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Warning! This post is photo heavy.... lots of homecoming photos!

The day he came home I felt so overwhelmed, nervous, anxious, excited, and I freaked out just a little (which is not normal for me--way out of my comfort zone). I had those little butterflies all day long. It felt like a long day, but nothing in comparison to 10 months of waiting... though hours dragged by.
The plane landed! Then they all walked past us. That's when it hit me, that he was really home.
You could feel the energy and excitement in the room. They came marching with smoke and music which makes it really entertaining. Here are a glimpse of the best day! Welcome home J!

Chester the brigade bulldog

Waiting to see the plane

We see the plane!

Such a good feeling to know that they are home.


the plane has landed!!


hoping he can see my sign.


hello beautiful plane



looking for him


THERE HE IS!


got a smile


and a wavy!


and a side look


then we get his really excited face. Haha!


this is where I get tears


more waiting


smoke, music, lights!


marching in


a few words then they are released and we get that hug and kiss.


we all have waited so long for this moment


best felling ever! Relieved, happy, complete, excited, and perfect!

He is finally home! We made it! He was gone about 10 months. In that 10 months I learned a lot about myself. I know one thing for sure, it puts so many things into perspective for me. Knowing that the little things do not really matter. There are so many lessons learned through experiences like this.
I am thankful to those who helped me through some of the tougher times.

Thank you to Katie Collins for taking these photos for me and being there for us!

View more photos

Right Now

I cannot believe it is the second month of this year. And it seems this year has only begin.

  I started the new year on the phone with my husband who was on his way back from R&R. I was so thankful to been able to ring in the New Year, even if it was on the phone.

Right now life is going fast. We are staying busy which makes the days pass quickly. Staying busy where the days past fast is good during a deployment. Last month we have celebrate day 100. I wanted to do something to mark a milestone for the deployment. So we celebrated day 100 with cupcakes and candles and it was fun...and R didn't mind the cupcakes. Now we are half way to the end!!!!!!!!

I am doing Project Life (Becky Higgins).  I decided to do it for one simple reason...my husband requested more pictures. So I decided the best way to do that was to document our everyday. I am so excited to show him when he comes home! He was so excited about the project when I told him about it.

Also I believe crafting/scrapbooking has saved me from going crazy. It keeps me occupied. I have to scrapbook or I get out of sorts! Though I have a few bad days and weeks, they too pass.

The only thing I really have been interested on TV is Once Upon  a Time. Though I need and want to read, I just haven't made the time. Right now R loves Little Einsteins and Mickey Mouse.

I have found on so many occasions R sleeping in his bedroom floor. I think he would rather play than sleep so he plays until he falls asleep in the floor.

I am so thankful for friends that have ate lunch/supper with me, gone shopping with me, talked with me, and just hung out. I am so thankful for friends. And I will not forget my family who has put up with R and I. They are a lifesaver.

I am a NOMAD... We have a traveling home right now. No real place on earth to call a "home". But I am okay with that, though sometimes it drives me crazy not having a place of my own.

And I miss him. I miss every bit of him, but I will not bore you with how much I really miss him! Cannot wait until we are all back together again.

best photo of 2011

was taken when my husband came home for leave. Yep that is where I have been for a while...MIA. And I received the best Christmas present of all :). Enjoying time as a family.

I just wanted to share my favorite photo from 2011. It is not a perfect portrait with perfect hair, eyes all sparkling, the aperture just right, but it has more than all those perfect photos. It is an beautiful moment recorded that makes it extraordinary. It says so much so I will let the picture speak for itself...

sending him off to war

is one of the hardest things in my short life I have had to do. The emotions rush in a flood your entire body. You have that enormous lump in your throat while holding back tears. You feels as though the air was sucked out of the room and little butterflies now occupy the space of air in your body. I feel this because you know that for at least months it will be the last time you see him, kiss his lips, feel his warmth, and you know you are going home to a painfully quite home. The bed will be cold and lonely. You lose your best friend for a while and sometimes it's the most interesting part of your day is gone. I know for months there is going to be have heavy weight on my shoulders, but I know in time it will all be okay. Or at least you pray that he will come home and life will go on as though it never happened. The year I survived and learned independence. It can only make me a better, wiser, and a stronger person. So let's do this!

     I cannot even describe how proud I am of him. We have learned what a little bit sacrifice is for this great country that can only be learned by serving.

this day 10 years ago

I was sitting in a classroom taking a English exam. Second period of the day in High School, ninth grade to be exact. It was like to any normal ordinary day except it wasn't. It was the day that change a whole lot. We could hear the shouts and screams from the neighboring classroom. Thinking may they are playing a game or some activity over there. After the teacher noticed the alarmed look in our faces, she told us why so much noise was made. I don't really think we comprehend what she said, but soon we saw the news and knew the gravity in which what was taking place. The rest of that day in the ninth grade will live in my memory forever.

Really that day was different, but really it change more than a day. It changed a part and pieces of my life. My husband was in high school also at this time. He volunteered to join the military 7 years later. Now he is about to go to war and fight for his country. This is where my life is changed. I now see things through a different lens. When it's your husband fighting for a cause, because of 9/11 he and I will experience a part of the event. The ten years after part. It's not just about those who were lost and their families though their lost is great, but for those who stood up and said I will fight for those lost and freedom so that this will never happen again. Volunteered to put their life on the line and to know that they might not becoming home. 9/11 has affected those who have did serving in foreign countries and their family. This tragedy has effected more than a group, but a nation.

catching up

I've been neglecting my blog as of lately... I know... sorry.

I have been so busy. First we, as a family, went on vacation to Georgia and to Florida. I have too many photos to share from our trips. We had a blast! So we went on a zip line tour for an awesome date. By the way you do not have to go to Mexico to go on zip lines. There are some amazing ones literally 15 minutes from my home town!
 Then went to Florida for a "traditional" vacation. Like the ones I remember growing up with all of my family.
A trip to the Georgia aquarium and family time and family photos in between.

Not only have we been on vacation but we are preparing for some life altering separation. That would be a deployment. I believe I am doing incredibly well for our first experience. I though I would be more upset about all of this by now, but really I am too busy thinking of all the things I need to get done. I know the crying until I fall asleep is coming and it's going to hurt, but there is nothing I can do about that right now at this moment.
I will be heading to Georgia to stay with my family during this time of separation. More to come on this new adventure. And more photos to come.

For those who have died...

When your military every patriotic holiday means so much more.

Though when I was growing up my parents always taught me what patriotism is. I believe every American should learn to love this country!

Our military sacrifice so much everyday and some sacrifice it all.

Memorial Day is not just a day off! It's one day a year we remember those who sacrificed it all for our country. These men and women bettered our country. Please take a moment to remember those lost their life for you.

Thank you to those who sacrificed their lives for our freedom and the families left behind whose sacrifices will never be forgotten.

Please take time to thank a veteran or a war widow or visit a war memorial.

Here are some blogs to visit to remember those who have given their life and the effects it has.
Chrissy,  Letters to you, is a blogger that lost the love of her life who died in action in September. 
Andrew Olmsted is a blogger who left behind his Last Post on his blog.
1LT Todd Weaver left his last letter to his wife and daughter.
A Little Pink in the World of Camo blog about a widow who lost her husband March 2010.
The Yllescas Family was a blog a came across as my husband was in basic training. She lost her husband in 2008 from wounds suffered from an IED in Afghanistan.
More Widow Blogs

My Hero

J is my hero.

I have been blessed with this wonderful husband. 

He does a lot for R and I.

His job is hard.

He love us.

Oh and he looks good in uniform! :)

Here is a page just in time for Memorial Day. Happy Memorial Day weekend!
We will be doing something fun.

Kitschy Digitals|Watercolor Doilies Paper Collection, Washi Tape Frames Digital Kit, Woodgrain Frames Digital Kit
Elle's Studio| Everyday Striped Journaling Circles
Carina Gardner| PINFEATHERS - Doodly Swirls
Jodie Lee| Sweet Heart Collection -circle brush

'At the Job'

It's so nice to see J in his environment at work. I cherish these times. Really we are there to raise money, but we gain memories. I want to remember days like these where we get a very small glimpse in to this life. I love how excited J is to see us. I know it's special for the boys to see their wife and/or kids or just get to enjoy a home cooked meal.
Every moment counts in the military life. We learn to to soak up time to last us a week or months when they are gone. There's not a month that goes by that J is not missed for a least week at time right now. While it's hard on all of us, but we become stronger. I know it makes me a stronger person. Time apart does make the heart grow fonder.

This blog is more than just scrapbooking or a hobby, but a place to remember what life is right now. I want to be able to record snip-its of our life, like a journal with lots of pictures. After all isn't that what scrapbooking is about?

The Journey

Life changed for us quickly. We found out that we were going to Fort Bliss two months before we left. We had no clue what Fort Bliss or El Paso meant other than not beach location we were hoping for. We did not know when we would be moving to Fort Bliss. 

When J came home from Basic Training and OSUT, just a week later we were in El Paso. After a two day drive, two weeks in a hotel, and a moving van a month later, we were here.

As we stand on the mountain and look over El Paso we realize this is home for now

We were out of our element; desert, Mexicans, and their culture. Why did we get sent here? Why not closer to home or a tropical destination? We were here so we learned to deal with the dry heat, culture shock, and military life because we had to. We have seen the beauty of this area. It has only made our family stronger.

Ruger was born here. We made friends here. Home was very distant. Georgia is home. We had a house, family, and good friends. We learned we still had our family, our friends, and our house.

Right now we are on an adventure and learned a lot from our experience. Learned we can do anything.

You can find strength in life changes as I have. Not only moving but dealing with the army wife life.

Queen of Quirk
You Are Here Full Kit
Knotty Girl Paper Pack
Map-Google maps
USA map- clip art

 This is inspired by my pinterst boards. Here is the original at Tickey Boo.

*We have been in El Paso almost 2 years now.

Our Story

We are "high school sweethearts" or sort of. We were in high school when we fell in love. We have known each other since I was 10 and he was 12 from church, but never really were good friends. I 'liked' him a long time before we decided to date. It was 2003, he asked me to the annual Formal at church. And since then we have been inseparable.



We were married in 2007 at the church we grew up in.



Bought a house and got a dog.



But then in 2009, Jason joined the Army. Then we PCSed to Fort Bliss, our one and only duty station.



R was born May 2010.






Our little family of 3!

Then baby #2 came along 3 years later. And now we are 4.

Then 2 weeks later we packed up a newborn and moved back to Georgia and left the army life.

This is just a sweet & simple summary. There is so much more to our lives. Stay tuned!!