30 Days of Me: Day 25

My day in great detail. (Wednesday 24th)

This may not be exciting but honestly I cannot put off doing the 30 days anymore. I need to finish it and get back to normal blogging.

I finally woke up about noon. Yes pretty late but I'm trying to get in a lot of sleep today and tomorrow. First thing when getting up means I get myself bundled up and have to take Lily outside. It's different living in an apartment where I have to actually get dressed first thing in the morning. When we had a backyard it was nice just walking to the back, opening the door and then getting ready.

After taking her out I came in and ate breakfast (I live such an exciting life lol). Then got dressed finally to head out to the grocery store. I had a bad hair thing going on but luckily since it's freezing outside that just meant throw a hat on top of it and pretend I have good hair. I headed to the grocery store finally, at least the roads aren't bad today. There were a lot of people there but then again I didn't exactly pick a great day to head there. Everyone was doing last minute Thanksgiving shopping. I was just trying to grab stuff to make chili and things to help me survive until next payday.

After my trip there it was time to head straight to Starbucks, this cold weather is not helping my addiction at all. I'm even more so a happy camper because of the holiday flavors that are out. I have been drinking a lot of gingerbread chai tea lattes lately, it's so good. I got that and headed back to the apartment. Since then I've put away groceries and have been talking to Brandi on skype. I've also put chili in the crockpot and am avoiding my chore list for the time being.

Mike and I have no started our daily chit chat. It's mainly involved what both of us want for Christmas. I plan on finishing his gifts before he gets here and then he's going shopping once he's up here. He pretty much laughed at me when I told him part of my list is anything Glee related.

The day ended with an ER trip. I'm okay, I just have benign positional vertigo...basically I get dizzy. I have medicine for it now. After I got back from the ER I pretty much passed out after talking to Mike a little.

30 Days of Me: Day 24

Whatever I want.

I will get this 30 days of me done...eventually.

Things have been hectic in a way. More of less just getting in the routine of things up here. I had been job searching since we moved up here. I wanted to get something to pay off some things we have and build up a savings. I ended up applying to Toysrus (thanks Nicole) and got an interview there pretty quick. I did great at the interview and got a job there in a seasonal position. Then I ended up getting a call offering a job at Navy Federal. I took that as well. I should be getting pretty busy soon with working those jobs and working out more. I am looking forward to bringing in some extra money and staying pretty busy. So far the people at Toysrus have been really nice. I meet everyone at Navy Federal on Monday when I officially start there.

I have been working out again. I love it. When we got up here we got a membership at the YMCA. It's such a nice place. I tried a class there for the first time today. It was a muscle toning class, not bad at all. I want to try a few more classes (pilates, yoga, kickboxing). The place is so big and there is so much to do there, it's great.

The apartment is coming together as well. I've set most of the big stuff up and now it's just getting a lot of little things into spots. It's pretty cozy and all it's missing is Mike.

I have been going crazy on some Christmas shopping. I already sent off Brandi's box and I've finished shopping for Photina and the girls. Next is my sister (which I've started) and a few other people. I love shopping for others, it's so much fun. I even need to buy a couple more things for Mike, which I know he'll love. I honestly don't think we'll have room to set up our tree this year, maybe we can make room. If not I'll just go get some other decorations to still make it look festive in here :)

30 Days of Me: Day 23

A YouTube video.

I always loved this one, it's just really cute. We should have done something like this for our wedding lol!

30 Days of Me: Day 22

A website

Honestly the one I'm on the most is Facebook. I like to see what everyone is up to and how people are doing. It's nice to see people's pictures. It's a nice way to keep up with people that I've known for a long time, especially people from high school.

Another one I like is amazon. I like to buy stuff off there, they always have great deals and stuff I can't find elsewhere.

30 Days of Me: Day 21

A recipe

I absolutely love this chunky chili recipe. I fixed it once and both Mike and I were hooked. I got it from one of my crock pot cookbooks that I received as a gift.

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (15 oz) rinsed and drained pinto beans
1/2 cup prepared salsa
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Optional toppings:
cheese
black olives (put them in and tasted good)
onions

Steps:

1. cook beef and onion in pan over medium-high heat. Then drain.
2. Places in crockpot: beef mixture, tomatoes with juice, beans, salsa, chili powder and cumin. Cook on low for 5-6 hours.

So now I just play around with seasonings and the tomatoes (get different flavors). It's really good. Then add some sweet cornbread (can get that recipe on the side of boxed cornmeal) to the side. It's a perfect meal.

30 Days of Me: Day 20

A hobby

One of my hobbies is reading. I love it. I have so many books at the moment too. I have a hard time saying no to buying more. And of course I justify that it's okay to buy them when they're used and about $1-2 hehe.

I'm sure Mike would appreciate it if I read the ones I have first.

I love getting lost in them, picturing what the people look like and putting myself in that world. The getting lost in another world is also why I love movies and buy a lot of those too.

30 Days of Me: Day 19

A talent of yours. Sadly I cannot think of anything off the top of my head.


So instead I'll ramble on about other stuff. Our stuff finally arrived this past Friday. Nicole was great and came over, she even brought starbucks :) So they delivered our stuff and then went to Nicole's to finish up her stuff.

It's nice having everything again, it definitely made the apartment feel so different. It doesn't feel near as empty. We have an insane amount of furniture too. So at the moment our recliner has to be in our room because the living room is crowded. We also have the entire guest room full of boxes. I will be spending a lot of time unpacking those boxes and trying to find room for everything.

I also would love to be back home in Texas with family. My grandpa suffered from a small stroke. Thankfully he's doing great. I was able to talk to him on the phone today and it was really nice. I do miss being around or close enough that I can come in for a visit. They're running tests on him tomorrow to figure out what's going on. I hope they're able to find out and help him.

We made it

The best part about being a military spouse is moving around and seeing different places. We've been married almost 4 years and we have lived in 3 different states. We are in the third state now, living in our 4th place together. It's such an adventure.

The movers showed up on Oct. 6th to pack up our house. The guy was able to get almost everything done and was pretty nice. On Oct. 7th the movers came again, this time to take everything away to be shipped. That day Photina and her 3 girls came over to spend some time and help. Photina was awesome and helped me scrub the house for the final inspection. The girls were able to run around in empty rooms hehe. They didn't quite understand what was going on as they kept asking the movers why they were taking my stuff. To keep them busy Photina gave them something to color. I later saw it was for me, it says "We love Whitney". I absolutely love it and actually brought it up with me to hang up.

Then Oct. 8th came around, the day that Photina and I were trying to avoid thinking about and mentioning in conversation. I took care of the final inspection and it actually went great. We only owed $10 for the screen door. I was preparing for the worst in what we would owe in repairs. After that and running errands I went to Photina's house to wait for Mike to get off work. She gave me my first birthday present and it was great. I was probably supposed to wait and open it later but yeah I couldn't help myself hehe. It is a great picture of Brandi, Photina and me. It is in a picture frame that says sisters. I love it. Then we went to Borders where she wanted to buy me another birthday present. She let me pick it out. I got two books: "Eat, Pray, Love" and "Love the one your with". I'm pretty excited to read those soon. After borders we chatted with Nicole for a little out in the parking lot, she was leaving the same day as well. Soon after getting back to Photina's Mike showed up. We switched some stuff up in the car and knew it was time to say goodbye. I hugged the girls and was holding it together but then came saying goodbye to Photina. We stood in the kitchen staring at each other for a while not knowing what to say and honestly just not wanting to face the truth. We finally hugged for quite a while, shared some tears and said goodbye. Like we've both said, we're stuck with each other forever :) She is such an amazing person and I cannot wait until we can hang out again.

Our drive was great. The first day we stopped in Fresno, CA. We had thought about going further to Sacramento but we weren't sure what time he'd get off work and how tired he'd be. They were working so much the week we left so I'm really glad that we shortened the drives. Once in Fresno we pretty much just grabbed dinner and went to sleep pretty quick. The next day we drove to Medford, OR. The drive there was really pretty with all the mountains and so many trees. I loved the views. In Medford we walked around the mall and Barnes & Noble. It was nice to walk around for a while after sitting in a car all day. Our third day of driving we made it to Port Orchard, WA (our new home for little bit). That drive was just as pretty too. I fell in love when we drove down to our hotel, it was right on the bay.

On Oct. 11 (my birthday) we moved into our apartment. It's a nice little place. Once we got all the stuff unloaded we did a lot of exploring and shopping. We found a great chinese place nearby. Then later that night we went out for my birthday and had a great dinner. Which was followed by a little more shopping. Mike insisted I get this coat. I kept saying nahh I didn't need it but he took it to the cashier and bought it immediately. It was a good birthday.

Since then it's been exploring places around us and getting errands done. I look forward to the memories we'll make here in WA.

30 Days of Me: Day 18

Today is whatever tickles my fancy.

A lot has gone on these past couple of weeks.

First Lily got sick. Mike had just come home from an underway and she started throwing up that night. We figured it was either nerves or just a little sickness. Normally I just let her play it out and within 24 hours or so she's fine. Not this time. She did it three days in a row so I finally took her into the ER. Nicole was awesome and came with. They did xrays and bloodwork. Her bloodwork was great, the xrays showed what they thought could be blockage. They gave her fluids and we went home. They said to fast her 24 hours and then giver her some water. Then if she threw up the water that we need to bring her back in. Well of course, she threw that up. We took her back in and they again saw "blockage". They said we really needed to do surgery and that it seemed like something was blocking her intestines. We took care of paperwork and she was sent into surgery that night. We called the next morning to check on her....here comes the best part nothing was blocking anything and she was fine. The only good that came out of the surgery was they went ahead and glued her stomach to her abs. That is to decrease her chances of ever having bloat. We were upset that they pushed surgery and she was fine. Next time we know that she just needs anti-nausea medicine and that she really is a nervous dog.

She's doing great now!

I've been spending a lot of time with Photina and the girls. It's been great, they get the idea of where I'm going. We took a trip up to Julian today and it was nice. It's always so pretty up there and the apple cider is amazing. So far we've gone every year up there and every time I get a new fairy from this store there. I got one this year and it's so pretty. Tomorrow we're going to have pictures taken of us (Photina, the girls and me) by the great Pamela :) It will be nice having this pictures to look at and remember. Photina is an amazing friend and my family! They can't get rid of Mike and me lol.

Moving is also getting closer. The movers come Wednesday and we leave Friday. I'm pretty excited about the road trip and time with Mike. Lately he's been working so much we don't really see each other a lot. We should get to our stops with some time to relax in the rooms and enjoy the night. Then once we get there and sign the apartment papers, I'm hoping that we can make a trip to Seattle and celebrate my birthday with dinner and walking around.

30 Days of Me: Day 17

Today is an art piece.

There is a sculpture here in San Diego that caught my eye. It's simple yet I think it's pretty. It's two engagement rings. It's down near the San Diego Airport. This picture shows them at night, which I think is really pretty.




The second one is just one of many that I like from Amy Brown. She does fairies and they're my absolute favorite. This one is sisters and it's beautiful. I would love to one day have some of her stuff in the house.

We'll see :)

30 Days of Me: Day 16

Topic: Song that makes you cry/nearly cry.

This song does almost every time. It was on the radio a lot after Lexi passed away. I was dealing with that and Mike gone at the same time, this song just hit me. I was thinking I couldn't do it and having a hard time trying to hold it together. I had to continue running the house and taking care of Lily when I just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. This song made me realize I could it and I was strong.

So now when I hear this song I think of all the hard times I've been through. I think about the miscarriage and losing Lexi. But I remember through all of that I'm a stronger person. I know I can handle anything just taking it one day at a time.

30 Days of Me: Day 15

Today is a fanfic. Well I'll make this part of the blog short and sweet: I don't read them so I don't have a favorite.

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Okay, accidentally hit enter before I was ready to.

So because I don't have a favorite I'll do a little update. Everything has been going great. More move things have been taken care of and we're just waiting for the most important thing. That is his paperwork so we can schedule the actual move.

I cannot wait to see Perrin again. I'm glad he understands distance between states now, he just now thinks plane tickets are easy to get. He called me saturday wanting me to come with him. I told him I was still in CA which then he said that was easy to just get on the CA plane, go to the airport and then drive hehe. He's cute.

Tomorrow should be exciting too. Photina and I have planned to take the girls bowling. We wanted to go another week but the prices were kind of steep. Thankfully tomorrow is $1 everything! So we get to put up bumpers and let the girls bowl. I hope they like it because I know I'm excited. It's been forever since I've been bowling.

30 Days of Me: Day 14

Today's topic is a non-fictional book.

This book immediately came to mind. I read this book a long time ago when I was on a Lois Duncan kick, I loved her fictional books.

This was a really sad story. It is the true story about her daughter who was murdered.

30 Days of Me: Day 13

Today's topic is a fictional book. I thought about it for a while and there are so many fictional books that I absolutely love. So I figured I'd pick the book that I'm reading at the moment.

I heard a lot of good things about this book and my friend Nicole told me it was a must read. So I went out and bought the first three books but things have happened and I'm finally getting around to reading the first.

I really like what I've read so far. I've gotten really into it. I think with her writing it's really easy to get into the book and imagine the characters and what they would look like. I cannot wait to finish reading this and move on to the next books.

30 Days of Me: Day 12

Yay another what I want day.

Things have been changing and I can feel it. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. I've been slowly working on the house for our move. We had our first inspection last week and it went very good. I was surprised but they really are a lot more lenient than the housing in Charleston. So far it doesn't look like we'll be paying a crazy high amount.

So since we've found out we're moving I've been trying to spend a lot of time with Photina and the girls. Lillie and Ivy don't quite understand I'm moving away or where WA is. Ivy says she's packing up and moving with me. Of course they also thought Italy, where Brandi moved, is just down the street. I honestly think leaving them is going to be the hardest part about moving. I was just thinking today how when I met Photina, Ivy was not even 1 yet and Lillie was just 2. They have grown up so much and Lillie is turning 5 this upcoming week. They've become family. My favorite thing they tell me is either "I love you Whitney" or "you're my friend". It's cute :) I'm going to miss seeing the girls almost everyday and seeing them get so excited when I come over. I will also miss hanging out with Photina and all the fun times we have. Her and Brandi became sisters to me. I love you two :)

Also changing is the seasons, it's feeling like fall and I love it! There's football on tv and pumpkin spice at Starbucks, my favorite part of fall. I look forward to the cooler weather in WA and new experiences for us.

Tomorrow we're going to grill for Labor Day and I'm pretty excited. It will be a nice day with great friends! I hope everyone has a great day.

30 Days of Me: Day 11

Today's topic is a picture of me recently. Here are two.

This first one was right before Brandi moved to Italy. We went to La Jolla seal beach and took pictures.

I love this one. It's definitely us being our typical selves :)

This is just one of me. I had just dyed my hair black. I love it dark.

30 Days of Me: Day 10

Today is pictures of me over 10 years ago. These are definitely pretty old pictures. All of these are me under 8 years old.

I took karate when I was younger and loved it!

My hair was pretty light here and I was definitely a daddy's girl!

I loved that coca cola shirt. I have pictures/videos of me running around in that shirt and black heels lol.

And well this is me :) I never give normal pictures.

I really like this one.

30 Days of Me: Day 9

Today's topic is a photo I took. So here are a few :)

This first one was on the way back from our visit to Texas. We were staying at his mom's in New Mexico. He was still sleeping, I sat up to get my phone and Lily immediately curled up to him. It was super cute.

This next one is Perrin playing at a park when I had him for a weekend in Texas. He's a lot of fun to be around and an awesome kid!

This last one is Photina's girls. I love them dearly. This is probably the only picture I took that has all three of them in the picture :) They're super sweet and I definitely think of them as my nieces.

30 Days of Me: Day 8

Today is a picture that makes me angry/sad. This picture makes me sad. It gets easier looking at it with time but it still hurts.

For background information the picture is of Mike, Lily (left) and Lexi (right). Lexi passed away July 26, 2009. She was such an amazing dog. We both loved her so much. Seeing this picture makes me think of how much I miss her and wish she could still be here with us.

This is part of the reason I'm having a hard time getting this house ready to move. It's leaving the last house that Lexi was apart of. We made memories here with her and I almost feel like I'm leaving them behind. I know they'll be in our minds forever, it's still hard leaving here.

30 Days of Me: Day 7

Today is a photo that makes me happy. This was pretty easy. When I look at this picture I'm instantly happy. I love where my life is now. I love that I have an amazing husband and a really cute stepson. They are the best and make me happy :)

30 Days of Me: Day 6

It's a whatever I want to write day. woot!

This morning I had my last bike event for a while. It was Bike the Bay, 25.5 miles long. I had to wake up about 4:30am so I could get ready, get out the door and find where I had to park in time. Thankfully it was pretty easy to find and they were directing us into the Hilton's parking garage. They gave us a discount with parking there, instead of the normal rates I just had to pay a flat $10 (which is great because when she took my ticket at the end it came up as $30). As I was driving in the garage I started getting worried, I wasn't sure if I brought my helmet or not. I had to get a parking spot, take the bike off and then open the trunk. I did bring it and I'm glad I had it in my car because I don't think I would have had time to run back home. I had a lot of time to wait around and enjoy the beautiful morning once I got to the park. The event started about 7am. They did waves of 100-150 people and I was part of wave #14.

The hardest part was the first, we immediately headed over to the on ramp for the Coronado bridge. They tell you before you leave the starting line that the on ramp is the steepest part of the whole thing. It was pretty tough. I just kept a slow and steady pace. One I got to the top of the bridge that was probably one of my happiest moments. I was so thrilled I made it on the bridge, I glided down with a smile. The rest of the course wasn't bad. There were 3 rest stops and the rest was just looking around and enjoying the sights.

When I was coming across the finish line there was Photina and the girls saying "yay Whitney". It was too cute and I really appreciated them coming out. I'm glad I did it and I cannot wait until I can find another biking event.

30 Days of Me: Day 5

One of my favorite quotes is this:

He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.
Friedrich Nietzsche

I really like positive quotes. I like ones that help you realize that life is hard but you can over come anything. There will be ups and downs in life. There will be moments where life seems completely unfair but it gets better. I think you grow stronger from these down moments and it shapes you as a person.

Life is great! :)

30 Days of Me: Day 4

Today is my favorite book. I love to read and I have so many favorite books. Which is another reason Mike and I are perfect for each other. I'm sure if we could we'd own a billion books. We both already have so many and a lot we haven't read yet.

I wouldn't mind having a huge library room in the future :)

This one a great friend suggested I should read and I loved it. I actually just got a copy from Mike's mom and was thrilled to read it again.

I really like John Saul books, I like the mystery to them.

Then another long time favorite. I read all her books when I was probably in the 6th grade. I loved them all. I remember being so excited to either check out the next one or buy it.

30 Days of Me: Day 3

Today is my favorite television program. I have a lot that I really like. Here are some:

This is my complete guilty pleasure. I watch a lot of this while Mike is gone.

Mike and I started watching this sometime last year and would have Dexter marathon nights. It's creepy but really good.

I became hooked on this when I started watching Grey's Anatomy. I saw in the DVD sets they did a spin off and it was just starting. I've loved it since it first aired.

I remember hearing everyone was in love with this show. I put it off for a long time watching it. Finally a coworker in Charleston convinced me I should. So I went out and bought the first season on DVD and fell in love with it. I went out and got the next couple of seasons to catch up.

30 Days of Me: Day 2

Today's subject is my favorite movie. Honestly I just really stink at picking one favorite. I tend to like a lot and not really have just one favorite of anything!

So some movies off the top of my head that I like are:

The Holiday. I can watch this movie over and over. I love it.

A recent movie that tops my list is Inception. It's so good.

And then almost every Sandra Bullock movie I really like.

30 Days of Me: Day 1

So today is my favorite song.

I have so many so it's pretty hard to choose. So off the top of my head one of my favorite songs is "3 Libras" by A Perfect Circle. I love them.

And after that is pretty much any song from Breaking Benjamin, No Doubt or Silversun Pickups.

I love music :)

30 Days of Me

I saw a couple good friends doing this so I thought I'd try it out. Plus Photina keeps telling me to keep up with my blog, this should help :)

Day 01 - your favorite song
Day 02 - your favorite movie
Day 03 - your favorite television program
Day 04 - your favorite book
Day 05 - your favorite quote
Day 06 - whatever tickles your fancy
Day 07 - a photo that makes you happy
Day 08 - a photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 09 - a photo you took
Day 10 - a photo of you taken over ten years ago
Day 11 - a photo of you taken recently
Day 12 - whatever tickles your fancy
Day 13 - a fictional book
Day 14 - a non-fictional book
Day 15 - a fanfic
Day 16 - a song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 - an art piece (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.)
Day 18 - whatever tickles your fancy
Day 19 - a talent of yours
Day 20 - a hobby of yours
Day 21 - a recipe
Day 22 - a website
Day 23 - a YouTube video
Day 24 - whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 - your day, in great detail
Day 26 - your week, in great detail
Day 27 - this month, in great detail
Day 28 - this year, in great detail
Day 29 - hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 -- whatever tickles your fancy

Moving on the brain

Recently Mike has decided to extend with the ship and move us up to WA. I am thrilled, I told him to do what he wants and I'll support him no matter what. We both wanted to live up there anyway and honestly it was the best option.

Until just this recently most of the moving process was on hold waiting for him to get leave dates and to show him the apartment for approval. All of that is good now. So I am constantly thinking of what needs to get done, when it needs to get done. Apparently thinking of it so much that I was not able to fall asleep last night until almost 1am. I think by that time I passed out hard only to wake up with him close to 6am and not be able to fall back asleep. Cleaning the house was running through my head and the questions we need to asking housing. There was a huge list that started and I ended up just tossing and turning.

It should be exciting up there. His mom would tell us all about how beautiful it is, things to do and just how much she loved it up there. So both of us have been looking forward to the possibility of living up there. I know she will definitely be one of our visitors! I also look forward to showing Perrin a different state.

Exciting things

This weekend my stepson will be flying out here to stay with us for 2 1/2 weeks. I'm completely thrilled about this. He's such a great kid and I think it will be a neat experience for him. Mike will be waking up extremely early and flying out there to get him and fly back. I really hope he does good on the flight, I doubt he's flown before.

I have lots planned for us such as the zoo, seaworld, disneyland, california adventure, beach, museums and I'm sure some more things.

In other news we're fostering a dog. Her name is Maddie and she's such a sweet dog. At first Maddie and Lily had a hard time getting along, they would fight. But now they love each other, I hear them playing and running around the house together. Maddie has also gotten really used to us as well. When we come home she gets really excited to see us. She's got funny characteristics, she likes to rub up against things like a cat. She will be staying here about 2-4 months, I know Lily will miss her and so we're thinking of getting another dog sometime after that. Lily likes having a friend to play with.

That's all for the day :)

Family time

It's been a very long time since I've gotten on this thing.

As far as weight loss goes I've now lost a total of 39 pounds. I'm pretty darn proud of my hard work so far. I hope to lose a lot more in the time to come.

Since the beginning of December I've been on a road trip. I wanted to go and see family around the holidays. So my first stop with family was at my Aunt's house in New Mexico. That was really nice just relaxing and getting to spend some time with her. Then after that I went to Mike's mom's house. I really enjoyed seeing all of his family and having one on one talks with his mom. Then after lots of driving I finally made it to my parents' house. I've been here now a month. I leave in two weeks to head over to Dallas and pick Brandi up. She's been nice enough to ride back to CA with me. I did not handle the first part of the trip alone so well. I really can't express how happy I am she is doing this.

I've really enjoyed my trip here. I got a gym membership to make sure I don't gain any weight on the trip. I have loved going, I go at least 5 times a week and sometimes twice a day :)

Another great part of the trip is spending quality time with Mike's son Perrin. He is just an amazing kid. I have had him so much on this trip and I love every minute. I will pick him up again this weekend! Even better Mike and I are planning a trip back here together later on. I know Perrin will love spending time with his dad.

I'm pretty excited, I've been reading The Lovely Bones. It's a great book so far and the movie comes out this week. I plan on going with Heather and her mom to see it. I really hope the movie is as good as it looks like it will be.