relax. Sure- I had tons of stuff to do but there is always tomorrow. I was able to get tons of reading done and didn't even take a shower until 130. hubby called and was shocked when my daughter told him I was in the shower. LOL  He knows me well enough to know that is a very rare moment in deed.

Saturday night we went to town and was part of the closing ceremonies of a festival they were having. Our family was asked to be involved since hubby was deployed. They invited us on stage with a few 3 other base families to talk about us and let the community see some families who are impacted with the war and how we are involved in the community. More of a thing to show that we are regular people just like them EXCEPT our lifestyle is different, just a tad-- right!!  :-)

  It was very nice when they clapped and appreciated us. As we were leaving 2 women stopped who were from out of state to tell us how much they appreciated our family and to let us know that they are praying for us. They said to know that may people pray for the soldiers and their families. This made me feel so good inside. Sometimes you wonder what civilians think about the military.

They were from Maine and talked about how they don't have any bases near them so they never hear about families locally and it was so nice to see a ceremony with military families and such.

SO SWEET!!!

So Sunday was another relaxing day playing cards with my mom and son while my daughter played with a friend.

Overall we had a great weekend. I paid no attention the to the leak that is in my bathroom waiting for me to take care of it. (yes the water is off) I did make a small attempt to fix the mower and decided to just drop it off at a repair shop. Sometimes I need to take the easy route- normally I would have messed with it more but decided it wasn't worth the stress it was causing and would give it to someone else to deal with.

I look forward to this weekend because I am going on a spouses flight. A little nervous about motion sickness but we shall see.

May 17, 2010

Base activities




I am always so amazed at how many base activities there are to do. I find it difficult when people tell me they have nothing to do and don't like a particular base. I know every base is different BUT I typically can find several things a month to do with base activities.

This is a great way to meet new people and just get out of the house. My mom is visiting and so far we went to an Asian   Pacific Festival and had some free food from all over and watched a fashion show. Tomorrow our outdoor rec is holding an open house with free lunch plus activities, and it is spouses group get together then Friday is family Lua night.  Plenty for us to do and that is just in 2 weeks. That doesn't include any of the younger children activities they have with playgroup and the library or the youth center activities.

I know that if people don't go to the activities then they will stop having them so I try and support them for their benefit and mine.  It is great to take the kids to the family night and just let them hang out and then we play bingo for prizes. We have one a free inflatable rental twice now and always use them for the 4th of July.

So- I encourage you to check out whats the latest happenings on base. Our base has a website that lists all the activities available.  Of course I seem more involved in them since hubby isn't here. It helps me to feel closer to him when we are around other military members.

On another note.  I received a few more blog awards.

Thanks to   






for the award!!


Share 7 things about yourself:
1- I am currently reading the Twilight series
2-  I LOVE the sun!!!  Need lots of it
3- Have been married for almost 14 years
4- I love olive juice- yum yum
5-I am not a big fan of chocolate
6- Moscato is my favorite wine
7- We have 2 dogs
8- I HATE pee's
9- Love mexican food
10-I would love for us to retire in Florida- depending on the current oil crisis situation and if it affects the beaches.

10 Blogs to pass  the awards on to

Carmen @  We see the same stars
Sara @  Welcome to the blog of an Army wife
Renee @ Waiting to Exhale
Mira @ Somewhere There


AND whoever else would like to pick it up.  I know blogging takes time so I am sharing the blog love!! Come on come all.  LOL





I would also like to thank:  










For the following awards:



Award Rules: 
1. Thank the person who gave you this award.
2. Share 10 things about yourself
3. Pass the award along to 10 bloggers who you have recently discovered and who you think are worthy of the award.
4. Contact the bloggers you've picked and let them know about the award.

SEE ABOVE-  LOL  didn't want to repeat it twice

May 14, 2010

RECAP! and Air Force Live Website

Going to take a moment and recap some of my posts.  Yes- I am having a blank moment but just in case you missed something you might find interesting-Click on a topic to go to the page.


Also,   I am SO excited!! My Blog is on the Air Force Live DOD website. Check out their site:


I have written about:

Family BBQ's- Not for us

Not getting PCS orders

Being the worst mom

Deployment Mind Games

Weekly Madness

I was reminded today

40 Days since you left

$2001 worth of Avon???????????

Nights are hard

My first breakdown

Alcohol in the war zone

Goodbyes part 2

Faithfully

Baseballs, Teenagers and dogs

Another Blog Award

YAY   A BIG thanks to Heather @   This is the Story of a Girl for the award. Go check out her Blog!



10 Blogs I would like to pass it along to:























Being a Better Wife





























Okay- so maybe it was 11   :-)

May 13, 2010

One of those days!!

Oh my- I am stressed today!

Both our lawn mowers aren't working, one of my dogs is in heat and irritating the heck out of me, my son does not understand adult life but feels the need to tell me to buy things and there is a leak behind my bathroom sink wall.



Photobucket

UGH!!

I can fix everything except for the sink. I hate that helpless feeling I get when I try to figure it out and nothing seems to work. My mom and I have tried endlessly to figure the leak out and have at least narrowed it down to my bathroom and the pipe. It is from my sink but the leak is behind the wall where I cannot see it. I can see the pipes underneath because it is located in my basement and I do not have drywall covering the pipes. BUT there is wood right above the pipe where I need to look. Not sure what to do without calling a plumber and paying a hefty fee. Maybe I will just keep our bathroom water off for many months until he gets home. Hmmm very tempting.

I can't run from the problem though. I need to deal with it but am stuck at what to do.

I have searched the internet and nothing helps. I don't know anyone who is a plumber and don't have family nearby. I guess I will resort to calling a plumber and ask for referrals.

Our house is only 5 years old and of course when I called the people who installed our plumbing they only warranty it for 1 year--LOVELY

I feel drained today and am not sure why. Had a great lunch with my mom and am enjoying her company.

Time for some wine and DVR shows

May 10, 2010

~ If I didn't love you so much ~

I always tell my husband   "If I didn't love you so much it would be easy".  It is so true. It would be easier if he wasn't so important to me and I didn't love him like crazy. Then I wouldn't need his hugs, his smile, his protection and more. This deployment would be easy.

I always hear about military members volunteering to go on deployments and remotes. WHY??  I can only imagine it is because they don't love like it hurts. It hurts for us to be away from each other. I would much rather let fate take him from me then our own choosing.  People who are in failing marriages see deployments and remotes as a temporary fix to a major problem.  I can't imagine happily married people that want any time apart. I truly am happy with my husband and our life. I feel so blessed to have our family.

I would not change my love for him no matter how much it hurts. But that is how true love is anyways. I wish that all military couples had happy marriages although the reality is otherwise.

I hope that if your marriage is not strong you take the time to think about why it is not and maybe this will be a good time to clear your minds and rejuvenate that love. Send him a letter letting him know your thoughts and feelings. Best of luck to everyone.  I hope we all survive these deployments and can maintain or begin strong marriages.

MANY BLESSINGS

P.S. - If your active duty member does volunteer to leave I am not saying you have a bad marriage or trying to be negative. I know a soldier loves his job.  :-) I also know that some people make the sacrifice so they can get the pick of a base and other reasons. AND my husband would never turn down a deployment, he serves with honor and is grateful to do his part.

Circle of FriendsAward

Kirsten at Requires Heay Lifting passed on an award to me:



THANKS!!!    :-)

May 8, 2010

Yay for Mothers!! and new followers

I am SO excited! I am going to be picking up my mom  today for a visit. She will be staying for 5 weeks.  YAY I love company and more than anything I love my moms company. We always explore places and get lost while getting there. Although I do have a GPS now but maybe I wont use it just so we can have our usual "were lost" laughs.  One visit in San Antonio Texas we were lost so much we used every other turnaround area. We LOVED those things. At first we laughed and thought they were silly thing to have to make a U turn but once we needed them and needed them a lot we LOVED them. We laughed so much just trying to figure out how to get where we were going. Oh what fun. One visit in Florida we both signed up for a timeshare ( we later canceled). When we moved here she PCSed with us to see what it was like and stayed in a 1 bedroom hotel room with us- 5 people in one room.   So I look forward to what interesting adventure we will have this trip.

Of course tomorrow is Mothers Day. I wish all you Mothers and your Mothers a life filled with joy and happiness.

Dear Lord, it's such a hectic day
With little time to stop and pray
For life's been anything but calm
Since You called on me to be a mom
Running errands, matching socks
Building dreams with building blocks
Cooking, cleaning, and finding shoes
And other stuff that children lose
Fitting lids on bottled bugs
Wiping tears and giving hugs
A stack of last weeks mail to read
So where's the quiet time I need?
Yet when I steal a minute, Lord
Just at the sink or ironing board
To ask the blessings of Your grace
I see then, in my small one's face
That you have blessed me
All the while
And I stop to kiss
That precious smile


Also, I am so excited about all my new followers.  :-)  I have not had a chance yet to check out everyones Blogs and follow you but I will.

MANY BLESSINGS!

May 6, 2010

Spouses Clubs

I am sure we all have wonderful, positive, the best time of our lives experiences with military Spouses groups!

LOL  Yeah right!

I have had some absolutely fabulous times with spouses clubs but there is always those times when you dont feel like you belong. The" why am I even here" moment.

I had that moment a few months ago but I didn't let it win. So here is my story of what happened at an Officers Spouses Club meeting.

My hubby is prior enlisted. As an enlisted wife I was really involved and volunteered with the squadron spouses groups and the base enlisted spouses club. I really believe every base is what you make it. If you are negative before you every get there you are not giving it or yourself a chance. You are doomed from the get go. My kids are not allowed to tell me they don't like a base until we have lived there and they can form an actual opinion. Many people give you opinions on how a base is but it all depends on what they do while at the base that makes it their opinion. For example:
working, volunteering on/off base, kids/no kids, living in base housing or not are all ways to make each base experience different

Ok- I am off subject.

Back to the point- When he became an officer I was really nervous about getting involved in the Officer spouses club. You know we all have heard the stereotype of officer wives. I was worried that I wouldn't fit in or they wouldn't care about me because my hubby is low man on the totem poll and he is not a pilot. Since my hubby was deploying I thought I need to get involved and meet more military spouses. We do not live on base and our community is not a military community.

I went to an event by myself in hopes of meeting new people. I arrived and was greeted at the door and given a sticker name tag. Everyone else had official name tags because they were not new. So I grab a glass of wine and stand near the door for a while in hopes of someone talking to me. Everyone was coming in groups and were immediately going to their friends. As I -just-- stood --there. I finally ventured to the couch where a lot of ladies were but still was not spoken too. I texted a friend and told her I was getting ready to leave because it had been 15 minutes and no one acknowledged me. I was really hurt and stupefied that all these spouses would not speak to me. There were  about 25 people present.  I was getting ready to give up when someone sat next to me an introduced herself. She started chatting with me and introduced me to some other people. Finally people were talking to me. They did not know I was new and apparently were so consumed in their conversations to notice I was by myself.  I understand that. Yes- I guess I should have introduced my self to people and made more of a point of that. But I didn't feel comfortable.

I went to another event after that and wouldn't you know it- all the people I had chatted with at the last event were not there. UGH  Not this again.  Well, I took it upon myself to make sure I had a good time because it is up to me what kind of time I have. I went up and talked to people and introduced myself and met more friends.

The point is- I waited it out and was happy I did. Had I left I would have missed out on a lot of great information and new friends. Everyone was very nice. I went to the events from that point on and am not the club secretary. My goal in the club is to mae sure that anyone new to an event is welcomed correctly and not left alone.
So- if you see someone by themselves just go talk to them. We all are in the same situation no matter what rank or job. We are all spouses who are away from our family and we all need friends.

May 3, 2010

The Military Wife

I posted this some time back but now that I have  more followers I wanted to share this again.
Lots of moving...
Moving...
Moving...
Moving far from home...
Moving two cars, three kids and one dog...all riding with HER of course.
Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house;
Moving curtains that won't fit;
Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours.
Moving away from friends;
Moving toward new friends;
Moving her most important luggage: her trunk full of memories.

Often waiting...
Waiting...
Waiting...
Waiting for housing.
Waiting for orders.
Waiting for deployments.
Waiting for phone calls.
Waiting for reunions.
Waiting for the new curtains to arrive.
Waiting for him to come home,
For dinner...AGAIN!

They call her 'Military Dependent', but she knows better:
She is fiercely In-Dependent.

She can balance a check book;
Handle the yard work;
Fix a noisy toilet;
Bury the family pet...

She is intimately familiar with drywall anchors and toggle bolts.
She can file the taxes;
Sell a house;
Buy a car;
Or set up a move...
.....all with ONE Power of Attorney.

She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.
She reinvents her career with every PCS;
Locates a house in the desert, The Arctic, Or the deep south.
And learns to call them all 'home'.
She MAKES them all home.

Military Wives are somewhat hasty...
They leap into:
Decorating,
Leadership,
Volunteering,
Career alternatives,
Churches,
And friendships.
They don't have 15 years to get to know people.
Their roots are short but flexible.
They plant annuals for themselves and perennials for those who come
after them.

Military Wives quickly learn to value each other:
They connect over coffee,
Rely on the spouse network,
Accept offers of friendship and favors.
Record addresses in pencil...

Military Wives have a common bond:
The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands; his commitment is
unique.
He doesn't have a 'JOB'
He has a 'MISSION' that he can't just decide to quit...
He's on-call for his country 24/7.
But for her, he's the most unreliable guy in town!
His language is foreign
TDY
PCS
EPR
SOS
ACC
BDU
ACU
BAR
CIB
TAD
ABU
And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.
She is the long- distance link to keep them informed;
The glue that holds them together.

A Military Wife has her moments:
She wants to wring his neck;
Dye his uniform pink;
Refuse to move to Siberia;
But she pulls herself together.
Give her a few days,
A travel brochure,
A long hot bath,
A pledge to the flag,
A wedding picture,
And she goes.
She packs.
She moves.
She follows.

Why?
What for?
How come?
You may think it is because she has lost her mind.
But actually it is because she has lost her heart.
It was stolen from her by a man,
Who puts duty first,
Who longs to deploy,
Who salutes the flag,
And whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her
Military Husband,
She will remain his Military Wife.
And would have it no other way.

--Author Unknown

Mil Spouse Appreciation Giveaway

Check out these Scentsy giveaways for Mil Spouses in honor of Mil Spouse Appreciation day!


welcometotheblogofanarmywife


http://www.asouthernbelleandherofficer.com/2010/04/military-spouse-appreciation-day.html

Scrolling box instructions

I have been asked by a couple of fellow bloggers how to add the scrolling box with blog buttons in it.  I had a HARD time finding the way to do it so I will happily share the info.  :-)

Go to Layout
Add gadget
add HTML code
 Insert this code:

<marquee align="left" behavior="scroll" direction="up" height="315" onmouseout="this.start()" onmouseover="this.stop()" scrollamount="4" width="200">

After that code you can add the code for blog buttons. Use the code that is given on their site so that it will link back to them. You cannot just use a picture. After each code add  <br>  to seperate the buttons.  :-)

The highlighted items are itmes you can change. You can make it taller, wider and choose the direction. This is the code for my blog.

Hope that helps. If not just let me know and I will help

Many Blessings