2010 in Pictures

On Febuary 20th we got engaged!!!

(Ignore my no makeup and rosy cheeks, he must really love me).

We went to Washington state for an old car, stopped at Mt. Rushmore on the way and of course, saw Mt. Ranier. Oh, and fell in love with Washington, hello retirement.

By far my biggest challenge(having almost no contact for 8 1/2 weeks), Andrew says it was a piece of cake lol. Andrew graduated from Air Force Basic Training.

And then we got married...

We spent a whole bunch of time is Yosemite.

And then moved to Ohio.

Thanks, nataliedee.com for this awesome picture.

And now we're ready for the next year of our life, adventures and fun times.

Christmas

Being a few hundred miles away from family for the first time this Christmas was weird, to say the least. It didn't feel like Christmas, and it still doesn't feel like Christmas is over. I attribute that to not only being away from family but sleeping in a hotel with no Christmas tree. My mom and Andrew's parents did send us some presents to help it feel more Christmas-y. And, while we both love presents it didn't really help with the whole being away from family while celebrating. Which does help one realize that Christmas isn't about presents.
But anyway, to the presents. : )

From my mom, I got a Hat, Scarf and Mitten set. It's more russet than reddish like the picture would like you to believe. And, mom has my Paula Deen Teapot waiting for me at her house.

From Andrew's parents we got an REI Half Dome 4 tent and Footprint, along with extra REI Giftcard. And they got me a Barnes & Noble giftcard, which makes me a very happy person. I wasted no time going out yesterday and buying books! Andrew's mom also made me a blanket which is gorgeous and might not ever get used since all our good blankets were taken over by our dog and cat. I don't want this one to meet that fate.

And after all of that, Christmas is already over, New Year's is a few days away. At least we're going home for New Year's. I can't believe it's going to be 2011 already. We have done so much this year.

I'm a Planner

If you didn't know.

I use PowerPoint for fun in all my planning purposes. There's nothing better than being able to insert text, pictures, draw your own pictures and keep your info in one square.

No, Microsoft isn't paying me to sell you PPT (they should).

But, that folks is my vegetable garden. ETA: next spring/summer.

I think I have a pretty good start. The only vegetable Andrew won't eat is asparagus oh and onions, not technically a vegetable.

The last row is undecided, I'm playing around with berries. But, they can get out of hand and they attract gigantic spiders...And I have to be able to step foot in my garden in order to garden. So, if big yellow strawberry spiders are around.

Uh, no.

Several of these things will be planted in excess for my canning and preserving. I'm looking forward to making:

• Pickles
• Spaghetti Sauce
• Pickled Asparagus
• Pickled Beets

But, mostly everything will be used in our daily cooking. Yum, nothing beets(get it?) fresh produce with dinner.

Christmas Lights with Extra Trimmings

Every year I have to get my fill of Christmas lights, this involves Andrew driving me around (no matter the weather) in search of houses decked out in electrified Christmas Spirit.

Well, given that we don't really know the area and aren't sure where the Christmas crazies are we found a town that makes it easy for me.

The Clifton Mill in Clifton, OH

Yes, there was even animatronic reindeer, and a (fake real)Santa that climbs up the chimney and waves.

And this last picture...Sucks...looks kind of cool.

Air Force Museum

Nothing like a free museum to fill up a Saturday in Ohio. A museum filled with plane after plane...Only after the 2nd giant did I get a little bored. Andrew put up with me and continued to drag me from one to next like a 5 year old child. : ) Love you baby.

Of course, they're were some interesting things, like the boat-plane above and the currency from around the world.

Oh, and the fact that Clark Gable's beautiful face graced this wall and was a member of the AAF. Uh, how cool is that.

Andrew's favorite plane...His flight in Basic was the Mustangs.

My second favorite thing to see, UAV...Yeah I want one.

Did I mention that Andrew around all these planes was like a kid surrounded by cotton candy?

Especially when there are planes he can sit in...

There are actually pictures he won't let me share becuase the look of giddy excitement is just too much to show to the general public.

And my favorite, the satellite...Pretty.

Oh and a Star Wars style Laser Gun...or Space Drill

Ask Andrew about this one, he did a report on it : ) Once again, love you baby.

Finding Love in Ohio

We arrived in Ohio a week and two days ago. It feels like no time at all, we have been running around constantly since we got here.

Even though we are living in a hotel room I am so happy to be with Andrew and talk to him in person rather than on the phone every day.

We are working on some VERY exciting news, but I don't want to spoil the surprise until everything is final and for sure. : )

Ohio so far is not much different from Minnesota, except I'm 10 hours away from my mom. Which is super weird for me. Yeah, if you didn't know she is my best friend so not being able to see her every day is a little Twilight Zone-ish to me.

Every military member/spouse will tell you that new assignments are what you make of it. This is our first military move and I am making sure I stay positive. I can't wait to get settled so we can explore more of what Ohio has to offer. It's so important for a military family, and any family moving someplace new to find things they love about their new place. Make it feel like home.

Here are some things I'm loving about Ohio

• Trees. There are so many trees here. They didn't cut them all down building towns around here and it's a nice thing to see.


• Parks. There are a lot of parks here and nature preserves. We've already hiked a bit of one where there's a waterfall and cave. And the trails aren't paved (we love that!)


• People. The people here are really nice. We had a 5 mintue conversation with two cashiers at Wal-Mart our second day here. Strangers smile, open doors, say excuse me. It's refreshing.
• New territory. We have so much to explore! We love going to drives and trying to get lost, that's how you find the coolest things.

Breakers Inn

After leaving Yosemite, we headed for the coast. Thinking we'd get to San Francisco, look around and drive up the coast highway and mosey our way over to base.

Well, that happened, for the most part. We did get to San Fran. But, didn't even attempt to leave our car. There were so many people by the wharf...j-walkers and dogs and crowds, oh my!

We realized, we definitely prefer solidarity. So as soon as we found the highway we crossed the famous Golden Gate Bridge (pictures later) and raced to the coast.

A few hundred miles later... and hours of no cell-phone service, a picnic on the beach, a wildfire detour, and a slow RV we found the perfect place to sleep.

No it wasn't in Normandy, but there were only about 15 rooms, and ours was Normandy. And that was our view.

And our room...complete with fireplace a jacuzzi tub. We got pizza from a place across the street and had pizza and sparkling cider while watching the sunset from our deck.

Overall, a very relaxing night at our inn. It was so nice to see the ocean I grew up by.