MIA

Hello Friends 

I am happily spending the week at home visiting family. I will catch back up with blog stuff when I am back in NY. In the mean time you can follow along with my traveling adventures on my Instagram feed. 

Follow me at MrsMollyP

See y'all soon with loads of pictures from my travels =) 

What I Have Learned

Today's prompt for Blog Every Day In May is "Things You've Learned That School Won't Teach You"

 

I learned lots of things in school yesterday. In fact, I actually used algebra yesterday in a real world situation. I felt like I should call my old math teacher and say thanks.

 

However, many of life's greatest lessons I have learned from experiences outside of the school house.

 

1. You can't always control what happens to you, but you can control how you react.

This has been a big lesson to me in the past few months. I have tried to focus on finding the positives during my husband's deployment, and choosing to be happy regardless of a crappy situation. Whether it is the car falling apart or just general life events, I have been focusing on reacting in a positive and calm manner.

 

2. Marriage is really really really awesome.

 

3. You choose what standard you want to live up to. In the end you are only accountable to yourself.

I have always heard that integrity means doing the right thing when no one is looking. In same vein, the quote "you are what you repeatedly do" has always hit home for me. We make choices which together comprise who we are as people.

 

4. Take off you eye makeup at night.

I usually forget, but just do it.

 

5. Good things come to those who work hard.

People always say how lucky I am to have a great job up here. Maybe luck is involved, but I also worked insanely hard for four months trying to find something. I came back to my (now) boss' office every week for a month before I was eventually hired. Don't wait for the perfect thing to fall into your lap. Hustle!

 

6. Cilantro will last a lot longer if you put it in a cup with water, cover it with a plastic bag and stick it in the fridge.

 

What have you learned? Go link up with Jenni and let us know.

OK

Everything seems so tiny in comparison to what is going on in Oklahoma. I am heartbroken over the pictures of parents and teachers carrying children out of the schools. I was working at a summer camp during a tornado in 2007. We had to get all the kids to the shelter and hang out till it was safe. Luckily the tornado didn't come our direction, and no one was injured. I am so sad that Moore, Oklahoma can't say the same thing.

However, you can still find moments of happiness and hope. I saw this video this morning and might have starting crying at my desk.

Hug those you love (especially your dogs) 

Deployment Week Seventeen

Hello middle of May! The next time I write one of these I will be soaking up the Virginia sun. I can't wait to hit the stupid twenty week mark. I am definitely out of my rut that consumed last week's update. I had a fantastic Skype session with Lane on Friday to celebrate our two year anniversary. It gave me the boost I needed to have a wonderful weekend. I am excited to power through this week and get on the road to Virginia. 

Happy Picture 

This was from Lane's short lived bleach blond phase. We went back to our high school in 2007 to watch some of our friend's graduate. It is hard to believe this was six years ago. 

Deployment Gratitude 

1. I am grateful for a truly incredible husband. We had our wonderful Skype session on Friday. I got a wonderfully sweet e-mail to further celebrate two years of marriage. Then he took care of some car paperwork stuff all the way from Afghanistan. I am so grateful that he took care of this onerous chore I had been dreading. I love that he can still be completely there for me from 6,700 miles away. 

2. I am grateful for muddy feet and dirty hands. I spent some time working in my yard this weekend and was reminded of the therapeutic powers of walking barefoot in the grass and digging in the dirt.

3. On that note, I am grateful that my grass is growing back. I have such a black thumb that I am surprised anything is actually growing. I have been filling in all of Asha's lovely digging and trying to coax new grass to cover the bare spots. 

Deployment Projects 

I have been planing on making a padded coffee table/ ottoman and got an old gorgeous coffee table from my neighbor. I just need to get some fabric, batting and foam. I am excited to add this coffee table to my living room. 

I am also excited because my MIL is going to help me make some throw pillows for the living room. She is a sewing wiz and I am excited to make a few to add to my couch. 

Busiest Week Ever

Yay for graduating!

This week holds several huge anniversaries. On May 15th 2011, Lane commissioned as an officer in the U.S Army. One day later he graduated from VMI. The day after that we ran off to the courthouse for our first wedding. It is so hard to believe that all of that happened two years ago. In some ways it feels so much longer. I feel like we have been married for eons, but Lane's time in the Army has passed in a blink. 

We have been together for 9.5 years, and for us marriage didn't change very much. We were still maintaining a long-distance relationship and I was still in school.  We didn't live together for the first few months after our courthouse wedding, and Lane left for Ranger School a week after our big family wedding.

 It wasn't that different from the rest of our relationship. Now, I absolutely love being married. I would marry him every day if I could. I haven't talked a lot about our first wedding, but it was private, short and unbelievably perfect. He left a few days later for IBOLC, continuing our pattern on long distance.

It has been really nice to focus on everything that has changed since this week in 2011. I have moved from Virginia to Georgia and then to New York. We got married (twice). It seems fitting that our two year mark in the Army comes at about the same time as the halfway point in this deployment. It is the perfect time to reflect on how far we have come and everything that we want to do going forward. 

Ten Little Things

My mantra for this deployment has been to choose happiness and be proactive about happiness. Now, this has been tested a little bit in the past week. I just felt out of sorts. This deployment felt like a giant weight on my shoulders. I was just an unhappy camper. I am trying to get myself sorted out, and today's prompt for Blog Every Day In May is perfect for that.

Ten Things That Make Me Happy

1. When Asha and I sit on the floor and she rests her head on my shoulder. It's like our little version of a hug.

2. Whole Milk Lattes

3. Raspberry smoothies

4. Seeing the little green icon next to my husband's name on FB chat. 

Nothing is better than seeing that he is available to chat. 

5. When one of my students graduates. 

I get all giddy watching one of my students complete their degree program and get their diploma. 

6. Paying off one of our student loans.

 We still have a looonnnggg way to go, but it feels good to have one finished. 

7. Surprise letters from my family. My aunt sent me this gorgeous photograph of my grandmother.  

8. This may sound terrible, but I really love the occasional no-show for appointments. 

Having that little breather during the day makes everything so much easier. I can deal with administrative stuff and grab a quick second to eat lunch. 

9. It is Farmer's Market season in the North Country. I absolutely love spending a Saturday morning wandering around the markets in this area. I am especially excited for the local honey. 

10. Seeing my friends welcome their husbands home from Afghanistan. I can't imagine the level of excitement they must be feeling. 

What is making y'all happy today? Link up with Jenni and let us know =) 

Deployment Week Sixteen

I could barely catch my breath this week. Work was quite hectic which meant that chat time with Lane was severely diminished. This week had some hard moments. We are on the cusp of the half-way point, which usually makes me feel awesome. However, Friday I hit a bump on my road to perpetual motivation and optimism. I just couldn't believe that I have to do the same thing again. All of the time that has already passed, which seemed to take a lifetime at some points, I have to do again. I just can't believe I have to do this whole damn thing again. I feel a little bit better today, but I just had a hard time over the weekend. One bright shiny spot in the weekend was that Lane called on Sunday. They all got free phone access since it was Mother's Day and after he called his mom I got a phone call too. It was really nice to hear his voice. It usually makes me tear up at first, but then we just talked about books, Asha, movies and possible job changes for both of us. 

Happy Picture 

This is from VMI's Ring Figure dance during Lane's junior year in 2009. They get their class rings and it is a huge deal. I had a blast and miss heading to Lexington to visit. 

Deployment Gratitude 

(This was not a super positive week so I am digging deep for these) 

1. I am grateful that I found a job I love. I am grateful that I make a positive difference every day. Even if I am having a bad day, even if I don't feel great. I end every work day knowing that I helped soldiers get into college. That is an awesome feeling. 

2. I am grateful for calls from Afghanistan. 

3. I am grateful for how easy it is to make quinoa and red curry. It has become my go-to meal that I can still feel vaguely healthy about. 

Deployment Projects 

I went shopping for end tables for the living room but didn't find anything that I liked. I also have started hunting for a new bookshelf for the office.