Christmas is less that a week away!

It the Christmas Holiday.

The kids are out of school and I'm letting them do last minute shopping to each other today.  The are getting more and more excited as the days pass, wondering what Santa will bring.

They have fairly decent lists.  Nothing too hard, nothing too expensive.

They are great kids (aside from the fact that Miss Missy and Cam CAN'T STOP ARGUING AND ARE DOING IT RIGHT NOW AS I SPEAK!!!!!!!!!).  The are really good kids, so based on the fact that they should be on Santa's "GOOD LIST" they deserve to get a few things off their list.

As for me, I didn't really have a list, but I did have a thing or two that I would have liked.  

• A Sassy new camera bag would have been great.  Something nice cute and girlie to carry my camera in..
• A Black Coat.  Last year, my mom got me a white one from Kohls and it was AWESOME.  But I'm not doing too well with keeping it clean, so black would be a great choice this year.
• Boots are always great, because what girl doesn't love shoes??
• A gift card to Cato, because, well, that's one of my favorite places to shop!

Why are guys so clueless to hints?  I have dropped a few hints to Hubs and he still asks me, "Uh, so what do you want for Christmas?"  I don't want to have to tell you what to get me.  I want you to know me well enough for it to be a "surprise"!

Oh well.  I'm not really caring what I get or don't get.  I just can't wait for everyone to wake up on Christmas Morning and just be happy!

In case I don't return, Have a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Giving Away Something SWEET!

This year, I have been a very busy mom.  As most of you know, I've always been very active in my kids school.  At the kids' school in Georgia, it was easy.  I was PTO Vice president.  All 3 kids were in the same school and I knew everything that was going on, because, chances were, I had a hand in planning it.  

Since I've been in AZ, that urge to be active isn't the same.  It's not as welcoming here and I don't feel the loooooove in the PTO at my son's school and I have only spent time in Miss Missy's class at her school.

But, I haven't stopped giving to the school.  Boxtops for Education gives parents who can't (or choose not to) give there time in the school the opportunity to still help out.  Boxtops for Education is great because all you have to do is collect boxtops from some of the popular brands, like Betty Crocker, turn then in to the school and collect cash to go towards education!

MyBlogSpark and Betty Crocker have come together to spread the word about Boxtops for Education and are allowing me to give away a fun prize pack on my blog today!  

 Prize Pack includes:

• Cupcake iclips
• Cupcake bag
• Cupcake notepads
• Box Tops for Education pencils
• Neoprene Lunch Sack

       



Want to win?  I'm making this one VERY easy!  All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog telling me your favorite Betty Crocker dessert.  

The winner will be chosen randomly on November 14th.  DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS!


Want more chances to win?  Spread the word on your blog, FB Page or Twitter and leave the link in the comments for an extra chance.  And YES you can enter ONCE each day it's open!  


SO GO!  




Kay


Helpful Links:

• Box Tops for Education Website http://bit.ly/btfeweb
• Box Tops for Education Facebook http://on.fb.me/btfefbook
• Box Tops for Education Twitter http://bit.ly/btfetweet

• Betty Crocker Website http://bit.ly/bcbtfeweb
• Betty Crocker Facebook http://on.fb.me/bcfbook
• Betty Crocker Twitter http://bit.ly/bctweet

11-11-11 - Happy Veterans Day!

Happy Veterans Day!

As a military spouse, it is my humble opinion that Veterans should be celebrated more often.  And as a military spouse, thinking about Veterans and the sacrifices they have given is an everyday thing, especially when you live on base and you see soldiers from every walk of life every single day.

I wasn't able to attend the Veterans Day program and either of the kids schools this week, as they really don't send out reminders of these events the way they did at their school in GA.  They have a small gym and would prefer not to have a lot of parents at many of these events because they don't have enough room to compensate everyone.  

THIS IS SOOOOO NOT CRE!  

Well, this past week, I was invited to attend the Resilient Spouse Academy, which is a conference put together to give spouses information about military life, coping with life in general and creating bonds withe families and other spouses.  

I was inspired!  I was a chance to meet with some wonderful ladies from all walks and phases of the military life, share ideas and gain and understanding for the hand we have been dealt, whatever that may be.  

As a senior spouse, I felt blessed to be a part of this group.  We are now one year shy of retirement and there are so many things I just didn't know.  There are tons of programs out there now, many that are through the ACS (Army Community Center) that are there to help families with ANYTHING they might need.  

NO ONE has to go through ANY situation alone!

Buying a car, dealing with finances, raising your kids, building a stronger marriage, going though hard financial times, or just needing someone to talk to.  ACS has you covered!  

Okay, I'm behind on the updates here, but I will do my best to get better with my blogging.  For those of you that are NOT on my FB page, you probably don't know that I now have a Work From Home contracting job!

(insert applause HERE!)

I am a program advisor for a school called Meditec and my job is to spread the word about the MyCAA program to Military Spouses, giving them the opportunity to enroll in a course at Meditec for FREE with the $4000 MyCAA grant.  


Easy, huh?  Well, you'd think that women that qualify wouldn't hesitate to take advantage of a free education, but not so.  So, I continuing inviting ladies to spread the word about the program, and I love being able to help military spouses make a difference in their lives.


I may have found my passion for now.  I really love working in a job that informs spouses of their benefits and I really love working with spouses on my Huachuca Wives page on FB and being able to give them information that might be beneficial to them at some point and being there to help answer questions as well.  I simply love the fact that I have the ability help in some way.  

Basketball is still on for Middle School!

One of the reasons I am glad soccer season is coming to an end, besides the fact that it's TOO FRICKIN HOT to be outside!

The other reason is that Basketball reason has started and I have one kid playing.

I don't remember if I mentioned this on not, but CJ made the Basketball team for middle school!

He was so excited.  He loves basketball (and soccer, and football... and just sports!)  Now, he's playing for the school and traveling around the area and I'm going to be VERY busy!

 

Soccer Season ALMOST OVER!

Soccer Season is coming to an end soon and I must say THANK GOODNESS!

While I have enjoyed watching the kids kick butt on the soccer field (They are athletic like their Momma! LOL), I have not enjoyed the fact that their practices have interfered with my classes!

They have all done very well for their first year of soccer.  I don't want to brag (because it's all about having fun, right?  Riiiiiiight!) but each of them have been one of the best on their teams.  EVEN MISS MISSY is doing great, which surprises me being that she is a very girlie girl! 

So here are a few pics from the season.  My babies are AMAZING!

The Newest Reporter on the Daily Planet!

There's something to be said about taking on volunteer work!

Today I added on another project to my busy schedule.  But I'm really happy about it.  I'm going to be volunteering for the Scout, Ft. Huachuca's post newspaper.  This is VERY cool for me because I get to go out and take pictures and caption them to be printed in the paper.  I'm starting small, you see.  I mean, I figured I wouldn't take over on my first day!  I'm going to hold off on my take over until at least December!  LOL

If you know me, then you know that I have a love for writing.  Hence the blog.  However, I've never exactly written an article of any kind in the past.  I simply can't imagine how it would feel to get something published!

Anywho, yes, it's volunteer, so it's on my time, which means that my paycheck is the same no matter how many hours I put in.  But I'm excited.  This is a great opportunity to see if being a journalist is a career I would love.  It also gives me the opportunity to explore the base, an opportunity to get to know the people and an opportunity to step out of my "Clueless Army Wife" heels and into my "Guru Army Wive" heels! 

AND......

She "put me on assignment" right away!  I feel like Lois Lane!!!!

Pillsbury's Got Something New For Breakfast!

.

For the most part, when it comes to breakfasts and lunches, my kids are pretty independent and ofter make their own.  That's why, in my house, there have to be things that are easy to make, easy to pop in the microwave.   

That's why I was excited when Pillsbury and BlogSpark got together and sent me some breakfast products to review!

Here's what they have to say about the products:

Pillsbury Grands! Biscuit Sandwiches and Pillsbury Egg Scrambles heat up in minutes in the microwave and are available in your grocer´s freezer.

Made with quality ingredients like real egg, tasty meat, cheese, Grands! Biscuits and Green Giant® vegetables, this new line of quick and delicious frozen breakfast dishes comes in six flavorful choices:

• Sausage & Cheese Biscuit Sandwich
• Bacon & Cheese Biscuit Sandwich
• Ham & Veggies Biscuit Sandwich

• Bacon & Veggies Egg Scrambles
• Sausage Egg Scrambles
• Sausage & Veggies Egg Scrambles

SOOOO, what did the kids think ?  Let just say that the breakfast sandwiches flew out of the freezer.  And Mom loves them because it something else that I don't have to cook, because I'm SOOOOO not a morning person!



Vist the Pillsbury Website for more information: http://bit.ly/pbbreakfast
Like them on Facebook:  http://on.fb.me/pillsburyonfb

Wise

PCSing and the Military Spouse.

PCSing is a challenging time for any military family.  Okay, moving in itself is hard, so I'm not trying to discredit any of my readers who aren't military and have had to move, but there's something to be said about moving in the military.

PCS or Permanent Change of Station is a term that shouldn't be used because when it comes to the military, our change of station is never permanent!

I think that one of the hardest things about PCSing is the fact that you know that you will have to do it again within the next 2 to 5 years.  5 years for those that are lucky!

A few days ago, I asked my Huachuca Wives this question:

What is one thing that could have made your PCS to Ft. Huachuca easier?

Most of the responses revolved around having someone, a sponsor, to show them the ropes when they got here.

I had to agree.  

Okay, as many of you know, moving to a new place is hard work.  Moving to a place where you know absolutely no one or nothing about the area can be down right discouraging.  

The units are suppose to assign each in-coming soldier a sponsor to help your family out when you arrive.  Not always the case.  Also, an FRG Leader should give you a call to welcome you to your new duty station.  Not always the case. 

One thing that I think would have been nice when we moved here would have been if there was a family, similar to our own, sponsoring us, showing us the ropes, telling us about the schools, the ins and out, the ups and downs.  Until I started Huachuca Wives, I didn't know anyone in the area.  I felt alone in the desert and I was in need of someone to talk to.  Huachuca Wives has given me a group of ladies who can help guide one another, learn from one another and support one another.  

I know that I can't greet every spouse that comes to the post feeling the way that I did, but I want to use Huachuca Wives to help those that are new here and in need of a friendly face.  

I'm getting a lot of positive feedback from the girls and I know that while I'm here, I want to be a positive asset to as many people as I possibly can.  

Just being there in the very beginning of a person's new adventure can, if nothing else, give my fellow Military Wives a good first look at what to expect here.

PCSing isn't always easy, but having a friendly face waiting there for you can make a world of difference.

15mph PLEASE!

It seems that every morning I have to motion for someone to SLOW DOWN in the school zones.

Here on Ft. Huachuca, school zones are 15mph, which is a snail's crawl.  

It's pretty obvious when a car isn't going 15!  

I often try to control the speeders in the school zone where my child crosses the street.  Now, I know that it's not my job to do this because I'm not an MP, but I am a parent and I have 3 kids that use this school zone 5 days a week.  I want people to take heed to the school zones!

 

I wave my hand every morning to motion for SOMEONE to slow down.  Do you know that the majority of these drivers are women?!?  You'll find drivers throwing up their hands in defense as if to say "Hey, I'm not speeding."  But there's a hug difference between 25 and 15.  

Granted, the school zones signs in our area are very confusing because there's not sign that says END SCHOOL ZONE, so in the defense of these drivers, some think that as soon as they get past the the yellow crosswalk they can go back to normal speeds.  That's not the case.  And granted, unlike what I'm use to on the east coast, the school zones speed limits are for the entire time that school is in session, not just during the times that kids are going to school and coming from school.  But that's beside the point.

I'm not perfect by any means.  I have a lead foot very often, but I feel that when you are in a school zone during the times when kids may be crossing, it is a driver's duty to keep the kids safe and drive slow.

So, until someone tells me differently or drivers suddenly decide to adhere to the 15mph signs at all time, I will continue to play mini-cop and warn these drivers about speeding.  

Those are MY kids out there!

Things To Work on Thursday: Organization and Career

There are a few things I have trouble with.  

One is staying organized. 

Lately, with so much going on, I have trouble finding time to keep it all together.  

Have you seen my calendar?

 (Yes it's sideways!  I couldn't figure out how to rotate it!)

It's color coded for each child and myself for all of the things that I have to do during the day.

My iPhone reminds me of every appointment, event, class, practice, game, conference, field trip or luncheon that I have coming up.

If I don't write it down AND set a reminder in my phone, it's likely it will fall into the I FORGOT pile.  Often, that pile is where I find folding laundry.  (Perhaps purposely put there.)

My point to it all is that I'm very busy these days and that's WITHOUT a traditional job!

I can only imagine how it all will get done when I have to go back to work.

Ahhh, work!  I feel that lately the husband has been throwing (pretty hard) hints about me getting a job.  He's been talking a lot about me getting my resume together every since he went to a resume class and has even mentioned a few websites for jobs here in AZ.

I know what he's saying, but the problem with me finding a job (other than that fact that I don't want to) is that everyone is so competitive here, with their fancy degrees and such.

Shoot!  I don't have my degree yet and my confidence is way low... when it comes to competing for a job anyway. 

Where is that perfect stay at home career that I have been waiting to fall into my hands? You know, the ones where I don't actually have to get up and go to a place of business EVERY DAY??  HUH?

Coming together for Brunch

First of all, I have great news.

I made a 91 in my Macroeconomics class!

YES!  The class that I HATE!  

The one I thought I was going to FAIL miserably!  

I got an A!

Well, technically it was an A minus, but an A, nonetheless.

Can you say THRILLED?!??

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!

*****************************************************


I'm really liking the way that the Huachuca Wives group is going.  So far there are over 50 members and there is tons of communication and participation with the discussions and posts.  I'm trying to maintain a group with a positive atmosphere and so far, it's working. 

Today I got together with some of those great girls.  I invited the group over for a potluck brunch.

I ended up wit about 7 girls, and they were a great group.  I invited Deborah, the crossing guard that I met last year who is just absolutely darling!  She's a retired spouse.  She and her husband live in a small travel trailer and she LOVES kids.

Have you ever read the books about Mrs. Piggle Wiggle?  It's a series of books I read when I was a kid about a little old lady with who loved kids.  She never had any of her own, but she lived her life being around kids, playing with kids and having imagination adventures with kids in her neighborhood.  Anyway, Mrs. Deborah reminds me a lot of Mrs. Piggle Wiggle. She has the greatest spirit and the biggest heart.

The ladies I met today were great.  It was nice to be in a positive environment with some positive people.  It's great to be able to shoot around thoughts about the area and ideas about what to do to make things better.  One of the girls, a girl that I asked to be my co-admin on the FB page, made me so happy today.  She told me that the site has helped her realize that she can do this Army Spouse thing and she told me how appreciative she was that I created it. 


And that, my dears, is success!  If I have touched 1 person's life in a positive way then Huachuca Wives is successful and I know that my goals have been met!

Repost from September 11th 2008

There are some things that you never forget. 

I figured that in light of the 10th Anniversary of September 11th, I would repost the post I wrote remembering this tragedy.  It's so vivid to me still and I wrote a post on this on my Huachuca Wives page a few days ago which was very similar to this one.  The precise memories of what I was doing that day will never fade away.


September 11th.



As all of you, I remember where I was on that horrific morning 7 years ago. I was sleeping in late that day, pregnancy was not agreeing with me one bit. I remember that I was going through this major depression, unhappily pregnant, unhappily married, just miserable. So I didn't want to get out of bed that morning, but I did. Went into the living room and turned on the TV.

As I sat on the couch. I remember wondering why was this movie on my TV instead of Divorce Court, which at that time I was watching faithfully (probably due to my marital situation). Surely, I hadn't left the TV on one of my premium HBO or Showtime channels. Nor had I ever seem this movie before. I changed the channel and it was there too.

One of the Twin Towers (which I really knew nothing about at that time being from the south and all) was burning. The Today's Show commentators were sounding solemn and nervous. I watched for a few minutes, thinking what in the world could have happened to that plane to cause it to crash into a building? Then came the second one.

Oh my God! I sat on that couch with my mouth wide open in disbelief thinking, "What the hell is going on?" The voices on the TV were fractic and I picked up the phone to call Hubs, who of course didn't answer the phone, usually unable to get reception from his office at work. So I sat there, alone and afraid and a little thankful that my 1 yrs. old slept soundly in his bed.

I watched as the flames burned the people started jumping. Then the first building went down, I started to cry.



Today, and every year to the date since, I think back to those events. I always say a little prayer for those people that were in those buildings and their families and those that fought to saved them, many losing their lives. I say a prayer for those who have lost their lives since because of those terrorist attacks, and those still losing their lives even today. That tragic day. September 11th 2001 changed our world forever and for every year on this day forever more I will remember.

Labor Day at Sea World!

So how was your Labor Day Weekend?

As a Family Chick, it's inevitable that a good holiday weekend is going to revolve around family stuff.

So, lucky for us as a Military Family, Sea World is being generous to offer free tickets to military families!  They call the program "Here's to the Heroes" and there is a free admission to Soldiers and up to 4 dependents.  Which was great because we only ended up having to buy one ticket and because we purchased it at MWR before we went, we even saved almost twenty bucks on that ticket as well! 

So off to San Diego we went on an 8 hour drive from Ft. Huachuca. 

Even better, we have friends that live at the Navy base in San Diego and were able to spend time with them as well.  They were our neighbors in Georgia and I was so happy to see her!  It's so true what they say about how military friendships often just pick back up where they left off!

Every since I was a kid, I always wanted to go to Sea World.  We lived in Georgia and that's about 8 hours from Orlando.  We took a trip to Disney, but never got back to visit Sea World.  Back then, the Free Willy movies had come out and I wanted nothing more than to see Shamu!

Well I finally got my chance!  The kids had an AMAZING time!  We didn't do the rides, just the shows and they still talked about how much they enjoyed it. 

It was a great Labor Day Weekend.  My only complaint is that the 4-day weekend didn't las long enough!

A mom's work... well you know the rest!

I know I shouldn't say this out loud and I know that I'm being a bad influence for my kids, but homework is going to have to wait!

I have been flooded with "things to do" and I'm starting to think that I might want to slow my role a bit.  I haven't had time to go to the schools to volunteer my time this year.  I seem to not have time for anything with the school days being so short and the kids getting home starting at 2:10 rather than the 4:15 time they got off the bus in GA.  That's 2 hours off my day!

Try to hit the pavement or the gym most days out of the week right after I drop Miss Missy off at school in the morning, and by the time I get home, take a shower, check my email and FB... it's lunch time for Hubs.  He's home and I can't do homework during that time, of course.  So, he goes back to work and most days, that gives me maybe an hour before Miss Missy needs to be picked up.

Then it's "Them" time.  Can you read this?  Can you sign that?  Can you help me do this?  blah blah blah!  UGH!

One they are home and in homework mode, it's time to get ready for soccer practice 4 days out of the week.  

Monday - no practices - this is going to be the only day of the week I can do homework!

Tuesday - Miss Missy

Wednesday - The boys

Thursday - Miss Missy

Friday - The boys

Their games start this weekend.

Miss Missy is going to miss her first game because we're taking a mini-vaca for the 4-day!  Yay-ay!

It's been really busy lately, but I'm looking forward to adding in a little volunteer time at the school and a few things through ACS as well.  AND I run a FB group for the wives of Ft. Huachuca.  Oh and of course, I do the Soccer Mom thing for 2 out of 3 of the kids' teams.

Gotta Love being a Stay at home mom!

Do you curse around your parents?

There's something to be said about respect for your parents.

Growing up, there was no way my brother and I would raise our voices and disrespect our parents.  

NO WAY!

My sister was another story, but hey, she was the baby and got away with a lot more than we ever did.

When it came to our household, respect was something that all adults got, no matter what.  You spoke when you were spoken to.  You answered yes or no.  You didn't get to have an opinion.

We were raised in the "Kids should be seen, not heard" fashion.

Talking back?  Nuh-uh!

And profanity of any kind would have gotten me smacked in my mouth.  I know this not by experience because I was never brave enough to try it.

As an adult, not much as changed.  I still will in NO WAY use profanity of any kind around my mom or dad.  Not even over the phone where it is impossible to be smacked.  I never lost that kind of respect for them because I believe it is a well deserved respect.

My momma has a friend who argues and curses with her children on a regular basis.  She once told my mom, "Oh come on. Lorie. Don't act like your children have never cursed in front of you before."

My momma confidently answered, "NEVER!"  We knew better.  Even as a grown behind woman, I couldn't see myself using profanity around my parents.  I get called out if I use a four letter word on my blog, so I can only imagine what my mom might say if something slipped out of my mouth!

Do you ever curse around your parents?

A new dentist for the kids.

The kids had their first visit to the dentist since we've been in Sierra Vista.

I wasn't crazy about taking them to the dentist because in my mind NO DENTIST could ever live up to their dentist in Augusta.  The pediatric dentist we've been going to from the beginning was absolutely great for kids!  It was decorated with an Arctic Wonderland theme and had toys and video games.  The hygienists did a great job and were all sweet and patient.  The dentist would come to take a look in the kids' mouths once the hygienists finished the cleaning.  He had a perfect set a teeth himself and a great smile.  Very easy on the eyes too!  LOL!  Dr. Lee Baker's  Pediatric dentistry certainly holds a place in our family's hearts!

So going to the dentist here wasn't something I was looking forward to.  However, the experience was not all that bad.  We went to Cochise Children's Dental Center.  The waiting room is set up to entertain young children with table trains and wood puzzles on the walls.  For the most part, my kids didn't take interest. 

What I didn't like was that they did one kid at a time. The dentist was the one who did the cleaning and the assistants were just there to set up and hand him the instruments.  That meant that each child was done one at a time and the visit took almost 2 hours, being that it was our first visit.

I guess I can't expect everyone to live up to the standards of our old dentist, but other than the time it took to do 3 kids, this was a great dentist.  At least there were no tears and no cavities!

The Animal Rights Activists Would Have My Head!

Ginger and I went on our morning walk.  The weather this morning was bearable for a good walk/run.  There sky was cloudy, just the way I like it in the morning to block out the HOT sun.  I added in a little extra today, even though my legs are cramping like crazy.  Other than that, I felt great.

But.....

Poor Ginger obviously wasn't feeling the same way.  Halfway through the running part, she STOPPED!  Yep, just STOPPED and layed down in a shady stop.  

Of course, we are in Arizona, so there aren't many shady spots because there aren't any TREES!

But she managed to find a shady spot next to a wall and...  STOPPED!

"Okay," I said. "I'll give you a minute."  I gave her a little wtter from my waterbottle, snapped a picture of her and it was time to pick up the pace.  

Well, after about another quarter mile, something was slowing down my stroll.

I take a look back at the dog, who was now WALKING in slow motion.  SHE. WAS. DONE!

For a minute, I thought we were going to have to sit down and wait out her exhaustion.  She would not walk faster than a slow crawl.

So, we walk the rest of the .25 mile at a snails pace back to the house.  

When we get home, I spray her down with the water hose.  I'd called my mom on our crawl back to the house and she suggestion the poor dog might have heat exhaustion.  

Now, she's laying next to her bowl, drinking ice water and panting heavily.  

Ginger is NOT that dog who enjoys exercise!  Maybe it's time for a Golden Retriever puppy.

Who am I? Putting it in Writing.

I am Kay.

I am a woman,

A mother,

A wife,

A student,

A stay at home mom,

A volunteer,

A path seeker,

A dreamer,

A writer,

A blogger,

A lover of photography,

A social media nut,

A non-domestic goddess,

An optimist,

A scatterbrain,

A smiler,

I am an American,

An African American,

I am of Indian decent, 

A Democrat,

A non-denominational Christian (in the works)

An Army Brat,

A traveler,

A Georgia Peach at heart,

A current Arizonian,

An Army Wife,

A Daughter,

A Sister,

A Grand Daughter,

A Niece,

An Aunt,

A Cousin,

A Friend,

I am a protector,

A provider,

A cook,

A chauffeur,

A cheerleader,

A nurse,

A counselor,

A shoulder,

A supporter,

A drill sergeant,

A mediator,

A referee,

A homework checker,

A teammate,

A coach,

A bike mechanic,

A toy fixer,

A beautician,

A nail technician,

A designer,

A battery replacer,

But I am not a maid. 

I am dog walker,

A dog washer,

An aspiring runner,

A workout partner,

A lunch buddy,

A a person to talk to,

I am Kay

Take a moment to write down who you are.  A person has many co-cultures and this is a great way to see who you are and what you do.  You are not JUST A MOM or JUST A STUDENT.  YOUR Job doesn't define you.  Write it down.  See how quickly your list grows!