Relax With Simple Skin Care

 

If you haven't noticed my poor blog has needed a break lately. It's been a hectic year so far. Ever since we returned from our trip things have been going going going. But it's important to take time for yourself too. When I received a box of goodies from Simple Skin Care to do so I was pretty excited. 

 

I finally have an amazing soft robe like my husband does that I can curl up with in front of the fire. The book of inspirational quotes and the candle gave me a perfect bubble bath one evening and the commissary gift card helped so much when our budget was very tight. 

 

I also love the products! 

 

I have very sensitive skin and the cleansing wipes didn't irritate my skin or make me break out. Neither did the moisturizer. Both were soothing and not heavily scented and felt refreshing. 

Being a military spouse sometimes means you run in circles until you don't know which way is up.

 

With my husband coming home, our reintegration, our trip, the loss of a family member, getting cast in a show with our community theatre, work and just day to day life I feel a little dizzy lately. So the other night when I took my bubble bath and snuggled in my robe it was a small reset button for me. It's important to take time for yourself, even if it's just twenty minutes in the tub. 

 

Don't get overly dizzy my friends!

 

And here is a little something that may help. A $25 commissary gift card provided by simple skin care. Since you can buy Simple Skin Care at the Commissary ;) Rafflecopter will walk you through it all below. You have until March 1 to enter. 

 

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/30c1268/

 

 

Note: I was given some Simple Skin Care products to review (as well as a robe, candle, quote book and slippers to fully "relax" as well as a commissary gift card) but all opinions expressed here are my own and are not influenced in any way by the receiving of products.

 

Military.com Spouse Summit 2013

Readers, I am honored to share this information with you all today. A few years ago as a semi new blogger and newlywed I heard about Military.com's Milblog Conference. Even though it was the weekend of my first wedding anniversary my husband understood when I jumped at the chance to attend (at least half of it!).

I had a blast. For the first time I was able to put names and faces in person to the bloggers I had been following for years. To be honest, I was a bit starstruck! 

This is one of the group pictures from the night of the conference... all of these women are amazing bloggers that I could not believe I was fortunate enough to meet!

The networking possibilities were endless, not just for bloggers either. I knew people who attended the conference and left with not just a pocket full of business cards but legitimate job opportunities as well. Now this was in 2011... two years later the conference has evolved. Do you have to be a blogger to attend? Nope! This year they are trying to reach all military spouses who wish to attend. If you can get to the DC area April 11th and 12th I highly encourage it!

Military.com’s Spouse Summit is not your typical conference. First of all it’s free! And they have banned the PowerPoint and 30 minute speeches in favor of interactive sessions with experts you can actually talk to and network with. The summit will focus on the issues that really matter like connecting with other spouses-on and offline, military mental health, what works when raising kids in the military, spouse career options and what you need to know about that looming transition to civilian life that faces every single military family at some point in their lives.

And the speakers this year are truly top notch: they have representatives from the Center for Deployment Psychology, The US Chamber of Commerce, The Warrior and Family Support office of the Chairman of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, University of Southern California's Center for Innovation and Research on Veterans and they are so honored to have as our keynote speaker Sal Giunta, the first living Medal of honor recipient since Vietnam. Amazing stuff, right?

The link to register is: http://spousesummit.com/ and you can follow along on Twitter this year with the hastag #MilSpSum

I am very disappointed I cannot attend this year. Naturally this is the weekend of my play! So I will be in North Carolina, jealous of all the lucky spouses who will have an amazing time. Do you plan on going? Let me know!

We Are Worth More

Have you all seen this article?

Yesterday it came to my attention on Facebook and I have to say.... it made me really angry. "12 Great Jobs For Military Spouses". As someone who is currently looking for work it definitely caught my eye. Maybe I missed something, maybe there could be tips and hints and advice for lots of women out there in my exact same position.

I was wrong.

The article starts off well. It talks about how compared to the overall public military spouses are more educated. 84 percent of military spouses have some college. Further more 25 percent have a bachelor’s degree and 10 percent have an advanced degree. Those numbers don't even include other marketable skills that require special licenses. 35 percent of military spouses in the workforce are in jobs that require a professional license (which is an initiate that Michelle Obama and Jill Biden are working to allow those spouses to work in all 50 states without transferring licenses every three to five years). In fact 85 percent of spouses are in my exact situation. 85 percent. That number seems disturbingly high to me.

Seeing those numbers made me proud. We are a well educated community with a lot to offer the world. Our spouses being military does make that more difficult, but not impossible. Moving so much does stunt career progress sometimes, you may work for a company that has no representation in your new location, so you have to start over. I can relate.

But then I got pissed.

The twelve great jobs this woman writes about? Insulting. For an educated group of people it seems more like a list for a high schooler looking for their first job. Hell, if the article had a different spin, it may not have annoyed me so much. Maybe if it was "12 Money Making Endeavors for Military Spouses Between Jobs" or "Extra Income Ideas" it may not have annoyed me so much. But for saying how educated we are and what we can achieve.... it boils down to this.

Direct Selling (like Avon or Pampered Chef), Child Care and Babysitting, Selling handcrafted goods online (Etsy), Tutoring and Substitute Teaching, Errand Runner, Catering and/or Cake Making, Pet Services, Gift Basket Creator, Personal Trainer, Administrative Assistant, IT Specialist and Tax Preparer.

Those are the 12 great jobs?? Now, some are fine, even terrific careers. I know plenty of spouses who do direct selling or have amazing Etsy shops. If you love numbers a tax preparer is great. If you want to teach, it is a good choice. But gift basket preparer??? Errand runner??? For being as ambitious and educated as you make us sound that is honestly the best you can come up with? THAT is where it gets insulting. And the descriptions... oh man. I have been talking to Ryan about going back to school for culinary arts, more specifically a pastry chef. I have taken cake decorating courses and I love to bake, it is something I have been toying with, but the description from the article made my blood boil.

"Those hours spent watching the Food Network might be the genesis of a money-making plan. If you have great culinary chops, try catering parties or backyard cookouts, selling homemade baked goods or offer your services as a personal chef. A course in cake decoration, candy making, and baking from a community college or gourmet food shop can boost your presentation skills."

I spend hours spent watching the Food Network?? In between keeping the house clean, taking care of the dog, grocery shopping, maintaining the cars, the yard, laundry, cooking dinner (and baked goods for Ryan to take to work), blogging, writing articles for SpouseBUZZ and applying for jobs I spend hours watching TV???? Most days the TV isn't even turned on in our house until after dinner when we sit on the couch and watch Doctor Who on Netflix together. And just because you watch the Food Network does not make you a chef. People go to school for years to do that. Yes, home based businesses can grow from talented individuals, but the way that the article says it anyone can turn a TV show into a career.

And I am so glad I went to college for four years to be a babysitter. Because that is all my bachelor's degree can get me. I worked my butt off in college for four years. Yes, my concentration was theatre, but I have a BA. I took all sorts of liberal arts classes.... math, science, philosophy, religion, Spanish, psychology and anthropology to name a few. I had a full course load of classes (and homework and studying) plus I would be at the theatre five hours a night during the week and all day Saturday. And I worked in the scene shop in the theatre part time so I could make money. Full course load, rehearsals and a job.

And I can babysit.
The article is from The Jacksonville Daily News. Jacksonville, a huge military town, has the nerve to publish something so backwards from 1960? You are a major paper in a military town. You claim spouses are these educated people and we can run errands. Insulting. How do you think people would react if this was an article directed at women in general? Civilians?

Yes, my husband's job makes me move.... but I shouldn't have to be a secretary until I retire. We are worth more than entry level jobs for the rest of our spouses' military careers. We support our spouse and they support us. Our dreams, aspirations and goals may be harder to obtain, but not impossible. I will stand by my husband's side and do what I can to help him and his career... and I know he will do the same for me wherever he can. The military has given us so much, sometimes is really sucks (deployments, field ops, PCSing as soon as you feel 'settled') but that is the life we choose to live. But gosh darn it I can have a career too. I can support my husband, hep keep up a house, a dog (someday kids) and still pursue what makes me happy. We all can.

We are worth more.

Adoption Fundraiser for a Fellow Milspouse

One of my favorite bloggers Ashley from Celebrating Wife as an Army Life contacted me recently for some help. She and her husband Pat are currently in the process of trying to adopt a baby. Ashley battled cancer as a teen which hurt her fertility. This is something both Ashley and Pat were aware of when trying to conceive and after a year of fertility treatments they decided to try for adoption. As I am sure some of you know adoption is not a cheap process. Besides paying the agency there are lots of other fees ranging from classes to home studies that need to be paid for.

The home study is currently something that has become a bit of a speed bump for them. They have hosted a scentsy party in the past to try and raise money and this time they came up with a unique idea I'd like to share with you all. In Ashley's own words:

"It's a puzzle fundraiser! Each puzzle piece is $5. The idea is you purchase a puzzle piece and then we write your name on the back of it. We frame the finished product and hang in our future nursery. :) That way we always have a reminder of the amazing people who helped piece our adoption together. We thought this was such a cute idea and something we can keep forever! We purchased the puzzle and figured we could take status pictures to reveal what the picture is. Keep everyone in suspense!"

I think it is a fabulous idea and I sent in my donation already! If you would like to donate to this wondeful couple you can donate to their Gofundme page: http://www.gofundme.com/ktfgw. Each puzzle piece is $5, a small price to help an amazing military couple become parents. To follow their story feel free to read their adoption blog: http://thegollaschsadoption.blogspot.com/



Ashley, I wish you and your husband the best of luck! I cannot wait to see where this journey takes you!!!

My Marine and Me - Milspouse Blog Hop 2012

Hello fellow Milspouse Bloggers!

My name is Allie and welcome to my blog, My Marine and Me. I started blogging back in the summer of 2009 before my boyfriend (now husband) deployed to Iraq. We had been dating over a year, I just graduated college and was about to go intern at Walt Disney World and I realized I might want a space to write out my thoughts.

So, Disney and Deployed was born. I spent six months working at the Happiest Place on Earth, EPCOT to be a little more specific, while the love of my life was in the desert. I missed him terribly but luckily Disney was a HUGE distraction. It kept me sane! It is hard to be down and panicky and worried in a place like that. I had my moments though, times when I was terrified or just missed him so badly I couldn't breathe. You know how it is. But eventually Ryan came home from deployment. He even came to visit me in Disney, and while he was there he proposed. My program ended a few months later and I left Disney. I had a wedding to plan! So no more deployed, no more Disney.... My Marine and Me was born in those months leading up to our wedding. If you cannot tell I have a thing for alliteration!


We got married May 1, 2010 at my church at home in New Jersey and lived in Alexandria VA for two years following our wedding. Well, I was there two years. Ryan re-enlisted last June and had to change his MOS to stay in the Marines. So he went off to 29 Palms California for nine months for school while I stayed in Virginia. For nine months we flew back and forth across the country every six weeks or so and used our cell phones more than I ever thought would be possible!

Ryan graduated in April 2012 and we packed up our apartment in Virginia and bought our first house in Jacksonville, NC, where we recently PCSed. PCSing was an adventure for sure, but I think we got off pretty easy!
I graduated college with a theatre degree, was born and raised in Jersey where giant malls and diners rule, love the Yankees and the Giants, and my tea is usually the Lipton powdered kind. Now I am living in the south in a huge military town where Walmart reigns, pro-sports are second to college teams (at least around here) and there is no tea but sweet tea! It is an adjustment for sure. For now I am keeping our yellow lab puppy Rylie entertained and sending out about ten job applications a week. Hopeully something strikes soon! If not, I will be blogging away here and writing more over at SpouseBUZZ.com when my brain cooperates.

Feel free to Like Me on Facebook or follow me on Pintrest! I don't tweet though. No idea how it works and I am social media'd out for now (: Thanks for stopping by!!!

Q & A

Erika from Chambanachik tagged me in this Q and A. I cannot resist a survey or questionnaire, it is like a disease I swear, so Erica totally picked the right lady! I hope the ladies I tag will reply as well!


The Rules
1. You must post the rules (and link up who tagged you).
2. Post eleven fun facts about yourself on the blog post.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.
4. Tag however many people you want
5. Let them know you've tagged them!

11 Facts About Me
1. I love love LOVE to travel and my goal is to set foot in each continent at least once before I die.
2. I absolutely hate talking on the phone, I always have... ironically I now do it for a living AND it is my main form of communication with my husband. Typical.
3. If I could perform Shakespeare the rest of my life I'd be one happy lady.
4. Sometimes I wish I could go back to school to become a pastry chef. Couple that with my theatre degree and I am destined to never make any money. Ever.
5. When I am depressed I will eat nutella out of the jar. With a tablespoon.
6. I am a crazy fast reader, I can't help it. I devour books and will read and reread the ones I really like.
7. One day I will own a pair of Monolos. Fact.
8. My weakness is shoes, but I rarely wear heels for more than ten minutes without pain. Shame.
9. Since before I was born basically I have been a Giants fan (and the Yankees!). There are pictures of me in Giants onesies looking almost like a little boy! So I am a life long fan and will want to hit you in the face if you call me a front runner.
10. If I forget to wear my rings I feel downright naked. Besides my wedding band it is my engagement ring and my college ring. Every day a must!
11. When I was little I was convinced I was going to be a famous actress. No questions asked. I miss that invincible, confident, powerful feeling.

Erika's Questions for Me
(plus a bonus one!)

1. What is something you're known for?
My pintrest addiction or my cornbread recipe probably!

2. What dessert would you make for me if I came for a visit?
I'd make my mom's walnut crumb bars... chocolate, walnuts and heaven in a bar!

3. If you could have any animal for a pet, what would you pick?
A giraffe. Hands down they are my favorite animals!

3a. Where do you see yourself in 50 years?
Sitting on a rocking chair next to my handsome old fox of a husband watching our grandchildren run amok.... with my Oscar in the display case behind us :P

4. What was the best day of your life so far?
Ooh tough call. I know most people say their wedding day, and that was definitely up there, but my first favorite was a day on our honeymoon. We went outdoor sky diving over a huge fan, explored the Biltmore Estate and sat on the porch of my parents' cabin drinking wine and chatting all night. It was just perfect.

5. What kind of things do you do every single day, without fail?
Walk Rylie, text Ryan, call Ryan to say good night, play with my iphone and drink diet coke!

6. What subject do you know more about than most people?
Shakespeare. And movie trivia.

7. What would be your perfect date night?
My favorite date night is always dinner and a movie, simple and traditional but it works well for us!

8. Where is your favorite place to be?
With my husband and my family is first followed by onstage.

9. What is something valuable you've learned from your mom and/or dad?
Just one thing? I learned soooo much from them. To be a strong, independant woman who can think for her self. To love and trust, to learn and make mistakes and not let them drag me down. Everything from how to drive to how to cook and bake and change a flat tire. I may owe them quite a bit ;)

10. What color do you like to wear the most?
I hate to say it but.... black. Blue is a close second. I am wearing a black sweater today even. Let's just say years of being a theatre kid made old habits die hard.

11. What did you want to be when you grew up? (And are you there yet?)
An actress. I was that kid who never let go of their childhood fantasy job. Sadly, I am not there yet. Yet. Anyone want to cast me? I'm looking at you Mr. Spielberg.

My Questions for Tagged Friends
1. If you had to eat one thing for breakfast for the rest of your life, what would it be?
2. What is the one chore you despise doing?
3. Are there any books you can pick up and reread over and over again?
4. Who would play you in the movie of your life?
5. If you had to rename your blog for any reason what would be its new name?
6. What is your favorite outfit to wear?
7. If I gave you $100 what completely non practical thing would you spend it on?
8. What is your favorite childhood memory?
9. If you could be an instant expert in any subject matter, what would you choose?
10. What is your favorite joke?
11. Where in the world is Carmen San Diego?

Tag! You're It!
1. Liv at Simply Sunshine and Daisies
2. Mrs. Sykes at Forever Yours Semper Fi
3. Mandy at Mommy Musings
4. Skinnie at Skinnie Piggie
5. Nicole at Flip Flops and Combat Boots
6. Poekitten at Many Waters
7. Erin at Moore to Love
8. Sarah at G.I. Joe's Wife
9. Katie at Like Sunshine After Rain
10. Beckie at Turn for the Nurse
11. Ashley at Celebrating Life as an Army Wife

I'm excited to see your responses!! Happy Monday!

236 Years!

Happy 236th Birthday Marines! You have had over two centuries of amazingness to become one of the most amazing and inspiring organizations in the world. I am proud to be a member of the USMC Family, as both a wife and a granddaughter. I never imagined in a million years I would marry a Marine and become a Military Spouse and a blogger and be where I am today... and I would not trade it for anything. Semper Fi!




I have done quite a few posts over the past few years for the USMC birthday, the Ball and Veteran's Day. I don't want to repeat myself from all my entries, but I will link them up for you! Please feel free to look back and read. The first is my favorite, talking about my Poppy and my Husband as Marines (:

Veteran's Day and 234th Birthday - 2009
Veteran's Day 2010
The Ball 2010
The Ball Do's and Don'ts

Back home in 2009 my Poppy was the Marine of the Year. He was quoted in the newspapers saying...

"It doesn't get any better than this," said C-----, who served in the Marine Corps during World War II. "We train not as an individual, but as a group. … If I had to do it again, I would, because [these Marines] are an exceptional group."

How can I not love them both? Happy Birthday!


Link up with Goodnight Moon for What's Your Song too!

Run For Your Lives! - Commercial Shoot

Yesterday was exhausting, long, sticky, and full of crazy awesomeness. Two words...



Zombie Commercial. (photo from the Run For Your Lives facebook page)

Holly over at Semper Fi to Apple Pie posted on facebook Friday that she wanted to go do this commercial up in Maryland and wanted someone to go along. My inner theatre/acting nerd jumped for joy and said I would totally do it!! Holly heard about it as she plans on running the Run For Your Lives 5k in October and they were wanting people for this commercial to promote it. This 5k is in Maryland on October 22nd, but next year is the "Outbreak" and Zombie 5ks will take place all across the country!!

So the night before Holly came and crashed on my couch so we could be up bright and early at 6am (ugh. I so do not do mornings...) and on the road by 6:30. We reached the shooting location by 8am or so and were finally awake with excitement!

After waiting around for wardrobe to check out our dresses (as they strongly encouraged not to just wear jeans and tshirts) they were deemed worthy and got shredded. And rolled in the mud. And dunked in fake blood. Sand paper may have been involved. Needless to say my maxi dress (really, I only ever wore it once in the two years it sat in my closet) had seen better days!



Mud was a popular choice to drag costumes around in! People got waaay down and dirty with that puddle!

And my shredded costume. I figured I was on a date with the hubby and we were walking back to the car when I got jumped and zombiefied.







There were zombie cowboys, nurses, doctors, brides, grooms, and even a zombie Marine. We had a nice variety! Some were in jeans and tshirts, others in full formal wear. We ranged from pretty young, like our cub scout or karate zombie, to older gentlemen in distinguised business suits.







In other words, we were an awesome Zombie Horde!

Make up was next, we had four lovely artists who made up a good 80-100 people! I think I turned out pretty darn scary (but my husband disagrees... he thinks I look cute regardless. Sigh.) in the end!









I had quite a bit of fake blood, both liquid and hair gel with red food coloring to look congealed as well gel in my hair.



Next was a pep talk from our director with instructions on what the heck we were actually doing and other information.



We then made it to the field. 2 hours of running down the hill, walking back up the hill, and running down and walking up trying to catch our hero we took a small break. I got to meet some pretty amazing, fun people (you expect anything less from a Zombie Horde??) and thoroughly enjoyed myself. We then filmed the end scene as well as a smaller segment of zombies smashing through the woods (me included!).





Filming was finished around 4:30pm and a whole lot of zombies slowly scrubbed off their make up and fake blood... I still had a fair bit on my arms and legs to take home though. Poor Holly cut her foot on one of our last shots running down the hill, I felt so bad for her, but luckily there was a zombie who was an EMT in his other job (you know besides being a zombie) and he was able to wrap that up for her. One tetnus shot later and I think Holly was good to go!

I helped clean up a bit after we changed, and of course I promised to write a glowing blog write up of my day. Glowing enough? I had a blast working with everyone, from the extras to the lead actors to the crew to our director Chilibear (aka Brian), they made the day fun and I am so excited to see the finish product!

Check out Run for Your Lives here, or Like it on Facebook.





Watch for our NATIONALLY BROADCAST commercial (hellooooooo 30 million viewers!) on October 16th during AMC's season premiere of The Walking Dead. It will also most likely be on youtube at that point and I will be sure to post it here.




Zombie Allie, over and out!

Review: Semper Wifey Notecards

(My good camera battery died so these are from my point and shoot mini camera, sorry for the quality! The cards are great, my pictures not so much :P)

Recently I was asked to give my first review by Semper Wifey! I had this post started but with the craziness of getting orders this week I am sorry it has taken me so long to post it.

I received the cards very quickly in the mail and I thought they were so adorable. Her shipping was prompt and the cards looked terrific. She did mention she was getting a new printer so the name (not shown) on the back of the cards would be different, but I still thought they were great! I love the Toy Army Men and the sayings fit perfectly.

My family is huge on thank you notes and cards just to say hi, and I would use these without question. I think my Poppy (a one time USMC Sgt Major) would get a kick out of these, I think I may have to send him one. Even my husband, nosy man he is, couldn't help but peek over my shoulder when I got my package. He thought the cards were "pretty cool" and always observant, "Hey, the guy in the foreground on this card is on the background on this card!" Very true.

I know in a technologically strong age that "snail mail" and notes are slowly becoming a thing of the past, but I think the written word (vs the typed!) should continue! Send a card to someone! Everyone loves getting mail, I know I do, especially if it is not bills!

You can purchase your own cards at Semper Wifey's Etsy shop. A set of eight note cards is $12, and individual cards are $2.50 each, plus there is a third card that is not shown here. BUT, you lucky readers can get 15% off of your purchases, plus FREE shipping by entering the code SEMPER15. The shop celebration coupon will expire Friday, July 15.

Go support a fellow milspouse (: I highly recommend it! And feel free to leave some love here for her handiwork!

Video for You Ladies

I am not normally a big rap fan, but this is for all you wonderful military spouses out there!

Things NOT to say to a military spouse!

Found here (after boredly playing on google and had to share!)

1. "Aren't you afraid that he'll be killed?"
(This one ranks in at number one on the "duh" list. Of course we're afraid. We're terrified. The thought always lingers at the backs of our minds — but thanks brilliant, you just brought it back to the front. Maybe next you can go ask someone with cancer if they're scared of dying.)

2. "I don't know how you manage. I don't think I could do it."
(This is intended to be a compliment. Though, its just a little annoying. Here's why: it's not like all of us military wives have been dreaming since childhood of the day we'd get to be anxious single moms who carry cell phones with us to the bathroom and in the shower. We're not made of some mysterious matter that makes us more capable, we just got asked to take on a challenging job. So we rose to the challenge and found the strength to make sacrifices.)

3. "At least he's not in Iraq/Afghansitan." Fill in as appropriate.
(This is the number one most annoying comment for those whose husbands are in one or the other. What do they think is happening in Iraq per se? An international game of golf?)

4. "Do you think he'll get to come home for Christmas/anniversary/birthday/birth of a child/wedding/family reunion, etc?"
(Don't you watch the news? No! They don't get to come home for any of these things. Please don't ask again.)

5. "What are you going to do to keep yourself busy while he's gone?"(Short answer: Try to keep my sanity. Maybe there's a military wife out there who gets bored when her husband leaves. For the rest of us, those with and without children, we find ourselves having to be two people. That keeps us plenty busy. We do get lonely, but we don't get bored, and drinking massive amounts of wine always helps keep me busy.)

6. "How much longer does he have until he can get out?"
(This one is annoying to many of us whether our husbands are deployed or not. Many of our husbands aren't counting down the days until they "can" get out. Many of them keep signing back up again and again because they actually love what they do or they VOLUNTEER AGAIN and AGAIN to deploy because there is work that needs to be done.)

7. "This deployment shouldn't be so bad, now that you're used to it."
(We do learn coping skills. We figure out ways to make life go smoother while the guys are gone. But it never gets "easy" and the bullets and bombs don't skip over our guys just because they've been there before. The worry never goes away.)

8. "My husband had to go to Europe for business once for three weeks. I totally know what you're going through."
(This one is similar to number two. Do not equate your husband's three week trip to London/Omaha/Tokyo/etc. with a 6-15 month or more deployment to a war zone. Aside from the obvious time difference, nobody shot at your husband or tried to blow him up with an I.E.D., your husband could call home pretty much any time he wanted to, and he flew comfortably on a commercial plane. We do not feel bonded to you in the slightest because of this comment and, if anything, we probably resent you a bit for it. Comparing a 12 month combat deployment to a few weeks business trip is like comparing a crappy Hyundai Excel with a Mercedes convertible.)

9. "Wow you must miss him?"
(This one also gets antoher big "duh". Of course we miss our men. There are some wives who do not and they're now divorced.)

10. "Where is he exactly? Where is that?"
(I don't expect non-military folks to be able to find Anbar Province on a map, but they should know by now that it's in Iraq. Likewise, know that Kabul and Kandahar are in Afghanistan. Know that Muqtada al Sadr is the insurgent leader of the Mahdi Army in Iraq and that Sadr City is his home area. Know that Iran is a major threat to our country and that it is located between Afghanistan and Iraq. Our country has been at war in Afghanistan and Iraq for nearly a decade. These basic facts are not secrets, they're on the news every night and in the papers every day — and on maps everywhere.)

11. "Well, he signed up for it, so it's his own fault whatever happens over there."
(Yes, ignorant, he did sign up. Each and every day he protects your right to make stupid comments like that. He didn't sign up and ask to be hit by anything, he signed up to protect his country. Oh, and by the way, he asked me to tell you that "You're welcome." He's still fighting for your freedom.)

12. "Don't you miss sex! I couldn't do it!"
(Hmmm, no I don't miss sex. I'm a robot. Seriously... military spouses learn quickly that our relationships must be founded on something greater than sex. We learn to appreciate the important things, like simply hearing their voices, seeing their faces, being able to have dinner together every night. And the hard truth is, most relationships probably couldn't withstand 12 months of sex deprivation.)

13. "Well in my opinion..."
(Stop right there. I didn't ask for you your personal political opinions. Hey, I love a heated political debate, but not in the grocery store, not in Jamba Juice, not at Nordstrom, not in a bar when I'm out with my girls trying to forget the war, and CERTAINLY NOT AT WORK. We tell co-workers about deployments so when we have to spend lunch hours running our asses off doing errands and taking care of the house, dog, and kids, they have an understanding. We do not tell co-workers and colleagues because we are giving an invitation to ramble about politics or because we so eagerly want to hear how much they hate the President, especially while we're trying to heat up our lean cuisines in the crappy office microwaves.)

Last, but not least….

14. "OH, that's horrible…I'm so sorry!"
(He's doing his job and he's a badass. Don't be sorry. Be appreciative and please take a moment out of your comfortable American lives to realize that our MARINES/soldiers/airmen/coasties/sailors fight the wars abroad so those wars stay abroad.)

If you want to say anything, say thank you. After all, we are sexually deprived for your freedom

Milspouse Appreciation: Beauty Boot Camp

Friday Lauren and I met at my apartment and headed over to the Beauty Boot Camp. We only got a little lost, but we still managed to make it on time! When we arrived and signed in we were given a free bag and a pink tshirt with a green EGA on the front that said "Loyalty Above All Else" on the back. Pretty neat! Inside everything was free. They had a great buffet, make up booths, massages, even teeth whitening! I wish I had known about that sooner as there were only about six spots and it filled up in a second!

They even had this amazing thing where you sign up for a time slot and we went into this one room and it was filled with dresses! Mostly formal, some semi formal...some used some still with tags on. We were allowed to try on two at a time and then each girl was allowed to take one! Lauren and I each got one, her's needs a new zipper but it is worth it! Mine I will have to get a picture of and post later. I then gave Lauren my ball dress from last year (since with the new boob size I cannot fit in it anymore!) so she got two dresses!



This is the ballroom where we had the event. We both got makeovers (at the Lancome station) which turned out really nice! Well, the first time I got bright blue eye shadow but when she saw my reaction the woman toned it down a bit. We also got 15 minute chair massages, as well as free certificates to go back for another one at their school!



Home Depot gave out free plants, pots and soil. They even had hand shovels and these rolly things where you just unroll it in the lawn and flowers grow along the whole strip! Lauren took one and I totally would have if... I had a lawn.


Lauren's getting her dianthus... mine is on the table.


My pretty Dianthus.


Jane Wayne was there with some of those awesome camo/name tape bags and soy candles. I will have to email the woman I met there... she mentioned that they had a blogging brigade of sorts which I would love to be apart of! I do love those bags. If Ryan re-enlists I am totally getting one!

The bag hanging in front there is the one we all got when we came in. Had to get a picture of that too!


Then we had our delicious dinner! Mini crab cakes, kobe sliders, suffing, beef, turkey, bruschetta, Thai chicken meatballs, and fondue essentials for dessert! During dinner we sat with a woman who was a bit older, her husband worked at the Pentagon. As we were speaking with her I noticed she had an interesting accent. It turned out she was from Denmark and she met her husband when he was on Embassy Duty in Copenhagen! Pretty awesome.


And of course Lauren and I. I am wearing the shirt they gave us because I put it on for our free picture. We all got to have one picture taken (holding an I <3 My Marine sign) and emailed to us and printed out. I gave mine to Ryan that night…. And it turned out pretty cute if you ask me!




Then Ryan blew me away. When he got home way after midnight (hellooooo parade season) he asked me to meet him outside. When I came out he stopped and presented me with a certificate of appreciation for all I do as his wife and a military spouse. Of course as he is reading it tears are going like crazy. It was so touching and very sweet of him to do! He even printed the picture I posted of us on Friday, from right before he deployed, to present to me with the certificate he made.

Man I just love him! (: Hope you all enjoyed your Milspouse Appreciation Day too!