Red Letters

Taking the good with the bad

2012-01-24T10:53:00.000-08:00

This is a lesson my husband and I have been learning in the hardest of ways lately. Being away from family is always tough and we always look forward to times when we can see them. Having people in our lives that we know we might never see again is always tough. When we were home last in June Jonathan's grandmother had already been diagnosed with cancer and from first glance it immediately did not look good. My grandfather is 91 years old and has lived a glorious life but he is unfortunately in and out of the hospital more often than anyone would like. When we gave these two people hugs last June as we prepared to leave they were the hardest hugs to give because we both feared they would be the last.

The semi-good news is that we will both gets hugs again soon but I know for Jonathan this one will be even worse. For Jonathan, this will probably be the last hug he gets from his grandmother until we get to heaven. Jonathan's grandmother received news last week that she should stop treatment and was not given much good news. It is for this reason we will be coming home soon. That is the good news but we certainly wish it was under different circumstances.

It will be wonderful to see everyone again but certainly will put a damper on the homecoming. So once again we are learning to take the good with the bad. We are learning to be grateful for the time we have to see our loved ones and pray that if and when the last hug does come they know they were loved and we will surely see them again in the kingdom of heaven. So please keep us in your prayers as we make hasty preparations to travel home. Please pray it is as joyful a time as it possibly can be. Please pray we have safe travel. Please pray we find someone to watch the pups while we are gone because I am their mama and I want them to be in good hands even if they end up staying in different places.

Well there is much to do and not much time to do it so I will try to keep you updated as I learn more.

Ashley, Jon's sister, with his grandparents.

Bacon Cheese Chicken

2012-01-15T10:05:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I have posted twice in one day and both times it has been about food- this coming from the girl who wants to lose weight! haha! Anyhow, I tried out a new recipe tonight for dinner and Jon and I both enjoyed it so much that I felt that I should share with anyone wanting to try it out as well.

Bacon Cheese Chicken:
2 Tablespoons olive oil
8 chicken tenders
12 pieces of cooked bacon
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
1/2 cup ranch dressing
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Put olive oil in the crockpot and place chicken on top.
Combine teriyaki and ranch, pour over chicken.
Add the shredded cheese and crumbled bacon, go between pieces if you can.
Cook on low 6-8 hours, or high 3-4 hours.

I know in the picture it looks absolutely disgusting but isn't looking disgusting the true sign of a good food?!?! :) The chicken literally just falls apart in your mouth...yummmm. Anyhow, we both found it extremely yummy. We coupled our chicken with mashed potatoes and corn. My tummy is quite full and satisfied and I even cut down on the portion size because remember- trying to cut back the pounds! :) Enjoy the recipe!!

Wishful Thinking

2012-01-15T00:26:00.000-08:00

Today is one of those wishful thinking days where I wish one of these were within a ten mile radius. Who am I kidding, I would go 50 miles at the least!! I have learned so much about cooking in the past year and half since my husband and I got here. I have learned how to make many of my favorite dishes and learned how to make many new things that have become favorites for us. However, no matter how much you love home cooking- sometimes you want a quick meal. Popeyes, Burger King, Taco Bell, and McDonald's are beginning to not cut it for me. Jonathan could probably care less, although I know he misses Chick-fil-A~ and who could blame him! I am not sure what led me to these random thoughts today but I just miss these little things that taste so good!

Must be Monday

2012-01-09T12:30:00.000-08:00

I know there are a lot of people out there who despise Monday, because for a lot of us that means back to the grind of work. My sister probably despise Mondays because that means she typically has the boys all day with a short relief period from her hubby before he goes in to work a night shift, followed by working again the next morning. I will allow her to hate Mondays if she wants- even though I don't think she really does. The rest of us should give poor Monday a break! It is not fair to be hated simply because it means back to work. So- I tried to think of a way to rectify this situation and here is my thought!

MARVELOUS MONDAY!!

It is now my personal goal to blog each Monday and only blog about marvelous things that happened on that Monday! If I am not able to change anyone else's view on Monday- so be it, but at least it will remind me to look for the positive things to start off my week.

I will preface my marvelous thing for today with a brief explanation of why it is marvelous. I mentioned in my last post that blogging more often was not my new year's resolution. I shamefully try to stay away from new year's resolutions because everyone, including myself, usually fails to meet them. I did make a dangerously common resolution this year...to take better care of my body. I know that could mean a lot of things but I mainly want to look and feel better about myself in general. When we got here to Germany I was not near as active as I used to be so I gained a little weight. When I got sick last year, the medicine made me gain even more weight :( I found it very unfair that I put on weight because I was taking medicine to make me better! How rude of that darn medicine. Anyhow, I have been telling myself, in a very non-committal tone, that I was going to work it off even if it wasn't my fault it was there. I have tried with only one short burst of success a few months ago when I had a workout buddy. My workout buddy moved and my motivation slacked.

So I know it is so the typical thing to promise to lose weight for new year's but I truly want to do so, or at least get in the habit of working out and taking better care of my body so that I can feel good about myself. So, that leads me to why today was a marvelous Monday. Today was the first Monday of the new year I have gone to the gym and worked out. I came home and did some at home workouts here and then joined Jon at the gym to finish up on the treadmill and doing some free weights while he played basketball. I have to hold onto this feeling because whenever I feel too tired to go I have to remember that exercising will only make me stronger and make me feel better. So here is to Monday and the marvelous workout I got in today!!

This is for my aforementioned sister, my hubby's red velvet birthday cake I made for him.

Promises

2012-01-06T06:29:00.000-08:00

It sure is a good thing my new year's resolution was not to blog more often!! Haha!! I have been very neglectful and will update this weekend and do sincerely hope to get back into the routine of updating more often! I make no promises though!!

Until then, Happy Kings Day! This day celebrates the wise men who came to see baby Jesus bringing him gifts. I remember around this time last year making a king's cake at the youth center because that is part of the tradition- minus a plastic baby of course, because I find that just a little bit too creepy! Anyhow, if you have never had the chance to make one you definitely should! I will have to admit when I took the cake out to the kids to eat, by the time I cleaned up my mess and came out to try some it was GONE!! So, I have never actually had any but it smelled delicious if that helps!! :) Maybe I will make another one this year!

So I got my recipe here last year when I made it and if I could get a bunch of middle and high schoolers to eat it then I think it must be somewhat good!!

23

2011-12-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

Today is my hubby's birthday and sadly he has to work tonight so we couldn't celebrate hard core. We did go to our friend's house last night and we made dinner; grilled chicken, corn, mashed potatoes, and fried rice. We were all very stuffed afterwards with plenty left over- especially rice since I doubled the recipe per my hubby's request. So, today we have laid around the house with the dogs and been fairly lazy, also per my hubby's request. He did want fries pretty bad so ate hotdogs and fries before he went in to work at about 5, he will be back in the morning. :(

So I am working on a surprise cake for my hubby to have tomorrow and will post pictures of that soon but in the meantime let me share some other things with you about my hubby.

1. He loves to make me laugh, and has helped me mellow in the years we have been married. I know all men are really just little boys but with my hubby only being 23 I think this applies exponentially to mine! :) He loves to pick at me and make me laugh. I used to take things he said too seriously and get my feelings hurt. He has taught me how to not take life too seriously and find the humor in all kinds of different situations. I love him for that.

2. He loves to see me happy. I know my hubby gets such a great feeling when I am happy and therefore, he does whatever he can to make me happy. He is so thoughtful. I don't get flowers a whole lot, but when I do it is randomly and for no particular reason and it just fills me with such joy. Let me clarify for his sake not a whole lot does not mean I am disappointed in any way.

3. He brags on me. My main love language is words of praise and therefore this one means so much to me. My hubby loves to brag on me and I love it when I hear from someone else how he talks so much about me, and good things!! He brags on my cooking, my looks, and how I take care of him and our house. I love him so much for being proud to have me for a wife.

I think that is enough mushiness for now but let me leave you with this: my hubby is a wonderful man who I love spending my time with and look forward to growing old with.

Bright Side

2011-12-21T05:12:00.000-08:00

I know it has been a while since I posted but in honor of "Look on the Bright Side" Day, you should be happy I am posting now! :) Anyhow, I am officially on my winter vacation from school and I am reminded of one of the reasons I love teaching- breaks. Do not underestimate the love your teachers have for your kids because we anticipate these breaks. But in case you are unaware, teaching those rugrats can get exhausting and we need that little break to recharge our batteries and go restock on patience! :)

This how I have spent the past few days of my break. Saturday morning Jon, Doug (our friend), and I drove about an hour and a half to pick up our new addition to the family, Trooper. Doug insisted on calling him money since our other furry boy is Cash! So silly! Anyhow, on the way there I desperately needed to stop at a restroom. I am not sure if you remember me mentioning way back when we first got there that you have to pay to use the restroom sometimes here in Germany! Believe me- I find it just as ridiculous as you do that you should be charged for something you have to naturally do. Anyway, so here is my story. We pulled into a place after being on the lookout for one for a good thirty minutes so I was not the most delightful person. I jumped out of the car as soon as we parked ans discovered the bathrooms were around the other side so I start a light jog- so as not to look like a complete idiot. So I finally see the door with those blessed little figures on them showing restrooms and go through the door. I am immediately met with one of those metal turn things you have to go through when entering the subway, a baseball game, or six flags. This was not your everyday-you-pay-bathroom. Normally, when they want you to pay, they put a bathroom attendant there to give you a cold deathly stare if you do not put 20 euro cents in the bowl. NO- you had to insert your money in this machine in order to get to go through the little turn in order to even get into the restroom! I wish now that I had taken a picture of this to show you how ridiculous! So I am forced to do a slightly more idiotic jog back to the car to beg for euro change, and not 20 cents- 70 euro cents!! That is basically equivalent to our dollar! We had nothing!! SO my sweet friend Doug had to go in the little shop, buy a sandwich and get me change so I could go to the bathroom. I, totally idiotic jogging by this point, return to the darn bathroom and put my euro in and it spits out a ticket!! Like seriously!! What am I going to do with a ticket saying I had to pay to go to the bathroom!!! UGH! So yea by the end of the whole ordeal I was quite ill but relieved at the same time. So next time you have to make a bathroom stop and want to complain about the bathroom- remember this story and think, "I am glad I didn't have to pay!"

OK, so back to our new addition. We brought Trooper home and Cash wanted nothing to do with him at first but they are wrestling, playing, and getting along quite nice now. Sunday evening I hosted a cookie swap party. Some of the girls I invited were unable to make it but we still had a lovely time with those who did. We laughed, cut up, and just had a plain old good time- plus got yummy cookies. I will put up the recipe for the cookies I made later because I have to admit- they were pretty darn good! Other than that we have been switching off between relaxing and cleaning!

In the wee hours of Tuesday morning and into Tuesday afternoon we had our first snowfall of the winter. Sadly Jon didn't get home before nightfall to play in it with me and the dogs. Most of it has turned to ice by now and is already surrendering to the grass below. It was still nice to finally get the first one!

Market Mayhem

2011-12-11T10:01:00.000-08:00

My sweetie and I decided to venture out to the market on Saturday, yesterday. He had something he wanted to look at and I had no objections as long as it meant that I could get a favorite treat! So we walked down to the straus, the train, and went for a ride down to the water tower in Mannheim which is where the market is. If you remember I mentioned going to the market the day after Thanksgiving. It was a little busier today so we didn't spend as much time down there as we did that day. We walked around a little. Jonathan had found some very interesting woven bracelets he wanted to look at. He ended up finding a couple he liked and is still trying to figure out how they were made.

My stipulation on going on this outing was that I got to get a favorite treat, as I mentioned earlier. I even knew how to ask for this favorite treat in German, "ein erdbeere." They do them a little differently here in Germany and frankly I think they have the right idea- put them on a skewer! If you still haven't figured out what I am munching on- choc covered strawberries!! They always choc covered goodies at these markets and they usually are always on a skewer- pretty good idea if you ask me! They also had choc covered grapes, bananas, and numerous others but I stuck with my tried and true strawberries!! They were good to the last bite!

Jon also got a treat but a somewhat more traditional German food. He got a sandwich from the meat stand. When I asked him what kind of meat it was, he called it mystery meat. :) I think it was the best mystery meat he has ever had because it didn't take him very long to finish it! While I really enjoyed the whole day the best part of the day for me was the train ride. Jonathan brought his ipod along and we just sat and shared headphones like a high school couple and listened to favorite songs and enjoyed the scenery. It was just fun to sit together and listen to songs and enjoy the German buildings on the ride home. It was a day that made me glad to be here in Germany.

German Christmas Tradition

2011-12-05T11:09:00.000-08:00

Psst, psst, Nikolaus may come to your house.
German children believe that Nikolaus (the German Santa Claus) secretly visits their houses
during the night from the 5th to the 6th of December while they are asleep. He fills their shoes
with tiny things like candy, a hair band, a sparkly pencil, a little toy car, etc.

Since we live in Germany we have a chance of having our shoes filled if we put out
our shoes either in front of our bedroom doors or - if you have nice neighbors - in front of
the hallway doors. So do not be surprised if you find a pair of shoes where you think they do not
belong.

Help your children believe in one really exciting German custom. (In case Nikolaus does
not make it to your house, you might want to back him up with a little surprise for your
child…). :)

Gift idea for today:
Get your family a new game so that it is something you can all enjoy together. Our household just consists of my hubby and I but we still love playing cards and games with our friends when they come over. Here are some ideas of good family games:

If you're looking for dinner games which the whole family can join into, take a look at the family time fun dinner games and activities. These are a set of extremely simple, and yet highly enjoyable dinner games and activities for families with kids aged 5 to 12. These dinner games promote unity within the family, and make dinner time pleasurable and fun. The set of game cards is nicely packaged in a colorful metal tin. The games and activities are of a wide variety, ranging from puzzles, counting, naming your favorite things, to guessing games and more. Young kids are even encouraged to eat their veggies and drink their milk via the fun games and activities. The games encourage the kids to open up, share their experiences, and get to know a lot of things about each other and their parents. It is a boxed set of fifty-one games for families with kids 5 to 12 years to play at the dinner table while they eat. The quick and easy-to-play games, like counting moo, the last bite and pass the pepper, break up dinnertime routine and add fun to family meals. No game board or game pieces required just food and family. Kids learn creative thinking, social skills and more. The spill-proof game cards are durable and easy to clean.

If your crew is more likely to get into a video game- please do not fret! There are answers for that problem! Try one of the video games with fun family games in video game format. These video game collections usually include up to four different "old school" games that are fun for the whole group. Those are just two ideas, feel free to incorporate your own "classic" favorites! Who remembers these classics?

Slice and dice in style!

2011-12-03T07:48:00.000-08:00

Got another pinterest project done today, well possibly done. Still try to decide what would look best as the finished project. What do you think? My sister got me the letter but instead of immediately rubbing it onto the wood, I used a spoon to gently rub it where it would just take up some of the paint that I had just painted on- leaving the R behind. I am still trying to decide if I like it this way or if I want to paint over it and actually apply the black R. Let me know!!

The Christmas gift idea for today is going to be a simple one. Buy your loved one a gift you have been thinking about getting them and then get their favorite candy, in a small size to use as packing peanuts when you box and wrap that gift.

And just so you know that knife that is not all the way down in the block is driving me nuts in this picture!! lol

Oops...here is the rest

2011-11-29T09:57:00.000-08:00

Sorry, I forgot to include the directions for packing the jar if you gift the jar! : /

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in medium bowl; stir well. Pour 1/2 cup flour mixture into 1 quart wide mouth jar with a tight fitting lid; pack down well. Add 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup flour mixture, cocoa, remaining flour mixture and remaining brown sugar to jar; pack down well after each layer. Add candies, nuts and raisins; pack down lightly after each layer. Seal jar.

Cover top of jar with fabric. Attach a gift tag to jar with ribbon. :) All done!

Down Home Cooking

2011-11-29T09:52:00.000-08:00

You know you are doing some down home cooking when your recipe calls for two soup cans of water! It is literally my favorite about making one of my hubby's favorite dinners- chicken and rice. The worst part about it is the waiting period until the delicious dinner is ready!

Anyhow, today is electronic greetings day so I thought I would make sure to give a hearty hello and good day to all my blog friends out there. I hope your days have calmed down a little after Thanksgiving and you are getting a chance to sit back and relax a little before you get too involved in the Christmas bonanza! Don't get me wrong- I love the Christmas season. I love decorating the house, putting up the tree, making Christmas goodies and such. But more than all of that I love a chance to get together with people I love and care about.

With that being said I am going to try to include a holiday gift idea with each post this Christmas season. I am going to aim for something simple that could be given to just about anybody. So gift idea for today is going to be:
Chocolate Christmas Cookie Mix
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup red and green m&ms
1/2 cup salted peanuts (optional)
1/2 cup raisins (optional)

Now from here you can do one of two things, you can bake the cookies and present them to your loved one that way or you can gift the necessary ingredients in a jar and include the recipe for them to make whenever they are in the mood. I will let you in on the directions for both! :)

Other ingredients you will need to either bake or the person receiving will need to have:
2/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Baking:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla until blended. (Mixture may appear curdled) Add contents of jar(or other dry ingredients if you are making them yourself); stir until well blended.
Drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 11 to 12 minutes or until almost set. Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheets; transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

ENJOY!!!!

Argh Mateys!!!

2011-11-28T12:43:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday to my favorite four year old pirate Jack Garrett!! I miss you my sweet nephew and wish I could be there with you today!! Happy birthday to my big boy nephew and hope the rest of your birthday is just as amazing as you are! I love you sweet boy, aunt emmy misses you and so does Cash!!

MMMMmmmm melting in your mouth

2011-11-27T12:20:00.000-08:00

Saturday morning we made these bad boys!! They were absolutely delicious and DANGEROUSLY easy to make. You take canned biscuits and cut the hole out of the middle and deep fry it in vegetable oil. Then dip it in melted butter and coat in cinnamon sugar or other coating of your choice. We were in heaven and we will definitely be making these again!! If I keep introducing things like this to my hubby I think he will fall in love with pinterest the way I have...hey a girl can dream. At least he doesn't mind that I spend so much time on it anymore, with all the projects I have done and all the foods I have made so far! I will try to put up a Thanksgiving synopsis soon but just wanted you to know that you should try these if you are not afraid to get addicted! ;) YUMMMMMM!!

Hunker Down Hairy Dawg

2011-11-26T23:30:00.000-08:00

I saw this picture posted on a friends wall on facebook and immediately wished I could have been there to see it in person. What a wonderful way to celebrate the life of Larry Munson, the voice of the dawgs. Larry Munson was an icon to the bulldawg nation and it just goes to show you how much he was cared for. I am incredibly thankful the red coat band took the time to learn this and perform it on our last regular season game. Thank you Larry Munson for being a bulldawg through and through and leading us through many seasons- good and bad. Run Munson Run!

Go for a Ride

2011-11-22T11:24:00.000-08:00

Today is "Go for a Ride" day. Obviously, this holiday was thought of when gas prices were not quite so ridiculous. Still, I have to admit one of my favorite things about going somewhere with my honey is the drive.

Living in Germany does benefit you on those drives with beautiful scenery. My favorite scenery is all the little villages that in little valleys surrounded by farm land. There is something so quaint and refreshing to see that people here still live that way and makes you remember that life is simple, we are the ones who make it complex.

Another favorite part about taking those drives is being by the side of my hubby. We love to joke and tease each other when in the car about who is right more than the other about the times we have gotten lost since being here in Germany, which has unfortunately been one time too many! ;) However, riding in the car with my husband also gives us time to hold hands and talk and it takes me back to the days when we were dating and our riding time was our quizzing time where we would ask each other questions and just talk about how our days were. We don't take drives here in Germany very often because we don't need to drive very far for most things and we often take the short drive alone. I will be grateful when we are back home and more drives include both of us.

So take a short or long ride today and savor the scenery and the conversation. If you ride alone, take the time to have a conversation with God instead. Enjoy your ride!

Getting Ready for Emma

2011-11-21T09:08:00.000-08:00

My sweet friend who I have grown very close to over the past few months since getting back from home and being sick just had her baby girl, Emma. Before Emma made her grand entrance we had a chance to snap a few pictures for mom, dad, and Isaiah to cherish and remember how excited they were. Here are just a few of the ones we took. Forewarning: I do not claim to be a photographer by any means- I just like taking pictures so that is what these are!

Beautiful Day

2011-11-20T11:33:00.000-08:00

I do not find it a coincidence at all that My sister-in-law's birthday falls on "Beautiful Day." While I will not be able to celebrate her 30th birthday with her I know she has many friends and family there to help make this day super special for her, not to mention my amazing brother who I know will treat her like a princess like he always does! I mean if Molly(the pup) gets her own cake and party then Lisa deserves one too right?!?! Lisa, thank you for making my big brother so happy and turning him into a big puddle of mush! haha I miss you both Happy Beautiful Birthday Lisa!!

On the project front I recently told you I was working on something involving a canvas, paints and a ribbon. Well the ribbon got wrecked in the process of trying to use it for a photo so I had to resort to simple yarn but I think it all worked out in the end. What do you think of my most recent project- our Christmas door decoration for this season!

This was yet another idea inspired by Pinterest. I am telling you that place has got to be one of the coolest things ever created. I had a lot of fun painting my canvas. I love the Christmas season and we have started early here at our house. Our Christmas tree has been up for almost two weeks now. My hubby started ordering Christmas presents online a few weeks ago that he said I could not open. I told him if he was going to do that, I got to put up the Christmas tree when the packages started arriving. He was forced to keep up that deal and we now have a lit Christmas tree next to me with about 5 wrapped boxes underneath it!

I had some extra time on my hands tonight before posting this and decided to go ahead and make this project I have been meaning to make for a while. We always seem to end up with papers and mail lying around on our kitchen counters so when I saw this very simple and cute way to keep that from happening I certainly had to jump at it! I saved the first cereal box we had after that. In fact I think I made it a point to buy some cereal the next time I went to the store so that I would have a box for it! This particular box used to be fruit loops. I took some scrapbook paper from a pack my mom sent and from a pack my sweet sis sent and covered the box and cut out the letter to spell out paper on the front. I do not have the proper heavy duty magnet clips to safely secure it yet so it won't hold anything for now but it sure did come out great.

Yesterday Jonathan and I went down to Ramstein to pick up a few things we needed. We had some friends who also needed to go so we all made a day of it. We stopped in a Mexican Cantina in Kaiserslautern for lunch which was quite yummy but I admit made me miss Mexicale Grille. Once we made it to the px in Ramstein we shopped around for random odds and ends we needed that our px does not carry. I snatched up a couple Christmas presents for the boys, my nephews. Then snatched up some string so I get started using my sewing machine I recently purchased. I am so excited to get started on so many projects I have in mind from pillowcases to quilts. Jonathan also did some wandering around and happened upon a very nice desktop. We have been discussing how the next kind of computer we would purchase would be a desktop computer since we have a couple laptops already. Although we have a couple laptops his is the only one that works fairly fast and such. So we bought ourselves an early Christmas present and got a new desktop. So we are very excited about that.

Well that is about all for now, I must go finish cleaning and getting ready for all our guest we will have in the next week. Our dear and sweet friends, the Greens, will be arriving Wednesday night to spend Thanksgiving with us and will be staying here until the weekend when we will have our other sweet friends baby shower to celebrate her baby girl that is due the first of January. It will such a fun and exciting week indeed!!

Pat on the back!

2011-11-16T22:39:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I am on a roll here recently. Next update, Christina's baby shower! The Sunday after we got back from the sea of rocks we had a baby shower for our sweet friend Christina! I have not finished editing the pictures from the shower much to her dismay but here is one I am giving myself a pat on the back for- her cake that I made. It was so much fun and turned out really great! I will also show you how I made the cake in case you ever have the need to make a butterfly cake for any reason!

Start with two round cakes

Cut each cake into a peace sign and then turn the top two

Repeat with second cake and stack, add mini cupcakes for body

Frost

Add butterfly cupcakes to the side and ta-dah!

Sea of Rocks

2011-11-16T11:28:00.000-08:00

Ok so I have filled in on all the fun fall festivities. Well, the following weekend- the first weekend in November (yes that is how far I am behind!), we had a chance to go on a short overnight trip to the Sea of Rocks here in Germany. It was such a neat trip. We drove up Friday afternoon, it was a easy and short drive for the most part which was encouraging so hopefully we will have a place to take family when they visit. Friday evening we got settled in our quaint hotel room. In case you were wondering quaint is one of those words you use to politely say the place was pretty small, not to mention we had "German" style beds.**INSERT RANT ON GERMAN BEDS HERE: Germans must not like to cuddle up at night time because the biggest size mattress you will find here is a full size mattress which is pretty much considered a single bed. So as a result if you want a bigger bed their solution is to put two twin mattresses together. This may not be such a terrible solution if the frame for the bed was bigger, but nope- they just push two twin frames together...uncomfortable couple party of two!RANT ENDS HERE**

Our separate beds!

After settling into our quaint room we all met up for dinner at a restaurant down the road from our hotel. The food was certainly not bad- once it finally got there. Luckily we had good company to keep us entertained and laughing while we waited for our food. I had some sort of chicken pasta and pommes (aka fries). After dinner we met up with some of our group and enjoyed a game of poker. I usually only play poker for fun but I had an itch to play this night so the hubby agreed to let me buy in as well. Low and behold we came in first and second so we basically won the money we had spent on our trip back that night. :) Go Rupard's!!

Our winnings!

The next morning we met up for breakfast and then drove to our destination, the Sea of Rocks. This is a very interesting place to go and granted I have never been at a different time of the year I think when we went was the perfect time to go! The trees were absolutely breathtaking with all their magnificent fall-like colors. I thoroughly enjoyed looking around more than anything. It is kind of hard to describe exactly what this place is like other than to say that it is basically like climbing up a lot of rocks on your way up a mountain. I know that is not the best description in the world and it sounds dumb but it is actually kind of fun- just check out the pictures!

At the beginning of the climb before getting all sweaty! :)

Pretty trees

My handsome man!

Getting closer to the top

This was about the half way point- aka where I stopped

Jon continued conquering LARGE rocks!

The beautiful scenery on the path down

After a wonderful day together!

Justice League!!

2011-11-12T06:21:00.000-08:00

Well, as usual I am way behind in updating you in what is going on. Yesterday was an off day for me and it was spent cleaning the house and grocery store shopping for the next few weeks. However, I need to do some updating and I will start where I left out, the weekend of Halloween.

Monday night we had a company Halloween party with many festivities including a costume contest, cake walking, games for kids, pumpkin carving contest, and a haunted house. The kids had some great costumes from Mario and monkey to batman and spiderman.

Landon says, "Monkey see, monkey do!"

Let's not forget there were some creative and great adult costumes as well. Jonathan and I were a little too busy trying to finish decorating the cookies right before to think of any kind of costume idea so maybe next year! The adult costume winners were Sgt Johnson and her husband!

The spooky winners!

There were also a few carnival-type games for the kiddos that I unfortunately did not get any pictures of! Jonathan was chosen to represent his platoon, the Justice League, in the pumpkin carving contest. He did not win but he definitely should have because his pumpkin was awesome and very creative!! Check it out!!

Hard at work

Did this in less than 20 minutes!

I would love to tell you more about our party but I have to go get ready to go to the arts and crafts store with my friend Christina. We have some projects in the works that I will hopefully be able to post about soon! The project I am working on involves a canvas, ribbon, and paint...oh the suspense!!! ;)

Walk the walk, win the cake

2011-11-06T12:50:00.000-08:00

Ok, so to update you on some of the more recent things that have been happening here recently. Last Friday the hubby and I enjoyed the final fall festival that the Mannheim community will ever see. It was not as large of a shin dig as it was last year but it was still a fun evening. I got to see a few of the kids from the class I have been working in as well as help out with our company's cake walk.

You got to see a picture of the Frankenstein cake I made for the cake walk. It went quickly as a friend of ours daughter wanted it. I hope they have had a chance to enjoy it and that it tasted as good at it looked. We had a great time walking around and enjoying what would be one of the final hurrahs of our small community. The housing office in Heidelberg has already begun to call people in our company to move to Heidelberg. We have not been called yet and we are kind of hoping that we do not get called for another little while since I am literally a three minute walking commute to work right now. I am not real sure the pay would be worth it to drive 30 minutes everyday so hopefully we will be one of the last ones called to move.

Here are a few pictures from the fall festival.

My honeybee!

Cake Walk cupcakes

Walk it out Christina!

Some girls who have kept me grounded lately: Christina and Yvonne

I promise I am still alive

2011-11-06T01:46:00.001-07:00

Oh my goodness last weekend, this week, and this weekend have been jam packed and the craziness is not quite over so I promise tonight to have multiple post ready for you- with pictures!!

IT'S ALIVE!!!!!!

2011-10-27T22:17:00.000-07:00

Here is my monster cake for the cake walk in our community fall festival tonight. The chocolate frosting was a little harder to work with than I initially thought it would be but all in all came out pretty good.

Muncha Muncha

2011-10-26T12:06:00.000-07:00

Were you aware that October is National Cookie Month!!! I can't believe I was unaware of this before now!! What a bummer!! The final week of October is coming to a close and so is my first month of working at the elementary school. I have enjoyed getting to know the kids in our class and learn how to interact with each of them. It has truly been an absolute joy to be back working in the school.

With the close of October coming around I am doing my best to learn how to balance the day to day life of working and getting things done at home in addition to working out. I will admit I now completely admire all mothers out there, especially ones that work and then come home to take care of their home and family. I guess it is something you learn along the way but I am still struggling keeping everything in order. I will get there.

Also with the close of October comes all the fun fall activities. Friday evening our community is having a fall festival complete with carnival games. There will also be a cake walk in which I am making a Frankenstein cake...no worries pictures will be posted!! Friday night is also the night of the haunted house in our neighboring army community that my husband is dying to go to. I certainly hope it is worth the while. Saturday Jonathan will be competing in a fitness test where he can earn a special badge while I help decorate for our company fall party on Sunday. I am also making sweets and treats for that party so lots of food pictures coming your way next week.

For now, my kitchen is in desperate need of cleaning and seeing as how my hubby just left for work that gives me about a hour to clean the kitchen, dry my hair, take Cash on a quick walk, and get ready for bed! Whooosh...here I go!!

GLEE!!

2011-10-20T07:43:00.000-07:00

I am one happy blogger today!! Thankful Thursday goes out to my wonderful husband who I am thankful will be home tomorrow!!!! It feels like it has been much longer than three weeks!! I was telling him the other day it seems crazy to think I did this for a whole year! It was much easier when I was surrounded by family and friends. Cash and I are ready for daddy to be home!!

Evaluation Day!!

2011-10-18T12:16:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is "Evaluate Your Life Day." I figured it had been a while since I highlighted a random holiday and this might be a good one to touch on. I know, I getting ahead of myself since this day is actually tomorrow but I wanted to let you know so that as your day goes by tomorrow you can evaluate the things in your life that are important and what means the most.

I have recently started a new job, as some of you already know. Teaching is a great joy for me and I missed it when I could not get a job upon arriving here last year. It is still tough with schools and bases closing here in Germany. So I did the only thing I knew to do, I tried to find a way to get back into the school somehow. I took a job as a teacher's aide in a kindergarten classroom. It is definitely challenging at times not being able to do my own thing and challenge the kids in ways I would like to but it has also been a learning experience thus far that I know will make me a better teacher in the end. So in evaluating that part of my life- I am so glad I have the opportunity to get back to what I love doing, even if it is a smaller way than I am used to.

A picture, bad one, of the school I work at.

In evaluating my life, I am also force to look at my role as a wife to my husband the past two years. Now granted, the first year my role took place from a distance but that does not mean that is was any less important. My husband is an amazing man who does everything he can to make my life better and more meaningful and I am so appreciative of all he has done for me. He truly makes me want to be a better person. I love doing my best to take care of him by cooking his favorite foods and trying new things. I enjoy challenging myself to be better and knowing how appreciative he is in response to that. I know I have a lot to learn as a wife and will fall short on numerous occasions but I am seriously giddy that I get to learn it all with this man by my side.

His current profile picture!

The final and most important part of our lives we all need to evaluate is how well we are letting the light of God shine in our lives. As I am aware of my short comings as a wife, I need to also be aware of my short comings as a Christian, as a disciple of Christ. There will always be more to learn and better ways to show His love. I pray that as the days go on that I will improve on this aspect of my life more than any other because I know if I am improving in this area of my life, the rest will fall into place as well.

So on eval day:

Father,

Show me ways in my everyday life where I can shine brighter for you. Guide me to people who are in need of your love and give me the strength to show that love- no matter what the circumstances may be. Help me to always be aware of my weakness so that I may call upon you for strength. Place in my heart the burning desire to know and love you more so that I may truly be a brighter light for you wherever you take me. Thank you for allowing me to be your child and for your never ending mercy and grace when I fall short.

Amen

Masking Monday

2011-10-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

So, since starting my job I have been neglectful of my blogging- sorry! Normally, this wouldn't be as big of a deal but I have been trying to get little jobs and big jobs done while Jonathan is gone. My last few blog post have been M&M's on Mondays; Marvelous Monday and Manic Monday. So I thought I would follow suit today by calling this week's Monday Masking Monday. Monday I was off work for Columbus Day so I chose this day to tackle my largest project of this time with Jonathan gone. Monday I taped off the bedroom, hence "Masking Monday," as in masking tape! I tapped off the bedroom and painted the walls gray. We are working towards a white, gray, and green color pallet in the bedroom. So the walls got a gray color treatment and I must admit I already wish I would have done it earlier. I do not have my finished product pictures yet and wouldn't put them up even if I did but I thought I would show you what I had before. Warning: there was not a lot of tidying done before these pictures were taken so excuse the messiness.

Mixing my paint...

Before view from the doorway.

Sleeping with two eyes open

2011-10-08T12:27:00.000-07:00

Wow am I tired. I have been trying to get used to getting up early in the morning again. It has been kicking my butt so far!! I went to bed around 10 something last night on a Friday!! Old ladyish I know! Then on the first chance I get to sleep in since last Monday I was wide awake at 6:50!!! UGH!! I have to stay up late to watch the GA game tonight too!! It should be an interesting night.

My first week at school has been okay but very interesting. The teacher I am working with has been sick a lot this week and was only there one day the whole week, which made things interesting to say the least. I have enjoyed getting to know the kids through my own eyes though rather than having her tell me about them first. It is always fun to learn the little quirks each one has and get a glimpse at how some of them have been raised. I had one sweet lil one tell me about how lovely her school was one day. She was so genuine and sincere and it was so sweet to hear a little one talk that way. I have been staying pretty busy though even after school since Jonathan is gone. I went and got paint that will eventually go in our bedroom- hopefully next week! I managed to get my pumpkins painted but didn't get a picture before a lil one that belongs to a friend thought they were balls and threw them all- haha. Good thing they were only 75 cents at the Commissary. Cash even went after one of the ones she threw and got himself a few bites of pumpkin! :) I attempted to hang some shelves I recently got but thus far have been unsuccessful with that!

I spent some time with one of my newer friends, Evelyn, who lives in Heidelberg last night and today. I enjoyed spending time with her as always. Cash and I have been spending time with each other today since I have not been home as much as he is used to and since he is missing his daddy just like me! He is so sweet, he is used to Jon getting home late in the night so he gets all excited when he hears a car door shut in the parking lot. Just now he was cuddled up in my jacket with me on the couch and fell off, a few minutes later I looked down and saw this:

He is stuck inside my jacket sleeve! :)

Manic Monday

2011-10-03T09:11:00.000-07:00

So last week was Marvelous Monday, this Monday was a wee bit manic! First of all Jonathan left this morning in addition to it being my first day at work, where the teacher I am working with was not there! Haha! So in all fairness Jonathan and I TRIED to go to bed early. We were laying in bed with every intention of going to sleep by 9:30...well neither of us were the least bit tired and we layed there for a while before putting a movie on and falling asleep around 11. Haha! Well anyhow, I got up around 6 to shower and get ready and we both left the house around 7 to get Jonathan up to work where he was leaving from. I drove back to the house and walked to work.

It was definitely interesting to spend my first day aiding a sub who didn't really know what to do either! The kids were probably a little more hyper and talkative than usual but they are a pretty good group of kids. Tomorrow should be a little more low key! For now, I am going to go work out, eat dinner, and hopefully paint my pumpkin! :) Happy Manic Monday!

Door Decor

2011-09-30T13:07:00.000-07:00

Well I have been trying to clean and tidy up most of today in addition to make one of my favorite dishes, chicken pie! YUMM! However, on my last Friday before I start work I did manage to squeeze in a quick project to dress up our drab and boring door to the apartment. My mom sent me a wooden "R" so that is was I started with. Here are all my supplies:

A wooden R spray painted white, black paint, and donut holes used on paper.

First place as many donut holes on letter as you wish, then paint over.

Let the paint dry for a few minutes and then peel up the donut holes, I used a toothpick to carefully get underneath.

Add a little string, hand, and add a pumpkin for good measure!

A few tips:
-Be sure the stickers on the outside that are sticking off are secure, some of mine could have been better.
-Using a toothpick to get the stickers up is definitely the easiest way that I found to get them up with as little destruction as possible.

I was glad to make our door a little more home like. I will probably be doing something with the pumpkin soon- just haven't quite decided what yet!

Marvelous Monday!

2011-09-26T12:56:00.000-07:00

Well I know it is not thankful Thursday but I am thankful for some great news today so decided it would be "Marvelous Monday" instead! I received a phone call at 7:50 this morning informing me that I was being offered the position I interviewed for on Friday. I know so many people were thinking, I didn't know anything about this! Well truth is, it all happened pretty quickly for me as well. Thursday in the midst of my painting project I got a phone call from the secretary at the elementary school here on base asking if I could come in for an interview the next day. We talked a little while and she seemed very excited for me to come in and we set up a time. I couldn't wait for Jonathan to get home from his PT test to share the wonderful news with him! Friday afternoon I met with the principal and the teacher I will be working with for a little while. She said I should hear by Monday. Little did I know, they actually tried to call Friday, about a half hour after my interview. I was a little sleepy/groggy this morning to truly appreciate it in the moment but I am truly excited for the opportunity. I will not have my very own classroom but I honestly am just so blessed to have the opportunity to get back in the school and back to doing what I love to do!!! I am just so thankful that the Lord brought this opportunity my way!

Speaking of getting back to the school I find it delightful that today is "Johnny Appleseed Day." It takes me back to the days when Mrs. Grant's wonderful hubby, I mean 'Johnny Appleseed', would come to school and tell the kids about who he was and give them each an apple and we would make homemade applesauce!! YUMMMM!! It makes me wish I had my crock pot here with me so I could make some tomorrow. If you have never made homemade applesauce- it is a MUST!! The most delicious thing and smells delightful as well!!! Happy Marvelous Monday!!!

Busy Bee

2011-09-25T13:21:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have been away most of the week. I began my dining room wall project and was committed to finishing it. There were times when I wondered if I should be committed for even starting it! I thought I would never get done and asked myself on several occasions whether or not I was crazy and what was I thinking. I finished it last night after the Georgia bulldawgs beat the rebels!! Whoo hoo!! Anyhow, my goal was to add a little bit of creativity to the little area. About a month ago I had grabbed the container of white paint we had left from a while ago and added the little bit of brown tint we had left to it in hopes it would be dark enough to make a little bit of difference. I painted two coats on the wall and quickly concluded I had just wasted my time because only I could really tell. So I ventured back to the discount store, Poco, and grabbed two more bottles of brown paint. Then I came across an idea of using a stencil and I was hooked and knew I wanted to try it! So I darkened the paint I originally used and got to work. My first mission was to paint half the way the solid darker color:

The next step was to take my stencil and trace it with a pencil over and over and over again, all the way across the wall. After tracing that stencil numerous times I had to then paint along each of those lines that I had traced, this way the part that tries your patience (and your sanity).

Sorry it is turned, I am uploading right off the memory card!

All done!

Then I also did a couple of small fall decor projects with more to come hopefully!

This table is going to be a project soon as well!!

Tissue Anyone?

2011-09-20T00:42:00.000-07:00

This army wife has been a little under the weather recently. The past two days I have had the sniffles and coughs. I guess I can attribute it to the change of weather. Yesterday was probably the worst because all the congestion in my sinuses was giving me a rough headache that brought back bad memories. I popped an Excedrin PM and went to bed early. I typically wait up for Jonathan to get home from work which is around 11ish. I, sadly, passed out long before that so Jonathan felt bad and let me sleep! I love that man. Not only did he not bug me last night, he wrote me a note that I read upon getting up this morning that said I could wake him up when I got up if I wanted. He knows how much I love spending time with him and usually that happens if I stay up with him after work because he sleeps late. He was thoughtful enough to tell me I could wake him if I wished. How cute is he?

Anyhow, I am feeling a little bit better upon waking up this morning. I still have a dry throat and a little lingering sniffles but I think I am on the downhill track! So here's to hoping that I continue to feel better. After all, I really want to get to using my awesome cookie cutters I got the other day in the mail!

That's right, 101 cookie cutters!!

The Sparrow's Nest

2011-09-18T03:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we had the opportunity to go on a river cruise with people in our company courtesy of FRG, family readiness group. We met in Heidelberg to board the river boat, we were on the boat for a little over an hour and then arrived in a little village for lunch and some sight seeing. We grabbed lunch and gelato, yum!! Afterwards we headed towards the castles. One of the castles we passed we could not check out because it is a private residence! YES! People live in the castle, no big deal! CRAZY!

Anyhow, we ventured further to find the remained ruins of the oldest castle of the group, built in the 12th century. There was a tower you could climb to get a better view of the river and village below. After exploring this castle Jonathan and I headed further down to the last castle while most of the group headed back towards town. The last castle was called "The Sparrow's Nest." I assume it was called this because it was the highest of them all. The steep stairs to climb to the top took me back to the old days in our apartment in Georgia where the stairs were crazy steep.

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip and getting to spend time with friends and meeting some new people along the way. It was definitely an enjoyable afternoon with a pretty good workout! Here are a few pictures from the day, you can find the rest in the albums if you would like to look at more.

12th century castle

This is the one people lived in.

The "Sparrow's Nest" is in the background of this picture.

On top of the world!

Beautiful!

Rocking his TOMS!

Exploring the "Sparrow's Nest"

Kisses in the castle!

A GREAT DAY!

Favorite Mexican Food?

2011-09-16T05:12:00.000-07:00

Today is Mexican Independence Day. Contrary to what most people believe Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence day, but rather a celebration of a battle won in the fight for independence! In fact in doing a little research this past May I discovered more people in America celebrate Cinco de Mayo than people in Mexico. I found that quite entertaining. Anyhow, my family will be enjoying tacos tonight in celebration of Mexican independence.

I made my trip to the grocery store earlier today which means I am not in the mood for cooking a high-maintenance dinner. If you are feeling more adventurous or just do not want to be boring with your dinner tonight you can try this recipe for Mexican pasta I made a few weeks ago that was a hit in our house.

Creamy Mexican Chicken Pasta
-3 cups of bow-tie pasta
-1 1/2 chicken, cut into strips
-8 oz velveeta
-1 can crm of mushroom
-1 cup salsa
-1/4 cup milk
~Cook pasta. Spray large skillet with nonstick spray. Add chicken; cook and stir 4 to 5 minutes or until cooked through.
~Add pasta in saucepan along with remaining ingredients; cook on low heat until velveeta in completely melted and mixture is well blended.
~Lastly, ENJOY!!

Happy birthday also to my father-in-law, Tim!!

Hey- Where's the Cream Filling?

2011-09-14T06:55:00.000-07:00

If you grew up anywhere close to my generation you will remember the Little Debbie commercials that reference to the title. Today is "Cream-Filled Donut" Day. Now I am not a huge fan of donuts with cream in the middle. I know, I know- I must be crazy! My hubby is a huge fan however, so I might just walk down to the commissary and pick him up one today as a treat for when he gets home!

I figured I should probably give an update of what is going on here with the Rupard's. We have been celebrating so many birthdays lately! My father-in-law's entire family celebrates their birthdays in September. Abby and Karen have already celebrated theirs, Kaity and Pops (Tim) are this week. Kaity's is actually today! YAY! My dad's birthday is next week and we celebrated a friend's birthday here last week. It has just been birthday madness. I am hoping to get up to the post office today or tomorrow to send off our goodies to our family.

Jonathan and I out to celebrate Christina's birthday last week.

We are also keeping an ear out to hear what the plans are for us to move. We have heard we are going to be moved to Heidelberg but we are not sure when. I find this part the most frustrating of all. All the job opportunities that I will have a chance to get are in Heidelberg, so I would rather go ahead and move if that is what we are going to be doing. Unfortunately, I do not have a clue when this is going to happen which puts a huge hold on my home decorating because I do not want to decorate anymore if we are just going to be moving soon. Knowing my luck, it will be a long time though. Who knows with our blessed army!! Well that is all for now!

Goodness me, too many choices!!

2011-09-13T09:16:00.000-07:00

Wow! When I looked up what interesting holiday I might embark on sharing with you today there were so many to choose from! First of all, today is my old college roomie, Bray's, birthday!! I am so excited for her to have her first birthday as a hot mama of a sweet lil baby boy!! I can't wait to meet that lil bundle of joy the next chance I get to come home. So if all else fails- celebrate Bray List Day!! :) I love ya roomie!!

However, if you are not acquainted with my lovely Bray, then perhaps you would like to celebrate one of the many other choices you have for this day!

Today is "Defy Superstition Day." My family jokes about this kind of thing but I know there are people out there that take it crazy serious. So walk the fence and do something you never would do otherwise if you didn't believe in superstition. I think us avid sports fans are probably the worst at this. Those of you bulldawg fans who have been disappointed thus far in the season and think you can never wear the same outfit on another game day, defy that notion- do it anyway. If we lose again, beware, the masses of fans may place the blame on you because of your defying acts; so proceed at your own risk! ;)

Today is also "Fortune Cookie Day." Now, who doesn't love a fortune cookie? I know plenty of people who do not enjoy eating the fortune cookie but I am thoroughly convinced that there is none who does not enjoy cracking the cookie open to see what message awaits them inside. I am not a believer in fortune telling, astronomy, etc by any means but this is just plain old fun! It is especially fun when your fortune is exceptionally generic: "Something good will happen to you next week." DUH!! :)

ACHOO!! Sorry the first thing I thought about with the next one was allergies! Today is "National Peanut Day." I, personally, claim no allergies to peanuts- thank goodness! I know many people are, however. I worked at a summer camp for three summers where peanut products were not allowed in lunches due to the large amount of campers allergic. As counselors, we were charged with searching their lunches for peanut products. Let me tell you, it was such a burden taking those Reese's off their hands! :) I mean of course, all of those things got thrown in the trash!!

The last one I will touch on is "Think Positive Day." I have to admit this is something that is rare in my marriage. Do not get me wrong, my husband and I are very happy and generally have a positive outlook on life. The army, however, does not subscribe to this method. We both have learned in the almost 3 years the army has been in our lives to think realistically and never get your hopes up. We try to keep our expectations low so that when something does go the way we would want it to- we can be extra thrilled!! It is an extremely twisted way of thinking, I know, but trust me it is a means of survival in this world of camouflage. I still think positive of all things NOT pertaining to the army, which is why I am choosing not to dwell on the fact that it is also happens to be "Uncle Sam Day" today- how ironic is that?!?!

Read, read, read!!

2011-09-06T12:32:00.000-07:00

If you stopped by here yesterday you will remember I mentioned today is "Read a Book Day." This is one of those days where I REALLY wish I was a teacher and could share in this day with a class of students! Then I would have all of these out for "my kids" to read:

A tub of books in our storage room.

I love reading and that is something I thank my dad for! My dad was one of those dads that no matter what was going on would always do his best to read a book to me before bed every night. Alice in Wonderland was a favorite of ours as was Where the Sidewalk Ends. It was a night ritual I very much intend to share with my own children someday. One of my favorite things as a kindergarten teacher was all the fun books I got to read to my kids everyday! I love reading, little kid and big kid books alike! I thought I might share with you some of my all-time favorite little kid books to share with your own cuddle bugs when you get a chance!

Most of these books can be found on this website of a list of top 100 books, feel free to take a look if you would like and see if your own favorites made the list. However, here are my top ten- for now, there are bound to be books I could not think of!.

10. This Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales
This was always a favorite of mine because it just has a bunch of silly twist of the fairy tales you here growing up. I used to love reading these to my kindergarten students when we did our unit on fairy tales. This book kind of pokes and makes fun at the fairy tales and usually gives those little darling kids a good laugh! If you have never read any of these, I hope you are able to find a copy soon!

9. Madeline
I was always a big fan of Madeline. I even loved the cartoon tv show that used to come on. I was so enchanted by the littlest girl in the group and how she always got to such fun and neat things. I was quite a small girl, the second smallest in my grade most of elementary school, so there was a slightly empowering message in these stories. I thought if Madeline can do it, then so can I. Plus, it is really cool because she lives in Paris! :)

8. Miss Nelson is Missing
I loved this book so much as a kid and even more so as a teacher. I love all the Nelson books! They are just fun stories to read to the students. It is fun to watch as some of the kids figure out what happened in the story with the mysterious sub who made the students BEG to have their Miss Nelson back! It might even give your own students a little push to behave better! :)

7. Pinkalicious
This is a recent book and therefore a recent favorite. I ordered this book from Scholastic my first year of teaching. I mainly ordered this book because we do colors at the beginning of the year in kindergarten and I thought this looked like a cute book to read for pink day. This book is very cute and an instant favorite with both classes I taught. I literally had to periodically pull this book out of the kids library in our room for fear it would get torn up. Just in case you were wondering- even the boys liked this story all about things pink. By the way there is also now a Purplicious!

6. The Kissing Hand
This is another one of those books I was not familiar with until I started teaching. This is a book we read on the first day of school. For you mothers out there with babies going away to school for the first time- this book is a must. This story is all about a little raccoon who is scared to go to school and his mother has a very special way of reminding her little one how much she loves him. Be careful, you might need to have tissues near by.

5. The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs
This was another favorite as a kid and as a teacher. I always enjoyed reading this book during our fairytale studies and having the students talk about what they think really happened and which version of the story the liked better. It was always a lot of fun to act out the original story as well as this one. The kids also enjoyed reading along with this book. The parts that happened over and over again, we would read together and they would get really into it.

4. Love You Forever
This is another book that had stood the test of time and I think a lot of people would consider to be on their top book list. It is such a sweet story of a mother's love and how that love is returned as the child grows up. This is another one I think everyone should read and possibly have tissues for- just in case! ;)

3. Oh, the Places You'll Go
This book is a favorite because it can be so meaningful. I would read this to my students at the end of the year. I love that this book encourages you to be whoever you want to be. I saw on pinterest where someone bought this book for their child and had every teacher they ever had kindergarten-twelfth grade sign it for them and gave it to them as a graduation gift. I thought that was so sweet!

2. Amazing Grace
This book has always been a favorite. It is a powerful story that no matter who you, one can achieve anything that they put their mind to. This is a wonderful story of a little girl who desires to be Peter Pan in her class play and people keep telling her she can't because she's not a boy or because she's not white. The only person who believes in Grace is her sweet grandmother who reminds her she can be anything and anyone she wants to be.

1. The Giving Tree
This is my all time favorite kids book. I love how this story shows love and its ultimate gift, sacrifice. The tree has such a great amount of love for this boy that he will give and give and give until he can give nothing more. It always saddens me that he had such a great love and the boy left him. I am reminded how great is the love of my Father in heaven and how often does He show me that only to find I am paying Him no attention. This book always gives me a wake up call.

Well, there you go- those are my top ten. So find one of these, or one of your own favorites and curl up with your favorite cuddle buddy. My cuddle buddy, my sweet little Cash, and I will be reading in bed before night waiting on daddy to get home! Hope you have a wonderful day of reading!

Oh the Joy!

2011-09-05T13:23:00.000-07:00

Labor Day was always one of those ironic holidays to me. Labor means to work the last time I checked and Labor Day is a day most of us have off from work. Hmm? Interesting! I think we should change it to Rest Day! :) Anyhow, Jonathan unfortunately is not one of the many who could celebrate rest day, he actually is laboring! Lucky for him today also happens to be "Be late for something day." I think this work outs perfectly. He can just be late for celebrating it!! Great right!!

I have been faithfully slacking on my blog, but that is not really new news. New news would be if I updated more than one or two times a week! Well, thankfully I have been busy with little projects around the house. I am slowly making our house feel more and more like home and coming into my own a homemaker! I really enjoy finding new and great ideas and being able to shape and form in my head how I would like things to be. The vast majority of these ideas have come from this lovely website! I promised my sister that I would blog about my little projects!

These are the frames I did.

An old shelf I found on the curb, repainted!

Quick and easy dry erase boards!

Wooden letters wrapped in yarn...took forever!

Finished product to go over our bed.

I have been having a lot of fun beautifying our home! I am not through, just have to go slowly (not made of money). Some projects are looking like they are going to be harder than originally thought, since I can't find the materials to do them here in Germany. I have heard there is a larger craft store on a base about 45 minutes away that I hope to check out soon. My friend and I have vowed to have DIY days at least once a month to get together and work on a project together. In the meantime I am just enjoying my daily life with my hubby. I hope to update again soon.

By the way tomorrow is "Read a book day." So pick a favorite and read it with your kids and tell them why it is a favorite. Maybe if I am not too lazy I will share some of my favorites with you tomorrow!

~Emily

The German Way

2011-08-30T10:56:00.000-07:00

These are my very tired feet! I felt very "German" today, as I did a whole lot of walking! Jonathan had the car today and I had some things I really wanted to get done. Among these things I wanted to accomplish were going to the library to print out some maps so I could do this awesome picture frame idea I found on pinterest.

This cute idea shows a map in the shape of a heart of where we met, where we married, and where we live. I had some frames that I have been letting collect dust since my mom sent them to me because I wanted to do something extra cute with them. When I saw this idea on pinterest.com I immediately knew it was time to get those frames dusted and cleaned! Now if I can just get them on the wall where I want them. We have concrete walls all over the apartment and the wall I want this to go on (above our bed) is particularly stubborn. I managed to find some special nails at the store that I am hoping will work out.

Anyhow, after walking to the library, working out, walking to the store, then home, back to the store, on the train, walking to a different store, walking back to train, then walking home from train stop my poor feet are begging for rest. This was probably a total of 5 and a half miles all together. Needless to say I felt very "German" today with all the walking I did and am quite proud of myself. Now if I can just rest my feet enough to where I can get up and fix dinner and finish cleaning around the house...not sure if it will happen! :)

Ride the Wind

2011-08-23T06:46:00.000-07:00

Today is ride the wind day. I immediately thought of dandelions. I never thought dandelions would be something I would find myself thankful for but I do. I remember picking them proudly as a little girl for my mother, who always graciously accepted them- she never pointed at that they were weeds. I remember my friends and I blowing as hard as we could to make all the little seedlings spring loose in hopes that whatever we just wished for would come true. I am little bit older now so I no longer pick dandelions for my mom, I do not think she would enjoy withered weeds in a package from Germany. I do, however, still make wishes. I am a firm believer in continuing to be a kid at heart. I think you should never stop making wishes. So I am thankful for dandelions because they mean I get to retreat back to childhood, blow as hard as I can, and make a wish. So today I will be sure to pick one up and let my wish ride the wind!

How Fitting!

2011-08-07T13:29:00.000-07:00

How fitting that today is friendship day as well as sister day. If you are as lucky as me you have a package deal! If you would have asked me when I was a little girl if my big sister was my friend I probably would not have hesitated to tell you, "no." Shocked? Haha. Don't get me wrong, my sister is an amazing person but being 6 years older than me I wasn't always the coolest accessory to my big sis. However, I would have told you even then that my big sister was my idol and that I wanted to grow up to be just like her! Perhaps, that is why we grew to be friends somewhere along the way- or so I thought. The reality is that we were friends all along. It happened without me even noticing it. I think it was somewhere in between coloring together to helping my sister take her adorable boys to the swimming pool for the day. I still look up to and admire my big sis more than I think she knows. I miss her more than I think she knows, and I have to stop right there before my keyboard becomes soaked in tears. My sister and I are friends and I am proud to say I can celebrate sister and friend day with one person...thinking about you big sis!! I love you!

This weekend has been a fun and busy weekend. Friday night Jonathan and I made a trip 30 miles to Ramstein to pick up some items, catch a movie, and get dinner at the Chili's on base there. It was our anniversary date since he will be working on the day of our actual anniversary, which I will proceed to post a mushy gushy post about tomorrow! ;) Anyhow, dinner was delish! It had been forever since I have been to a Chili's and it was particularly exciting to be going to one in Germany! Saturday we were able to plan a trip to the zoo in Heidelberg with a family that is our platoon. We have been trying to get together with them for a while and it finally worked out to hang out yesterday. We enjoyed walking around the "zoo." I put that loosely because this was by far, the most interesting zoo I have ever been to. I, by no means, claim to be a zoo expert but I still don't know if I would consider this a zoo. Half of the animals in the zoo were interesting typical zoo animals- i.e. elephants, lions, tigers, bears, monkeys, etc. Then we had goats, donkeys, pigs, and a bee exhibit! We agreed that the bee exhibit was probably the most ridiculous thing. I am unaware as to if there was ever more to this "bee exhibit" at some point in time, but when we happened on the exhibit we saw a lot of pictures and facts about bees on the poster and this fenced in area with wide open air! There was no roof, no beehives, none of that. So take what you will out of that. Here are a few of the pictures from our zoo trip.

We caught the tail end of the seals show!

Dumbo!

The flamingos that Isaiah wanted to take home.

Sleepy tiger!

This little guy really liked Jonathan.

We also were privileged enough to get an up close encounter with a couple of birds that we later discovered had escaped from their exhibit. They came strolling down the walkway and I snapped a couple of pictures. We thought it odd that those kind of birds would just be walking around. Well, about two minutes later we saw two employees- one with feed, one with a net. We then laughed and figured those birds must belong elsewhere. It was definitely an interesting day. Here is a picture of the escapees.

Tonight I have been busy attempting to make a delectable dessert for the first time, well let's hope they are delectable! I tried my hand at Oreo Truffles. I have not had a chance to eat one yet as they are chilling in the fridge but they sure do look yummy. Check out what we will be having as an anniversary treat tomorrow!

YUMMMM!!!

Happy John Giles Day!!

2011-07-28T07:35:00.000-07:00

My big brother cleans up nice!

Ok so I am actually a day late on this one but I didn't get a chance to do this yesterday and really wanted to. Yesterday my big brother turned 35! He is such an amazing brother and person in general! So not only was yesterday "Take Your Pants for a Walk Day" but it was also John Giles' Day. My big brother has been such an inspiration to me in so many ways. I am so proud to be his baby sis!

Jack and John last year on his birthday.

John Giles...
...you are someone I admire.
...you are the best big brother a girl could ask for.
...you are the reason I think every girl should have a big brother, blood or not.
...you always make me feel safe (and small) when I am in your arms.
...you put up with Laura and me tag teaming you on several occasions.
...you taught me how to do so many things, some mom and dad probably did not like.
...you worked with me on my goalie skills in the yard when I was in high school, I ate grass numerous times!
...you are the true example of a southern gentleman.
...you were the peacemaker to many a fight between Laura and me.
...you were my protective second father when I started dating, more protective than dad actually.
...you are an opinion that I always value.
...you are a heart who has always shown me how important I am and I just want you to know I love you and truly wish I could be home to celebrate with you.

Oh yea, he is a great uncle too! :)

I love you big bro! I hope your birthday was one of the best, and that you got to take your pants out for a walk? ;)

Hot Dog!

2011-07-23T01:16:00.000-07:00

Yippee! It is is hot dog day! I know I will be having hot dogs sometime today. We might even grill up some hamburgers for those who prefer cow to well uhh...nevermind. One thing I have discovered about being in the army overseas is that it is a little more difficult to get out and do things on the economy which is why we barbecue around here like nobody's business. In the past month alone I think we have had or been to at least three cookouts! It is what we do around here to keep ourselves entertained!

Around here we have been "patiently" anticipating the arrival of a package from my mom of things we left behind and some things we had ordered online. One of the most annoying things about living overseas is that when we order things online, sometimes the company does not ship to APO addresses so we have to send it home to my parents and then have them send it on to us. We are very fortunate to have such willing parents to do this for us every now and then. This particular package held a new bed for little Cash and new TOMS for Jonathan and I.

Look, I can burrow in my own bed now!

Our shoe shelf is being overtaken by TOMS!

Junk in the trunk?

2011-07-21T10:26:00.000-07:00

Junk in the trunk...no I do not mean what you think I mean. It is international junk food day!! So how much junk food do you find in your house? If your household is anything like mine, the amount of junk food seems to grow when my husband makes the trip to the grocery store with me. :) I wish I could say the healthy stuff outweighs the junky stuff but I fear I cannot lie. I think my favorite junk food would have to be chips- they are my junky weakness!!

Jonathan is out playing soccer as I am here at the house. I am glad that he has soccer to go to with friends because I know how much he loves it. I do miss him when he is gone but I love that he has a passion and is able to still enjoy that passion.

We are dog-sitting for a couple that will be gone for a little while so we are a two dog household for a little while. I have determined we are not destined to have two dogs for a while because it tends to bring out the worst in Cash. lol. He tends to be very selfish with his belongings and his mommy and daddy. Haha. He has gotten a little better since Lola's first night with us. Hopefully they will continue to get along so that we can have hope for getting Cash a playmate in the future.

Raspberry Cake...mmmm

2011-07-19T01:11:00.000-07:00

I know I have been a little out of touch with the blog world lately and I greatly apologize! I have no valid excuses other than my own pure laziness. I appear to have chosen a delightful day to make my appearance as it is National Raspberry Cake Day. I, personally have never had raspberry cake but I am sure it is delightful and I might just make a point to try it soon and get back to you.

On the Rupard front, we have been doing very well. I have been working out and trying to manage the spoiled little daschund. He keeps me on my toes some days and just plain makes me laugh all the other days. Cash has been in my life for about a year and a half now and I am still so glad that I chose to be his mommy.

Jonathan has been studying for a promotion board he has coming at the end of the month. He is hoping to be deemed promotable so that he can make his Sgt soon and be a NCO, non commissioned officer. I may be biased but my baby deserves it!! I know he would make a wonderful NCO.

We have kept busy with BBQs and having friends over whenever we can. A few days ago we bid goodbye to one of Jonathan's NCOs. His wife and he will be moving on to a different location. This particular outgoing NCO decided he wanted to have a water fight at his outgoing BBQ, because you know all men in the military are really just little kids. Needless to say, the kids (old and young) really enjoyed this BBQ. Here are some pictures from that fun day.

Landon says, "Freeze or I'll shoot!"

Frisbee time!

Yummy food!!

Surprise attack on Sgt Bebe

Time for smores!

While I have been away from blog world we celebrated the 4th of July in Heidelberg so I will include some pictures from there before I leave for the day.

Human fusbol!! The coolest inflatable ever!

Lots of great music!

Relaxing at our picnic spot in the shade.

Andrew and Isaiah waiting to hop in a bumper car.

What is missing?

2011-05-25T16:59:00.000-07:00

So, today was spent trying to help mom tidy up the house some since they have been having work done on the inside of the house the past few months. Needless to say, things have been a little out of order. I managed to somewhat tidy the "basement" area of the house and the kitchen somewhat. I also managed to stumble across a Christmas card that interested my parents a great deal seeing as how it had money tucked inside! :)

Today is "National Missing Children's Day." This is one of those that we need to take the time out to take a little more seriously than eating snail. I am not an expert on missing children but I do know the children that are reported missing or kidnapped on the news or in a newspaper are but a blip on the radar of the actual number of kids that go missing on a daily basis. I began to grow curious about what the actual statistics were about how many kids go missing each year and this is what I found on one website.

The U.S. Department of Justice reports

797,500 children (younger than 18) were reported missing in a one-year period of time studied resulting in an average of 2,185 children being reported missing each day.
203,900 children were the victims of family abductions.
58,200 children were the victims of non-family abductions.
115 children were the victims of “stereotypical” kidnapping. (These crimes involve someone the child does not know or someone of slight acquaintance, who holds the child overnight, transports the child 50 miles or more, kills the child, demands ransom, or intends to keep the child permanently.)

A more positive statistic was, "Since 1984, NCMEC has assisted law-enforcement with more than 168,000 missing-child cases, resulting in the recovery of more than 157,720 children."

I sincerely hope you have never had to experience the kind of heartache that comes with missing a child. If you have experienced or known someone who has experienced this kind of difficulty in life my prayers are with you. I think we all look forward to seeing these dreadfully high numbers go down in the years to come but until then I encourage you to become as aware as possible on safe ways to keep this from happening to you or those you love.

Snails anyone?

2011-05-24T11:27:00.000-07:00

Okay so it has been a while. I have been keeping myself a little busier over the weekend. Of course, the day I return to my blog I learn someone crazy made today "National Escargot Day." GROSS!!! I am not real sure why anyone would want to celebrate snails, much less eating them! YUCK!!

So anyhow, Saturday was the Marigold Festival in the little town of Winterville, where my parents grew up and where we went to church growing up. It is an event I looked forward to every year when I was younger and as I grew up. My dad was the announcer for the parade because he is just that awesome. Of course it is always fun to walk around the different booths that are set up in the park from the staple sand art to the surprising booth with huge turtles! Of course the day was not complete until dad and I had split a cup of delicious boiled peanuts and each of us wrangled our own share of homemade ice cream in different flavors. I managed to get away with a new book for a buck! Here are a few pictures from the festival, the rest will probably get uploaded when I get back to Germany. :)

Ok, well it is only letting me upload one picture for some reason! Saturday I also got to spend the afternoon with my old college roomie, Bray, at her baby shower. She is expecting her first, a baby boy, in July but will probably not last until July because the baby would be around 9 pounds if she waited. Bless her heart, she is ready! It was so good to see her and be able to celebrate with her at this exciting time in her life!

Later on Saturday we got a chance to celebrate my cousin, Tiffany, graduating from high school with some family. I know this is an exciting time in her life and we are proud of her. She is still unsure as to what God's plans are for her so please be in prayer about what her next step might be.

Sunday I spent the day with my mother-in-law's family. We went to church, had lunch, and just spent time together. Meme, Jonathan's grandmother, was not having a great day. Her throat was bothering her a lot so please continue to pray for her as she undergoes chemo treatments.

Monday and part of today was spent with Laura and the boys at her house and then we all headed into Athens Monday afternoon so Laura and I could meet up with my big brother John for a Giles siblings only dinner. It was a lot of fun to get together just the three of us. I can't think of the last time we have done that. It was definitely a nice treat on the visit home. Jonathan will get here Saturday afternoon so obviously I am very excited about that! We are looking forward to our time together at home before heading back to Germany.

Bye Bye Dirty Dishes

2011-05-18T07:55:00.000-07:00

Today is "No Dirty Dishes Day." I was reminded of the times I clean out the leftovers in the fridge and end up with a sink like this. Dishes are my domain in our household. My husband despises doing the dishes. Every now and then I can rope him into drying them for me but usually it is my thing. I do not mind doing the dishes but I do despise how there are always dishes to do! We do have a dishwasher in our apartment but it is not very reliable nor very good at its job so it seldom gets used. I usually use it more as a drying rack for the clean dishes than anything else. :)

Anyhow, on the agenda today is my follow-up appointment at Emory. I would normally be okay with this, considering how much better I have gotten, but I am actually a little nervous. The main reason I am nervous is because for the first time in weeks I have a headache, the same type of headache that started all of this mess. This may not be a big deal in the long run but I really do not want to have to go back up on the amount of medication I am having to take. I have been able to drop down on the amount every week and been fine so I really do not want to have go back up because of headaches. Not to mention my face is all swollen and broken out from this medication and I would ideally like that to wear off before my husband gets here! Not exactly the first impression I am looking to make after a month apart. :( So hopefully this headache will go away and not return but we will see how everything goes.

Police Officer's Memorial Day

2011-05-15T16:28:00.000-07:00

Let the record show that today is also "National Choc Chip Day" and I was very tempted to observe this holiday but within the last couple of months an event occurred in my hometown of Athens, Ga. that led me to remind everyone of this holiday instead. Police officers often do not get the credit they deserve for doing what they do day in and day out. Are there days when their job is boring and mundane? Absolutely! Are there days when they put their lives on the line to protect and serve? ABSOLUTELY!!! Nobody is better proof of this than Athens Clarke County Senior Police Officer Elmer "Buddy" Christian. Those native to Athens remember all to well the man hunt that went on for days when Christian was killed trying to stop a suspect in a carjacking. Christian had been with the police force of Athens since 2002 and left behind a wife and two young children. A five year old little girl and a two year old little boy will now go through the rest of their lives without their father. A wife is now a single mother who must take on two roles. I cannot imagine how challenging it is to have your entire world flipped upside down in one instant because of the profession your husband chose. I guess as a military wife I have to be able to fathom that possibility on some level. I ask of you today to remember that the military is not the only unit that stands up for your protection and safety. Remember to be thankful today, and everyday, for the men who live just down the street and put on a different uniform and fight a different kind of fight. Remember Christian and his family as I am sure they continue to adjust to their family dynamics changing.

Yesterday, as you might remember my parents and I spent the day with my nephews. We had a lot of fun hanging out, playing outside, and eating at Zaxby's (despite the numerous nudges for Old MacDonald's). In case you were wondering I did manage to get Jack to celebrate Dance Like a Chicken Day.

He was very good at it! He even had his head going! I love that boy!! We also managed to get a lot of playing time in outside as well. Here are a few pictures of our playtime outside.

Because one sword is just not enough!

How is it that the youngest is the one sitting?

Such a lazy playmate! ;)

Dance Like a Chicken Day!!

2011-05-14T09:43:00.000-07:00

Whoo hoo!! Another exciting holiday comes around today!! It is "Dance Like a Chicken Day!" How much more fun can you get, right? I definitely plan on taking advantage of the fact that my parents and I are watching "the boys," ie Jack and Sam- my nephews, by getting them in on this one!! Maybe I will even have pictures to post later! Please join us in flapping those arms and pecking that head!!

Yesterday, I sadly did not have a chance to post because the blogger was down at the only opportune moment I had. Just so you don't feel like you missed out, yesterday was "Blame Someone Else Day." My parents and I had just the chance to do this but I will get to that in just a minute. My mom is off on Fridays so we got out and ran some errands and caught a movie. We went to watch Bridesmaids. I have to admit it was better than I thought it was going to be. I thought the entire movie would just be funny from what I had heard, and it was funny, but also pretty decent. After the movie, we headed back home to get ready to go to the Braves game. We were right on schedule until we got on I-20 where there was some kind of accident that left us stationery for about 45 minutes. Thus, we BLAMED the car accident on us being late and missing the first inning of the game. :( Anyhow, we had great seats on the first base side about 20 rows up, thanks to my awesome dad. It was a good game, even though we lost in the end I had a lot of fun. On Friday nights, they do fireworks so we were able to indulge in foreworks after the game which made it even better. I was able to get some great pictures but have not had a chance to upload any. So to suffice your visual needs I am stealing a generic photo from online! Sorry, but I have more important things to do like go dance like a chicken with my nephew! ;)

Limerick Day

2011-05-14T09:31:00.000-07:00

Well today's chosen holiday is Limerick Day. I am no literary genius so I will not dare put you through reading a limerick I penned. Instead, I searched through some limericks online and found one I thought I would share with you in honor of the day.

The limerick is called "Take a Chance on Love" by Ray Lucero
"My friend I will tell you in advance
Please don't look at me askance
Love's not mere happenstance...
For you to enjoy true romance
Set fear aside, take a chance."

Granted not as excited as the holiday we celebrated yesterday, but I guess not everything can be so wonderful. :) Well, there are no big plans on the agenda for today. I am going to attempt to begin my couponing adventures by organizing a notebook similar to what my sister has done in hopes of saving a little bit of money with the rest of the world. I do not believe I will ever appear on any episodes of the new show Extreme Couponing, but hopefully dollars will be saved along the way.

On a more meaningful note, life is full of unexpected news. Sometimes that news makes us dance in place and sometimes that news cripples us in fear. My husband recently had the latter. My husband's grandmother recently found out she has cancer. She is in the fourth stages and the cancer is in several parts of her body. She will be undergoing chemotherapy but it is just a tough situation. I have always hated when doctors put a timeline on people, they are so often wrong. My own grandmother was proof as she continued to be with us much longer than they anticipated. It is still never easy to hear someone tell you a loved one only has so long. My husband is very close to his grandparents. So please add my husband's family to your prayer list and remember them when you can. The visit home will be a little bittersweet and challenging but more rewarding in the end.

Eat What You Want Day

2011-05-11T05:56:00.000-07:00

So I have become an enthusiast of discovering what obscure holidays occur on certain days. I think I will make this a regular part of my blog! Among other things today is "Eat What You Want Day." So treat yourself to your favorite treat no matter how fattening and do so without the lingering guilt because some person somewhere decided we deserve a day to eat whatever we want and not feel guilty about it. I think we should honor that person and their obscure holiday! Celebrating this holiday will be a small bit easier and more rewarding for me being stateside! :) I believe my treat I will indulge in will be one of these beauties...

Anyhow, enough about my intentions to indulge in a delicious Arby's roast beef sandwich. Time to actually update you on life. On the health front, my vision is much improved and I have even been able to drive!! Yay! Since I have been able to drive I have been able to visit some people who I missed dearly. Monday night I was able to surprise some of my former players from the Hart County tennis team by coming to the tennis banquet they had. It was so wonderful to see everyone again and it was so much fun to surprise them. I miss those guys and girls more than I thought I would. I did not want to head back at night since I had just started driving again so my dear friend Kaitlyn agreed to let me stay with her that night. So I stayed with her and Matt and was able to visit my Hartwell Elementary family the next day and check up on my students. Overall, it was a wonderful two days filled with surprising a lot of wonderful people that I missed and I was so grateful that I was able to do it.

The senior girls!

The guys team

Thankful Thursday

2011-04-28T06:03:00.000-07:00

So last week my sister decided to post a Thankful Thursday post and I feel there is no other appropriate way to come back to blogging.

So first of all, I apologize for being absent from my blog for such a long time now. I have been a little under the weather for quite some time now and am finally starting to turn the corner after a stressful adventure. To give you a brief snap shot, I have been having severe headaches and eye problems since late February. The doctors that we were seeing in the military clinics in Germany were just never really sure what was going on. Most of them seemed to think it was migraines but every type of migraine medication they put me on did not help and the headache was constant. They could also never explain why I was having the eye problems that made my eyes swell and such.

Well, eventually we were able to get an appointment with a specialist but it was going to take about two weeks for us to get an appointment. In the meantime, my condition continued to get worse. My eyes started to swell profusely, my vision began to double and blur, I was having a great deal of trouble keeping any kind of food down. It got to the point where Jonathan and I both were getting nervous. We talked with my parents and decided it would be best for me to fly back to Georgia and get assistance here. So we booked a flight and I got on a the long plane ride to Atlanta. My parents picked me up from the airport and took me straight to the emergency room in Athens. I ended up being admitted to the hospital and was in the hospital Thursday through Sunday afternoon. We were able to convince them to release me in time to see some of my family at my grandparents house for Easter lunch. Anyhow, in the end they were able to determine that I had a pretty rare eye disease called orbital myositis. Basically all the muscles around my eyes were swollen five to ten times the normal size which is what was causing all the other problems. So right now, I am on a pretty high dose of steroids to reduce the swelling. So far there has been a lot of improvement. I am still having some double vision but once the swelling goes down some more that will as well so overall good news in the week I have been here.

So all in all very thankful for all the help I have been able to get in the last week. I know there were a countless number of people praying for me and I have never felt so loved by so many people. I am incredibly grateful for all my family and friends who have been prayer warriors on my behalf. I will be here in Georgia for a little while until we see everything through so I hope I get the chance to see all of you that have been on your knees for me. Thank you once again for giving me so much to be thankful for today!

All the Ways I Love You

2011-03-09T23:42:00.000-08:00

*Disclaimer: This is a sentimental entry and was intended to be entered on March 7th*

My sweet, sweet sister found a wonderful way to make this birthday special even though they are far away. She sent me some very cute bags with my initials on them that I have not yet photographed, but will soon, and this book. This is by far the best book I own now. It is, "All the Ways I Love You" by Theresa Trinder. Yet, that is not the reason I love it so.

This book is a gift from my nephews and that is so sweet but that is still not what makes this book my new all-time favorite book.

This little speaker is what makes this my favorite book. From this speaker I can hear with every turn of the page my sweet nephew Jack, 3, tell me he loves me and listen to my loving sister's voice tell me the ways they love me. I have gotten in the habit of listening to it almost every night before I go to bed. I must admit the first time I opened it up and heard his sweet voice I had tears in my eyes before I even reached the first page where they actually read. The first half is so funny because Jack literally shouts, "I love you!" each time. I absolutely love it and it is now one of my all time treasured possessions and would like my sister to know she could not have done better!!

What a Beautiful Day

2011-03-09T23:31:00.000-08:00

*Disclaimer: This is the post for March 6th*

Today I had to go to the commisary, aka grocery store- for you non-military lingo'd folk, to pick up a few things for pasta salad Sunday. It was such a lovely day that I broke out a sundress from the closet and dressed it up with a jean jacket and my new favorite pair of boots. I must admit I was proud of myself for assembling such cuteness and now wish I had a picture to show it, maybe next time. Anyhow I decided to let the sunroof back so I could snap a picture of the beautiful skies God gave us that day!

Okay, the second one I actually got out of the car for but I am sure operation security will find nothing peculiar about a woman in the grocery store parking lot standing outside her car taking pictures! ;) Our good friends, Jim and Chrystal, decided to have people over for a cookout later in the day. Jonathan was, as always, the human jungle gym for the kiddos.

My little James decided he could not wait for all the food to be done and therefore would help himself to whatever he could get his hands on.

No worries, the pan was no longer hot so he was in no grave danger as I watched on. Speaking of my sweet James he has now come to associate me as "Meme." This almost brought tears to my eyes the first time he called me that and ran and gave me a hug because this is what my precious nephew Jack started out calling me before he worked his way to "Emmy." This little boy makes me heart soar sometimes and makes me miss my sweet boys back home. Here are a few other pictures from our grilling night!

Aaah the sweet aroma of a fire in the fire place...

2011-03-09T23:13:00.000-08:00

...or just the candle that tries to capture the smell?

HUH? My sweetie had the best of intentions. He knows I love the smell of a fire in the fireplace but who would ever try to put this smell into a candle? It just seems silly and ironic! Anywho, as far as my nose has been able to distinguish it is nothing like the actual smell so I guess my favorite scent of winter will just have to wait until next year...bummer!

*Disclaimer: This post was intended to be written on March 5th and was therefore written as such!!*

Tight Squeeze

2011-03-09T23:05:00.000-08:00

No the title of this post is in no way related to me and my daily battle with my jeans. ;)

*Disclaimer: This post was intended to be posted on the actual day these events occured and there fore will be written as if it was!*

Jonathan came to see me today at work while I took a lunch break so we could spend a little time together and so he could get beat at ping pong!! Lol. At least my tennis skills come in handy every now and then. He came closer than last time to beating me though.

Later that night at work, once the kids were out from school and filling the place with useless noise (just kidding), we discovered the one youth in the place you should never play hide and seek with!

In case you are wondering he most definitely can get his whole body, including his legs in the locker and be able to close it shut and lock it from the inside. Those of you out there that are thinking, "I can't believe this horrible woman allows this to happen." hold your horses because he can open the door from the inside as well and nobody was forcing him to do this! Puts a new spin on bullying- "Go stuff yourself in that locker!"

Cooking Class in Session

2011-03-01T10:51:00.000-08:00

To celebrate getting my new camera and being able to picture blog again I got into the kitchen and decided to document my cooking processes by playing with the new camera!

Sunday February 27th
My sweet friend, Jess, makes this pasta salad for her husband to eat off throughout the week. Jonathan and I really like this idea so I decided to try it out. The first night I made some, all of it was gone by the next morning. It did not even last 18 hours! So I decided I would have to do what Jess does and make two batches at once. I already told Jonathan he has to make the double batch last for at least the rest of the week so that Sundays will be pasta salad day in the kitchen! :) Here are a few of the pictures from my afternoon in the kitchen.

Noodles all done!

Ready for the Italian dressing!

Peppers all diced, with some left over for Jon to munch on!

Cheese! This is when Cash's nose goes nuts and he bugs me to death!

All done and ready to be packed into containers!

So, in the end Jonathan ended up with three large containers filled with pasta salad. As of yesterday one was already gone. I had fun playing with the camera will cooking though.

Monday February 28th
So Monday after I got home from work a friend of Jonathan's was over so I popped some sugar cookies into the oven before Jonathan could get to the dough. This is where I am stretching to say it is baking because I used the break and bake kind! :) Anyhow, we pulled out the vanilla frosting and sprinkles and made some sugar cookie sandwiches with frosting in the middle. YUMMMM!! Here are the pictures from Monday.

Sprinkles, you gotta love all the colors!!!

Ready to be sprinkled!!

Picture Blogging on Hold

2011-02-09T05:08:00.000-08:00

I am so mad and sad to announce my picture blogging is currently on hold. My camera has decided to malfunciton the last couple of days. It no longer desires to take pictures with the flash on or on auto. The only way I can take a picture is with the flash off, which makes for a lot of crummy pictures. So until I get it figured out and fixed I am trying to use my video camera to take pictures but we will see. Hopefully everything will work out.

Trying Again

2011-02-04T03:37:00.000-08:00

Well, for the past few days I have been trying to update this darn thing and it would never finish loading my pictures so I have not been able to. I am going to try again today and hopefully have success because I know I am super far behind on my picture blogging!

*January 22~ Just wanted to share with you what one my favorite parts of my kitchen is! This is the HUGE utensil drawer!! I love this thing!! It makes me happy that I can fit all my utensils easily into this drawer and not have to dig around until I find what I am looking for. This is a treat considering my utensil drawer back home was a fourth of this size! Haha! I am going to miss this thing when we have to leave!

*January 23~ With Jonathan working at night and me working now it has been hard finding time to get together with friends which saddens us since some of our closest friends will be leaving here in June! :( So on this day we managed to sneak in some phase 10 time with Jim and Chrystal. Let me tell you it will throw your brain a little out of whack playing UNO at work and then going to playing Phase 10. I started organizing all my cards by color when we first started playing before I even realized what I was doing. I won this game by the way, I say that proudly because it had been a long time since I had won phase 10! :)

*January 24~ One my favorite things to do when I get home from work is put on my pajama pants! I was tickled on this night to find that my socks complimented my pajama pants quite nicely! :) I love funky socks and funky socks that go with comfy pajama pants is something you just can't beat!

*January 25~ This is something that will probably make my mom and sister chuckle because this always use to happen at our house growing up and my dad was usually the culprit. I came home from work hoping to quench my thirst with either some nice cold lemonade or sweet tea and found neither. What did I find? I found two empty, excluding two weak drops, jugs sitting in the fridge! So instead of being refreshed I had to make two new batches of both! Oh how silly boys can be!

*January 26~ Oh the joys of laundry. On this particular day I was confined to the dining room table for laundry because was asleep on the couch. I want you to note the blue bath mat on top of the basket in the front of the picture. This is probably the umpteenth (yes, that is a real number) time I have had to wash this mat. Our sweet little Cash just LOVES to relieve himself on this particular bath mat! We find it so endearing, insert a sarcastic tone when reading that last statement!

*January 27~ Speaking of our sweet little Cash he has learned to do something nice! When you come out the door of our stairwell there is this little grassy area to the left. Cash has learned when he just has to potty to go in this area! It makes it awful nice for us parents who do not have to walk him all the way down to the end of the building every time he needs to potty! Now we can just open the door for him and wait for him in the doorway! Such a sweet and thoughtful pup!

*January 28~ I spent the night at the Green's house so that I could watch Kylie and James the next day while Jim and Chrystal were gone. Kylie, who is in kindergarten, was sweet enough to let me sleep in her bed. I got tickled when I read the things she had writen on her marker board. I think I like "Out James" the best seeeing as how James is not even 2 yet but should definitely be able to read that! ;) Such a sweet relationship those two have! haha

*January 29~ Speaking of my sweet James here he is cheesing on the playground. Saturday was a little warmer than usual so we ventured down a few buildings to a big playground for Kylie and James to get some energy out. He was ing me up, everytime I started to take his picture he would stop and say "cheeeeese." I love this kid! He makes it a little easier to be away from my sweet nephews because he is right between the two of them in age! I am going to miss this sweet family when they have to leave!

*January 30~ Second drawer picture of the post! Haha! This was what our pantry drawer looked like after we stocked up at the grocery store! We were particularly excited that they had oreos!! YAY! Most of the time all the oreos have been grabbed up! You will also notice a red and green box of cookies!! That's right! Scout cookies!! Whoo hoo!! They are already mostly gone, hope they are at the grocery store again the next time we go!

*January 31~ One of my favorite things about the cold weather is that my scarf collection has increased exponentially! I love it!! Maybe I won't the cold weather so much once we get home now that I have a way to still look cute! :) It is so addicting to accessorize here!! I find myself going very rarely without a scarf and often leaving it on all day!

*February 1~ Jonathan and I were sitting at home on the couch watching a movie and I kept hearing Cash whining. So I would call for him but he would not come and I thought that was just weird. I remembered going in the bedroom a few minutes before and I had shut the door behind me so I went to our bedroom to see if he was in there but did not see him. So I went back to the living room to look if we had any blankets laying out that he had burrowed away into and saw none. I was quite curious by this point. I finally went into the bathroom to find sweet Cash in the bath tub! He somehow managed to get in the bath tub all by himself but was whining because he could not get back out! I just started dying laughing and knew that this had to be the picture for this day!

*February 2~ This was day one of me staying home from work sick. I considered putting up the picture I took of what I looked like that day but decided it was probably better if I did not scare everybody! Anyhow, those of you that have been reading these know that my hubby tends to shy away form cooking due to laziness combined with lack of experience. However, my sweet hubby ventured into the kitchen and whipped up these delicious brownies all by himself for his sick honey, and himself! They were certainly yummy and I was so proud of him!

Took a Fall

2011-01-22T04:17:00.000-08:00

Haha, as I sit down to update this, poor little Cash just fell off the couch! Haha! Sorry, I guess it was that huge gust of air that just came through that just knocked him clear off the couch! ;)

*January 16th~ Cheese biscuits anyone? YUMMM! I have been meaning to try out this recipe I have for cheese biscuits that are like the ones at Red Lobster. I have to pat myself on the back here a little bit- they were pretty darn close. Jonathan hogged all the leftovers though! :( He took the leftover biscuits with him to work that night and I never saw them again! Guess I need to whip up another batch. Jonathan informed me after these were made that these would be included in his IDEAL MEAL! Basically his dream meal. In case you are wondering other things that have been put in the ideal meal hall of fame are the rice from the chicken and rice dish and cheeseburger macaroni. :)

*January 17th~ So my first online class for the spring began Monday. In the first week I have three chapters to read and a quiz on each chapter! Whoo hoo!! So my MLK holiday off work was dedicated to reading! :) Aren't I just a lucky girl!! haha. Jonathan saw me highlighting and just shook his head about how that never worked for him because he would just end up highlighting everything! Haha! Anyhow, as of today (Saturday) I have finished chapter 1 and 2 and passed both quizzes. One more to go!

*January 18th~ So Tuesday was a special day because both Jonathan and I were off. Now, he is still on his strange sleep schedule so it doesn't mean quite as much time together as past days off but it was still a nice treat. We hung out as much as we could watching movies, being our goofy selves, and just enjoying the company in general! Jonathan was rocking my 2011 shades. I love this man!!

*January 19th~ So back to work for me after a few days off and this is what I cam home to. It was a long day filled with semi-stressful situations, not to be confused with full blown stressful situations- not that serious people! Anyhow I had to stay later than usual because I was having difficulty closing up and could not get in touch with anyone for about 30 minutes! ARGH! Anyhow, My sweet hubby helped calm me down and make me feel a little better, along with with my good friend Tylenol! :)

*January 20th~ So this was in the wee hours of the morning for me but this is the time babe is up when he is off. Well my dear sweet love decided to put some more food in Cash's bowl for him. Cash usually stays in the bathroom overnight so all of his food and water is in the bathroom. We have a plastic container for his dog food that you can see in the background of this picture that slides very nicely into the bottom of the bathroom closet shelf. You do not really have to pull it out to get some out but Jonathan thought you did so he slid the container out some after getting a scoop and before he could even finish turning around was met with the sound of puppy food crashing to the floor! Haha. Jonathan made sure to note the next day that this was AFTER he has cleaned up some already! Hahaha!

*January 21st~ So Friday was my first solo adventure. I had to drive to Heidelberg for a training course for work. It is not too far, about 20-30 minutes. One of my co-workers was sweet enough to lend me her GPS and I was eternally grateful because it definitely put me at ease. Anyhow, while on our lunch break I drove out to get lunch and found myself across from one of the largest playgrounds ever with the most tunnels EVER!! This is one of those times where you think, "Man, where were these when I was a kid?!?!"

Anyhow, not much else going on our end. I got the invite to my sweet nephew's one year old party the other day and am soooo sad I am going to miss it!! I REALLY wish I could go but will not have enough time earned off yet for work. I feel like I do not even know my sweet Sam because he has grown and changed so much!! Just one of those things I will have to get through I guess.

Busy Bees Making Honey

2011-01-16T03:26:00.000-08:00

Well I just completed my first week of work and with Jonathan working at night things have been nutty in the Rupard household. We are rarely home together and the majority of the time that we are is spent with one or both of us sleeping. This schedule will take some getting used to! Anyhow, I have so far been faithful about taking my pictures so let the 365 blog continue!

*January 10th~ Jonathan finally got batteries for his remote to his helicopter and was flying it around tonight. Cash found this quite confusing at first, and just ran around after it until he finally concluded somewhere in that canine mind of his that this helicopter was not welcome and began barking furiously at the helicopter! Jonathan was trying to get him to stop barking because it was late and I was so busy laughing at the entire scene that I certainly was not helping the situation! Haha!

*January 11th~ Bacon is a staple at our house, extra crispy bacon that is! Jonathan and I both love extra crispy bacon and go through bacon quite quickly! This morning I got up a little earlier before going into work so I could make some bacon and fold clothes simultaneously! It was quite impressive in case you were wondering!

*January 12th~ As I mentioned earlier Jonathan and I have basically been on separate schedules this week and will be for a little while now. As a result the message board on the fridge has become our best friend because it is our main means of communication. We leave each other messages about things that need to be done or other important things because we started to notice that the house was getting the raw end of the deal! My sweet hubby has been so wonderful in helping keep it clean! Just so you know, I wrote this on Wednesday Jan 12th for the next day so I have not cheated yet! Haha notice the yet!

*January 13th~ This is a picture of the sweet rose my honey got me when he picked me up from work on Thursday night! He also got me dinner so that I didn't have to cook anything after getting home! It is these sweet little things that remind me how amazing my hubby is! He really does a good job of surprising me with little things every now and then!

*January 14th~ This was the result of Jonathan telling Kylie and Sammie, two kids under the age of 6 that they could color on him while we were over at the Greens house for game night! I think the neck is my favorite part!! Haha! I also like how Kylie wrote muscle on his arm where his muscle is! Needless to say he had to take a shower before going to bed!

*January 14th~ I try to keep leftovers in the fridge at all times for my hubby to take to work but I am not so great about making sure he takes them! Haha! So this was the day I cleaned out the fridge of all old leftovers or things that were not being eaten. The result was a much cleaner fridge and a sink full of tupperware!! It will certainly be nice to have a cabinet full of tupperware again! :)

Ringing in the New Year Youth Style!

2011-01-09T12:49:00.000-08:00

So the picture blogging continues! My sister is going to be ultra proud of me if I can keep this up for a few months, much less the whole year!!!

*Day 5~ My sweet sister remembered me talking about how I wish I had one of those neat wall art stickers to put somewhere in our house. She sweetly sent me this one for Christmas. This is the day I dedicated to putting it up and I must admit I like it very much! It not only fills a little bit of the blank wall space in our house but it also provides a nice message to laugh with the people in your life because that is how you grow closer.

*Day 6~ Jonathan had to get a new beret and one of the processes of prepping a new beret is shaving it. A process that both of us just find ridiculous, why on earth they can't just sell it already the way it is supposed to be is beyond both of us. Not to mention that after performing said process the next day this very beret was thrown away because it did not fit him properly! Oh well!

*Day 7~ Excited to be on my way to inprocess so that I could start work!! So this is me on the way last Friday to the employment office to sign papers before reporting to my first day of work! By the way I am going to totally love my job!!! I am looking forward to it very much and I will let you in on one of the best things...I do not have to get up early. My days start at 11am! Whoo-hoo! Now they do end a little later than normal work day but I kind of like knowing I will not have to give up my sleeping until 9:00 or 9:30 in the morning!

*Day 8~ So on my second day of work the youth center was having their new years party for the year 2011! These are my super cool shades that Jim tried to steal later but I refused to let that happen. We had a lot of finger foods, loud music, and awesome kids there! I also got to meet more of the staff since more people were there for the party Saturday. Like I said, I think I will like my job!!!

*Day 9~ So, Jonathan is on long night shifts right now and therefore I am left at home alone on my Sunday night. I decided to indulge myself in my Gilmore Girls since I can enjoy without torturing my dear sweet hubby with it! I love the Gilmore Girls show and every now and then pull out the disc to watch a few episodes, always in order! I remember where I left off! I am now currently on season three! I am not quite sure what I will do once I get done with Gilmore Girls!

New Year's...365 in a new way

2011-01-04T09:57:00.000-08:00

Well I wanted to throw my hat at the whole project 365 thing but in a new kind of way, blog style! I plan on trying to take a picture everyday this year and in turn upload those pictures to my blog and write about them as a way of keeping the short list of people that read this thing up to date with the happenings of our life here in Germany. So that being said the 365 Blog begins!

*Day One- New Year's was brought in with some friends of ours and some new friends here on base. We had a great time playing The Game of Things! If you have never played this game find someone who has it and go play it! You will laugh so hard and it is a perfect game to have around for game night with friends. We also had the traditional party hats, party horns, balloons, sparklers, etc. We ventured out on to the balcony to watch some of the many fireworks going on, I am pretty sure there were fireworks going off in every direction you look!

*Day Two- Baby has not been feeling well lately but this goes to show you even when he is not feeling well he is still his same goofy self! The day after new years was spent recovering from staying up late. We were able to get up by lunch time and spent part of the evening with Jim and Chrystal at their house playing cards and munching on good food.

*Day Three- Our wall of cards, pictures, letters, etc that have been sent our way continues to grow and I love that I have a wall in my house to remind me of all the love we have in our lives. If you do not see a picture or card that you have sent, it either has not gotten here yet or is on the fridge. We are so thankful for all the reminders from back home! I am looking forward to seeing the wall be over taken with things! ;)

*Day Four- Yes, this is a toy helicopter. Our Christmas package from Jonathan's dad arrived today and this toy helicopter was in there for my grown husband! Boys and their toys! What can you do! Thank you for the cute scarves, hats, and gloves on my end. I have to admit it has been kind of fun to be away for Christmas because Christmas lasted longer for us! People sent packages at different times so it was so much fun! Not to mention that getting packages is fun in and of itself!!

Christmas Blues

2010-12-23T12:38:00.000-08:00

I love this time of year but it is not quite the same this year nor was it last year when I spent Christmas day in Cuba with my hubby. Don't get me wrong I am incredibly grateful that I have got to spend these Christmases together with my hubby but it just isn't the same without the family and the traditions you have grown up with all your life.

This year I will long for...
~The faces of my sweet nephews as they open their presents and give out hugs and thank yous, and in sam's case spit up! ;)
~The craziness that is my grandparents house on Christmas Eve as our family of 40+ people cram in a garage and enjoy fresh caught and cooked seafood! That's right you read that right! We do it right at our house for Christmas: fish, shrimp, hushpuppies, coleslaw...the works!! It is a family tradition that my family picked up when my grandfather married my step-grandmother and it is the only type of Christmas Eve celebration I have ever known.
~Listening to the outlandish things my cousins have asked Santa to bring them this year. My personal favorite was the year Jenna asked Santa to bring her a hot tub...she was about 7 at the time. haha, wish Santa would bring me one of those as well but I am not sure I would have a place for it, a jacuzzi tub in the bathroom would do, I think that sounds fair.

Oh and for the record if it snows on Saturday back home in Georgia I am going to very displeased with mother nature that she had me come all the way to Germany in hopes of a white Christmas and gives everybody at home one!! :) That does not seem very fair of her!! Hehe!

While these little things will be missed, I still remember the real reason we get out all these decorations and shower our loved ones with gifts. I am incredibly thankful for my Lord Jesus Christ who was brought onto this earth to save me so that I may have a relationship with the Father. That is something that is universal and will NEVER miss out on!!

Happy Jonathan Rupard Day!!

2010-12-22T01:04:00.000-08:00

Today marks me sweet honey's birthday and while I am quite sure he very rarely reads this blog of mine I decided to share some sweet words about him anyhow!

Dear Jonathan,
I still remember when we first met on a soccer trip to the mall and how we were both lucky enough to survive out first ride with Leah driving! Since that car ride there have been many moments I would not trade for anything in this world. There are so many things I am incredibly thankful for and I think your birthday is a great time to tell you some of those things!

~ I am thankful for the way you randomly come up behind me and wrap me in your arms letting me know at that moment in time I am all that matters to you.

~ I am thankful that you always give me a goodnight kiss before we go to sleep and always tell me that you love me so that I can drift to sleep with a smile on my face.

~ I am thankful that you randomly write me little messages that just put a smile on my face from ear to ear.

~ I am thankful that you help me out around the house when I am overwhelmed and put up with my craziness on Sunday nights when my homework deadlines come around.

~Most of all I am thankful that you asked me to be your wife so that I can live everyday showing my best friend how much I love him. I love that I get to wake up next to you in the morning and go to sleep with you every night.

Happy birthday to my best friend and the love of my life, I pray we get to share many more together! I love you!

Are You Done Yet?

2010-12-21T07:09:00.000-08:00

So yesterday early evening I had the priviledge of video chatting with my sweet big sis and two adorable nephews! Jack was dying to open his gift that arrived in the mail not too long ago so my sis thought it would be nice for me to watch and it was! What a blessing technology is! He was super excited about his Thomas Train matching game. He kept saying "It's Thomas the Train!" and "Can we play in here now, mommy?" I love that kid to death and miss him to pieces!! Sam also got to open his gift which had a cute helicopter shirt and pants outfit and a made for Sam bib that is more like a vest that is camo! So cute! While talking with my sister and the boys Jack asked, "Emmy, are you done with Germany yet?" I literally almost cried! He has such a sweet heart!!

Well we got quite the snow storm here yesterday where it snowed for about three or four hours straight heavily and we ended up with at least 6 inches. Jonathan of course decided it was family play time in the snow. Snowmen, snow angels, and snowball fights were had by all! The playtime did not end without near disaster when we could not find my camera anywhere but after ten minutes of searching it fell from wherever it was hiding it all the clothes I had on! Here a few pictures of our winter wonderland!

Our snow covered parking lot!

Such a beautiful sight!

Busy Busy Busy

2010-12-01T09:42:00.000-08:00

Well I have actually managed to stay quite busy this past week or so. We had Thanksgiving with friends of ours here, as well as getting into the Christmas spirit. The day before Thanksgiving my friend brought over her kids for a Thanksgiving craft. We made teepees from frosted ice cream cones. They were beautiful and yummy! Take a look at our pictures:

Thursday my hubby had to work but we enjoyed a nice brunch before he left of bacon, eggs, and toast. Not too long after hubby left I got to cooking! My sweet friend made an amazing turkey and a couple sides and I chipped in my own mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and macaroni and cheese (homestyle). I must admit our table looked pretty darn good! Check out the before and after pictures!

The weekend after Thanksgiving was dedicated to school work and checking out the Christmas market here in Mannheim. I have to admit I think it is a favorite thing of mine here, all these markets! It is like an ongoing festival!! Chrystal, Jim, Kylie, James, Jonathan, and I ventured out on Sunday to check out the Christmas market and all it had to offer!

James telling "Uncle Jon" how goofy he is!

One of the many candy booths...yummmm!

Chrystal and me

A shot of some of the booths.

Kylie even got to whisper in Kris Kringle's ear that she wanted a princess Barbie doll! We had fun even though I almost froze my toes off and ended up buying an extra pair of socks. Since then we have been simply enoying the snow we were given on Monday. I have not yet uploaded the better pictures of those so I will do that soon!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-22T12:32:00.000-08:00

Things I am thankful for:
1. My Lord and Savior who gets me through good times and bad. I am so thankful to know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior because there have been numerous situations I would never have been able to get through on my own.

2. My husband. The Lord knew who the right man was for me and I can honestly say that man has made me a better woman! He truly is a gift from God. I am amazed at how well he knows me sometimes and how he still treats me like a princess! He is my true prince charming!

3.My family, inlaws as well. I have been blessed to be born and marry into a group of some of the most loving people you will ever meet. Sure they drive you crazy sometimes but what family doesn't? :) The thing that matters most is that they love me with an unconditional love. My eyes blur with tears knowing I will not be there this Thanksgiving season to hug them and remind them that I love them. Thank you for understanding and I pray that the Lord keeps you all well this season of thanks!

4. My pups. It may sound silly but Cash has provided me so much joy and laughter, especially while Jonathan was gone. He has given me a taste of what it is like to have something you take care of that loves you no matter what. Lilly is newer and while she drives me crazy right now because she is still getting used to how things work around here, she makes me feel loved when she comes and puts her front paws up on my lap and just wants to me love on her!

5. Friends. I am thankful for friends that have seen me through all my life as well as friends that say me through a season. Each one of those people had a purpose in my life and I will forever be grateful for the parts they played. I am extremely thankful for new friends we have made thus far that make this transition to Germany seem a little less daunting. They are truly our family here!

Promotion Pictures

2010-11-19T01:55:00.000-08:00

As promised, here a few pictures from my baby's promotion ceremony.

Baby standing with some other soldiers getting promoted.

Getting his promotion certificate.

After the ceremony standing with some of the guys that received awards or were promoted.

I am one proud army wife!!

Lilly in the Morning

2010-11-17T02:09:00.000-08:00

Cash and Jonathan playing

So most of you look at updated pictures on facebook and notice that Jonathan recently got "his dog" an all white german shepherd named Lilly. She is already a few months old so is already trained which is great I must admit. Cash and Lilly love playing together. Lilly loves playing a little more than Cash and often Cash runs and jumps on the couch to attempt to escape for a little break. Both of the pups are protective of what they believe is "theirs" but that is very typical. In general, Jonathan and I love that Cash has a playmate now so that he is not constantly begging for attention from us! Haha. Here are a few pictures from Lilly's first few days with us. She took a while to get used to us but she is a sweetheart. It is nice to have a little pup who can sit in your lap and a pup who can only fit their head in your lap. :)

Lilly bonding with Landon, our friend's son.

A few days before Lilly got here Jonathan was playing with Cash and all his toys. It was quite humerous and while the video I managed to get was not as funny as when they first started, it is still worth a good watch.

On a human note, Jonathan got promoted on the first of this month. He is now Specialist Rupard. He is working a lot now and his shift is from 2pm-10pm but he has to be there earlier for PT so we do not get to do dinner together very often. :( So my cooking adventures have been put on hold. I did manage to make chicken and rice Sunday night and it was sooooo yummy. Jonathan loved the rice. He kept saying just make the rice, without the chicken! He is a rice fanatic. Anyhow, the pictures from Jonathan's promotion are not uploading right now so I will try to post a couple of those soon.

Versatile Chain

2010-11-09T13:34:00.000-08:00

My sweet big sis tagged me in this versatility chain where I have to tell seven things about myself so here goes nothing:

1. I remember going to a circus as a young girl and watching my daddy ride in on an elephant and thinking he must be the coolest dad ever. I also remember my siblings and I getting to ride around the ring on an elephant. I remember riding up front because I was the smallest and having its ears flap against my legs. Perhaps I watched too much Dumbo but I told my mother when I got off the elephant that its wings kept hitting my legs. :)

2. I took gymnastics for about 7 years as a little girl and loved it. I lived for those early morning rides with mom to the meets and her braiding my hair and getting to spray that glitter hairspray in my hair. I was not a huge fan of the neon pink, blue, and purple leotards we wore but you can't win them all! My favorite part was the awards at the end. I know what you might be thinking, I am conceited. However, the awards ceremony was not my favorite part for the reason of being awarded, for all my brightness- I was not the greatest gymnast in the world. I could hold my own but I have much more red and white ribbons than I do blue ones! Anyhow, the awards was my favorite part because unless we were at my home gym the announcer always mispronounced my last name and my teammates always yelled out at the top at their lungs the correct way of saying it! They always had my back! :)

3. As much as I love watching the kids at church put on their musicals I loved more when I was a part of them. I loved learning all the songs. I am sure my parents, and my siblings, LOVED being forced to listen to me singing the songs at the top of my lungs in my room all up until the big day and most of the time even after the big performance was over. I must admit I think we gave WFBC some of its finest performances! I am sure my sister would beg to differ but we all have our own opinions!

4. I remember moving to a private school in sixth grade and being very nervous because all the other kids had known each other for so long. I remember being so excited to be able to play volleyball that fall and how that helped me find my niche at PAC. Even though we were allowed to play as sixth graders on the JV team we were not allowed to go to away games because we were so young. However, we for some reason or another (I don't remember why) we were allowed to go to one away game. I remember being the only sixth grader that started that game and they annouced the starters and their grade level and I remember wanting to sink into a hole when they announced my name and said sixth grade. Haha, I remember thinking, "Did you HAVE to say what grade I was in!"

5. It was around 1000 days ago that I got a text message from a cute red headed boy asking me if I wanted to go to dinner around 8 this weekend. I replied by answering, "Yes, I would be the one wearing the smile when he came to pick me up." A few weeks later he asked me to be his girlfriend, again I said yes. A year later he got down on a knee on the front porch of my apartment and asked me another question. I initially responded by saying, "Are you kidding me?" But rest assured said yes after the initial shock wore off. 6 months later I got to say "I do" to that cute red head but then a week later had to tell him goodbye. I got him back a year later and have not let him go since. I love my life with him and love the adventure we are on together. I love learning new little things he likes and dislikes. I can't wait for forever after!

6. My parents sweetly deprived me of having a dog my whole life so earlier this year in March I decided to get my own. Cash was born two days after my birthday! Must have been a sign. I love my little cuddler!! I love that he gets jealous when I am on the computer and there is no room for him in my lap. I love that if you leave him in the apt to do laundry he whines after you close the door behind you and is waiting on the rug sitting like a good dog when you come back. I love that he waits patiently while I am cooking until I drop something and I love that I don't have to worry about cleaning it up! He is the perfect lil pup for me and he has made a great addition to our little family.

7. I know teachers complain about their jobs sometimes but trust me we truly love what we do. I miss having little ones that depend on me. I miss getting to touch little hearts in a special way that only teachers can. I sincerely hope that sometime over the next three years I get a chance to teach at one of the schools here in Germany because I think it would be a real net experience.

Well, those are my seven random things. I hope you enjoyed reading my little bits and pieces.

Things I Miss the Most

2010-11-02T11:01:00.000-07:00

Okay so I have been formulating this post in my mind for quite a while now and am finally taking the time to put it in writing!

1. Family & Friends: Obviously family and friends back home are what I miss more than anything. I hate that I can't just call someone up. I have to first do some basic math to figure out what time of day it is back home then decide whether it is important enough to pay the cost. I can't wait until our home phone gets set up and that second factor goes away. I think something I miss more than others is hanging out with my super cool nephews. I mean how many of you have an almost 3 year old nephew who pees on the Florida gator and sings Justin Beiber!?!?!? I am willing to take a guess that there are not many of you out there! I just hope my sweet nephews do not forget me and understand I still love them even though I do not see them as much.

2. Having a vehicle: Okay this is a temporary state but still, try going without a vehicle of any kind for two whole months. Believe me your patience will be tried!!! Jonathan and I are looking for some type of small SUV to drive mainly because the insurance is a little cheaper and we would feel safer! lol. In the meantime we do have Jonathan's scooter when we have to go run a quick errand but I am entirely reliable on my dear sweet friend Chrystal when it comes to grocery shopping. She allows me to tag along!

3. American ambulances: No, you did not misread that last one. I miss the sound of an american ambulance. I have attached a brief youtube video of an European police car going down the road. All sirens sound like this here! Mannheim is a fairly busy city so I can only say that I wish I could count on one hand the number of times in one day I have to listen to this awful sound!!! I never could have imagined wishing to hear an american siren!!

4. Walmart: Yea I said it! I miss Walmart. I miss being able to do all the shopping I need to do in one place! Even at its worst Walmart was still the most convenient place to go whenever you needed something.

5. Mexicali Grille and Chik-fil-A: My two favorites have been on the brain lately. You want to know how badly? I had a dream one night that I discovered that we had a Chik-fil-A on base and I was mad that I had not discovered it sooner!!! Yes, in my dream I was not delighted to have one but angry that I had not found it sooner!! I miss the cheesy beef quesadilla from Mexicali like crazy!!! In fact I must stop talking about these establishments before I go crazy!

6. Teaching & Coaching: Lastly, I miss having a classroom full of little minds to love and learn about. I miss the amazing teachers I worked with and how they made that place my second home and took care of me for two years and were with me when my baby was gone and encouraged and supported me all along. I also miss all the wonderful students I had the honor of coaching in volleyball and tennis. I got to know some amazing young people who are incredible people who I genuinely enjoyed spending time with! And not to forget the awesome coaches I worked with!!

Germany is different and I am glad we have the chance to be here but there will always be things about home that I miss and these are just a few of those things.

Weekend of Fun

2010-10-12T01:41:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was a four day weekend for us and we packed in as much fun as we could manage without even going far. Thursday night we ventured out to part of downtown Mannheim for a carnival that was in town. We went with some friends of ours, Jim and Chrystal, and their 2 kids. It was by far the BEST carnival I have ever been to. We didn't get a chance to ride a reall exciting ride because they had just closed it when we got around to but we still had a blast. I managed to get my hands on some choc covered strawberries that were delicious!

These were not the particular ones I ate but just wanted you to get an idea. We also managed to play a lot of silly carnival games and get silly carnival prizes but it was a lot of fun. We did manage to get on the ferris wheel before it closed and Jonathan LOVED that, not really! Haha! He was lucky that I didn't discover the cage could be spun around until the very end of the ride. It was definitely a very fun night. I would love to put up some pictures but Jonathan's card to his camera does not fit in his laptop so hopefully I will get a way to put those up soon.

Friday night we went to some of the high school football game since it was homecoming for them. We didn't stay for the whole game however since they were getting killed. We then went to watch Toy Story 3. It was definitely a winner.

Saturday was our lazy day. I went to the grocery store while Jonathan went out to the mall in search of some shoes he could manage to dirty up. We ate dinner and went to hang out and play cards with Amber and Ted at their house.

Sunday started with church with my hubby and Chrystal. After church Jim and Jonathan went to go a run/scavenger hunt type thing with a friend of theirs. So Chrystal and I took the kiddos to Burger King for lunch. After lunch I had to finish up on some school work before heading back over to Chrystal's to help make breakfast for dinner for the guys and us once they got back. Where we played Battle of the Sexes thanks to my sister-in-law, Lisa, and followed that up with Sequence.

Monday was somewhat of another lazy day. Jonathan had soccer practice and I went to watch and read and generally just enjoy the nice weather. We have had a lot of beautiful days here lately. So that was our weekend in a nutshell. We are still patiently waiting on our stuff to get here. We are hoping within the next week or so. Chrystal and I are making a trip to the self-help store today to get paint. I want to get the walls painted before our stuff gets here. Anyhow, I have to go jump in the shower because we are leaving soon!

Ten Things I Have Learned So Far

2010-10-06T06:47:00.000-07:00

I have been making a mental list of these things for a while now and thought it might be fun to put them up on here. So without further delay here are the top ten things I have learned while living in Germany so far.

1. Always have at least 30 euro cent! I pity pregnant women in this country. You feel like making a trip to the mall? You better go before you go or have change in case nature calls. That is right, you have to pay to use the restroom in public places here. Forget about stopping in a restaurant or cafe unless you want to endure numerous evil glares from employees for using their toiletta without purchasing anything from them first.

2. Never go without a leash. Nevermind that it is understood rule around here to have a leash on your dog when outside. This place is crawling with dogs and little kids, two of poor little Cash's favorites. It is pure torture for him to not be able to reach them when all he wants to do is be their friend.

3. Ashudengan. This is German for "sorry" or "excuse me." I have sadly not learned very much German so far but this word has come in handy more than any other. Although, do not expect to hear it very often from the Germans. Thy are not known for their consideration for others but then again they were not raised in the south as I was.

4. NO personal bubble. One thing you notice upon going anywhere remotely crowded that there is no such thing as personal space. I never would have imagined it more dangerous to manuever myself through the mall than through actual traffic. Making a left to cross over the walkway in the mall can often be more difficult than making a left turn across a busy road in a vehicle. This is also where the excuse me comes in handy...sometimes!

5. Marketplace Heaven. Every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday there is a market place in downtown Mannheim. You will find the court swarmed with fresh produce, cheese's, flowers, and breads. It makes shopping at the grocery store far less enchanting. Whenever I go to the marketplace I feel like I have pulled back in time to a fairy tale town where you can manuever your way through booth after booth of the most delicious looking strawberries and grapes you have ever seen.

6. Happily ever after. We were told of all the castles but I never dreamed of anything like this. It is romantical to imagine what these grand structures looked like back in their prime. We have already been to a few different castles and obviously things are really never what you imagine they were but it sure is fun to!

7. No casual Friday. I never considered myself a slob by any means but I, like most people, like to just have a jeans and t-shirt kind of day. It is much harder to have those kind of days here. Going to the mall here feels like everyone is looking to be cast for Germany's next top model. Everywhere you look people are dressed like true fashionistas. Skinny jeans, high heel boots, scarves, and oh so cute jackets! It is a nightmare for a bargain shopper!! :)

8. Pet Parade. As I mentioned in a previous blog a few weeks ago, dogs are pretty much allowed anywhere you go as long as they are on a leash. Jonathan and I have learned the hard way that just because you are allowed to take your dogs places does not mean that you should. Cash had one trip to the mall and that will be his last for a long while if not ever because of his "accident" in the shoe store. Crazy dog!!!

9. Weather Forecast? What is that? You really never know what the weather is going to be like here. They do have so-called weather forecast but the weather forecast is hardly reliable here. It could be sunny and beautiful one minute and down pouring within the next hour!

10. Confusion is now an everyday thing. I never imagined myself as someone who could or would ever live in a foreign country. Confusion has become a part of my daily life. I mist admit that I feel that I am blending in a little better. Just the other day a lady turned around and said something to me in German about this older couple and was laughing about something so I simply laughed right along with her.

I still have much to learn and experience about Germany but for now these are the top ten. I have enjoyed myself immensely thus far but as everyone knows it can be all sugar and creme filling. Maybe within the next few years I will have another top ten. Guten tag!

Permanent Housing!!

2010-09-17T01:30:00.000-07:00

Well folks, we are officially into permanent housing. We received our key and moved in Wednesday of this week. I will do my best to get some pictures up soon. I am already planning what colors I am going to paint and all that stuff. It will feel much more like home when the rest of our belongings get here. Other than that I finished the MOST, Mannheim Orientation Spouses Tour earlier Wednesday. I learned a little bit better how to operate the train system, the Straub. We also got the chance to visit the marketplace and found a Euro Shop, our version of the dollar store!! That place will come in handy I have a feeling. We saw some beautiful catholic churches located in Mannheim that I did get pictures of with Jonathan's camera. I, unfortuantely, do not have that with me right now! :( I am doing such an awful job of providing pictures I know! I will get better when I have internet of my own I promise!!! I hope I will anyways! ;)

Jonathan has still been going through classes and next week he goes through all his orientation stuff which I might try to come and sit in if I am not busy homing! Cash is doing good. He got super hyper this morning and just ran all over the apartment and then just crashed so I decided to take that advantage to come up to the computer room near all the offices. Still on the job hunt. I filled out a packet that might allow me to work at the day care on base here. But I also heard that the elementary school needs some help with their pre-k classes so I might go by there today and inquire about that. Hopefully, something will come up soon.

I start my first online class for my master's this coming Monday and I am excited right now. In a few weeks I may be the complete opposite but right now I am excited about it. I just hope I can get my internet at home soon so I don't have to walk all the way up here in order to get my school work done. Well, I have to try to go find a planner for my school stuff so I can stay organized. Be back soon!

Address and more

2010-09-10T06:07:00.000-07:00

Well we finally got our APO address. It is as follows:
Jonathan or Emily Rupard
CMR 418 Box 333
APO AE 09058

Just try to let me know when you send anything so I know when to go check for it. Once Jonathan starts officially working he will be able to check it when he goes in but for now he does not go over there all too often.

We are still not too sure when we will be out of temporary housing. The apartment we are in right now is not that bad but I am definitely ready to make my home here and I can't do that until we are there! lol. We did manage to get by the lending office and get some pots and pans and other essential kitchen supplies on loan. Other than that there is not much more to update you on. Jonathan did manage to find the soccer team that was put together or soldiers here and they have their first game Sunday. So as you can imagine he is very excited about playing again and is loving that.

Life on Base

2010-09-07T04:59:00.000-07:00

Well, our first week has come and gone. Sadly, we discovered that we will not be able to get internet until we are in permanent housing. BOO!! Anyhow, Jonathan have gotten to explore a little bit since we have been here. Saturday we ventured to Heidelberg with some friends and their kids to explore a castle that is there. Sadly you could not go inside without paying for a guide and we decided not to do that this time to come back another time. We still got to see a lot and it was very neat. Jonathan and I decided to go back to downtown Heidelberg to check out the shopping. We saw a few familiar stores such as Claire's and a version of Forever 21. Haha. This one made Jonathan and I chuckle. So you know how over here the legal age for everything is 18 while at home it is 21. The store here is Forever 18- no joke! We thought it was funny that it got changed.

One thing we are also learning that here you can pretty much take your pets with you everywhere you go. So as a result, we decided to take Cash with us on a trip we made to the mall late Saturday. Cash seemed a little overwhelmed at first so I ended up carrying him for a little while until we got into a department store that was a little less crowded. I put him down and he seemed to be doing fine. He apparently was so comfortable in the shoe store that he decided to do some stinky business as Jonathan were occupied looking at a pair of shoes. I freaked out of course and Jonathan and I tried not to bust out laughing as he grabbed some of that tissue paper that gets stuffed in shoes and we used that to scoop it up and walk VERY swiftly out of the store. Needless to say, Cash has had his first and probably LAST visit to the mall. Well, not much time left and I need to get my financial aid figured out before my hour on the library computer runs up.

Before and After

2010-08-31T00:21:00.000-07:00

Well I thought I would update you and then give you some pictures. Jonathan and I arrived safely at the airport at about 9:15 Saturday morning here. Cash did splendid, which is more than I can say for his impatience with me as I type this blog. He pretty much slept the whole plane ride and only got a little whiny at the very end. We got our bags and all that jazz and headed towards the USO. When we arrived at the USO in the airport there was a sergeant there that helped us get everything squared away to stay in a hotel across the street from the airport for the weekend. So the rest of Saturday and Sunday was spent in a hotel room, because we were told we couldn't really go anywhere. So for meals we were reduced to whatever we could find in the airport which for the longest time was not a lot! Finally Saturday night when we headed over to try to find something to suffice for dinner we saw a plastic Ronald McDonald in the main part of one of the terminals so we went over to investigate. Good old Ronald was there to give directions to where his food was located!! YAY!!!! So after a quick-paced search of the said area we rounded a corner and there it was!!! It was a defining moment because being the picky person I was I had not had a decent meal since our farewell lunch at Red Lobster before heading to the airport. Some not so great beef was served on the plane. We were in the back of the plane and my mind flashed to Brian Reagan days in high school as the stewardess said, "What would you like? All we have is beef." I was thinking, then why ask?!?!?!

Anyhow, we also managed to find a few other food places including a Hooters in another part of the hidden restaurants at the airport! Yes, folks! Jonathan ate our Sunday dinner at Hooters! Hahaha! Monday morning we got our bags ready and checked out of the hotel to head over to the airport to meet at the meeting point. We got put on a bus and were headed to Mannheim. When we arrived at the base, we met up with Jonathan's platoon sgt. He was a really nice guy. He helped us get our names on the housing list, set us up in a hotel for the night, and all the other stuff you have to go through. So eventually we got some down time in which Jonathan managed to go ahead and blow his first appliance which led us back to the Px to plead for Paul, salesman, to help us out before Jonathan lost his mind! :) Today we are supposed to move into temporary housing for the next month until our permanent housing is available and ready. Anyways, to the good stuff, here are some pictures to make your reading worthwhile.

Jonathan and I at the airport in Atlanta about to board the plane.

Cash and I letting the jet lag get the best of us.

Cash slipped under the covers to get some R&R with daddy too.

One of the gorgeous hillside shots we saw from the bus on our way to Mannheim.

Another hillside, we are pretty sure that is a castle on the right hillside there. So cool!

Saying Goodbye

2010-08-26T06:33:00.000-07:00

Well this past week has been really rough and we have not even gotten to the worst of it yet. Sunday morning Jonathan and I went to church with his mom's family and had to say goodbye to some of the people there. Those people are some of the most caring people you will ever meet. After church we headed down to Winterville to catch the tail end of a family reunion where I had to bid numerous sweet cousins goodbye as well as my 90 year old grandfather. That one was difficult because I sincerely hope and pray that is not the last time I give that great man a hug here on earth.

Monday, Jonathan and I were at the apartment all day cleaning, packing, and trashing. Tuesday we had some help from his grandparents loading things to go to Rena's house. We decided since we were headed that way to meet up with my sister, Josh, and the boys for lunch and a little time to hang out. We met up at Zaxby's and enjoyed lunch before heading back to their house to play with Jack and Sam one last time as a 2 year old and a sweet baby less than a year old. Jack enjoyed running from Umple Jonafin and it made me sad that Jonathan has missed so much of them already. Jonathan just met Sam on Sunday and is already telling him bye. It breaks my heart knowing I have been so priviledged to see these sweet boys grow up and laugh with them and play with them but not I can't. I am going to miss so much of them and that makes me so sad. It was so hard to feel that sweet boy give me a hug and a kiss and know that next time I see him he might have grown out of that. He will be a big 3 year old boy the next time I see him! :( Hugging my sister felt like letting go of a best friend. Ever since the boys have been born and she lived less than an hour away we have grown so much closer as sisters and as best friends. She is an amazing mommy to those boys and a great example. I love her so much and it hurt saying goodbye. I did pretty well until we pulled out of the driveway and waved goodbye from the car, I lost it. I boo hoo'd all the way to his mom's house. Thank you to my sister for making so much time for me this summer and I will forever be thankful!!! I love you so much!
Later Tuesday night Jonathan and I went to dinner with his aunt and uncle and their 3 children. We had a great time laughing and cutting up at dinner. After dinner more tears came as we had to bid them goodbye. Jonathan found it difficult to say bye to Kristina, the oldest of those 3. She is not much younger than Jonathan and they have a close bond. She is such a sweet girl who will be loved and missed.

Well Wednesday was a little bit less tearful. We headed back to the apartment in the morning to wait on the movers to come. They came a little after 12 to begin packing up the things we are taking with us to Germany. In the midst of them packing some others guys showed up to work on the air conditioner, washer, and dryer. Then my dad came to take a few things for us in his truck. Our apartment was pack full of people moving all around and trying to get stuff done. It was crazy there for a little while. Once they were all gone Jonathan's dad, stepmom, and stepsisters came up to hang out for a lil while. The girls loved it because Jonathan and I were giving away stuff left and right. Even Karen took home a few prizes! lol. ;) Thanks girls for taking those off our hands. They helped us clean up a little and get things closer to being ready to go and we enjoyed spending time with them. We will be seeing Tim again but we did have to say goodbye to the girls. I know they will have grown up so much next time we see them. Well Jonathan has yet to meet the friends I made in Hartwell while he was gone. These said friends, mainly Kaitlyn, has been dying to meet him. So we managed to work it out to where we could squeeze in a dinner Wednesday night at our usual Mexican location in Hartwell. Well, Kaitlyn managed to gather so many sweet people to have dinner with us. A lot of my past volleyball players and tennis players showed up to say goodbye and eat and laugh with us. It was such a sweet time that we enjoyed so much. We walked away that night with flowers, candy, cake, frosting on the car, and cream in the face! I will post pictures soon for those of you curious about that!

Well here we are at Thursday, our last whole day here and I got to get out of bed and get going because my mom is on her way here to help us get the last of things! It all seems surreal but I guess we are as ready as we will ever be. Germany here we come!

Picture Post!!!!!! Finally!

2010-08-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

This is Jonathan and me Sunday after church at his dad's house. He wore his class A's to go to church with his dad's family. He looked so handsome!!!! I thought this picture turned out really well. Since I was late on my promise for a picture I decided I would upload two in hopes of forgiveness! ;)

This is Jonathan and I at dinner at The Flight Machine at the Gwinett Airport. We ate here one night with his dad's family.

Home Sweet Home

2010-08-16T12:38:00.000-07:00

Well I know I promised a picture with this next blog and I hate to disappoint but I am afraid I am going to have to! :( I have taken a few pictures but I have done everything I know how to do to get Jonathan's laptop to recognize my card for my camera and it refuses so...boo!!! As soon as I can gain access to a computer that will recognize it we are in good shape.

So, Jonathan arrived back around 4:30 safely. We were safe back in each other's arms again a little after 5. It was wonderful to be in his arms again. We drove part of the way back Saturday night stopping and staying the night at a hotel in Perry, Ga. We then got up early and drove the remainder of the way to Loganville Sunday morning in order to go to church with his dad and other family members. We had a wonderful lunch with his family and spent the rest of the day listening to some of Jonathan's crazy stories and looking at pictures and relaxing.

Jonathan and I spent the majority of this morning up at Fort McPherson in Atlanta trying to get all our moving stuff worked out. We also met up with one of Jonathan's good friends, Jay, for lunch at The Varsity. We are back at his dad's house now enjoying a little bit of downtime. We are going out to eat tonight with Tim, Karen, the girls, and Ben (his cousin). Like I said, I will get a picture up as soon as I can.

Chaos and Excitement!!!

2010-08-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

Well the past few days have been a bit chaotic but of course filled with a lot of excitement! I have been busy here at the apartment trying to get those last minute things packed up and done. I feel like I am finally getting things done to where I can notice them too, which is always exciting!!!

Well, I leave Saturday morning to go pick up Jonathan and I am soooo excited!!! Soo, that being said, I promise the next post will have a picture of me and my handsome hubby!!!

Bye Bye Double Digits

2010-08-04T05:57:00.000-07:00

Today marks ten more days, our last day in double digits!!! YAY!!! I have managed to stay fairly busy the past week and have therefore not posted, I have also not posted until I knew I had pictures to put on here for fear of the wrath of my sister. ;) Last week I got to eat dinner with my lifelong friend, Ashley. She is expecting a baby and sadly that sweet little girl will not get here until after I leave but I am sooo looking forward to seeing lots of pictures and meeting her someday. We had a good time catching each other up on what has been going on in our lives.

Last week I also got the chance to play competitive volleyball for the first time in a while. It was so much fun. My team lost mainly because we had some boys that refused to stay where they were supposed to be so they always got burnt and then they got in everybody else's way. They were quite frustrating to play with but its kind of like whatever, typical egos. It was still fun.

Monday mom and I went up to Laura's to spend the day with her and the boys. It was definitely a less "drama" filled Monday as Jack was having a much better day than last Monday. Tuesday I ventured back up to Laura's to go to splash zone one last time with her and the boys. It was not very crowded when we got there so Jack had a lot of fun swimming with Laura in the lazy river. He was doing "my by self." Later in the afternoon some of the camps started rolling in and it got a little too crowded for Jack so we headed out for lunch at Chik-fil-A. We made a stop by Target where we all split a giant cookie. YUMMM!!!

Today I have to head into Athens to take my engagement ring to Zales because I noticed Sunday that one of the small diamonds on the side is missing. I am just hoping that they can get it fixed and done by the time we leave. I dont want to have to go too long without it either. The sooner I can get it back the better. It is kind of crazy because I JUST had it checked last Wednesday. But it is ok because it is covered by the insurance we have on both rings. So hopefully it won't be a big deal. Well I have to go get Cash up so we can eat breakfast.

Monday Madness

2010-07-27T07:27:00.000-07:00

Well yesterday I got up and got a workout in before packing the car with more boxes to take to my mother-in-laws. I decided to make a day of it and scooped up Cash to go spend some time with my sister and the boys. Jack enjoyed playing with Cash a little as always. Shortly after I arrived poor little Jack had a rough morning so I got some great cuddling in with my sweet Sam. I can't believe how much I am going to miss out on with those boys. I am going to miss them both so much. I have been slacking on pictures, mainly because my camera is dead and I keep forgetting to charge it.

After spending some time with the Laura and the boys I headed over to my mother-in-law's house to drop off some boxes and hang out with my sister-in-law, Ashley. Ashley and I went to grab a bite to eat for dinner and then to Walmart for a bit. We had a good time hanging out and I ended up just staying there because it got late and headed home this morning. Today is going to be a chill day of relaxing and trying to organize more of the things that are going with us.

Watch Out Teens...here we come!!

2010-07-26T06:22:00.000-07:00

That's right we are in the teens, 19 to be specific. I am sooo excited only 19 more days without my hubby. I am so ready. In the meantime I am continuing to pack up things and try to keep things in a somewhat civilized state here at the apartment...its driving me nuts. This weekend my dad and brother got a couple of big pieces of furniture out of the way for me and that was greatly appreciated.

Saturday night the family got together at Carraba's and celebrated John's 34th birthday a little early. We enjoyed good food and taunting Jack with croutons! Haha. It was a little strange because every now and then the thought would pop up in the back of my mind that I would miss out of this celebration next year. My brother means so much to me. He is 9 years older than me so we weren't really all that close growing up. Lucky for me he took up residence in Athens while I was still in middle and high school. That is when we really got the chance to spend time together and go places together and it was always a highlight whenever I did. He is such a sweetheart and I would not trade anything for my big brother.

This week it seems like I got something going on each day which should be fun. I will keep you updated as I go!

Pool and Packing

2010-07-21T13:25:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a little while. We are down to a miniscule 24 more days. That probably seems to a lot to those of you that see their hubbys on a regular basis but trust me for us 24 is not a big number at all. I have been cleaning, packing, and catching up with friends so far this week.

Monday my sweet friend Becca came by. Becca and I played doubles together my freshmen year at Emmanuel. She is one of the sweetest people you will ever meet and it was wonderful to catch up with her and hear about her new house and the many adventures she has had this summer. She got to meet Cash and he did his best to charm her.

Tuesday afternoon I met up with my cousin Russell to play tennis but it was so miserably hot that we didnt play for very long. He has more of a baseball style to his tennis playing that makes it quite interesting. Haha.

Today Cash and I met up with Melanie and Hudson at the pool. We caught up and basked in the sunshine. We both were forced to take frequent dips in the pool in order to stay cooled off. Cash took a couple of swims but for the most part just enjoyed running around playing with his buddy Hudson. Both boys were worn out and Melanie and exchanged phone photos of the pups passed out in the same position. Too funny!!

I got some shoes and clothes packed up that will be staying here. I am trying to get Cash accustomed to be on his leash when we got out now because he will have to be when we get to Germany. I have also been looking into the online masters program at Liberty University. They have some great discounts and options for military and spouses. I am getting very excited about possibly starting it soon.

5 weeks

2010-07-09T18:30:00.000-07:00

Well 5 weeks from now I will be getting ready to drive down to Jacksonville to pick up my hubby and I am so excited about it!!! It has been such a blast here at the beach but it has been a little bittersweet. I have loved spending this time with my family but it has also been sad to not have Jonathan here with me. He has been a real trooper though making himself available on Yahoo to talk to me whenever for the most part. He is such a sweetheart!

Well the week has been great and here are just a few more pictures of some of the moments dad captured. I sadly left my camera at home so I was dependent on other people's cameras. None the less, I am slightly ready to get back home and finish getting everything ready for when Jonathan gets home.

Laura and I decorating the golf cart.

Jack and I checking out the fish.

John, mom, and I on the beach watching the lighting!

39...At the Beach!

2010-07-05T06:51:00.000-07:00

We are in the 30's now and what better way to celebrate than being at the beach with family. We arrived here in Myrtle Beach late Saturday afternoon. We got in a round of golfshoes, a game invented by our family. Dad and I teamed up together and proved to be doing well until a tragic ending where we were robbed by Laura and Josh.

Sunday morning we got up and have the breakfast of champions: cereal of course! We went to the beach and I read some of my latest book. We attempted to get Jack involved in making sand castles but he was slightly more interested in the demolition process of the sand castle building. Regardless it was a fun morning. It was very packed at the beach but we are hoping some of that dies down today since it won't be the weekend.

Sunday late afternoon we all, but dad and Jack, ventured to the outlets to look for some good shopping deals. I made a few purchases that I was pleased with and know I will get a lot of mileage out of them. We went to a nearby restaurant called Duffy Street for dinner. When I say nearby I mean John, Lisa, mom, and I put in our name and the others drove over in our golf cart limo from the beach house. Josh and Laura decided to rent a golf cart for our trips to and from the beach. They planned on renting a 6 seater but the company delivered an 8 seater. So we literally look like we are driving around a golf cart limo. Laura and I even decorated it with fourth of July decor. Dad has unfortunately not gotten a picture of it yet. After dinner we made homemade ice cream and took it down to the beach for the fireworks off the pier.

The fireworks show was a much anticipated one because we had seen it the last time we came here and loved it. The fireworks look really neat over the ocean. Plus they had some really neat fireworks last time that we had never seen done before. They did kind of like a waterfall of fireworks down falling under the pier. It was pretty neat. However, this year the fireworks were much more anticipated because they were supposed to start at 9:30 and we didnt have any fireworks until at least 10:15. :( The fireworks were pretty though. Here is one of the shots dad got with his fancy camera.

47

2010-06-28T07:30:00.000-07:00

We are indeed in the 40's. This week I am really excited about getting prepped to go to the beach with my family next week. It is rare that our family gets a chance to get together, much less for a vacation. We have not been on vacation as a family since the summer after I graduated high school- long time! ANyhow, it technically won't be the whole family since Jonathan won't be there and I am saddened by that. I am excited that I get to spend the week relaxing and having geniune family time for a whole week at the beach. It is a perfect vacation to have my last summer in Georgia for a while.

This week I am trying to get some major cleaning and packing done. Mama Na, Jonathan's mom, will be dogsitting for my sweet Cash next week so my mom is going to come up on Friday with the Durango to take some more stuff to put in storage at her house. Some more scheduled highlights for this week include another splash zone visit with Laura and the boys, pool time with Melanie, dinner with Bray, and lunch with Emmanuel girls Thursday afternoon, and vet appointment for Cash Friday morning.

Ok so I have been tantalizingly promising you some of the information that I have managed to dig up on Germany.
Here is the website for the elementary school that is on base. There is not a whole lot to it right now since school is not in session but feel free to browse:
http://www.mann-es.eu.dodea.edu/
This is the website for the actual base. Most of the stuff is seemingly boring to normal people but thought you might enjoy it anyhow.
http://home.mannheim.army.mil/
I was trying to put the picture in here of what might be our floor plan but it is not working very well. I will try to put it on facebook.

50

2010-06-24T19:43:00.000-07:00

Down to the big 50!! So exciting!! YAY!!

This week I came back to Camp All American as a guest counselor and it has been fun but I know I don't have the energy to do it all summer like I used to. I had a group of 6 and 7 year old boys. They have been rowdy from day one and so much fun. Some favorite conversations:
::Playing a game where they were trying to guess Robert's favorite food::
Kyle: Pony?
Robert: Ponies are not in food, unless you are in Brazil!
::The church where camp is held is doing som remodeling and building a chapel::
Bryce: What are they doing over there?
Me: Building a chapel
Jack: What is a chapel?
Me: Kind of like a small sanctuary for church or for weddings.
Connor: Why would you want to get married at camp?
::Walking out to the pool::
Kyle: Emily, are the Beatles still alive?
Marc: Yea, my dad has their CD.
Me: Well, there ya go!

Haha! Good times. They have been a fun group. One more day to go!! Then back home to Cash! I miss him. Jonathan is doing well. Still ready to come home. We have a tentative date for departure- September 10th. So I need to see and love on all of my loved ones before then! I promised you some Germany stuff and I will deliver soon. But for now- I am heading to bed! NIght!

54

2010-06-21T16:52:00.000-07:00

54 more days!!

This weekend has been a busy but good one. Saturday I spent with my family celebrating my grandfathers 90th year of life. He is such an amazing man and I am so grateful to have him in my life. I am going to miss that man so much when we leave. He said while I was over there he needed to have a talk with Jonathan because he wasn't supposed to be taking me away from my family- that wasn't part of the deal. He is so sweet. I love him so much. Cash jioned us there and everybody seemed to love him. Grandaddy even tolerated him in his lap when my brother-in-law abruptly delivered him to his lap without warning or notice. Haha.

Sunday morning I got up early and drove to Monroe to go to church with Tim, Jonathan's dad, and the girls. It had been a while since I had seen them. Church was good as always. One of my favorite teachers of all time is the pastor at their church and I just love to listen to him. After church we went out to lunch at a Japanese place. Jonathan was able to call and talk to Tim a little while we were there.

Cash is currently at grandma's for the week. Sunday night I drove up to the Tarulli's household to stay for a week while I visit camp for a week. Amanda happened to be coming up this weekend so it worked out pretty perfectly. It has been great visiting with her whole family. I just found a whole bunch of stuff on Germany and I will post about that soon.

56

2010-06-19T05:28:00.000-07:00

Well as of today I get to mark it down to 8 more weeks. This weekend is going to be a busy one as well as next week. This morning I am currently relaxing with Cash before I get in the shower and spend the first part of the day when one of my best friends, Amanda- who is in town from Orlando, Fl.

After hanging out with her I am headed back to parental territory for my Grandfathers 90th birthday celebration. He is such an amazing man and I am so thankful for the impact he has had on my life.

Sunday morning I am going to go see Jonathan's dad, Tim, for father's day. Then back through Athens to see my own dad on father's day. Then back up to Amanda's house that night because I will be working at camp next week to help them out for a week. I am excited to go back and visit and hoping that some of my favorite campers are there!! Well I gotta get up and going so I can start this busy weekend! I will update as I am able next week.

57

2010-06-18T07:24:00.001-07:00

57 days to go, we are almost down to eight weeks!! The time has flown and I could not be more grateful!!

Yesterday, I finally got up the will power to go through some of my teaching supplies that I had to clear out of the classroom and divide into what I know I will take with me and what I know I will leave behind. I still have to go through all my books because I have so many and there are so many that I know I can do without. Well I decided to go ahead and bring the first load of things that Jonathan's mom, Rena, will house in her basement for us. Yay for having family with storage space!!! :) Well I also pulled aside a few books I thought Jack might enjoy and asked Laura if she wanted to keep them for me so that they could enjoy them while I am gone. So I took those over to the their house and hung out with Laura, Jack, and Sam for a while. Then Josh got home and we all went to dinner where Jack made a boot with his chip! Haha. "I made boot!" So after dinner I came over to Rena's house and hung out with the girls. Cash was really hyper and wanted to play with Poohgen, Ashley's pug. He was running all around the living room and I am sure was seeing stars after running straight into the legs of the table a few times!

Right now I am the only one up, watching the US play Slovenia. Right now they are losing- big shocker!! ;) Maybe they will get lucky again but I kind of doubt it! Oh well. Plans for today are just to hang out with family. It is going to be a busy weekend.

58

2010-06-16T19:13:00.000-07:00

58 days to go!!

First sunburn of the summer!! YAY! That means the rest of the summer should be sunburn free!! Cash and I met Melanie and Melissa at the Cape residence and went swimming. Cash went swimming for the first time and seemed to really enjoy it. He kept going to the edge of the pool and whining to get in. He was soo cute. It was warm but fairly cloudy so it was a good day. It was fun to hang out with Melanie and Melissa and we got most of the dogs together for a party as well. Cash got to meet his new friends Baxter and Hudson. He also met Molly, and while Cash made the sincerest attempts to befriend her, Molly is not exactly sociable! :) We had fun catching up and making daquiris, virgin in case you are wondering.

On the exercise note, I have not been running the past two days because of the rain that has started each day about the time of day I desire to run. Nature is working against me! However, I have been doing a little better about what I am eating. I stocked up on fruits and veggies to snack on instead of junkie food. I know this is something Jonathan will help me with too when he is here. He has become hooked on rice down there in GTMO so I see a lot of different kinds of rice in our dinner future, which is fine by me!

Well it is hard to imagine that I have a mere two more months before I get to see my husband again. The last time I saw him was January 2nd. This past year has flown by and I could not be more grateful. Don't get me wrong some great things have happened over the past year and I know that without a doubt I have grown as an individual as well as grown as a couple. I am very excited to see what this next phase will hold for us. We are blessed to have a love like ours and even more blessed to have this wonderful opportunity to go on an adventure together in our first few years together. Well, that is all for now!

60 Days to Go!!

2010-06-14T18:27:00.000-07:00

Well today was pretty laid back. I watched world cup games with Jonathan, via webcam of course. Cash had a few sucesses today as well as a few failures. We had a good day and Cash was kinda bummy today. He kept wanting to just sit with me on the couch.

As my hubby persisted, I started running today. Now don't get me wrong, he does not force me to do anything. He just knows it's important to me to stay in shape and I have told him so numerous times. So he has agreed to push me when he knows I get lazy. I am so glad too because I know I would get severely out of shape if let to my own laziness. I am glad he is willing to push me like that and not just back off when I start making excuses. I discovered something today while running, worship music is the best running music I have ever listened to. It made me feel really good while I was running and it made me push even harder because I felt like what I was doing, I was doing to make sure my body-His temple- stays fit and healthy. I still have a long way to go before I can truly say I feel in shape. I was only able to run about half a mile and I power walked half a mile. Pretty pitiful, I have never been a good runner but it is so good for you and makes you feel great afterwards. I just got to get that eating healthy thing down!! It is so hard when you are eating by yourself all the time. It is just sooo much easier to heat something up or do something real quick- which is definitely NOT healthy choices. So, if anybody has any good suggestions about quick easy meals for one don't be selfish and keep them to yourself...share with the world, or just me!! ;)

61 more days to go!

2010-06-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

61 more days to go until I get to pick my hubby up in Jacksonville. YAY! This morning I went to First Baptist Church Hartwell and it was a good service. I had never visited there before but it reminded me a lot of my church at home. It made me want to go there more and get involved. There are a few teachers from school that go there and a few of my players from volleyball and tennis. I picked up lunch on the way home and spent the rest of the day watching World Cup and playing with Cash.

I was so proud of Cash, he came up and sat in front of me and whined, so hoping he was catching on, I took him out. Three out of the five times he did this he tinkled right when I put him down outside!!! SUPER excited about that. All of the accidents are not behind us but we are definitely getting there. Haha!! Looks like both of the former Giles girls are blogging about potty training!! :) Aren't we just wonderful!!

I am going to try to do better about blogging in these last few weeks. Jonathan and I both are eagerly counting down the days and very excited about all that lies ahead. Now we are to the stage that I have to start making a list of the things we definitely need to take with us and figuring out how we need to get things done.

2 Years Down

2010-05-31T17:37:00.000-07:00

Well I have officially finished my second year of teaching and I must say I definitely feel like I knew more what I was doing this time around. I was by far much more organized than I was last year and that is always a plus!! Hopefully that organization will continue to grow over the years. Our last day of school was Friday and I must say it was little bittersweet knowing I would see students walk through THAT door for the last time, taking my kids to lunch for the last time, and seeing my bus kids off to their buses for the last time. I know I will have many more students to teach throughout my career but it was more sad than I thought it would be doing it all for the last time at Hartwell Elementary. I think I am destined to be even more emotional this week during our three days of post planning. I love all the wonderful teachers and friends I have made there these past two years. They already feel like a part of my family and some of them have seen me through a lot. They were there when my grandfather died, they were there to hear about the engagement, they were there to help me out when I was crazy getting stuff ready for the wedding, and they have been there to love on me and support me in this time away from Jonathan. They are all amazing people and the Lord blessed me tremendously the past two years to give me that family. I will never forget those people and will miss them all dearly.

Cash is doing pretty well. We had a scare a week ago when I took him to the vet for a vaccination. He had an allergic reaction to it and within ten minutes of me having it home his whole face was two times its normal size and he looked awful. He was absolutely pitiful. After rushing him back to the vet for a shot of benadryl and two small doses of benadryl later that night and the next morning he was back to his normal self and far less pitiful. It was definitely a freak out moment for me and Jonathan assured me I was doing everything I needed to do for him and it gave us a glimpse of what parenthood might be like for us. Me- freaking out, Jonathan- trying to calm me down...seems about right!! lol :) He is up to about 4 pounds now and he doesn't seem so small to me but I know it's because I am around him all the time. I know when I put him down outside in the grass it becomes VERY apparent how tiny he is!! lol.

Well we are down to 75 days, 11 more weeks until Jonathan gets home. I am oh so excited but also planning on living up my summer spending as much time as I can with family and friends. My sister, in particular, to my joy is planning on keeping me busy with my nephews this summer. I am very happy to spend as much time with them as I can because I am going to miss out on so much with them! My sweet lil Sam won't even know me when we get back! :( Well, I am talking to Jonathan now so I am going to go ahead and end this update, see you next time!!!