Not in the car anymore- finally!

I've arrived safely in Virginia.  Two days ago, Justin and I loaded the dogs up in the car, in Texas, and over the course of the last two days, we drove 26 hours, covering over 1600 miles, to get here for the holidays.  Towards the end, I was hard pressed to remember why we thought driving was a better idea than flying- but we made it. 

Actually, the drive wasn't a fraction of the pain that I thought it would be.  The dogs did great- no carsickness, didn't pee in the car, quiet and well behaved the whole time.  Justin was in a really good mood for nearly the entire ride.

**So, the rest of this post I have deleted, as my mom pointed out that it's probably not a good idea for me to be posting rants about the Air Force, as they are paying all my bills right now as I work on my freelancing career.  It felt good to get it out of my system, but now I'm deleting it so it doesn't come back to bite me, or more importantly, my husband.  Despite my complaints, the AF has been very good to us.  Yay Air Force.**

Anyhow, I'm very happy to be home.  Gotta go finish my Christmas shopping now!

Free travel opportunity! What's not to love? (Oh right, the crippling diarrhea)

Hey, all you travel aficionados and good hearted volunteers: I've found the offer of a lifetime for you!

How's this grab you: this company wants to pay all your expenses for a seven day trip to Guatemala or Mexico. Instead of saving all your spare change for that volunteer opportunity or sightseeing trip, you can do it all on someone else's dime. So, you ask: where do I sign up?

Well, before I give you the link, there's just one tiny, itsy-bitsy little detail that I should mention (because there's no such thing as a free lunch- or vacation- right?): you'd have to be a guinea pig for a new experimental traveler's diarrhea vaccine.

I'm guessing, since they're putting all this money into shipping you to another country and paying for your vacay, that only drinking bottled water and then happily proclaiming you had no diarrhea at the follow up appointment (which is what I would do) is not ok. So, as long as you don't mind purposefully exposing yourself to germs that can cause debilitating diarrhea, in the hopes that their vaccine works (or that you aren't one of the 50% who were given a placebo), plus the potential for side effects from a new drug that is still in development, then you are in for a lovely free vacation!

Have fun, and don't forget the baby wipes! http://www.trekstudy.com/index.html

Home for the Holiday

I haven't posted in a few days and the reason is this:  I'm home (as in, Virginia with my parents and sister) for a week to celebrate Thanksgiving, and not be alone for my birthday.  Naturally, I've got my hands full (mainly with 4 and a half months worth of adorableness named LANDON, my perfect nephew) and so blogging has moved a little ways down my priority list.

I don't want to leave my blog idling for a week or two so I thought I'd do a quick post.  It's been really great being home so far.  Haven't done anything earth-shaking but I've had coffee with a few old friends, spent some quality time lazing around with the family, and been incredibly amazed at the growth and development of my nephew.  Obviously I've been exposed to babies before, through babysitting and friends and such, but the wonder of infancy is so much more poignant when you're watching as a family member, I think.  Until this past Wednesday, I hadn't seen Landon for nearly three months, and the change in him is incredible.  I am taking in and savoring every smile, every giggle, every wrinkle of his nose, and I'm even treasuring the poopy diapers and the drool and the occasional tomato-red, scrunched face screaming fits, because I feel blessed to be here with him for each moment I have.  Watching my sister be a mother is wonderous.  Today I feel so blessed and thankful to be here to experience it all.  I can't wait for Justin to meet Landon at Christmas!

Hope everyone reading this has a phenomenal holiday.  May your turkey be tender, your mashed potatoes creamy, and most of all, your day stuffed with family, friends, love and blessings.