long overdue

The last three weeks have been a blur. We've moved into our apartment and are nearly unpacked (if you don't look in the guest bedroom). Brian started back to work today and I'm on my own in a new city on the opposite side of the country from my friends and family. I am on an emotional roller coaster and am at times so homesick it makes me physically ache. But! Before I get to the present, I need to tell you about our drive and our hunt for a place to live and the complications that came along with that.

Day 1 - SLC to Zion National Park:
After an emotional good-bye to my parents and Leah, Brian and I hit the road. We had seven days to make our trek and planned on hitting all the touristy stuff on the way. I have made the drive south on I-15 many times and the familiarity of the road was comforting. We arrived at the National Park mid-afternoon and did the Weeping Rock hike. Look, I'm not the most outsidey of folks, but ZNP is a beautiful place.

update from the road

We're four days into our drive across the country, and here are some observations:

• Amarillo, TX smells like doody
• Oklahoma has very juicy bugs and is WINDY AS HELL
• Arkansas is frightening and I didn't understand 98% of what the natives were saying
• the Grand Canyon is VERY BIG
• Zion NP is pretty but filled with flies

Prior to leaving Utah, I wrote AND MAILED all pending thank you cards for the shower/wedding/reception gifts we received. So if you're looking for a card but didn't get one, send us a gift. :)

I'm not yet ready to talk about leaving our Utah home.

consolidation, not a cop out

The next week is going to be crazy busy, and if I stop to think about it, really think about it, my brain may melt and I will fall down. Below is an abbreviated (but no less important) update on the goings on:

• Monday, September 14: I was lucky enough to meet Brian at the gate as he walked off the plane. He was the fourth person up the ramp and seeing his face for the first time in over six months was absolutely thrilling. Being wrapped in his arms again instantly made everything better and I was finally home again.
• Wednesday, September 16: We picked up my engagement ring and our wedding rings. My engagement ring is exactly what I was dreaming of, and our wedding bands are perfect. We had privately arranged for each others' rings to be engraved, unknowingly choosing the same phrase. Brian's mom and step-dad flew in from Rockport, TX for the wedding. I was incredibly nervous to meet them, but instantly liked them both very much.
• Thursday, September 17: Dinner with the whole family. Left to right: me, Brian's mom, Brian's step-dad, Little Leah, Brian, my dad and my mom.
• Friday, September 18: WEDDING DAY! Our ceremony was exactly what we both wanted: intimate and short. The look on Brian's face when he first saw me will forever be etched in my brain, and oh my did he look sexy in his uniform. Once the ceremony began, all I was aware of was Brian. His eyes looking into mine, his hands holding mine. My voice cracked when I said, "I, Sarah, take you, Brian...", but a squeeze of his hand and I was gold. It was perfect.
• Saturday, September 19 - September 26: Our honeymoon in Chicago.
• Sunday, September 27 - today: officially becoming a military wife by getting my ID, getting enrolled in medical/dental; packing our apartment and taking stuff to our storage unit 30 miles away; Brian's MANY, MANY step out-processing check list; fitting in time with our friends before we leave; etc.
• Saturday, October 3: Our reception/going away party was a smash hit. Though the weather wasn't as nice as we had hoped for, it was again exactly what we wanted.

The movers box up our stuff on Tuesday, October 13 and crate it all Wednesday, October 14. We vacate our apartment on Thursday, October 15 and his final out-process at the base is Friday, October 16. And then...then we head to Virginia on Saturday, October 17. I'm having a difficult time with some things, like when I think about having my last dinner at La Puente with dear, lifelong friends (last night, btw). But I'm so excited about this new chapter in our life and the new opportunities that are waiting.

to tide you over

A shot of us in front of the fountain in Liberty Park, shortly after the ceremony.
September 18, 2009

so much has happened!

Um...holy moly has a lot happened in the last three weeks! There's NO. WAY. I can do them all justice in one post. So here's a quick rundown of all the recent goings on:

• Brian came home and I got to meet him at the gate as he walked off the plane
• We picked up our rings and OMG my engagement ring is absolute perfection
• Brian's mom and step dad flew in from Texas two days prior to the wedding
• We got married!
• We honeymooned in Chicago for a week (oh the sightseeing and eating!)
• I'm officially an Air Force wife with an ID card and everything
• Oh...and then there's all the stuff involving the move

Keep checking on me for detailed posts...I promise to deliver.

counting the minutes, hours and days

Originally, we thought Brian would be home late this week. Alas, the USAF had other plans, so I've been tasked with filling my days up (my first not working days - and holy crap it's weird) as I wait. Little did I know that I'd be lucky enough to be spending a good portion of tomorrow at the dentist (At the dentist? Name that movie!) for an emergency/rush crown. It seems that my former dentist, now retired, was very old school with his dentistry and at times did more harm than good. I have a cracked tooth that desperately needs to be repaired with a crown ASAP - before my wedding/honeymoon/move and before my current dental insurance benefits expire - and my new, fantastic dentist is squeezing me in tomorrow and rushing the permanent crown in an effort to get it all done before next Friday. Whee! I love needles and drilling! I love $1000 teeth!

I've also started taking afternoon naps in the last week. Um, they're AWESOME, in case you didn't know. I highly recommend. Seriously. Get thee a nap, STAT.

Whoa! We're getting married in 10 days. TEN DAYS! And in a week, I'll be meeting my future mother-in-law and step-father-in-law (is that a thing?). I'm really looking forward to all the wedding activities next week. I'm stoked it's finally here!

the end and the beginning

Yesterday was my last day at work. I was OK in the morning until Brian and I talked before he went to bed (just after lunchtime for me), and then the lump in my throat took over and I lost it. More than anything, I wanted him to be there when I left my office for the last time. I managed to pull myself together again and made it through the afternoon, through the packing up of my stuff and saying goodbye to people. And then...

I stood alone in the office, with no trace of my 16.5 years left, and whispered a goodbye to no one. And that's when the tears broke free and poured down my face. I sat on the couch and sobbed. Leaving was the end of a HUGE part of my life, and I can't stress that enough. Leaving is also the beginning of something so much greater.

Brian will be home in less than two weeks. And VERY shortly after that his family arrives from Texas and we get married. MARRIED! And you know what comes after that? Packing up and moving, and oh my goodness are we excited for that. All of the great stuff ahead of us had to start somewhere, and leaving my job was the first step.

so i'm bad at updating my blog lately. i have no excuse.

In the six months Brian's been gone, I've practically updated my entire wardrobe.

My last week at work starts tomorrow. I've decided to look at it as the beginning of all the great changes in store. Step two? Brian coming home.

Does anyone know what those bugs are that look like giant mosquitoes? Are they mosquitoes? Am I going to die in my sleep from them?

I really excited to finally get my engagement ring once Brian gets home.

Honestly, few things are better than a PB & J or a grilled cheese sandwich. Seriously.

Do any of you out there have the Blackberry Flip? If so, do you love/hate it? Why?

Additions to my Life List:
Get over my fear of flying
Take skydiving lessons
Ride in a helicopter
Fire a .50 cal
Be less concerned about what others think of me
Take cooking lessons
Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge
Have a cell phone/lap top/tv free weekend
Drive cross-country and stop at all the touristy road-side attractions
Two-step with Brian in TX

it's another list

Inspired by Mighty Girl and my upcoming life changes, I've decided to put together my own Life List:

Attend a Broadway show
See the Porch of the Maidens at the Acropolis
Kiss Brian at the top of the Eiffel Tower
Stand in the center of the Pantheon
Successfully make a cheesecake
Ride on the back of Brian's (dream) motorcycle, wearing a shiny silver helmet
Catch a firefly in a jar
Make peace with my body image
Own a pair of Louboutins
Deep sea fish


OK, I'm dying to know, what's on your list?

looking back

I've learned quite a bit about myself during this deployment. What have I learned? Well...

• I can get by on four to five hours of sleep.
  
• If my cell phone isn't within arms reach, my brain shuts down.
• I am a lot stronger than I have ever given myself credit for.
• I am off-balance without Brian around; we fill in each others' gaps and are at our best together.
• I am getting better at going with the flow and dealing with uncertainty.
• I will never again take for granted the power of three words.
• I'm 1000 times more patient than I ever thought I was.
• Dealing with the Military Way will definitely try the patience I just learned I have.