Catch up..!!

Another catch up post? Yes it is because I'm becoming terrible at this blogging thing. I thought that living in Fl and all that my life was busy there and things would settle down here. I was wrong! I think I'm twice as busy here. With school and cleaning and laundry and the usual household chores, I have added job hunting and weekend trips and etc. It seems like I will be working on base here teaching classes. I'm looking forward to it! Plus the extra money I'll be making will be my shopping allowance. More motivation that's for sure!! Matt has completed his IDiv so now he has duty two Saturday's a month so he's not home much anyways, so why not work?!?!!

May has been exceptionally busy for us so far and it's only half over. The first weekend we had the MCAS Beaufort Airshow and enjoyed ourselves. Lisa Mikey Dan and Eric came up for that and we had a great time. I love having my Mikey around. The airshow was very cool and the girls loved it. It was my first show on base and seeing "behind the scenes" kind of. I loved it and can't wait for next years!

The next weekend Matt had duty and we hit up Savannah. We are really liking that city. We just drove around and walked around a bit.

This past weekend we went to Virginia. Back to visit family and friends and have some good times. We drove up Wednesday for the 8.5 hour car ride, which the girls were amazing. We got to Dons around 1:30am and hit the sack immediately. When we got up on Thursday we headed into Winchester to see the grandparents. They love seeing Finley and meeting Charli for the first time. Charli was great around everyone and enjoyed herself. Finley remembered everyone and she loved seeing her cousins again and having some play time. While we were in VA we were able to finish putting Wendy to rest. Her tombstone was finally finished and we set her ashes in it and got some more closure. I'm so happy that Matt was able to be part of that. It was so important for him and it was important for me for Matt. After the service was over, we headed back to dons and ordered some pizza and then headed out to Carousel for our favorite ice cream. It was a great trip that went to fast. We were home last night before we knew it.

As for the rest of May, we are looking forward to my mom, aka Nana, coming the last weekend of the month. She is coming for a week and Im so excited to see her and so are the girls!

A blog post? About time!!

Please accept my apologies! I can't believe the amount of time that goes by without me knowing it! I haven't posted a blog for about two months and I'm sorry. I know some of you are waiting patiently but maybe not anymore. But as I'm typing this blog I'm feeling pretty bad about the cliffhanger that I left my readers in. So sorry!!

Ok so here's the update! We got here march 8 and spent the night in a hotel. I was so excited to see my hubby! We got to have dinner together as a family. It was such a nice, surreal change for once. We got up the next morning and headed for the new home. We were excited and nervous and what comes with moving into a house that you've never seen. But as we drove into the community we were pleasantly surprised. It was a nice town-home, perfect for us and the girls. The floor-plan was great and just enough space for our stuff. I was so relieved!! So the movers showed up and started unpacking all of our things and before I knew it we had a home, FINALLY!!! it took about four days to get a really good grasp on decorating and putting things away. But it sure was a good feeling that I was unpacking our life to be settled together for two years! Im thanking God!!

After a day or so, we met our wonderful neighbors next door! D and Noe are the greatest people to have met here! They have two kids Daniella and Diego who are 4 and 3. Could it be anymore perfect!?!?!! No! They are such a blessing for us. They have helped with everything and we couldn't be luckier to have such good neighbors! We have definitely developed a great friendship! Matt and I are so thankful.

We found a preschool for Finley to go to for the rest of the school year here. It's a private religious school and I fell in love with it when we toured it. She has a great teacher who adores her and she has made friends. It's so great for her!she loves school and will most likely attend there next year as well, but we will se what happens!

Matt is stationed on PI, That's the abbreviation for Paris Island. The one place that they told Matt he would not be working, the furthest distance from the house...but it's our luck that he would be stationed there. But I will admit that going there for the commissary or seeing him at work, I'm able to witness actual Marine bootcamp. Pretty cool! It's an island that is completely dedicated to marines, military and families. It has a great MCX, which is a store that contains pretty much a little of everything. I do love the store, especially since they have a whole section dedicated to my all time favorite Coach! There is a God! The commissary, military grocery store, is in the same parking lot and matts medical branch building is just down the street from that. He is working in the physical therapy department, where he wanted to be. He's very happy there and loves that he finished his command training and is let loose to see patients and work on them. Tomorrow is his first day and I'm so excited for him. Can't wait to see what happen with it...

So in order for Matt to get back and forth to work, we had to take our tax dollars and find a car for him. We decided on buying a 2000 Range Rover and loved it! We had the truck for 2 days before we had the curse of our every decision making hit. Matt put gas in the truck and when he went to start it, it was like a klunker crappy noise and a gassy smell that was nasty. Really!?! I was so mad. But we called the guy who sold us the car and he has been honest enough to try to help us a little but unfortunately we hit a dead end and now have to trade that in for something newer and more reliable. Stinks!! But it is our luck. Hopefully we will have this resolved soon!!

Charli has been such a daddy's girl since we got here. She has spent lots of time with daddy and is getting more and more comfortable with him everyday. We celebrated her first birthday last week on Friday the 15 with our good friends next door and matts stepdad and girlfriend. We had a great time and can't wait for more celebrations to come! Then on Saturday we celebrated matts stepdads birthday and headed to Charleston for the day. By the way, charleston is an amazing place! We love it there! We went on the old retired Yorktown aircraft carrier and hit up the real old town charleston. We went to Pearlz for dinner and found an amazing desert place. It was so fun!! We can't wait to go back! There is the most beautiful park on the water that has a water fountain that kids can play in. Needless to say that Finley and Charli loved it!! It was such a great day!

Anyways, that's the most up to date stuff here with us. I'll try my bet to be more responsible with updating!!

The move is here....

Wow! Really?!?! Already? It seems some sort of surreal. It just seems that I just moved here from Virginia, away from the cold, snow, and Matt. But it was actually a year ago. I'm sure most of you that do this kind of thing know that when the first move is underway, that the time it is til you are with who you want to be with, moves slower than a snail. I can say that I was definitely, without a doubt, one of those people. It really never accurd to me that the time would actually come faster than I ever imagined. There is good and bad about that. The good is, obviously, that I get my "own" family back, in a home, where we can spend the much needed time together and get reaquainted. The bad is that I'm leaving my mom, family, and friends here. There is never a good time for that. I hate leaving my mom. She is my best friend and has been such a great rock for me through this time I have been away from my husband. She has been such a great help with my girls and I cant thank her enough for it. I will miss her everyday, and that i have been away from her before, the leaving ALWAYS sucks!! As for the rest of my family here, they have been such a great help with my girls and me. There have been some great times and I hope there are many visits with them. I will miss them too. Another sad good-bye is seeing my dad. He has had a year, a whole year, to bond with Finley. She is now so in love with her Papa, that she would rather spend all her time with him. It is so sweet. I know that seeing her go will make him so sad and that just makes me feel so guilty. And the fact that Charli was born here, and raised here for the first year of her life, we are leaving a ton of memories behind. With my family and friends seeing the girls all the time and the changes that they have made, its getting really hard to leave all that behind.I know that all of the new memories to be made with my husband and two girls will be worth all of this that we are going through right now..I just wish we didn't have to go through it. I really have never felt so guilty in my entire life.
We are going to be taking off tomorrow morning and hitting the road for the long day of driving we have ahead. I hope the girls will cooperate and we can get where we need to in good time, but given the fact that we are driving during the day, I'm sure there will a lot of pit stops. I hope Charli can handle the car seat that long!! Im really praying for that!! Now that she is just about walking and crawling absolutely everywhere, loving to be mobile, she will probably hate me tomorrow. I know Finley will be fine. I bought her a bunch of new little things to open in the car and play with. It will be a little "moving present". She will be excited for that and it will keep her busy.
Just knowing that I will get to be in a bed with Matt tomorrow night, even though its a hotel, its just surreal. I really am having trouble believing that we are here. At this point of moving to our first base as a family, living the real military life, and actually going through the motions. It will all be interesting to say the least. I will be able to call myself a real "Navy Wife" from now on. Its a wake up call for me!
Don't get me wrong. Im really excited about the move, but emotions are running high and goodbyes, being left to be said, its just all too sad. It will bring tears and sad feelings, but at the end of the day tomorrow, we will be a family of 4 for the first time ever!! Now, there is something that can't be replaced!

The movers are here!!

Wednesday I spent pretty much all day going through the rest of our things, picking out what I wanted here to keep for the last couple days and what was heading to South Carolina on the truck. Keeping in mind that all I kept here was going to have to be stored in the van with us and two girls plus car toys, I kept it down to a minimum and still felt like there was too much kept here. Oh well. We'll deal with it. I kept catching myself,on wednesday while going through stuff, getting choaked up. I was imaginig that I'd be so excited that tears really wouldn't play a role in the "going through stuff phase". I knew I'd better get myself together because I knew this wasn't even with a thought going to be the hardest part.
Yesterday the movers showed up in a 55 foot semi. I was a little intimidated to be honest. Not that this was just a truck, but all my stuff was going to be living on this 18 wheeler for the next week and you know how it is when you dont have control of all your own belongings. I got over it real quick when the 3 mover guys got out and asked what was going and what was staying. Of course I immediately switched into my "mom-survival-adult" mode and gathered my things and took them around and showed them what to do and take. They numbered and listed every item/box/tote that I had and packed each one thouroughly and precautiously. I was impressed. They showed up at the condo at 10:10 and we left and headed for the storage unit at 11:50. They worked fast!!
When we got to the storage unit they started right in, going through what I already packed and checking to make sure it was packed nice and tight and safe. The did a great job! I was on site becuase there has to be a witness of their work and how they handle things. I never lifted a finger which was the best part, but my legs and feet hurt from standing and walking ALL day long! I'll tell you though, to not do anything, it was worth it :)
I couldnt believe how fast the whole thing went. They never took a break and just kept working their butts off and loading stuff. They got done with the storage unit around 430-5ish and headed for Jacksonville, where I guess they were doing another pick-up of stuff. I was kind of surprised when they told me that the bulk of all their moves and business is military. I dont know why it shocked me, but it did.
The driver explained to me that he has to drop off a move in Savannah, Ga on Tuesday of this up coming week and he would be at our house Wednesday. The only delay would be if something drastic happened. So it looks like we will be taking off Tuesday morning about 730 and hitting the road to Beaufort.
Im just taken back by how all of this is done and my stuff is on its way there and there really isn't much more to do! I mean this move is really 4 days away! Time has sure been on Matt and my's side. It will be quite the adventure!! Our first one as a family of 4!

New Haircut!

Matt has always loved me with long hair. I think pretty much in general every man loves long hair. I dont get it, but whatever. I had long hair til the day Finley was an infant and pulled it out..it hurt like crazy! I went to the salon that day and chopped all my hair off! Since then I have kept my hair short and styled it just the way I like it.
I'd like to say recently, but for a while now, Matt has been begging me to grow my hair out. I finally gave in when I saw him over the summer in Chicago. So, its taken me from July til now to get my hair a little bit past my shoulders and I always took the time to fix it up nice and make myself look presentable as best I could. Then during the day, getting busy with the kids and stuff, it always wound up going up in a ponytail or some sort of twisted thing. And of course, the hair just never falls straight after that. I was just plainly getting so tired of having the long hair. It just felt heavy and it was always getting tangled and such and I was over it. So, it took some major convincing, coaxing and a little bribery!! (I promised him that we could get a king size bed...and then he got some ideas off that...) Then I thought, oh Lord, what have I done?? LOL! That definitely helped do the trick!! I got Matt around the idea that my hair is so much better short and its so much easier for me to take care of it and it takes less time, which is better with the girls anyhow!
So, with his support and his OK, I called up and made an appointment. I went in on Tuesday afternoon and although I couldn't help being excited, I was a little bummed on cutting it all off because deep down I didn't want to disappoint Matt. But it all came out great and I couldn't be happier with the end result! Especially since I got my roots touched up and some low lights put in. It was just what I needed before the big move. A good boost for me :)

Here are the before and after pics...
in the pic with my hair long, those are also my new glasses :)

Shopping Excursion :)

Sunday, on our way to St. Petersburg, my mom and I decided to make a pit stop at the Ellenton Outlet Mall. Now the words outlet and mall in the same sentence make me too excited! We pulled in, parked, got my double stroller (which has saved my life) loaded and headed up! Walked into different stores, coming out with shoes, clothes, Tupperware and dishes. I was in heaven! The place was crowded which was nice to see people out spending money, helping the economy turn around. Its about time for that!!
I was so excited to get my dishes for our new place. I have no idea why I get so excited about it, but its a mom thing I guess! They are Corelle and have a cute leafy pattern with some yellow and bright blue dots and fill in color on the edges. I cant wait to use them!! They are break and chip resistant so that will help with kids in the house!!
My mom and I bought the new Reebok shoes that are the Tone Ups for walking. They are really comfortable and I like them alot. Then we walked into Micheal Kors. I swear my mom and I could buy everything in that store. I love his stuff. My mom got a cute pair of black pants....but I wanted to literally buy EVERYTHING in there!! Good thing I cant!!
I hope that there are places like that in South Carolina! I need my outlet mall fix every once in a while!!

A special visitor!

On Sunday, my mom, the girls and I made a trip up to St. Petersburg to get my grandma from the airport. She flew down from Iowa and is staying here in FL for a while til the winter passes up north. I was so excited to see her! She is such a special lady to all of us here. I am so happy that she is here while we are so that she can get reacquainted with Finley and get to know Charli. Finley absolutely loves her! She has asked me a million times already if her and grandma Jeanne can have a sleepover-spend the night party! Its too cute. I know that my grandma loves every second of it. Finley is just really funny and silly right now so she keeps us laughing. Always a good thing!
I'm so glad that we at least get a little over a week to spend with her before we leave. I wish it was longer. I love being around her, listening to her talk about all the different things she has done in her life, and what she is doing now. She is such an active lady at her age, 87, busy doing all kinds of things. It amazes me! I hope I can be just like her someday! She is truly someone that means the world to me and such a great role model for my girls.
Yesterday I had to run a quick errand and when I came back she was holding Charli, who was sleeping on her shoulder, and it was priceless. She was holding her great-granddaughter for the first time. It really was such a special moment.
I can only hope that she can relive moments like those for a long time! Matt and I are going to try and travel back to Iowa this summer with the girls and show them off. My family hasn't seen them since Matt and I got married and that's TOO long!! We are overdue for a visit!! Hopefully things will work out and that will be able to happen!!

Packing...

I have been really busy getting all of our things together. Going through all the cabinets, closets, and drawers pulling out our clothes, towels, sheets, etc. I didn't think that living at my mom's for a while I would actually accumluate so much stuff. I thought clothes, toys and some bathroom stuff would be about what I would have here, but going through everything, its so much more. I noticed yesterday when I was doing this, I couldn't actually fathom that this move is next week!! I know I asked time to speed up some for it to get here quicker, but holy cow, its 7 days away!! I know how excited Matt is so I know its all worth it! Time is on our side I guess.
The movers are supposedly coming on Thursday, but I have yet to hear from them. I am so new to this military move that I am really not aware of how this process goes. I guess it will be what it will be.
I will kepp you all updated on whats going on!! Keep crossing your fingers that it will go smoothly!

2 weeks to go!!...

Well, as I thought this would never come, we have 2 weeks left til the big move!! I can't believe that it is right around the corner! Matt is so excited! He cannot wait to get out of North Carolina and move south to Beaufort to be a family of 4!! It will be the first time! So exciting!
I have been so busy getting all of our stuff ready for the movers to come pack. I'm a little nervous about it all but it's all worth it in the end!
I went to WalMart over the weekend and bought all the odds and ends for the bathrooms and things we would need asap. So its all coming together little by little. My mom and the girls and I are heading up to do some shopping in Ellenton and Sarasota this weekend to get some dishware for our house since we got rid of the other ones we had. Something a little exciting to look forward too. I just hope the move goes smoothly and without disaster...but as in the past experiences, its all luck if it all goes off without a hitch!
It is still so crazy to me that I have been living in Fl for a year now with the girls and South Carolina is almost here. I remember finding out when Matt picked his orders and South Carolina came up and he told me we wouldn't be there til March sometime and now time is creeping up on me!! I feel like I have so much to do and I do but just don't have the time and don't know where to start. It gets me a little stressed out...but I'll deal and it will all be fine.
Finley is getting really excited to be living with Daddy again and knowing that he will be coming home to our house every night. She is just so in love with the thought of it. Charli will be able to finally have the chance to get to know her Daddy and spend some real time with him and Matt and I will finally be able to be together day after day with our beautiful girls. Life couldn't be better right now knowing that this is just a couple weeks away!!

Playdate!

Finley and Solomon are both 4 years old, 3 days apart, and in the same preschool class. They have become the best of friends. It is the cutest thing to watch them interact! Solomon's mom, Amy, approached me one day and asked if we would like to have a playdate and of course we were in! Ever since the first playdate, we have become such great friends. Solomon also has a little brother, West, who is 2 weeks older than Charli. I'm pretty sure this was all meant to be!!!
We take the kids different places all the time on our playdates. We do Chick-Fil-A with the playground there, Lakes Park, the beach, one of our houses...its great that we mix it up for the kids so they dont get completely bored going to the same places all the time.
I am so happy for Finley that she has found such a great friend. I am torn inside that I will be taking that away from her when we move. It just breaks my heart that she and Solomon will be so sad to be apart from each other. Amy and I have decided to let the kids Skype with each other and they can become pen pals as well. I hope we can always keep them in touch. Ms. Katie, their preschool teacher, told us last week that there isn't a day that goes by that the kids aren't holding hands and hugging! It's too sweet!! I'm so glad we started having playdates when we did!! We will be having like 2 a week til we leave!! Trying to get as much needed time in as possible!
Here are some pictures from a playdate at Lakes Park. The kids had a blast!! Enjoy :)

Happy Valentines Day!

Yesterday was the global recognizable holiday of love, Valentines Day. I spent the day with the girls, teaching Finley what the holiday is all about. Who really knows if she gets it yet but I'm sure she will figure it out soon enough! Finley was overly excited about her Valentines party at school, so we bought "Princess" valentines (shocker!) for her classmates and friends. I wrote the names of all the kids and she did a great job of writing "from Finley" on all of them! She is getting so big!! We bought cute heart shaped suckers and added them to the valentines for a little something extra. I had a eye doctor appointment yesterday morning so I asked my dad if he could get Finley from school and bring her to Subway that is close to the house for her surprise Valentines lunch. Finley absolutely goes nuts over Subway. Its her favorite place to eat, so I thought I would take her there for Valentines Day. When she got out of the car, she was carrying a shoebox that was wrapped in Valentine wrapping paper with cute decorations all over it. When we sat down, she opened it up to show me what was inside and all it was, was a box full of sugary substances that was screaming "this is going to make Finley crazy!!". She of course had devoured almost all of the chocolate already and I told her it was going to be a week before she would eat anymore of that stuff! But she had all her valentines from all her friends in the box and she was so proud to show me all of them. It was too precious.
We had a great lunch with Papa and then we headed home. We spent the rest of the day playing and taking a nice walk outside and talking. I was so glad to have my girls with me yesterday since obviously Matt wasn't close by. I know him and I will make all of this up later when we get settled in Beaufort.
Overall, it was a great Valentines Day and I can't wait to celebrate more of them with my two precious little valentines!

Nana's Birthday!!

On Saturday, the girls and I celebrated Nana's birthday! We had such a great day together. Unfortunately, Charli wasn't feeling very well, but she must have known that it was a special day, because she pulled herself together and let us go out and about and do some fun shopping and hanging out. That morning the girls and I got up and got ready, ran over to Publix to pick up her birthday cake and some balloons to surprise her when she got home from work. Finley decided on picking out this insanely large balloon that is so pretty, but HUGE! It actually fits Nana to a T. When we picked up her cake, it pretty much matched the balloon too perfectly. So we loaded back up into the car and raced home so that we could set up all her presents before she walked in. We had gone out birthday shopping a couple days prior and bought her a Vera Bradly make up bag and wallet. I also ordered a collage of pictures of the girls online and am still waiting for that to arrive.
Finley waited by the window watching for Nana's car to pull in and when she saw it she ran to the door and as soon as mom walked in she shouted HAPPY BIRTHDAY! It was so cute that Finley was so excited. Mom loved her cake and huge gigantic balloon and she loved her presents! So it was great!
After that we got ready to head out for the afternoon running some errands and doing some window shopping. We had a great day together!! We then headed up to Carrabbas Restaurant for some delicious dinner!! You can never go wrong with Carrabbas!! We had such a good time and such an awesome dinner!!
I thought we would be full from dinner, but we raced home for some cake!! The most delicious kind of cake! CHOCOLATE!! We all had a big piece and lounged around for the rest of the evening.
It was a great day and I feel so lucky to have spent it with my mom and I know how happy she is to spend it with me and the girls! Happy birthday Mom and many more!!

Just some RaNdOmNeSs....

I have had some pictures that I have been wanting to post on here for a while and just haven't had the time! So, here they are! Enjoy :)

Finley with her gorgeous bright blonde hair!

Charli driving with mommy!!

Looking where she is going!! No, shes not really going anywhere!!

Charli and I playing in the car! She LOVES to pretend to drive!!

Finely playing with her driving toy!! She's looking like Ms. Hollywood in those glasses!!

Charli being just a sweet, silly girl! I love her smile :)

Charli and I playing on the floor! We love to roll around and wrestle :)

Playing patty cake with her precious feet! So happy!!

I hope you all loved the pictures! I just can't believe that my girls are growing up so fast!! I'm trying to catch as many cute moments on camera as possible!! They are so sweet and amazing and I'm so blessed to have them!

Double Stroller Duty

To any of you moms out there with questions of a double stroller or not, I recommend this one! The Combi. Its so easy to push, fold up and is light to carry and doesnt take up much room!! Highly recommend over the Graco and Sit n Stands!!!!

For so long I comtemplated buying a double stroller. Never really wanted to spend the money on a new one, so I kept a close eye on the childrens' consignment shops around town. I found one, a Graco Duo Glide, used and somewhat worn and beat up. But with two kids, what doesnt get beat up?!? I decided to make the purchase and try it out for a while and see if the girls were going to like it. I started using it and thought "Where have you been all my life with these two girls?" I, at that point, swore with multiple kids, I could never have just single strollers! I have been using it since October/November and its been through quite alot. It started to have bad wheels and turning it was just getting impossible and it felt like it was getting heavier and heavier each time I got it out.

Then I heard about the Babies R US trade-in and go! It was the oppurtunity that seriously saved my life! My mom and I loaded up the girls and the double stroller and off we went! I was so excited to get there and see what they had to offer! We got there, went right to the stroller section and started trying out the displays. I found the Combi double side by side stroller, put the girls in it and started pushing them around the store. I'm sure people probably thought I was crazy, but I am a mom with two kids! I immediately fell in love with this stroller! The girls loved it because it was side by side and they can see each other and play. It was way out of my price range but luckily with the trade in they give you a 25% off coupon and I found one stroller, not in the box, never been used, on clearance! Talk about luck!! We bought it and spent the whole afternoon shopping and just walking around. The girls absolutely love it! Which makes me too happy!!! Here are some pics of it!!

Anniversary gift

With Matt being so far away on our anniversary, we obviously were not able to exchange presents or celebrate. But, he did manage to send me a gorgeous surprise! I was not expecting it at all and it really swept me off my feet. He knows how much I love tropical flowers and sent me this bouquet!

It was absolutely one of the most beautiful bouquets I had ever seen! He did such a great job! I had gone out to to some errands and when I got home, these were sitting in front of the door waiting for me! It brought tears to my eyes and made me miss him so much more! Thanks babe!! You did an incredible job with this surprise! I hope there are many more to come :)

Moving....

I have been getting so excited about this move!! I cannot wait for it to happen! I have been away from Matt since the beginning of March of last year and am dying to get back to him!! I cant believe that we have been apart this long and its almost done! I have been in touch with the moving company who is going to pack us, load us up and take it all to Beaufort! I'm hoping I don't have to do much this time around, given the fact that we've moved too many times...but with the military being a huge part of our lives, I better get used to it!
So on March 3rd, the movers will be here at the condo to pack it up and then head over to my storage unit to finish there. I'm sure it will be a crazy day, but all worth it!! That will be the last time I see our things before they are in our new home! Ah! I'm so excited! I'm having all of our things delivered on March 10 and we will start the unpacking process.
The girls and I will be driving up March 9th, meeting Matt somewhere in Beaufort (hopefully we will make it all the way there in the same day) and spend the night in a hotel and head to the house in the morning.
Things are coming together quickly and I'm helping them move along faster so this day can get here when I can hug my husband and fall asleep with him night after night. Its really crazy to think that I have only seen him a handful of times this past year. I was looking through pictures we took and there are few and far between. But it is all coming to an END! We will finally be a family again, a family of 4 now and things will get back to normal!!
Thank you to all my friends and family that helped me get through this past year! Especially, my great friend, Danielle. She has spent hours and hours on the phone with me and billions of texts back and forth! I owe her so much for this past year! Hopefully I will get to see her soon!! But thank you to everyone, I love you all!!

Sick...AGAIN!

So for the third time now, both Finley and Charli are trying to conquer this cold stream that is going around. Poor girls! Finley seems to be so much better today, but if you were to ask me last Thursday or Friday, I would have just said, we are all dying over here!! Finley has begun to get all those preschool germs and spread them through the house..over and over again. I know that this all happens when kids start school, but seriously, we have been battling this off and on since before Christmas! When is it going to end?? Now that Charli has retracted this stuff and seemed to be having such a difficult time kicking it, I decided to take her to the doctor yesterday. Between the sneezing, coughing, and fever, it was definitely time to go. So as a result, Charli was examined well and thoroughly, and was diagnosed with a right ear infection, a left ear middle ear infection (just beginning), and the beginning of a sinus infection! I didn't know a body could deal with all three of those things at the same time! No wonder she is completely miserable!!!
I was trying to understand why she was always crying and whining and wanting to be held....let alone couldn't sleep for more than 30 minutes without waking up to something...like coughing or a high fever. Because as all moms know, if the baby is miserable, so are you!!!!
With Finley sick last week and Charli catching it right on top of Finley, sleep in our house has been, well lets just say, very minimal!! I'm strongly hoping these antibiotics work and kick in soon so we can all relax, feel better and catch up on our sleep!!!

DeHaven men....

Matt's side of the family, the DeHaven's, reside in Virginia. They are some of the sweetest, kindest, most welcoming people I've ever met. Matt's grandad, Doug, was the most gracious, wonderful man and caretaker I knew. He spent his days caring for his wife, grandma Joan, whom we love to pieces, and being head of the house with all the chores and duties. We never heard him complain or whine about anything. He was just so sincere and heart bent on being the husband he was. Unfortunately, last May, we found out that he had stage 4 brain cancer and there wasn't much we could do. Talk about something that hit home, at that point not even a year had gone by since we lost Wendy. So, once we heard the news, we knew what was to come and come July, we lost him. It was all so quick and so sad. We love him so very much and miss him everyday!!

Matt's aunt Robin was kind enough to email this picture to me of Matt, his dad, Rick and his grandad. A picture that we will always cherish. R.I.P Grandad! We wish everyday that we could see you one last time and give you all the love you deserve!!

5 Year Milestone!!

February 4 is such a special date to Matt and I. For one reason, it was Matt's moms' birthday and the second reason, is that it is our wedding anniversary! I know for some of you, you remember the "ta-da" wedding in December, but Matt and I celebrate this one, as this was the wedding that made my stomach shrink into the tiniest ball and my nerves couldn't be calmed by anything. I really new what it felt like to have the pre-wedding jitters!!! I couldn't control myself all day. I was feeling the panic of it all, the excitement of it all...I was feeling "the everything!". But I will say that no matter how nervous I was, it was the greatest, best, most special moment between Matt and I. My dad was gracious enough to accept the responsibility of marrying us that night. A simple wedding in jeans and cowboy boots with some close friends and family. It was perfect. So simplistic..without all the ruffles and catering issues...it was idealistic!
So today marks the first anniversary milestone! I'm so excited and still can't believe it! I still get swept away by him. I still fall in love all over again with him. Its amazing that 5 years later, not that it is a long time or anything, the feelings are just as strong and they grow everyday! Even that we spent the 4th year apart, we still keep on pushing through this and are determined to come out of all this on top!
There isn't anything more that could make me so happy today other than being able to just hug my husband. I hate that we cant even hold hands today, or kiss, or share a meal. I just would love nothing more than to celebrate this anniversary!! Hopefully, someday soon we will.
I just am so excited what our life will bring to us in these next 5 years, given what its given us the past 5 years! It makes it all a little more interesting! I can't wait to be back together with him and finally be a real family again and keep pushing through day by day to reach our next milestone anniversary! I love you Matt! I am so lucky to have you! You are everything to me and we are going to have an amazing life that will last forever! Cheers to the next 5 years!!!

So many uniforms....

So many to choose from! How will I ever get it straight!?!?! Ive never seen so many uniforms in my life! Although, I will say that every one does benefit Matt very well!! :) He has always been handsome, but I think that it's something about a guy in uniform that can drive a girl crazy!! And in any uniform he has on, Im going crazy! Im sure it will all die down as I look at them all day everyday, but for now I'm loving it! Here's some pics of the different uniforms they have.

This is just my man looking HOT! ;)

The military has done him well!!

These are the Navy Camo outfits. When in boot camp,

they make you buy 4 pairs....WHY??

These are called Peanut Butters. They wear these to school and

working rounds at the hospital or whatever job they have.


This is the Marine Camo outfit. Obviously, they are living in this uniform
these days. The hardcore training is done in these.

This is the Dress Whites. Only worn through spring/summer seasons. Very nice but easily wiped out! They have a similar uniform that is called Dress Blues which is a deep navy color and similar style.

They also have P.T. Gear which is a bright yellow/gold shirt and navy running shorts. Obviously the navy has blues and whites, but now he is also kind of considered a marine, so now we also have a variety of green and brown. They have regulated sweatshirts and sweatpants, jackets, hats, gloves, earmuffs, etc....it goes on and on....but I'm sure one of these days I'll get it all straight with what goes with what. I hope!!

New Friends

When Matt journeyed to Camp Lejuene, he knew he was going to meet all kinds of new people, fellow sailors, I guess. We didn't expect Matt to meet as many going to Beaufort as he did. I think so far he's met like 5-6 people being stationed down there! But one couple in particular stands out. Shane, who is in Matt's platoon for FMTB, will be joining us in Beaufort at the same time we are going there. Not only have they become friends, but Shane informed us that he is married to his wife Nicole, who is from San Antonio, TX and is a hair stylist. I thought my prayers had been answered when I found out that she was a hair stylist and I didn't have to try every place in town to find someone to do my hair! But she traveled to Camp Lejuene one weekend and Matt was able to meet her and gave her my number. She texted one day and we have talked every day since then! We are the same age and have just about everything in common! I think we will get along just fine. It helps so much that she is going through the exact same thing I am. She loves kids! She has two step-sons who live in TX. She made the move back in December to Wilmington North Carolina to be closer to her husband. I'm incredibly jealous :(
She sees him every weekend and spends the whole two days with him! SO LUCKY! But like me, the guys have been away since May and we miss them terribly! So, as we have talked and gotten to know each other better, we have been able to start the trust and confiding in each other. Which I love. I learned this week that she was having some nausea and feeling really yucky and sick. A couple days later I pushed her to take a pregnancy test and when she did, we learned that she was going to be a mommy of all her own! We both are so excited!! I cant wait to get to Beaufort and watch her go through it all. Having been there and done that, twice, I lended my hand to help and my shoulder to lean on. I know what every symptom feels like, every ache and pain. I cant wait! We are going to be having a little baby around again! Makes me want another one!! AH maybe I should stay away! Lol. It looks like she is dues October 6. My birthday month!! Something so great to look forward too!!! Not only am I excited to be moving to where they are going, but to be able to hang out face to face and go baby shopping!! I know that they will become such great friends of ours! It makes me feel so much better about moving to Beaufort!! Strange cities can make you nervous, especially moving onto a military base! But, with her around, it will make it that much easier :)

Garage Sale $$

For the last three weeks or so I have been so busy getting ready for the huge garage sale we were holding. I have been back and forth from the storage unit so many times I lost count. Bringing loads back to the house to only have them take up all the space in our garage. We couldn't barely walk through it let alone the girls trying to play and crawl in it. But I put my emotions aside and priced all of the baby items that I had that were no longer going to be used by Charli and got them ready for sale, all of the baby clothes that I have been hauling with every move and home we lived in and stickered them. I thought halfway through this, how am I going to do this, I cant give these precious clothes away, but I sucked it up and kept going through stuff knowing that if I kept it, it was going to be wasted space in our new home, which I have no idea how much space we are going to have. So, with that in mind, I kept my head down and emotions in the car and plugged through it all. As Saturday rolled around I realized I had SO much stuff. And we loaded up the van and truck, they were so full, and we took it over to the house in our old neighborhood that we lived in. Gulf Harbor doesn't allow garage sales so we were able to use a friend of ours' driveway. By 645am Saturday morning we were over there setting up and prepping for the day. We were concerned because it was rather chilly, 44*, that morning, but we put the signs up at both entrances and two minutes later we had customers! Never fails! LOL. By 830 I hadn't sold too much and my mom's things were going like hotcakes! But as the day rolled around things started flying of the tabled and cash was rolling in! I thought by like 12 or 1 we would be done, but I had people coming til 2! It was an excellent turn out and I got rid of so much stuff and it felt really good knowing that I no longer have all these things trailing me around the world. For all the things I didn't get rid of, I will just donate to an organization. Needless to say, it was all a success and it put a smile on my face knowing that my things were going to be used again by another family that needed them and couldn't afford new. I'd say all in all it was a blessing!

FMTB Training

Matt has been in FMTB training now since the beginning of January. He has been positioned as the MAA (master at arms) for his platoon of 65 guys. For those of you that don't know MAA, that's an honor to have that title. Matt feels very honored and privileged to hold that title. I'm so proud of him! They go through a Marine boot camp, so to speak, and they make the men/women train for war. This week they are out at the Riffle Range and are learning how to shoot and do all kinds of different/crazy things. I hate the thought of him shooting guns. UGH! I wish guns were banned from every country and walk of life! I hate them!! Anyway back to what I was talking about..the guys have been staying at these old barracks and they have no hot water or heat. The mattresses they sleep on are bare with just their sleeping bags on top! Talk about roughing it!! I feel so bad for them and to top it off they have barely any cell phone reception, which makes talking to him all that much more fun. So unfortunately they will be out there until Friday so I write him texts so it has all day to go through so that when he gets back to the barracks he has something to read. I guess I'm just trying to fill the wifely duties as well as supporting.
This training is very grueling and hard. The worst is yet to come. It's like they are training them from the era of the Vietnam war and all the tactics they used. From army crawling on the ground with guns while shooting, to carrying wounded soldiers through freezing waters up to their necks. They do long mile hikes and camp out with only food rations for days at a time. And I thought Holiday Inn was roughing it! LOL! Poor guys! But as long as they drive through this training and come out on top, they will only be that much better of a man, soldier and being. I'm so proud of what Matt has accomplished so far! I can't wait to see what else this military life will hold for him.

Military...Wife???

Only in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine such a life like living through the military. I always imagined a home, with my husband and children close to family, with good paying jobs and being contently happy. The military lifestyle gave me nothing of that....the first year....
After a million of long night discussions and ruined dinners over the topic, I supported Matts idea and need and want to join the military. August 6 2009 rolled around and we officially became a military family. Matt, me, Finley, and the unknown baby (at the time). I never realized what I was going to be in for. Going through so many things all at once (wendy's passing, expecting baby 2, and moving to fl) really was overwhelming. But like an adult....or a girl with amazing friends and family, I got through it all. Plus having the world's best husband always helps. :)
Matt left for boot camp in May 2010 and still isnt home. Boot camp takes place in a suburb of Chicago called Great Lakes. Which makes trips up there interesting since Chicago is only a 45minute train ride away. I had the priviledge of witnessing Matts boot camp graduation in July and spending the weekend with him after not seeing him for 3 months and the only communication alloted was written letters with an occasional earned phone call. In 12 weeks, I only heard from him 3-4 times. It was a long couple months without him, although the girls kept me completely occupied and some phone calls from the world's greatest friends helped too. After he graduated, Matt moved on to "A" school, still in Great Lakes. He excelled at all expenses and just grew as a person, as a husband, as a father, and as a recruit. He is now in Jacksonville North Carolina stationed at Camp Lejuene completely FMTB Training, aka Combat and Casualty Training. Basically, if Matt ever goes to war, this is the training that prepares him for that. He will be done with this training and graduate March 8. The date that cannot come fast enough!!! After graduation he will head directly to Beaufort South Carolina which is his first duty station. Finley, Charli and I will be joining him there shortly after. I have to stay here for a few extra days to make sure the move goes off without hitch. Crossing my fingers!! I am so looking forward to this move since the last move I did was moving away from him. It has been one long year but its been an experience and I dont regret it. I have missed him more than a wife can miss their husband and I feel so sorry for him that he has missed Charli's first year. He's missed Finley's preschool growth and it was all in part of a huge scarifice that he is making for us, our family, and our country.

Welcome Baby #2

Ok, so baby #2....where does that begin?? Our new baby, our little girl, Charli Lyn Way, was born 4/15/2010 and she graced the world with her tiny little body, dark peach fuzz, and sweet little smile. She weighed 6lbs. 12oz and was 19in. long. She was just so beautiful and watching her grow and develop had just been such a great experience. I love being a mom to Finley and Charli. My two little girls have blessed me in more ways than I can possibly imagine!
Charli is now 9 months old and is almost walking. She just tries so hard and she has almost got it, but not quite yet. She follows Finley around crawling as fast as she can..if she crawled any faster, she would have smoke beneath her knees! Its so cute to see her try to hard to keep up!! She is learning how to play patty cake and she plays peek a boo and so big! Its entirely too precious! Charli is my rock right now. She came to me when Matt left (ill explain)....She has been there for me, with me ever since..making me laugh, cry, smile, cheer..making me so proud. Finley is at the age that parents question what theyve done the past 4 years. LOL. She is in preschool and loves it! Shes made a ton of friends and we have playdates often. I love the school where she is presently and I will miss it when its gone. She is such an amazing big sister and loves Charli to death! These girls are so cute when they play together, but dont get me wrong, they both have their "unglamorous" moments...thats the nice way of putting it! I cant wait to see what the future holds for the both of them! We will see...
Charli very much resembles my mom. Their baby pictures are identical and I couldnt be happier to have one of my kids look like my side of the family. Finley is ALL DeHaven and she is perfect, but now we have one that is Hein and Icouldnt be happier!! She has deep blue eyes and reddish brown hair that is slowly coming in. As all of you know how blonde Finley is, well Charli is the opposite. Im anxious to see if it stays that way....

An Entire Year or so later.....

I see that those of you that were following this blog were probably wondering what has happened since I have not been keeping posts up to date for some time now. As Finley and I say, "Bad Mom Award." Haha! So much has been happening in our lives, that computer time, blogging time, sanity time has disappeared...it resurfaced not that long ago, but as I will explain, time still gets away from me without a notice!

To begin where we left off...the new house! We found an amazing house on top of the Blue Ridge mountains in Virginia. We lived there for a year. The house brought us amazing luck and bad luck all at the same time. The spring and summer and fall seasons at the house were just beautiful. The temperature was stuck around 80-85* and we never turned our AC on once! Blessing on the electric bill!! We could have all the doors and windows open and just let the fresh air in. We grilled out on the enormous size deck we had every night overlooking the Shenandoah Valley and watching the most beautiful sunsets mountains can give. Matt and I could see ourselves living in that house for a long time. The house just felt like "home". Not too many rentals can do that for you. We just were a family in our home with family over all the time and friends stopping by...not too many reasons not too love it. We had been living in the house for a few months, being happier than ever, when we found out the downfall. Matt's mom was given news that her cancer could no longer be helped. We tried everything we could, but it was getting the better of her. All of a sudden, everything changed, in a single breath, nothing could have made it better. We ended up spending so much time over at Matt's step dad's that his home became our home, and just like that, the mountain house lost all of its appeal. It was 30 mins away from the most precious woman life could give you. We spent everyday with her, laughing with her, enjoying meals with her, watching her take in all of Finley that she could, treasuring every minute possible. She lived every day to the fullest and she never let her spirits down! I hope someday that if anything like that happens to me, I can cope the way she did. I didn't know that anything could make this process easier to go through, the process of dying and death and watching it all day by day, until Finley's 3rd birthday party.....August 22...the day I found out I was PREGNANT! Our second child was on the way! And as the news got spread around like wild fire, because I had such a nervous and excited husband ;) .....everyone knew that we were having baby #2. Wendy arrived at the birthday party with a smile plastered on her face, she walked up to me, hugged me tight, and called me "bitch". That's so Wendy!! I will miss her everyday!! Wendy passed away September 24 and we were all with her holding her hands as she left us. It was so quiet, gentle, and peaceful. I have never witnessed something so beautiful. It has been over a year now that she has passed and still there isn't a day that goes by that I dont think of her and imagine her words, expressions, laughter watching our 2 babies play.