Homecoming has arrived!

Finally after a 7 month deployment

Long deployment and over a year of on and off separation due to training, boot camp and deployments the wait is finally over.

It really feels so nice for him to be home... seriously now its time to start workin on the move out to the east coast.

So when the day arrived and we got up early in the morning, cold norfolk morning and got ready, did the make up, hair, picked out a cute (but warm) outfit and set out to find a spot on the pier to wait for the ship.

And as expected the two hour wait in the cold seemed multiplied by the prolonged slow chug of the tug boats pulling the ship into the bay to dock at the pier, and the icy wind that blew upon the enthusiastic families who await the reunion.

My sister and I had our eyes locked on the sea of soldiers passing by at the edge of the pier waiting to see our loved ones. I think we were so focused on the big crowd that I didn't see Danny and Andrew coming up near us until they were practically at the base of the bleachers. They had slipped through a break in the fence and were coming up on us from a different direction than the main crowd.

Overall it was an exciting and heartfelt experience.

Show Your Support and Send A Letter Today!

This will show your support and they will also receive a Zack brown band cd...

Airline Tickets and Hotel Reservations

Merry Christmas in Virginia!

So here comes the crazy hectic time of vacation planning and hotel reservations. This means i get to go visit danny back in virginia!!! YAY! :) He should be coming back home shortly and we get to spend christmas together.

But before that can happen it means I have to search for hotel deals, airline tickets, rental cars and so much more before the hectic holiday season.... time to stop procrastinating and start reserving things!

Baby here I come!! :)

Wine & Cheese Party Take Two!

Happy Birthday Liz & Yay for Our Wine and Cheese

So this is the second year of the Wine and Cheese Party at liz's house. Both times it seems to have fallen on or around her birthday. :) We originally came up with the idea because last year Danny was leaving soon and we wanted to try and go wine tasting before he left but didnt think we had the time.

Liz had been talking about having a get together at her house and so we decided to join the two and make it a wine and cheese formal tasting. It is now that time of year again and sadly Danny is gone out to sea, and my other sister Tessa is in Americorps across the country. This year we still did it but seemed that there was definitely a few things missing!

We ended up doing tastings with the different wines. Our goal was to have everyone bring a wine and a type of exotic cheese (not the everyday american or cheddar ) so we could all try new things without having to buy a million wines and cheeses ourself.

I must say this is a great way to try new things, and a great excuse to dress up for sure.

The first two pictures are from last years wine and cheese party. I figured I would add them in as a tribute to Tessa and Danny :) so they can feel included in this one!

Catching Up on Life

New Job, Dog Training and business All Around!

So I know its been awhile since my last post, however I have been busy with so much lately its been hard to find the time to get on and write. My new job is relatively easy, but I like it! Gives me something to do during the days instead of missing Danny.

I feel all official working at a Property management company! :) Now its just time to get everything else together and start working on organizing things for the big move. I know its still months away but I am probably the worlds biggest procrastinator.

So the way I see it, if I start now and do a little, put it off and keep that cycle up by the time its close I will be mostly organized. Thats the plan at least, lets see if it works out that way.

Halloween Tradition

Halloween Tradition

End of An Era
I know I had this same picture and title up last year but halloween is coming up fast and its strange to be uncertain of what my plans are. It seems like since forever I can remember having the halloween parties at the ranch (My moms old house out in the country).

Halloween is one of Danny and my favorite holidays, so it makes things even harder that he is not here and we dont have the ranch to have our parties.

Seems like EVERYONE is asking me already if what the plan is for halloween and the ranch. Even people I dont know. The other day I was at the bookstore at the JC and the clerk at the counter ended up asking me if there was going to be a party out at my house. This actually made me laugh that the parties have hit so many people, but also made me a little sad and reminiscent.

Over all it seems unfair that Danny has to spend ANOTHER halloween away from his friends and family here at home, but at least he is not in bootcamp this time! :)

I miss you honey!! Love you so much!!

Halfway Home

Phones Down, Time Difference and Anticipation

Its about that time now, the halfway point and my feelings are mixed. Yay we are halfway there, only the second half of the deployment to go and it seems like things are in reach. On the other hand it means I have to go through what I just did, waiting just as long as I have already waited... hmmm....

Well either way I look at it everyday we get closer and closer to his arrival home! I dont have that much to say this time just wanted to say that :) So Yay... hope everyone else is as excited as I am to hit the halfway point.

Crabbing for Fun - - - And Dinner

Week 7 Challenge Time

This weekend I decided to take advantage of the nice weather we were having and head out to the Bodega Head. We usually go out there to go crabbing, however it has been closed for some time now and just recently reopened.

So as we went out there this time we had no idea how the catch would be, of course expecting the best because no one has been out there for months. As expected we actually did pretty good, could have done better but we had MORE than enough crab for all of us and then some.

The jetty that we crawled out on seemed to be longer than normal and more difficult (probably due to lack of practice) but we all ended up making it out there eventually. :) Once out there though you definitely have to stay for awhile to make it worth the hike out, and to catch enough crabs.

This time we ended up catching a sun star in one of our nets as well... that thing was gigantic!

Challenge Week 6

Happy 30th Birthday Camping

So this weekend we ended up heading to the coast for the weekend to camp, fish, hike and chill. This time we decided to go back to Ocean Cove up past Jenner for the easy ocean access. We ended up eating like kings out at the coast, had everything from fish, steak, venison, eel and abalone.... soooo good!

It was one of my good friends 30th birthday which is the reason we headed out to the coast for camping, but it was a great excuse to be in the outdoors!

We went fishing both days, crawling over rocks out to the deeper part of the sea, quite a hike and very relaxing once your out there. The boys ended up catching 4 fish and an eel, a nice dinner for all of us :) Of course us girls didn't get anything except wet from the waves!

We watched the sun set over the ocean from our campsite while cooking dinner, we woke up and saw the mist fade away from the sea after the clouds burned away, we made smores and toasted marshmallows.... overall the trip was a blast and everyone ended up having a great time. So Happy Birthday Jared!! Thanks for having us out there!!

Week 4 Challenge

Disneyland Day of Fun and Huntington Beach Visit

So I know this is more of a road trip than an outdoor challenge this week, however I still took time to get outdoors and see some beautiful sights. A few friends and I took a trip to Orange County to visit Disneyland this weekend and took the day to spend at the beach before heading home.

This trip was nice and fun, a bit short for my taste but it has been since sophomore year in high school since i last went to Disneyland. I have to admit one day in disneyland is not nearly enough though, there were so many rides and things that we did not get to see, or rushed through because the time was running out. Overall it was a very fun day, how could it not be, being in the 'happiest place on earth'. :)

The next day before our drive home we embarked on our long drive home we decided to stop in Huntington beach, and spend a few hours on the shore. Since it wasn't the usual extreme heat that southern California is know for in mid summer, we were pleasantly surprised to find that it was perfectly warm in the sun with a gentle cool breeze.

Though I did not go hiking this weekend, or workout by holding on for dear life on tubes, I still got the satisfaction of seeing some of our beautiful places outdoors in California.

Week 3 Outdoor Challenge

Boating and Camping at Lake Sonoma

So this weekend I went on a last minute, but fun trip to lake sonoma. A friend had a few campsites and a boat out there and I decided to pack up and join them for the night. So my sister and another friend all got ready and made the short drive to lake sonoma, not sure what to hope for except fun.

We got there and it turned out to be a boat in campsite, meaning only accessible by boats, and no cell phone service (not like im not used to that so it was fine). We ended up going tubing both days and made smores, played liars dice and everything else you do when camping.

Over all it was a great trip, lots of fun and the tubing actually gave me more of a workout that I thought! Gotta get back in shape :)

Good Old Game Night

With an adorable puppy!

So its been ages since I actually got one together, but thankfully last night my friend Liz pulled a last minute game night before she leaves. She is in the National Guard Reserves and goes on here two week yearly training tomorrow morning, so called up a few friends and had us all come over!

I forgot how much fun it could be just sitting around and playing games. Its something that's low key and very much fun. I'm defiantly down to do it more often, like we used to.... and next another friend and I have been talking about having a Disney night, and watching many of the great older classics :)

Husband Deployed Means Playing Musical Chairs For Rafting Partners.

White Water Rafting, Solo Style....

So this trip is something I have been doing every year since I was about 18 years old... I think I have been about 6 times now or so, tons of fun and always worth the time, money, soreness and sunburn.

This year since Danny was gone I didnt have the comfort of having an automatic partner. Also since most of my friends have bf or husbands it seems like I was destine to not have a partner for this thing! God thats part of the point, they are two people boats for gosh sakes.

Anyway I ended up not having a partner and had to basically pray that someone would be willing to go alone so I didn't have to.... luckily someone did after lots of back and forth. So after all this I got a partner... luckily someone I have meet before (only a select few times but still not a total stranger).

So my partner ended up being glad he rode with me (his first year so I saved him from being tossed from the boat many times). We only tipped once and that was because people crashed into us at the last minute, and made it through pretty easily.

The second day my first partner ended up having to bail and not go down the river and again Im stuck without a boat mate.... Good thing I found somone at the last minute and to ride, a friend whose partner also left, had lots of fun and ended up going both days with someone i knew, but lets face it, I lucked out immensely!


This year was fun, I really

Past Pictures to the Rescue ;0)

Lost Camera, Lost Challenge... Sorta

So I took a Challenge... I said I would go out once a week, but my camera has been missing somewhere in my house and I couldn't get a picture somewhere outside. I promise and assure you that I did end up taking a long walk, me and Juno wen to on a two mile trip across town. (Granted I left my keys at Robs house which is the motivator for the walk) but nevertheless I did it.

Juno was happy I took her, even though it was 95º outside... haha i almost about died and i don't have a black fur coat on, but i know she was happy to be with me and walking. It was nice to get outside... it was nice to exercise, and to just go somewhere without a car.

So as my challenge goes I failed for not taking a picture, but have no fear I have plenty of older pictures to share (we are outdoors people).
The three pictures im loading up are from three different days. Two of theme are from hikes out in Pt Reyes, the first being on the path and the last being out on the cliff out-looking the ocean at the end. The silhouette picture that i posted is from one of the days we went crabbing out at the bodea head, stayed out til after the sun went down and ended up capturing this gorgeous picture of danny and i as the sun was setting.

Lost on the Russian! :)

River Trip Craziness

So my sister and a few friends decided to embark on a journey down the Russian river. Floating on rafts from one beach to another point about 5 hours ahead. We staked out the two spots, part one car at each end and made our way to the first beach. Floaties, Check... Floating Cooler, Check.... Dry bag, Check... Lunch, Check...Box O Wine, Check... Radio, Check.... so looks like everything is gonna work out great.

We set off a bit later than expected but the sun is still in full bloom and the weather is hot. We figure 4 or so hours from now would only be 6ish, still sunny and warm usually so everything is good. The first few hours went by like a breeze, warm sun and great people. So much fun just relaxing on the river.

So the sun starts setting and its beginning to get cold and we realize... hmm should have been there by now. So we get off our rafts and paddle, trying to make good time and hurry up. Much to our surprise about an hour later were still nowhere near where we need to be. FML... what do we do now?? So two of us got out of the water (since it was straight dark now) and walked to one of the houses around to use the phone. Come to find out we passed our beach by a whole town.

So luckily the lady offers to give us a ride, so two of my friends go and we stay with all our stuff. About 30 minutes later they return with the cars and pick us up... the day is saved cuz we got back, but realistically things could have been bad. At one point I was ready to hide under a canoe and wait til morning :) haha but didnt come to that.

Overall we had lots of fun though, and talked it over and had we left on time, and NOT missed our beach the timing would have been perfect to end up at Stump town (the pub/restaurant) for dinner. Maybe next time :) Just gotta mark the beach before we try again!

Proud To Be An American

"And I wont forget the men who died, and gave that right to me"

So 4th of July was the other day, and even though it was way more low key than years past, I just wanted to stop in and write about the people who are away fighting for our freedom. Thank you, all of you who are out there so that we can be here celebrating this country today.

I wanted to of course say thank you to my husband, who also is out to sea right now and serving this country, spending his 4th on a ship for us. :)

Pretty Pretty Pictures

My Commitment to See the Great Outdoors

So I have decided that its time for me to get back in shape, and off my butt. I love spending time in the outdoors and seeing the amazing places around where I live, but somehow lately I havent gotten out much. This posting is a commitment to share at least 1 pretty picture taken each week as a result of me getting up and moving. To start Im sharing one of my favorites that I took awhile ago, you could say my inspiration for entering into this plan.

Im so thankful that we live in such a beautiful area of the country, where a mere 45 minute drive can get us to gorgeous beaches, majestic redwoods, cultured vineyards and much much more.

I took both these pictures at Dillion beach when my husband, two friends and I went to the Sonoma coastline for a day in the sun.

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A quick thought

So nothing much on the way of a full on post today. It was a long day and my youngest sister turned 18... geez when did they all grow up? :) Since today was a gorgeous day here in Cali, we spent all day lounging at the river and bbqing on the beach, as silly as it sounds laying in the sun all day really takes it out of you.

Well really I just wanted to come on here and share this song, I heard it on the radio today and decided this site needs some good pick me up music.

Coping with Life

So I thought that I was used to the navy life, Danny joined last October and we were apart on and off for months at a time. I was beginning to get used to things that way, flying out to Virginia, or driving to Florida and seeing him, living in different states for a month or two at a time. Actually the whole thing was more like long vacations sprinkled with a month or so apart from each other.

Overall things were good, somewhat unsettling at times but we got to see new places and experience different things. Then comes his deployment... and its way different. He only left about a month ago or so, but it just feels different. I know I have been apart from him longer than this, however it seems like things are dragging on, and knowing the next time we can be face to face is such a long stretch away makes things feel so much more distant.

Luckily he is not in the army, or marines or something where he has NO access to phone or computers, so I am holding on, but this is way harder than I could have imagined.

Wish me luck :) I have a good 6+ months left.

Roaming Gnome

Road Trip From the Atlantic to the Pacific

So I finally made it home from Virginia. I flew out there so the trip was relatively quick, but my plans were to drive our new car home... yes that is all the way from Virginia Beach to California. So as my sister and I started our trip westward I had no idea the crazy things we would see along the way.

We tried to stop at least once each day (for 5 days) to see something neat, be it a landmark or just a cool restaurant so that the drive didnt seem so endless. We called this our daily landmark, or fun spot. Along the way we stopped at a castle in West Virginia, Johnny Appleseeds grave site in Indiana, Our other sister in Iowa (who is currently there for the Americorps program), A Pyramid in Wyoming, My hometown birth place in Wyoming (which I havent been to since I was two weeks old) and much much more.

As we went to each place and took pictures we propped up our little gnome statue, Sir Peter Gnomey (names after a bunny rabbit we saw at the first stop) somewhere in each place. This made for an interesting wheres waldo effect, and gave us something to laugh about along the way.
During our drive through Nebraska, we hit crazy thunderstorms like I have never seen before. It was like something out of a scary movie, HUGE lightening bolts flashed across the sky and deep rolling thunder over the flat plains... soon we heard a severe tornado warning come across the radio and begged people to get off the streets immediately and into a safe first story building. Since it was two in the morning we decided stopping at the next motel would probably be the best idea anyway and get some good sleep for the next days drive, so we stopped in a little town right in the middle of Nebraska.

As we pulled in the tiny town seemed almost eerily quiet. There were no cars in the streets and nothing was open except for the motel straight ahead. So as we checked in and started to unpack the we started hearing this loud siren blaring through the quiet little town, just like the one out of silent hill. Turns out they used that same sound as the movies to warn for tornado's, and basically shut the town down in the process. While that siren is on no one is allowed outside (even the mc donalds drive through closes up). Creepy!

Overall though my sister and I, oh and how could I forget Sir Peter, all had a great time seeing each state from our car windows.

Hauntings in Yorktown

So back at home my friends and I are somewhat adventurous when it comes to scary places or haunted houses and things. We like to go find places that are supposedly haunted or spooky and check them out. Since I have been in Virginia for a few weeks now I was looking for cheap/new things to do around va beach area and found a haunted road.

The first thing I cam across was Crawford road in Yorktown. Since I knew this was an old town from the civil war days where major battles took place I knew this was gonna be creepy (if for nothing else but the history behind it all).

We went with a group of about six people and first visited the battle field of Yorktown, did the tourist thing and saw the sights, read the placards and took in the history of the place around us. Then near dusk we figured it was time to set out and find Crawford road.

Although the trip was somewhat uneventful, except the creepiness surrounding the tales, we ended up seeing the main bridge where most the tales happened. A little dissapointed nothing happened we hung out for awhile and then decided it was time to leave.

On the way out however a car appeared behind us out of no where... kinda scary... but nothing to support the haunted stigma of the place. It did however give us some chills and something to tell of our trip out there.

Crawford Rd

4 Hours Kayaking the Chesapeake

Its my second week here in Virginia visiting Danny and we found this cute little place near Chesapeake bay that rents 2 person kayaks for $25. Just in case your ever in the Virginia beach area----> surfandadventure.com

What a deal huh?? Well since its been such nice weather over here so far we decided to take the 4 hour trip out to the bay and back.

Im so glad we decided to go becuase the scenery was so pretty, and very different from where we are from. I enjoyed being in the sun and out in nature all the while burning off all the calories we had during lunch earlier that day. ;-) Also this kind of got me ready for my two white water rafting trips later on in the summer.

I think it wont be too bad to live in Virginia for awhile, its no Sonoma county but so far it has a lot to offer.

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Country Kids Know How to Have Fun

So I may be a little partial to the matter, but I have decided that country kids know how to have more fun! Yes I have many hick friends (I guess I could be considered one too by association), actually most of my friends that I hang out with on a daily basis, but I have many other friends too, and it just seems like my country friends do much more in the way of being active.

Just this month we have made two trips out to the coast, one of which we went crabbing and the other was for fishing, we went camping/four wheeling and shooting in Pilsbury, to the clubs in Sac, out to a tainted love concert (yes just a cover band but oh so much fun), and of course celebrated st patty's day.

My thoughts on this came while looking over my camping pictures and realizing that we do lots of "redneck" type things, but always seem to have a blast in the process. I think it may be just because we make use of the outdoors much more, and thats what I love to do, but either way its a true fact, at least in my eyes that Country kids know how to have more fun!


What do you think? Is it just my opinion or do you agree??

March Madness

Crab feeds and Ocean Animals

So its march, and I have been home for a few weeks while Danny is in Virginia (his duty station). Since I have a trip planned to go out there next month in the mean time I have been trying to keep myself busy and my mind off his absence. Luckily I have many great friends that know my situation and are willing to help keep me occupied, so this month we have been all over and done many things.

I went to sac clubs for a friends birthday, went to a concert in Santa Rosa, and crabbing at the ocean to supply our own crab feed. This is one of the things we like to do on a regular basis, spending the day at the beach, casting our nets and hanging out, then when the sun starts to fade we head home and have a crab feed with our catch of the day. My sister is a nature nut (way more than I am) and as I was going through my camera from the day's pictures found a few really neat photos from the beach.

These photos seem like they were taken by professionals, or at least in my opinion they.... but that might be because I have a compromised opinion. Since this month has been so clustered and crazy, my mind has had no time to register the fact that my love is 3000 miles across the country and living on a massive aircraft carrier on the ocean.

Wine Country With Love

Back home again! Danny and I just made the 5 day drive home from Florida and are super excited to be home. Since we are both wine lovers (of course coming from where we do) we decided to go wine tasting for our home coming event. A nice (hopefully sunny) relaxing day at beautiful wineries with great people and tasty drinks.

Oh how we are spoiled here in Sonoma county. Before I left I never realized what great things we have at our disposal, most people (including myself) take advantage of. We have the great, cheap wines with gorgeous countrysides, beautiful unique beaches, great culture, and amazing food.

Its so good to be home :)

HopJacks Inspirational Food

Best Pizza and Beer Around

So I just thought I would share with everyone, if you ever in Pensacola, Fl I suggest checking out Hopjacks. Its a wonderful Pizza Kitchen and bar that has amazing food, great beer selection and a wonderful atmosphere. (Special shout outs to the owner who was surprisingly humble and very nice).

Their fries there are absolutely amazing, and come with this tasty home made aioli. I can easily say they are the best fries I have ever eaten. Also their Pizza is absolutely wonderful, not to mention they have about 30 beers on tap, soon to be expanding.

Truthfully Im not much of a beer drinker, don't really like the taste but one of the bartenders had me try this raspberry one that was delicious.

I highly suggest this place, so if your in the area please check it out!

http://www.hopjacks.com/

Florida Fun

So I took a 5 day drive to Florida (to visit Danny in A school) in our 97 Jetta that's about to give out on us. To make things more interesting I brought along two of my sisters and one of their friends, not to mention my year old lab puppy and all our things. Since I was the only one who could drive (due to the car being a stick) our trip got a little interesting at times.

We ended up driving late into the nights and getting nutty as people due on little sleep and energy drinks and long hours of straight highways of nothingness. By the time we got to florida, where I had rented a two bedroom apartment, we were all at each others throats, but it seemed reaching our destination was just the remedy we needed.

During my time here I happened to make lots of new friends, one being our Taxi driver, our bartender and many of Danny's school buddies. Since Danny spent much of his time on base not being able to leave after hours, I ended up spending a lot of my time playing on the Internet and found a neat website where I ended up making my own shirts. http://tizi.spreadshirt.com/

The weather in Pensacola seemed to be a lot colder than I imagined (even though it was winter time). Turns out I had a cliched view of the weather in florida, since it barely reached 70 for more than a day. I should have known, being from Cali people have many stereotypes and views of our state that are half truths and part myths.

Even though the weather was iffy, I did get to explore some of the beautiful beaches Pensacola had to offer, and even more so some of the neat bars, nightclubs, and attractions around. Overall my experience has been very different from my expectations, but never the less interesting and fun.