Pancake Faces

Yesterday, D made me breakfast for Mother's Day.  I found this one smirking back at me...

Happy Mother's Day!

Okay, I realize tomorrow is really Mother's Day but since I usually don't post on Sundays, I'm posting today instead.

In honor of Mother's Day, here is a sweet video about mothers.

Happy Mother's Day to my sweet grandmothers in heaven, my aunts, sisters, sisters-in-law, and mother-in-law.

And a very special Happy Mother's Day to my own mama who has been there for me every step of the way.  Thank you mom for everything you have done, and continue to do for me throughout my life.  I love you!

I wish you all a Happy Mother's Day as well, whether you have kids now, wish you had kids now, or would like them sometime in the future.  I hope your day is a happy one!

Military Spouse Appreciation Day

I'm back!  Yay!  I was finally able to get a new laptop charger for my computer so I can now turn it on for longer than a minute to check my email.  I have a lot of catching up to do.  I'm working on a general post about what we've been up to for the last month but today, I'm linking up with Wife of a Sailor for a little blog link up in honor of Military Spouse Appreciation Day.

I started this blog about a year and a half when my husband was still enrolled in the ROTC.  Even though D had already been a member of the National Guard for almost two years, I still felt lost and confused about the whole military world.  I started this blog to meet other military spouses and to gain support and strength from them.  Because of budget cuts, D was not able to officially contract with the ROTC so he decided to withdraw from it (which ended up being a blessing in disguise, but that's another story.)  He went back to being only a Guard soldier and this blog morphed into more than just a milspouse blog but a blog about our lives.  However, I still have had the opportunity to associate with many military wives through this blog.  I'm so grateful that there is a day that honors military spouses and that allows me to say thank you to all the military spouses who have touched my life in some way.

Taken by Tiffany Rebecca (http://tiffanyrebeccablog.com)

I'm Allison.  I have been married to my sweetheart for three years.  My husband, D, has been a member of the National Guard for almost 3 1/2 years.  He's also finishing up his second year of law school.  His dream is to go active duty as a military lawyer upon graduation (he starts the application process this fall.  Yikes!)  Being a Guard family has been great for us for the most part.  We get both the civilian and the military life. 

Along with being a wife, I'm also a soon-to-be mommy to a precious Baby Girl (six weeks baby!).  Much of my time is focused on preparing for her arrival.  I look forward to being able to stay at home with her.

I grew up in the Pacific Northwest and that is where much of my heart remains.  We have been living in the Midwest for two years, which is not my favorite place but I am learning to like it more and more.

In my spare time, I love to read.  I could spend hours at a time in a quiet spot just reading.  I also enjoy writing.  My goal is to publish a book someday.  Cooking is another thing I enjoy.  I love trying out new recipes and my husband is a very willing food critic.

D and I love to travel.  We don't have much opportunity right now since D is in school and any extra income we make goes towards student loans.  But in the future, we look forward to going to all the places that we talk and dream about.

Happy Friday!

Old School Blogging

I apologize for the long absence.  I have so much to blog about but unfortunately, the charger for my laptop is broken and I haven't had time yet to get another one.  So I have to use D's laptop if I need to do anything on the internet which leaves me with only a little time since he usually has it with him.  It's kind of been nice being unplugged for the last couple weeks, even though I am way behind on blogging.  I'll catch up eventually.

I got this list of questions from Jen from The Adventures Of Our Army Life.  I thought I'd answer them since I don't have access to any of the pictures I need for the posts I need to write.

1. How did your husband pop the question?
Our proposal story still makes me laugh.  It really is quite comical looking back on it even if it wasn't so funny at the time.  I knew he was going to propose eventually, I just didn't know when.  We had already decided to get married a few weeks before and we went ring shopping together so we were just waiting for the ring to come in to the store.  I was even there when the store called him to tell him that the ring had come in.  (He was trying to keep it a secret but I weaseled it out of him.)  Unfortunately, his truck was not running so in order to go pick it up, he had to wait for his roommate to go with him since he didn't want me to know he picked it up.  This led to a few days of badgering on my part for him to go get the ring.  I even threatened to go pick it up myself at one point.  So, one day, I was at work and he texted me and asked if he could take me out to dinner that night.  Of course I said, sure.  He then sent me a text asking me to do my hair and put on makeup (I worked as a nanny so most of the time, my hair was up and I didn't wear makeup to work).  Then I started to get suspicious.  I asked him if he had the ring and he told me no, he just wanted to take me somewhere nice.  I was very disappointed.  That night, I called him while I was driving home and ended up getting mad at him for getting my hopes up and saying that if he really loved me, he'd have found a way to get the ring by that point (I know, it was a little irrational on my part).  When I got home, I decided to take a quick shower.  So I walked into the bathroom and there was hair dye ALL OVER the bathtub.  My roommates had dyed their hair in my bathroom (they had their own) and hadn't cleaned up the mess.  This put me in an even worse mood.  Finally, after cleaning up the bathtub, taking a shower and getting ready, I finally left to pick up D (I had to drive since his truck wasn't working).  His plan before dinner was to take me around town to all the places that meant something to us.  Since we lived in a college town, those places mainly centered around the college.  Unfortunately, there was a basketball game that night so we could not find a parking spot anywhere.  And all this time, we were driving around and he wouldn't tell me what we were doing.  I was already hungry and cranky and getting more so by the minute.  So we ended up driving up the canyon to our spot.  This place was where we would always go if we wanted to talk without any interruptions from roommates.  After talking for a few minutes, he admitted that he had lied to me about not having the ring.  He then pulled out the ring and asked me to marry him.  I have to admit, as I saw him pulling out the ring, I started to feel stupid and I started to laugh.  Needless to say, I wasn't mad anymore.  I said yes and then we went to our favorite restaurant (Zupas) for dinner.

2. What are the three most surprising things about married life?
1.  It doesn't matter how upset I get over something that D does, I still would rather be with him than with anyone else.
2. Even though we're married and know each other really well, we still learn new things about each other almost every day.  It's awesome because we're never bored or run out of things to talk about.
3. I didn't think I could love D anymore than I did on our wedding day.  But, every challenge and trial we have faced together has caused me to love him even more.

3. How did you find out your were pregnant for the first time?
I pretty much just took a pregnancy test on a whim.  I had received three more pregnancy announcements the day before and I was really discouraged.  I wasn't expecting my period for three more days but I decided to test anyway just so I could start the grieving process early so that by the time my period came, hopefully I'd be okay.  I tested, fully expecting a negative.  I put the test on the window sill next to the toilet and then left the bathroom to let it do it's thing.  Probably ten minutes later (maybe longer) I remembered that I had tested and walked back in the bathroom bracing myself for the bad news.  To my disbelief, it was positive.  I just stood there for about five minutes with my mouth open.  Then, I started to cry.

4. How did you choose your first baby's name?
We've had our baby's name picked out for about 2 1/2 years.  (Around the time we started trying.)  We had a boy name and a girl name picked out.  We both enjoy learning about family history.  So one day, we were going through some names on D's side and we came across a name that we both loved.  And it stuck.  Her middle name will be after D's mom who passed away.

5. Describe where you see yourself in 10 years.
D will be out of school and working.  I'm not sure where we'll be or if D will still be a JAG.  But in my mind, we'll be close to settling down in one place where we'll live for the rest of our lives (or until retirement).  Hopefully we'll have a few more kids by then.

6. Describe how you find bliss using words or images.
I find bliss in spending time with my husband.  I find it in thinking about my Baby Girl and preparing for her arrival.  I find it in family time before bed while we're reading stories to our little one and feeling her kick.

In Loving Memory

Barbara Jean Smith Hall

September 6, 1926- April 4, 2013

Last Thursday, my dear grandma passed away.  She was a spunky, feisty woman with a witty sense of humor.  Despite her health challenges, she still had a positive attitude.  She loved her family with everything she had and loved to keep in touch with her children and grandchildren through phone calls and text messages.  She was independent and even stubborn and I think it's safe to say that I got my stubbornness from her.  I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing.

I have fond memories of visiting Grandma and Grandpa.  When I was little, I remember going to their house in California.  I loved swimming in their pool and going to Disneyland.  I remember "camping out" with all of my girl cousins in their living room while all the boy cousins slept outside during family reunions at their house.  As I grew older, I loved to hear stories about when Grandma and Grandpa were young kids.

Unfortunately, I was not able to see my grandma very often because of the distance but I loved every visit.  On my last visit, last July, I would keep my grandma company as she told me stories about her days as a junior air raid warden during World War II and the things she liked to do when she was a young girl.

Although it's a relief that she doesn't has to suffer anymore, she will be missed.  But I know she is in a better place now, reunited with her husband, who passed away six months ago.  I am so grateful to be her granddaughter.  She will always be remembered.

Pregnancy Brain?

Lately, it seems that "pregnancy brain" has taken over my brain.  I have done some pretty fun things.  Surprisingly, however, this post is not about me.  I think my dear, sweet husband might be suffering from "sympathy pregnancy brain."

D is usually a morning person.  He likes to wake up early and he's usually pretty alert.  But, apparently not this morning.  I walked into the bathroom this morning to find him attempting to shave with toothpaste.  If I hadn't said anything, he probably would have, too.

I laughed pretty hard at that one.

Moving Day!

Not for us (although we have decided to move after all; but not for another month).  For almost a year, we have been having problems with our neighbor across the hall.  He's in a rock band.  A not so talented rock band.  Almost every day his bass can be heard on the entire floor and sometimes, throughout the entire building.  Almost daily, we've had to go tell him to turn it down.  He has been a thorn in my side for months and I have to admit, I have thought a lot of not very nice things about him.  He's a pretty nice guy which makes me feel a little bad for wanting him out... but not too bad.

A few weeks ago, we ran into him in the hall and he told us he was moving out of the building at the end of the month.  I just about did a happy dance right in front of him.  But don't worry, I held back.  But boy oh boy have I been waiting for this day since then.  And now, that day is here!  By now, I'm pretty sure he's completely out of his apartment and it's so peaceful and quiet.  Maybe I'll do that happy dance now...

I'm really not as mean as this post makes me sound.  It's just such a relief to know that I don't have to listen to his band play anymore.