I love my MacBook!

   I really do. In fact, I only got this blog so I would have yet another excuse to type on my lovely laptop. I really like it. I hope we will never have to go back to a PC. We've had it for 10 months, and no viruses, trojans, or troubleshooting. Its so beautiful! Not having to worry about any of that ugly stuff, after years and years of begging my friends to come fix my PC, to reinstall Windows, and to clean it from all the evil viruses out there. 10 months and not a thing. Just a software update every now and than, but that's nothing to complain about.

      It took a little getting used to, and I still need to learn how to work some of the programs on it, but we LOVE Garage Band and iPhoto. Its so much fun!

    So, people, start saving, and get yourselves a Mac! Why settle for anything else? 

  

3 Months

     We have three months until my husband will get deployed. This will be our first deployment. He will be gone from January until the end of July. 

      I am trying to be brave, and not think about it until we actually have to deal with it. But we already started talking about the arrangements we need to make before he leaves. I will go stay with his family, and when he gets back he will hopefully be able to take a few weeks off so we can move everything back and so we can spend some time together, and also with his family. 

      All this talk makes me sad. I am excited for him, he gets to go to Africa, see new things and experience new cultures.  Plus, Africa is supposed to be a little safer than Iraq or Afghanistan. Hopefully we will be able to communicate often. And we're used to being away from each other... I mean, for the past two years we only saw each other every six months or so, and just for two or three weeks at a time. This time its different. It will be harder, because we are now used to seeing each other day after day after day, and spending time together, but it will hopefully be a little easier because now we are married, and when he comes back, it will be another year or two until he has to go again. 

       We have been married for 9 months now, and I got to see him every single day! The happiest 9 months of my life! 

         I will stay positive about this deployment. I hope I will have my drivers license by the time he leaves. 

    I have to go work on his scarf, still. I have been busy doing things around the house so I didn't have too much time to knit. I am also praying that my birth certificate won't get lost in the mail, since i need it for my USCIS interview at the end of October. 

      I will come back with pictures of Seth wearing the scarf, hopefully soon.  

This week...

    Here's the things I learned/experienced this week:

• My hubby loves veeeeerry long scarfs.
• my cat attacks my dog when i put her in the kennel
• it feels good to sit down and make a plan
• i love knitting
• i love Transformers, and can't wait for when they come out with the next one!
• I enjoy watching guy movies with my hubby as long as i can knit/crochet
• my next project will be learning how to make a hat for Seth to pair with the scarf.
• its great to have goals in life!
• sometimes it can be life-saving to watch the weather
• I will never get used to tornado warnings
• a storm did more damage here than hurricane Hanna.
• I don't want to die. Not because Im scared, but because I know how hard it is to lose someone and I don't want my loved ones to go through this
• its good to save receipts, for returning things.
• my recent passion for knitting has affected my reading.
• This game made me realize that im not good at building things, but im good at making them work.
• headaches haunted me almost every day this week. no fun!
• my cat loves to play with my knitting needles.

                 We were up late last night keeping an eye on the weather, after having a tornado warning. Up until last night I wasn't sure why I am so scared of dying, when I know I am going to heaven. And while talking to Seth last night I realized that I am not scared of dying, I am scared of the things that come before death so many times....the pain, the illness, the suffering. I am a little scared of that, maybe because I've seen so much of it so early in life. I am not scared of dying, I am scared of how it will affect those that love me. My husband, my mom, my sister and everyone else that loves me... It took me four years to recover from my daddy's death, and I still have my bad moments...

           On a happier note, my hubby and I will soon celebrate 9 months since our wedding day. Wow, 9 months! If we would've had a honeymoon baby, I would get ready to go in labor soon! Luckily there is no need to worry about that, since Im not pregnant. These have been the best days of my life.  I don't know why people say the first year is the hardest one. It was very happy and sweet for us, probably because we knew each other so well before we got married, and because we both feel that there is nothing worth fighting over. I try to make my hubby as happy as I can, and I do my best for him to be eager to come home to me every day, and to miss me while he is at work, as I miss him. 

            I hope the weather will clear soon.... I can't wait for snow to come, and no more tornadoes and hurricanes!

Latest news..

   

     I don't really have many news since my last entry. I started knitting a scarf for Seth, and he loves it! I chose a soft yarn, and he wants it extra long, so I still have some work to do on it. I'm not sure what my next project will be. I will either start knitting a scarf for me, since I already have some pretty pink yarn, or I will get started on a red-and-green afghan. My knitting and crocheting knowledge is very limited, so if there is anyone out there that is willing to teach me a few more things, like how to change colors in the right way, or how to increase and decrease and make flowers and things like that, I will take all the help I can get. 

      We are thinking about moving... Even though I LOVE the idea of living in more than one room, and having a washer, dryer and dishwasher, I am a little concerned about the finances. I mean, we are already on the list for base housing, and here we pay very small rent with all utilities included, and we are on a monthly rental contract. So these are the main things that make me want to stay here. Oh, and the fact that with some money invested in more shelves and maybe another dresser we would have enough space for all our things.

      If we move, we would have to add an extra $500 to the housing expenses, at least, because rent would be more expensive, and the chances of having another house with the utilities included in the rent are minimal.  So, we will see.

       My mother and our friends are not coming anymore. I was very sad to hear that... I haven't seen my mom in 9 months, and I don't know when I will see her again. We were both very disappointed.  I wish she was here to teach me how to crochet and knit more interestingly. 

       I will let you know what my next project will be once I make up my mind.

       

Rainy Day...

     Today I miss my father. Well, I miss my father every day, but today more than usual. Its a rainy day, with thunderstorms coming and going, and they remind me of my daddy. He loved storms because he could see God's power in them. 

     I was the happiest little girl. I loved my father more than I can express in words. He was my priest and pastor, my best friend, my daddy, my protector, my play mate , my provider... I loved him, and I loved being his daughter. 

     I got many things from him.... my hands and my short neck, my faith, my love for office/school supplies, my love for God... He taught me how to read, and gave me money for every page I read from the Bible, even before I was in school. I loved to make him proud of me. I would go to church with him every time, and we always had a little agreement that I would stay outside and play with the other kids from church during the sermon. I was supposed to come back inside as soon as I heard the choir or orchestra singing, meaning that the sermon was over, and I always did.

        He used to tuck me in bed every night, and the usual bedtime story (especially in the winter) was that of him growing up, and how one winter it snowed so much they had to dig up tunnels in the snow so they can go from one place to another, and how some other time he was in the house and heard the wolves crying at the moon. He grew up in a village with his grandparents, and he loved it. 

       He took me to the seaside for the first time, but since I had just seen the movie Jaws i did not want to go in the water... Knowing that I would LOVE the water, daddy decided to let me have my picture taken with a monkey on the beach. After I entered the water, he had a hard time getting me out :).

      He LOVED God and the church, and all the people in it, and I loved being the pastor's daughter. I loved knowing everyone in the church, and who is related to whom, and I loved being involved with the kids, than the youth group...

       I used to love to watch him type his diary, than his book at the typewriter. We managed to publish his book while he was still alive. Now we are working on getting it published again, since the Christian Military people in Romania still call and ask for it. We didn't sell it, but we gave it as a present to whoever wanted it. The book is about my father's life, how he became a Christian, than an atheist Communist, than a Christian again, after 20 years of prayers coming from his mother and grandmother. 

       He was the first Protestant Military Chaplain in Romania, and it was not easy to get people to let him form this position, especially in a Orthodox country. He said that since he used to use the Bible to prove soldiers that there is no God, now he wanted to go back and fix that mistake and prove soldiers that God did exist. And he did that the best he could. 

       He loved his family, he was madly in love with his wife and kids. He was a pastor, chaplain, psychologist, retired major, husband, father, friend, and son all this while having leukemia. 

       Other than the last two months of his life, he never spent a day in the hospital. He had to go to check-ups and take some pills, but other than that, no hospital stays. 

      And than when he did get in the hospital, I was there almost every day. I used to spend the night at the hospital, and than leave straight for school, and than stop by at home after school, shower and back to the hospital, where my mom would wait for me so she can leave and get some rest. Most of it was really tough, but I didn't realize it back than. I am so happy to have been there, and to be able to take care of him the way I did. There were days when all the blood tests were so bad doctors were amazed that he was still alive, and daddy would walk around and tell jokes and encourage other patients. And there were other days when all the tests were great, and yet he couldn't even speak, or move...

        There were times when we would stay up late and talk, just us, or sometimes with the nurses, and daddy would tell them stories of when I was a kid, and how much he loved me, and how proud he was of me. 

        And the day he died, I was the last one to talk to him. He called to remind me of something, and I told him I already took care of it. Than he told me he is very proud of me and that he loves me very much. I said I love you too, and we hung up. A minute or two after we hung up he got into a coma, and died later that day. 

         Its been four years and Im still not over it. I don't know when and if I will get over it. I wish there were a textbook on how to grief, or how to get over it.... I wish my soul would just heal and not trick me in thinking that Im healed and than break even more when least expected. I wish I could talk about daddy without crying. I wish the entire world would read his book so that people would know what an amazing man he was, and that I do have a good reason for not getting over it. 

        I love you Daddy, and I miss you so very much!! Come watch the thunderstorms with me, and tell me not to be afraid...

I love you... and I am very proud of you! 

Hanna's Almost Gone

     Hanna visited us last night. We had rain and wind, and from what I hear on TV many people in our town (including a shelter and a hospital) lost power during the night/early morning.

     But God protected us. We prayed and prayed so much yesterday and last night, because I didn't had peace about it. At 10:00PM we had a tornado warning that went on for half an hour. So, again, we prayed that God will keep us, and everyone else, safe and away from any physical or material damage. And after that, the peace coming from our Lord filled me up, and I was even able to sleep some. My sweet, amazing husband stayed up and kept an eye on the weather. I slept so well I didn't even get woken up by the sound of the strong wind and rain against our house. 

     The main thing I learned from this experience is that my life belongs to the Lord, and that peace only comes when I am fully aware of that, and when I trust God with my life. 

      Hanna taught me that whatever may come, God is in control. And even though I knew this before, it was great to be reminded of my Lord's power and love. 

Funny, funny me...

      

     My husband and I celebrated 8 months of marriage on Friday. He got me flowers, and he was away for less than an hour, since he flew the day before, and they were off early on Friday. 

      On Friday night we decided to go out on a date to celebrate the best 8 months of our lives, so we went to Red Lobster... People that know me well have heard all my previous embarrassing experiences falling, tripping and putting myself in awkward situations with no easy way out.

      This time, as we were dining at Red Lobster, we had crab legs. I don't usually like seafood, but sometimes I get in the mood, and I like crab legs. 

     But Friday was not a good day for me. A very dangerous tool was given to me, and crab legs flew all over the place, and crab meat ended up on my beloved husband's face....

      Needless to say we both burst into laughter, and I almost died of embarrassment as people from a table near by were laughing at me. 

And the crab legs didn't even reach them!

   +  =VERY DANGEROUS!!

     Half a crab leg ended up on the floor. No one got hurt, and to my surprise (and relief) nothing ended up in someone's drink. Just the floor and Seth's face. But he got just a piece of meat. The look on his face was priceless. And hillarious! I love my husband, and the fact that he thought it was funny and not embarrassing!

PS. Just our luck, our sweet dog just threw up all over the recently CLEANED part of our carpet. 

Labor Day Adventure

     Labor Day is almost over, but Seth still has tomorrow off! YAY!! Not only because we get to spend an extra full day together, but also because we have some unfinished businesses from today.

    After living in this garage apartment for about 8 months, we decided it was time to clean the carpet. We rented a RugDoctor, and we bought the cleaning solution that goes with it, and after we moved all the furniture off the carpet and into the kitchen area ( I guess this is the advantage of living in a studio apartment), we vacuumed and off we went! After we cleaned about a quarter of the carpet, we were out of the cleaning solution. And since it's Labor Day, everything is closed in our little town. How fun! I am actually a little excited about this, probably just because it's change from the usual daily routine. After we moved the couch and tv and coffee table back on the clean side of the carpet, we managed to work our way to the fridge, so we decided that for tonight we will just camp on the floor, and continue cleaning tomorrow, after we buy some more magic liquid that makes our carpet come back to life. 

       We also have to do laundry tomorrow...yet another "benefit" of living here. After living here for 8 months I became more and more thankful and aware of the luxury I had at my mami's house, with the washer always there and ready to use. I don't really miss having a dryer since the concept of a dryer is still so very new in Romania. Actually, Im not even sure they're selling dryers with washing machines. What's the point in spending money on something the wind and sun can do? I know they do sell dishwashers though. We never had one at our house as I grew up. And I was 7 when we got our first color TV. And I was 14 when we got our first PC. It was still a luxury in Romania. I remember a friend from church gave us a very old laptop, that could barely handle a dial-up connection. 

       But to the 21st Century. Im not sure if my mami and friends will still come here on Thanksgiving. I really hope they do, but their kids still need to get visas to enter the US, and they told me to put every search on hold ( cars rental, a place to stay while here) for now. So we will see. 

       Other than that... I miss home. In Romania, Labor Day is on May 1st, and since it is usually a very nice and warm spring day, most people (especially from Bucharest) go out on a picnic or bbq in the woods, or parks. I miss going out with my friends from church. We would always go out in a park or a special forrest area created for outings like this, where open fires are safe. I always liked to try and guess who went and who didn't (especially when I didn't go) by looking at their skin for mosquito bites. Bug spray is still a new concept in Romania. 

      I spent this evening watching a John and Kate +8 marathon, while Seth watched some manly movies on the computer.  And somewhere in between, we played with Johnny Cash, our cat, with a laser. Suki, our dog, joined the fun, and she got so excited she peed on the newly cleaned carpet. I had to protect her from Seth's wrath. I love our pets, but sometimes they can be a pain. Tonight I realized I would probably not be able to raise sextuplets. I would probably get too overwhelmed and have at least two or three meltdowns a day. Hopefully I won't have to, but even if I do, I am sure God will give me the skills and nerves to do it. 

      The newest news with me is that I am becoming obsessed with the weather. I check the weather online at least once an hour, or every two or three hours, depending on the forecast. If its thunderstorms, even a few times an hour. I dream of the day when we will be able to move into a not so dramatic weather state. Or at least have a basement where we can go and be safe in case of a tornado. I miss my concrete apartment, the nice 4-seasons weather, and not feeling that the weather can be life-threatening. I lived in Bucharest, Romania for 21 years, and the worst thing that can happen there (that is not human produced) is an earthquake. It gets pretty hot in the summers, and most winters we get snow. Spring and autumn are gorgeous, with the nature coming back to life, or changing colors... 

       While I was in college I had all my classes close to a very beautiful park, with a lake and wild ducks ( a very rare sight in Bucharest). My best friend and I would go there every time we had a break or a class got canceled, we would eat yummy Romanian pretzels, have a Coke/water and talk about anything and everything. Sometimes we would just sit quietly on a bench and enjoy the wind and the trees and flowers. It was beautiful. We would also walk through the park every day to classes and back, when it wasn't dark. I miss my friend and our walks in the park very much. 

        I miss home, even though I know it will never be home again, because this garage apartment is now my home. And even though there are days when I wish we would live anywhere else but here, I try to remember that a year or two from now, when we will finally get base housing, or move someplace else, we will think of this place and remember all the amazing memories we have lived here. Plus, this whole experience will make me appreciate having a washer, dryer and dishwasher when we will move and have some. 

        Its sleepy time now... We have to clean the rest of the carpet tomorrow! :)