23* To 72* In Three Days

Beautiful Fall day today!!! It was 72 degrees! It is hard to believe we were 23* and snow on the ground just a few days ago!

The Dude in Cammies is 40!!!

The Dude in Cammies has had some Birthdays with us and some without us.....this one is without us but in a new place he has never turned a year older at before!!!

Still in his SUPER early 20's

He turned 30 on Okinawa.......

While we were in Okinawa he had his 32nd Birthday in Iraq.

He had a Birthday in Afghanistan

He's had a Birthday at 29 Palms during training...

And the big 40 was in Kyrgystan leaving Afghanistan!!!

After Ball Breakfast

We stopped at Dunkin Doughnuts and picked breakfast up for our kids.....yep, they will be happy campers in the morning! We had quite the looks at us when we went in in nice dresses and boots!!!  Good thing it is a Marine Base and these kind of things are just kinda the norm!

The kids will be thrilled to find breakfast tomorrow is doughnuts!

Deployed Souses Ball 2013

Tonight was the Deployed Spouses Ball.  AND!!!  It is The Dude in Cammies BIRTHDAY!!!  This was my first one to ever go to.  I have seen lots of posts from friends who have gone to these and seen many fun pictures but had never had the opportunity to attend one as The Dude in Cammies has either left right after one or arrived home before one or when he was an augment the Battalion always made sure to invite the Wives of their deployed Marines and since they bought the tickets and offered transportation and child care I didn’t say no, so I have never had the opportunity to go until this year! My friend Kim who lives down the road from me asked if I was going.  I was originally not planning on it as The Dude in Cammies arrival was going to be somewhere in that window and so I wasn’t sure if I should risk buying a ticket and that ends up being the night he comes home or he comes home the day before and I leave him his first night home or something like that! Amy definitely wanted to go. Her Marine is in Afghanistan and is retiring this summer.  She has yet to go to one of these either and she wanted to go as this was her last chance.  I told her I would buy a ticket and go as long as I wasn’t picking up my guy during the Ball! Ha! I figured this way I could check this off my Marine Wife Bucket List and go with a fun friend!!! We had a total blast! The decorations were sooo fun! I was going to sit on one of the sand bags and right when I was sitting I realized they weren’t filled with sand but with air!  That was close!!! I almost fell but thank goodness my brain began thinking ‘sand’ bags would be really heavy to bring in in this quantity!!! Caught myself just in time!  Now, that would have been a classic Julia Moment if I hadn’t had that sudden brain power happen!!! The food was delicious, the desserts were every girls dream, and the speakers were hilarious and know the Marine Wife Life!!! It was a fantabulous evening with some super fun wives!     

The entrance going in

Had to lay down on the cot

With my friends

The tent to go thru to sign in and find out your table number

Loved this sign!

Had to make this for The Dude in Cammies....we all know I am always waiting on him!!!

Our super cute table centerpiece

Yes, those are the coolest M&M's EVER!!!!

Yes, i tried almost everything!!!

A try once dessert, good, but don't want again! 

Snow in November?!!!

Last night when we went to bed it was just starting to snow......this morning we woke up to SNOW!!! And COLD!!! But school has NOT been cancelled, so we are off and running!

Everything was soo pretty this morning!!! But, VERY cold!!!

Leah was loving the cold and was busy eating snow!!!

Had to start the car nice and early this morning!!!

They do NOT like to dress in winter clothes, especially RYAN!!!

32* at the bus stop!!!

Driving With The Girls

The Dude in Cammies is coming home soon!  Time for the furry kids to get groomed!  after last experience taking all three at the same time....yep, scratch EVER doing that again unless The Dude in Cammies is with me to walk his dog in!  Jasper literally walked in on his hind legs snapping and jerking his head all over the place! There were just tooo many male dogs in one place for his liking!!! Sooo, Vicki and i took Leah and Bella in together.  Jasper will go by himself in a couple of days. The girls were crazy in the car as usual....Leah talking non stop and fogging up the windows with her heavy breathing and Bella wanting to sit on my head.....always makes for fun driving! But we made it without crashing!!! 

Lunch of Champions

Salad, pomegranates, and tapioca pudding!  That is the lunch of champions, right?! Well, it was really good!!!

Early Morning Tire Light

Lucky me! I started the car this morning and the tire light came on. Yay!!! Not! Sooo, after work i checked all the tires and they all needed air.  The light is off!  I love simple fixes!

Snow in November?!!!

Wow!!! I was putting the dogs out and snow was falling from the sky! We have NEVER had snow in November before! I wonder if any will stick during the night......

Peace On Earth

Vicki and I were listening to Hilary Duffs Christmas CD while i was making breakfast for dinner.  This is one of our favorite Christmas CD's and goes way back to our early Okinawa years......back when the kids watched her show Lizzy McGuire or however you spell it...i think that is write.....we had enough of her stuff around the house! But when her song 
What Christmas Should Be began playing we couldn't help but start dancing around the kitchen! ".....How about peace on earth, it can't be bought or sold. How about peace this Christmas and someones hand to hold. How about love in our hearts and hope for you and me. How about peace on earth. That's what Christmas should be......"
Yep, life is good at Ft Kretschmer, especially when we are having breakfast for dinner and singing Christmas songs with Duff!!!

Where's Waldo?

Vicki and i had fun taking pictures in the cotton fields today.  You can tell it is late Fall as there are pluffs of cotton everywhere in our neck of the woods. Cotton is a big crop where we live and it is sooo pretty! Vicki had ducked down in the field and asked if i could see her.  I couldn't resist making this photo collage of her from the pictures i had on my phone! 

Jump Start Lovers

It happened......we finally had our deployment vehicle breakdown! Lucky for me it happened in our driveway! I went to drive the jeep and it didn't start.  I had just driven it the day before, but probably not long enough to keep the battery alive. Cayce came over and helped us.  I was going to try jump starting it with a You Tube video, but neighbors are awesome in not letting you do things like that.  He hooked everything up and we weren't getting anything better than a click click click. So, we gave up on that and i called my road side assistance.  Our rescuer arrived 30 minutes later.  It was active duty Marine who does this on his days off. It was Veterans Day, so he was off and happy to help a military wife in a rut with a deployed husband far away. He was really nice and let me know that the battery was completely shot and needed to be replaced.  He hooked the jeep up to my car and with his added machinery my car jump started the jeep back to life! But as soon as i took my foot off the pedal it would die.  It would not hold the charge.  UGH! He offered to take it off so i could drive it to a store and get a new battery but i would have to put it on myself or he could follow me most the way to make sure i made it somewhat close to my destination before he had to turn off to his next call.  I managed to get Vicki and i to the Auto Parts store in Richlands without the jeep dying on us. This was no easy task as i could NOT take my foot off the gas pedal even at a stop sign or light! Getting across the freeway was the hardest but we made it! Vicki ran in the store to see if they had one and if they could put it in before i took my foot off the gas!!! They had one and said they would put it in! Yay! $101.00 later the jeep is running again! On a side note the guys working there were, in Vicki's words, 'HOT'! They were really nice too!  

Oreo Party

Yep, we had an Oreo Party at our house tonight, and it was delicious and fun! Love all the holiday editions of fun foods that start coming out this time of year!

Clip On Ties...

The boys wore clip on ties today.  These clip ons are like little, Ryan can get away with it, but Ty, um....not so much.  Ryan always wears his clip on tie when Daddy is away.  He claims he has forgotten how to tie it and i am not going to fight this battle while The Dude in Cammies is gone.  Today when we got in the car to drive to church Ty realized he had forgotten his tie in the house.  He usually ties it while driving to church.  Ryan had forgotten one in the car from last week and it was still sitting there and he was wearing the other one that came from the other white shirt he had outgrown.  Sooo, Ryan joked with Ty about wearing the clip on while i was pulling back into the driveway for him to run in and get it.  Ty decided to wear the clip on.  They would not let me take a picture of them together in their matching ties!  So, this is all there is of a probably once in a lifetime moment of them wearing matching clip on ties at ages 12 & 13! They looked so cute at church in their matching ties, but they of course hated that they matched.... 

Happy 238th Marine Birthday Dad

I have always been amazed by my Dad and what he went thru in Vietnam.  His injuries were severe and he spent months on end recovering in hospitals from Okinawa to Oakland, Ca. He had to work extremely hard to get back in top physical shape to be able to pass the PFT to get back into the Gun club after receiving a medical discharge with his purple heart. He wanted to be a Marine, well an active duty Marine and he did what he needed to do to pass the physical to be active duty again.  This was not easy.  The pain was excruciating over the years, but he never complained and always kept his standards high. He even ran the Mule Mountain Marathon when we were stationed at Ft. Huachuca 20 some odd years after doctors told him he would never run again. I think i owe my high pain tolerance to him as i would have felt pathetic grumbling to him who was keeping the Marine Corps standards while missing part of his leg.  I am honored to be his daughter and grateful for the service he has provided as a United States Marine. Happy 238th Birthday Dad! Love you!!!

A Year Later in Swansboro

A year ago tonight my love and i were at the Tree Lighting in Swansboro.  We were so happy that The Dude in Cammies was able to participate in some holiday festivities before he left for a year on the battlefields of Afghanistan. I love this picture of us.....i wore the same thing i wore last year and took a picture in the same spot.....when he comes home i think we will go take a picture in this same spot....

Next Banners Will Be Ours!!!

Driving down Freedom Way on my way to work today there were sooo many banners tied to the fence line leading up to the gate.  Soo wonderful to see these and know all these Service Members are returning to their families, and just in time for the holiday season!  Love reading all the different things people come up with.  My Marine insists i keep it simple and prefer that there be no banner, but too bad! It's tradition and everyone loves seeing the banners up!!!  I also couldn't help but think that the next banners going up will be for The Dude in Cammies and his team coming home!!!

No More Yard Work 'Till Spring 2014!

Sooo excited that the last cut of the season is done!!! I tease The Dude in Cammies on how he was the one that wanted a big yard, but somehow i am the one that ends up taking care of it!!!  Hmmmmmm.....i guess i would want a big yard too if i never had to do the work!!! Anyways.......the last cut has been done and he might never have to cut this grass again!  he will be gone before Spring comes and might only ever be back to just help me pack out! But the front porch is ready for when he does get back.  We will sit out there on our rockers, me with my hot chocolate and him with his hot cider.  Can't wait!!!

Trexler Football Season Is Over!

Football season is over for Ty! Just in time as it was starting to get pretty cold at those Tuesday Night Lights games! He is also VERY happy to no longer have to do homework late into the night on game nights! Here are just a few photos from the season....his games are covered in the blog 'School, Sports, & Work 2013-2014'  

Getting the equipment off the field after a winning game

Running with the ball on a play at practice

Coming off the field after a game

End of a game

Doing one of the things he does best, not letting whoever he is on
be able to do anything....

Sleeping Beauties

When i left for work this morning these 2 sleeping beauties were in my bed.  Bella did her little "emmm rrrr emmmm errrrr" and looked at me with her cute sleepy eyes.....