Life Lately

this week we...

silly girl

 

Thanksgiving in DC

Livin' the m life...

 

currently in Virginia...

 

about 3000 miles away from home...

 

means most of our holidays are spend apart from our families. Sure does make me appreciate the family I'm missing and appreciate my little family of 4. I feel so blessed to have such an amazing man, sweet little boy, and spunky little girl in my life. Words fall short to describe the love I have for my little family.

 

I could go on and on about what I'm thankful for, but I'll skip to the fun part, our Thanksgiving in DC!

first stop: the FEAST. and boy, was it a feast! Chris chose this Brazilian barbeque restaurant where they are constantly bring out different kinds of meat. He was in heaven! We ate every kind of animal you can think of...AMAZING! (sorry PETA).





















next stop: the White House. I love this city at night, especially during the holidays. DC is full of character, the buildings are so beautiful, and the atmosphere there is just so... chill (for lack of a better word)!

our view of the Capitol building.

 This is definitely a Thanksgiving we will always treasure.

 

My Little Terrors {3rd edition}

I wonder what's going through their head when they do these crazy things...

 

"these toys are way better!"

"perfect hiding spot for my marine"

"church is the perfect place for a wrestling match!"

"what are these plastic bags doing here!?"

"look mom! we decorated that boring wall!"

Lincoln - "success! I carried it out of the dish washer all by myself!"
Ella - "ooh. this looks fun."

"we play like rock stars!"

"let's mix the rice and oatmeal together to make it easier for mom next time she cooks it."

"what is this thing for anyway?!"

Ella - "how did he do that?!"

"I just need a spot to rest for a minute before i destroy something else."

"I'm just sharing with my cars"

   

these are just some of the things that keep me busy during the day, every day...

  

crazy, exciting, overwhelming news!

 

Looks like we will be moving to Okinawa, Japan. How do I feel about this? Well, considering we've been given quite a few different duty stations...

 

in September we were told 29 Palms, CA

October we were told Camp Lejuene, NC

and now, in November, Okinawa, Japan

 

and Chris still has at least,  5 more months of training left.

 

...I'm not completely convinced.

 

It's not very likely that it will change, it is a possibility, but not likely... only if Chris is reassigned into a sniper or recon platoon (which is currently the position he wants), is when this would change. And that also requires more specialty training so... yeah.

 

It's really hard for me to figure out the emotions I'm feeling when nothing feels 'for sure.' Chris just told me to try to focus on our current situation... packing up and moving to California with family (during his training).

 

but I can't help but wonder... "is there an IKEA out in Okinawa?!"

 

there's a hole in my life

i'm having husband withdrawals. he's been gone for about a week and there's nothing i want more than a hug from him right now.

 

  surprisingly, i have gotten used to sleeping alone, which i think is a great thing and a not so great thing. i'm not as terrified at night without him. every now and then i leave the hall light on and sleep with a gun. last night in particular, i heard a knock on our door at 2 am so i grabbed the gun and checked down stairs. my paranoia must have kicked in because there was no one there. i also sleep diagonally across the bed when he's not there...is that weird or what!?   chris is more than half way through IOC! less than a month to go and he has most of next week off because of thanksgiving. i'm so proud of him and how well he's been doing in this course. it's so intense; mentally, emotionally, and especially physically exhausting. plus his birthday was this wednesday so he got to spend it in the freezing cold doing who knows what.   this week hasn't been too bad for me, it could just be that i'm getting used to not having him around to help as much. i'm slowly packing, it is ridiculous trying to pack while my kids are pulling things out of the box, throwing random things in, and climbing all over me! so i've just been packing about a box a day. our current plan is too pack up all of our belongings, put them in a storage facility here in VA, we'll all drive to CA for christmas, i'll live with family while chris flys back to VA to finish GIOC, and then, depending on where we will be stationed... well thoughs are our plans so far. we'll have to finish our plan once we get orders.   ok so, our duty station... well after chris found out we were on the list to go to NC, i called his captain and asked him to change it to CA (either pendleton or 29 palms, it's about the same distance from our families). he was so nice and said he's do his best to change it for us. so that's why i've been hopeful that it will change. just recently, the infantry guys got their official orders. the intelligence guys (chris is intel) are supposed to get their official orders next week. (more waiting)! so once again i am very anxious to see where we are actually being stationed to. (oh, but it could change again during the rest of his training...blah).     i'll just focus on getting though these next 2 days for now!    

learning to count

 

Life Lately

this week we...

 

a stroll down memory lane

  since i've been packing up to move again, i've been going through so many old photos. it's crazy looking back, especially at the times when chris and i were just starting to date. it brings back those giddy feelings of when you're first getting to know your crush. we always went on so many fun dates together. for a short time there we each went to RCC, but had different classes, and when i'd walk back to my car i'd always find a flower on my wind shield. he also gave me a flower every time he picked me up for our dates (it was always stolen from my yard or the neighbor's ha ha), then i'd always forget it in his truck when he dropped me back off at home. oopsie. oh and my favorite part about these pictures... his HAIR! dang you marine corp for stealing that gorgeous head of hair!  

hiking up the angeles national forest

this was at the 'night in gale' play in LA

the sweet side in him... one of the surprises i found on my car



my first (and only) hocky game

after a day floating down the kern river

yep. it was really 4:30 in the morning!

check out my cool flip phone and ed hardy hat

 

the Latest on Ella {15 months}

Ella's 15 month Well Baby visit height - 30 inches tall (25%) weight - 18 lbs. 6 oz. (3%)

• Ella is mainly wearing size 12 month clothing, although some 9 months still fit her. She wears a size 4 shoes and still in size 4 diapers even though I'm pretty sure a size 3 would fit her better.
• she has 4 molars coming in and 2 just broke through!
• she is mostly sleeping through night. She's been sick for a while and obviously teething so we've had a lot of sleepless nights lately. Her naps are synced with Lincoln's so I usually get an hour (hopefully two hours) to myself.
• she's been really picky with food lately and it's also hit or miss with things she'll eat but since she's been feeling better her appetite started coming back. Right now her favorites are: avocado, baby bell cheese, blueberries, hard boiled eggs and beans (I'm not complaining)!
• Ella is such a silly girl; she has the cutest giggle and scariest laugh.
• little Ella is always giving kisses... I mean ALWAYS.
• she is such a cuddle bug, especially with me, all  the time...
• she already loves accessories. She's always bring me shoes, hats, jewelry, grocery bags, Tupperware containers for me to put on her.
• and what a talker! She says well over 20 words, some of which include [in the sweetest little voice] : dop (stop), more, Elmo, animal, "boo" (book), water, please, "ah-yoo" (I love you), "ah-no" (I don't know), "all goh" (all gone) with both hands out... you definitely need to be her mom or dad to understand her though!
• she folds her arms the second I sit her down in her high chair to eat and she always says "amen"
• Ella copies every single thing Lincoln does, which is some times cute and usually terrible.
• she loves books so much. They entertain her for hours and I always find her asleep next to a book.
• we've got another dancer in the house. She just flaps her arms around and if we're in the car she's bobbing her whole upper body to the music.
• she's got the cutest little bounce to her step as she swings her arms back and forth with her belly and tushy out. (my mom and grandma say I had the same walk)!

and now for an Ella photo bomb!

(warning: this may be an overload for some of you, but I just can't get enough of this cuteness)

 

 

 

We love you, beautiful girl. You brighten up our days with that gorgeous smile.