Heartstrings and Other Things

It's been a while..this I know. Life got in my face and didn't give me a chance to look away.
We are still heading to Italy..sometime by the end of the year.
Cam is 10 months old now and on his way to walking. He looks a little like Frankenstein but it's a blast to watch him.

Chris has been gone for a month now..some Army school. He'll be home by the end of the month, and that day is still too far away. He is greatly missed around our home.
Cam and I have been keeping busy. We took a trip to Oklahoma to see family. Thank goodness for my mom, who flew up to help with the drive. It was a much nicer drive than the last time. Last time: we tested fate and drove through the worst storm I have ever been out of my house to witness. People actually died. Cars were blown from the road, there were tornadoes in 3 different directions. And then rain, wind, hail and darkness. I still wonder how we survived. Mom and I are still a little emotionally scarred from that one.
This trip, was sunny and daytime. Quite fabulous and some good quality time with my mom. It was very hard to say goodbye after 20 straight days of being with her. I do love her.

We rarely seem to have a normal moment...

Being in Oklahoma was nice. It's always nice to be home. I got to take Cam to the zoo. He picked out a monkey. Yes, all by himself. I would've paid $100 dollars for that silly monkey just from his reaction when he saw it. He reached for it on the shelf, took it, and ate his face. It was made for him. :)

His other present from the zoo. :)

He fell asleep in his floatie. :) Best nap Ever!

I got some fabulous time with my ya-ya's and all the special times that come with them.

Yum-o!

Beyond Special..and I miss them so.

The most influential and important women in my life. 

Also, while we were home, Cam got his first haircut! It wasn't much but it had to be done. No one but *Great* Aunt Pam was allowed to have the first cut. 

I don't think he even knew what was going on behind him. Ha!

Now we are back in our home. The house that is still for sale and the stress that comes with that may be the end of me. I don't know what else I can do. I'm still emptying it and packing when and where I can. But I am just one little soul and with such a mobile little monster, I have such a limited time to get what needs to be done, done. But I keep chugging along. It will all get done, in due time. In time, I will also not feel like a married-single mom. I miss my better half, for sure.

Alright, enough of my rambles. It's time for a nap for my monster.
Until then...
Be brave in all things. :)

My Mind is So Far From Home

I've never experienced a big move. I moved into the dorms at SNU (Southern Nazarene University) when I was 18. Moved completely out of my parents house when I was 20 after changing schools. Moved back into my parents house about a year later for my 4th year of college...and my 3rd college. :) Then made the biggest move I know after I got married and moved to Tennessee. But the Army packed and moved us..so it was easy. And yes, they will be moving us to Italy but I was not a homeowner at the time. I just had stuff. It was me and my stuff moving from place to place. Renting apartments are easy to move out of. But 5 years of living in a house...you accumulate a lot more STUFF!

A lot of this stuff, I don't want to take to Italy. I have no idea of our living arrangement there but I doubt we will have all the nooks and crannies that we have now to hide and keep our stuff. So, the cleaning has commenced. Problem is, I don't know what to do with half of this stuff b/c it's not mine! I see no need for it, but my darling husband has a need to keep...everything. Which makes my cleaning even more difficult. I'm trying though. I've worked through most of the house. Just the office closet (from hell..HA!) and to straighten the pantry left. Oh, and the guest bathroom cabinet. I'll probably find more.

The den is our catch-all room. All our stuff ends up here since the only part of the room we really use is the computer desk. That, amazingly, stays pretty clean. Haha!

But you take the cleaning and add the giant list of other things that need to be done (painters come in a week for the interior so I have some cleaning to do before they come, then possibly staining the deck and fence, keeping the yard neat and the flowers alive) and then the stress of selling a house in this economy. My mind is not focused. I can't sleep and when I do I have wicked weird dreams that I can not explain. I feel grumpy and my patience level seems at an all-time low.

I just hope that once things start getting checked off my list and we can get the house on the market, I can stress about less and find my focus again. I know it will all work out in the end. If not, I guess I'm taking a bunch of stuff to Italy. Hahaha! I guess I can always recycle it all once I get there.

Until then, it's time for a walk (the best de-stresser for baby and me).  :)

A Short Letter of Love

Today seems like a good day to talk about my husband.

He's a soldier in the U.S. Army. Although I celebrate him every day, today is the day when everyone should celebrate and thank not just my husband but all and any armed forces hero.

Hero. There is no greater word for what he does. Granted, being home, he goes to work and come home like any other civilian worker. But unlike workers, businessmen, non-military civilians, Chris has to pack up his world at least once a year and leave us for a mostly undetermined amount of time. Deployments break my heart every time. They don't get easier. I have some experience...we've done 5. They suck. Simply put.

But every time he comes home, I am more grateful that he's mine. I wouldn't change this path we've chosen. It's made us stronger. It has showed me what Love is. What Hope stands for. And what heartache truly feels like. While I fight to keep normalcy in our home life..he goes off to a foreign country and makes it into the best "home" he can. I don't think either of us feel very "homey" or safe when he's gone.

Chris, is a hard worker, a little OCD at work (and home), but he takes pride in his work, he has high standards for himself and makes sure he's ready for whatever he may be needed for. He is so much more than I have space to write. I have never been more proud of anyone.

I doubt I say it enough, but Thank You my Love. For all your hard work, your sacrifice, your love.
I love you more than words.

When Nature Knocks on Your Door....

....I suggest, you don't answer it.

Not unless you want robins in your house. :)

Here's my tale...

I like wreaths on the front door of my house. They make a house seem inviting, festive, friendly..etc. My Christmas/winter wreath is a beautiful one made of twigs, leaves and berries.

Now, if you look closely, you'll see Momma Robin in her nest...on top of my wreath.

She worked so hard on it. And with that went the use of humans using my front door.

Then came the eggs. One.

Two.

Three.

And a few weeks later..the babies were born. :)

 They grew and grew.

One baby left in the nest...

 

Look closely. That's the last little baby bird, sitting on the bottom railing.

I was sad to see them go, but definitely glad to be able to use my front door again. :)

Out of Germany, Into Italy

Well, at least I can say, "I'm still going to Europe!".
The Army (the indecisive mistress that she is) can not exactly decide where she wants us.
Silly Army.
That's okay, though. As of now, (fingers crossed) we are set to embark on a journey to Vicenza, Italy!


Beautiful...belle.

I must admit, when I was told that we were no longer moving to Germany, my sweet little Bamberg town, I was disappointed. I had imagined myself walking the streets of that 7 hill town and found myself smiling. But I can smile in Italy. I can smile while I drink wine, eat gelato, buy Italian clothes and shoes. Yeah, I think I'll do just fine in Italy. Besides, I've always wanted to learn Italian. Long before we were ever moving...the language called to me. I guess it was fate. :)

Until then..."continuare a scattare per quella luna". :)

It hits you like BAM!

Here we go! Bamberg, Germany. A beautiful little town (from what I can tell from the pictures) built on 7 hills. The place my family and I will call "home" by the end of the year.


Bamberg :)
Yes, my friends, it's true. We are starting a BIG adventure. One that I am very excited about! I have had my moments of anxiety (and many more to follow, I'm sure). I have to keep telling myself, "we are moving to another country". I feel better when I think of it as an extended vacation.

We don't know how long we shall be living in this enchanting new land, but I am determined to see it all while we are there. Castles, Palaces!, the history, the forests, cobblestone roads, the autobahn, cathedrals that have stood the test of time for centuries! The list goes on....


Cathedral in Bamberg
 
Seehof Palace, near Bamberg

First things first, we have to get our lives in order. Meaning, the house, finances, all of our STUFF. Oh my! It's amazing what two people can accumulate into a house in five years. Simply amazing. I refuse to take it ALL with us, so I have started the sloooow process of sorting through it all. Fun? Eh, not so much. Although it does feel good to get rid of some of it. A sense of relief when you feel less cluttered. It's good for the soul. :)

We still have a few months to get things in order, thankfully. I will update as we check things off the list.
Oh yeah, I should make that list....

Until then..here's to another night under the American sky.

Between my Rock and my heart's place

The news came today that we might be moving. Not down the street, not the next town over, not even the next state over. No, the news came today that we might be moving to Germany. I am both excited and more than a little scared.

I'm excited because, how cool would that be! It's Europe! It's Germany! And the Army is going to pay us to go! Think of all the sights and places we'll get to see! And we'll be there for a few years (pro and con to that) so we'll get to take our time and really get to see everything there is to see. I'm also excited because I get to see it all with Chris. I always said I wanted to see the world with him and here's my chance to knock out a chunk! On the Army side of things, we are in need of a change..and this just may be it.

I'm scared, anxious, whatever you want to call it. Before we moved to Tennessee, I had never been more than 30 minutes away from my family and that wasn't until college! As of now, I am around 12 or so hours from them. Germany is considerably further, to say the least.

We've been in Tennessee for about 5 years now. So I have adjusted to the distance from family. The long drive home (that doesn't happen often enough), my daily phone calls with my mom, the emailing of pictures of Cam and our other adventures. We try to keep home close.

It's a lot to take in and it's not even a for sure thing yet. So, I may be getting all worked up for nothing. Wouldn't be the first time! :)

I'll keep you updated, I'm sure, as the details roll in.
Until then..let's go star wishing.