Happy Day

I am Done! Spent a week doing Urban Ops, sleeping on cement in the freezing effing cold, getting woken up by artillery explosions, and missing my family. And yet, a lot of the time, It was still really, really fun. Then this morning (Saturday, ahem), we geared up bright and early and headed out (in rain followed by sleet followed by snow) for our Culminating Event. And it was awesome.

I "killed" the "suicide bomber." And I "survived" the whole ex. I rock.

We are soclose to the end now. There's still a lot of time, but no more sleeping in holes in the woods, and possibly a whole lot less screwing around with us. We'll see about that second part.

I am in such a good mood. The snow is awesome. I made a snow angel outside the armory. But don't worry, I drew in an M16, so it was still very Marine-like ;-). Now I'm just waiting on the hubs and Punky so we can go out (very carefully - people in VA can NOT drive in the snow) and celebrate MacGyver's birthday.

That's right. My beloved is another year older. Not that he looks it - a fact that amuses the heck out of him. His birthday was actually yesterday, though we didn't get much celebrating in. We didn't get done from the week's training until around 8 pm. But his present did come in the mail that morning, and - even though I told him not to before I left(!) - he opened it as soon as he saw the box. He just had to try on his new Heelys.

I got Heelys for Mother's Day two years ago, and he has totally envied them ever since. Well, I finally managed to get a pair in his size, and he loves them. Joy! There's something else I've been trying to get him for a couple weeks. I'm going to try again, if possible, this weekend.

Either way, today is a good day. Except that I now have to come in to work tomorrow too (bye bye weekend). But nevertheless, I am going to enjoy today.

And I can catch up on blogs now!

Last Big Event

I'm going to the field tomorrow for another week. It is our last major field event. If I can just make it through this one, we're pretty much in the clear to graduate. I have a couple of fun things I would LOVE to get up tonight before I leave. We'll see . . .

Either not, can't wait to get back to the blogsphere next week!

Thanksgiving in the ER

From Cheap Wine and Cookies

We are currently sitting in the er after an extremely tasty Thanksgiving turkey because, of course, I had to go and get all sick during the long weekend. Se we figured we'd also get Punky's persistant cough checked out.

Everyone's fine, and I get some codine [of which I'm a fan]. But it isn't really how I wanted to spend the evening. Fingers crossed that we get out of here soon. We have pies to get to!

In the Spirit

From Cheap Wine and Cookies

I had been writing a long, eloquent (right . . .) lovely post about all the things and people I am thankful for this thanksgiving, and there is a hell of a lot I have to be thankful for. But it was becoming quite the long unwieldy post, and I have a turkey to dress. So I've pared it down. What I'm really thankful for at this very moment is this:
This is a terrible picture (it doesn't even begin to capture how friggin hot my husband is ;-)), but our bedroom will be fully painted tonight! I am SOOO excited. I can't wait to post pics of the finished product. Some of you are probably wondering about the master bath . . . Well, that isn't done, but it is closer. Possibly by the end of the long weekend. Probably not. But the bedroom is soclose. And it looks AWESOME.

Plus, after a long search, I found the perfect owl for the wall on Etsy. Now if I could just find a couple of black vinyl paisly wall clings, I would be even happier.

From Cheap Wine and Cookies

All we have left to do after the paint dries is put in the new furnature, curtains, and gorgeous new bedding (we have two different sets that I LOVE, and both match the bedroom perfectly). Hooray for a full on grown-up bedroom with none of either of our old, hand-me down, "ecclectic" college furnature.

For this, among a mountain of other things, I am truely thankful.

Us and Up

From Cheap Wine and Cookies

Ok, I'm pretty certain we were about the last family on the eastern seaboard to watch the movie Up, and normally I wouldn't post about something quite so irrelevant. But this movie struck me so strangely, and I was wondering if anyone else had a similar reaction to the movie.

I thought this movie was sad. Sad to a degree that it actually surprised me even after my brother (Boo), who has always been able to predict my tastes, told me that it would make me sad. I guess it wasn't just that the movie had sad parts, but how quickly they came on. Boo thought the part that would bother me the most would be when the momma bird breaks a leg and can't get back to her young. And yes, that part was heart wrenching. But I knew through my mad deduction skills that that part would have to come later in the movie after the guy had flown away in his house.

From Cheap Wine and Cookies

So I was not prepared for the emotional assault that opened the film. I was totally sucked in to the cute story of the happy couple with the same unusual interests, her desire to drag him along on her crazy adventure, watching them redecorate their new home (and MacGyver had to point out that it was just like us because I would so be the one with the bigger chair, lol),

From Cheap Wine and Cookies

and man was I sucked in when all the clouds turned in to babies. And then, as soon as I was completely at the mercy of this friggin G-rated Disney/Pixar kids' movie, the sad started.There would be no babies for them - a huge fear of mine right now as I count down ever so *ahem* patiently to the removal of my IUD. But they get past it and continue to be wildly happy on their adventure together. And then, WHAM. The end. One of them is gone, and the other is alone after all that. I was absolutely ashamed by how unbelievably choked up I was. And there was a full grown very masculine adult man next to me, but I'm not allowed to say whether there were any tears on his part . . .

It led me into a whole line of thinking I don't even want to pursue. One of those, the happier you are, the more you have to loose sorts of deals. Aching for that poor little old man just existing in the vaccum left after such a happy life. Ugh! I could wax poetic about my marriage to MacGyver; about how happy I am; how our life is so similar to this cartoon love story; and about living every day to its fullest and not looking ahead to that inevitable day when one of us is gone (we both agree that "till death do us part" meant exactly that - not until I don't feel like it anymore or am sick of you or just want to try things out with someone else, ugh, don't get me started). BUT, that isn't the purpose of this post, and I'm not particularly eloquent when it comes to matters of the heart anyway (just check out our Anniversary). My point is, I was not prepared for the emotional blow.

And, of course, Punky barely even blinked. It always amuses me to see different things through the eyes of a child vice the eyes of an adult. Sure, she thought it was sad, but she was more anxious to see him fly his house; they were old anyway; and she obviously has no personal context for that sort of relationship. MacGyver and I were definitely trying to conceal our reactions lest we get teased by our 7 year old daughter for being crybabies, lol.

But was that the end of the sadness assault? No! Once we finally got over the first blow, being amused by the house taking off and all those antics, we encounter a selfless mother bird who can't get back to save her babies and an adorable, loveable, loyal and sweet pup who faces repeated rejection on all fronts. My heartstrings definitely got one heck of a workout during that movie. Yes, it had a happy ending, but damn. I was not ready for that.

I think I'm going soft . . . Ugh. Don't tell the Marines.

So Much To Say . . .

. . . And Yet So Little Motivation.

It seems to be becoming a mantra of my blog. I have so many little half finished posts and ideas floating around, but real life keeps getting in the way of my blogging. At least I've finally found a few minutes to catch up on some of my bloggy buddies.

What sort of things do I really want to yammer about but can't seem to find the motivation to pump out posts on?

1) I didn't accomplish crap this weekend. We had decided that this weekend was going to be completely devoted to cleaning, organizing, and redecorating the house until MacGyver reminded me that Punky had a birthday party to go to on Saturday, followed by the Auction at our church (which was quite fun), and Sunday was Thanksgiving shopping.
- The birthday party was a blast. It was at the roller rink we used to take Punky to every weekend before the last few months of craziness ensued. And I was once again treated to watching my hubby wallop a bunch of teenagers in the races then trade dance moves on them. He's so cute.

2.) I have so much to do this very short week. I have to prep the turkey for Thanksgiving tonight because I have to work until super-late tomorrow night, and I have to get MacGyver's birthday present ASAP (like, tonight, also) since I'll be in the field the whole week of his birthday. Ugh, I was in the field for Punky's birthday, then mine, and now I will be for his as well. Ugh. I would love to go into more detail about my plans for his b-day, but, alas, he has started actually reading the blog, so I suppose that story will be an after the fact one.

3.) I am super excited about getting the IUD out in just over two weeks. We have been waiting to start trying for SO LONG. But the time is finally coming. It is going to kill me to try to keep from talking about that ad nauseum, but I will try. We've already come up with a boy's name, a girl's first name (though either of those may well evolve in the future), and the theme for the nursery, though we still have to decided which room will be the nursery.

4.) As a wonderful surprise for me Friday, I came home to find our bedroom half way painted! And the color we chose is perfect. I can't wait till it's done. I was hoping it would be done tonight, but having just spoken to MacGyver, it doesn't exactly sound like there's a whole lot of painting going on right now . . . haha.

5.) I just realized that if we're going to start TTC that soon, I'm going to have to cut my caffeine intake back down (I say as I crack open my afternoon pop). I had been doing really, really well, but a couple months ago the insanity of the schedule here got the better of me, and I've been a serious caffeine pig ever since. I'm also going to have to start bidding farewell to the glass of wine I enjoy so thoroughly with dinner every night. :-( But it will all be worth it!

And NOW, a question for the masses:

What are you making for Thanksgiving Dinner? Anything new this year to your family/gathering? I'm brining our turkey this year, which I've never done before, but other than that, we're going with a similar menu to the last couple years. And I'd also like to know everyone's favorite Thanksgiving dish.

Little Ears

Sometimes I forget just how much Punky listens in when MacGyver and I are just discussing random everyday things. I'm a little ashamed of myself for forgetting sometimes what an aware and perceptive little person we share the house with. Then yestderday I got a reminder.

We sat down to an awesome dinner prepared by my skilled chef of a husband - delicious orange sesame stir-fry veggies with three different grilled fish filets, salmon, mahi mahi, and talapia. [Hubby is on a mission to find seafood I will eat - so far the list includes shark, which I've always loved, some oysters, and, as of last night, mahi mahi]. ANYWAY, we sat down to a nice family dinner. We used to do these a minimum of 5 nights a week, but with my training schedule this number has dropped to whichever weeknights I'm home early enough and most Sundays. As we usually do for family dinners, we lit the Chalice [http://www.Uua.Org], and said a free-form prayer.

As UU's, our prayers are a bit grab-bag. As a Pagan UU, I usually address my prayers to "Mother in Heaven," "Mother Earth," or some sort of Great Spirit. MacGyver, who was raised Catholic, prays to "Father in Heaven," and Punky generally prays to "God." The first time she tried to mimic me, she addressed her prayer to "Mother in Law," lol! She has also taken to trying to beat us to the punch on the things we often offer thanks for. It's really quite cute. Last night, though, totally took the cake. Her prayer:

"Dear Mother in Heaven" [score one for Mommy] "thank you for [a long list of things MacGyver and I typically give thanks for - family, friends, warm beds, food, wine - really, and so on] please be with those who can't be with us [another of my favorite lines] and please help Mommy to not get recycled and please help Daddy finish the bathroom SOMETIME. Amen."

MacGyver and I just about died. It was hysterical. A little back info in case it's needed: Getting recycled at TBS means you have to start the training over again for some reason, like an injury that you have to recover from before you can complete. Getting recycled would be HORRIBLE. But I'm pretty sure I've never actually told Punky about it, ha. And the bathroom . . . Oh heavens.

Our master bathroom was AWFUL when we moved in. It was a yellowy-beige with blue countertops and a hand painted, Whinnie the Pooh looking, cartoon tree painted all over the one open wall. Complete with gaudy fake birdhouse nailed to the wall. And the leaves were two shades of green, pink, yellow, and light blue. It was gross. MacGyver made quick work of painting it and redoing the countertops and accessories. It looks unbelievable. It is now a dark grey with stone accents and counters. I recently founf the perfect showercurtain to complete the forest waterfall feel, and MacGyver just rigged up the fancy new dual showerheads - too cool. The only thing left to do is to put in the shelving. MacGyver is going to run shelves all the way around the room at the top that I am then going to OVERFLOW with plants, including over and hanging down into the shower. The shelves are the ONLY thing left. The problem? The shelves have been the Only thing left for a number of weeks. And we can't finish the master bedroom and office until after the shelves are up. I am chomping at the bit to say the least. And, apparently, Punky has caught on, lol.

So the prayer was too funny. And it was just another on a long list of constant reminders of just how smart and grown up Punky is getting.

In other news, since I'll be in the field the next couple days and won't be able to post:

we're on the downward slope at TBS now. We only have 70 days till graduation, and only 35 of those are training days after weekends and holidays are subtracted out. WOOHOOO!!!!

AND I'm getting the IUD out in about 20 days. Even bigger WooHoo. Probably won't be talking about our conception journey until we actually concieve because I'm so paranoid about jynxing it, but I will say that we will be starting soon, and are SUPER EXCITED. And we've been practicing every chance we get!

Talk to u all Monday!

Hostage

From Cheap Wine and Cookies

I know I haven't been a very good blogger or bloggie buddie lately, and I am very sorry. But, as with most things in my life ;-], it's not my fault. My laptop has been commandeered in the interest of some sort of huge birthday surprise for me. If you haven't caught on to the fact that MacGyver and I are on a constant mission to outdo one another with surprises - well then you probably haven't been reading this blog very often!

the picture above is the awesome "perfect" watch I surprised him with out of the blue last year [with Sirius Black, the Snaggle Toothed Pup in the background], after an intense couple month long search. His birthday is just around the corner, too, but since he's recently developped an interest in this blog, there will be no details about my usual headless chicken dash to get him something worthy of all the wonderful things he does for me posted until after the fact. Sorry, Honey, I'm wise to you.

So, anyway,m he's had my computer for a few days now [I'm writing this from my phone so a: please forgive any typos, and b: it takes a lot longer so there won't be a whole lot of substance to this post], and for the life of me I can't figure out what the heck he could possibly be doing for/getting me. I am not a tech-y person. I love my computer, but for working, reading, and, of course, facebook lol. I'm not into other tech things. I HATE gaming. I think it's an insane waste of time for an adult [though I'm certainly not trying to pick any fights with that - I have an earlier post on why I think adult "gamers," esp those with families are ridiculous, but it's just an opinion]. So I really can't figure out what he could POSSIBLY be up to, but I'll tell you what, he is soooo excited. Which, of course, makes me excited. Not only am I super anxious to get my laptop back, I can't wait to see what this mystery surprise is. Any guesses?

So I'm sorry I haven't been up on all my lovely buddie's blogs, but I promise I will be as soon as I get my computer back. In the meantime, I'm still "twitting" if anyone's really that hard up for the goings on in the Cheap Wine and Cookies Galaxy.