GA here we come...

Packed in like sardines!

After a few crazy days on the road and at the urging of friends and family, I decided it was time to update everyone on our trip with a blog post. As most of you know, we are in the middle of a PCS (permanent change of station) move to Germany.  However, before we go, we are road-tripping to Georgia to see family and friends. 

Beautiful Oregon

Day 1 (May 30, 2014)- After an insane day of cleaning, attempting to get everything in the car, realizing it wouldn’t all fit, giving some more stuff away last minute and then conning our friends that we gave the freebies to into taking our trash, we left Steilacoom around 6 p.m. and headed out. As we were getting ready to pull out, we realized that we left food that was meant for the cooler in our fridge.  Unfortunately, we had already turned in our keys to the property company, so we had to call and leave them a message letting them know we left it.  Who knows how much they will charge us to “clean” the fridge for that one.  We ended up driving to The Dalles, OR which was approximately 212 miles. It was a beautiful drive through the Columbia River Gorge at sunset.  After a very tiring day, we settled in at the hotel and due to our lack of organizational skills, we had to haul pretty much EVERYTHING up to our room and then back down in the morning. Needless to say, we reorganized and got all we need for the trip to GA in one suitcase so we only have to unpack one every night instead of all of them. 

Snake River in Idaho

Day 2:  We headed out of The Dalles towards Idaho.  It was a pretty cool drive watching the constantly changing terrain…mountains, green valleys and then into the desert.  It was a gorgeous sunny day, but as we crossed over into Idaho we encountered this crazy weather.  All of a sudden it got really dark, cloudy and super windy, but never did rain.  I guess it was basically a huge wind storm.  Also, on a really cool note, we saw 4 different dust devils. As we got closer to Twin Falls, we realized there was a Chili’s.  As Cory hasn’t eaten at Chili’s since we moved to Washington, we decided to head there for dinner…and then, our Bimbo (GPS) made us miss the Exit as it had been moved.  Lesson learned:  If you miss an exit on the Interstate in rural Idaho, it may require you drive 16 miles out of the way to get back to said exit.  UGH!  On a good note, we still got our Chili’s and then settled in at the hotel.  Another funny story for the day – I ran into a store in the desert of Oregon while Cory walked Hobbs.  When I came out, Cory tells me, “Hobbs had his first run in with the desert.”  Cory walked him through a field and when they got back on the road, Hobbs was limping like he was dying.  Come to find out, he had picked up a few sand spurs.  When Cory first told me that, I was sure that he had seen a snake.  I was glad it was just sand spurs.  Ha ha!  Total mileage for the day:  Approx. 471 miles.   

Day 3: Today was pretty awesome.  We got up this morning and let the kids play in the pool at the hotel for a bit before heading out on the road and ended our day in Tropic, UT which is just a few miles from the entrance to Bryce Canyon National Park.  As we headed out this morning, we stopped at a gas station and to fill up. It was the first gas station we ever saw that sold growlers of beer, including Mac and Jacks.  Also, we crossed the Snake River up from Twin Falls which was pretty cool. The drive through Idaho farm country, once again made me want to buy a ranch one day.  Of course, that might be one of those dreams that would be more work than I can possibly imagine it. Once again, we saw a ton of different landscapes and terrain. The drive through northern Utah was alright, but nothing overly special to me.  However, as we got further south, it was gorgeous. Lots of open land and cattle/sheep ranches.  The boys were excited to see REAL cowboys.  We also ran into the group from goldRush Rally in Salinas, UT.  Lots of beautiful and exotic cars.  Once we hit southern Utah and the beginning of the canyons, I was blown away. It is truly amazing.  We came through as the sun was getting ready to set and the sunlight off the canyon walls in Red Canyon are indescribable.  We took a few pictures, but they don’t come close to doing justice to the natural beauty of this place.  As I often am, I find myself truly blown away by God’s awesome artistry.  I am definitely looking forward to exploring more tomorrow!  Today’s mileage: Approx.:  489 miles

Tomorrow is a day of exploring, so while I am sure we will rack up some driving miles, I am not sure we will make much distance towards home.  We are planning to get up early and go explore Bryce Canyon National Park, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Park and the Grand Canyon.  A lot of it will be just scenic drives, but we may try to get in a little hiking as well if any of the trails are dog friendly.

For anyone wondering what our plan is or why we can’t tell you when exactly we will make it to Georgia that is because we really don’t have a plan per se.  We just head out in the morning and drive.  When we feel like we are a few hours from a stopping point, I start Googling dog-friendly hotels in towns on the atlas that are about that far away.  Also, we haven’t completely mapped out what roads we are taking so our plans are just pretty fluid.  We hope to make it to Georgia by Thursday or Friday, but that all depends on what fun things we find on the way that change those plans!  All in all the trip is going well.  The kids are travelling pretty well and Hobbs has been great.  The only issue is that after all those hours on the road, the kids are pretty wild when we get to the hotel at night and it takes forever to get them down for the night.  Hoping that we can get them out of the car more tomorrow and they can get more exercise, so maybe they will be better at night.

Red Canyon in Utah

Miles travelled:  1,172

Mileage left to Georgia:   2,180 miles give or take, depending on how many times we get tempted from the path, which with us, tends to be fairly often. 

On the Road Again, Just Can't Wait to Get on the Road Again...

Okay, plane, I mean plane! 

Living the Army life means one thing for sure. There is no telling where you might end up moving next.  For those of you who did not recognize the flag above, our next stop is GERMANY this summer!  We have known for a few months, but we have been waiting for things to be official, e.g. orders in hand. As of yesterday, we have our official orders and things are starting to happen.  We are very excited as Germany has been on our list of places we want to be stationed for years.  However, I would be lying if I said I am not a little sad to be moving even further way from our family and friends at home, as well as leaving our new friends and family here in Washington. 

This is definitely going to be a learning experience for all of us. When we moved to Washington, we did what is called a DITY or PPM (Personally Procured Move) and hired a company to actually transport our belongings.  So basically, we packed everything up, loaded it on a truck and they moved it.  We didn’t deal with the whole system of having the military move you.  That is normally complicated enough, but now we have the added addition of doing an OCONUS (Outside the Contiguous United States) move, which involves so much more.  I have been doing some reading and planning and my head is already spinning with all the details we have to work out prior to moving.  We are already making a list of what to sell/throw away, what to store and what to take with us.  Then, we have to further break down what is going with us into three more categories:

1.        In our luggage on the plane

2.       Unaccompanied baggage – Things we will need on arrival like sheets, clothes, dishes, etc.

3.       Household goods – Everything else that we are taking with us.

On top of all that planning, we have to make sure that we make it under our weight limit or risk paying out the wazoo in overage charges.  Then we have to figure out all the details in shipping our car, shipping our dog and oh yeah, shipping ourselves. Needless to say, Microsoft One Note is my friend and the lists have already started. I am sure all my military friends who have done multiple moves will be sick of all my questions by the time we leave.  To make it even more intense, I am finishing up my last semester of school before graduation right now and researching/applying to grad schools.  WHOO!

http://www.neuschwansteincastle.net/Neuschwanstein-Pictures.html

Of course, it will completely be worth it.  I mean, we get to move to Germany!  It is going to be one heck of an experience for sure.  Lila got a book of castles for Christmas and is already making a list of the ones she wants to visit.  Neuschwanstein, which the Disney castles are based on, is at the top of her list.  To be honest, it is on the top of my list, too!  We’ll also be within driving distance of Frankfurt, Nuremburg, Munich and the Czech Republic and only a train ride from so many other wonderful places.  Places we want to visit will be one more list we will be making.

I’ll try my best to post as we get ready for and make this transition and if you have any insight or advice, please feel free to share!  We can use all the help we can get! 

Tragedy and the Unconquerable Human Spirit

Boston Marathon 2013: in an act of terrorism, whether foreign or domestic,  two bombs were set off near the finish line . As of the last update I read, three are dead and at least 130 injured.  At this point no one knows the who are why and by why I mean the reasons the people will give because there isn't a why that I will every understand or fathom. 

As many others, I can't look at the scenes they are showing on the news and not be overwhelmed with the same feelings I felt on 9/11.  While obviously, the scale of this act is much smaller, there are still people not going home to their families tonight because of this insane, EVIL act.  For at least three, there will be a permanent hole in their lives. There are families that will never understand WHY someone would do this because there the very act is unfathomable for most of us. I think to myself, is this the world that I am raising my children in?  Was I being responsible by bringing children into a world where such evil exists?  Then I am reminded that some people live every day in fear of bombings, like a blog I follow, called A Soldier's Mother (israelisoldiersmother.blogspot.com).  She lives in Israel where bomb shelters and sirens are a daily part of life.  Yet,  her posts still are alive with hope and love for her country.  Perspective. I will strive to follow her lead.

I have spent a large part of the day, just sitting here perusing the internet and Facebook for updates while doing school work.  I have found myself shedding tears quite a few times, not just out of sadness and anger for what has happened, but because I am reminded of 9/11 in another way. I am reminded of just how we can come together in times like these.  We spend so much time as a nation and as a people divided and fighting against each other.  However, in times like these, we are one. You just have to peruse social media to see this spirit:

~In Columbus, GA, my hometown, a group of runners met at a local running club this evening and ran in honor of the Boston victims, just hours after the bombing. 

~There are reports  that Boston Marathon runners who  ran to local hospitals to see if they could give blood or help in any way

~local restaurants who are having a "pay if/what you can policy"

 ~locals who are offering to open their homes to complete strangers

~Google immediately set up a website to allow people to connect with each other in the wake of the tragedy.  

~There are videos showing people running INTO the blast area to help the injured.

You see, a tragedy like this can take us to the depths of darkness, but this is the light that can pull us out.  It is the strength and compassion of the human spirit for each other. It is what shows us that at the heart of the human spirit lies the most important thing of all…love, love for your fellow man.  I think in moments like this that Jesus would be proud.  Of course, he'd be prouder if we were like this all the time. 

So, to the terrorists who did this, you will never win, because  we will not allow you to crush our hope, nor our compassion and love. As long as we have that, you lose. You always will in the end.

As one friend said so eloquently, "Love and kindness and goodness are the whole sky. The bastards are a small cloud, full of themselves and their importance, blocking the sun for a second, and evaporating in its heat."

Playground Preacher

I figure that my darling daughter, Lila deserves her own post as we move into this deployment.  So many days she is my light in the gray, miserable, Washington rain.  She is also the biggest help I could ever ask for with her two younger brothers and I probably don't tell her nearly often enough how proud of her I am. She also astounds me at times.  I remember once upon a time, my friend Millie told me that I had an "old soul."  That's what I see with Lila. She is wise beyond her years.  Sometimes her faith and belief astound me, with both its intensity and purity.

Last spring, during a couple week period of multiple road trips, Lila read her Story Bible from cover to cover on her own. Not only did she read it, but she comprehended and absorbed it and afterwards would correct you if you said something that was wrong. Shortly after she did that my neighbor approached me and told me that her son had been coming home and asking lots of questions about God and Jesus.  She said that when she asked him where he was hearing this stuff from, he told her Lila.  Apparently she was on the playground telling everyone all about God and Jesus and the stories she knew from the Bible. At the time, I didn't really know a lot about their religious background, but did know that they didn't go to church at all.  I felt super-uncomfortable and told her that I hoped Lila hadn't started a conversation that she didn't really want to discuss, which afterwards I did think, "Why am I apologizing?", but you know, it was just a weird situation.  Well, it was really great, because she actually said that no she didn't have an issue with it at all and was glad that he was asking questions as they didn't really discuss it before. However, from that point on, Lila was dubbed the "Playground Preacher." We still call her that on occasion.  She has on multiple occasions complained about not being able to talk about the Bible at school and has even asked to go to a Christian School.  Hopefully, we will be able to make that happen in the next few years.

Since that time, Lila has kept reading the Bible, moving to progressively more difficult story versions and now her ICB version.  We have never forced her to read it, but just seems to crave it. There is such an amazing purity in her love of God, even in her prayer.   Sometimes, the things she prays for even catches me completely off guard.  With Cory being deployed, our prayers have started including prayers for his safety and health as well as all his soldiers.  She prays nightly for the families of the soldiers to have faith and not be scared. Those things I fully expected she would add to her nightly prayers, but the thing that caught me off guard was the first night when in her sweet little voice she said, "And please help the bad guys get right with you Lord and change their ways."  Took.  My.  Breath. Away. I do love that sweet, precious child.