How Do You Move?

So the second I find out we *might* be getting new orders and therefore, could possibly be moving, I hop online and start looking at homes for rent in the new area.

I know I'm not the only one who does this.

I'm not talking about the whole, "we got our new orders and our report date is in a month" looking that most people do. I'm talking about the "we heard a rumor that we could possibly be PCSing in 6 months, so I'm going to 'get an idea' of what is available and what area of town we want to live in" looking.

What can I say? I'm a planner, and since the Army typically doesn't allow for much advanced planning, I just like to cover my ass bases. For me, this is becoming as familiar with a new area as one possibly can be using only Google street view and AHRN.com.

Its not like I physically inquire about any of the properties that catch my eye or anything. I am fully aware that most likely the houses that I like now will not be available when we finally move, I just like to start getting acquainted with my new "neighborhood" in advance. I know some people, (ahem, my husband) prefer to not "stress" over it until things are for sure. (Yes, "stress" was the word he used, and no, I was not stressing about anything, thankyouverymuch.)

I like to think that since I'm a professional PCSer, having moved 5 times so far, my system works fairly well. I mean, we only ended up in the ghetto one time. 1/5=80% success rate!

So what about you? Are you a go-getter or do you prefer to wait until the hard-copy of your orders are in hand to start your search?

Thoughts Bouncing Around

I don't really have one solid thing to post about right now and I tend to like reading the random posts that people just talk about whatever is on their minds. I'm going to do it!

• I have been watching an incredible amount of t.v. this week. To the point where I think I need to just stop. Its too bad that I love t.v. and will continue to watch 24/7.
• I set my DVR to record Most Eligible Dallas and it recorded Millionaire Matchmaker instead. Seriously? That is annoying.
  
• I went to the doctor this morning and I was running late. I got there approximately 13 minutes after my scheduled time and they told me I had to reschedule. This wouldn't bug me if I didn't have to wait at LEAST 15 minutes past my scheduled appointment time in the waiting room each and every time I have an appointment there. I even called on the way there to let them know I was running late so they might be able to see someone who was already there. I understand that I was late, but seriously? How freaking rude!
• This, coupled with some other negative experiences I've had with my PCM (read: this was the first appt available in 2 weeks) is prompting me to seriously consider changing my PCM. I expect to receive poor service and experience long wait times when I'm seen on post, but I chose a civilian provider to avoid this. If I wanted to wait half a month to be seen I'd go to the MTF.
  
• Not sure if I ever mentioned the fact that when we moved here this was supposed to be our last move for a long while. Well, notice that I said it WAS SUPPOSED to be. Everything changed over the past two weeks and its looking more and more like we're going to be moving at least once but probably twice in the next two years. Awesome. So glad we bought our dream house here.
• I'm planning to spend AJ's naptime moving our lawn furniture and other stuff into the garage so it doesn't blow around with all the storms and wind we're expecting tomorrow.
• I don't know if you heard, but there's a hurricane heading this way. Oh, you heard?
• I really can't wait for this weekend to be over so I can stop listening to everyone (and I mean everyone) freak out about the storm. Its annoying to me because I'm an anxious person and when others spaz, it makes me freak out inside. I mean, I got all caught up in the hype and went and bought bottled water and got gas yesterday. I'm guessing that the worst we'll see is some strong winds and some rain. That is it. *fingers and toes are crossed*
  
• AJ has had a cold all week and I am so ready to have everyone in my house be healthy again. I'm going crazy all cooped up in the house and judging by the weather forecast, I foresee more time inside. Ugh.
• Even worse than AJ being sick is that hubby has been sick all week as well. Can you guess who has been more needy in illness? You guessed it. ;)
  
• I'm praying for all those on the coast who are likely to get hit hard by Irene and I hope you will too.
  

Hopefully we'll have power the whole weekend and I'll be able to post after the worst of the storm has passed us. If not, I'll get back on here as soon as our power and Internet is up and running again!

Also, sorry this post ended up being super negative. Its where I'm at right now.

Wordless Wednesday: How to Punish a Biting Kangaroo

Crazy Week!

We have been really busy this week. I was seriously planning on blogging more, but by the time I get home and just barely get the house back in working order, make dinner, clean up the kitchen, and the baby put to bed, I'm beat and all I want to do is lay down and never get up.

Even though we've been busy, we've had fun too!

Here's what we've been up to this week.

Tuesday we went for a nice 3 mile run in the morning and it was seriously nice. We played and just lounged around the house for most of the day.

Wednesday we had playgroup and the run from H-E-Double Hockey Sticks. Once D got home from work, we slammed dinner and he had to leave again to go to the neighborhood HOA meeting. Then he had a test on Thursday, so he had to study all night. I spent the evening relaxing on the couch alone. :(

Thursday AJ and I were invited to a Mommy-Baby brunch at a friend's house. We had lots of fun and there were 8 kiddos there! AJ was one of the oldest ones, which is crazy! My friend's house is about 45 minutes away, so by the time we got in the car to come home I just knew AJ was going to fall asleep in the car. Sure enough, she fell asleep for about 20 minutes on the ride home and when I put her in her crib she didn't want to sleep. She chatted, sang and yelled for the entire time she was in her crib, which ended up being about an hour and a half. She wasn't upset though, so I just left her there to have some quiet time alone.

I tend to think that even if she isn't sleeping its important for us both to have some time alone. I know I like to have a little quiet time without anyone around me, so I can only imagine that she feels the same way. After I got her up we made dinner and then played outside with the neighbors across the street for a while.

By the time she went to bed, she was so tired that her eyes were starting to close when I was reading her a book. This never happens. She usually tries to escape out of my lap and run around the room while I read to her.

Friday we got up early because we had to take AbbyDog to the vet. She had to be dropped off between 7:30 and 8:30 in the morning. She was getting a bath, a mani-pedi and having an exam plus some vaccinations. Expensive day for us, but at least its all done and I didn't have to sit there and wait with her! After dropping her off we hit up Sonic across the street for breakfast. We ate and then went to the grocery store to stock up on meat for a BBQ we're hosting today.

We headed home and put the meat away and had to turn around and head right back out again. I had scheduled a quick meeting with a new babysitter at 10 am so I could meet her before she watches AJ next week for me. We chatted with her for a bit and then we went to Chick Fil A for lunch and playtime with our usual Friday crew.

Almost as soon as I set AJ down to eat she started saying, "PLAY!" so I let her go play. I figured if she was hungry she'd have eaten, so I wasn't too worried about it. She was playing well for a while and then another kid pushed her down. After that she basically lost it. She wasn't hurt or anything, but I think the go-go-go of our week just caught up with her.

I asked her if she wanted to play, eat, or go home and she was having a total meltdown, so we left. I felt bad because I barely even got a chance to talk with the other Mamas. Oh well, I guess that's life when you have a toddler, right?

She was practically falling asleep in the car on the way home, so I was reaching back and pinching her legs and singing funny songs super loud to keep her awake. We made it home and she went to bed right away, with no fuss. I guess girlfriend is tired after her busy week!

D picked AbbyDog up from the vet on his way home from work, so I didn't have to drive back down there again. Yay for a fabulous hubby!

Today we've got a BBQ planned for some of D's work friends and their families. Our neighbors recently got back from Texas and they brought some authentic Texas BBQ dry rub back for us, so we're going to use that on all sorts of meat! It should be yummy and hopefully the weather cooperates for us! Its supposed to be 90 and mostly sunny, so that works for me!

Before the BBQ though, I'm going to see The Help with my book club. I'm so excited to see it. I've heard that its really good and I absolutely loved the book, so I'm bursting with anticipation! I hope its as good as everyone says it is!

I also chatted with my college roomies and got my plane ticket booked for yet another wedding weekend this Fall! I'm going all by myself, so I'm planning to have some fun! Traveling for this wedding means that I'll be going out of town in September, October and November! Lots of fun times to be had this Fall!

So lovies, that is what we've been up to this crazy week! I'm hoping that next week is less intense and a little more relaxing for us!

The Worst Run EVER.

Wednesday we had playgroup at our neighbor's house in the morning. Since I didn't think I'd be able to get my scheduled 5-mile run in before we went over there at 10 I skipped it. We had a nice time with our friends at playgroup and AJ was worn out by the time we got home!

After lunch and AJ's nap I noticed that it was only 87 degrees outside instead of the normal 175 degrees that we've gotten accustomed to this Summer. I decided that since it wasn't that hot and we weren't doing anything we'd try and get some miles in.

Boy. It was a bad decision.

Not only is 87 degrees still really, really hot for running, but AJ was not having it. I had decided before leaving that I probably wasn't going to get the whole 5 miles in, but I figured if I did 4 that was respectable. I ran 2 miles out and AJ started fussing about that point, so I decided to make it the turnaround point instead of trying to get the whole 5 miles in. I was so hot and feeling pretty dehydrated, but I tried to run faster so we'd get home sooner. Well, I'm sure you can guess how that turned out.

I started feeling pretty awful and had to walk a few times and drink some water. Each time I drank the water AJ got more angry. By the time we got a mile from home AJ was screaming bloody murder and writhing around like she was being tortured. I decided to just end the running there and got her out of the stroller and started walking the last mile home, holding all 25 lbs of AJ and pushing the stroller, uphill in the late afternoon heat. It was awesome. (Please note the sarcasm there.)

My arms were so tired from pushing the stroller anyway that I kept having to switch her from one side to the other. By the time I was a half mile from home I was praying that D or someone, anyone I knew would drive by and offer me a ride home. No such luck. I ended up walking the entire last mile home and of course by that point AJ was just as pleased as punch and wanted to play outside.

So folks, the lesson here is do not try to take your 17.5 month old out for a longer run in the afternoon unless your child is okay with that sort of thing. I know for certain that any future runs with AJ in the stroller will be completed first thing in the morning.

A New Look

Let me start by apologizing for once again slacking on the blog-front. I've been pretty good about tweeting regularly, but I'm finding inspiration for entertaining blog posts to be hard to come by.

We've done some rearranging around the house. We each had a focus and so far, we've both been successful.

D's focus was finding a desk for his office. He really wanted a nice, solid, masculine desk so he could comfortably study and do his homework.

I wanted to make sure we had a spot in our house for our Christmas tree.

I told you we had important priorities.

After looking around, we D found an antique map-making desk at a local antique store and bought it right away. A few days later when he brought it home we realized that it wasn't going to fit upstairs, let alone through the door to the office.




Since we had just spent a good chunk of money on D loves this desk, we needed to figure out a solution, and fast.

We have a downstairs bedroom that has french doors. We decided that we would make the downstairs bedroom into an office for D.

We moved the daybed and desk that were in there. The daybed went into AJ's playroom.



And the desk went up into the sitting room that is a part of our master bedroom.




I'll be using the sitting room desk for paying bills and crafting, while the downstairs office is now officially the "man-cave-office."



As for the Christmas tree, well, we moved our sectional back about 3 feet and we have a spot that is a prime Christmas tree location come November.




Unintentionally, the picture I took of the location for the Christmas tree is lit up like a spotlight. I like to think its because the world knows this spot is destined for greatness! And in case you're wondering, we have another staircase in the front of the house, so we'll be blocking this staircase off for the holiday season.

Finally, Some Randomness....

• I finally went running this morning. {Cue angels singing}


• I finally booked hubby's flight for my cousin's wedding in September. {Yay}


• The check I wrote for the registration for my car was finally cashed. {I hate when places take forever to cash checks.}


• The lawn finally doesn't look like a jungle anymore. {I mowed yesterday during naptime}


• Hubby and I sat outside on the patio last night and watched the sun set behind some trees. {It was nice to spend time together}


• I'm starting to get excited for the marathon and spending some time with my family. {But first I'll see them at my cousin's wedding next month}


• I'm trying to decided if we should try to make the trip to Hometown, USA for Thanksgiving. {We already decided that we're not traveling for Christmas}


• AJ has pretty much boycotted all food other than ketchup. {This makes for messy and less-than-nutritious meals}


• I've forgotten how tired running in the morning makes me. {I feel like I need a nap by noon}


• I'm finally starting to feel like Summer is coming to an end. {Thank God}


• I'll never be caught up on Laundry. {Who will?}


• We rearranged our bedroom furniture and love the new look. {Pictures to come soon}


• AJ just woke up from her nap, so I'm signing off. {I'll be back soon with a real post}
  

Fill In The Blank.....

My favorite blogger is _________________.

You better say me! You could also answer the Wifey over at Wife of a Sailor and get credit for that one! Its thanks to her that I am blogging today, so if you have problems with that, take it up with her... ;)

Anyway, today is Friday and that means....MilSpouse Friday Fill-In!

I haven't participated in the MilSpouse Friday Fill-In in a while, and since I was a contributor to the questions this week, I figured I'd join in! This is a fun one, especially since I know the real way most of these quotes end!

Link up at Wife of a Sailor if you want to join in or read other MilSpouse's answers to these questions! There are some funny ones this week!

1. Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day, teach a man to fish and ___________________.
...you'll have a lot more free time on the weekends.

2. It is amazing what you can accomplish if ___________________.
...you don't have a 17 month old hanging on you 24/7.

3. If you can’t stand the heat ___________________.
...well then you're shit outta luck!

4. What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to ___________________.
...what to make for dinner tonight.

5. Well behaved women seldom ___________________.
...are friends with me! Hehe!

Thug Life...

Woo. Things have been really boring around here lately. I'm not even kidding.

Today?

I did no less than 5 loads of laundry.

I find myself tweeting about awesomely interesting things like AJ eating fish sticks ketchup for lunch. In my defense, she was really excited about it and I'm pretty sure I became her favorite person ever for a few minutes.

See, I used to be her fave person 100% of the time, but now we're smack dab in the middle of an awesome new phase. It includes AJ only wanting me to hold her and carry her around when I'm trying to do something that requires hands and or bending over, like unloading or loading the dishwasher, frying bacon, laundry, vacuuming, cleaning the oven, making meals, well, you get the picture.

The problem occurs when I try to put her down.

She screams. She cries hysterically. She bites herself and anything nearby. She pulls her own hair. She bangs her head on the floor. Have I mentioned she cries hysterically? To the point where I snap and go all crazy mom.

Its not bringing out good qualities in either of us. If you're a praying person, please, pray that we get through the next 2 years unscathed.

Oh, and if I'm not trying to keep the house liveable? Perhaps I'm sitting on the floor, ready to play? She wants nothing to do with me. I don't exist.

Gotta love kids.

Obviously, you can understand why feeding my daughter ketchup for lunch makes me the best mom ever, since she spends the majority of the rest of the day freaking the f*ck out when I walk the 10 feet from the family room to the kitchen.

Also, the other day we were playing in the street (don't judge) with the neighbors and she tripped and fell. Since she was mad at me from earlier, she decided that she'd rather have my neighbor, Allison, console her. Literally, she looked at me and then snuggled in with her new mama! Ha!

Lessons you can take away from this post: consider yourself blessed that you aren't me right now, at least when the baby toddler is screaming and you find yourself reaching for a second glass of wine at 10am iced coffee.

In parting, I leave you with a fabulous picture of my gangsta baby, Notorious AJG...

...Complete with carrot cigarillo.

Watch your backs. ;)

Oh Hi There, August!

Is anyone else in total and complete denial that its already August? I mean, seriously, didn't 2011 just start? We're well into the second half of the year here, people!

Wanna know how my marathon training is coming along?

Its not.

I haven't run in weeks. Yes, I said, weeks.

Its awful. I don't even feel bad for not running. I am having trouble determining how I went from this to completely unmotivated in less than three weeks. I guess that's life.

I am not 100% committed, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to run today. I think I'm ready to get back into the swing of things and this time, I need to make sure that I stick with it. November is going to be here before I know it and I really don't want to be stuck trying to psych myself up to run 26 miles when I know I'm not physically prepared.

So, that's it. August is here, I need to run. No, I want to run.

If I say it, it must be true, right?

I want to run.