I am getting so terribly excited for Scott's arrival.  We are in the single digits now on the countdown and the time is just flying by!  I am keeping very busy and work and preparing for the move, so I don't have much time to sit down and worry about everything, which is a good thing in my world.  Lots of good-byes coming up - I am planning a trip to Buckley this weekend, and spending Memorial Day visiting some friends up here in the north that I don't see very often.  Then I have lunches booked all next week with work friends.  I don't like the good-bye part of moving...

Starting to let go...

My last drill was this past weekend.  Kinda funny - we were in Yakima for an SRP.  It was sort of the WAARNG saying "Yep, we are determined to get one more trip to YUCK-ima out of you before we let you go!"

Meg, one of the lieutenants, and I carpooled over together along with Jane.  A small group of us went out dancing and had a few drinks on Saturday night after the duty day was done.  It was fun, but a late night made getting up early the next day pretty tough.  I have been tired most of this week as a sort of domino effect.  Today, I'm feeling better, though.

I'm excited for the next phase.  I will likely have to work for a year - just until we get the house squared away and the wedding paid for.  Oh, yeah, and until I get a new car.  Sammy is truly on her last legs.  When I get to the point with a car that each morning is a roulette of will it start or won't it, then it's time to trade up.  But I digress.

I think I will work full-time and go to school part time, maybe even online courses.  I need to get my math back up to speed before I can think about applying for the engineering program.  Then, hopefully after the wedding, I can cut my work hours WAAAAAY back and go to school full time.  Only time will tell if that option will be available.

Next stop, Ohio!

I'm so in love with this man! I am impatiently awaiting the day he gets out here and we get our stuff packed up and start the drive back to our new home. I may not be thrilled about Ohio, but it's growing on me, and as I recall, I wasn't thrilled about Seattle when we first moved out here, either. And this last trip home really opened my eyes to something. A subtle feeling that my home is where he is. I can be okay anywhere as long as we are together.

Ugh, my car...

Wouldn't start again. I had to have Jen come pick me up and drive me to work (which wasn't too big of a problem since we carpool on Thursdays normally, anyway). Usually I drive to her place and we leave from there around 7:30. However, since it was already after 7:00 when I called her to let her know I needed a ride (about the time she is normally getting out of bed), she didn't get to my house until nearly 8:00, which means I was 1/2 hour late for work. I'll be working late to make that up, since Jen is working until 7:00 or 8:00 tonight anyway. Yet, despite the morning drama, my mood is relatively chipper. Odd. Anyway, I'm hoping that the car problem is a simple fix, like the battery needs to be replaced. That's something I can do myself. If it is anything more complex, it may necessitate a trip to the mechanic, and I really don't feel like paying for that. So here's to optimism (and lots of finger-crossing)!

Birthday Ticker

It will be my first birthday back in the midwest! So many big plans - it will probably be a doozie of a party :)

Yay! I get to see my new house in April! I get to see my step-monsters, too, so it will be a double-super-awesome trip!!

Developments with the house...

Well, all of the utilities are now on. Scott has found a few minor leaks in the plumbing that are the result of cheap parts and shoddy work. He is hoping to have most of them fixed by tonight, since it will just be a matter of replacing a few of the connectors (or whatever the heck they are called). There are various small issues with the house that will need to be addressed over time, but nothing that really affects the 'livability' so that's a plus. I'm already looking at paint chips and carpet samples. I can't wait until April to fly back and see this place! Scott has most of the appliances - just need a dryer and a refrigerator now. I'm kinda glad I'm not there right now, because I have absolutely no patience, and not being able to get it all done in one day would definitely be an exercise in patience.

My little super-chunk

I really enjoyed meeting my nephew, Nathanael, for the first time. He is the cutest little man in the whole world! And yes, I know I'm biased. I can't believe all the things he can do at only 5 months old! He holds his own bottle, already has 2 teeth, can roll over to his stomach, and is almost, ALMOST crawling. It's kind of like he can't figure out that he needs to bend his knees, and he can't yet hold up his head. So he does this weird little thing where the straightens his legs (which pushes his butt way up in the air) and straightens his arms (but his head is still on the ground) and pushes himself along the ground on his forehead. So stinking funny!! Some pics of my trip home:

Our New House!!!

Yay! Our offer was accepted for the house in Caledonia, so Scott is hoping we can close by month's end. I have been informed that he will not paint a single wall or lay a single swatch of carpet or tile until it has my stamp of approval in person, so I've already started browsing online! This is so exciting!!

So the trip to Columbus wasn't exactly a success, but at least I have a better idea of what the city feels like, now. Scott is going to look at another house today, because the one we looked at and made an offer on while I was there is bank-owned, and they are being slow and refusing negotiation. They came back with a request for our best offer. Um, in that case, what we offered you, that's our best offer. :(-

I'm going to MI tomorrow - my flight is super early in the morning Seattle time, and I'll get to MI early afternoon central time. Mom took a couple of days off of work and we are going to go visit my sister and my nephew. I'm probably going to take a bazillion pictures. I am so excited to meet the little guy!

Once I get back from this trip, I'll have a couple of weekends free - no drill, no work, no travel. I am kind of excited about this, too. As much as I love to travel and visit, it will be nice to relax and get some much needed work done around the house.

Lacking ambition...

I've really been trying hard these past few days to get back into the swing of things with my diet and exercise. Thanksgiving didn't give me any trouble - heck, I lost 6 lbs in the two weeks surrounding that holiday. Christmas, on the other hand, my determination and willpower gave less than stellar showings.

Successfully falling back into the routine is proving far more difficult than I had anticipated. I find myself so hungry at the end of the day that I gorge at dinner, and I'm not even setting the calorie intake as low as it was before. I'm trying to ease back into it by starting at 1800 calories per day, and it's just not keeping me full. I realized I'm not giving water intake as much attention as before, so we are going to try to up that in the hope it will fill in the gaps.

I don't even want to get started on my ambition as it pertains to workouts. I find it so much easier to cut calories than to burn them. Workout time doesn't leave me feeling refreshed and accomplished, it just leaves me feeling sweaty and icky and wanting to take a nap.

I don't know what my problem is, but February isn't going to be the month to fix it. I have drill this weekend, I'm going to Columbus next weekend, and Michigan the week after that. Upheavals in my daily routine do not lend themselves well to my overall health & wellness. Grr.

Ah, politics...

Well, I voluntarily tortured myself today. I decided to read the "you decide" section of the Fox News website, where they pose a question and anybody can leave their response. Emphasis on anybody. I figured I'm not cynical enough where the intelligence (or lack thereof) of the American populace is concerned, so I should give myself some more reasons. The question was (I copied and pasted - there's my disclosure so this isn't plagiarism):

President Obama has signed an executive order to close the U.S. prison at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. Pennsylvania Rep. Jack Murtha (D) has already said he would be willing to house prisoners from Guantanamo Bay in his congressional district if the president closes the prison. Would you want prisoners from Guantanamo housed in your state or town? Share your thoughts?

Now, I don't speak for anyone but myself, but the response ranged from what I consider simple, to the point, and honest:

Just to answer the question. No, I do not want these people in my backyard, my neighborhood, my city, my state, or my country. I’m not saying to abuse them. . .but I do feel that they need a certain amount of higher level imprisonment.

To just downright silly and having little or nothing to do with the actual question posed:

New Reality Show: “Sheet Heads Gone Wild!”

And, of course, the ever popular blind hatred and violence:

Innocent until proven guilty. Towel on head = guilty. Enough said.
and
There would be SO MANY American prisoners/inmates that would LOVE to get there hands on one of these terrorists. They’d be DEAD in days. Bring em’ on over to our prisons here in the states!

Reading through all of these responses took me through a gamut of emotions, so I decided to start jotting some of them down, and now I want to use this blog as an outlet. If you do not agree with something that I write, that is fine. The right to your own personal opinion is something that I, and countless thousands of others, have signed on the dotted line to protect - and I would actually be offended if you didn't invoke the right.
Some of these snippets pertain to the question posed, others are just random offshoots of thought that were inspired by the responses that were left.
First, why would anyone think that prisoners of war must be given Constitutional rights (the right to fair trial, namely) in order to be treated humanely? Constitutional rights are for American citizens, and we as a country are under no obligation to extend these rights to those who are not in that category - especially to those who have done all in their power to destroy the way of life those rights were designed to protect. Now, I don't feel that we should just be randomly torturing people or feeding them rat feces or some other such ill treatment. If we want our POW's to be treated humanely, we must do unto others as an act of faith. This won't guarantee our captured soldiers good treatment, but the alternative certainly won't guarantee it, either.
Secondly, let's not fool ourselves when it comes to the motive for the terrorist actions against the U.S. The organizations may spout religious outrage, but let's face it - these actions against our country are motivated by the same desires that have been causing war and other harmful acts of one person unto another for centuries: power and money. IF the terrorists were acting against us because we don't share their religious beliefs, then they would be acting against all countries who didn't. ALSO, the U.S. is a country based on religious freedom. Yes, there are some religions that are more prevalent than others, but anyone here is free to worship as he or she feels proper (provided, of course, that it doesn't harm others).
Thirdly, as to a "fair" trial - there is no such thing anymore. In a world of tort litigation, corrupt people, and expensive lawyers paid to find loopholes in the semantics of the written law, any semblance of fairness has long since been destroyed. There are many instances in which perfectly valid evidence was thrown out on a technicality (i.e. the investigator finding it before some judge was pulled from his bed to sign a piece of paper saying, essentially, that it was okay to go looking for it - Hello! The evidence would have been there either way! But such are the laws in a nation where we are terrified to step on anyone's toes.)
Okay, one more item before I close out this posting. Anyone who believes that politicians are strong, moral people who are going to act on the behalf of the "common man" is living on an island of blind idealism and needs to catch the next boat back to reality. The campaigns that these people use to garner our votes cost money, and this money generally comes from special interest groups and/or other wealthy individuals. The politicians know who their meal ticket is and are natually going to cater to these people. If that happens to coincide with the well-being of the rest of the citizenry, then all the better - but that isn't a prerequisite. Who ever said blackmail isn't a valid, lucrative business?

I always find writing to be a very soothing practice. It helps me get thoughts and feelings out of my head in an organized manner so that I can further explore them and alter them as I deem necessary. I do feel better knowing that I stand somewhere - even if that somewhere lies in the gray area between far right and far left. I've been called a moderate conservative. I guess that, since one of my mottos is 'everything in moderation', that would be an accurate term.

Wow, it's been awhile...

I haven't blogged since November, and a LOT has happened since then. Scott went to MI for Thanksgiving and enjoyed a couple of weeks with his parents and all three kids. We had a nice Christmas in Spokane with Cadence, Bethany, and their grandparents on their mother's side. It didn't go quite as planned because the overdose of snow caused the girls' plane to get redirected to Spokane rather than Seattle, so our drive over the pass got bumped up a few days and took nearly 8 hours rather than the usual 5 - but we still ended up having fun. It was a blessing to have the girls for the the holiday.

Then January rolled around and we got the news of Scott's new job - in Ohio. I took him to the airport Sunday to fly in and start in the new position on Monday. I'll be going there in February for a couple of days to help look for our new residence, but I won't be moving permanently in June. It will be an interesting couple of months - seeing how it affects each of us individually and also how it affects our relationship. It is my hope that we all come out on the other side of it for the better. It was my choice to remain out here until June, and Scott is less than thrilled about it (to say the least) but it will make the transition easier for me. I look back on how stressful it was to move out here with only three weeks notice, and I do not want to repeat that fiasco. I was not a happy camper and the stress of the move (and all fo the things that went wrong) made it harder than was necessary to adjust to a new environment.

So, that pretty much brings things up to date - the extremely condensed version.