Upgrade Objection

We've been consumed with houses and so many details that goes along with building one.
We walk into a friends house, "What size are your floor tiles?"
We walked into the produce store, "Oooh, look how well that counter goes so well with that color cabinet."
I'm sure it's getting a tad bit annoying for folks around us.
But had we not been so obsessive we would have completely missed this. . . .

I'm guessing the 2nd level door came standard.
The lanai must have been an upgrade.

God is Good . . . .He gave me great neighbors!

Neighbor Jim knocked on my door early Sunday morning. Told me I might not want to go anywhere.

 

Once my confusion cleared, I stepped out to see what was up. 

My tire was flat. Completely. Like a puddle of melted ice cream (licorice flavor, obviously) 

I said, "Oh my gosh - it's totally gone!" Garrett panicked and hollered in my direction, "Why would someone steal our tire?" I shoo-ed him back into the lanai. 

Jim had noticed the tilt of the Durango while he was out enjoying his morning coffee. (And what a tilt it is!) Without skipping a beat, he asked if Dave was still gone. Of course! 
Needless to say, Jim's been helping me all morning along with his son Justin. We're taking a break now - it's proving to be more than we all bargained for*. As Jim was heading inside his house he turned back momentarily and said, "Remember, God is Good." 

Funny thing, that's not what was bobbing around in my mind at the moment. In fact, I was thinking with all the sarcasm I could muster ... "Great, another day on the inactive list for all the young bitty's to talk about!!!" 

I really should change to Jim's train of thought. I just can't figure out yet - but at least no sewing words! And for a fun bit of nostalgia, there was an old boonie bee nest on the spare (amongst other disgusting Guam flora/fauna)
*Addendum: Futile efforts, a tow truck, $600 later . . . is it worth living in harsh sea climates that cause premature rusting? You Betcha!

The military wife can handle . . .

I saw this on a friend's blog recently and I wanted to share it here.

It's more true than I care to think about. It can often be difficult for my civilian friends and family to understand what is regular life for our military family. I've read many salutes to the military spouse that involve all the things we are required to do but I think this might explain it best.

The military wife can handle...

Lots of moving...
Moving...
Moving...
Moving far from home...
Moving two cars, three kids and one dog...all riding with HER of course.
Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house;
Moving curtains that won't fit;
Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours.
Moving away from friends;
Moving toward new friends;
Moving her most important luggage: her trunk full of memories.

Often waiting...
Waiting...
Waiting...
Waiting for housing.
Waiting for orders.
Waiting for deployments.
Waiting for phone calls.
Waiting for reunions.
Waiting for the new curtains to arrive.
Waiting for him to come home,
For dinner...AGAIN!

They call her 'Military Dependent', but she knows better:
She is fiercely In-Dependent.

She can balance a check book;
Handle the yard work;
Fix a noisy toilet;
Bury the family pet...

She is intimately familiar with drywall anchors and toggle bolts.
She can file the taxes;
Sell a house;
Buy a car;
Or set up a move...
.....all with ONE Power of Attorney.

She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.
She reinvents her career with every PCS;
Locates a house in the desert, The Arctic, Or the deep south.
And learns to call them all 'home'.
She MAKES them all home.

Military Wives are somewhat hasty...
They leap into:
Decorating,
Leadership,
Volunteering,
Career alternatives,
Churches,
And friendships.
They don't have 15 years to get to know people.
Their roots are short but flexible.
They plant annuals for themselves and perennials for those who come after
them.

Military Wives quickly learn to value each other:
They connect over coffee,
Rely on the spouse network,
Accept offers of friendship and favors.
Record addresses in pencil...

Military Wives have a common bond:
The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands; his commitment is
unique.
He doesn't have a 'JOB'
He has a 'MISSION' that he can't just decide to quit...
He's on-call for his country 24/7.
But for her, he's the most unreliable guy in town!
His language is foreign
TDY
PCS
OPR
SOS
ACC
BDU
ACU
BAR
CIB
TAD
And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.
She is the long- distance link to keep them informed;
the glue that holds them together.

A Military Wife has her moments:
She wants to wring his neck;
Dye his uniform pink;
Refuse to move to Siberia;
But she pulls herself together.
Give her a few days,
A travel brochure,
A long hot bath,
A pledge to the flag,
A wedding picture,
And she goes.
She packs.
She moves.
She follows.

Why?
What for?
How come?
You may think it is because she has lost her mind.
But actually it is because she has lost her heart.
It was stolen from her by a man,
Who puts duty first,
Who longs to deploy,
Who salutes the flag,
And whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her
Military Husband,
She will remain his military wife.
And would have it no other way.

--Author Unknown

Sending some Aloha . . . .

. . . . .To snowy Korea.

. . . .and xo's

So there was this Tsunami thing . . . .

Our Tsunami Saturday began in the wee hours of the morning - just like everyone else.
Knowing David was out of town, my friend Tara pondered long and hard about calling me in the middle of the night to let me know there was a tsunami coming.
"You know we've been through a tsunami advisory before, right?" I mumbled.

"Yes, but I think this one's a little more serious." she countered.

Knowing that she is the least dramatic person in the world - I decided to wake up and pay attention.
The tv went on and the laptop came out.

By that time I knew that a tsunami was headed across the Pacific; that an official tsunami warning had been issued for Hawaii; that coastal evacuations would begin at 6 AM; and that the tsunami was projected to reach Hilo minutes after 11AM on Feb. 27.
So now what? . . . .what do you do when you know that in 8 hours things will go either really smoothly or really bad!

Remembering that a friend had arrived for vacation on island just hours before, I sent her a text trying to give her a heads up for what was about to come. (Those sirens can really give you a jolt!)
Thinking I could get an hour or two of sleep before things got ugly, I started to drift off. . . . .

And then the phone really got going. Phone calls and texts from family, friends, and church. Neighbors who knew Dave was out of town came over to make sure I was awake.
Promptly at 6 AM -- right on schedule -- the civil defense sirens around the island began to wail their warning. Those unmistakable sirens warbled again, each hour on the hour.  The "Giant Voice" announced tsunami warnings and evacuations throughout the base.

Coastal evacuees traveled up to Tripler, Pali and Tantalus; Navy ships from Pearl Harbor headed out to sea to wait in open water; Members from our ward headed up to the church building near Camp Smith.
In the meantime we kept the tv on, made a run to the commissary and gas station, filled anything fillable with water (thanks to years of typhoon training) and kept our phone calls to Tara regular (her husband happened to be out of town too).

Throughout all this, I never felt the "panic" many of the national news channels were reporting.
In fact - I had a nice little chat with the gas attendant; an older lady, wiping down the gas pumps with her cleaning rag and Windex. She reminded me that at 10 AM roads along the coast, as well as those that lead into and out of the inundation zones would be closed.

We sat tight at our house, while the neighbors across the street had been evacuated hours earlier.
At 10:30 AM the final warning siren sounded. I have to admit, it was a bit nerve-wracking. My brother Tyler's texts were a good distraction - "Is there any danger? If not take some video!" "Anything Yet?" My reply at 11:43 AM "It's as if Molly knows something . . . She just went crazy!" 12:05 PM: my final text back to him from our incredibly long morning "From what the NOAA guys are saying this IS the tsunami. It seems Molly was the only one that noticed I guess."
We survived yet another exercise in Mother Nature's Weather Phenomenons!

Cabinet Conundrum

Let's face it . . . Home design choices from afar is proving to be not so much fun!