S'more S'mores!

I am currently in the middle of one of those perfectly lazy Sundays that happen every so often. I of course have things that I should be doing, like the giant heap of laundry, buying groceries for the super empty cupboards, and hunting for more job opportunities, but the more I thought about what I needed to do, the more I realized what I wanted to do. And that would be blogging happily away in my cozy office and every so often staring out the window at life passing by on this chilly gray day. Dereck is in the middle of a two week field tour, and so I have been left to my own devices and entertainment, and those of you who know me also know how dangerous this can be. You never realize how much you talk until there isn't another person captive in the house who has to listen. My days have been busy, and so I don't notice him missing so much as the nights when I sit around and think about something to say or laugh at something on the tv and notice there is no one around to laugh with me. Houses can get creepy quiet. The two times I have talked to him (averaging at 5 minutes) he sounds tired and hungry, and I can't blame him. I would be tired and hungry after camping in the field and playing war games all day too. It also doesn't help that the puppy was supposed to come home last Friday but now isn't coming home until later this week due to some scheduling conflicts for the breeder. I have been so ridiculously excited about the puppy, and his not coming home paired with Dereck being gone makes for one empty house. Life has not been all that bad the last few weeks however, I am simply an impatient girl who wants to be playing with her puppy already.

Dereck and I spent last weekend actually getting ready for the puppy on Saturday by driving all over the area looking for puppy items like gates, crates, and food and trying to price compare all at the same time. And, as you might imagine, that meant we were in the car a ton and spent too many minutes standing at displays and weighing the merits of random chew toys' durability to the price points. Dogs are expensive, especially now that I don't have parents paying for all the food and vet visits. At the end of the long Saturday we came home in one full Civic and set about opening all the supplies and putting things together, just like Christmas. The puppy has also been a great excuse for Dereck to set about using all his power tools. When I was home for Lydia's wedding he made a dog house, complete with shingled roof and rain gutter, and he has since made a holder for the dog bowls (to elevate it) and I got to paint the box blue and then speckle it with neon green. When you lack creativity or artistic skill, speckling and flicking paint all over something makes for a pretty good substitute, and I have to admit that I am halfway impressed with how it turned out. Last Sunday was spent getting Dereck ready for the field, going to church, and meeting neighbors on our evening stroll. This is one area where I am particularly glad for getting a dog- it gives me a great excuse to get outside and talk to all those other people that like to be outside.

I am also glad to report that I finished the final level of Army Family Team Building, and am now looking forward to taking the instructional courses to become a teacher for the classes. I am currently of the frame of mind that while I am looking for a job, I might as well be a good citizen and give back some time, like my new gig as Track and Field coach for the Army kids. Every Tuesday and Thursday I get to hit the track for a couple of hours and hang out with the most hilarious kids in the world. In between all the giggles and hugs I am trying to teach them to enjoy running the way I do, even in my gimpy state. They "love" running laps and always look at me like I am asking them to rip their legs off when I say to run a lap or two, so I have had to be creative in how the workouts are scheduled with my friend Lindsey who is also coaching. We try to keep them engaged and having fun, which says something when some of those kids have the attention span of, well, a kid! This also is compounded with our beautiful weather here, and means that I come home from many a practice soaking wet and chilled to the bone. I am not a bath person, but lately it has been the only remedy for being cold down to my fingers and toes. The kids had their first track meet yesterday, and I think that it went as well as a meet full of little wiggly kids could. It was quite the adjustment to see little people jumping around, rolling on the ground, and playing tag on the infield where I used to see college athletes getting in the zone for respective races. The day was long too. I forgot how long track meet Saturdays can be, and spent most of my time wrangling kids for their events and trying to get them to stop playing long enough to stretch. Some of the kids I saw at the meet really epitomize the idea of great athletes being blessed with talent. I think that some of the racers could beat me in a sprint with their little speedsuits and spikes. What I liked best of all was how much fun everyone was having. It is hard to not smile when you see six five-year-olds racing 100 meters, and reminded me about why track was fun in high school. Some of the kids are competitive, but the majority are out learning the sport and enjoying the day. When was the last time that I was happy to simply compete and finish, instead of agonizing over a prize? It was great perspective, and I left feeling very content and wind-burned.

This last week I also got some great excuses to hang out with friends and get back to my normal weekly schedule and rhythm. Between going home and finishing AFTB, I have missed three Wednesday morning bible studies with PWOC, so I was more than ready to get back this week and see all my small group. And so much has happened in this short time! Several of the women are having husbands return from 12 month deployments over the weekend and this coming week, and the excitement on their faces was contagious. You can tell from looking at them that they are ready to have their husbands back and be a team instead of solo parent. My friend Scarlett is also back from her trip home, and so I got the privilege of being with her on her birthday, eating cupcakes in Tacoma, and going out for a celebratory dinner with friends at Panera. And on that note I hope Dereck doesn't look at the checking account when he gets home. I have been living large and enjoying the company of friends over going to buy groceries, and so have probably killed the budget for the end of April. I like to justify it in my mind by thinking that making and keeping friends is more important than that which I can't take to heaven. Right? This week also included my second Battalion coffee (a gathering with the other officers' wives in Dereck's engineering group), and we met at the most gorgeous house on a lake. All of the kitchen and living room are walled with windows facing the lake, and with the evergreens framing the landscape, it looked like a picture from some weekend retreat magazine. I am happy to say that I am feeling more comfortable with the women in the coffee group, and despite the age and background differences, think that it will be a great fit in the long run. Everyone brought kids to the coffee since the battalion is in the field, and it made me think about my mom's coffee groups when I was little, and how much I loved eating all the treats and playing with other kids. I cannot believe that I am on the other side. Much of the conversation centered around teaching and children, both of which I managed to miss the memo on for Army wives. It's ok though! God made me the way I am, and that is not a teacher or a mother for the time being.

Friday my friends from the gym finally dragged me to the pool for a workout and I have to admit that I liked it more than I thought I would. It isn't so much that I hate swimming as I don't like being cold on the way to the pool, being cold when I drop my towel, and then being cold when I jump in the water. My reward for finally coming? Going out to dinner and a movie with the girls, which was fantastic. We had delicious wood-fire pizza and then saw the new Jennifer Lopez movie. Not a bad movie, but not one I would run around recommending to anyone either, just right for girls' night out. And, after the track meet yesterday I helped to host a party at my friend Jackie's house. Jackie is one of those crazy original people you meet and immediately are drawn to. She managed to invite a great variety of people- wives with husbands deployed, a husband with a wife deployed, a civilian government person, her cousin, people from PWOC, and myself. We grilled hot dogs in her fire pit and I managed to eat more s'mores than any one person ever should. Ever. My stomach still hurts a little just typing about the s'mores. I blame the hot, gooey marshmallow and chocolate for my over-indulgence. We didn't even have any fire emergencies, which is a miracle considering the wind we had last night. I had a fantastic time meeting new people, and the more Army people I meet, the more I know that I like where life has me. You can't beat the friendliness anywhere. In fact, I have already watched pets for two neighbors and have people lined up to help me with the puppy when he comes home. I like that network of help. Makes life all the more enjoyable, even when I am pining for my husband and puppy, and even those I will have by the end of this week!