NAVY WIFE! (what the recruiters don't tell you...)

The recruiters don't tell you that when you drop them off the night before he leaves for basic training, how it feels like every bone in your body is breaking...and how you will never cry harder in your entire life, (well, at least until you say goodbye again.)

The recruiters don't tell you how HAPPY you will be from getting a 15 second call in the middle of the night, telling you that he arrived at boot camp...but they also don't tell you how heartbreaking it is, knowing you don't know when you will hear this voice again.

The recruiters don't tell you how getting a letter from your sailor is like Christmas morning, once a week. And how you just want to read it over and over again, out of pure excitement.

The recruiters don't tell you how you all of a sudden, you will be the most patriotic person you know.

The recruiters don't tell you  how many sleepless nights you will lay in bed, thinking of him.

The recruiters don't tell you that will you will continue to cry yourself to sleep...even after 2, 5, or 7 months of separation.

The recruiters don't tell you HOW MUCH JOY you experience when talking on the phone, even if it's only a for a few minutes.

The recruiters don't tell you how proud you will be at boot camp graduation. And how it will easily be not only one of the happiest moments, but proudest moments of your entire life.

The recruiters don't tell you that you will never forget the look on his face when you see him for the first time after 2, 4, or 6 months.

The recruiters don't tell you how lonely you will feel...

The recruiters don't tell you how sweet the kiss is, when finally reuniting after months of separation.

The recruiter don't tell you HOW SEXY your sailor looks in his uniform. ;)

The recruiters don't tell you how every goodbye, will literally tear out your heart, because you don't know when you will see him again....and how it NEVER gets easier

The recruiters don't tell you that Navy T-shirts will quickly become your favorite outfit.

The recruiters don't tell you how you will talk to anybody who will listen, about your sailor.

The recruiters don't tell you about all the sweet military discounts your get (that's a lie... they totally do. They are called recruiters for a reason! Haha)

The recruiters don't tell you that every time you hear the National Anthem, you stand a little taller, knowing that the "home of the brave" is referring to your husband.

The recruiters don't tell you about the sense of pride you feel, to call yourself a Navy wife. And about how although your situation is hard, you wouldn't trade ANY of it, because you too, are serving the country.

I hope this post doesn't sound like I am complaining, I just wanted everyone to see the real perspective. Being the wife of a sailor is not easy, and there are times where I want him to quit and be done with it all. But when you see him salute the flag, or stand there in his uniform, or embrace each other for the first time after a long separation, it is (almost) worth every tear and heartache you experienced. I am proud to be an American, and Proud to be the wife of a United States Sailor.  (Any other military wife is welcome to comment anything I missed.) Thanks for reading.

Catching up...

Well, I logged onto the blog tonight to realize I never "continued" the last post about my Spring Break to Pensacola. Whoops! Well to the probably 2 of you who read this blog, I will tell you about it another time, or you already know about it. To catch those of you up with what I am up to, the semester at UVU ended at the end of April and since then I  have been working up the wazoo because that is literally all there is to do around here. With Geoff still gone, I figure I might as well work at much as I can because when he comes home, I will not pick up any extra shifts other than my own, because I want to just spend time with my husband who would have been gone for the last 8 months. Can you believe it?! 8 months...that is 1/3 of our marriage. I wouldn't do it again, haha, but it has been an amazing experience for both of us to grow in a number of ways. Speaking of Geoff, he is 4th, yes, 4th in his class in Naval IT A-school. He graduates in a couple of weeks (I can not post the exact date due to OPSEC laws) and I literally can't sleep out of pure excitement. Basically, that is it for an update in our boring, yet typical lives. One day when I have children my blog will be full of funny stories about the kids but for now, it is just us. :)

Spring Break! Part I (sorry it's a novel...)

Spring Break this year was by far one of the best spring breaks of my life. I had the opportunity to go visit my husband who is stationed in Pensacola, Florida for training with the Navy. It started out Wednesday night/ Thursday morning with a red-eye, midnight flight from SLC to Charlotte, North Carolina.

Leaving Salt Lake City at 11:59 PM. Thanks Jennifer for the ride!

I was anticipating to sleep, but it didn't happen. until about the last 15 minutes of the flight. I then hung out in the MASSIVE Charlotte airport for several hours, and even took a nap. My plan was, to find a nice little bench and sleep, but there were no nice little benches...only seats with arm rests. So I found my gate, rolled under the seats, and slept for about an hour. After my layover, I was headed to Pensacola! When I boarded the plane, someone took my window seat which I was disappointed in, since I planned to sleep some more, but I slept on the plane anyways! (Quick side note complaints 1.) about US airways....they don't provide complimentary snacks. 2.) Nothing makes you feel more like a loser than boarding zone 5, just sayin.) At 10:30 am Thursday morning, I finally arrived in Pensacola!

What  a beautiful city it was! SO GREEN! After retrieving my luggage and finding a cab, I arrived at the Navy Gateway Inn located on Naval Air Station Pensacola. Obviously, I crashed! But I set my alarm for 1 hour before Geoff would get out of class so I could get ready. Funny story about that...well my phone hadn't switched time zones yet so it was an hour behind. So I set my alarm for 2:30 so I could be ready by 3:30, but really it was only 1:30, and I was ready by 2:30. Thank goodness for in-room television :) Finally at 3:45 his rental car pulls up. And let me tell you, every time I see him after a long period of separation, it is the greatest feeling in the whole world! We spent that night at Red Robbin with his friends and hanging out at the mall. It was fun meeting his friends after hearing about them for 4 months. Unfortunately since he had training the next day, he couldn't stay with me, which is why we were with his friends that night- the Navy follows the buddy system. Unless weekend liberty is granted with a family member, no sailor can be alone off base. So we said goodnight and he went back to base and I crashed-- I was exhausted! Friday is the day that the fun starts... :) and it is getting late so I will finish that post tomorrow! (..to be continued...)

You know you're a NAVY wife when...

You know your a NAVY wife when... 

1. You don't mind a phone call waking you up at 4 a.m.
2. You tell people that ask that he's 'only' been gone a month.
3.  The smallest contact (text or 5 minute phone call) from your man makes your entire week!
4.  Those recruitment commercials on TV make you cry  because you are so proud! (they get me every time)
5. You feel yourself growing more and more in love with your man even while he's so far away.
6. Planning letters and care packages and putting them in the mail is more exciting then going out for a night on the town.
7. You hold off on seeing certain movies so you can see them with your Sailor when he comes home.
8. You want to roll your eyes when you hear someone say, "I haven't seen my boyfriend/husband in a week!" Seriously, you don't have my sympathy.
9. You can go from being happy, to sad, to lonely, to angry, to proud, and back to happy in a matter of less than an hour. It's an emotional roller coaster
10. The sight of any other man in a uniform makes you miss your husband more....but you can't help but talk to them.
11. Phone and skype kisses are just as good as the real ones (well almost as good...you take what you can get)
12. You get used to plans changing last minute...cause that is just how the NAVY rolls.
13. You wear his clothes to bed
14. You love watching cute love movies because it reminds you of all the cute things he does when he's home. But you hate it too cause it makes you miss him even more
15. You haven't shaved your legs in weeks
16. You suddenly have an obsession with anything military related.
17. You see someone wearing an ARMY, NAVY, or USMC shirt and you get this overwhelming urge to talk to them.
18. You make friends with strangers online just because they are in the same situation as you and are the only ones that can truly understand what you are going through.
19. You can't decide what to wear when you meet him at the airport and you want to look cute, but not too cute, because your cutest outfit you want to save for your first full day together.
20. You realize that HOMECOMING is so much more than a football game.
21. You want to hit any happy couple you see together. like seriously.
22. You see a "support our troops" sticker on a car when you are stuck in traffic and you find yourself guessing about who they know that is deployed and thinking about their entire life story.
23. When the clock says 11:11, you find yourself wishing for the same thing every time: to see him
24. You get excited when its only 3 months until you see your Sailor instead of 7. ( The Official countdown till he is HOME is 86 days!) 
25. You find yourself randomly crying and you sometimes have no idea why.
26. You stay on the internet for hours searching for anything and everything about the military.

(I totally want a picture like this!)

Life after death

Wow! It has been a while since we posted last. Oh well! Over the weekend, we attended the funeral of Geoffery's sweet grandmother. She passed away Monday morning in her home. It was a surprise to everyone. Geoff, who is currently serving in the United States NAVY, was able to recieve family tragedy leave and return home from Florida to attend the funeral services. Although he was in town for terrible circumstances, we really enjoyed spending time together this weekend. It had been almost 3 months, and I was ready to see him again. But that's not the purpose of this post. Being a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I have always believed in the plan of salvation, or life after death. For the first time in my 21 years, I KNOW there is life beyond the grave. There is no doubt in my mind that we will live an eternal life after this one, and that our actions and behavior in this life, will absolutely effect the next. I have always believed. But I am grateful for the experience I had when the spirit confirmed my beliefs. I couldn't be happier with the man I have decided to spend eternity with. I am so grateful to have qualified to recieve the blessings of the temple and be sealed to him for time and all eternity.

A little crafty

So for those of you who follow me on Pinterest, you have noticed I have a board called "projects for this summer." Well here is the first accomplished project for this summer! 

Here is a quick tutorial for those of you who are also interested:

Materials:

• Art canvas
• Material (I used half a yard and had PLENTY to spare)
• a hot glue gun and glue sticks (I purchased a cheap gun at Hobby Lobby for 2.99)
• Buttons

Directions:

• Cut the cloth to it's desired size
• Glue the cloth onto the canvas
• Trace your desired letter onto the cloth lightly with a pencil
• Glue your buttons onto the cloth
• Keep going until you are satisfied
• Have fun!

I am definitely not the best at crafting, and I think I pulled this off quite nicely. If I can do it, anyone can do it. It's quick, cheap, fun, and makes a great wall decoration. I chose neutral colors so it will match any furniture or room we have now or in the future. But adding some color would also be super cute! I also plan on adding some colored ribbon before hanging it on the wall.

His New Toy

Recently, Geoff and I found ourselves in a position where we needed transportation. We were both still driving our parents cars and decided we needed to provide for ourselves now that we have gotten ourselves on our feet. In addition to buying a car, we also bought this beauty. A lot of people have been asking me if it makes me nervous. And yes, it does. We had many long conversations about if whether or not it was a good decision. But this motorcycle gets 70 mpg and it makes more sense to us, then buying a second vehicle. He wears his leather jacket, gloves, and helmet whenever he rides it, and so do I. You are only young once! So we are taking advantage of our youth and definitely having a good time. (Plus he looks pretty good driving this ;) ) He promised me that he would return to me in one piece every night, and I completely trust him. Plus, he said this has always been one of his dreams and I love the look on his face every time he rides it, knowing his dreams are coming true! So have fun Geoff, and BE SAFE!!