Monday, December 29, 2008

Because tomorrow's the big day...

As of tomorrow afternoon, Adam and I will be very proud homeowners. It was pretty scary at first, going through the whole process, but now the excitement has set in, and I'm thrilled to be able to own a home. A very nice home at that, also.

Unfortunately, we can only spend a little time at the house after the closing, because we have to turn around and come right back to Fort Benning. The movers are coming Wednesday to pack everything up, and then they will pick up everything on Friday. Addison and I will head there Sunday, with Adam to follow hopefully on Tuesday.

While I'm not looking forward to the whole moving process, especially living in this shell of a shithole house right now, I'm already envisioning a nice, long soak in my garden tub, surrounded by candles and my sign I got at Hobby Lobby. It's a metal sign that has the famous hockey mom-pitbull quote on from Sarah Palin. I figured it would go good on my new tub next to the fake plant!

I can't wait until Adam, Addison and I are situated in our new home, with a roaring fire, watching football together. I can't wait to go to Paula Deen's restaurant or at least her store and get myself a Lady & Sons T-shirt. I can't wait to explore Savannah, and go to Tybee Island.

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year! My resolution is the same as every year - to not make a resolution, because I am just not that kind of person. But if you do, good luck with it!

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Because it's Christmas...

Because it's Christmas, I want to wish you all a very happy and safe holiday. May you enjoy all the blessings of the season, and enjoy the company of family and friends.

I hope Santa is good to you all. He bought me an awesome house, which we will own as of Tuesday, so, thank you very much Santa! I guess I wasn't as naughty as I thought.

Let me close this with asking you all to say a special prayer for all of our servicemembers overseas this season. I'm thinking of them all, saying thanks for their sacrifices and service, especially to my brother Eddie, who will be headed home soon. Stay safe, bro.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Because it's the week before Christmas...

Because it's the week before Christmas, I'm running around like everyone else. Shopping? Done. Cards sent out? Done. Everything else? Doing.

I've finally finished all my handmade gifts. I can't say what they are, because some of my readers (that would be family) are getting one. I've made six total, and each one takes about 2 to 3 hours.

Adam and I have been clearing and cleaning out the house. It's hard to not be able to pack up stuff, because we're letting the Army send movers to do all that. We are making it very easy for them though, and have donated a ton of stuff and thrown out anything not donation-worthy. It's amazing what you amass in just a few years, and what you really don't need. I encourage everyone to go through their stuff and donate to charity. I hope it makes someone's Christmas a little brighter.

I've done a million things so far today, and this week is going to be a lot of the same. My mom is coming to visit Wednesday through Sunday, so the house needs to get a good cleaning, from vacuuming to bathroom cleaning. I've mailed out two boxes to friends and family full of Christmas presents, and just have one left to get together and send out. Once Adam gets a firm moving date Thursday, I can start the whole change of address stuff. I've got grocery shopping, bill paying, you name it, I've got it.

Gotta go...

Friday, December 12, 2008

Because I have the sensitivity chip Brad is missing...

The title refers to a quote from Jennifer Aniston, who once said that former husband Brad Pitt was missing a sensitivity chip, which I thought was pretty funny and bold of her to say.

But I digress...

I had thought I was all but hardened by living the Army life. I was proved wrong yesterday, and I apologize to the Army.

I got word early yesterday morning that my dear friend and neighbor's father had died unexpectedly. I called my "second mom" for advice on how to handle it. I'm very uncomfortable in situations like that, but I knew the right thing to do was to go over and offer any comfort.

As soon as I opened the door and heard her crying, I immediately burst into tears. I went into the living room, and saw her lying, curled up on the couch, clutching pictures of her dad and sobbing. I ran over and wrapped my arms around her, tears just coming down my face. My friend is strong, but I could tell she was utterly devastated. She's a daddy's girl, the daughter that made him most proud. I sat next to her, with my hand on her head, until her husband got home and I felt it was time to leave and let the family grieve together.

It hurts, big time, to see a friend in so much pain. I wish I could bear some or all of her pain. I wish I could bring her dad back to her, if just for the chance for her to be able to say goodbye to him.

It's also a reminder to me to that shitty things happen to good people everyday.

To my family and friends, I love you. I know I don't always say it or act it, but I do. I appreciate every one of you and you all are in my prayers, every single night.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Because sometimes I forget how witty I am...

Because I sometimes forget how witty I am, I end up feeling like an idiot.

I remembered last week that we still had a gift card to Chefs.com from Adam's family. Dang, I thought, let's buy something for the new house. Adam and I decided to get a new toaster, since our toaster oven is at that "Yeah I'll clean it and it will still be dirty" stage. Adam also picked out some really nice stainless-steel mixing bowls and we only ended up paying $3.48.

We put in the order online, and because I'm weird, I always write myself a gift message. Hey, it's free, and when I would buy stuff online while Adam was deployed, I would always write myself little notes like, "You're doing a great job Erin!" and cheesy stuff like that. When I got whatever I bought in the mail, it was a nice reinforcement from myself.

Today the FedEx guy dropped off a big package. I opened it, after telling the Baby dog that my new toaster was here, and the first thing I saw was a Cuisinart coffeemaker. Huh? Then I saw a little card on it that said "Happy Housewarming! From the Nash Family."

I seriously thought that Adam's dad, who had given us the gift card, had sent us housewarming presents. Oh boy, I thought, I just bought a new Cuisinart coffeemaker on a great sale a few weeks ago. I went through it in my mind how I would tell him thanks, but I just bought a new one.

Then I noticed another box. Inside it was stainless steel mixing bowls! Wow, what a coincidence! That's when it hit me-I was a total idiot.

This was OUR order, and the company messed up and sent me a coffeemaker instead of a toaster, even though on the invoice it says a KRUPS DIGITAL COUNTDOWN TOASTER. So, because they're stupid, I have to rebox it and drive 20 minutes to get to a Kinko's and return it.

Their stupidity made me realize my own. Now I'm going to hibernate until I need to use my brain again, which, for society's sake, I really hope isn't anytime soon.

Monday, December 1, 2008

Because I'm superstitious...

Because I'm a lifelong Red Sox fan, I'm superstitious. Unless you're a Sox fan, you probably don't know what I'm talking about, but trust me, I've helped the Sox win two championships in the last four years, so I take my superstition to a whole new level.

Anyway, those of you who know me know that we are moving to the Savannah area in January. Adam and I decided that buying a home was our best option, with the market being favorable to us as buyers, and the fact that we didn't want to send Addison to a crappy school.

I haven't blogged about this whole experience but here and there, because I always think that I'm going to jinx something about it. We started out with a really bad experience, which toughened us up and thickened our skin, and now seem to be on the right path.

I will write all about everything once we have the keys to our house. Until then, I'll have to think of other stuff to write about, because I'm not jinxing this!