the gift

Christmas morning, I opened up my big present and just started laughing.. and laughing.. and laughing. Brandon gave me the weirdest look and asked me what was wrong. I showed him the box.. this is what was inside.

I'm sure you can figure out that this was NOT what Brandon ordered for me. There was a huge mistake! We had to wait all weekend to get a reply from customer service. Monday morning we found out that my bedspread was sent to a boy in Oklahoma and there was a big mixup. Wondering what that boy got to open up for Christmas????

hehehe.. I am SURE he wasn't laughing just like I was!! :)

He did it!!!!

Remember this test that I had asked you guys to pray about??? The one my hubby had to take earlier than he was supposed to? The one that is super duper hard to make?? Well, my smart husband made it! His first time trying, too! Brandon made Tech!!

Sometimes I get these deep down strange feelings.. and most of the time they are right. I got the feelings when I was pregnant with both my kids. I just KNEW what sex they were. I was right! Last night, before Brandon and I fell asleep we were talking about the results coming out tomorrow. I just KNEW he made it. I just had that feeling. Of course, I didn't tell him that, just in case my little feelings fail me one time, haha.

For those who don't believe in the power of prayer... here's my tongue sticking out at you! LOL. Okay, maybe not, but prayer does work!!!!! Thank you all for praying, it means a lot!

I just want to scream I am so excited!! I've always been proud of my husband, but him making Tech. his first time makes me even more proud. I love you, Babe, and I am so, very proud of you. And so very proud to be your wife!!!

Four Years

Happy Anniversary, Babe!! The past four years have been the best of my life and I hope to spend many, many, many more with you! I love you!!!

I guess I'm boring ;)

My husband said that I haven't posted pictures on my blog for a really long time.. and now it's boring! Why, thanks, Babe! =) I think I am the only wife who has a husband who checks her blog daily!

I decided to just come here and post some pictures....of my handsome hubby.. hehe. Teaches him to tell me my blog is boring! ;)

This picture shows just how much my hubby takes really good care of things he owns. He came home on his lunch break and then .. finished waxing his car! Still in his blue's (that's not his daily uniform.. this one is a "dress" uniform).

And lastly, our bestfriend's got a boat!!! So here's a picture of Brandon on it. My husband and Matt spent the day Saturday cleaning it up and changing the oil on it. I have a feelin' I'm going to be super tan this summer!! Goodbye pasty white legs!! ;)

Thank you, thank YOU

My hubby got the job!!!!!

I can't thank you enough for praying for him and his work issues. My hubby used to work on the F-16's, but in his career field he can also work on the CV-22 (what he has been doing for almost 2yrs now) and he can also work on F-22's and UAV's (which he has never touched before). He really wants to go back to working on the 16's, but that won't be happening for at least another 2yrs, if not more. All that to say, this spot as Security Manager was a way to get out of working on the CV-22. He is very excited and probably a little nervous as he has no idea what to expect. He has been working out on the flight line every single day for the past 7 years that he has been in the Air Force. And now he's doing an office job. So you can imagine what a change this is going to be! If you could remember to say a little prayer for him, that would be great. I know I seem to be asking you guys for lots of prayers recently, but God still answers prayers! Anyways, he starts tomorrow!! And, the best part is that he's on day shift (7am-3/4pm)!!! No more workin' nights! Yeah!

Keepin' it real - part 2

I caught a nasty cold on Thursday and today the cold is 100% gone. But, now Kyle and Leah seem to be a little sick. *sigh*

Remember when I said my husband had his test date pushed up because he was going TDY (a business trip) to another country? Well, he applied for an office job as a security manager and he might be getting it.. sooooooooo, they took him off of the TDY. He really wants to switch, so if you all could say a prayer, we'd appreciate it a lot! If he doesn't get the spot, he's going to be bummed. Not only because he doesn't get to leave the CV-22, but also because he lost the opportunity to go a military paid vacation, haha. Okay, so it's not always a vacation, but we do get paid extra!

Whenever Leah wakes from her nap, I am heading to the gym! I will step on the scale and check my weight. It will be the first time I have checked in over 2wks. Last time it said I gained 2lbs. You can see why it's been that long! ;)

I've got nothing else for ya! How about another 'keepin it real' post? I should make that a weekly meme or something, haha!

Man, oh-man, oh-man! I am quite embarrased to show these pictures, but I like to keep things real around here. haha. Here's a before and after picture of my sink. No matter how much I scrubbed those sinks, there was still a nasty yellow stain on the bottom. I thought I was doomed and it was permanent. I didn't think to use bleach! duh! So, I put a little bleach in the sink, let it sit, and wow, don't I feel dumb!! =)

prayer

Life has been going in fast foward these past couple of days. I haven't had time to blog or even read blogs this past weekend. I just wanted to get on here really quick and ask for your prayers. My husband is testing for his next rank tomorrow. He wasn't supposed to test for another 2wks, but his date got pushed up. This rank (Tech) is, I guess, the hardest rank to make in the Air Force. A lot of people have to test two to three, or sometimes even more, times to pass. So, if you can, please lift up a prayer for him. Pray that he remembers everything he has studied and, of course, that he passes! The worst part of testing is that you don't find out for a few months if you passed or not! If my hubby makes Tech Sgt., it's about another $600 a month! ;) Thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers!

World Marriage Day

Today is World Marriage Day! ((I know. The day is almost over, but I have a hard time getting online during the weekend!)) I'll just say it now, but I am a firm believer that marriage should only be between a man and a woman. Nothing more to say about that.

I really like the idea of World Marriage Day, it's a cute idea! :)

My husband and I met at the end of August in 2004. We started dating in January of 2005 (I think it was the 6th, I have all the dates written down.. somewhere!). He proposed the end of March, and we were married on June 4th, 2005! So, needless to say we didn't know each other very long, but we knew we were meant for each other. We've been married almost 4yrs now and we couldn't be happier. I am so extremely thankful the Lord sent my hubby from a itty-bitty town in Florida all the way to Japan. He is my bestfriend, my other half, the love of my life.

I don't think you need me to tell you, but go tell your lover how much you love and adore them and how thankful you are for them!!!

Happy World Marriage Day!!!

Close to 30

Wondering what the title means? Today is my dear hubby's 26th birthday!! So, he is closer to 30 than he is 20!! (hahaha, love you, babe!) For about a month, the husband and I are only three years apart, but now we're back to four! Unfortunately, Brandon is feeling really really sick, so he's in bed trying to get better! What a way to celebrate your birthday, huh!? He did get a super nice birthday present though. A brand new grill!! The one we had was given to us by friends of a friend's.. and they got it from one of my sister's friends! How confusing is that? Needless to say, it was time for that thing to go! Here's the new grill, isn't it a beauty!?

Happy Birthday, Honeybuns!!!! I love you and hope to spend many more birthdays with you!!! MWAH!

Rodeo

I don't know if I live a sheltered life or what, but ever since I met my husband I have had a lot of firsts. I have done things, went places, and tried things I never thought I would do.

~He got me to try snowboarding (he didn't listen when I told him I would really suck at it, and now he will even tell you it was a bad idea to go! HaHa).

~He's bought/rented movies that I had never seen, like - Jaws, Wizard of Oz, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - the list goes on.

~He got me to go snorkeling in Jamaica! I don't even know how to swim and am deathly scared of the water. Thinking back on it now, I can't believe I did it. Crazy!

~He's gotten me to shoot his gun (I used to be the girl who would go nowhere near a gun, but I got to the part where I actually enjoy shooting them!).

~My husband even has me hooked on NASCAR. So much that I even watch it when he's not around. LOL. I can see my sister rolling her eyes right now.. she doesn't understand how great it is to watch cars go around and around, hehe ;)

~He's taken me to my first Pro football game, Pro baseball game, and this past weekend he took us to a Rodeo.

We had a blast. I loved it. They only had the bull-riding part.. I guess they do other things at some other bull-riding events, but I wouldn't know. But it still was a lot of fun and I can't wait to go to another one!

Brandon showing Kyle where the bulls are

Leah's 1st pro bull-riding event, too! a video of the clown jump-roping

waiting for them to let the bull out...

And he fell off right away :(

It was so sad seeing some of the guys fall off right away and get soooo upset. They would punch the fence or wall! I felt so bad for the guys! :(

Thankful

A week before Christmas, my vehicle started acting retarded and finally wouldn't start. The hubby couldn't figure the problem out. We changed a few parts and still nothing. On Christmas Eve, my husband talked to a guy at Advance Auto Parts and he told us that he had the same problem with his vehicle. He told Brandon to clean a tube and it should work, if not, replace it. So, Brandon bought a $5 can of cleaning stuff, cleaned the tube and what do you know?. our Blazer started up just fine!!!!!! We probably spent about $100 trying to find the problem! At least now the other parts are brand new, right? I sometimes forget how much I have to be thankful for.

-I am thankful that we didn't end up spending more than $100 to fix the Blazer.
-I am thankful that it wasn't anything serious.
-I am thankful for the man who told my husband what could be the problem.
-I am thankful that we even have two vehicles to drive around in.
-I am thankful for a husband who knows a few things about vehicles and can fix problems when they arise.

God is good. Sometimes we need a problem or two to remind us of that.

Tree

That's our Christmas tree this year! For the past 3yrs we have done a red and silver tree. I like things to match. I like to be organized. So, I just can't put up random ornaments and a ton of stuff. It all has to go together. I know some people who can have colored lights, different ornaments, tinsel, and you know -the works.. and have it look really nice. Just not my thing (it's okay, if it's yours though!!) This year I convinced my hubby to let me do a BLUE and silver tree;it only took 2 years of begging!! I bought the blue ornaments on clearance after Christmas last year, but even then my hubby said no. I really thought I was gonna lose the battle, because I give in to every thing. I just couldn't give in this year!! I'm glad I was persistent, because I think it looks just lovely. Even though Brandon says blue isn't a Christmas color, I think deep down he likes it, too! LOL

((ignore the star on our tree.. it went out a few days after we put it up!))

Where is the time going??

Today is December 1st! Already!? What happened to November?

Ever since we all got back home early last week our life hasn't slowed down one bit! When I think back to last week I can hardly even remember what we did! I went to bed Wednesday night thinking I was catching a cold.. what do you know.. Thanksgiving morning I woke up SICK! Probably one of the worst colds I have had in years. It took forever to get ready and we were late, but we finally made it to Brandon's Grandma's house. As the hours went by, I was just getting worse and worse, and definitely not in a giving thanks mood! We decided to leave early and I was going to just go home and go to bed, but we had to go to our bestfriend's house for dinner. Rebekah spent the whole entire day cooking a wonderful meal and I couldn't just not go over! We hung out for a little bit, but I just had to get home. I am so glad we went though, because her cookin' rocks!

I had intended to go out on Black Friday to do some Christmas shopping, but this cold was just too much. I usually get all my hubby's Christmas gifts this day, because all the stuff he wants goes on sale (can we say Craftsman?).

On Saturday, we did make a trip to Toys R Us to get some things for Kyle and I even went to a Pampered Chef party that night. We did a lot of spending this week, but it was all bargains, so it's okay. We scored some pretty great deals online though! As each years go by, I get more of my Christmas shopping done online. Love it! I would share my deals.. but I have family and friends who read this.. and I can't be telling them what their gifts are!! :)

Brandon goes back to work this week, but then he took the next 2 weeks off!! Yay! We love any extra time we get to spend with Daddy. =)

I hate to post without pictures.. but this couch sure is comfy and I am just too lazy to go get the camera! LOL. Our desktop isn't connecting to the internet so we've had to use the laptop to get online. It's much more work to use the laptop then the desktop, so I haven't even been getting online as much. The other day my google reader said I had 136 unread items! I thought just maybe it would be a slow week and not very many people would post.. boy, was I wrong!

Well, that was our week, was yours just as busy and hectic??

Yes, we are home!!

We made it home Monday evening. It was a long day and a bit stressful, but we made it! Since landing, we have been really busy and things won't calm down for a few more days. My hubby tried surprising us by not telling us he was coming home early, but I am too smart and figured his plan out, hehe! We had planned for our friend to come pick us up at the airport, but Brandon was going to surprise us by being there. A very sweet idea, but I am not a fan of surprises, so I am glad I knew about it before hand.

Here's a small, little scene from the airport..

Walking out of the airplane towards the waiting area..

Me- "Okay, Kyle, we are gonna see Daddy!"
K- "k, Mama!"

walking some more..

K- "k, Mama, run to my Dada!
Me- "Baby, Mama can't run, ok?"
K- "me run my Dada"
Me- "Okay, you can run to Daddy"

walking some more..

Kyle spotting Daddy..
Kyle taking off at full speed towards his Daddy's arms! =)

I seriously was about to start crying, but had to keep my composure in the airport. Kyle even got teary-eyed!! We are so happy to be reunited as a family. It feels great! Oh, and as if it wasn't enough to just come home.. but it was great coming home to a clean house! Yep, my hubby surprised me by doing his own five loads of laundry and cleaning up the whole house. *sigh* I love my husband! :)

You know, it's hard being away from my hubby. I miss him a whole lot. But over the past, almost 4yrs, of being together, I've kinda just gotten used to it. It's not as hard as it used to be. Don't get me wrong, not every day is just fine and peachy, it's just gotten a little easier. Thanks to this new base we are at, he's gone more than I would like. But I think the hardest part of Brandon being gone is having Daddy gone. Kyle is getting older and realizing that Daddy is really gone. He doesn't understand that Daddy will be home in a week or in a month. He just knows Daddy isn't with us.

While we've been here in California visiting family, Kyle has asked me numerous times to go home to Daddy. Once, he even told me that Daddy was mad at him (I guess he was thinkin' since we left first, Daddy made us leave or something!). Last night, the family was watching a movie and, of course, I was sitting on the laptop internet surfing. Kyle came to me out of nowhere and said "Mama, I miss Dada", I did the usual "I know, Baby, Daddy will be home soon, ok?". But I guess that didn't cut it for him. He started crying! It wasn't whimpering either, he had tears rolling down his face. And then he wanted to go to bed. Aye! That little boy sure knows how to make my heart hurt.

Thank you, Babe, for working and supporting me and the kids. I know it isn't easy being away and having to miss out on so much, but we definitely appreciate you! You take great care of us, and we love you so much. Time can't go by soon enough!!

Thoughts

Brandon posted this in a bulletin on MySpace, I thought it was great so I wanted to share it here.

Since the Democrats are taking over the White House and Congress the military probably wont get a raise for the next 8 years or more. Inflation will continue to go up, but we will get next to nothing for an annual raise. So I will be standing next to some of my military buddies in the welfare line in the next few years. Dont get me wrong, I think its great that America was able to elect an African American as President, but to me it has always been about the issues. If it would have been a conservative republican African American I would have gladly cast my vote for him. I am just curious to see how many of the Obama Movement hopes and dreams will actually come true. Maybe the redistribution of wealth will work out for me, but I sure would be ticked off if I worked hard my whole life to become wealthy only to find out that this wanna be Robin Hood character is going to take my money and give it to the poor. Call me crazy, but I am still hoping that some day we can ban abortion all together and that is never going to happen under a Democratic Washington. There are more reasons why I didnt want Obama to be our next President, but this ranting has gone on long enough.

Unforgettable Moments

I saw this idea a long time ago, and now that I have a blog, I figured this would be a good place to share just a few unforgettable moments. Of course these are in no particular order.

1. The day I came back from Christmas vacation, and Brandon surprised me at the train station. My Mom and brother came to pick me up, and deep down I had a feeling he would be there, too. We weren't dating yet (we had been talking about it though), but the feeling I had when I saw him is unforgettable!

2. The night I trusted Jesus Christ to be my personal Savior. I was spending the night at my K-5 teacher's house and we were going through the Bible story picture cards when she asked me if I was going to heaven. After explaining Heaven and Hell, Jesus' love, and that I was a sinner I asked God to forgive me and was saved.

3. The day my Mom and sister came to "steal" me and my brother from my Dad. My parents were going through their divorce and we were still living with my Dad. My Dad was at work and I was at T-Ball practice when my Mom came and told me to get in the car. We went and picked up my brother from the babysitter's, left Tokyo and drove up to Misawa. Every time I hear any of Madonna's old songs like "Like a Virgin", it reminds me of that long drive home. I was only 5yrs old, too.

4. The day my best friend and her brother sneaked me into their house. Their Dad came home early so I had to jump out of the house through their shower/bathroom window!! I remember Arlene throwing my shoes out the window and running so fast. I looked back and her Dad stuck his head out the window and yelled at me. Funny now, but it wasn't back then!!! LOL

5. The moment Brandon held Kyle for the very first time. His eyes watered and it melted my heart. It made me love my husband even more, if that was even possible. =)

6. The day we found out that baby #2 was A GIRL!!!

7. The day Brandon and I went to go on a cruise for our friend's wedding. We had Brandon's Aunt and Uncle watch Kyle for us. It was so hard waving goodbye and leaving him for the very first time. I cried so hard on the drive to Miami. While on the cruise, every.single.thing reminded me of my baby boy!!! We had a GREAT time though. It was a vacation/honeymoon (we didn't have a honeymoon after our wedding) for us, and I would go on another cruise again. But the next time we do it, I will wait until the kids are a little older.

8. The moment I heard my niece's first cry. I had walked out of the delivery room to call my Mom and Kylie's Dad to let them know that Kylie was about to make her grand entrance. As my friend and I were walking back to the door, we were debating who should open the door (hey, I was only 16yrs old!!) and as soon as I put my hand on the door knob I heard Kylie cry. I opened that door, oh-so-fast!! I will never forget the day my niece was born. I was ecstatic!!

9. The day Kyle locked us out of the house. Leah was just a few months old, sleeping in her crib and we were outside cleaning up. Kyle walked into the house and when I realized he went back inside, I walked over to the door. But it was already too late. Brandon and I stood at the door begging him to unlock the door. There are two locks on the door, and once we got one of the unlocked, he turned the car alarm on! He had gotten a hold of Brandon's keys that were right next to the door. Brandon closed the garage door, I don't remember why (probably to avoid a scene), but when he did it got extremely loud. All I could do was stand there with my hands over my ears tryng not to go into a panic attack. I was about to start crying my eyes out when Brandon had me go to our sliding glass door and yell for Kyle. I banged and banged on the door and finally he came and looked through the blinds. Kyle was able to open the sliding glass door for me. Of course he was crying the entire time because he thought we were locking him out of the house! I never want to go through that again!!

10. The day my hubby came back from his 5wk TDY to Nellis AFB in Las Vegas. It was our first "homecoming" and it also happened to be the day he asked me to be his wife!

Do you have any unforgettable moments you'd like to share?! If you do, I'd love to read them. I'm just nosy like that! hehe

Our Weekend

On Saturday we had a very busy, yet fun-filled day! It started with us getting up at 7am, getting ready and heading out to the base's parking lot yard sale. I was on a misson to find both of the kids pants as it will be getting cool here really soon. I ended up buying Leah a couple of outfits (I couldn't resist the cute dresses!!). I found Kyle some jeans.. and when I started to look around, I realized there was nobody manning their spot. Uh, okay. It was getting pretty warm outside, and Kyle wanted something to drink.. so I just left. Oh, well! I guess they really didn't want to sell their stuff anyways.

When we got back to the car, Kyle told me that his feet were hurting and that his shoes were "tight". Poor kid! I was thinking earlier that he was probably outgrowing his shoes, but never checked. So, we decided to make a stop at the mall. We ended up buying him three pairs of shoes! He needed new dress shoes, and they were on sale for $4.99. And then I found a pair of shoes that I liked on Kyle, but Brandon liked a different pair better, so we just bought both, LOL.

After the mall, we went home, changed and headed back out the door. We went to the Circus!! I was so excited. I have never been to a Circus before and neither have the kids, so it was a first for the three of us. We had such a good time and we even dragged Uncle Matt and Aunt Rebekah to go, too. I took a couple of pictures, but halfway through Leah was hot (that girl needs her AC, spoiled I tell ya!) and she was getting sleepy. I ended up standing for quite a bit of it and didn't take as many pictures as I wanted to.

Once the circus was finished, we decided to go to Cici's for dinner. It was a first (again) for both Rebekah and I. We all loved it!! They have a BBQ pizza and a spinach dip pizza.. oh my goodness!! It was all so yummy. After dinner, the boys went back home and the girls went to a Mary Kay party. We got home a little bit after 9pm, but I was exhausted. What a day!!!

Wordless Wednesday - CV-22

This is the airplane/helicopter Brandon works on.

To see more "Wordless Wednesday" participants, go here.

Seaside, Fl

A couple of weekends ago, we decided to head to Seaside, which happens to be the little town where the movie The Truman Show was filmed. It's a cute little town, but not a whole lot is there. But, now we can be cool and say "we've been to the community where The Truman Show was filmed". We had a hard time finding the house used in the movie. So, I went into a Reality Office and got a couple of maps.. and ta-dah.. I found it! The movie was filmed over 10yrs ago, so the area isn't quite as nice as it was in the movie. But the hubby and I like to go site-seeing, so it was fun!

Post Office and Amphitheater

The house used for Truman's house

Kyle. BTW, that frog was like $80!!!

Brandon and Kyle

A cute little chapel

Leah rolling her tongue