Eight Months Later...

Womp womp!

I totally left this blog hanging, oh, eight months ago and for that I can only apologize.  Life kind of got crazy, with field time for the hubby, a new baby for our family, a family vacation to Florida, a deployment underway, AJ starting preschool, and so on.

I should start by introducing the newest member of our family.  We welcomed Amelia to our family on March 22, 2013 at 10:08 pm!  She weighed 8 lbs., 5 oz., and was born via VBAC after an unplanned induction due to low amniotic fluid at 40 weeks, 5 days.

If there ever were two babies who were more different from each other, my daughters are it!  AJ has and continues to be fiercely stubborn, intense, emotional, and strong-willed.  Amelia tends to be easy-going, people pleasing and relaxed.  It is amazing to me how I can have two completely different children, both from the same parents and love them both so completely.

AJ lives to entertain her little sister, which is convenient, because Amelia could sit and watch AJ's antics all day long.  Amelia loves AJ the most.  Of anyone.  AJ gets more smiles from Amelia than anyone in our family.  I can't say that it doesn't make me a little jealous, but I get the snuggles, while AJ gets the smiles.

The other member of our family has been deployed for a little while now and life at home is slowly returning to normal.  We have certainly had our growing pains since he left, and life at home is crazy most days with one adult and two kids, but I think I can safely say that we are not just surviving this deployment so far, but we are thriving.

One of the big changes, other than adding a new member to our family, is that AJ started attending preschool two days a week.  She loves it.  She was so ready to go and have interaction with other kids, a (semi) structured environment, and adults (other than me) telling her what to do.  She started two weeks ago and it has made such a difference in our time together at home.

So there you have the last 8 months in a nutshell.

Real Housewives and Teen Mom

I married my husband for money. Didn't you?

Okay, all you MilSpouses can stop laughing now. I'm obviously kidding, seeing that the amount of money most military members bring home each month is usually just enough to get by.

I'm not going to complain about the deployments, small paychecks or countless arguments my husband and I have about stupid work-related topics. I won't bore you with the statistics that show the real cost of these wars we're engaged in.

I am, however, open to any and all discussions regarding The Real Housewives of anywhere (except New Jersey) and Teen Mom, because all I do is sit around eating bon bons, watching trashy reality television and thinking of new and more extravagant ways to spend my husband's enormous paycheck.

Come on, fellow MilSpouses, isn't that how you spend all your free time?

I recently received an anonymous comment to the post I wrote about the narrowly-averted government shut down that really got under my skin. It didn't bug be me because the commenter was wrong, but the fact that they weren't brave enough to log in and comment so that I could respond to the criticism.

I can't be mad about what was said, because, well, its true. I do watch Real Housewives and Teen Mom, and I certainly spend most of my husband's paycheck each pay period, usually on things like the mortgage, groceries and utility bills. I also find myself nagging my husband from time to time (who doesn't?).

My question is then, why are military spouses called out for spending our husbands' money? Are we not a family? Did we not both make the decision for me to stay home? Are there not civilian families with stay at home parents? Why is a military wife staying home and managing the house any different from a civilian wife who does the same? I don't see anyone accusing her of spending her husband's money.

I guess I just don't see what the point of the comment was. Am I supposed to feel bad about wanting to watch reality television? Maybe is that I'm supposed to feel guilty because I don't work and we're a one-income family. Perhaps the person who wrote the comment is just an ignorant fool and doesn't realize that military spouses are a very unique group of people who won't take insults laying down.


**I published the comment because, while I don't think the comments section of my blog is the appropriate place for someone to express their opinions on military spouses, I wanted the author to be able to exercise his or her right to free speech. I don't have any problem with people feeling this way, heck, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but I think there is a better time and place to express it.

Oh, and aside from being annoyed that someone would anonymously write a comment that was clearly intended to be rude and disrespectful, I'm annoyed that I feel the need to defend my actions.

You Know What Pisses Me Off?

I really wasn't going to post about it, but something last night pissed me off royally.

Amidst all the talk about a possible deal being made between the two parties and the collective sigh of relief that was heard on and around U.S. military installations all over the world when the deal was announced, I heard a statement uttered that just seemed so wrong and really made me so angry.

When the deal was announced, several different people (politicians and news reporters alike) stated that while they could work the weekend to get the legislation drafted, they most likely wouldn't because they are all very tired.

Excuse my language, but are you f-ing kidding me?

Do they think that the soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan who have been working for months straight with no time off aren't tired? Do they think that these people who volunteered for this job, the same ones you threatened to not pay, aren't exhausted? The same people who wouldn't DREAM of not coming into work because they're tired. Why? Because they signed up for a job and it isn't done yet.

Perhaps our politicians would be wise to take a note from our military men and women and think about the good of our nation. Maybe they need me to come remind them that they signed up for this job and, guess what, their job isn't over yet!

I've known about it all along, but last night I just saw the glaring disparity between the politicians who are writing the legislation and deciding our financial situations and the people who are out of the battlefield, risking their lives for a country they would literally die for.

Just makes you think, doesn't it?

Stop Stressing Me Out!

I'm just gonna say it.

I can't do Twitter right now because all the people tweeting about the possible government shut down and military not getting paid is stressing me out.

I'm realistic, I understand that there is a good chance that things will not go the way I want. At the same time, I would like to remain in my little bubble as long as possible not focus on something that I can't change right now. I'm being super stingy with our money this pay period and hoping for the best (i.e. at least 1/2 a check) next payday. We have a little bit saved up and only a few bills that NEED to be paid in the next few weeks. We'll be fine and I'd rather not talk about it anymore.

Anyone else with me?

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In...

Its been a while since I participated in a MilSpouse Friday Fill-In, so I decided it was time to jump back into it! Head over to Wife of a Sailor to link up!

1. What is your must have gadget? submitted by Flying High With My Flyboy
I absolutely must have my iPhone. I'm obsessed with it, but I don't think I'm one of those annoying people who ignores the other people around them to text/play games/check Facebook, etc. Sorry if you're one of those people, but that annoys me a lot!

2. How does your adulthood compare to what you imagined it would be like when you were a little kid? submitted by L to the Third
Its not quite as fun as I thought it would be, but there are a lot of positives to it that I never expected as a kid. I also always knew as a little kid that I'd be a mom (and would hopefully be able to stay home with my kids), but as an older kid I didn't think that I'd already be a stay at home mom! I do have to admit though, that according to a project we did in first grade, my dream was to be a cashier (seriously), and I think my life is much better now than it would be had all my first grade dreams come true!

3. What is your favorite chocolate recipe? submitted by Our First Deployment
My chocolate covered pound cake that I made on Valentine's Day. You can find the recipe here.

4. How do you deal with military life when it gets to be too much or too hard? submitted by Combat Boots And Pointe Shoes
I build a bridge and get over it. I guess I don't really understand this question. What can I do about it? This is a life that my husband and I chose for ourselves and our family, so when things seem unfair or hard, I just remember that the military offers our family lots of benefits and stability that is hard to come by in this economy. Yes, it can be hard, but its a job and I'm proud of my husband for doing it.

5. What piece of advice would you give a new Military spouse facing their first deployment? submitted by The Albrecht Squad
Stay busy, be positive, ask for help if you need it, and don't ever watch the news!

No ID Card For You!

Since we moved here 6 months ago my friend Meghan and I have been talking about going to get new military ID cards. Its recommended (but not required) that you update your ID card when your spouse makes the rank that ours are. We've literally been talking about doing this since the first week we were here.

Well, last week we decided to make appointments and go do it. You know, as sort of a last hoorah! Ha. We had plans to go to lunch afterwards.

After making my appointment I made sure to get my Power of Attorney (POA) out of the filing cabinet because I would need it to get a new ID card issued. If the military member is there, then you don't need it, but we didn't want the husbands tagging along on our girls afternoon out, so yeah, you get the picture.

Well, I stuck the POA on the front of the fridge and then didn't think about it again until this morning. When I realized that it was no longer on the fridge. I was secretly hoping that D had moved it from the fridge and stuck it in the portable file box we carry our important papers in when we move.

After frantically searching through each and every paper in the box, I did not find the POA. I knew that they wouldn't let me get a new ID without it, but I went and tried anyway. I mean, I had an appointment! As you can probably guess by the title of this post, I did not get a new ID card, but my friend Meghan did!

So, the moral of the story folks, is that you should never try to do anything extra the week you move. Just stick to moving, its stressful enough.

Super Cute Stuff and a Fabulous Giveaway!

The Mrs. over at Trying Our Best is hosting a fabulous giveaway for military families or anyone who knows someone who serves our country. She is giving away a handmade blue star service banner, like this one, to one of her readers (note that it will be unframed).

If you are not familiar with what a service banner is or what it represents, she has an excellent link that explains it on her site. You should go check it out. You should actually mosey on over there anyway and enter the giveaway yourself if you haven't already!

Her mom has an awesome Etsy store and she sells super cute stuff in addition to the service banner she's giving away. I headed on over to her store and was checking out the selection. I ended up buying two other things from her. If I don't win the giveaway, I'm going to go back over there and buy a service banner for myself.