I Love You Because...

This is going to be a simple post. No list, just short, sweet, and to the point. This project has literally been one of my favorite things Luke and I have done together. It is our "I love you because..." board. I am big on leaving notes for Luke because he gets up wayyy before I do and I don't usually get to see him before he leaves for work around 6 AM. I like to let him know why I love him, appreciate him, and understand that he is getting up early to do uncomfortable and demanding things for BOTH of us. He likes to tell me that he's thinking about me and notices the little things I do to keep our family running at home.

So, we made this "I love you because..." board so that we have a daily opportunity to acknowledge how the other person is so special. We write meaningful and silly things to each other, inside jokes, whatever... and take turns with our day. It's so easy and it's the best thing ever to wake up to something nice and a little butt-shaped heart from my hubs. (But seriously... his hearts are lacking some, uhhh... artistic shapely style).

I hope we continue this tradition with our kids as well. I think it would be sweet to have this board on their bedroom doors, so anyone could write a reminder of why they are loved and appreciated. It would be fun for dorm room doors, too!

Here it is. White board from Wal-mart, permanent marker for the title words, dry erase marker for hundreds of love notes. Well worth the investment.

"What do you DO all day?"

Let me tell ya, friends... I hate this question.

Now, I understand that 99.9% of the time, it is just an easy question to ask this for-the-time-being-stay-at-home-wife to explain how she fills her day without a job and has no malice behind it. I get it, and it's okay if you've asked before! But the other .01% is just irksome, and makes me feel that just because I am not working full time that I sit on my couch, eating ice cream, and catching up on my afternoon stories every day (not that this is bad occasionally ;) ). It gives the sense that my worth is tied up in whatever the source of my paycheck is. It's just not true, folks. That being said, I WILL share with you lovely people what activities I do indeed partake in with my more flexible schedule.

1. I have learned to cook! Not that I didn't know before, I just had about 3 recipes up my sleeve that I repeated over and over for convenience. One of my favorite things that has come along with being married is enjoying spending time in the kitchen with Luke (because yes, he helps me make dinner at least 50% of the time since he is perfect like that) Along with cooking, I have developed meal planning system that basically consists of me sitting down every Sunday night with my cookbooks and Pinterest tab open, and planning out our meals for the next 2 weeks. This relieves so much stress on my part after spending a few months of waiting for Luke to get home, discussing my 3-meal bag of tricks and trying to decide on something, thawing out/searching for ingredients, and so on. This left us eating around 6:30-7:30 most nights, which is not so fun with hard-working, hangry* husband. It also keeps me away from the post Commissary, which is a scary, scary place sometimes.

*HANGRY (han-gree) adj. : a state of anger caused by lack of food and working 10-12 hour days; hunger causing a negative change in emotional state. See also: ARMY HULK MONSTER.

2. I've raised a rascal of a puppy to be a somewhat docile, lady-like creature. She seriously has given Luke and I a run for our money in the patience department. There was about a month after we got her that I really brainstormed reasons to take her back ("She's the lapdog of the devil!") But slowwwwwly and surely she is calming down into a sweet and smart pup.

("This is how I used to sit on Papa Lucifer's lap!")

3. On top of being a new wife and honing in on my domestic skills (which were very lacking by the way), I am also learning the ins and outs of Army wife life. People roll their eyes when I tell them this, but YES, it is sometimes a lot of work. I go to meetings to learn lingo, meet new spouses, learn how to file my taxes in two states, deployment readiness, and even Army etiquette*. Army spouses are some of the most helpful, kind, and genuine people I've ever met. They have great perspective and are always willing to help, since mostly all of them have been in a younger wife's shoes before and understand what it's like to ask the question, "Am I REALLY going to move 17 times in 20-some years?" (Yup, it happens.)

(Excuse Lucas's mustache... it was a troop fundraiser for Mo-vember)

*Not like you'd think a-la-1950's etiquette, but more so how to greet your husband's commanding officer at a Military Ball without saying "I like your hat!" or "Are you the mean man who makes my husband get up so early?", which fork is the dinner fork and which is the dinglehopper, hosting large parties for people you may or may not know, etc. It's actually pretty fun!

4. I have single-handedly taken apart a washing machine, discovered what ailed it, and fixed it. Again, the things I would do to avoid a laundromat are impressive.

(VICTORY!! Viva la laundry!) 

5. I started a part-time job. I am currently a certified Health and Safety Instructor for the American Red Cross. I teach Adult and Pediatric CPR, First Aid, and AED classes, and just got certified to teach Babysitting Clinics yesterday! I love it, and it keeps my teaching skills fresh. Plus, I can save your life if so needed.

6. I craft. I craft to my heart's content and no one stops me! I love investing in the hobbies that were just not very possible in college and during my first year teaching. I have crafted so much in my house that I'm almost embarrassed by it when people come over. I hosted a Bunco party in December for some other Army spouses, and wanted to bury my head under the table as each person exclaimed, "Oh my! Did you MAKE this? And this? And this?" Yes, I'm a craft hermit. It suits my homebody self well.

 (Katie's Christmas present) 

(Birthday board for a friend's daughter)

(Dining room wall with vintage military pictures and wedding pics)

(Dining room "chalkboard" made from black foam board, white paint, and Pinterest stolen-ideas. Looks super complicated, but it's very easy, just time-consuming.) 

(Living room artwork from an old atlas page)

(Luke's desktop, woodburned and stained)

(Christmas chalkboard) 

(Fired Up! plate from my trip home with my sisters!)

(Our dining room table... no, I did not "make it" but I pain-stakingly painted and stained it during our first month here. It took forever and a day, but it's my favorite project yet! More on this one later.) 

7. I have genuinely enjoyed being flexible, relatively low-stress, and giving my "yes" to things whole-heartedly.  I jump in to volunteering without aching for my Saturday afternoon back, I join in on lunch plans with friends, and am generally a much easier person to deal with all around. I know I will probably never have this time of my life to repeat with an undemanding job, no kids, and less than a million things on my to-do list. I'm embracing it while I can, and am thankful for the time I had to do all these great things!! I'm blessed!

What would YOU do all day if you had lots of flexible time?? 

Blogs and Other Things I've Failed At

I have failed majorly at blog-writing. I know this, you know this. My sweet husband even knows this, for when I'm being particularly bothersome, he asks nicely, "Hey, why don't you work on your blog?"

So then I don't, just to be more bothersome.

This is my feeble attempt at getting the ball rolling. If I just put up a new, general post, it will take the pressure off of catching up on five months of cyberspace nothingness in one brilliant, star-studded prose... right?

Well, hopefully anyway.

Here are 10 things that have happened since September that I may or may not elaborate on in later posts.

1. My sister Katie came to visit. She put up a lovely play-by-play with pictures about our three day adventure in Georgia here. We made some awesome food, enjoyed the sun, and sat on the couch a lot. It was pure loveliness.

2. I flew back home with Katie and got to see all my friends and family that I'd been missing so much. The air was crisp, the leaves were falling, the crops were being harvested, the humidity was below 99%.... Midwest heaven on earth. Fall doldrums became a thing of the past.

3. We hosted Thanksgiving for some of our Army friends. It was one part stressful, two parts fun, eight parts me obsessing over setting the table with my fancy new dishes. I'm not sure where those "parts" breakdown came from, which is probably why Luke is better at following recipes that I am.

4.  Luke graduated ABOLC (Armor Basic Officer Leader Course) in December and Bradley Leader Course in January, and is now enrolled and half way through ARC (Army Reconnaissance Course). I'm so proud of him! He inspires me every day with his passion and dedication. Way to go, honey!

5. We went home for Christmas. I can't even explain the wonderful feeling of being all together again (since Luke got to come along this time). We tested puppy-drugs on Scout to knock her out during the 13 hour car ride (success!), we crafted (success!), we watched movies on movies on movies (success!), and made up for lots of lost time.

6. I started working for the American Red Cross teaching CPR, First Aid, and AED skills. I'm enjoying it so much so far! It has been fun teaching people who know how to raise their hands when they ask a question and not get all up in my grill when I ask them to put their phone away.

7. Luke and I are currently teaching Theology of the Body to our 6th and 7th grade Religious Ed class. We love it. They squirm. We love that they squirm. They learn how to love and respect their body and God's plan for self worth, dignity, and marriage. It's a win-win-win-win.

8. We bought a car! After much back-and-forth discussion about what to do with my old 2-door Saturn Ion that would soon be making the trek to snowy Colorado, we upgraded for a beautiful Chevy Equinox that we got for a God-given (literally... it's quite the story) deal. It's a beaut', and I'm in love.

9. Scout-puppy is not really a puppy anymore. :( She is the bane of my existence and I love her for it. She gets her bothersome abilities from her mama. 

10. I have learned more and more about how to embrace and enjoy Army life. I am really starting to love the lifestyle and the people I meet. Even the acronyms. (Hey, just so you know, when Luke is done with ARC we are going to PCS to Ft. Carson doing a full DITY CONUS move. I still have to go to JAG and ACS to check on my POA and his LES, but we already have our DD-1172. He's hoping to be a PL when we get there, but if not he'll be put in HHQ.) This. Is. Daily. Conversation. Can I put 'Army' as a second language on my resume? 

Alright, that's enough for now. I will catch you up soon on being embarrassed by my hermit-crafting skills, our upcoming second cross-country move in less than a year, and all the other adventures we've had!

PS- THANKS to whoever is loyally checking this blog for updates. Literally, THOUSANDS of hits in the last five months without a single new thing. Where are you coming from?? Kudos to your patience. 

(AKA, here ya go, Mom! Your hard work paid off!)