Man, you guys are good!

I woke up this morning to an e-mail from my girlfriend who got word last night that her test results were cancer-free!

Thank you to each of you who took time to pray for her... or whatever your version of that may be. She's a nut... but she brightens up every room she walks into, and is a loyal friend to the end. :) I don't know what I'd do without her.

Thanks!

Man, you guys are good!

Much to be Thankful For

So I've wrapped up my class - the Civilian Education System Intermediate Course - was actually really enjoyable... learned a lot - and it reaffirmed for me a lot of things I want to work on... like being more patient with others who don't necessarily perform to my standard, and trying to offer feedback in a less, um, snotty way. :)

The class was at Fort Belvoir, which is about an hour and a half from my house - unless it's rush hour, and then it's like 2-3 hours each way. It's insane. So, rather than face that kind of a commute and never get to work out for three weeks, I was blessed that my boss let me stay on post for the first two weeks, and my dear friend, Mary, let me stay with her for the final week.

Actually, I got a lot of girl time during my class. I had dinner with a friend I worked with in Iraq twice. One Saturday, the gals from work all planned a wine tasting, which was a lot of fun, but the wine was - well - lacking. And then, I got to spend a whole week with Mary, which was such a delight. I've always described her as someone who emits love from her pores, and she does. She made me feel so at home and comfortable, but I really really just enjoyed hanging out with her. We talked all night, and somehow I still managed to drag my butt out of bed to work out at her gym (almost) every day. I found myself thinking how thankful I am for friends like her.

So class wrapped up, and as I was on my way home, I learned that one of my best friends in the world was having surgery that day, and that they're testing for Lymphoma - and she won't know the results until Wednesday - the day before Thanksgiving. Needless to say, I'm counting on a clean bill of health to give me something else to be thankful for. If you're the praying type - I'd ask that you please just say a prayer for my friend, for health - and peace.

I also ran into my dear friend, Cheryl, today - while I was at the doctor's office getting all my pre-op work done. Cheryl's husband is facing surgery this week for bladder cancer. Everything for them will be changing dramatically - and I know she's scared to death, but I also know she's strong - and very grounded - and very grateful for the many blessings she has in life. She's such a gem, so please pray - or put some good juju out there - whatever your inclination is - to help her have peace through all of this... and for health for her husband.

In other, related, news - on our way to the gym yesterday, Ray and I were talking about what to do for Thanksgiving. He was going to make his oh-so-amazing almond-crusted pork tenderloin, and although I would love the meal, it seemed like a lot of work for just the two of us, and I found myself kind of melancholy, missing having family around during the holidays. As much as family can drive you batty, the holidays just seem kind of empty without them. I could tell that Ray was bothered by my reaction, and when I asked him about it, he said the most amazing thing: "Sometimes I think you just focus more on what you don't have, and not enough on what you do."

Boy is he right. You'd think that with all the medical drama going on my life and my friend's lives, I'd be a little more inclined to be thankful for the AMAZING blessings I do have - like a perfect husband, an adorable dog, a beautiful home, financial security, and friends and family galore.... and the technology that lets me close to them, even when they're far away.

Surgery is next week... so right now... I'm also thankful that I can walk around and work out and run errands... and I'm thankful that in a few months, I'll be able to do all of that without pain, as well... (inshallah). How quickly I got right back to being spoiled, and taking things for granted! Perhaps I need another deployment to remind me that I have it pretty damned good - or perhaps I should just watch the evening news, or drive into the city. I have so much to be thankful for...

Much to be Thankful For

I know, I suck, I'm sorry.

Yeah, I've been bad about posting - a lot going on right now... just swamped. Taking the intermediate course (remember the basic course I went to when I first came back from Iraq? This is the next step) at Fort Belvoir right now - and there's always lots of homework and reading, and then I still find myself working these work assignments on the side... trying to go home when I can.
The big thing I could tell you right now is that, like the basic course, this one is challenging my patience - but it's something I need to work on... so I'm all for it. Bring it on!
The other thing is, when the chiropractor tells you she needs to see you 3 times a week... there's probably a reason for that. I've been in such bad shape, was able to sneak off last week once - and will be about the same this week. After about 4-5 days with no adjustment, I seem to revert back to shortly after the accident, where my neck is pinching and creating pain in my shoulder, and my hips are all out of whack. But it's a temporary sacrifice... to knock this class out and get it behind me. Just 2 more weeks... UGH. :)

I know, I suck, I'm sorry.

Renovations everywhere

It's been an insane couple of weeks. We've been busy with renovations on the house; finally got the tile in and it took all week, then we had the huge job of putting it all back together (and cleaning - dust EVERYWHERE!) But we are so so so thrilled with the outcome. The house seems bigger now, despite the HUGE couch we bought. I think part of that is the optical illusion of the tile, and part of it is the hoards of knick knacks and crap we took to either GoodWill or the storage room. :)

I want to post a few of the b4 and after photos so you can see the transformation... and I have to say that I HIGHLY recommend the guys that did this work. Ultimate Flooring Design Center in Odenton - if you're in the market - they are worth every penny. Complete perfectionists.


Forgive the goofy formatting... I haven't had any coffee yet:

Master bath before and after

Kitchen Table before and after:

Kitchen floor before and after:

Guest Bathroom before and after:

Dining Room before and after:

Downstairs Bathroom before and after:

Living Room (view a) before and after:

Living Room (view b) before and after:

So there you have it... but we're not done yet! No no... we're going to have California Closets done in our master closet and the pantry. We're also talking about having the downstairs guest room door expanded for French doors - to open that space up a bit when you first come in.

No rest for the weary! :)

Renovations everywhere

Cutting on me - yikes!

It's official - they're going in. My ankle has a tear in the perrenial (sp?) tendon - and it's a case of go in and fix it, or leave it and watch it get worse and worse. I'm not a fan of that. So, I'm gonna get it over with. Dec. 10th is the big day.

I'd do it sooner, but I've got this class I'm taking in November (3 weeks) that I already postponed once, because I wanted to stick with my physical therapy (for my ankle) - so that I could get back to normal... and, well, we know how that worked out. So, I'm going to finish the class, and then first available slot after that was the 10th of Dec.

Now, that means that my anniversary, Christmas, New Years... and well - ski season - are gonna suck for me... but by late Spring - I should be ready to take on the world! Ray's really bummed about the ski season thing - cause of course, we missed last year while I was in Baghdad. I keep telling him I am more than happy to go and Apres Ski (for you non-skiers, that's where you lounge at the bar and wear cute snow outfits). I don't think he's going for it.

I think I mentioned a few weeks ago that my dental tech who tore the same tendon had to be off of it - no weight at all - for 4 weeks, and then was in a boot for 6 MONTHS!! That scared the bejeezus out of me - so much so, that when he said I'd spend 2 weeks with no weight on it and 8 weeks in a boot, I was SO RELIEVED! Just "shows to go ya" (as my dad likes to say) that it could always be worse.

Ray and I immediately started trying to focus on the postive - I have a great job that allows me to do this with no worries of being unemployed on the other side, great insurance that will pay for every drop of it (except the $3.00 copay on prescriptions), and a most wonderful, doting husband who will pick me up and carry me up the stairs to bed each night, then carry me back downstairs to the couch the next day and pamper me while I'm unable to fend for myself.

Could be much worse. :) Glass half full. The grass will be greener on the other side of this damned surgery. Oops... some dark side (glass half empty) might have slipped in there... just a teensy bit. Every now and then. It's gonna be a LONG winter! :)

Cutting on me - yikes!

WAKE UP!

Sorry - that's just me getting antsy. And hungry. And tired of tip-toe-ing around. My girlfriend from California, and her boyfriend are visiting, and it's 9:30am and they're still sound asleep. Yes, I know their bodies think it's 6:30am, and yes, I know we were up until 1:30am drinking and laughing and eating way too much. but today we're supposed to head to DC and do some sight-seeing, and it's SUCH a beautiful day - like perfect weather out there, and Ray's got breakfast standing by, just waiting for their hungry tushes to get up here.

Perhaps this is our fault, for making the guest room too cozy. I wouldn't want to get up either. :)

This is always a thing with me. I remember when a bunch of my sorority sisters all decided to have a reunion in Vegas, and I was sharing a room with Terri and Julie - and those girls can sleep! I'm an early riser most days, and so for me - on the weekends, or vacations, sleeping til like 6-7am is "WOW! Look at me! I'm a sleeper!" So by 7:30am, I'm usually showered, starving and desperately in need of coffee. But I'm also antsy - like "come on! Daylight's burning! Let's go see some stuff!"

So... I'm super happy to have friends visiting, but rise and shine, people! :) (She knows I love her...)

WAKE UP!

Going back to school

I think I forgot to mention the biggest wow factor of the week. I registered for University of Maryland University College's Master of Science in Management for Public Affairs program.

I've been talking about it forever, and have investigated several schools, but recently a handful of different things came colliding together to give me just the push I needed to get off my arse, quit talking, and start doing.

The Department of Defense offers spouses of military members $6,000 toward their education through the Military Spouse Career Adancement Accounts program - and there are no catches... I thought for sure it was rank or income qualified, but alas, no. Just because I'm lucky enough to be married to Ray, they'll give me money for school. The only catch is that it has to be a "mobile" field, so the skills won't require me to stay put (read, require my husband to get out). Public Relations is definitely one of those mobile careers.

Then, along comes the new, Post 9/11 G.I. Bill, which is - get this - transferrable to spouses or children. This will pay for up to 36 months of your education - and you can transfer part or all of it. So if I work this right - I can get my Masters for free, and still have enough left over for Ray to finish his Bachelors (he only has a few classes left).

How cool is that?

Going back to school