Finally...a post or and update rather!

Well to anyone reading you should be happy to know that Eric and I are both alive and well. So much has happened since my last post that Im going to give a brief update and promise to try and post more often! I have been reading blogs but I need to comment more! So here goes:

Good Bye WASHINGTON, Hello COLORADO?!?!?: Thats right folks, we have moved to a different state and I am so out of my element its crazy! We are staying with Erics brother until we find a place of our own.

We traded the Army for real jobs: Erics last day with the US Army was on October 12th but he took a leave of absence for the month prior. I already miss military life so much but im getting used to civilian life! He now works as a bilingual manager at a warehouse here. But we havent completely left the military, He signed with a Hospital reserve unit out of Aurora CO.

House buying...wait, what?! So we are in the process of buying our own house and crazy as that sounds! We have a cute little one picked out but its a short sale so its taking a little longer than normal. Fingers crossed and prayers please that things move along so we can finally be in our own place again!

As for me, Im trying to find a job but its harder than I thought. Well thats all for now! Like i said, we could use some prayers and fingers and toes being crossed and as I remind myself, WELCOME TO COLORADO!

Battalion Ball

So shortly (and I mean 3 days later) after Eric returned from the suckfest, as he would say, we had an Army Ball to attend. Talk about a lot of nerves, I didn't even know if he would make it in time which is part of the reason he is in a tux and not his Class A's. (Just a heads up, if you are even in the situation where your husband can choose a tux over Class A's and you want a tux, buy one instead of rent especially if you have to rent a few days before. That was our problem and we got charged up the wazz-ooo since we ordered so close to the event.)

Moving on: We had a fantastic time! It was on a Tuesday so that got me out of work! I found my dress at David's Bridal months before for like $70 bucks! So if you have one coming up, keep your eye out!!

Here is our official ball pic, not my fav but whatever!

MY ALL TIME FAVORITE PICTURE OF US EVER!!!!

Me and my bff Brittany! Who bought her dress from JC Penney after from for like super cheap, 3 sizes too big and then got it altered! She looked fantastic!

MY boy :)

I was very happy with the way this ball went over the other one. It was much more relaxed, maybe because most of them hadn't been home long but I loved it! There was a cocktail hour, some appetizers, then we got to pick where we sat which was amazing because we could sit with our friends. Each company showed a movie of stuff from deployment, talk about depressing! But B-Co's literally pissed everyone off haha! We had dinner, dessert then dancing!

The boys: Fyffe, Eric, Szala and Thompson

The Girls: Ash (married to Szala) Lorena (married to Fyffe), Me and Sam (married to Thompson.)

Eric and I slow dancing :)

Brittany and Jeffrey!

Me, Shelby and Kate

I had a wonderful time and I looked forward to the next BN I get to go to but I was so happy to spend the night with everyone from this unit. I am going to miss them when we move!!

Tobi H. Monje

So shortly after Eric got home, we decided we should think about adopting a dog or something. I told him it was either that or a baby hahah!! I went to a shelter during my lunch break and fell in love with a pup. He was the most shy and timid dog ever, it looked like he had gotten into a bar fight and lost.

I called and told Eric so he went and looked at him and said NO WAY! But after some convincing we brought him home! He was very scared and only weighed 8 pounds! He's 6 years old, has crippled back legs (since he was abused) and a heart murmur. Something inside me told me I had to adopt him because if I didnt, he would be there for a long time.

So theres our little Tobi H, which stands for happy! And we love him very much! After some adjusting time, he has become much more playful and happy. He has even gained 3 pounds. Coon, our cat, isnt very found of him but he is getting better! Welcome to our family!!!

FINALLY!!!!!

AFTER 12 1/2 VERY LONG MONTHS, MY SOLDIER IS FINALLY HOME!!!!!

I HAVE SO MUCH TO POST ABOUT BUT WOULD MUCH PERFER SPENDING TIME WITH HIM!

WELCOME HOME BABE!!!!

Prayers please!!!

This is my friend Kaitlyn who I have known since the 7th grade. Shes fantastic but I really need your help with thoughts and prayer for her and her family. This is her now:

She was involved in an accident yesterday morning and is currently in the ICU. Please pray for her and her family as well as a quick recovery. I love you Kaitlyn, get better soon

A year (almost) in review! PART 2!

December started out taking forever because I knew that Eric would be home on R&R and some point. I tried to count down the days until I would get to see him again but since the Army cant stick to anything that was really hard. It was December 12th sometime in the evening and my phone was ringing and I went to answer it but I couldn't hear anything. I figured it was Eric trying to call but as usual the phone wasn't connecting. He tried calling several more times but no such luck in being able to connect to each other. Two days later the phone rang again and this time he was there. He frantically told me that he was in Germany on his way to me but he couldn't talk long. His flight would be in on the 15th at 10pm.

Talk about a MAJOR FREAK OUT!!! I screamed inside my house that Eric was on his way and he would be here the next day! I called everyone I knew to tell them that he would be here in LESS than 24 hours. I was on a high and I couldn't believe that I was actually going to see him. The following day my good friends Amanda, Kaila and Kaitlyn came over to help keep my calm and get me looking hot to see my wonderful husband!

I wanted to be at the airport early because I was not going to miss him for anything! I had ordered a welcome home sign on the Internet to have to welcome him with. If you know Eric at all, he is very shy and does not like to create a scene in any way shape or form. We still had over an hour until he was supposed to arrive. So I found my spot in front of the escalator, held my sign and just waited.

My mom, younger sister Lexus and step dad Rich were all there to help me welcome him. I was so surprised by how many people came up to me just to say thank you or offer me a hug. It was such a neat thing to experience and I was so full of emotion the entire time. As time drew closer I started to get more and more anxious. I had to remind myself to breathe and I could barely think because my heart was beating so fast. People slowly started to trickle down the escalator and I was patiently awaiting my solider. People saw me with my sign and told me he was on his way and then I finally saw him:

It was just like the movies, when he finally got down we hugged each other and cried as everyone in the airport clapped and cheered. It is by far one of the best memories of my life and I will never forget it.

Eric really wanted pizza and an ice cold beer so we headed on over to BJs Brew house and all hung out together. It was as if we were never apart and it was so great to see that we clicked so well again. During the two weeks he was home we went all over the place. San Fransisco, a road trip to Disneyland for Christmas, hanging out with my family and friends. It was fantastic! We had such a great time but it passed in the blink of an eye and it was time for him to go back.

For some reason this good bye was easier than the original one. I took him to the airport and was able to stay with him at the gate until he boarded the plane. It took everything in my power not to cry the entire time, but I held it together only for him. We said see ya later and off he went. I silently cried the entire way back through the air port and with each step my heart getting heavier wondering if that would be the last time if I ever got to hold my husband.

I went home and spent the majority of the time in my bed. The past 2 weeks after he left were even heard than the first two when he left the very first time. I found myself being very angry and feeling as though he had abandon me on purpose. Needless to say we didn't always have the best talked. Once again January came and went but I was more depressed than anything. I had started seeing a psychologist and that helped a lot.

During the month of February I rarely heard from Eric. I went 37 days without hearing a single word, talk about heart wrenching. For some reason in March, I woke up with a whole new out look and could finally see the finish line. I was working out and spending plenty of time with my friends and sisters knowing that it would be over before I knew it. I went to Las Vegas with my mom and her sisters and had the time of my life. Eric was jealous but I promised him we would go sooner rather than later.

Before I knew it, April was here and it was time to get my stuff together and pack up to move back to Washington. I was so exited to go home but also super sad to leave my sister Lexus that I had gotten used to spending every day with. I moved into my new apartment found a job and starting working by the end of the month.

May flew by in the blink of and eye and June is half over too. This is the happiest I have been in a long time and I can finally start getting a little excited that Eric should be home in less than 30 days.

There are many emotions that I went through and experienced through this past year. There were times when I felt so close to Eric that I knew nothing could come between us. But there were also times when I felt scared, alone and abandon. I learned what arguments are worth arguing about and which ones are not.

When this whole deployment started, I was angry with everyone and everything for the fact that I was going to have to spend a year away from my husband. Looking back now knowing that it has been over 11 months apart I feel as if this was in God's plan for both Eric and I. I am so grateful that we were able to spend this time apart only to realize how important Eric is to me and how much I do love him with every part of me. I am still going through lots of different emotions about him coming back and us living together again but at the same time I really cant wait!

A year (almost!) in review! PART 1!

So I have been contemplating weather or not I should do a deployment review or not. I don't figure most people will make it to the end of this post but if you do, thank you and leave a comment! jk! Since I do read other blogs about deployments I found it very interesting that a lot of women have kept a kind of journal about it which I never thought to do. And I am now kicking myself for not doing it. This post if more for me and looking back on it later than for any other reason. So for that I am really sorry if its super boring, depressing and long. I have no idea what is going to flow out of my fingers but I have been thinking about doing this for a couple days now. So here goes:

My husband left for his first deployment on July 13th 2009. The 2 weeks leading up to it were probably some of the toughest weeks of my life. We spent a lot of time packing and re-packing lists of things he was going to need to make it through. It was heart breaking to watch as we would work together as a team to try and get everything together only to notice that his supplies for an entire year could fit in the trunk of a car with room to spare. We were very cautious around each other in the way that we would talk about things to make sure not to bring up anything that might perhaps make us cry.

We spent the nights up to the final day talking about the what- ifs of everything from what we plan to do with our lives when he got home to what happens if he were to die. Now I know what your thinking, we shouldn't have been talking about him possibly dying but we would later learn that it is a big reality than I ever thought possible. We also confided in each other about our deepest secrets but were also there to hold each other when we felt the need to break down. I cried a lot and I am really glad I had Eric there with me.

As much as we wanted our last weeks together to be wonderful and blissful, we also spent to much time over petty arguments that now do not have any relevance. In a way I think it was our own way of some how trying to make leaving each other easier, because lets face it if your mad at someone its much easier to say good bye. So as the day grew closer, it only got worse.

Friday July 10th 2009: The day had finally arrived and it was time to day good bye. We had to be on post by 0600 so I dont even think we went to bed that night because we would have had to leave our house around 0345 to get there on time. We headed to post and I am pretty sure I cried the entire way. My mom was nice enough to drive us there so that I wouldn't have to drive home alone and she wanted to see Eric off as well. Words can not described the mood that loomed over every soldier, their wives and their families. It was as if someone died and there were no words or anything that could have been done to make this any easier. After a lot of moving around base Eric decided it was time to say good bye before the official formation because he didn't want to cry in front of his fellow soldiers.

The last hug was the longest most painful hug and we just stood there and cried together for a good 10 minutes. My arms felt as if they were glued around him and they refused to let go even thought I told them it was time. My mom had to literally peel my body from Eric in order for him to go. I will never forget watching him walk away from me with his hat pulled down over his eyes and ever so often wiping the tears away from his eyes. My mom and I drove away and I cried and cried and felt as though someone ripped out my heart and stepped on it a billion times.

Not 10 minutes later I got a call from Eric asking us to turn around and come back because the Army had some how misplaced a plane and he wasn't sure if they were leaving that day or not. So we drove back and spent the majority of the day on post waiting around to see if he was going to leave or not. After spending most of the day awaiting around, we finally got the OK to go home for the night only to be back the next morning. This whole back and forth thing carried on all through Saturday and then to Sunday. Monday is the day he finally left and by that point I was more than ready to get this deployment started! This good-bye was much easier but still sad. We both had the strength and courage to stay with each other until the buses pulled away without crying to much. At that point I was not only proud of Eric but I was so proud to call myself and Army Wife!

The first 2 weeks of deployment were a big blur. I remember spending a lot of time alone, crying and really feeling sorry for myself. I wanted to crawl under a rock and do anything but face the world. I some how made it through that but there were many times during deployment that I had moments like these. I decided to go to California to spend some time around my family and friends.

This helped keep my mind off of being away from Eric and helped me to enjoy life again. Most of September I don't remember. I remember going line dancing with my girl friends and that was always a fun way to keep my mind off life. I seemed to be pretty lucky in the fact that I got to talk to Eric daily or at least every few days at most. Which made the adjustment period easier. I noticed that my patience for "civilian" people was at like a 0. I was sick of people complaining about being away from their loved one for only a few days. I was some how bitter at the rest of the world that they got to be with their spouse.

This attitude carried onto October and it still comes about now and then. October was a kind of depressing month. Our unit had 3 deaths in one day and thats when the reality of the war set in.I still couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel and it was also my birthday month. Not just any birthday, but my 21st birthday. Eric seemed to be out on a lot of missions and I didn't hear from him much at all. I happened to be in Washington at the time of the memorial ceremonies for the 3 men that died. I decided it was only right to go and pay my respects. It was awful and I decided at that point I would never go to another one with out my husband again.

November seemed to come and go with out any real problems. Sure I had my good days as well as my bad days. By this point I had reached the 4-5 month mark and I was glad that time seemed to be on my side. When I stopped to think about things, life seemed to take forever but if I just went with it, it seemed to go much faster.

*** I DECIDED TO BREAK THIS UP!***