From Our Family To Yours

One of the things that I have always loved about Christmas is sending out cards. Since Kyle and I got married it has always been something that I have looked forward to. I always make sure that on the back I type of a little note of what we have been up to, so we can keep everyone who doesn't have social media accounts updated. It's a fun personalization that I enjoy adding to the cards.

I wish I had copies of some of our older ones but here are our cards from 2013, 2014, and 2015 :

And without further ado here is our 2016 Christmas Card. Of course it is by far my favorite that we have ever done. I love our precious family and am so grateful each member!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Do you send out photo cards or do you stick with traditional handwritten cards?

Always Be Kind

Something has been on my heart lately and I felt it was necessary to write it down. 

As of late I have seen some pretty nasty interactions between military spouses on FB pages. While I know it's not beneficial to put too much stock in these pages, I tend to stay on them because I legitimately enjoy interacting with fellow spouses. I think a lot of great conversations have come up and it's great to see everyone helping each other with something from finding a good Vet in the area to offering help with figuring out insurance. 

However, lately it just seems to be getting very dark. I have seen new spouses asking questions that may have been worded awkwardly and get ripped to shreds by others. These new spouses are being made to feel like they are a "dependa" (for the record I ABSOLUTELY hate this term, but it is used in the military community, I find it degrading) because they are asking questions that some find silly. Have I disagreed with someone, absolutely, but I have done so in a respectful way, and if I felt that I couldn't then I would not say anything. We live in a time now where social media has made it easy for people to sit behind a computer and spew hateful things without worrying about how it hurts others.

When Kyle and I got married 8 1/2 years ago had I been treated like some of the women have been lately, I would want nothing to do with this community. I'm not saying that we as spouses need to be coddled but I am saying that being nasty is not necessary. The sad thing is this type of behavior is not just towards new spouses it runs the through the most senior of spouses as well. I just don't understand the need to be angry and hurtful. I wish some would stop and think for a second that words actually do hurt.

We all have come into this life with our own set of challenges and all we are looking for is friendship and common ground. I am grateful for the friendships that I have made in this life and I am thankful for the support without judgment.

It does not cost anything to be nice and it should be something that we all strive for.

1 Year Ago

1 year ago our lives changed....

A dream that we had for 7 years was finally coming true. I remember this day like it was yesterday, we had so much happiness, fear, anxiety, and joy. We were so excited to tell our families and go into the holiday season with such excitement. But we also feared the devastation of another pregnancy loss.

A year has passed and I sit here looking at our beautiful 3 1/2 month old daughter, I couldn't be more grateful. 

This little girl is a miracle, a miracle that changed our lives 1 year ago.

We love you, Emersyn! Our lives would not be as happy and joyful without you.

Cajun Country Half Marathon

This weekend we completed the Cajun Country Half Marathon in Lafayette! This is a race that I have been looking forward to all year, it's such a fun race and a beautiful course, which is the reason that I have done it the last 3 years.

Since Lafayette is 2 hours away from home we decided to head down there on Friday instead of getting up at 3am on Saturday morning. We booked a last minute room (it was free thanks to Drury Inn points, woo!), got our neighbor to check in on Emma and Fishy, and off we went.

We were able to pick up our race bibs that night, we checked into the hotel, had dinner at Cracker Barrel, and settled in for the night. This was also E's first time in a hotel and she was a champ! She went down at 7pm, woke up at 11pm to eat and then went back down until we woke her up at 6am. It was awesome.

The race started at 7:30am and it was a chilly 33 degrees. E was all bundled up in her stroller and she slept for the entire race haha. Kyle pushed her stroller and he was a huge motivation to me. We normally don't run together but with having the stroller we opted to stay together and enjoy the experience as a family. I am getting my endurance back which feels amazing and while I am not trying to break records I am trying to be consistent. 

They had to alter the course this year because of some construction so it turned into a modified out and back course which was fine by me. We had the best time, we blared our music, talked to other runners, and enjoyed the scenery. The best part is that at this race last year I was pregnant with E and I had no idea, my what a difference a year makes.

I love the medal, can't go wrong with a bottle opener haha.

We decided to head back before the awards were handed out, but I found out late yesterday that we took 3rd in the stroller division! So we will get one of these adorable trophies.

I am bummed that we won't be here next year to run it. 

It was definitely nice to check half marathon #15 off the list!

Hope you all had a great weekend.

Countdowns and Cupcakes Etsy Shop

A few weeks ago I was contacted by the awesome Rachel from Countdowns and Cupcakes to review an item from her soon to be opening Etsy shop. 

She creates and puts together some of the most amazing care package flaps for purchase as well as other items. One of the most amazing things about Rachel is that 10% of every purchase will be donated to an organization that supports military families. She is a very proud Navy wife and I am so glad that I "met" her through this crazy, insane, and amazing world of blogging.

She gave me an option to choose anything I wanted from her shop and I chose the chalkboard picture frame, she customized it to say "____ days until my Daddy comes home." I wanted E to have something to look to when Kyle is away and I can't wait to put a photo of the two of them together in it and change it as she gets older.

The quality of this frame is wonderful and I love the look of it, it is unique and something you know had a lot of love put into it to make.

Please everyone go check out her shop and support this amazing military spouse.

Countdowns and Cupcakes Etsy Shop

Life Lately

Happy Tuesday everyone! It's hard to believe that December is in full swing already.

1.This little nugget turned 3 months old on the 1st! I can't believe the time has gone by so fast. She is growing like a weed and a happy girl.

2. We are loving all of the holiday activities this time of year, we attended the Tree lighting on post and it was great to have my Dad there with us.

3. I started 2 new classes yesterday: Contemporary Issues in Psychology and Crisis and Emergency  Intervention. The upside is that these are my last 2 until I start my Capstone course...April cannot come soon enough! I can't wait to be completely finished.

4. I have finished Christmas shopping and Christmas cards have been mailed out. It really feels good to have both of those large tasks done!

5. Kyle still has a pretty lax schedule at work right now, I am not ready for the new year when it is back to the craziness. I was not a happy camper when I saw the next training units vehicles/equipment arrive a few days ago. haha. 

6. Marathon training is going great! I am 2 months away from the big day and I am really excited. It will be great to complete Marathon #2, and have Emmy there at the finish line.

I hope you all have a great day, I'm getting my hair done today so I'm looking forward to a little pampering this afternoon.

 

OPS Group Ball 2016

Last night we attended the OPS Group Holiday Ball. It also happened to be the first time that we were leaving Emmy overnight. We are grateful that my Dad was coming into town for Thanksgiving and stayed longer so he could keep her for us.

We headed off to Lake Charles, had lunch, ran a few errands and then checked into the hotel. The view from our room was amazing!!

 

After checking in we grabbed some drinks and walked around the hotel/casino. We found the ballroom and then ended up playing a few machines in the casino just to kill some time.

We got ready and of course I had to snap some photos of the process. 

 

 

After heading downstairs, the first thing we always do is take professional photos. The formal portion of the event was a lot of fun and different than what we are used to. I didn't take a lot of photos because I just wanted to enjoy the evening. We stayed and danced a bit but then headed upstairs to change and go to the casino.

 

After an hour or so we headed to the room and crashed haha. It's always nice to get dressed up plus we get to go home with a little souvenir (and add it to the collection of a million other pieces of military glassware that we have lol). 

 

It was a nice night but we are so happy to be home with E!