Memorial Day

To all the men and women who are serving and have served this country,

THANK YOU!

(image credit: Memorial Day 2011)

Giveaway Error

This is so embarrassing.

I made a mistake and hit "publish post" instead of "save draft". 

The giveaway isn't ready yet...

I'm SOOOOOO sorry.

For those who entered, I have not deleted your comments and they will be published when 

I will officially hold the giveaway.

Again, apologies for the error I made. 

Flooded Backyard

The other day I go to work and I see that the sprinklers are on.

*FYI: since I live in 29, not many places have grass. For instance, my backyard is filled with sand and stones. Some other backyards have grass. The community "area", so to speak, is right next to and in front of my house has grass.*

Back to the story. I leave my house to go to work and they are still on. I find it odd because normally they don't stay on for too long. Oh well, today must've been a "special" day and also, I don't know what time they went on.
I leave work early and head home and the sprinklers are still on! 6 hours later!
This is absurd. I got in my house look at my backyard and its flooded! So is my neighbors. I don't want to let Brownie out cause of her stitching and I also don't want to her to bring mud into the house. I don't know if my neighbors also did this, but I called housing (who btw, was incredibly nice). The said they'd get the on-call maintenance guy out there ASAP.
Maintenance comes and it turns out that they automatic switch malfunctioned, hence the flooding.

Before

After

Sleep Deprived?

(image credit: We♥It)

Ever since DH has been gone my sleep has been awful. Its not that I'm not getting enough or that I'm tossing and turning all night or that I wake up at all hours of the night and can't fall back asleep. Its none of that. I'm just tired ALL THE TIME. I get about 7-9 hours of asleep (btw, I normally get more than that just because I LOVE to sleep). So its not that. I think I have a lot on my mind and I think that maybe causing my tiredness.

I know me being tired has a lot to do with DH being deployed. I worry and I stress and I have a lot of time to think which in return isn't a good thing.

I come home from work exhausted. I play with Brownie, make myself dinner and watch reruns of whatever is on my DVD player or whatever movie I have on my DVR. I then clean the kitchen and head to bed. EXCEPT, I don't really head to be. I head to our "office" and get on the computer there and all of a sudden its two hours later!

are you always tired and have troubling sleeping when 

your spouse is deployed? what do you to "cure it"?

Song Link-Up Week 14

The other day I bought the Tinie Tempah CD and

discovered this song.

All I can say is that I love it and its on

repeat in my car :)

"Miami 2 Ibiza" Tinie Tempah Ft/ Swedish Mafia House

Don't forget to head on over to Amber @ Goodnight Moon 

to link up!

Napa

Our initial plan after San Francisco was to head back to 29 and spend his last few days there. Instead, DH realized that we were only 1 hour from Napa, we are both wine lovers, and that we should take the opportunity to go there now rather than doing this 10hour drive in the near future.

When we arrived to Napa we decided to start the wine tours ASAP (most wineries close around 4pm!).

Our first stop, Artesa Winery. Now I didn't have much time to do research on the wineries (yes, I am the dork who does research and maps out a plan in her head prior to a trip...and sometimes, sometimes, get the guidebook...DORK!) so I looked at a map, then at my watch, closed my eyes and picked the closest winery to us. Lo and behold, it turned out to be a Spanish-orgin winery (ie: the family who owns is from Spain and focuses mainly on growing Spanish wines in Napa). We had a lovely lady who explained to us each wine as she poured and we drank. She was very detailed and very knowledgable about the wines. CHECK PLUS :)

Second stop was, Domiane Carneros. Unlike Artesa this winery seemed a lot more "commercialized". What I mean is that I felt like it was more about the wines than the explanation of them and the interaction with the clients. We had a great server but I don't think it was Domaine Carneros idea for the server to sit with us and explain to us each wine, like Artesa did. He was very knowledgable when we asked but as we were served the wines we had to read about them from a list that we were given.

After our Domaine Carneros we headed back to the hotel.
FYI: DH and I didn't have a good lunch nor did we know the norms of wine tasting since this was our first time. RESULT: NAP...and it was soooo good :) NOTE TO SELF: eat before wine tasting and don't drink all the wines you taste if you don't want to.

The following day we did Castello di Amorosa. This winery is a famous one in the Napa area because the owner decided to build a castle as its winery. He basically duplicated a castle, forgot the era, to the stone!

We did the tour of the castle and the wine tasting.

We definitely enjoyed ourselves and of course left with some wines :)

Mood Change

(image credit: We♥It)

I'm not going to sit here and lie to you all and tell you that since DH left I've been in pretty good shape. But, lets be realistic, I may have a tough exterior but I'm a softie-mush in the inside.

The first week alone was odd. One moment I was hysterically crying and the next I was numb. Getting back to work was the worst. Everyone would ask, in concern, "how are you doing?" At that point I would have to divert eye-contact, blink my eyes at an accelerating speed, take a deep breath and answer "fine" and walk away as quickly as I could.

After that first week I was fine, until last week.

I was watching "Las Vegas" and of course I got to the episode where Danny, a main character, had to deploy. Right there and then waterfalls came out of my eyes...non-stop. After that I was a mess (yes, I'm blaming a TV show) and my mood completely went haywire, that could've also been for the fact that I hadn't spoken to DH. Yes, we had exchanged many emails, but just hearing his voice was all I needed. Also, I had a job interview which I failed miserably (result: I didn't get it) and a lot of other little-teeny-tiny things that resulted in my mood change.

Two nights ago my mood finally changed...for the better :)

I had a great "chat" (all via email) with DH where I had to, but felt EXTREMELY guilty about, vent to him (poor guy). Like any other guy he didn't understand at first but then, after I manly-fied it to him, he got it.

I ♥ MY HUSBAND

Deployments aren't suppose to be easy. 

I know my mood will change again. 

I know I will good days and bad days. 

I'm only human...  

San Francisco

For DHs block leave we decided to head to San Francisco, which we have dying to go for like ever, and a last-minute stop in Napa (pictures to come later).

We did everything touristy you could imagine up - I even carried my camera around my neck, DH ended up walking 5ft ahead of me :( -  until the last day because we ran out of things to do and we just wanted to relax. We bought Brownie along and she did just fine being the crate in a strange place.

The trip was loooong, about 9 hours. Normally in the east coast one would surely have passed about 5 States in 9 hours, hahaha (sad attempt at a joke...sigh).

We stayed in Union Square, right smack-dab in the center of everything. The hotel was nice, though the rooms where a little small but we didn't much care since we weren't going to be spending a lot of time in there. We had the cable car right next to use, about a 5minute walk...and that became our best friend during our stay.

WARNING: PICTURE OVERLOAD

Little side note on the cable cars if you don't already know.

All the cable cars in SF are the original ones.

They operate just like a ski-lift.

When they need to turn the cable car, in there is a type of "lazy-Susan" at the end of their route and they have to manually turn the cable car.

Day 1: Fisherman's Wharf

It was freezing that day and the wind wouldn't stop, or as I like to say "it wouldn't stop winding".

Day 2: Alcatraz

When we arrived all I could think of was Nicholas Cage and Sean Connery...go figure!

Day 3: Golden Gate Bridge

Getting to the bridge is a little tricky. You have to do kind of hop-on/hop-off quiet a few buses to finally get there. We didn't walk the bridge, because (a) we were too lazy (b) its a LOOOOONG walk (c) it was windy and that wouldn't have been pleasant. 

Day 4: Walking around and Lombardi Street

Nearing the end of our stay in San Francisco we decided to take this day "easy" and do some shopping and visit one last place...the crooked street (AKA Lombard Street).

NEXT STOP: Napa

Friends & Pedicures

You ladies should all be proud of me...I'm making friends!!! Since DH has joined his new unit its been actually a lot easier making friends. Last year DH was in school so it was harder since there were NO activities for the spouses. Now that he's in a new unit and he's deployed I've taken it upon myself to get out there and get to know other spouses. YAY INES!...about time.

On another note, I finally did something for myself...I got a pedicure! The last time I got a pedicure was for my wedding in 2009...its 2011, yeah. Why haven't I gotten one in that time frame? I have no excuse but just pure laziness. I was about to open the door when I almost backed out. I haven't shaved my legs since DH left and they are not a pretty sight...hahaha. I ended saying "f&%# it!" and went ahead and "suffered" a wonderful and delightful pedicure :) But I still felt bad for the pedicurist (?) who had to see my legs...EEK!

Song Link-Up Week 12

Every time this song plays at work I get all pumped.

Pumped for what? I have absolutely no clue, but I do :)

I just want to tease my hair, wear acid wash jeans and 

neon-bright shirts and jump...hahaha

"Take Me Home Tonight" by Eddie Money

Don't forget to head on over to Amber @ Goodnight Moon
to link up!

Brownie Got Spayed

Yesterday I took Brownie to the vet to get spayed. This is the first time ever that I have owned a dog that has gotten spayed. When I was growing up my dad never took my dogs to get spayed. Why? He just didn't feel as if it where the right thing to do. Honestly, I agree with him. But at the same time I do agree in getting dogs spayed. I'm going to be realistic and tell you that if we didn't get Brownie spayed and we decided to breed her, NO WAY in hell would I bet able to let those puppies go. I'm not going to lie. Also, being in heat for a dog is a pain in the ass for the dog and the owner. Brownie has been on/off in heat since she was 7 months old! (we have a feeling it had something to do with her pitbull attack). Also, she's been in "heat" since February. I put heat in quotations because she's not spotting but certain areas are a bit swollen if you get my drift, plus the constant licking.

I brought her home and I placed her in her bed which I then placed on the couch so we could be close :) She's been groggy but hopefully today she'll want to eat and walk around. She also has to wear a cone (poor baby) when I'm not home. Since I think its torture she has to wear it I dont let her wear it at home when I'm around.

New Article On The HUN

Head on over to HUN (Homefront United Network) and read my

newest article on deployment day [click here].

Also, if you haven't done so, become a member!

Our Civilian Friends

"Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down."

-Oprah Winfrey

I have read and heard from others that, "your civilian friends will never understand your life as a military spouse." I agree, they wont. My friends are not going to understand my pain, my worry, my stress. But I'm lucky enough to not have to say, "UGH! I cannot depend on my civilian friends. The just don't understand me." Why? Because I have not had one civilian friend say to me, "I understand what you are [insert something they would normally say here]".

The day before DH left a friend of mine that I have known since high school (btw, knowing someone since high school is a very BIG DEAL for me) told me something that really touched me. She said,

"Ines, I hate the fact that you married a Marine. Because I worry 

for you a lot. I hate that you are going to have to go through a 

deployment. I hate that every night you are going to be worrying for 

him. I love your husband and I thank him for his bravery. But I hate

that you have to go through this"

It really touched me dearly that she said that. I knew what she meant the minute the first words rolled out her mouth. I knew she didn't mean it in a bad way when she first spoke. I knew she meant it in the way that a friend worries for you.

The day after DH left another friend of mine, also from high school, called me. And said,

"I'm here for you. I cannot understand what you are going through, but 

I am here for you."

My friends have gone through a lot in their own ways and we have all been there for one another. We have never dealt with each others pain,s but the most we can do for one another is to show our love and support and to just be there.

Do you have still have civilian friends? Tell me about

your relationship with your civilian friends.

!!!HAPPY MILITARY SPOUSE APPRECIATION DAY!!!

(image credit: Gwabble.com

The Reminders of Trash ?

Every Wednesday morning I get woken up by the garbage men/women who pick-up our trash weekly. This week, unlike every other week, I have thrown out everything that needs to be thrown-away and place the trash on the curb. Normal routine, correct? This time is different. This trash isn't so full anymore. Its not that DH and I are piggies or anything but we are two people living in one house. We don't eat much, but we do drink quiet a bit of soda. I FULLY deep-clean the house once a week. And the most shameful part, I sometimes buy food which ends up going to waste (bad Ines, bad)

So all in all I'm used to having to shut the garbage can by force. Now, it naturally closes without any hesitation.

Its the little things in life that make me miss him. Today its trash. We'll see what tomorrow holds :)

Wordless Wednesday

View of San Francisco from inside Alcatraz

Alcatraz (April '11)

Insalata Caprese

Since DH is gone I've been trying to eat healthy. But I doubt it its going to last long since produce is EXPENSIVE!...YIKES! My grocery bill was...well, its wasn't pretty.

My mom always made this salad, the undiced-regular version of it, but I thought this would be a better way to mix all the ingredients well together.

NOTE: I put my tomatoes in the fridge so they could last longer. If you want them to taste better don't put them in the fridge. If you do place them in the fridge take them out before and let them set at room temperature for a bit, because eating a cold tomato isn't that yummy.

Inslata Caprese

Ingredients:

-tomatoes

-fresh mozzarella 

-fresh basil

-EVOO

-salt (to taste)

Directions:

-dice up the tomatoes and mozzarella, place in a bowl and mix.

-dice and chop the basil and mix it well in the bowl

-add salt first, in order for the tomatoes and mozzarella to absorb it first then add the EVOO

-mix well