Men In My Life

I feel very lucky to have four very important guys in my life; my husband, dad, and brothers. While I love my brothers, this post will center more around my dad and Drew. I might be a few days behind (even more today since I started this days ago and fell asleep typing), but Happy Fathers Day to my wonderful father! I feel so blessed and lucky to grow up and learn from such a hard working man. He's taught me a lot over the last 27 years and I know I can ask him for his help or advice whenever I need it. Every Fathers Day my dad's family holds a picnic at a nearby park. I unfortunately had to sit this year's out due to allergies. They came on out of nowhere and are still driving me crazy! I taught this morning and my voice kept cracking because it's so dry and irritated. At least I was able to sleep a little bit better last night.

I can't say for certain, but I think my allergies were heightened following my trip up north for Drew's promotion. Drew finally had his promotion to Commander. I am so proud of him for being promoted to the Commander of Bravo Battery. Drew was in Bravo, as the Executive Officer (XO), when he was deployed so I think it has a soft place in his heart. I've learned over the last couple of weeks that it's very rare for an XO to become a Commander of the same battery due to respect issues. Higher ups feel that a former XO of a battery won't receive respect as a Commander. I think it tells a lot about Drew's relationship with other Soldiers that he is taking Command of the same Battery he was an XO. It's going to be a lot of extra work and responsibility for him, but I know he will do an amazing job and handle the role with pride!

As you may recall, Drew was originally going to take Command last month, but due to various paperwork reasons, etc. it was pushed back to this month. Well, I had planned ahead and ordered a special cake for him when I ordered our anniversary cake. I told one of the Majors who broke the news to Drew and me about the change in date that he owed me a cake. I even took him in a piece of the cake I ordered to indicate just how good of a cake he owed me. While I don't have a picture of it he delivered! He picked up a Reece Cup ice cream cake to celebrate. The poor guy called dozens of shops near Camp Perry trying to find a bakery that had a gluten free cake I could enjoy! Not only was I able to enjoy the ice cream cake he brought, but I was also presented with a bouquet of beautiful roses. It's the Army's way of thanking wives/significant others for their continued support.

Overall it was a wonderful trip - well worth the drive. I am so glad I was able to take part in this exciting chapter of Drew's career!

Queen Bee Lands

10-15,000 bees landed in our yard Saturday! Yes, I did mean to write thousands!
I unfortunately was not around to witness the phenomenon of the honeybees, but Drew handled it with flying bees colors! I was taking my last real estate class up when he sent me a text telling me we had bees. I think he eventually said there were probably hundreds. I, on the other hand, imagined 20 or so buzzing around a bush. In that case, when he said he called a bee keeper I thought he was being a bit extreme. Not to mention I wondered how he even thought to call a bee keeper, much less get a hold of one. Then, these pictures started showing up on my phone:

Holy cow! I practically gasped out loud in class! These pictures don't even do it justice. I saw some other pictures on his phone that he didn't send me which are even more clear and astonishing. The whole situation was crazy. As I mentioned, I originally thought he was over exaggerating and when he asked what to do I told him to bomb the bees with some spray we had from last summer. Thank heavens he was smarter than that and didn't bomb the bees. The bees would have been pi$$ed off and probably stung him to death. Instead, the bee keeper came and shook them off the tree into the box and took them home in his station wagon. Yes, he took them home in his car. 

The whole situation has turned into an educational experience. The bee keeper explained it like this... the queen bee happened to land on our branch so ALL 10-15,000 bees followed her. This happens between 10am and 2pm. Drew noticed the bees around 1:30. While the queen waits, a few 'scout' bees fly around looking for the bee's permanent home. That's what was happening in our backyard. The bees were waiting to hear where the permanent home was going to be, which is where they would start making honey. We, of course, did/do not want that permanent home in our backyard so close to our house and Lexi. According to some of the information we found, honeybees love to live in houses. We had no qualms about giving up our swarm of bees to the bee keeper, especially since it only takes the bees 24 to 48 hours to find their home. We needed to act fast. I am happy to say that the bee keeper was able to show up Saturday and take the bees away. Of course, it took me until yesterday (Monday) to actually cut the grass in the back yard near that tree. Even after we had some rain I was still nervous to go near the tree. I made no effort to actually walk under that tree to get the grass like I had done in the past.
The funny thing about the whole situation is that if it were the other way around, Drew would never have believed me either if I said there were hundreds of bees outside. He would have responded the exact same way, telling me to just spray them. I just can't say that I would have been thoughtful enough (ok "smart enough") to call a bee keeper. I would have probably freaked out and locked myself inside.
Thankfully, no one got hurt/stung in any of the process above.

Dream Machine

Normally, I don't dream. Or, I don't remember if I dreamt, but over the last week and a half I have been dreaming like crazy! And, not all of my dreams have been good ones. A number of them have been nightmares. I blame it on the new mattress topper we just got. Drew had one in Iraq and loved it. Unfortunately, he left it in Iraq. It was way too big to stuff in his bags of necessities and all of his other stuff had to be packed and shipped months before leaving. Of course, he choose to hold onto it and enjoy it until the last day and then leave it for the next guy. Flash forward to the present and he's been having a lot of back issues - I think it's from standing so much at Amazon. We finally gave in and order the same mattress topper in the size to fit our current bed. I wasn't too sure about it at first because I'm paranoid about the spine and shoulders and sinking too much or creating bad posture with a super padded mattress. I like a little extra support. At this point I am sold on the comfort of the topper, but boy have I had some strange and memorable/scary dreams! The first few nights I slept on it I had horrible nightmares of people attacking and or trying to kill me. Not cool! Normally I don't remember my dreams at all, if I have one. Drew thinks I am sleeping more soundly/deeper which could be the case. Last weekend I actually woke in a panic - which I have never done before! The nightmares have since calmed, but I am still having odd dreams. The good news is Drew's back seems to be feeling better and he doesn't have the urge to go sleep on the couch or somewhere else.

Speaking of sleeping, Lexi has been cracking us up lately. We use to close the doors to all the rooms whenever we left the house, but over the last two months or so I've been leaving the bedroom door open. She doesn't do anything other than sleep when we're gone and she likes laying next to the bed, or resting her head on the extra pillows on the floor. Lately though, we'll be watching TV in the family room and Lexi will just get up, walk upstairs and lay down. It's as though she's telling us, "Bed time. It's too loud and bright down here, I'm going up to sleep. See you later." Days when I teach at 6am she watches me get ready, she'll go out to go potty, then run right back upstairs to lay down. I usually find her there when I get home.

Memorial Weekend

I can't believe May is almost over. Where does the time go? I know we have been super busy, but WOW June is only a few days away. I can not complain about this weather. After the rain we had at the beginning of the month (more on that coming in a future post) I am so happy to have sunshine and a little heat. Despite being apart for the weekend it was a fabulous one for Drew and me. He had a huge project at work last week so we only got to spend Friday and Saturday together, but needless to say we made the best of it. We spent Friday evening at the Reds game and watched the team beat the Cubs. Saturday was a busy day for me work-wise, but we wrapped up the evening together with a grill-out with his sisters. His Army buddy, Josh, and dog Raina made an appearance for dessert. Lexi and Raina had a blast running around the backyard chasing each other. Poor little Raina was scared to death when Lexi greeted her at the door. She even peed a little ;)

Sunday is such a blur. All I can remember doing is working out and going to the Taste of Cincinnati with my parents. The weather was great and it wasn't too crowded.
After teaching class Monday morning I finally gave myself a chance to relax. Drew got off work early which made taking half of the day off a lot easier. I usually feel bad relaxing when I know he's working his butt off. I even treated myself to a little lounge chair purchase. I wanted to catch up on my magazines outside, but couldn't get myself comfortable. This baby was totally worth it! ps. It was $10 cheaper at Walmart than it was at Meijer!

I could lounge out back all day long. I contemplated buying a baby pool for myself, but thought that might be a little hillbilly ;) Lexi too enjoyed being outside, although she got tired of the sun before me. Taking walks in the morning also helps wear her out. I've been trying to stick to my 10,000 a day and walking at some point with her helps me reach that point. After my original pedometer got wet and ruined I picked up a watch with a pedometer which has helped me get back on track. It's amazing how few steps I take when I'm not thinking about it or when I'm in real estate class.

One Year Anniversary!

What a week! There is no denying Drew and I are working hard! It has been crazy busy around here! But, the biggest even occurred on Sunday - Drew and I celebrated our one year anniversary! We got our wedding cake from A Spoon Fulla Sugar which also offers anniversary cakes for free instead of trying to fork down a frozen piece. Let me just say, the cake (gluten free of course) below is delicious! I had them make it similar to the top level of our wedding cake - chocolate with chocolate mouse  with buttercream frosting. It was/still is delicious! I even pulled out our knife and server/spatula from the wedding night that we used at the wedding. We'll have to remember all of this for future anniversaries.

 It's hard to believe we have been married a year. At the same time, a lot has happened over the last 365 days. We moved into a new home, Drew started working at Amazon, I quit my job and started teaching Pure Barre and handling the studio's marketing, I was trained in the second level of the Pure Barre technique, Drew got promoted to Captain, and I started taking real estate classes. I am sure there are other small obstacles we've over come and or celebrations we've achieved, but these are the ones that stand out the most. As I mentioned in a previous post, Drew is getting another promotion to Battery Commander. The change of command was suppose to occur on the 19th, but they decided to push it back until next month during the two week AT.

Most importantly, we both feel blessed to have each other in our lives. No matter how busy one of us is, we extra time for each other. And, we are looking forward to many, many more years ahead.
Well, I think that's it right now. I keep nodding off and I need to be up at 4:20am. Yikes! So glad I love my job!

Mini Update

Well, not to much to report over the last couple of days. I've been staying very busy between teaching, real estate classes, and babysitting. The next two weeks are going to be crazy, but that just means I'm one step/class closer to finishing my real estate classes and getting my license. I don't know what made me think about it, but a few hours ago I realized just how much "education" I will have by the end of the year. If all goes well, I will have four certifications in Pure Barre and a real estate license. Talk about a busy year! However, that is getting ahead of my self, and being very optimistic since at this point I don't have a license and I only have two PB certifications.

Most importantly, while I have been super busy outside of the home, I am loving every minute of it. I am having a blast teaching PB classes. I taught my first private lesson/class yesterday. There aren't guidelines for private classes which gave me the opportunity to cater directly to the client. I really enjoyed working with the client (who is a college girl), getting to know her and making sure she left feeling confident and comfortable with the technique. It was also fun taking Pure Barre for an hour and a half, explaining just how much it can do for your body when you push yourself.

Real estate will get better once I'm done with classes and can put what I've learned in motion, instead of sitting in a classroom.

Army Proud

We have big news again on the Army front! Drew learned last weekend he is being promoted to commander of the Bravo Battery this month! Our May celebrations are getting bigger. Not only do we get to celebrate our first anniversary on the 19th, but it will also be the change of commander ceremony. Drew will officially take on the role of commander on May 19th. And, as the commander's wife I will be taking on the role of the leader for the Family Readiness Group, which helps support the soldiers and families. I've been a part of it in the past, but I will now be in charge of this battery's group. It's not required that the leader be the commander's wife, but since no one else wants to volunteer for the position I'm stepping up to the plate. Love supporting my husband!

Any who, I think Drew is very excited and a little nervous about taking on the role of commander. Of course, it's a wonderful career opportunity and honor. He just has a lot on his plate and it will ultimately result in more responsibility. However, we both realize that there really is never a good time, there will always be other responsibilities, especially when you're in the National Guard. So... here we go!