Christmas in New Jersey

I went back to New Jersey for a few days. It was a really short visit, but it was nice to be back for a while. I haven't been there in 4 months so it was fun to see everyone. All the pictures were over Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

And We're Off!

Yup. In less than a month I'll be packing and moving. I'm only moving 20 minutes away, but it's still a huge hassle. I've been collecting boxes and trying to get things together. I didn't realize how little time I had left. It's going to be really hectic but hopefully worth it. I'll be closer to work and we'll be in a place with stairs which should get Bubba a little more tired than here. He'll actually have space to move around! Hope it all works out.

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Quinn said Thanksgiving over there was pretty good. The candied yams were his favorite (that would figure...it's sweet). Bubba and I had dinner here together. I made a traditional Thanksgiving dinner minus regular vegetables since I don't like them anyway. I made the turkey with stuffing and mashed potatoes. I also put an apple crisp together for dessert. Everything came out ok. Not as good as Thanksgiving at my parents, but good enough. Although it was quiet, we had a nice time. I'm resting up to battle the crowds tomorrow!


my kind of pumpkin pie


bubba wanted to help

A few pictures from Iraq

Quinn sent a few pictures from Iraq. He doesn't usually like taking pictures so I think he asked a few of the guys to send him some that they have taken. Either way here are a few he emailed




:

3 months

Although it seems as though there's less and less to say as the months past, I thought I'd at least acknowledge that we're 3 months down now. It hasn't been fun but with him calling/emailing every couple days it's been ok. He's doing fine. There have been a few issues but overall pretty quiet out there. They have their own little space now which he was pretty happy about. I sent out his playstation. I keep joking that he's in paradise with sand, warm weather, and the ability to play all the games he wants without me complaining. My sister's first grade class is sending cards and possibly care packages over to his platoon and his brother as well. Hopefully the next few months will go by quick with the holidays.

Pumpkin Picking

So yesterday I went pumpkin picking. Unfortunately with no Quinn I had to do it by myself. It's ok though. I've become much more independent over the past almost 3 months now. I enjoyed myself.

Garden at Point Defiance

I went out looking for some fun areas to take a few fall pictures. It's a little hard around here because there aren't a whole lot of trees that change color. I went down to the garden at Point Defiance park in Tacoma and took a few pictures of colorful flowers instead.

2 months

So we made it to 2 months (and a few days) and it's going ok. Although a lot of people say the first and last months are the hardest, the first month went pretty fast and month 2 was a little tough. I'm hoping it'll just stay quiet and painless from this point out. I took a picture from one of Quinn's friends page from when they first got out there. It's a huge sleeping tent. I think things have gotten a little better, but not much. Other than that, we're just moving a long.

little hike through Mount Rainier

So on Saturday my friend Kristin and I went on a walk/hike through one of the smaller trails at Mount Rainier. We did about 8 miles and it was pretty fun. We are going to try to go further next time around, but the second part of the trail was almost vertical so we only made it half way before we decided to leave that for another time. Hopefully the weather won't change too dramatically in the next few weeks and we can get another good day in to try again.

really???

So my computer is kind of old and I've never had luck with computers anyway but since Quinn has been gone it has been acting up so much. Well yesterday I went on a hike at Mount Rainier (posting pictures later) and when I got back my computer wouldn't start up. I took it to Best Buy today to see about getting it fixed and the mother board or whatever it is is shot. It would be a lot of money to get it fixed up and who knows how long it would last beyond that. SOOOO I had to go out and get a new computer. Normally I would be kind of excited, but without a job it's a pretty big expense that I didn't really need right now. Anyway, hopefully this computer will last me a while :) What a pain!

1 Month

So it may not seem like much but we're 1 month into the deployment now. It's been a struggle on certain days, but overall I think I've done better than even I expected. A couple friends and I have been trying to keep busy on the weekends and that helps a lot. I don't really have much else to say about it so I'll just attach a few pictures:


three weeks ago


Garlic Festival


1 month down!

Army Life

I'm a little unhappy with some experiences I've had so far with the army. Mainly army wives! I don't understand why there is always so much talk and complaining about people. It's really frustrating because no matter what anyone says someone always turns it around and makes you out to be a bad person. I thought I left that behind in high school and even college. It's really discouraging because I don't want to go to different events because of it. Oh well. I guess that's just life anyway

What a mess

For the past few weeks I've been looking for work (again) and still haven't found anything. Bubba doesn't know how to walk nicely on a leash anymore. Oh and my internet and computer keep dying on me. It's been a rough few weeks, but it's all starting to work out I think. I've just attached everything to wires for the computer so it can't keep going in and out with service, I got a few tips on how to train Bubba on the leash, and I just keep applying for work. Eventually someone will get tired of me sending my resume and just hire me! Quinn is doing ok. He made it into Iraq and is just getting all his stuff straightened out. I know it's been pretty crazy for him out there. Things are going well though and he should be able to email or call soon. Other than that, we're 3 weeks in now and still moving along so that's good. If he ever takes any pictures and sends them I will post something! That's all the news I have for now though.

Kuwait

So just for an update...Quinn made it into Kuwait last weekend. He'll be there for another week or so (from what he's allowed to say anyway). After that it'll be off to Iraq. One week down and about 51 to go. *It doesn't sound as bad counting by week* He does have an address and anyone that is interested I'd be more than happy to give it to you. He won't be able to receive mail for probably another 2 weeks and the place they're staying at only gets supplies every 5 days I think. I guess it might take a while for letters and stuff to go through. That's it for now!

Deployment Day

So I knew this day would come sooner than later. I just didn't realize how soon it actually was and how unprepared I really felt. I am so proud of what soldiers do for our country and I'm happy Quinn is doing what he loves. I'm just selfish and would like him to come back now! :)
I've made it through about 2 days and within the two days a close family friend has passed away on top of Quinn leaving for a year. It's a test of my strength I guess and I'm working through it and still standing. I'm feeling a lot of stress and I hope it lifts soon. I have a few good friends around here and we'll be planning different things for the weekends to stay busy and I know that will help. Anyone who wants to come up for a visit is more than welcome. Bubba would love company too! Day 3 of approximately 365.

fun weekend to be followed by a not so fun weekend

My sister and her fiance were here to visit last weekend. They left today and we had a lot of fun. We saw Kenny Chesney on Saturday, had dinner out on Sunday, went up to Seattle Monday and the zoo Tuesday. It was a pretty full weekend and I think everyone involved had a good time. I got to wear a tin foil hat and sit on a piano Friday night...yeah, I don't think those pictures will be coming out anytime soon! Quinn leaves in a couple days for Iraq. This is NOT a fun weekend. I know I'll get through it and he's just fine so it won't be terrible, but let's face it...it won't be fun either. If anyone wants to come up for a few days I'll be more than happy to have you. I need distractions! Anyway, here are a few pictures from the week:

Photoshop

I'm excited to have photoshop! Thanks to LJ and Nicole I was able to get a copy for free. The only thing I wanted to do was make the whole picture black and white and make something stand out in color. So of course the first thing I did was just that. I don't know how to do much at this point, but that trick satisfies me for now! Thanks again!

Utah Visit

We also traveled back to Utah to visit with family and friends before Quinn deploys. Todd is deploying this week so we wanted to get out there to see him too. It seemed like a quick visit, but we were able to see a lot of people. I was able to get a picture of Quinn and his siblings. I love taking pictures!! We were so happy to get to see everyone. I will try to get down to Utah around Christmas even though Quinn won't be around. I look forward to seeing you all then!

Kyle and Laura's Wedding

We went to a wedding out in Sacramento on 4th of July. We had so much fun and were really excited that we could attend. Quinn was asked to be an usher. He had a lot of fun fulfilling those duties :) It was a long day, but really great. Congrats Kyle and Laura!