Merry Christmas

This will be a short post as we are currently visiting family in Utah for Christmas.  Once we are back in San Diego I'll take a few days and post some of our adventures from this trip.  But for today I just wanted to wish you all a


Merry Christmas!!!!!

Ward Christmas Party

Doesn't this picture say it all?

The Chirstmas party was last Saturday night and it was a lot of fun.  The highlght of the night, besides the great company of the members of the ward, was the chocolate fountain that was part of dessert.  Now, I've never had chocolate dipped anything beyond pretzles so naturally I personally had to try out chcolate dipped strawberries.  Well they also had marshmellows to use at the fountain too so I got one of those and three dipped strawberries (one for the kids and myself).  Well Annabelle wanted nothing to do with those strawberries (only because they were dipped in chocolate) but boy did that girl love that marshmellow dipped in chocolate.  I learned quite quickly that I do indeed love Chocolate Dipped strawberries, more than I thought I would.

Later that night, Jay called.  After 3 days of him trying to get through to me and him not getting my e-mails (his e-mail just wasn't getting my e-mails for some odd reason for 3 days) which in turn caused him to worry he finally got through to me.  It was so great to hear his voice and I could tell that the worry he had in his e-mails went away the moment he heard my voice.  Our call wasn't too long, but it was still was so great to hear his voice.  About 20 min later, my e-mails from the last 3 days started hitting his inbox.  It will be so nice once he's home with us again. 

Thanksgiving Day

This year was our first year that Jay is deployed during the holidays so for Thanksgiving day I made it my goal to make the day special for the kids.  It was just the three of us, but the day was a good day.  We started out by watching the Thanksgiving Day parade and boy did Kaden love that.  He got so excited when he recognized the characters on the baloons, his favorite: Mickey Mouse dressed up as a sailor.  While the kids watched the parade I was busy in the kitchen working on my rolls.

Kaden got ahold of the camera and took this picture of me right before I was about to make the rolls.

Our dinner: Turkey, mashed potatoes, steamed carrots, jello, stuffing, homemade rolls and gravy with raspberry lemonaide.

Both kids loved the food, the turkey especially

Kaden asked if he could take my picture for Daddy, so I gave him the camera.  He did a good job at taking it for only being 4.

Of course what would Thanksgiving day be without pumpkin pie

We finished the day off by having pie while we watched Mupets Christmas Carol .  The kids and I had a good day, missed Jay a lot, but they at least had fun.  Oh, and my night got great with a special call from Jay later on after the kids were in bed!  Love those phone calls!

Happy Thanksgiving

This year I have a lot to be thankful for.  We've had so much go on this year within our family and it wouldn't be much of a Thanksgiving without saying some of what we are thankful for.

I'm thankful for a truly wonderful husband, Jay.  He is always pushing me to be better than I was and understands more about me than anyone ever has.  He is a wonderful dad and works so hard to provide for us.

I'm thankful for Jay's sacrifce and the sacrifice of all who serve in the military.  They sacrifice their time with us, their families, to keep us safe here at home. 

I'm thankful for two hyper kids who always keep me on my toes.  I never know what they'll do next but they are both so sweet and caring.

I'm thankful for the friends I've made since we joined the navy.  The awsome ladies on ASA are amazing in not only their strenght but their unwavering support of what all of our husbands have choosen to do: join the navy.  These ladies have made this current deployment the easiest one yet.  You ladies rock!

I'm thankful for the gospel and the peace it has brought to my life and to my family.  I don't know where I would be without this foundation in my life.

Finally I'm thankful for my family.  My parents have been a great support to not only the kids and I during this deployment but to Jay as well.  I can't wait to see everyone in a few weeks when we travel back to Utah for Chirstmas.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Thing you should NEVER say to a military wife

I got this list from a wonderful Marine wife friend and neighbor of mine and think you all should read this and realize that sometimew what you say to us military wives doesn't exactly make us want to be around you.  There are just some things we don't ever want to hear.  When we do hear them, there are times when we'll bite your head off, and on this I'm not messing around.  I will bite heads off if I get these types of comments from anyone.

14 Things we hate to hear....
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."

(This is the number one most annoying comment for those whose husbands are in Afghanistan. What do they think is happening in Afghanistan? 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, but I have yet to meet her. 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. 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 go back to Iraq b/c there is work that needs to be done.)
7. "This deployment shouldn't be so bad, now that you're used to it."
(Sure, we do learn coping skills and its true the more deployments you've gone through, but it never gets easier. And 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 12-15 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, he flew comfortably on a commercial plane, slept between crisp white sheets and ate well, paying for everything with an expense account. There is no comparison. 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 shitty Hyundai Excel with a Mercedes convertible.)
9. "Wow you must miss him?"
(This one also gets another 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 for seven years and at war in Iraq for five years. 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. Yo, 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, esp. 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 bad ass. Don't be sorry. Be appreciative and please take a moment out of your comfortable American lives to realize that our soldiers fight the wars abroad so those wars stay abroad.)
And to add my own to this list:

15. When is he coming home?

(I can't tell you, I wont tell you so don't ask.  There are rules in place to keep him and everyone else he works with safe, this rule will never be broken.  Loose lips sink ships!)

16. Where is the next port?

(Again, not going to tell you.  Even if I have said information I wont expose him or the fleet to dangers by telling you this information.  loose lips sink ships)

If you want to say anything, say thank you.

13 Articles of Faith on LDS culture

Jay's aunt sent this to me and its too funny.  Its also true on our culture.

Articles of Faith on Mormon Culture


1. We believe in SUVs and minivans as the form of transportation,

and in knee length shorts, which are always nice, and in multi-level

marketing.





2. We believe that church ball players should be punished for their

own fouls, and not for unsportsmanlike aggression.





3. We believe that through bread crumbs, cheese, creamy soups,

and rice, all casseroles can be saved through obedience to ward

cookbooks and creativity in the mixing bowl.





4. We believe that the first layers and ingredients of the Dip are:

first, beans; second, cheese; third, chopped tomatoes; fourth, the

gift of sour cream; fifth, olives; sixth, salsa; seventh, guacamole,

that is, if you have it.





5. We believe that a Mormon should have a distinguished or a cute

name, that it is appropriate to name a child after a church leader

or a historical figure including an ancestor, that alternative spellings

and French prefixes only add to a name, and that when referring to

the names of General Authorities, middle initials should be a part

thereof.





6. We believe in the same wall decor that exists in many Mormon

homes, namely, framed family proclamations, vinyl lettering,

inspirational word signs, family photos, pictures of temples and

Jesus, and so forth.





7. We believe in the gift of the re-gift, church books, crafts, family

photos, baked goods, emergency supply kits, and so forth.





8. We believe in sparkling grape juice so long as it is nonalcoholic;

we also believe in bringing root beer and sprite to ward parties.





9. We believe in all that we have scrapbooked, all that we will now

scrapbook, and we believe that we will yet scrapbook many great

and important things pertaining to our family, friends, pets, and

vacations.





10. We believe in the literal mixing of ketchup and mayo and in the

generous application of ranch dressing; that CBAs (church-based

acronyms) will be used to describe YM/YW, PEC, the Y, NCMO, and

CTR; that Mitt Romney will get Mormons to vote for him any time

he runs; and, that the Mormons will enjoy reading Twilight and The

Work and the Glory.





11. We claim the privilege of trying to identify common acquaintances

with any visitor at church, and allow all other people at church the

same privilege. Let them name drop the names of the famous and

general authorities how, where, or whenever they may.







12. We believe in being subject to scoutmasters, pampered chef

hostesses, and the writers of the U.S. News and World Report

Rankings for professional schools, and in obeying, honoring, and

sustaining Glenn Beck.







13. We believe in being above average, good at crafts, optimistic,

and in being ten to fifteen minutes late everywhere we go. Indeed,

we may say that we follow BYU football. We believe rumors about

famous people joining the church, we hope to meet the three Nephites,

we have endured many pyramid schemes, and hope to be able to

endure all pyramid schemes. If there is anything cheap, free, sold

in bulk, or given away when somebody is moving, we seek after

these things.

Holiday Kickoff Party

This last weekend I threw a kickoff the holiday's party for some of my fellow Navy wives.  It was a small group of gals and their kids and it was a ton of fun.  Parts of the house looked like small explosions had gone off by the end of the day, but it was all worth it.  I didn't take too many photos, but here are some the ones that I did take.

Kids playing in Kaden's room.  His room got hit bad with all of the kids playing in there.

We did cookies for the kids to cut out and decorate.  From left to right the mom's: Brittnay, Wendy, and April. 

More doing cookies

Annabelle saw the camera in my hands and had to ham it up for me.

Doing the Gingerbread cookies

Here is the final product of the sugar cookies.  This is what happened when we let the kids do the cookie cutting with limited supervision.  But those cookies had personality.