Well, we have made it! The move from San Diego to Pensacola has finally arrived. It has been a long road trip (28 hours), but a successful one. We were fortunate enough to not encounter any car trouble and minimal road construction. It is time to sign our lease tomorrow and then, of course, head to the beach!
Rodriguez take over the South!!!
Well after a rough week last week, Michael and I decided to have a little getaway to clear our heads. We packed the car and headed to Palm Springs! It was gorgeous! If you ever get the chance to go, take it!
Palm Springs is a small (population 43,000), desert town that is perfect for a relaxing, resort feeling. There are golf courses galore, restaurants, cute shops and calming pools. When we first got to town we went on the Aerial Tramway which was amazeballs! This is a tram that takes you on a 10 minute ride to the top of the mountain at 8,500ft elevation. It was 84 degrees at the bottom and 40 degrees at the top where we enjoy hiking in the snow and a breathtaking view! That adventure alone was worth the trip.
We didn't go just for the snow, we went to blow off some stress and have some fun together. Well, we definitely did! We went out that night, met some locals, met some Canadians, and watched a 50 yr. old bartender spit fireballs from her mouth. It was the distraction we needed.
After a great weekend together we are back to reality. Planning our move is consuming most of our time, but we are also enjoying planning out our "Lasts in San Diego. We have already thought of a few restaurants we, for sure, want to have one last time and we look forward to all the other "Lasts" we are going to experience.
Things in the Rodriguez household are starting to get busier. I have been fortunate enough to have been attending a class for the Navy for the last couple months. It has been incredibly less stressful than being on the ship, but now things are starting to pick up. Michael and I are moving back to Pensacola, FL in April so planning the big move back is in full swing.
Job changes, moving all of our belongings and leaving our Cali friends are just a few of the stressors that are coming down the line, but as much as I hate moving and all the stress.....I love change. I love exploring new places and new things and although we have been to Pensacola before, this time will be completely different; we have different jobs, two cars, a little money in the bank and will be there for years so we can really settle in.
I am not sure if I am ready for the people of Pensacola, but I sure do miss those beaches!! And mellow mushroom (our favorite pizza place)!!! I think one of the things I will enjoy most is strolling down memory lane from the first time we were there. Pensacola is really where Michael and I built up our relationship and actually got married there so thinking back to the day as we stand on the beach again will be special. :)
We will see what this round of Pensacola livin' will bring us.
Holy Shit! So I leave in one week from tomorrow! Kind of crazy....wait..no....REALLY CRAZY! Time as surely flown by since I first enlisted back in July.
I took a very big step today towards this new life.....I cut my hair. It's incredibly short. I'm not sure if I like it yet or not. I know it's just hair and it will grow back. My hair grows fast too so it shouldn't be too horrible. I also need to remember how nice it will be to not have to worry about dealing with it while I'm at basic training. *sigh* I think it will just take some time to get used to.
On the up side....the weather up here in Fargo is absolutely horrible which makes me really look forward to being in Florida in a couple of months. So glad I will have a short, 2 month winter in chicago then off to a land with no snow! :) :) :)
Starting the count down......7
I will never cut my hair that short again! So many people loved it, but after a couple weeks I wasn't so crazy about it. Haha
It is definitely summer in San Diego! It typically doesn't get cold in SoCal, but it is not hot during the winter months. The sun isn't as close to us so the air is pretty cool in the evening/night. Well, February is the new June! It has been a gorgeous 85 degrees all weekend and I plan on spending another afternoon relaxing by the pool. I always think about going to the beach but it really isn't that great of an idea. The sand is usually covered in seaweed, depending which beach, and there is always a 10 degree difference between inland and the ocean, so while it is nice and hot at my house it is cooler and windy on the ocean; it is just best to walk the 1 block down the road to the pool.
Here's to getting my tan on!
Living in Fargo seems like forever ago!
So as I was driving to work today, rocking out to the radio like usual, the DJ's starting talking about a man who was hit by a train earlier this morning. Its quite sad but then it gets even sadder. There are eye witness reports that this man purposly stepped in front of the train. There was a woman in her car waiting for the train to pass on Broadway and Main Ave, which is directly in the middle of downtown, when she saw this man standing on the sidewalk watching the train come in their direction. She said she thought that he was just waiting for the train to pass so he could cross the tracks but then watched him step right in front of the train right before it got to the crossing. That makes this story even sadder! I don't know why it struck me so much but I just can't imagine standing, waiting for a train to come so I can step in front of it. And the poor train conductor who, i'm sure, felt horrible and completely helpless as this man was hit. I just feel bad for this man and his family and friends. Just some news today that saddened my heart.
On a much happier note.......I GET TO GO HOME TOMORROW!!!Erin is leaving for school the end of next week and Joe a few days after that so I'm heading to Alexandria for some fun in the sun with my siblings who i love oh so much! It's kind of weird to think that once they leave for school i'm only goign to see them one more time at Ben's wedding in the middle of October. Then i wont see them until end of December when they come to see me graduate basic training! So crazy! I'm going to miss them so much!!! My family meansthe world to me and their support through all of this has only helped me stay positive about my decision. Wooty Woot!!! A few days full of swimming, boating, tanning, movies, gossiping, delicious food, laughs, relaxing, Great Hunan, erin's awesome puppy chow, Go! with Joe, and tetherball!!!
work can't go fast enough tomorrow!
I am bringing my old blog entries back to life. :) my original blog was started when I first enlisted, my 2nd blog was started when I first got married and I just kind of dropped my original one. I reread some of the original posts and thought it would be good to share those. Those posts are a small glimpse into my first few months of the biggest turning point of my life. Enjoy!:)
Well I figured the best way to share my newest adventure was to start a blog. I think writing all my thoughts and feelings out will help me keep any stress or anxiety down and any excitement and happiness up. With my newest life changing decision the best way for me to share what's going on is to blog. :P
Well I am officially in the Navy. I enlisted 3 weeks ago and just had my first DEP (Delayed Entry Program) meeting last night. Its a monthly meeting to discuss expectations and worries we may have, work out a little bit and get tested on all the things we need to memorize. It's to help us prepare for basic training. Whenever I'm around my fellow recruits I get so motivated to leave and start this new journey but then I come home or head to work and this whole new life is put on the back burner. It's starting to get a little frustrating. I don't really like being inbetween being a civillian and a sailor. I'm ready to just get going and dive right in. People ask if I'm nervous or excited and it really depends on the day. One day I will be dreadfully nervous and wondering what I got myself into because i'm usually thinking about missing my family and friends. But then the next day I'm can be so pumped to go because my job is going to be awesome and I hope to see the world. I love to travel and try new things and this is going to be amazing. The waiting is starting to seem like the worst part.
Let's see...i only have about a month and a half left in Fargo!!! I'm tired of being here. While I've met some great people that I will truely miss, Fargo is just dreadfully boring. Let's not even talk about Fargo winters!! I will be moving out of my apartment at the very end of September and moving home for the month of October. I'll spend some time with my grandparents and friends (Krista, Ryan, Jess) down in Minneapolis and then my brother's wedding will be middle of October. Then shortly after I leave!! While each day feels like it takes forever, the next 3 months are going to fly by!!
Anchors Away!
I had such a good weekend. I love those weekends that have an equal balance of fun, relaxation and productivity. I spent my weekend cleaning (that's the productive part), hiking in the sun, cooking/baking, going to the movies and enjoying the Farmer's Insurance Open with my hubs. It didn't go by too fast, but I wasn't bored either.
So we are continuing our fertility trip and I have decided to separate my blogs. I like using this blog for my random thoughts and our day to day life. As I was reading through them I felt like our fertility trip would be easier to follow if it was in a blog of its own. Also, I can then indulge in the fertility trip when I feel like it and completely ignore it and write about other things in this blog. So posted below is a link to my new blog that you can read if you want to follow along with this trip or, if you don't, then just don't click the link. :) some things in life are just that simple.
Road trip!!!!! Destination.....baby!:)
Ok, so my week of negativity has passed. :) I am feeling more optimistic now, more at peace with my situation and more hopeful for the next step.
In the past when I have gotten down I usually try to do something to cheer myself up, but then I just get more frustrated that I am now pretending I am happy when I am not. So this last week I just let things be and it really helped me. I didn't try to cheer myself up and I just let myself feel however I felt.
I am fortunate enough to not have struggled with any miscarriages, but it still doesn't mean that sometimes I need to grieve over our struggle. For so long I thought it would be selfish to be upset that I wanted more in my life and bratty that I wasn't getting it when I wanted it. But having a baby is nothing like wanting a new iPhone or designer purse, it is a life changing experience that every couple should get to have and I am not in the wrong for wanting it so badly. So once I realized that it is ok for me to be down sometimes, it has helped me become more hopeful and less angry. So I am going to continue to feel what I feel when I feel it, not dwell on anything and move on each day.
Have you ever read a book that from the beginning wasn't very good? And you keep reading it, hoping that things will turn and you will fall madly in love with characters and be captivated with their story.....but then you get to the last page and realize that moment never happened and you aren't sure why you wasted your time. Haha that just happened to me. I finished The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters and it was bad. It was slow and boring and choppy. In defense of the book, though, I did randomly steal it from the ship and with no clue to its quality I read it. I suggest you don't. Haha but I am onto the next!
I am currently reading Return to Homecoming Ranch by Julia London and it is good so far. The first 5 pages are in the view of a specific character that had me laughing aloud from the beginning, so I can't wait for that person to show back up. This book I have in paperback and as much as I love my kindle, nothing beats the feeling of turning a real page.
Happy reading!
I received a call the fertility clinic today and scheduled my baseline ultrasound for a February cycle.
*ding, ding* Round 2.
I haven't decided how I feel about it yet. I feel excited to get another chance. I, also, feel frustrated with the possibility that it may not happen for us. I know I should stay positive and I really am majority of the time, but I am mostly frustrated with how I have had to "stay positive" for so long. The fertility treatment process has not been long at all, with our first appointment being in the beginning of October, but I have had the excitement of possibly being pregnant for 3 years now. Let's just say the excitement meter is very low.
In the beginning, the idea of being pregnant was incredibly exciting. I wanted everything that came with it. I wanted to take pictures of my baby bump, complain about morning sickness to Michael, find out the gender, pick out a name, announce it to everyone and count down the days until that little baby would arrive. Now, I am getting to the point where I don't care about any of that.
I want to be a mom.
I want to be a mom so bad. I constantly think of seeing all my baby's firsts, sending them to school, hearing them talk, imagining Michael running throughout the house with them, disciplining them, cuddling them and most of all loving them. I want a child to love more than I want anything else in this whole world.
I shouldn't think this way, but I am already assuming that we won't get pregnant this month naturally or next month with another IUI. So I ask myself.....how long do I torture myself before Michael and I fill out an adoption application?
It's a lot to think about and being a woman I make sure I have time to think about all of it. I am sure tomorrow I will snap out of it and the excitement meter will rise, but just for this moment I am going to let myself feel however I feel.
I find ways that the Navy has changed me regularly. I think about how I used to be completely comfortable with throwing my clothes on the floor, leaving dishes sit and have items strewn about. That is absolutely not the case anymore! Everything in our house has a place and it erks me worse and worse as time passes that they aren't in place. Michael had a friend from North Dakota visiting for the last 12 days so I gave up my bathroom (yes, I moved all that is girly into Michael's bathroom), and my spare room, which has become my puzzling sanctuary while Rob and Michael play video games. As soon and Michael's friend left today (actually before we left for the airport) I was already putting everything back to wear it belongs. On the ship, we cleaned every day and everything has a specific place in your rack so I have adopted that habit at home. I even vacuum at least once a week just because I think the lines on the carpet make it look neat and organized. I try to not be so bad and let things slide because when I really get crazy about it I start to get annoyed that Michael isn't as obsessed about it as I am and isn't helping. The Nerve!! Can you believe that guy?!? Haha so once I start to feel that way I know that I need to calm down and realize that life can be a little messy and even if I clean it right away... It will just be messy again tomorrow. :)
On another note...
I have been feeling super girly lately. Not sure why, but I am just all about wearing make-up, wearing cute clothes and painting my nails. I used to get in moods like this after being underway for a couple weeks and craved being out of my combat boots, but right now, I just want to be girly.
I absolutely love time with my husband, but I am looking forward to a weekend of girliness all by myself. I started my Friday night with the most recent episode of The Bachelor, leftover Chinese food and Leinenkugel's Cranberry Ginger Ale. Tomorrow, I am getting some relaxing acupuncture done, probably a little shopping for new make-up and bath supplies at a new store I heard about called Lush, followed by possibly In N' Out Burger and my new obsession TV show Parenthood. It's suppose to rain this weekend too so it will be perfect for relaxing girliness.
"Back to school. Back to school. To prove to my dad that I'm not a fool."-Billy Madison
My holiday leave is over, but I am so glad I am back to school. Right now I am taking a Shipboard Communications course for the Navy before I go on to my next command in April. It is great! I kick ass at the class, I don't have duty days, no command pt (physical training) and the hours are from 7:30am-about 2:30pm. Easy days! I enjoyed my time off, but it made me realize I need to be one of those women who work. I just do. I get too bored with too much time off and I hate doing chores so since I get bored, chores are all I end up doing. They get done while I am working during the week too, but when I have time off I really don't have an excuse not to do them. So needless to say, it was time to go back. :)
Chores weren't the only thing I did while on leave. I had a great time with my hubs over Christmas, golfed, went out for New Year's Eve, did a Segway tour, had a bonfire with neighbors, tried acupuncture for the first time (it was great!), got a pedicure, made homemade goodies and did a lot of sleeping in! :)
I also found an older blog of mine I started right when I enlisted. There are only a few posts but I think I am going to transfer them over to this blog, because they are pretty neat to read and it will be nice to have them all in one place. I also have some entries drafted on my laptop from deployment that I should transfer over too. My goal is to eventually type out my whole deployment experience so I can look back on it and remember that crazy time.
I hope to be blogging more in 2015! I know I always say I want to blog more, but the truth is that I don't think I have that much to say, and when I did have something to say I wouldn't be motivated enough to set my laptop up, try to log in, realize I don't know my password, reset my password, try to login again and then finally try to remember what I wanted to say in the first place and then get to writing. But, thanks to technology, I have the Blogger app on my phone that keeps me logged in and ready to type at any moment. So get ready for flying thoughts!:)
2014 has come and gone and I am looking forward to the new hope of 2015! Last year was a great year for quality time with the hubs. Since my ship spent the whole last year in the yards, I was able to spend time with my husband whenever I pleased which was great. I think he enjoyed it too, at least that it what he tells me. :)
While not all my goals for 2014 were met I still did so many things I had never gotten to do before. My golf game improved immensely! I even came inches away from getting my first birdie! I ran my first half marathon which was a great experience and I would love to do another one in 2015. The hubs and I finally got to go to Comic Con which was fantastically nerdy! We took a trip to Vegas again where Michael saw his first big musical, Jersey Boys and I got to see my favorite band (The Used) play live. :) I went to see Justin Timberlake and Miley Cyrus live and we saw The Book of Mormon as well. I went to New York City for the first time which I one of the beat vacations I have ever had and Michael and I were able to make it back to the Midwest together. I also reenlisted in the Navy for 4 more years and transferred from my first command. :)
Whoa! That's alot! I didn't think it was that adventurous of a year but it definitely was and I look forward to the new adventures of 2015!
