I'm curious about something. Does it make you old, when your children get older?
Mallory turns 10 today, WOOT!
Video montage honoring a couple years of Mallory...
Try our slideshow creator at Animoto.
♥ G
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Saturday, January 7, 2012
BS & Movin' On Up
So, let's just say that 2011 did not end up in a stellar way. We were told back in the spring, that the Navy would be making cuts. You know, the economy being what it is right now AND with a presidential election coming up, the military was bound to get hit. However, they kept moving the date as to when it was announced who was getting the boot. First it was July. Then it was August. Then it was October.
But finally, on November 14th, I got the phone call from hubby. "I didn't make the cut."
To quote my favorite Scott Bakula (duh, Quantum Leap folks!), "Oh, Boy."
Can I just say how much this SUCKED?! Of course, I can, because this is MY blog and I'll cry if I want to. But seriously, this SERIOUSLY sucked. Here I am, grappling with this news that after 12 years of pretty good service, my husband was getting kicked to the curb because his number was seemingly-random picked. We needed to act fast, lay out a plan so we could ready ourselves for the scary outside world. Add in the fact that we are living IN Italy when this news comes out and you have stress-overload GALORE.
So we started hitting the internet streets, trying to find a job, a house, and a little peace of mind. And it hit us. *cue angels singing* We realized that the best investment into our future would be to enter the American Dream: home ownership.
Now, let me tell you, buying a home over the internet is NOT for the faint of heart. But since we had limited funds, we couldn't stomach the idea of spending over a grand sending one of us over there to "house hunt", especially with Christmas looming. So we recruited some family members to help us do the ground pounding for us.
Enter:
I think for Robert it was love at first sight. So we had our people check it out, to make sure it was the real deal. And it was.
Fast forward to December 24th, and many phone calls with a mortgage company to make sure it really could be the home of our dreams, we put in an offer at 2:30 am (stupid time difference). And it was accepted by the seller 2 days after.
YAY!
Now, for the whole thing to be complete, we are just waiting for the appraisal and the home inspections. So we are a bit excited right now. And we just hope that it doesn't come crashing down in the next few weeks.
The morale of this story is: Once you shovel up all the bullsh*t, you may find some daisies.
♥ G
But finally, on November 14th, I got the phone call from hubby. "I didn't make the cut."
To quote my favorite Scott Bakula (duh, Quantum Leap folks!), "Oh, Boy."
So we started hitting the internet streets, trying to find a job, a house, and a little peace of mind. And it hit us. *cue angels singing* We realized that the best investment into our future would be to enter the American Dream: home ownership.
Now, let me tell you, buying a home over the internet is NOT for the faint of heart. But since we had limited funds, we couldn't stomach the idea of spending over a grand sending one of us over there to "house hunt", especially with Christmas looming. So we recruited some family members to help us do the ground pounding for us.
Enter:
I think for Robert it was love at first sight. So we had our people check it out, to make sure it was the real deal. And it was.
Fast forward to December 24th, and many phone calls with a mortgage company to make sure it really could be the home of our dreams, we put in an offer at 2:30 am (stupid time difference). And it was accepted by the seller 2 days after.
YAY!
Now, for the whole thing to be complete, we are just waiting for the appraisal and the home inspections. So we are a bit excited right now. And we just hope that it doesn't come crashing down in the next few weeks.
The morale of this story is: Once you shovel up all the bullsh*t, you may find some daisies.
♥ G
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Let Me Apologize
First off, I started this blog to help me sort out some of my thoughts. I could even classify it as diary, although there is no lock and key, and I'm not concerned with whomever reads it. There are no deep dark secrets in here.But mostly I started it to complain.
Complain about what? you might ask. Well pretty much everything.
I obviously can't complain about things in my life (even if they are trite complaints, and not REAL complaints) on my personal Facebook page, because it warrants a BARRAGE of the "you-should-be-grateful" anecdotes and the "why-are-you-worried-about-little-things" comments. I understand everyone has their opinion, and that they are entitled to it, but shouldn't it work the other way around. I mean C'MON REALLY? Do you think that I would post the weight of the world on a FB status update? I know people do, but that's not my game. And let me narrow it down, that it's not EVERYONE on my page that has to comment their "i'm-better-than-you-and-i-know-more-than-you" smarmy-ness...there are only handful of those people.
So delete them, you might say.
Well I would, but for a variety of reasons I can't...at the moment. One is a "family" member, so if I do the whole of the earth will come crashing down on me with the feedback that would get me. Another is in a position, that for the moment, could inevitably make our life hell (I won't divulge into that any more right now, I'll save that tidbit for a little later). Also, I don't want to be THAT person, that goes through their list periodically and starts giving people the axe, because I like to think that I'm a nice person. Ok, maybe I only comment/like/KNOW about 60% of my list, but I obviously would like to know them better or they wouldn't be my "friend" on Facebook. I mean, you can't delete friends in real life, and if you could, that just seems rather painful for both parties involved. (I see a divorce settlement down the line where the argument would end up being who deleted who first on FB, seriously)
Wait, I'm re-thinking this whole complaint. Here I am complaining about someone else complaining about my original complaint. I guess I can't really be mad at someone for complaining when I am also complaining.
I just want everyone to think before they comment on someone else's whiny status. Like if I say:
I don't need you to add how I should be grateful that at least I had oatmeal this morning. Or that I even woke up this morning. Or how the government had it's hand in making my oatmeal cold this morning. And I don't really think my life sucks, because of cold oatmeal - although cold oatmeal is pretty sucky!
I just needed to vent. So let me complain on my status, and I'll let you complain on your status. I'll even throw a couple of "lol"s ":)" and a "hope ur day gets better!" for good measure on your's. Because I'm good like that.
♥ G
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Happy New Year
One thing you have to give to the Italians is they really know how to party. Right at midnight, all along the coast of Scauri, Formia, and Gaeta, you can see these beautiful fireworks light up the sea and the night sky.
And the best thing, is you can light up your own fireworks right off your own balcony!
This picture was taken sitting inside my bedroom window, how cool is that?!
Anyway, Buon Anno/Happy New Year everyone!
♥ G
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Two for the Price of One
 |
Now a marathon of Millionaire Matchmaker is another story...but I digress.
What irritates me, AFTER I spend the entire day putting up with the TV getting changed back and forth between games and ESPN (because picture in picture isn't that worth it when you're on AFN), I am not allowed to watch what I want.
Let me explain a little better. We have Armed Forces Network (AFN) while we are living in Italy; it's a special line-up of programs that the military has contracted to let us watch while not being in the USA. It's instead of getting stuck with the local cable, which may or may not be in our language, and/or show us shows that we are accustomed to watching. We are VERY lucky, nowadays, because some shows we can see pretty soon after they air in the US; ie: you know how you get to watch NCIS on Tuesdays? Well we get to watch the episode you watched on tuesday, on Wednesday (so don't spoil it for us!). And if the show is live - like football games - we watch it the same time you do, although with the time delay. Yup, that was us staying up for the superbowl starting at midnight (GO PACKERS!), and there have been many times that hubby stayed up until 2 am to watch Monday Night Football. (Oh and the best part of it all, is it's commercial free; well American commercial free. The "commercials" are actually ads for military-sponsored stuff, where you can learn about American history, American Locations, or about benefits in the military. One day, I'll expound a little more on the beauty (cough, cough) of AFN.)And we don't - wait for it - have DVR or TIVO. I know totally gasp-worthy.
SOOOOOO when I want to watch ONE thing, after dealing with watching what he wanted, I get "Haven't you already watched that movie?"
D'oh.
Yup, that's my life. And BTW you got two blog posts today, for the price of one.
You're welcome.
♥ G
P.S.
 |
| Did you get your Double Check Discount Today? |
Reflections and a Revolution
I can hardly believe that December 31st is already here - 2011 seemed to have drag on forever that I didn't think it would ever end. Why? Well 2011 will go down in history as one of the most uneventful years in my life.
Let me break down my uneventful year for you:
Traveling
Ok, I'll have to admit that I am grateful that I got to live in Italy, but to be honest after about 6 months here, it lost it's swoon-worth appeal. Mostly because we didn't get a lot of chances to travel; hubby was away for a good chunk, or when he wasn't underway they couldn't go on leave, because they might have to go at a minutes' notice. Yes, I realized that I signed up for this madness being a Navy wife and all, but I can still be annoyed at it. And of course, I could have gone traveling by myself, but it would have been me dragging along 2 kids who would be fighting constantly and me worrying about spending any money because of a lecture I would receive afterwards. So I did my "traveling" through my husband's deployments and relying him to take pictures of the places he went.
Now we did end up going to Florence (BELLISSIMA!) in the spring and Genoa (meh) in the fall.
And I did get to go on a trip to visit the islands of Capri and Ischia. And visited the surrounding little towns of Gaeta, Itri, Fondi, and Mondragone.
However, I really wanted to go explore more of Italy, you know like Venice, Pisa, Milan (we did Rome and Naples in 2010). And I REALLY wanted to get OUT of Italy; I wanted to see Germany, Austria, France. And Robert wanted to go to Greece.
So that was a bit disappointing.
School
I'm on my 2nd semester of my Marketing degree. I've been on my 2nd semester since November 2010. Seriously. That accounting class really sucked the life out of me! To be honest it took me over half of a year to get through it! Now that I'm on my marketing class, I've been dragging since life crap happens. So I'm really annoyed that I couldn't even finish a semester of college this year.
Navy
Not delving too much into this bit of information at the moment, but I'm really upset and unnerved with the Navy. The long hours of work, the long and frequent underways, and now the military downsizing thing.... well that's enough said for now.
My Lazy Ass
Ok, I'll admit that I am one of the laziest people I know, but I'm also one of the most motivated. As for my body and overall health, well I have found myself sorely lacking. I pretty much plateaued in an unacceptable body image, which has made me far from happy. And instead of doing anything about it, I've just sat around, cramming my face with cookies and chugging soda pitying myself. It's not like I haven't THOUGHT about losing the weight, and becoming a more healthy individual. I ALWAYS have good intentions - especially since I figured out that they reason we are not getting pregnant is because I'm FAT. But, here I am a year later, 5 or 10 pounds heavier than 2010. Boo.
Wow, now that I reflect on my year, I feel like a loser. And that I spent 2011 feeling sorry for myself more than is healthy. I need to change that.
But instead of turning to suicide, or making stupid resolutions, I am going to start a REVOLUTION.
YES, I said REVOLUTION. I feel that 2012 will be a bunch of mini battles to improve myself and hopefully my outlook on life.
BATTLE #1: Patience
In 2012, I need to keep in mind that I don't control everything, nor can I. That I need to delegate responsibility to where it's due, and accept that it may not be done EXACTLY how I would do it or as fast as I may have gotten it done. AND when someone (ie: kids and husband) ask me how to do something, I need to learn to help rather than take over (or roll my eyes when they ask).
BATTLE #2: Healthy Body Image
This year it won't be about a number on the scale or on a test result. It will be about me feeling comfortable with who I am and what I look like. Of course, this doesn't mean I will think it will be ok for me to wear a bikini at the beach (umm, can someone say beached whale?), but it does mean that I don't think the world revolves around me. For some reason, I get stuck on the though that EVERYONE is looking at me and judging me, so I don't wear or do things because I don't want to look negatively in other's eyes.
Of course, I plan on losing some weight, to get more healthy, also. We have been struggling with me not getting pregnant for the past three years now, and even though I'm grateful for having the two kids that I do have, I always wanted a couple more. But I believe, due to my weight, I am causing myself this bout of infertility. (My last couple of doctor visits, also confirmed by doubts).
BATTLE #3: Projection Completions
I have too, too many unfinished projects. This includes things as simple an unfinished scarf I was crocheting, to something as major as not finishing my school work. This battle is directly connected to patience, because a lot of the reason that I don't finish is I grow impatient with the results. I don't think that a miracle will happen, and that I won't have ANY unfinished projects, because that's not the person I am - I'm always on the move. But I would like to decrease the amount of these projects down to a more manageable number, so I can feel less overwhelmed with my tasks.
BATTLE #5: Money Management
This is a really big one, especially when it comes to my husband. I need to learn to spend more wisely and consider investing more. Money does burn a hole in my pocket, and I like to buy things. Then I feel bad afterwards. I also realize that I spend money when I feel bad about myself and my life, and this spending is causing discourse in my marriage. So this is definitely a battle I will be working on this year.
BATTLE #6: Business Sense
Usually, I'm pretty smart when it comes to business. What I'm mostly talking about is developing the ability to say "NO" when I already am overwhelmed. That I save my profits, instead of running out and spending them. That I don't dip into my personal accounts when I need money for my business, because I spent my profits.
2012 is going to be a big year. A year for my personal REVOLUTION.
Buckle up and enjoy the ride!
♥ G
Let me break down my uneventful year for you:
Traveling
Ok, I'll have to admit that I am grateful that I got to live in Italy, but to be honest after about 6 months here, it lost it's swoon-worth appeal. Mostly because we didn't get a lot of chances to travel; hubby was away for a good chunk, or when he wasn't underway they couldn't go on leave, because they might have to go at a minutes' notice. Yes, I realized that I signed up for this madness being a Navy wife and all, but I can still be annoyed at it. And of course, I could have gone traveling by myself, but it would have been me dragging along 2 kids who would be fighting constantly and me worrying about spending any money because of a lecture I would receive afterwards. So I did my "traveling" through my husband's deployments and relying him to take pictures of the places he went.
Now we did end up going to Florence (BELLISSIMA!) in the spring and Genoa (meh) in the fall.
 |
| Florence |
 |
| Genoa |
 |
| Ischia |
 |
| Capri |
So that was a bit disappointing.
School
I'm on my 2nd semester of my Marketing degree. I've been on my 2nd semester since November 2010. Seriously. That accounting class really sucked the life out of me! To be honest it took me over half of a year to get through it! Now that I'm on my marketing class, I've been dragging since life crap happens. So I'm really annoyed that I couldn't even finish a semester of college this year.
Navy
Not delving too much into this bit of information at the moment, but I'm really upset and unnerved with the Navy. The long hours of work, the long and frequent underways, and now the military downsizing thing.... well that's enough said for now.
My Lazy Ass
Ok, I'll admit that I am one of the laziest people I know, but I'm also one of the most motivated. As for my body and overall health, well I have found myself sorely lacking. I pretty much plateaued in an unacceptable body image, which has made me far from happy. And instead of doing anything about it, I've just sat around, cramming my face with cookies and chugging soda pitying myself. It's not like I haven't THOUGHT about losing the weight, and becoming a more healthy individual. I ALWAYS have good intentions - especially since I figured out that they reason we are not getting pregnant is because I'm FAT. But, here I am a year later, 5 or 10 pounds heavier than 2010. Boo.
Wow, now that I reflect on my year, I feel like a loser. And that I spent 2011 feeling sorry for myself more than is healthy. I need to change that.
But instead of turning to suicide, or making stupid resolutions, I am going to start a REVOLUTION.
YES, I said REVOLUTION. I feel that 2012 will be a bunch of mini battles to improve myself and hopefully my outlook on life.
BATTLE #1: Patience
In 2012, I need to keep in mind that I don't control everything, nor can I. That I need to delegate responsibility to where it's due, and accept that it may not be done EXACTLY how I would do it or as fast as I may have gotten it done. AND when someone (ie: kids and husband) ask me how to do something, I need to learn to help rather than take over (or roll my eyes when they ask).
BATTLE #2: Healthy Body Image
This year it won't be about a number on the scale or on a test result. It will be about me feeling comfortable with who I am and what I look like. Of course, this doesn't mean I will think it will be ok for me to wear a bikini at the beach (umm, can someone say beached whale?), but it does mean that I don't think the world revolves around me. For some reason, I get stuck on the though that EVERYONE is looking at me and judging me, so I don't wear or do things because I don't want to look negatively in other's eyes.
Of course, I plan on losing some weight, to get more healthy, also. We have been struggling with me not getting pregnant for the past three years now, and even though I'm grateful for having the two kids that I do have, I always wanted a couple more. But I believe, due to my weight, I am causing myself this bout of infertility. (My last couple of doctor visits, also confirmed by doubts).
BATTLE #3: Projection Completions
I have too, too many unfinished projects. This includes things as simple an unfinished scarf I was crocheting, to something as major as not finishing my school work. This battle is directly connected to patience, because a lot of the reason that I don't finish is I grow impatient with the results. I don't think that a miracle will happen, and that I won't have ANY unfinished projects, because that's not the person I am - I'm always on the move. But I would like to decrease the amount of these projects down to a more manageable number, so I can feel less overwhelmed with my tasks.
BATTLE #5: Money Management
This is a really big one, especially when it comes to my husband. I need to learn to spend more wisely and consider investing more. Money does burn a hole in my pocket, and I like to buy things. Then I feel bad afterwards. I also realize that I spend money when I feel bad about myself and my life, and this spending is causing discourse in my marriage. So this is definitely a battle I will be working on this year.
BATTLE #6: Business Sense
Usually, I'm pretty smart when it comes to business. What I'm mostly talking about is developing the ability to say "NO" when I already am overwhelmed. That I save my profits, instead of running out and spending them. That I don't dip into my personal accounts when I need money for my business, because I spent my profits.
2012 is going to be a big year. A year for my personal REVOLUTION.
Buckle up and enjoy the ride!
♥ G
Friday, December 30, 2011
The deck I've been dealt
- Voltaire
It's been a few years that I've perused other people's blogs. I've even started one for my own business (www.camelotstreasures.etsy.com). And I've been considering the idea to start my own blog, to document my life. But I was lazy - I'm probably the laziest person I know - so I never got around to it.
So here I am. Starting a new blog, just about my family, my adventures, and myself. You'll laugh, you'll cry, but you'll mostly laugh. I like to put a hysterical spin on anything life throws at me, because it helps me deal.
I've accepted the cards that life has dealt me, even if it had a few more jokers than I might have liked. Sometimes I've even felt my deck was stacked. But everything has happened for a reason, and most things work out in great ways.
So welcome to my so called life, sit back and enjoy!
♥ G
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)