Summertime and the living is easy...

Three months have passed since my last post. My husband did make it home safely, though not without a few snags here and there. It wouldn't be the Army life any other way right? Since being home we have enjoyed so much time together that it has just flown by. This is a bitter sweet habit time has. Why can't time drag and allow one to relish the good moments instead of rushing through them; only to drag in times we'd rather see speed by?

Ah well what can one do but make the best of it.

My husband is back to work at a new job and a new unit. It feels good to let go of the past, but it is hard walking away from a unit that has been your "family" for nearly 6 years. Like all families, the disfunction is there, but there were plenty of good moments to make up for them. Regardless of where we are or what we are doing, the chinook family will always be dear to our hearts.

As for us, we travel forward toward the window. That window is showing more and more light every day, but I know ours is a tinted window. My husband loves his job and the Army, so the thought of him retiring at 20 years is very much like a mirage. I can see the end, but it ripples in the glow of the Army star, threatening to vanish with the slightest turn of events. For now though, we will go forward and just enjoy the view of the mirage until we can be sure if it is a real watering hole or not.

Right now, this is the time for my self improvement. Starting this semester I will be jumping head first full time into college. Up until now, I have sort of waltzed with college; a class here, a class there. Now though, with the reality of my husband's retirement hanging so vividly in front of me, I have a goal that must be tackled. If that mirage is to be a fading temptress it won't be because I can not work to provide for us. In the end, the worst case scenario would be us PCSing for another go, and me making some serious money to add to the family pot. That's not a bad worst case scenario at all...

This isn't going to be just his retirement in the end anyhow. Sure, the soldier serves and fights, but we as Army wives (and husbands) give to the cause as well. Once you have lived this life for a good amount of time, the idea of walking away from it can be overwhelming. If all you have ever known of yourself is "The Army Spouse," it is important to take that journey to find who you are outside of the Army life and what you have to give the civilian world. For me, my journey starts with college...

Passing the time with a photo blog

So far this week my soldier's flight home has been pushed back 7 times and quite frankly that is enough to make anyone lose faith or hope or whatever in the world you want to call it. He was on one of the original flights booked and yet somehow, that particular flight has managed to fall to the LAST flight home now. It is hard to keep smiling and push forward, but what choice does one have really? Well, I decided to make a photo blog while I wait because the only place I feel happy is behind the camera. The world is so much simpler there, and pretty details jump out at you that most people miss in the rush of day to day life.

To start, above you will see my favorite flower, well aside from the Texas Bluebonnet. This is one of my beautiful yellow roses that is in bloom. There is nothing more delicate, yet like me she has thorns to prevent anyone from picking her. Right now, I feel a lot like this rose..withering daily and yet strong in my stance against the elements.

The bluebonnets to the right are growing strong this year after waiting patiently for 2 years for the seed to take in. I was so happy to see them show up! I spent $100 on the seed for my birthday and was SURE they weren't ever going to grow. This year though, we had the PERFECT weather set up and I got some beautiful late birthday gifts. They were well worth the wait, just like my husband's flight will be! (Repeat as often as needed...) Sometimes it is hard to wait...

Day to day, I see beautiful things in the world and often they are things that weren't beautiful to begin with. They required patience and love and understanding to become beautiful. This deployment was supposed to be over already for us. We have given it our all and still it drags on, but in the end, I trust that God will nurture our souls to help rebuild our faith and walk with us as we seek the determination to push through these set backs. After all, set backs are nothing more than the storms to the flowers. If they can hang in there and withstand wind, rain, and hail to become one of the crowning jewels of Texas, then my soldier and I can withstand a few delays.

No...SERIOUSLY!

When military families are waiting for homecoming they never think it will be put off by a volcano! This time that is EXACTLY what has happened to several families. Explaining it to others is about as fun as it sounds to WAIT. Yesterday I had a twisted and humorous experience with it. I had taken the kids to the library on post and was asked to fill out an information sheet on my account. When I handed it to the man behind the counter, he notices that I have put my email down. This REALLY shouldn't have been a big surprise since it said "the email you would like notifications sent to if different from the sponsor's email."

I guess it was more than he could grasp because he launched into an explanation of why they MUST email the sponsor. I listened and then reassured him that I didn't care what they sent to either email, the books won't be late anyhow. No big deal right? Well, at this point the gentleman says "well we can email you if your soldier is deployed." This is where it got fun.

I said "well he is deployed." To which he replies "when do you expect him back?" His pen is in hand- ready to write my answer on the paper for "official purposes." Okay. HA HA! In a very serious voice, and no smile on my face because I want him to take me seriously I said "yesterday."

At this point he looks at me like I have lost my marbles. Yes perhaps, but there is no way I can make this story up. So, judging my face, he asks "why isn't he back?" With the same serious face I replied simply "volcano." I thought this man was going to crack up, he was looking at me like you might look at Saturday Night Live's most twisted episode. You could almost hear his brain shouting "IS THIS A JOKE?" After he realizes I am not laughing, he then decides to carry on. "When do you expect him back then?"

"When the volcano decides to put a cap on it."

"So, when do you think this will be?"

I laugh a nervous laugh here because really...

He is still holding the pen, "Deployed until:" is written on the paper.

"Why don't you just put down May because if it goes longer than that we are going to have an issue."

So, now my form at the library reads Deployed until: May due to volcano.


I am not sure if that man really believed me, he was still looking at me like I had told him magic fairies were invading the card catalog when I left. I however walked out laughing because it isn't everyday that you get to say deployed and volcano in the same sentence.