OK so I have been busy...

Sorry! I have been super busy lately and have neglected my poor little blog! So here's an update :) a LONGGGGGG update!

Tony returned home from a successful 7 month deployment on December 8th. His dad & I met him at base and after 3 hours of waiting in the coldest weather Virginia Beach had seen thus far this year and 20 mile an hour winds, he finally showed up, flowers in hand, and even more gorgeous than I remembered him :) OK so this is not the best picture but it was too cold to be picky!!! haha...

Since then, we have been getting the house back in order... we finally got our new tv, which is ridiculously HUGE and we bought a new entertainment center for the living room, too. It looks fantastic... and I'll have to post some pictures sometime soon. Tony is awaiting the arrival of his new 2010 Mustang GT, and the poor thing is driving my old Elantra until it's built and delivered. He also did an overhaul on the yard which was starting to look like a jungle, but now it looks great :)

We had Madison for a whole week and boy oh boy is she a big girl now! She is speaking so well and can sing her ABCs, Jingle Bells, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, as well as a bunch of different Barney and Snow White songs. She has grown up so much in 7 months! We took her to see the lights at the Botanical Gardens and she loved it... it was so much fun spending time with my little family!

Today, Tony and I decided to celebrate our "Christmas" since for the actual Christmas we'll be in Reston, Va with his family. No point in lugging up all those gifts just to bring them right back home!!! Tony did a fabulous job: he bought me a beautiful 1/4 carat Everlon diamond pendant which I have been drooling over for months, an HP Photosmart Premium printer/scanner/copy/fax machine!!! YAYYY!!!, the aforementioned Rudolph slippers that I asked him for, 12 bottles of my FAVORITE wine in the whole wide world: Washington Hill Riesling, a Steelers gnome, a $50 Borders gift certificate, a Clemson Mr Potato Head, and wine savers! Am I a lucky girl or what?????



He loved his gifts from me, too, which included the kegorator (of course), a digital photo frame that plays pictures, videos, and music, a new beardtrimmer, a digital golf scorekeeper, Abercrombie cologne, and spicy pistachios.

It has been amazing having him home and I can't wait to spend more wonderful holidays together!

To Shhhhhh or Not To Shhhhhhh, THAT is the question!

OPSEC rules strictly forbid posting information pertaining to homecoming dates, times, ports, etc., for the security of the sailors... but the dates are ALL OVER the news here in Norfolk! I have found creative (and ridiculous) ways to "countdown" to the day Tony gets home on my blog, facebook, and any other public forum... but now that the dates are out to the media, do I still have to keep my big mouth shut???? I honestly could scream I am so anxious and nervous and excited and this top secret crap is only making it worse!

I vent, therefore I blog...

I've been warned that the last week or so is the hardest... but I am about to lose my mind! I honestly have so much to do that there needs to be about 40 hours in a day... however I OF COURSE don't want the days to be longer because that means longer until Tony gets home! Quite a conundrum I am in... and then....

SWINE FLU.

I think I have it. I am not a hypochondriac... I actually am quite the opposite. I HATE the doctor so I downplay every illness, bump, bruise, FEVER, etc. But I woke up this morning with a 103 fever and my face is so hot it is actually BLISTERING (THATS gonna be cute for when Tony gets home, right?) Yes, blistering sweaty face, and yet my extremities are so cold that my fingertips actually look bluish. That can't be good.

Perhaps I am having a negative reaction to Tony's absence... then again, you'd think if I can survive the first 6 and a half months I could survive the LAST WEEK! God hates me.

On a lighter note, I had a nice time in Pittsburgh with my family for Thanksgiving. I ate so much stuffing that my stomach probably went into shock. Maybe that is whats wrong with me... does binging cause a fever? I got to take my baby sister out on the town for the first time (ok so maybe she's not a baby anymore since she turned 21...). I got to spend some QT with my BFF Stephanie and my cousin Bobby who seems to be doing great for himself :) Here's a couple pictures from our night out in South Side at Town Tavern:

Well if that's not the most beautiful words...

I checked the Bataan site today to find the most beautiful words ever:

"Capt. Sam Howard, USS Bataan (LHD 5) commanding officer, welcomes Douglas A. Silliman, Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, to a reception in the ship’s hangar bay Nov. 16, 2009, during the Bataan's regularly scheduled port visit to Izmir, Turkey. Bataan left the port city Nov. 19 to begin transit to its homeport of Norfolk, Va., following a seven month deployment conducting Maritime Security Operations in the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility."

Almost home my love!

Dear Santa...

Well "Santa" a.k.a. Tony asked me what I want for Christmas this year and I am really struggling!!! First off, I want him home safe... we're just weeks away from that - and he seems to insist on getting me something in addition to "him in a bow." Next I asked for these super duper cute Rudolph slippers!!!! But apparently he wants to spend more than 30 bucks on me... I have been a good girl.

I've thought about asking for a toy schnauzer or a maltipoo puppy... but we already have Tasha & Briana, and though I'd love a new little baby, I think 3 may be excessive...

Then I thought about asking for an ACC Championship from my Clemson Tigers and a Super Bowl Championship from my Pittsburgh Steelers... but "apparently" Santa can't pull those strings...

So I am stuck!!!!! Any ideas????

A match made in heaven: Impatient Impulse Buyers.

It has been confirmed today that Tony and I are truly meant for each other. I never thought I'd find someone as impatient and impulsive as I am...

Tony asked for a kegerator for Christmas, which is obviously the ultimate "man gift" - at least, the ultimate man gift without a hemi... so I of course bought him one. I, however, do not find it the least bit fun to give people gifts that they already expect, so I concocted a plan to convince him that the kegerator was out of my budget due to the fact that we purchased a 60 inch plasma tv for the living room (notice a trend with our spending??? He is a lucky guy, ay?)
I had it all figured out. I would email him and tell him the kegerator was too expensive with shipping and cleaning kits etc etc, and then I would hide the kegerator in our neighbor's garage until just before Christmas. Then I would wrap the cleaning kit and put it under our tree and when he opened it it would be a great surprise!!!!!!!!

But no.

I email that butthead and he responds with, "thats ok babe. I'm gonna look online now and order it for myself." UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH plan spoiled!!!! No wonder it is so hard to buy him presents, he buys everything he wants the moment he thinks of it! ...sighh..... maybe his stocking will be a surprise...

Nasty November

Why is it always the month of November? On paper, November would appear to be a fabulous month: brisk fall temperatures that support skinny jeans with boots and light leather jackets, yet are never cold enough to warrant bulky winter attire; Steelers and Tigers football in full swing; days off work for Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving... but no, it never ends up that way for me! November always SUCKS!

Case 1: Last November... I was "patiently" awaiting the results of my National Board Certification. The portfolio was due in March, and I took the test in June, but had to wait until November for the results. By the beginning of November when my district sent out the "Expect them any day now" email, I was so worked up and worried about that darn certification that I barely ate, barely slept, and felt as if I was on the verge of a mental breakdown until I finally found out I passed on November 21.

That last November, however, has been NOTHING compared this this November!!! Talk about waiting 6 months for results of National Boards, try waiting 7 months for your boyfriend to return safely from a deployment... someone find me a straight jacket already... Add to that the crazy amount of stress I have been having at work...

Last year at Spring Valley I was teaching the same two preps I taught the previous 4 years, AND I had a student teacher, James (whats up James!) who cut my workload by a TON because we shared grading, copying, teaching, etc. NOW I have 2 new preps - US/VA Government and AP Government - which pretty much has me grading from sun up to sun down every day.

Then yesterday I was hanging a shelf I bought for the guest room... It took me 2 hours. TWO HOURS to hang a shelf. Why? Because Jennifer doesn't do tools. (Though it did come out nicely when it was done :) and yes, I know I haven't put pictures in the 2 smaller frames yet...)

Then of course.... OF FREAKING COURSE... something ELSE had to go terribly wrong! I wake up this morning to find out that the entire Virginia Beach area is underwater - therefore, EVERYTHING is closed... Here's a picture of some lucky folks in Norfolk, and have fun finding Va Beach on that doppler radar...

>

yay, right? NO. I walk into my computer room and feel that the carpet is soaked. I pick my computer up off the floor, put towels down, and check the ceiling. Nothing. The window is closed... hmm.... the water appears to be coming from the floor?

So I walk downstairs to find a HUGE LEAK above the window and water dripping out of the vent! NASTY BROWN YUCKY RAIN WATER!!!!!!! The water was gathering above the window and forming a latex paint bubble that Daniel had to puncture and drain! SERIOUSLY MOTHER-FREAKIN-NATURE?????????? SERIOUSLY!?!?!?