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Comment by AJ on February 14, 2011 at 10:14am

Mary - I didn't think about that when I was wanting a big brother.  Guess we have a way of glamorizing what we don't have and want.  

Nicole - enthusiasm and passion are great virtues ..... jump, scream, look weird ... and don't allow anyone to stop you!

d o - I forgot that you wrote about your son telling you to 'only text Mom' .... that is just like Aaron .... too many ears around to hear what they might say to us ..... what a sweetheart that he sent you money for your birthday .... makes me smile.  I just re-read the bit about you taking the kids to the marriage seminar ... I know it must have felt strange, but what a great tool for them to have going into marriage.

Dyl's Mom - so tell me, where did you like to ski when you were in Colorado?  And, what were Dyl's top picks when he put in his request for orders? 

So, yes, Happy Valentine's Day!  Give yourselves a big hug from me ... and even if you are buying flowers for yourself (Mary) .... hope you feel lots of love today.

Comment by nicole~a sailors girl(: on February 14, 2011 at 9:34am

Thanks ladies! Sadie Hawkins has certainly evolved. I went to all my freshman year dances with just friends, dateless, and my aunt thought it was the weirdest thing. Cause' whens she was in school if you didn't have a date you didn't go.

Yes, I am extremely excited about my dad agreeing to sign....I was like jumpin up and down & lookin like a wierdo when he did agree!!:)

Happy Valentines day!

Comment by AJ on February 14, 2011 at 9:17am

Buenas dias!  For you d o (and anyone else interested in my Costa Rica adventure ..... at least it is better than my slow-to-adjust-to-Navy-Mom-syndrome-complaints) ......there is an entirely different rhythm of life here.  The sun is up over the top of the mountain by 6:00 a.m. and it goes down by 6:00 p.m. .... all year .... however the sky begins lightening (resulting in some dramatic and wonderful skies, clouds, mountains, colors, photo opportunities) around 4:45 or so.  Always worth being up if you are an early riser.  The house sits on top of a mountain with a view directly to the Pacific Ocean and the Nicoya Peninsula on one side .... and the other side is the Central Valley .... and then off to the Caribbean .... panoramic actually.  Five volcanoes are in sight from the window I sit next to to write you (and there are several more here).  Two of them are active right now, with Turrialba Volcan very visibly billowing out smoke and ash each day.  Arenal Volcan (which I cannot see) erupts with lava each day.  The pictures you see of Costa Rica with the flowers, toucans, butterflies, waterfalls are all exactly how it is.

So we didn't get to do the heart cupcakes yesterday .... but will do it tomorrow.  They ended up having to work.

LynB - 'must promote' sounds very solid .... and 'expedite promotion' even better.  It is good to know this language in the process and certainly is something I will pass on to Aaron to strive for.  I have no idea if he has had an evaluation yet.  So glad to know that you will get to see your family in May ... and for an entire month.  I completely understand the Reynolds Wrap thing .... kind of like the Libby's canned pumpkin .... I am always bringing stuff down here with me that I can't buy here and can't seem to live without.  Our suitcases generally have twice as much of that kind of stuff as it does clothes. So May is huge for you and huge for Iris.  Bring on May!

Nicole - My Sadie Hawkins experience was just like d o's ... nothing like your gorgeous photos.  I enjoy taking a peek at life through your fresh and young eyes.  How excited you sound that your dad is going to sign in December.  So that will make you an official depper then, right?  Keep blazing your trail girl!

Mary - you must be so proud of your young man .... his brilliance and excellence .... and the care for his little sister.  Morgan is lucky to have a big brother looking out for her.  I always wanted a big brother.  And, I am not going to talk to Aaron about attending the homecoming.  I WILL BE there.  As you said, I will be able to know from at least the other moms when that will be.  I have learned one other thing that I didn't know.  One of the mom's on the group for his ship has created a Facebook account for us (in addition to N4M site).  And what I didn't know is that you can make it private/secret.  So while we still don't blatantly break OPSEC rules, it is nice to be able to see each other when we are on and have some real time comments.  Everyone seems to like it.  

So Iris - Wow .... what a full week of celebration for you!  I love celebrating.  I think I will lose what I have typed here if I try to scroll back to your post as it is no longer on this page ... anniversary? anniversary of first meeting? his birthday? your birthday?  .... Feliz Cumpleanos! (Happy Birthday) ... Feliz Aniversario (Happy Anniversary).  I may have to post this and go back and read your post and Dyl's Mom's post to remember what you've said. Yes, that's what I will do.  So, more in a few minutes.

 

 

Comment by d o on February 13, 2011 at 11:33pm

Oh my goodness girls!  I'm living vicariously though your posts.

AJ Costa Rica in the winter?! You only get to live once and boy it sounds like you are!  Forget about the men and their attitudes, you have got your own gifts and talents. (Writing is definitely one of them.)  Please keep telling us Costa Rica stories, I'm already hooked on this novel....:)

LynB Australia to Florida and sisters from CA staying in Cambodia, your life sounds so exciting!  Okay someone made me a hat from reynolds wrap for my birthday, (it was hysterical) but seriously why foil?

Nicole that's not what Sadie Hawkins looked like when I went to school!  You look beautiful.  We blacked out our teeth, and chewed on straw.  The fancy ones wore some Daisy Dukes and all the boys looked like Jethro.

Happy Valentines to all!

Comment by LynB on February 13, 2011 at 9:06pm

Hi all.  Just checking in,

Cute photos of doggies, daughters, babies, and young ladies!  Keep 'em coming.  So glad things are going reasonably well for everyone.  Hang in there AJ.  It will get better.  No flinging off cliffs, okay?

 

No particular news here - A says he'll be on super secret squirrel exercises the next month, hasn't heard anything new about the humanitarian cruise he volunteered for yet but will ask this week, and he got his first evaluation and got "must promote" which is good, but shooting for "expedite promotion" next time around. I guess they are only allowed to give out so many of those each time? 

 

Got tickets to go home to see my family at last :-)  Squee!  Spending the whole month of May in the US and hoping A will be able to come to FL for his sister's college graduation party with the family.  It will have been 15 months since I've been home. Trying for a whole family reunion but it's like herding cats.  And my Mom has suggested having the party at the retirement home - LOL.  Yeah, that's perfectly festive for a shiny new college grad!

 

Meeting my favorite big sister from CA in Cambodia in 10 days along with my 22 yr old niece which I'm excited about - haven't seen my sister in a year either.  She asked if she could bring me anything and all I could think of was REAL Reynolds heavy duty aluminum foil.  How lame is that?!

Comment by nicole~a sailors girl(: on February 13, 2011 at 4:33pm

me & the girls, the boys & the group :D

Comment by nicole~a sailors girl(: on February 13, 2011 at 4:32pm

 

 

 

Comment by nicole~a sailors girl(: on February 13, 2011 at 4:27pm

I know some spanish AJ.

I know, as far as pictures I may crop&blur them.

that would also be the coolest to be in basic with your son!!

MY DAD TOLD ME HE WILL SIGN IN DECEMBER. I AM SO EXTREMELY EXCITED:)

He finally came around and said its your life, you do what you want with it!!:)

Tomorrow is valentines day..and I absolutely hate the holiday, however, Gaige is determind for me to like it. Hhaha.

My aunt got me a ring, and my grandma got me flowers,(they try to make me cave!)

Lastnight was sadies at my friends school, so G(gaige) didn't go to this one.

But heres a few pictures!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comment by AJ on February 13, 2011 at 1:22pm

That's strange ... something happened to the rest of my post .... geez ... that wasn't a good spot for it to end!  So, I think it went something like this ....

and I want to cry ...... so I'm going to go outside and let the wind blow through me and try to blow all of this out of me .....

 

I will come back on in a bit because I want to address each of your earlier comments about your Sailors .... so until then, hasta luego ..... does anyone know or speak Spanish?

Comment by AJ on February 13, 2011 at 1:15pm

It took me longer than I thought, but I'm back.  Hello and Happy Sunday.  It feels good to come on and see your presence here. It does sound like things are going well for everyone ... moms, wife, and one-Sailor-in-waiting :) .....  I wondered Iris which of all those awesome photos of Haley would be your favorite ..... I saw them all first on Facebook .... and all reflect her confidence, beauty, and happiness .... outside as well as inside.  She'll have things all figured out (as well as have a kick-butt tan) by the time Travis arrives.  Very cool that you get to go to Hawaii so soon ... it is just around the corner.

 

Aaron is on some kind of underway at the moment to make sure that things are all good for the upcoming deployment ... it is so close ..... I was just getting used to knowing he was doing well in San Diego ... some small adjustments made in trying to have some better communication .... and bam! ... deployment is here already.  Although, I had to learn via the other moms that they were out of port right now on this underway.  The ladies on the group for his ship keep talking about how hard it really is and for me to strap on my seatbelt really, really, tight.  I have a list of possible places he will go to ... and it should be a real adventure.  A lot of the moms are posting about care packages and trips out to see the ship off ..... and Aaron still wants to do this in an independent way ..... so no trips to San Diego for me to see him off.  I decided not to send a care package for him to leave with .... but to wait a month or two and send one ..... by then, maybe he will appreciate all the love and all the stuff packed into the box ......... it certainly isn't easy re-wiring my mom bits and pieces to be in this new place.  I'm kind of back in that space just after he left for boot camp .... adjusting, adjusting, adjusting, and missing her something fierce.  The solace I feel is that I know he knows how much I love him.  It is interesting to watch how other male Sailors interact with their moms (by way of their input on the group for his ship) .... the moms of girls seem to have the best road of all in terms of their communication.  One young man sent his mom a bonsai tree for her to have while he is away on this deployment .... and to thank her for everything she has done for him.  My challenge for the day:  not to feel bad that Aaron isn't quite in that place.  I'm working at it, truly I am.

 

I flew down to Costa Rica last week to try to pick up the pieces of my relationship there ..... I love being here .... am reconnecting to other friends here ..... but Hank and I were apart for seven months while I've gone through the month before Aaron left for boot camp, then boot camp, then "A" school, then move to San Diego ....... I wanted to dedicate my time to my son .... and Hank understood that .... and even though we saw each other 3 or 4 times for about a week each time .... seven months is a while .... and well .... we shall see.  I feel like I'm walking on egg shells.

 

I have a Costa Rican mom and daughter that I've kind of adopted.  For the past two years when I've been down here, they've taught me about Costa Rican ways, food, culture ..... and later today, I'm bringing them to the house to bake heart-shaped cherry chip cupcakes with all the frosting, sprinkles, etc. to go with it.  They will get a kick out of it.  I had to bring it all down here, as that kind of thing isn't done here so much.  So I will practice my Spanish and have some giggles baking cupcakes with them.  I'll post a picture or two here and there for you.  It is breathtakingly gorgeous here .... so I'll share the beauty with you.

 

If you could, say a prayer, send some light, or just a friendly wave today ... as I kind of want to jump off the mountain into the Costa Rican abyss just now.  I know that will sound really crazy stupid to you guys .... I'm in a paradise .... and want to

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