Leaving On a Jet Plane...

Ok, not really...but I am leaving in my Sequoia and will be moving to our old house near a base that has lots of jet planes! Does that count? Hahahaha. Ahhhhhhhh, yes, back to our old casa in VA Beezy where we never saw airplanes overhead, just jets from NAS Oceana. Pretty cool looking overhead and seeing those suckers...unless they flew low and the whole house would vibrate. ;o)

Anyway...we're (we as in not 'we' did it together but 'we' in spirit....hahaha) done with the pack out and the loading of our junk...errrr, stuff. Sean flew in after everything was said and done...not that he wanted to be here after everything, but the needs of the Navy first. My awesome hubby was so apologetic for everything we were going through...because not only did I have to do this by myself, it also was rescheduled numerous times; we changed companies; dealt with typical mover shiet (although our packers were AMAZING); and then lots of other non-move related caca popped up for me...like BIG TIME CACA. I'm thankful that I have the supportive partner I was blessed with and that he is not like other hubbies I know who think they're stay-at-home wives/mothers do nothing but eat bon-bons and such...yes, even some hubbies of military wives think that! Again, it takes me back to military spouse entry I wrote about the quote Kelly found:

"A Navy Wife is no ordinary woman. Operating for months at a time without the companionship or assistance of her husband, she routinely overcomes challenges that would give the average person a nervous breakdown." - Jeff Edwards

Well, tomorrow we drive up to VA. We'll wrap up loose ends here and then bid adieu. We'll pop into DC for Xmas and back down to VA to move in. Despite all the stress and everything...it's just nice to have the hubby home for a winter holiday season...and that at least he wasn't out to sea for this whole process. ;o)

In the Homestretch...

Wow, I cannot believe our time here in FL is finally coming to an end. Although Sean's still got a bit left of his dept. head tour, we are almost done. Sean's boat already changed it's homeport. So, he's been up in VA since last week. I've got the movers coming to pack us up this Thursday and then they'll load on Friday. Sean'll join us Friday night. I was a bit freaked about doing everything by myself, managing packers/movers, the 4 kiddies, and my sanity. But, Sean came in this weekend and we got a few things done. We're flying Mom down Wednesday to watch the kids while I take care of bidness with the packers/movers. *whew* Still doing basically everything by myself, but I'm good with the decision now. At least we'll be in DC by Xmas. AND...this is the first winter holiday season we've had with Sean since 2005!!!! YAY!

I'll leave you with one of our blooper shots from our 2008 Lee-Espiritu Fam Annual Holiday Photo That Will Probably Not Go Out In The Mail...AGAIN. ;o) Yes, my big puppy is a crotch-sniffer...and has no shame/qualms about it. It's our annual holiday photo that shows my husband with an extremely pained/irritated look since he has to wrangle the dogs and the kids while I set up the camera & shot (luckily we had a tripod this year)...and yet, not really since I usually have to wrangle the biggest Mama's kids...Remi (the chubby pit who is trans-species...she's really feline) and Jaron. This was off-centered and Jax was sniffing my bidness and well, it was only take #1. Just FYI, Sean's smile has never changed in these holiday shots. HAHAHAHAHA....poor guy.

There are definitely parts of FL that I will miss and this pool is definitely one of them! ;o) Not too mention the 70-degree weather that we'll be having this week! ;o)

Love It

So, not only does this guy look better & more toned in a two-piece than I do, but boy can move!! I can't move like that anymore without something being thrown out or joints popping...hahahahaha. *sigh* I really need to start working out and stretching again. This girl is going to need to be retired to the pasture at this rate. ;o)

Argh

So, we said goodbye to the buffest member of our fam today from an old fort at one of the local state parks. I was informed by said buff member of our fam that our move date (in two weeks) will have to be rescheduled...AGAIN. We also pray for the safety of said buff member and the rest of the crew...and for the sanity of their families that are in the middle of moving and/or getting settled into our new homeport....which was our old homeport. Hahahahaha.

Yay. I hope we can make it to DC by Xmas.

Surprisingly, this darn military life has hardened me and I'm just rolling with the punches. The only actual stress I feel is GETTING THIS HOUSE RENTED!!!

I'm posting on MilitaryByOwner.com this afternoon.

And what! ;o)

Thanks, Turkey.

So, Turkey Day was FAB-U-LOUS!!! We ate the our communiity clubhouse and literally had the best TD meal of our lives...and I've had PLENTY o' great TD meals in my life. I am literally still dreaming of the turkey (w/the gravy...and I'm not much of a gravy person), mashed potatoes, creamed corn, flounder w/cream sauce, and the list goes on...mmmmmmmm. Oh, let's not talk about cookies & the other desserts too. Mmmmmmmm.

Anyway, what a day & time to be thankful. We're almost out of here, and that's a bittersweet feeling...as it always is when leaving areas we've lived in. I'll definitely miss our neighbors, our neighborhood, home, friends, favorite restaurants, weather, etc. I won't miss the sub-par schools and lack of diversity. Speaking of...it was great to see throughout the year how our lovely underserved community of First Americans (formerly Native Americans formerly Indians formerly Injuns) were depicted. Kaia had been dressed up as a First American during one of her summer camps performances and I was just mortified. People still do that?? I guess so. Since then, I've seen other little kids with the same feathered headband and other garments making them First Americans too. Just lots of misconceptions and stereotypes floating around. I shudder to think how other ethnic-specific holidays/months are celebrated down here. Luckily, I am more than sure that APIA Heritage Month is not celebrated or mentioned down here. ;o)

So, I was on Angry Asian Man's blog and found this hilarious video:


Oh yeah, speaking of AngryAsianMan.com, I had to cite him when getting into this spirited conversation with an older cousin of mine about youths of color and the whole use of derogatory words against their community and reclaiming it/them as a source of empowerment. I directed him towards the entry about John McCain and his prior and PUBLIC use of the racial epithet "Gook" and how a very well-known APIA poet Bao Phi used this reclamation in a constructive way. Anyway, I would love to forward that out to certain relatives of our's...;o)

Alrighty...back to the grind.