I Am My Beloveds

Well yesterday began another long week for my husband and I. He is out in the field all week training for Afghanistan and I am just taking care of things here at home until he gets back at the end of the week. Although I have gotten so much accomplished! And in just one day, I was able to get the spare room totally cleaned out and all of his gear organized which means I was able to get the other things I have been wanting stored finally put away so our living/dining room looks so much bigger and nice and fresh. =) So next on my list is cleaning the bathrooms, re-vacuuming the floors, and maybe some minor redecorating. =)
Anyway I'm sure that wasn't a very exciting update, but that's what is going on right now. We are getting closer to Baby G and my visit back to Illinois to see our family. I am really looking forward to it, but not wishing the time away to get to that point either. Because it's just too much to think that by the time I am back with my husband after our visit we will only be a few short months away from deployment! It sure does have a way of creeping up on us.
But until it does creep up too close and until our visit with family I am busy spending every single spare minute between training with my husband. I want to not only get quality time with him, and our daughter together. But also to help build our marriage even stronger. Deployment sure can have a way of knocking the wind out of your sails when it comes to the strength in marriage sometimes. So I want our bonds, and love, and marriage to be not only as strong as we can make them, but also steadily getting stronger every day. We were able to go to a Marriage Retreat that was set up by the Army for the 2-27 families, it was wonderful. It was a great learning experience for us. And since they provided child care we were able to go out on a date just the two of us. It was wonderful, it was the first time since our daughter was born that we have been able to do that. We enjoyed downtown Wikiki (which was were the retreat was held) walking along the beach at sunset, going through the International Market Place, and just being able to walk and talk and have dinner while just focusing on each other. I think we really needed a night like that. =)
So I guess that's about it at the moment. Those are my goals and plans for the next few months. And as for this week I have getting the house organized, and taking care of G to keep me busy until he is home again.

All bets are in and the winner is...

So we finally got our orders! I add an exclamation point to the end of the sentence because normally it's exciting to find out where we will be living for the next three years. It's like roulette you place your bets and the ball falls where it will. And in our case the ball fell in the exact same spot as it's fallen the past two reenlistments. That's right ladies and gentleman, we are staying in Hawaii... again. But honestly I can't complain too much, it is Hawaii after all. =)
Anyway heres our story, my husband has been stationed here for awhile now, it would have been six years if we hadn't gotten orders for here again. But he likes it here, he likes the island, he likes the unit, he likes who he works with and for. And don't get me wrong, I like it here too and I like that he likes his job. I just hate that it is so far from family with us just having a new baby. And since we both have little brothers still living at home it's just too difficult and expensive to have them fly all the way out here. Anyway that's pretty much the only downside.
So he decided quite a few months ago that he would like to put in an IPCOT to extend his time on the island (since he loves this unit) and I was okay with that too because more then living on a post location we like I want him to like the post he works on. Well just a month ago or so he decided maybe he'd like to change units, for a break from deployments mostly (this upcoming one will be #4, and #2 for both of us). His IPCOT was too far along to stop it, but he really didn't think it would be approved since he had already been here so long. So we weren't too worried about it. Then surprise surprise he gets his orders for Hawaii yesterday! But it's not all bad, we do like it here. And our daughter and I will be spending almost all 12 months of this upcoming deployment with our families in IL anyway so that'll be nice.
And we finally get to get me command sponsored. That's a long messy story but basically we were married 2 days before he deployed and we weren't really able to do what needed to be done with him in Iraq and me in IL (and with me also being new at the Army lingo) and by the time he was home and we were back in HI together he was just shy of a year left on the island so ergo no command sponsorship, and no cola collecting for us. =( But now that we have more time here, we can have me and G command sponsored which just means a little more pay for living expenses. (yay)
Anyway it has been a long busy day with all that paperwork, and unexpected plans for us.
Also another bit of fun news, Baby G is 6 months old as of the 5th! She is 15.4lbs, 26in long and a perfectly happy healthy baby. She is just growing so fast! Every day she seems to know how to do something new. =)
This sure is the life!!