The Reason for the Season: My thoughts on Christmas this year

"Tis the season to be jolly..."

I love the Christmas season! This year I am particularly excited. I have been looking forward to Christmas for 2 main reasons.

1. Meric would be home from deployment.

 2. We are going home to spend the holidays with family.

It has been almost 2 years since I have been home and I am really excited to see family and friends again. I am so excited I broke out the Christmas music at Halloween. (No worries I celebrated Halloween too.)

Now that it is actually the Christmas season, I have had a few thoughts about different things I have seen or heard. I have seen several postings and pictures on facebook saying things like "Keep Christ in Christmas" or "It is Merry Christmas, not Happy Holidays" and things like that. 

With the world the way it is Christmas break has become winter break and the work Christmas party has become a holiday party. You hear more and more happy holidays  and less merry Christmas for fear of offending someone. But seriously why would someone saying "Merry Christmas" offend you? I would not be offended in the least if someone said "Happy Hanukkah" to me.

That being said why should I expect someone to accept my "Merry Christmas" if I am not willing to accept their "Happy Holiday"? Christmas is a holiday after all. And why should I be offended if someone doesn't "keep Christ in Christmas"? Is there any religion that believes Christ was actually born on Christmas? Besides a lot of Christmas traditions were adapted from pagan traditions. (I am not saying Christmas is a pagan holiday but look up the origins of Christmas sometime.) 

Christmas should be a time of giving not judging. It should be a time when we are a little more tolerant of our fellow man. A time to unite in love and not focus on our differences. I am not going to stop believing what I believe because it might offend someone and I won't be offended if you don't believe the same as me.

So whether you say "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays" read Luke 2 or T'was the Night before Christmas, I hope that you enjoy this time of year. And I wish you the Merriest of Christmases!

Locks of Love

I have had long hair off and on my entire life. I grew my hair long over the summer, longer than it has been in a long time. Having hair so long gets to be annoying so I decided to cut it.

This is how long my hair was back in October

Locks of Love is an organization that accepts donated hair to make wigs and benefit children who have lost their hair due to a medical condition. I have long hair and want to cut it + Locks of Love (a good cause) = me being charitable.

It was a little nerve racking cutting my hair that much at once. Luckily I had enough hair that I didn't have to cut it super short.

My ponytail that will be donated

Locks of Love is a great way to help children. I definitely recommend donating your hair. Here is a link with all the information  you will need: http://www.locksoflove.org/donate.html  Some hair salons will send your donation in for you, while others don't. The website includes all the information you will need to send in your donation.

New cut, new color

I have always wanted to dye my hair black but have always chickened out. This time I had the guts to go through with it. I dyed it a blue/black and I love it. I alove my shorter hair. I am already planning to grow it out again though. As soon as it is long enough, I will be donating it again.

Welcome Home!

Saturday (11/24) I started a 7 hour drive to Fort Benning GA. Why? To pick up Meric!

Sunday morning I got up early to a text message from Meric saying he had landed in Altlanta GA. He told me he would let me know when they left Atlanta on a 1 1/2 hour bus ride to Fort Benning. Of course I was way too excited and was at Fort Benning long before he left Atlanta. I got to Freedom Hall (the place we thought he would would be arriving) and found someone else waiting as well. He was waiting for his son. We stood outside and chatted for a bit and then went into Freedom Hall. Inside there was food and chairs awaiting the returning soldiers. There were also some more family members and I started chatting with a woman whose husband was returning as well. (Most people on the flight were not from Fort Benning and would be flying home later that night so only a few family members were actually there.)

Then the buses arrived and the soldiers started coming in. I could hardly believe it when I saw Meric for the first time. It was so surreal seeing him in person and not on a computer screen. Everyone came in and sat down. Then someone got up and told everyone they had 5 minutes to do whatever and then they would start the ceremony.  It was so nice to hug and kiss my husband again. I didn't want to let him go. (And yes I cried.) Then there was a short ceremony and they started the process of paperwork and turning in gear. A few hours later Meric was all mine.

I treated Meric to a lunch at Red Robin, his favorite. We spent that night in Columbus GA and then drove 6 hours to Bowling Green KY. It was a nice trip and only had a minor delay when we witnessed a car accident on the freeway. We stopped and waited for the police and paramedics to arrive which wasn't too long. We ate dinner at a cute hole-in-the-wall place and then checked into our hotel. I learned to swim over the summer and Meric hadn't seen me swim so we got a hotel with on indoor pool. It was a lot of fun playing around in the pool.

The next day we headed to Fort Knox so that Meric could check in and get a 4 day pass and then we would stay one more night away from home before heading back to the campground. That's when things didn't go according to plan. They didn't give Meric a pass and instead wanted him to start in-processing immediately. Also a call to Kelli that morning informed me that the trailer was once again having electrical problems. Because of all the problems we decided to just head home that night.

When we pulled into the campground there was a big Welcome Home sign in front of our trailer and Kelli and the Smiths (campground owners)  were all waiting for Meric. It was a great sight to have so many people welcoming him home. Inside the trailer there were several balloons and 3 dog who were very happy to see their daddy. The Smiths also invited us over for pizza. It was really nice to sit and relax.

I am so happy to have Meric home. It will take a little getting use to but it actually is pretty normal already. It is SOOOOOO nice to have my husband home!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It is that time of year again when everyone reflects on what they are grateful for. This year has been an interesting one for me. With Meric deployed sometimes it is hard to be thankful. When things go wrong with the trailer (and unfortunately they have) it is hard to be thankful. Despite that, I am thankful.

Meric's 9 month deployment has been hard. I miss him. I am very thankful for Skype and our ability to see each other when we talk everyday. Even though I am thankful for Skype, I am so tired of being on Skype every day. I look forward to being able to talk to my husband and have him be in the same room. I am excited to have my best friend back. With that being said having to talk once a day through the computer has made Meric and I work on communicating better. Our relationship had to adapt to the situation, and when he comes home we will have to adapt again. After 8 years of marraige I am grateful for the opportunities we have to strengthen our relationship.

Also with Meric not here to rely on, I have had to handle things on my own. I have done and had to deal with things I never thought I would. Usually I am a homebody and Meric is the social one. Without Meric here I have had to be social and I have become good friends with a lot of my neighbors. I have always wanted to get into shape and relied on Meric to motivate me and plan our workouts. Now I have to motivate myself and I have done well (though it is still hard to keep it up). I have really had to grow beyond my comfort zone these last 9 months.

I am also thankful for family. I have had a lot of visitors while Meric has been gone. I am especially thankful for Kelli who has stayed with me the entire time. I don't think I would have handled this deployment as well without her. She makes me food, taught me to swim and keeps me from falling apart sometimes. Also with a 12 year age gap between us  it has been a great opportunity to get to know Kelli as an adult and not just a little girl.

Another thing I am very thankful for is the campground I live in. I have "neighbors" I have gotten to know and that have treated Kelli and I like family. There is always something going on and fun things to look forward to. And the owners are the best people I have ever met. Anytime I have a problem or need anything they are right there to help. They really have gone above and beyond to make me feel at home and to take care of me while Meric is away.

I am most thankful that next week I should have my husband back. I am beyond excited to have him back. I am grateful and definitely prefer to have Meric home but I am thankful for the opportunity I had to grow.

Meric won't be home for Thanksgiving so I am delaying the feast until he is able to participate. This year Kelli and I are making ham, mashed potatoes, rolls and pies. We are going to enjoy our last few day before everything changes.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

The Fall of Kentucky

I have lived in Kentucky for 1 1/2 years and I love it! One of my most favorite things about Kentucky is its beautiful landscapes. Often times I find myself in awe of my surroundings. The fall is a particularly beautiful time. Recently I was inspired to try and capture some of that beauty in pictures. Here are a few of the many pictures I have taken. (The top 3 photos were taken at the campground where I live.)

Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat, Trick or Treat!

One of my favorite things about living in this campground is Halloween. They don't do Halloween on just one weekend, they do it for three weekends! The first, second and fourth weekends in October are filled with Halloween fun. (The third weekend is Glendale days.) They have pumpkin decorating, a scavenger hunt, costume contests, trailer decorating and trick or treating.

This year my mom was able to join us for all of the Halloween fun. We all got special Halloween shirts.

Getting ready for trick-or-treaters

 The owners of the campground had Kelli and I judge all of the pumpkin carving and costume contests. We don't know most of the kids around the campground so we are unbiased.

The arrows point to the winning pumpkins.

My mom got to help us judge when she was here. There are so many great costumes and pumpkins it is really hard to judge!

Little Red Riding hood and the Oompa Loompa were the winners

After the contests the kids go trick or treating around the campground. It is so much fun and it is really nice to be able to just sit out and hand out candy at a scheduled time.

Even the dogs get into the fun!

The last Halloween weekend also marks the last weekend of the camping season. Most of the seasonal campers don't come back again until next year. Since it is the last weekend and everyone is enjoying Halloween the whole campground is one big party. Last year the campers started a tradition of doing drinks and appitizers in a progessive dinner style going from campsite to campsite. They continued the tradition again this year. It was so fun to socialize and there was also so much delicious food.

I know Wonder Woman didn't have a cape but I loved my shirt!

Halloween is so much fun and I love living somewhere that lets me enjoy it extra long. We have had so much fun and there is so much more to come. Next stop Thanksgiving and then Meric's homecoming!

Kentucky Momma

Last Friday evening, Kelli and I headed to the airport to pick up my mom. She was coming for all the fall fun around here and for a long over due vacation.

Fall feet

 On Saturday we went to the Crossing Festival in Glendale. (See previous post "Glendale Days") After spending the morning enjoying pumpkin fudge, honey lemonade and candied pecans we went into town and then took a drive. Growing up one of my favorite activities was taking long drives with my mother and right now all the fall colors made for a beautiful drive.

The next day we had a nice relaxing lazy day. We made some chili and cornbread and then enjoyed an evening by the fireside.

On Monday we went "Amishing" (Kelli's new word) In our area there are a few Amish communities. A many run little shops. One of the shops is part a salvage store with past-the-date/damaged items from regular stores, part Amish goods like jams and part bakery. They had some fresh made donuts that were delicious. We also got to enjoy more beautiful country scenery as we drove from one Amish store to the next.

That night Kelli and Mom went out for hot chocolate and Kelli showed Mom around Etown. Most every night I talk to Meric on Skype but while my mom is visiting we decided to only talk every other night. On the nights I talked to Meric my mom and Kelli got to enjoy a little one on one time. When they came back that night my mom had bought a puzzle for us to put together while she was here. It was a lot of fun..

Enjoying the colors

 On Tuesday we took Mom to Saunders Spring to hike a little. It was absolutely gorgeous with all of the fall colors. We had a nice time hiking around the trails and just enjoying the beautiful day.

Having fun at Saunders Spring

 Then we went to Fort Knox. We drove Mom around and showed her some of the landmarks of Fort Knox. Kelli also got to show Mom where she volunteers in the hospital. After getting some Bluebell ice cream we headed home and enjoyed another evening by the campfire.

Can you see Mom?

Wednesday I decided to take Mom back to Glendale. Glendale days are fun but so crowded with people it is hard to enjoy the little shops in Glendale. We wandered the town shops and bought a few trinkets then went to eat at the Whistle Stop. That is a VERY popular restaurant in Glendale. During Glendale days there is a line to get into the Whistle Stop 2 hours before it even opens. On a Wednesday at 1pm we only had a 45 minute wait. (Did I mention it was a popular restaurant?) We enjoyed a great lunch and finished off with a slice of Kentucky pie and a bowl of peach cobbler. YUMMY!

On Thursday we took Mom to Lincoln's birthplace. It was my 7th time going and Kelli's 5th time. I have been a lot but enjoy it every time.

Near where the "Boundary Oak" use to be

 

Mom walking down the steps at Lincoln's birthplace

 It was my first time going in the fall though and I got some really beautiful pictures. Then we drove up the rode to Lincoln's boyhood home. There is a picnic spot there were we ate lunch and then we sat on the bank of Knob Creek collecting rocks. It sounds a little weird but there really are some cool rocks. The rocks I like to collect are cylindrical with a hole on the center. They are 100% natural beads. Every time I visit Knob Creek I collect those rocks. Someday I will make jewelry out of them.

As we were leaving Knob Creek, Kelli suggested we walk around Hodgenville. That is the small town we drive through to get to Lincoln's birthplace and Knob Creek. In all the times I visited those places I have never gone into any of the little shops. There were some cute stores and a yummy sweet shoppe. They serve Bluebell ice cream and make their own fudge. It was really good. Then we went home and once again enjoyed a campfire. I love living at a campground and being able to have fires.


On Friday we had planned to take Mom hiking at a place in Etown. Unfortunately the rain decided to start and we had to shift our plans. Instead we went thrift store shopping. Mom loves to see what kind of treasures and deals she can find and I actually found quite a few myself. First we hit a regular Salvation Army and then we went to a place I had never been before, The Peddlers' Mall. It was HUGE and not at all what I was expecting. It is a place where they rent out a booth and people can bring whatever they want to sell. Some booths were very professional and "store" like while others looked like a garage sale. There was so much stuff to see and every time you turned a corner the place just seemed to get bigger and bigger. We actually only got about half way through the store before we decided we had enough shopping for the day. It was definitely a unique experience and I am almost glad it rained.

Lucy demanded to be held every morning. She will miss her grandma!

On the way home I stopped and bought another puzzle. We had so much fun putting together the first puzzle and with the weather turning cold I liked the idea of staying in and putting together another one. We worked on it that night and throughout the next day. That night I talked to Meric again and I didn't want Kelli and my mom doing the puzzle without me so I made them go to the Whistle Stop and get dessert. They ended up splitting a bowl of soup and a piece of sugar cream pie. They said both were delicious!

Saturday was my mom's last full day in Kentucky. We had fun working on our puzzle and also enjoyed the Halloween festivities at the campground. (More on Halloween in the next post.)

I love my mother!

I can't believe how quickly the trip went by. We had so much fun and I loved seeing my mom again. She liked the trailer. At first the bathroom scared her. Trailer bathrooms are VERY different than regular ones. By the second day though she decided she really liked my bathroom and the toilets would be great in the house because they use less water. Also we couldn't have asked for better weather. The first day she was here was cold (50s) and over cast. The next 5 days were warm (upper 70s) and sunny. Of course then it rained and turned cold again but even that was perfect.

All in all it was a great visit and I think my mom really enjoyed herself. I am glad she was able to come and I want to thank everyone in my family that made it possible for my mom to stay for so long. Can't wait to see them in December!

Glendale Days

I love Glendale days (the actual name of it is The Crossing Festival.) I love all of the booths and wandering through seeing what goodies they have to offer. There were a few things I got last year at the festival that I was definitely looking forward to having again. PUMPKIN FUDGE! There is a lady that makes homemade goodies and sets up a booth. She has a variety of fudge and candies. Last year I discovered pumpkin fudge and have waited all year to have another piece. Okay, have another 4 pieces. We also sampled her cookies and cream fudge, coconut bon bons, peanut clusters, and vanilla walnut fudge. All were super delicious! That lady is my favorite part of Glendale days.

Wandering through the booths we found a lot of other goodies too. My mom found some presents for people back home, I found some Christmas presents and some presents for me. 

One booth in particular did a great job of selling. They were selling jewelry made out of silverware. They were really interesting looking and I went over for a closer look. The lady had me put one on so I could "see how easy it was to take it on and off." Then I made a comment about how I liked the square look on one and in a few seconds I had 3 similar ones on my wrist so I could compare. Then they made sure I knew I could pick any bead I wanted to "customize" my bracelet. By the end I had a one of a kind bracelet made just for me. I know I was lured in by the sales lady but I am really glad and I love my bracelet.

Another booth was selling necklaces and a variety of different items. They were selling them to raise money to adopt a child from Africa. The necklaces were made by African women to make money to support their families. They make the bead out of paper and it takes 24 hours to complete one bead. The necklaces were really pretty and knowing the back story we couldn't resist getting one. (It will be a present to my niece Doralicia. Shhhh!)

Mom and Kelli enjoyed some candied pecans. We watched sorghum being made. We drank some honey lemonade. Kelli drooled over some classic mustangs. We ate pumpkin fudge (did I mention how much I love that stuff?) All and all it was a great Glendale days. Part of me hopes that I am still living here at this time next year just so that I can go again.