...still waiting...but in the meantime

The Men I'm proud to call my Comrades:

I still love this blog. I love the outlet it gives me.



I've heard a lot of things - namely, that we should not say every little thing that comes to mind.



Amen.

(Especially in my case. Holy Cow.)



But in the meantime, there are bloggers out there like Sarah and Anna who just inspire me.


So, I was thinking: Wow. I'm nearing the big FOUR-OH. What do I do with the last half of my life?


A few things came to mind:




Saddlemaker



Gardener and Local Food / Farmer Advocate (I have this idea that if we actually do move to West - By - God - Virginia, I will be able to raise goats for meat due to the huge West Indian/African population boom in D.C.)



Rescuing Broken Horses / therefore Rescuing Broken Kids in a "HorseCamp" project



Beekeeper



A Mom? (I can only hope...but I don't think it'll ever happen...)




But, in the meantime I am what I am.



Which is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army.




Which is a very happy partner to a man I love more than anything I've ever loved. (Whoa. He better not ever let me down.)




Which is an executive officer to a very decent, patriotic General officer. I'm proud to work for him.




Which is a daughter to two really super parents - I never doubted their love for me or my brother.




Which is, a sister to an incredible man I'm proud to call my best friend and my brother.

and,



which is, a best friend to four incredible gals - one is a mama, a creative individual, and everything that I am not - who could as for better in a bosom bud? - one is a fellow horsewoman, a mama, a teacher, and the one who led me to Christ, and ... - one is incredibly intelligent - a doctor of philosophy, actually...and who is the person I admire most in this world for her intellect, and her grace - and lastly, the one who challenged my "beliefs" and who made me question everything - to the best outcome of all: TOLERANCE and ACCEPTANCE. I love all of them.



So - these two pictures are a slice of my last few days - a "Spartan Formation" - thought up by our Command Sergeant Major - to honor those who have gone before us...who've paved the way.




I love this young Air Force Tech Sgt...so pensive. And the rose in the vase that signifies the POW/MIA who can never join us. It's out of focus, but so what?

It's beauty. It's devotion - and it's what we should never forget.

Pure Unadulterated Joy - and Great Trip Home

Well we sure had a great trip (quick, but great) trip home after John bagged his Muley.

I got to spend time with the family, and John got to hang out in his camo sweats...

oh, and I got to ride with Max.

(Minor detail!) HA! :)


































I like this shot...I like Max' dog, Jake, too.

And here's Mom & Dad's dog - Tucker.

Not quite the same effect...though Dad looks good. :)

Armour had fun, too...

I have to say, that this picture just CRACKS me up. Arms and I couldn't be more different...but I wouldn't have him any other way...





But for me, the best part was riding Max' horse, Sterling...I think you can tell there's nothing I'd rather do than ride horses the rest of my life.

Wow. Isn't he a Beauty?

Good Times with The Best Couple Ever

I went up to Laurel to pick up Spectre from his Auntie Max and Uncle Ken's house, and while there (as you can see from the two previous posts) we got to ride, we ate an incredible turkey dinner that was courtesy of Ken's latest hunting excursion (wild turkey is so amazingly delicious that it defies description, actually), and Max bought a guitar!

We packed a lot into a two-day visit, and we had to, because in a week, they pack out for Colorado!!!! Life in the military is never boring.

The Missing Man pic...this time without my man. Boo Hoo.

Our tradition every time we get together...the "phone-call-whilst-imbibing shot"...which started 5 years ago with our toast to Amy, Max's sister, on the occasion of her wedding while we were in Korea...

Max with her beautiful new "Big Baby Taylor"! It was time for an upgrade from her old guitar, and she did it right!

~Best Buds~

Parting Shot. Isn't this funny? Magoo just couldn't be bothered to tuck in his front legs!

Fun with Max

Well, there are a couple things I like more than horses...but not many. John is up there...but otherwise, not a lot tops communion with a horse.

I've not been able to ride much the last few years, so when Max offered to let me ride her 18-hh gelding, Sterling, I was pretty excited.

Here's a pic of Max, right after she hopped on, and no, his head position is not great, but I liked this shot that I took with my telephoto lens...

Here we go...this looks good. Max makes it look easy.

Yep, she sure does. Here I am, concentrating - and I never DID get him to collect like Max got him to. He's a tough horse to ride; he makes you work for every step! (Which is good!)

I LOVE this picture that Max took! Dressage is truly "ballet for horses."

Isn't he gorgeous???

Liked This One Today + Poking Fun at My Little Brother

Well, today turned out to be pretty exciting...our realtor took me out to see the ONE house that out of all she'd rounded up and sent us via the internet really tripped our triggers (those would be John's and MY triggers, you understand...)

He (the house is definitely a "he") was even more handsome in person. And yes, he's a little older, but he's Stately and Fabulous and my 30s-40s-50s era-furniture would look lovely inside...but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Anyhoo, this is the view from the front walkway of this house. We'll call him #308.

For those of you who know me well...of course I noticed that my favorite number is in there somewhere, in some combination! :)



And this is the view looking at the house from the vantage point of the really large backyard (which is completely fenced for Spectre!)



This is looking from the garage toward the backyard. That building is the workshop, which can also be great storage and an extra garage for the Skylark and the Blue Mamu.

I love this view (look below - I know, I do my captions backward but this is my blog and it makes sense to me...) It is from the "Florida Room" (translate to Party Room!) and is looking into the Living Room.

...and the Florida Room itself. It's all glassed-in! Love it! That's the workshop, again, in the back left of the picture.

I'm planning to put a nice TV and couch and fridge and microwave and beanbags so when John and Armour or John and anyone wants to watch NASCAR or anything else Rednecky (sorry, Pam - HA!), they'll be all set. :)

This is the Kitchen. And no, I don't like the "so-bright-that-Dr. Ken Despain-could-easily-engage-in-a-cat-declawing-surgery-on-my-kitchen-table"* lights, and No, I don't particularly care for those cabinets, either.

It doesn't have to be perfect, People. Besides, Sisi is going to help me, and after she's through with this place, it would be a candidate for House Beautiful.

But, Wow. I LOVED this room, this fireplace, this ambience. And, I'm telling you, I know I'm kind of a Wackadoo (I'm comfortable in my world) but I could just feel this house smiling at me when I walked in here and saw this:

Oh. The English bulldog is not real.

And now, it's time for a little pastime I call: Making Fun of Arms.

And why do I do this? Because it's FUN.

These are several pictures of his place, as it looks now...and all I can say is, "Yes, I'm aware that my own house will look like this soon, too..."

But for now, I can just point my finger, crinkle up my nose and yell: Nyah-Na-Na-Na-Naaaa-Na!

See you soon, Brothah. :)

He sent this final picture to me, complete with what I found to be a hilarious caption:

"THE BED IS MADE!!!"

...and so it is!

Keep digging, Arms. Let me know how that works out for ya...

*Note. Max actually had to assist Ken when he did another kind of minor surgery, on their kitchen table in Maryland. Poor Tater is just not the Tom he used to be...

TTFN (Ta-Ta for Now)...

We miss you already, Max!

More Max R & R Pics

While Max was here, we were able to do some semi-normal things with her, which we thoroughly enjoyed!

We went to supper at a sushi restaurant...

We went to lunch at a Thai restaurant...

We both got pedicures...with crazy polish...which is the only girly thing we military chicks can look forward to:

And, while waiting for John to come pick us up at the Four Seasons (where aforementioned pedicures took place...) we feverishly worked on our scarves - note the lovely glasses I'm wearing...I can only imagine how nerdy we looked to the Fabulous People in that hotel. What's great about being nearly 39 is that while it admittedly crosses my mind? I no longer care.

...the glasses were so lovely that Max had to try them on, too! Remind anyone else of Woodshop Class in Junior High?

The scarves weren't finished at this point, but we got them done a couple days later!!!!

...but of course, we missed Ken keenly. He's with Spectre...and I'll see them both (and Max, who heads home in less than a month!) in about 30 days!!!!!

Afghan Commandos

I haven't posted in a week or so because I've been away from the internet...in Afghanistan. I'm headed back to Doha tomorrow - and wanted to get these up before I lose a civilian internet connection...

Here we are (Max & I) at Camp Morehead...we brought NBC Nightly News up to visit the US Special Forces and the Afghan Commandos they are training. We're hoping that story will be on NBC soon...


Mountains on the way from one of the Northeastern Provinces back to Kabul...a very cold helicopter ride!

Afghan Commandos on the Firing Line...

This is the Producer ("The Jefe!"), Madeleine. She was an absolute stitch.

The Commandos were fascinated with the camera! I love this shot!

They were fascinated by a female in uniform, as well. Do you see the different ethnic groups represented? Pashtun, Tajik, Uzbek, Hazara...

This was the Terp (Interpreter) on the left, and one of the Platoon Leaders, on the right. I thought the PL looked just like Jordan's King Abdullah (Peace Be Upon Him...)

Parting Shot - taken by Max...