like

I just want to say that I love this quote from Meredith Vierra about empty-nesters :

"We did our job, as my husband points out repeatedly. You're supposed to give your children roots and wings, and their roots are firmly planted in the ground and they have a sense of themselves and of place and purpose. They have the ability to fly away from home and to test those wings and to start their own lives separate from us"

While it is SO great to feel loved by our families, we also get a lot of slack for moving away, not coming home enough, not living close enough to home, not spending every holiday with the family, and being 27 and still without kids.

SO, this quote makes me feel good as I hope this would be Josh and I's philosophy when we do have kids. Yes, that feeling could change once we became empty-nesters, but I would hope to parent with this mindset.

My little bitty cubby

I'm so blessed that I am able to work from home so I'm not complaining at all. Rather, I'm very thankful! And, I've been told I get to keep my job until at least April of next year. PTL! But, this move has definitely taught me a lesson on being organized. Not only have we moved from an 1800 sq. ft house to an 1100 sq ft house. We also only have 2 out of the 3 bedrooms available. Josh and I are now sharing an office. I went from a desk about 3x this size at work, to a desk about a foot wider than my chair!

The other bedroom is our storage unit! The military wouldn't reimburse us for storing everything so we took matters into our own hands :)

Getting used to calling this place home. I just unpacked my suitcase from moving. Yea, it's been about a month. Can you say attachment issues??

How to save money on a camera, NOW

I must preface this by saying that this is a Christmas gift and I'm not allowed to even touch the camera until then. It's even hidden from me so I can't find it. Sigh...
I just wanted to share this while the deal was still going on.

So, I've wanted a nicer camera for quite sometime now. So after researching, I wanted the Canon Rebel T1i ($554). But was easily persuaded into a small upgrade. We ended up getting the T2i ($589), just to have something to grow into I guess. Plus, Josh found an amazing deal on Adorama.com. So here is what we did.

We bought a package deal for $999. This included the camera, lens, canon printer (worth $200), a calculator ($10), and tons of software (worth about $400).

Because we purchased the camera AND the printer, we got a $400 rebate. So that puts us at a grand total of $599. Sounds like a good enough deal already right?

Well, we didn't really need the printer or the calculator. So, within one week, we sold them both on amazon.com, taking another $210 off the total.

Thus, making our $589 camera, actually $389. Now, if I really wanted to, I could sell the software, but I haven't had the chance to look at that yet so maybe later :)

Now, I just have to countdown the days til I get to open it and learn how to use it!

I CAN'T WAIT!!!!

Thank you, JP!!! Thank you, thank you!

love

There are many reasons why I adore my husband. He's everything I wanted in a man; strong faith, good personality, great eyes, great smile, sexy, great hair, great sense of humor, great job and he keeps me grounded. I love him more now than I did crushing on him many many years ago. But, last weekend he did something unexpected. He willingly took me to the Nutcracker Ballet and it was his idea. He also stayed awake through the entire thing. His brother was shocked, and even his mom said, "Man, he is in LOVE!" Apparently, Josh doing this is similar to those Dr. Pepper "I will do anything for love" commercials. I didn't think anything abnormal because he does have a very strong sweet and sentimental side to him. Boy, do I have some stories and love emails to prove it!

Every year I always talk about how much I loved the Nutcracker at Christmas time. He remembered. It is a fond childhood memory of mine when my grandma, Marj, would take us girls to see it at Notre Dame. It reminds me of simpler times when I had a semi-non dysfunctional family and how awesome that felt. Anyways, I had loved the ballet so much, I purchased the soundtrack back then and played it all the time. Last weekend, while the first half was a little fuzzy, I recalled the whole second half of the ballet in order thanks to that soundtrack! The ballet was absolutely beautiful. Such a great way to spend our first weekend on the Riverwalk as temporary San Antonians.


This is the view of the stage from the top balcony. We had much better seats than this, but the people downstairs were pretty adamant about no pictures so we snuck one from upstairs. Theatre was amazing!!!



Did you know? San Antonio was ranked the the 8th best destination in the U.S. for Christmas lights? It was very pretty and neat to see. But lights, without snow, you better make them big and bold! No offense San Antonio, but we have houses back home that have more lights than your whole Riverwalk. But thanks for trying to make it feel Christmasy!

GPS says ETA 30 minutes, I see "time to beat"

We don't even own a gps, we use these ancient things called maps. But that quote is similar to my mindset with shopping. I see the sticker price, I find a way to pay less.

No matter what I do, I always want a deal. If I became a millionaire, I think I would still look for good deals and refuse to pay full price. I've actually met a millionaire at the coffee shop I worked at in Mississippi. He inherited many millions from his family and was a big wig around town. This guy game in ONLY during happy hour to get .50 off his drink (totaling 1.52). Every time he ordered, he would make sure we took the .50 off. And of course, he never tipped, except during Christmas and that tip was like $20, so that makes up for it. (Side note: ALWAYS tip your barista, it keeps them happy and entertained).

Long story short, (Simply a transition, I say that a lot but then still ramble on forever, have you noticed this?) this "savings urge," my friends, is the Parker in me. More specifically, 12 years of Patty's influence! (Josh's mom).

Before I go shopping ANYWHERE, I always look for coupons, I ask for military discounts etc. When I get coupons in the mail, they immediately go in my coupon bag in my purse. That way I have them when I need them. It's not that we are broke by any means. I just enjoy the challenge of finding the best deal. Why not save when you can? Every bit adds up.

Anyways, as my bff Keri said, she's kinda jealous of us living the big city life right now. And as San Antonio continues to grow on me, I'd be a little jealous too! Not only do we have anything we really need within 5 miles of literally each direction from us, we also get some fabulous grouponish type deals. So far I've purchased a few of them and some other things. It's only been what 2.5 weeks of living here? whew...

got a $10 gift card for spending more than $75 at the outlet stores (Facebook special)

paid $15 for a Mani-Pedi valued at $35 (groupon)

paid $40 for $80 worth of Old Navy stuff (groupon)

newbie coupon: $10 off a haircut (facebook special)

lucky deal: $60 for 2 Nutcracker Ballet tickets for this weekend. The face value is $45+fees each! We found them on Craigslist, and met safely at HEB. They are pretty awesome seats. We almost paid $28/each for the highest balcony, back row seats. But now, we will be main level, center section. Woo hoo!

And today's clickedin.com special that I got: $20 for two movie tickets, a $20 gift card, and a free pint glass for the Alamo Drafthouse (a $48 dollar value). The Drafthouse is a bar/restaurant/movie theater place. We loved one similar in Wichita, so we are excited to have one again. Can you say, cheap date night?

I just used retailmenot.com to find a Walgreens coupon code. I got 60 photo Christmas cards for $25. A savings of $15!

So a total savings of nearly $175, just for shopping around and being signed up for deals.

bah dat dat dat dahhhh. I'm loving it!

Pinterest Turkey Day.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had some great friends, Eric, Ranae and little Aubrey to help us celebrate the holiday weekend. They stopped here on the way to their move to New Mexico. Josh decided last minute that "he" wanted to make a turkey for Thanksgiving. That quickly dwindled down to me making a ham and other things. We purchased a pre-cooked and much smaller turkey from HEB as well. We also had cibatta bread, cranberries, black olives (necessity for JP), salad, stuffing, store bought apple pie, and corn. Here are some of the quick and easy recipes I found that turned out pretty well.

Broccoli Casserole:
Key to making this, DON'T OVERCOOK the broccoli.

Garlic Roasted potatoes:

Yuuuuum!

Green Beans:
Canned, that aren't supposed to taste like it, but kinda still did.

Cookies-and-cream parfaits:
Super easy and delicious!

Pictures from the day

Josh's 1st helping. He at the whole thing!

Little miss Aubrey

Getting further and further away....

Each move we get a little farther from home:

Wichita, Kansas: 13 Hours, 778 Miles


View Larger Map



Almost the same with Columbus, MS: 12 Hours, 45 Minutes, 766 Miles


View Larger Map

Abilene, TX: 19 Hours, 1150 Miles


View Larger Map

San Antonio, TX: 21 Hours, 1291 Miles


View Larger Map

And next spring:

Del Rio, TX: 23 Hours, 12 Minutes, 1405 Miles. (15 minutes from Ciudad Acuna, Mexico!)


View Larger Map


I've come along way since my first move from home to college!

Mt. Pleasant, MI: 3.5 Hours, 200 Miles


View Larger Map


Needless to say, I think our driving home days are pretty much over. Time to rack up the frequent flier miles!

My "New" Job

Today was my first "full day" at my stay-at-home-job! It started with a hot cup of tea, slippers on my feet, comfy pjs and my Pandora radio station playing. It's different, much quieter, which selfishly, I kind of like. However, I do miss the friendly chats with my coworkers. But, needless to say, I had a TON of work to do after basically being off during the move, so the quietness was needed today.

Thankfully, I didn't have to search for this job, I have the same job I had in Abilene. However, it is quite a new experience working from home. They have supplied me with basically everything that was on my desk, including my computer, so that I can do everything from miles away. I remote into the Abilene office through the computer to access the 'crucial' programs. The pay is the same, the hours are pretty much the same with any flexibility I need really. And what do I do? I create invoices for one of our customers, Shell Oil Company, yea the same Shell you pump your gas from. Let me just tell you Shell has a TON of oil money. If I made .001% of the invoices I created, I could easily quit my job now and retire. Sadly that doesn't happen!

But, this job has been a blessing and it's amazing to see how God's hand has been in all of it. If I wouldn't have turned down the first job I had in Abilene (FDLIC), I wouldn't have accepted the position at Sears (my last major job in Abilene). At Sears is where I met one of my current bosses. He was let go at Sears and moved onto a new career at Atlas. The company was growing fast and he wanted a good biller, so I got the call, quit my job at Sears and got a sweet raise to work for Atlas.

Now, because I've worked at Atlas the last year, and proven myself, they are letting me work from home. What greater convenience can you ask for as a military spouse? Especially with a short-term move to San Antonio. Now, I'm not having to find another job, and around the holidays! BUT, there is a catch, I'm on a 2-month trial basis. So, at the end of next month, they are going to evaluate the situation and see if they will allow me to work from home for good. Let's pray that happens!

If so, we will be able to continue paying off our school loans and my name will be DEBT-FREE no later than next February! Then onward to Josh's loans. God is so good!

The house is packed and pretty clean! Tomorrow we hit the road to San Antone. The boys are so confused with whats going on. It must be exhausting watching us pack up the house!

Love to save....

My diploma has been sitting on the top of the fridge since I received it in December. I wanted to get a nice flashy frame for it, but those run upwards $150ish so I put it aside and ignored it. BUT, now since we are moving, I didn't want it to get crushed. This morning I was determined to find one fast and cheap. Just my luck, frames were 40% off at Michaels this week. I purchased this one and a mat, plus I had a coupon. Grand total and 15 minutes later: $16.22

Can't let another month go by

....without blogging! So here is a catch-up:

We went to Hawaii. It was friggen awesome. We feel blessed that we were fortunate enough to go at an "early" age and without kids. I must say it felt pretty good when people asked if we were on our honeymoon and we just said, nope that was 4.5 years ago, this is just another vacation! We've had our "vacation account" prepped for the past couple of years but haven't had the time to get away. There's nothing worse than coming home from vacation and fretting over how to refill the bank account. Having the money saved up made it feel like everything was an all-inclusive trip. AMAZING! Thank you, Lord!

I can't remember everything we did, but I blurbed on FB daily as a reminder. We drove the entire coastline of both islands, Oahu and Kauai. We snorkeled, learned to surf, hiked canyons and other trails, swam, did a scenic boat cruise of the Napali coast, also a dinner cruise with Hawaiian entertainment, got a couples massage, went to Pearl Harbor, toured the largest coffee plantation in the US, saw many waterfalls, saw HUGE waves, enjoyed our hotel pool and bars, saw many many chickens and roosters, stopped at nearly every "scenic lookout" spot on the islands and took 700 pictures! Needless to say, it was a fantastic time. Pictures do not do the trip justice whatsoever. But here are some for you.

As a side note, if you are military you can get some incredible deals. We stayed next to the Hilton in the Hale Koa in Oahu and saved over 50% on a beach front hotel with free parking, internet, and all you can eat buffet breakfast. Oahu is a very military-friendly island, discounts on meals, BOGO free dinner cruise, 20% off our 6-hr snorkel cruise, free admission to state parks, 10% off our massage, 1/2 price surfing lessons, entertainment etc. Kauai, not so much. Actually, when we arrived to the Marriott Beach Club in Kauai, they tried to tell us that their military rate changed in July and they were going to charge us an extra $50 a day. Even though we booked in August, after the price increase. Anyways, we just showed them our reservation, and the rate we booked and voila, they didn't do it. Did they really expect us to pay that?

Our next BIG trip will be drumroll please:
A European Tour!
Hopefully, within the next 2-3 years. We shall see!

So now you're caught up on our trip. In other news, we move to SA in exactly 3 weeks from today. We have no rental truck, no house to move into and no set plans. BUT, we do have 2 bathrooms, 2 closets, and 1 bedroom packed!

And my last day of work is next Friday. Then I get to keep this job and work from home! Yet, another answered prayer!

Finally, Josh's upgrade check ride is Wednesday!! Assuming the jet actually gets in the air. This means he will be an Aircraft Commander and no longer a co-pilot. It doesn't do too much good as we are leaving the B-1 for now, BUT when he and if he comes back, it will be beneficial to requal. And, he only has one more class and then a capstone test and he is done with his Master's in Political Science!
So proud of him and his accomplishments!

Growing Pains

My precious, hilarious niece, Gracey, turned 6 last week and had a birthday party. When I called to ask what she was doing for the big day she said, "eating meatballs and rollerskatin." How cute!! Since moving away from home, I've missed just about every birthday party for all 4 nieces and 1 nephew. It's times like this that I really miss home and wish we lived closer to our family. It's so tough watching them grow through pictures.

...60...

IF we depart Abilene timely, (the word IF should be the official word of the military)
It will be 60 days until we are officially off of Dyess, final out 11/15.

Wow! Letting this sink in a bit.

I could go on and on about how much we love this place and this assignment but I won't right now. I just hope the friends we've made here feel loved, and I pray they know how much they've blessed our lives! Thankfully, we won't be too far away :)

I LOVE football and college game day and

actually getting to spend these days with Josh this year!.

The end.

Way too much laboring on labor day!!

Hooray for 90s and 20% chance of rain!?!

Getting closer......

Remember this? The light.

We paid off my big loan (7.75% interest) today!

Only 1 more school loan for me, then we tackle Josh's.

Dear Time,

Please make the next 38 days go by really fast so we can see some relaxation here:

Thanks,
Me

poor Reggie!

Reggie hit his head hard on the bed railing today, like really hard. It slowed him down a little bit (he was rough housing). Maybe about 5 minutes later he busts into a sneezing fit! Like 7 sneezes in a row. After he was finished, I thought wow, that was crazy. Then about 5 minutes later it happened again. So far about 3-4 times today. Other than that he seems normal. How odd!

Glamour Shots

Oh the joys of packing and finding hidden treasures like this!!

(Click to enhance if you must!)

I was 12.

My little secret with Victoria Secret

So, do you ever get those coupons that say free gift with $x purchase just throw it out because you know you aren't going to spend $x at a place? Well, think again! I recently had a light bulb go off in my head with these coupons. Forgive me if you've already figured this out.

This is the second month that I received a set of 3 coupons from Victoria Secret. The first time I sold the free ($35) bag for $20. This time the coupons were 1 free panty (gave to a friend), $10 off any purchase, and a free weekender bag with $75 purchase (the bag is worth $78 dollars).

So, this is what I did.

I bought a bra, a comfy cotton nighty, and two lip glosses totaling $85, then used my $10 off coupon to make it $75. This gets me the free weekender. THEN, I sell my weekender bag on Ebay.

Apparently, a ton of people love the VS totes. Me, not so much, I have too many bags already. So to make mine stand out on ebay, I also included the two lip glosses (which were only $1.75 each, but have $7.50 tags on them). So technically, now they are bidding on a bag ($78) and 2 "free" lipglosses ($15) a $93 value. And of course FREE SHIPPING, they fall for that all the time. I also only put the item up for 1 day to capture the crazy demand for this bag. And of course, start it at the lowest-middle price range to catch people's attention to make them think it's cheaper than the others.

After 103 views and 22 bids, the bag sold for $45.75!

So, technically I paid for $75 in order to get the free bag.

But I sold bag sold for: $45.75 minus- shipping and ebay fees ($4.75) = $41

So really, I only spent $34 at VS ($75-$41)

This means I only spent $17 a piece for my two VS items.

You can't even get that on clearance at that price!

Now, I could resell those two items for higher on ebay, but I like them and want to keep them. Maybe next time :)

Bored out of my mind

Why can't I just live in the present and enjoy each day to the fullest? Instead I'm always looking to the future, so much so that I even found a countdown clock to entertain myself.

Labor Day weekend: 23 days
Hawaii: 55 days
Moving to San Antonio: less than 112 days
Christmas: 137 days
Moving to Del Rio: less than 264 days

Hours left of work today: 4

Ugh......

real quick

We got a new assignment!!

Josh is going back to fly the T-6!!

He's going to instruct and teach the newbies how to fly this awesome trainer aircraft.

Our new base will be located in Mexico.

Okay, not really, but really close! The blue line is the Mexican border.

But first, he's got to go back and learn to fly the T-6 again in San Antonio. So we will live there first for a couple months.

Sadly, we will be leaving Abilene for San Antonio sometime this fall. We don't have dates yet. But more than likely we will move to Del Rio before January.

This translates to 3-4 years with no deployments!! Hooray!!

Sorry for all y'all hoping for baby news, maybe within those 3-4 years you will hear something :)

waiting and waiting

Story of our life - waiting and waiting and waiting some more.

But, we finally heard more about planning our future.

I'm going to keep you in suspense just a little while longer until we share with the families.

It's killing you isn't it!?

insert evil laugh here.

My husband's job rocks.

We meet a lot of new people everywhere we go. A frequent question we have to answer is, "what does your husband do?" Yea, no one really cares about what I do, it's all about the hubby. Like doing accounts receivable for oil companies isn't that cool? Come on!?

Anyways, the answer obviously, "he's a pilot." Yea okay, AR, not as cool.

Our neighbor and friend Jason Violette performed in an airshow last weekend. This is him flying in the video (not Josh). Anyways, I can't get over how awesome this is.

Josh's job rocks. Here is a little taste of the B-1.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnHEd4SpQ-Q&feature=youtu.be


**:55, 1:41, 1:49; 2:20 are my fave parts**
and you have to have the sound turned up to get the full effect.

Sorry for the bombardment of posts, I told you, I've had a lot of time on my hands lately!

July reading

Surprisingly, I've had a lot of free time on my hands. Josh has been swamped with homework and flying late nights. I'm trying to avoid the TV and enjoy reading instead. Here are three books I read this month and what I think of them, just in case you care :)

Today I finished:

Nothing to Envy By Barbara Demick

Let me be the first to say, I am incredibly naive and rather ignorant of other cultures. I believe everyone in the world wants to live in a thriving democratic and capitalistic society. So, reading this book about people that didn't have a clue about either, absolutely blew me away. This book talks about the lives of regular people in North Korea, a population that still to this day does not have Internet; is dying daily of starvation; rarely has electricity; forced to work with no pay; and is completely brainwashed by their leadership of thinking no other life exists than the perfect life of the North Koreans. This book tells the histories and progression of North and South Korea intermingled with stories of 6 people (among thousands) that managed to flee North Korea. This book gets a little long at times, thinking, seriously, how much worse can it get? It can also get a bit wordy, especially in the beginning. But it is an amazing and fast read. Incredibly amazing.

I'm giving it 4.5/5 stars.

Minus the .5 for a little repetitious parts here and there and my lack of patience for that.

Up next:

The Hiding Place By Corrie Ten Boom

I'm not sure how, but I had never heard of this book until a coworker recently recommended it. This is a true story of a woman and her family living in Holland throughout the time of the Holocaust. This Christian family helped Jews and started an underground railroad-like system to help them escape. Eventually, her and her sister are caught and are forced to serve time in multiple concentration camps. Despite the horror they went through, they managed to use the experience to adamantly share Christ to many prisoners throughout the way. A truly remarkable story of keeping the faith. If you liked Night by Eli Weisel and The Diary of Anne Frank, you will enjoy this book.

I'm giving it 4/5 stars.

A large part of this book details the intricacies of her family which gets a little redundant, hard to follow. Still a great story.

Lastly:

Heaven is for Real By Todd Burpo

Thankfully, our pastor throughout his last sermon also admitted that he is skeptical of these types of stories. As am I. This book is all over the place right now and I'm sure you've heard of it. A little boy nearly dies and experiences heaven. Now, who am I to judge that this story isn't true? However, there are many "wow" factors in this book that really make you question everything. Though my gut says they are far-fetched coincidences, but again, why judge? God is capable of anything, people in the Bible experienced heaven, why can't that happen today? I would say the best thing I took from this book, is the title, Heaven IS for Real. Not that the story of this boy solidified my belief of that, it just made me view heaven a little differently. It reminded me that God is looking out for us and that He loves us.

I give this one 3/5 stars.

A little too cheesy for me, but so easy to read, very conversational.

I'm trying not to buy another book, because I need to finish the ones I have. The next one I'm about to start is this one:

**7/25 - Update, just finished this one. Yea, it took about 5 hours**

Everyone knows what it's about. It's written in first person like she's telling the story to you. It gets a little descriptive and vulgar here and there, but she lived through some crap! I wish she were a Christian so it gave more of a faith perspective, but I knew going into it that it wouldn't.

I think the best part was actually the ending, about how her life is now having to adjust to a whole different type of world. She didn't get her license until she was 29!

I'm giving 3.5/5

A tough story to tell, but interesting to see how she survived through it.

fun...

So for those back home complaining about the heat wave. It looks like you are getting some relief, woo hoo!

Just a tidbit for you. Abilene, Texas recently shattered their record of most days over 100 degrees in the summer. We are now at like 46 or something, I lost count. I find it interesting that they say 46 days, but technically summer started June 21st. Ours started in like April so whatev.

So for fun, go to weather.com
enter in our old home zip code 49120
type in our new home zip code 79607

bam 20+ degree difference.

Hot!!

So for a little while now we`ve noticed the diet coke hasnt been tasting right. But when we drink it, it is usually paired with rum so we get over it. Well, curiousity got the best of me as we tried one without rum. Guess we should pay more attention to the expiration dates! Yuck.

Recap

Trips are always fun. Here are some highlights from our Michigan road trip/DC/Virginia

We saw Canada from Detroit.
(Behind us in the picture)

Friends wedding in Midland, MI

Stopped for Dunkin on our way to visit CMU. Heavenly!!

Gave Josh a tour of my old college, CMU, Mt. Pleasant, MI.

Stopped by "our spot" Silver Beach, St. Joseph, MI. We spent lots of time here growing up.

We were even engaged at this spot 4.5 years ago.

Looks better in the summer doesn't it?
(Taken minutes after our engagement, in December!)

Visited my Grandpas cottage in Marcellus, MI for some fun in the sun.

Hung out with my family. Here's my beautiful sister, Steph.

Josh sleeping in my niece, Gracey's bed. Passed out!

Visited Great Falls National Park - D.C.

Watched fireworks on the National Mall

Got a private tour of the Capitol building. Really neat!!

Met up with Josh's Purdue friend, Vik for a Cubbies game.

Parker clan

Had delicious Fro-Yo a couple times.

Went to Richmond, VA to visit the rest of the Parker family.

Spent a lot of time in the Metro, waiting for it to take us to cool places.

Saw where Lincoln was shot.

Air Force Memorial - really cool!

We had a great time. This was my 3rd and Josh's 4th or 5th trip to D.C. so far it hasn't gotten old. There's so much to see in this city!

This was actually our first huge road trip together, DC, Virginia Beach and NYC. Then a week later we moved to Kansas and started a whole new chapter in our lives!