Mike's Career Update

This past weekend we went to Lake Anna to visit with one of Michael's good childhood friends, Kyle, and his wife Alice (the couple I made the toybox for, for the baby shower). Kyle and Alice live a few hours from us and since life keeps getting in the way, we don't see them much and I really never had the opportunity to get to know them, especially since I missed their wedding last year. Saturday was super cloudy and dreadful so we spent the night inside just catching up and I really got to know them both much better. Their little boy, Ty, is due in just a few weeks and Alice sure looks like she's ready to meet him! ;)

Sunday started out cloudy but cleared up by the afternoon and we took the jetski out and did some tubing with Alice's two daughters. After a long day in the sun and the water, we packed up and headed home.....sat in traffic on 95 for a solid two hours. Anyway, we had a great time and I really hope we're able to clear some time after Ty arrives when we can go visit them and meet their sweet boy!

Sooooooo onto Mike's never ending story with the Army... after a long year and a half of trying to switch to Active Duty from the Reserves, it has happened. We have dealt with his crappy recruiters and MEPS being a pain in our asses, but it's finally done. Mike signed his new contract last Friday and got orders to South Korea for one year. Neither of us are too excited about it, but it is what it is and we will get through it. I will address several questions that I continue to get from friends and family:

1. Where in South Korea?

• Camp Carroll, South Korea is on the Southeastern portion. It is a very small base and about a 3-4 hour train ride to Seoul. From what we've heard, not many people have enjoyed being stationed there.

2. Will I be going with Mike?

• No. Mike's 1 year tour will be unaccompanied and not only that, I still have two years remaining on my contract at my current duty station. Next July I will be up to pick orders to my next duty station, and Mike will also be looking at order to transfer after Korea. We are going to try to colocate and hope for the best. 

3. Where will I live while he is away?

• Our lease ends Oct 31 and I don't really like where we live right now and the house is just too big to have all to myself. I plan to rent a basement apartment somewhere in the Fairfax/Vienna/Falls Church/Springfield/Annandale area. A lot of people have suggested I get an apartment to myself but I have several reasons why I don't want to.
• For one, an apartment community would charge me an arm and a leg to keep Max and Winston. Also I don't want Max in an apartment where we might end up on the second or third floor because he gets excited sometimes and can be noisy when he runs around and I know how much I hated that when I lived below a family with a dog. \
• Secondly, I only plan to sign a 6 month lease, and then take it month to month until Mike returns. We are hoping to save a lot of money while he is away and either buy a house while he is home on leave half way through his tour, or buy one when he gets back. 
• Lastly, basement apartments are much cheaper. I can rent a basement for about $1000/month and have my own bedroom, own bathroom, small kitchenette, and a living area all to myself and probably my own private entrance. Also most single family homes that have basement apartments have a fenced in yard which will be very convenient for Max. By having a landlord instead of a management company, I can also work into the lease agreement to have utilities be included in my rent so I'm not paying 5 bills a month. It's just more convenient and less stress. If I got my own apartment, I'd be spending closer to $2000 and not have the convenience of a yard, too. 

I can't really think of any other questions I've been asked except, "Are you happy about it?

• To answer that, I have to say...Yes and No.
• I am happy that Mike has finally switched to Active Duty because we have wanted that for some time now.
• I am happy that he is not leaving until December because that means he will FINALLY graduate from GMU this fall! (He'll have to take his finals a few weeks early but his teachers are accommodating.) 
• I am happy that his time away will provide us the opportunity to save a lot of money and get jump started on the things we want...to pay off my car, buy another car, buy a house, etc.
• I am not happy that I will have to be apart from my husband for an extended period of time and I am not happy that he will be in a shitty part of Korea.
• I think that answers the question. I am just trying to stay focused on the silver linings of this.... mostly that he'll finally finish his degree and that we can save money but some days it's hard to think positively. I am glad that I will be moving back to Northern Virginia because I've about had it up to my neck with living in Southern Maryland. ICK.

Well that's about it for now. Here's a few pictures just because... :)

Michael's cousin Danny and his blushing bride, Stefanie :-)

 Audrey taking Max for a little walk around the house :-)

Girl's Night with Megan and Jennifer :-)

xo,

L

You. Are. Mine.

So it's been a long time since I've written, as usual. I often find myself thinking about what I want to blog about, and then by the time I sit down to write, they are not really worth talking about. So I guess I'll address some things since my last post.

GIRLS on HBO: So the season ended and I was extremely disappointed. I am disappointed for two reasons:
1) I really loved that show and I'm sad that I have to wait until the new season airs.

2) The last episode sucked and since the first few were so funny, I'm nervous that the writers wasted all their humor and ran out. I am, however, too far invested in the show to stop watching it when the new season comes out. Will post more on this where there is a real update.

Favorite song: It was "Somebody That I Used to Know" by Gyote, but now I have fallen for another. One of my little secrets/guilty pleasures is So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD) on FOX and I have loved it since Season 1. They are currently on Season 9 and I really thought I would've outgrown it by now but no. I am so attached to this show and have my favorite choreographers and this season, to include the most brilliant, Sonya Tayeh (find blog here)

Last week she choreographed a piece using two beautiful dancers, Tiffany (so cute) and George (totally have a crush on him!) to a piece called "Turning Page" by the group Sleeping At Last. (View there piece here)

I heard the song and started listening to the lyrics and was like, "OMG MUST DOWNLOAD NOW!" K, so I haven't been able to turn it off. I looked up the song and found that it is actually from the Twilight movie soundtrack which was kind of disappointing because I never got into that series, but oh well, the song is sweet. I had Mike listen to it and we have decided that we will dance to it at our vow renewal ceremony (don't ask when it will be, I have no idea -- maybe next year?). The words are just so sweet and just kill me with love! Listen to it here.


Aaaand now what you've all been waiting for.... my recent literary obsession: 50 Shades of Grey series. I finished all three in just over a week. I am obsessed. Don't believe me? See my latest purchases.

Yeah, so anyway, as you all know, I'm a huge prude and did NOT think I'd be able to make it through those books because it's basically a porno. EW. I had a hard time getting started in the first book because I kept falling asleep but once I got to Chapter 8 I just FLEW THROUGH IT! I couldn't put it down. Even the sex scenes didn't bother me...probably because reading allows for your imagination to do what you want it to (as opposed to a video that leaves nothing to the imagination). I must admit -- during some parts of it, I had to get out the dictionary because I didn't know what some of *those things* were. I also had to converse with Michael about why people would do *certain things*.... I am glad my marriage is normal. Wait, what is normal? Nevermind, I won't go there.

Anyway, at first I pictured Anastasia to be like Hannah from "GIRLS" ... awkwardly shaped/not super attractive. I was like, "If Christian is so good looking why would he be with an ugly girl?" Well then I got more into the book and discovered she is so far from ugly -- she is skinny and pretty with "the perfect ass and perfect tits!" I couldn't make that up if I tried, ha ha... By the time I got to the second book, I was in love with Ana, and in love with Christian, but separately. I could never live with someone who told me what to do and made me call him Sir. By the end of Book 2, I could understand Christian and really felt for him. (Mike has repeatedly made fun of me for being so obsessed with the characters and said that I am jealous that is not my life. I almost agree with him ... minus the canes and floggers. ewwww hahaha)

One of my favorite parts is when Ana asks him why he is the way he is, he responds with, "Because I'm fifty shades of fucked up." ... It got me thinking.... Aren't we all fifty shades of fucked up? No, we didn't all come from crack whores who were pimped and out and watch our mothers die from drugs and go through foster care and later get seduced and then become a dominant....but in some fashion, we are all F*ed up. I don't know why I liked that part. Maybe because it explains the title of the series, but I just agreed with it. We all have our issues. And it made me feel better about mine.

I was slightly disappointed with the end of the third book.... I feel the writer just ran out of room and was like, "Crap! Better cut this short!" I don't know, maybe not. I mean, she did write like 1600 pages on the subject, so perhaps it was just time to end the story. Either way, I really enjoyed the story. I know Michael is excited to "have his wife back" after over a week of me running home and plopping down on the couch to get lost in my book and barely spoke to him. I am anxious to discover another book that I just can't put down. Must find one soon...

On another note, the vicious work week is nearly over and we are going to Lake Anna on Saturday to visit with some friends that we don't see often. Looking forward to it.....

xo,
L