These are a Few of My Favorite Things:

Just like the songs says, sometimes when I am feeling sad, thinking about my favorite things makes me feel better. Here are some of mine:

*The way my husband's smile only goes up on one side of his mouth but goes all the way to his eyes.

* The sound of my little girls laughing - hard.

* The first strains of a favorite song when it comes on the radio.

* The way my husband calls me sweetheart.

* Dragons.

*72 degrees with sunny, blue skies.

*Lilacs in bloom.

*My children playing nicely together.

* The sights and smells of my moms house.

*AN Empty Laundry basket.

* Anything Chocolate.

*The Fresh smell of the Christmas Tree.

*Butterflies and hummingbirds.

* Listening to my daughters sing.

*The peacefulness of the ocean, especially under the waves.

*Wishing on a star.

* The way my husband's arms and shoulders feel when he hugs me.

* Whales, dolphins, fish and all sea creatures.

* Snow on Christmas

***HOMECOMINGS****

Sometimes it Rains....

Life goes on in what seems like an ordinairy fashion and then... all of a sudden, a streak of bad luck hits. Maybe bad luck isn't exactly the right phrase, but a series of disasters strike. It's like quicksand, first one thing goes wrong, then another and then another, until, before you know it, you are in over your head.
I hate the quicksand moments but I had my most recent turn with it last week. It was a seemingly great week. My mom was coming to visit, I wasn't going to have to deal with the last crappy part of this deployment alone. I'm gearing up for my vacation and BAM! Disaster.
I was at a meeting last week and on the drive home my check engine light goes on. Well, that's the night I am supposed to get my mom. So I tinker with my husbands' car and get it working. Then I make an appointment for my car at the dealership. $200 dollars later, my o2 sensor and EGR valvue were fixed. Yuck.
No biggie though, right? Well, that night, I wake to what sounds like a jet engine landing in my basement. The fan on my vent for our heater, which we have been nursing for some time, finally decided to make it's last stand. Nice. So I call to have the guys come out and fix it, only to deal with little miss "I have a bad attitude" on the phone. Trust me, not what I needed. Actually, who the hell needs to deal with some woman being bitchy on the telephone?? DOesn't she get that if I'm calling for an emergency repair on my heater that my life is already bad enough??
Someone needs to buy her a clue. Long story short, my fan got fix, disaster averted -mostly. $1000 later, my week is finally over. Anyone know a good rock that I could hide under for the next six weeks or so??

Joining the 21st century

So, I finally did it. I have finally joined the 21st century. It feels strange to feel behind the times instead of riding the trends. At any rate, two things have happened recently helping me become a full fledged member of the 21st century.
First of all, I have a myspace page. I swore forever that I wasn't going to do it, I saw myspace as a cess pool of insanity that I just didn't want any part of. So many of our ladies from our boat have a myspace page though, that I finally realized it would be a good idea if I had one too. It makes it so much easier to keep in touch with what is going on in their lives. I feel much more a part of things now than I previously had. Once I joined, I realized that myspace is pretty much like everything else in life - you get out of it what you put into it. If you are there for raunchy pictures, hooking up and other like activities, you can certainly find that there. However, if you are there to share pics, stay in touch with friends and share your life - well, there are many, many other people there for those reasons too. In the end, I re-learned an important lessons. You just can't judge a social networking site by the sum of it's members but rather by your own personal experiences. I doubt it will ever become a favorite online place to be... but hey, I'm there.

Secondly, and I think this will probably shock more of you than the first item, I finally got an ipod. As much as I love music, you'd have thought that an ipod was a given long before now, but the fact is that I didn't think I really had much use for one. When will I have time for an ipod? I was so wrong!! I love my ipod and use it all the time. It's great for walking the dog or cleaning the house. It will be the perfect distraction for my upcoming trip. Flying makes me nervous so it will be nice to have some soothing music selections along.

Honestly though, what's next? Biometric recognition devices to start my car or log on to my computer? Who knows....

This is really Cool!

So, as you can see, I have been given this totally awesome award from my friend, Kelly at Telecommuting Truths. Kelly has, for many years, helped women who wanted to work from home by sharing her wonderful wisdom and useful techniques. If you work at home, or are interested in starting, I can't recommend her blog highly enough!

Part of accepting the award is:
*displaying the award
*linking back to the person who gave it to you
*paying it forward & nominating 7 blogs
*adding links to those seven blogs
*leaving comments on their blog telling them you gave them an award
*enjoying the award


In no particular order:

I'd like to recognize Ken at Everything Must Go - A Male Perspective. Sometimes I find his blog illuminationg, other times I find it infuriating, but I always find it entertaining and you will too. It is definitely interesting getting a peek into the dark and often obscure place called the male pysche.

Ariel Rising - this blog is written by a friend of mine from Cafemom. She shares my passion for music and photography. Let me tell you, she has awesome taste, so if you dig music, especially classic rock, this blog is for you!


Under the Sea is written by my friend, Ann, a fellow Navy wife. She just recently had a baby. Her blog is poignant, often thought provoking and absolutely hysterical! I love peeking into her life.

LIfe Happens is written by my friend Steph. We met on an online community some years ago. She is a fellow Navy wife and mom. I love her blog because it's real - she deals with real issues with grace and humor. It gives me hope...

My best friend, Jen, has her blog over at A Night without Armor. She doesn't blog nearly enough, but when she does, it is always amazing!

In every parent's life, a little guilt will fall... and since that is the case, you should definitely check out my friend, Nikki, over at the Guilty Parent. Her blog is fun, full of insight and always humorous. Because sometimes, you just need to laugh.

And finally, a glimmer of hope for all of us Navy wives - words of wisdom from one who actually made it out!!! Check out my friend Kim at Half My Heart. She has heartfelt stories and amazing recipes. You'll be glad you did!

So these are some of my favorite blogs. Check them out and tell them Snow sent ya!

A Kiss Shouldn't Be A Privilege

Recently, I was giving my two daughters, ages 9 and 5, an impromptu civics lesson. We were talking about rights and priviledges and the difference between the two. A right is a just claim or title, whether legal, prescriptive, or moral. For example, as Americans we all have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. While on the other hand, a privilege is defined as a right, immunity, or benefit enjoyed only by a person beyond the advantages of most.

So, what started out as a political discussion and lesson for them turned out, in fact, to be a lesson for me. My oldest daughter told me that she didn't think that most people understood the differences between the two concepts. To be fair, they are intricately related in many instances. I asked her to explain.

She said that she felt most people took their freedom for granted. They go about doing their day to day things, not really realizing all the things that they enjoy that so many others do not. Our very right to vote is something that is seen as expected and yet, women have only had the right to vote for about 90 years. People of all types, throughout the world, can not vote for a government of their choice.

Every day we exercise our rights to make decisions that impact our lives and the lives of our families. We do this without realizing that in some countries, the government tells them how much bread they can buy, or how long they have to wait in line for health care. Some countries even tell their people how to dress or what religion to practice. Not here! We have all these rights and exercise them without a thought.

Then, she brought it down to a very personal level. She said, "every night, my friends kiss their mom and dad goodnight. I can't. Something like kissing the person you love goodnight should be a right that every person has - not a privilege." You know what, she's right.

So today, as you go about your daily lives probably complaining about some inconvenience that a loved one has caused you, remember that not everyone can kiss those people that they love the most goodnight. Don't miss your opportunity to do so! Live every day with the people you love to the fullest. You'll never regret it if you do.

You know, I think that I am raising a very smart young lady....

Today, I feel Blessed

Sometimes the life of a Navy wife is hard. Those of you that have read my blog on occassion already understand that. But today, I just want to say how lucky I feel, because through it all, I am lucky.

My husband and I have been married for almost 10 years. We have been together for 13 years. It's strange looking back on that length of time. Sometimes it feels like a really long time and others, it feels as if it has just been a drop in the bucket. Time has changed both of us. We have grown up together, become parents together, life has changed us in many ways - mostly for the better.

Still, there are some things that haven't changed. When I look at him, I still see the man I married. I know I always will, even when we're old. When I catch sight of him on the pier as he comes home to me, my heart skips a beat and jumps for joy!
I would recognize his walk anywhere.

That lopsided smile of his still drives me crazy - even after 13 years. When I see him, my knees still get weak and I get butterflies in my stomache. When we are together, just doing nothing at all, I know true contentment.

Today, I feel lucky because some people never have these things. Or worse, they have them and over the passage of time, come to take them for granted.

Yes, there are some things about Navy life that are very difficult but I feel blessed that because of the life we lead, I will never take the one I love most for granted. I know I will always appreciate the smiles, the big bear hug, his hand in mine, the sound of his voice, the smell of his uniforms... all of that and a million other things, I will reflect on and treasure in my heart. That's why today, I feel blessed.

It's Not Just About the Pink Ribbons You know!

I think by now, a person would have to be brain dead to not know that October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I mean, my goodness, the pink is EVERYWHERE! They even have pink cookware at Target... (It's a little strange if you ask me, considering that the pink is amazingly like Pepto Bismol)

Here's something that you may not know - October is also the month to raise awareness for Domestic Violence. Here's what's real - from the American Institute on Domestic Violence:

*85-90% of all domestic violence victims are females.

*Over 500,000 women are stalked by an intimate partner each year.

*5.3 Million women are abused each year.

*1,232 women are KILLED every year by an intimate partner

*Domestic Violence is the leading cause of Injury to women.

5.3 Million women abused each year - that's almost unbelieveable. There is definitely a reason that Domestic Violence is often referred to as the "silent epidemic". So many people - men, women and children suffer in silence. They suffer because they are afraid to share their pain. They suffer in silence because they are ashamed.

I was one of them. Once upon a time, I let a person who proclaimed to love me lay his hands on me in violence. I thought that if I just loved him enough, that I could change him. I was so wrong and I lost five years of my life because of it.

I'm one of the lucky ones. I got out. Something snapped inside me one day and I knew that things were never going to get better and that, quite likely, they were going to get much, much worse. That realization most probably saved my life. Every day I think about those that weren't as lucky as I.

Today, I have found new strength. Today, I have been married to the love of my life for 10 years and together we are raising two beautiful little girls. I worry for my daughters. I always want them to have the positive self esteem to know that they are worth more than that. I want them to know that real love NEVER raises it's hand in anger.

So while I think it's wonderful to raise awareness for Breast Cancer ( a very worthy cause), I think that all of us should be aware and thinking of those that continue to suffer in silence. There is nothing domestic about violence. If you or someone you know if suffering, please stand up and be silent no longer! Let your voice be heard! Please call the Domestic Violence Helpline at 188-799-SAFE. Help stop the silent epidemic!

I'm a survivor - 10+ years and counting. You can be a survivor too!