Mason Goes Pacific

Well I've had plenty of time to explore now and I've done my masters homework for the weekend. So since Ellen has been keeping up the blog, it's time for me to share some. Rather then tell a bunch of stories, I would rather just post the pictures. But I don't want to just turn the blog into a facebook gallery.

The first weekend I was here, I went with a couple other guys and just drove around the whole island. I took a bunch of photos and got a nice burn on my neck from just walking around all the different beaches. I was wearing a hat, but I hate sunscreen since I sweat so much and the feel is just gross. Plus it always ends up in my eyes no matter what I do, so it ruins my day.

Another weekend, I went snorkling for the first time in my life. The beach we were at wasn't that amazing for the "experienced" snorklers and divers in the group, but we were there anyway doing a community service trash pickup project. It's strange being at beaches where you can't just walk out into the water. The sand pretty much ends as soon as you get the water line and then it's all coral from there. So my Tevas have been getting worn out. But they worked out pretty well compared to paying big bucks for the fancy scuba gear. The water generally stays about 3 feet deep until you get pretty far out. As your floating around looking at the crazy colors and fish, you tend to forget that you're going to hit your feet if you try kicking. I wasn't too sure about how far I wanted to go out since people have warned me that the current can pick up pretty quickly if you go too far without fins. But there were a bunch of other people in the group and they tipped me off that the floor dropped off not too far from where I was. So I swam out there and sure enough the floor dropped from 3 ft right to about 20 ft. I didn't see any big fish or stingrays or anything but it was still pretty cool to stare at. We made our way around to another beach that day, which had a nice little island not too far out. There was a good cliff for jumping off, so we did a little of that. I only did two jumps from the medium cliff and decided I would stop while I was ahead. The thought of all the rock under the water was a little intimidating. While the rest of the group tried going a little bit farther out in the water, I spent a couple hours just floating around in the bay watching what was underneath. Another big change from swimming in Lake Michigan is the salt water. I got a taste of it at water survival training in Florida, but when you take a breath wrong in the snorkle mask, it's hard to just spit it out without gagging. But on the other hand, floating in the water is a lot easier. And of course, after floating face down in the ocean all day, my back got toasted. I had a flight the following Monday, which made for some intense pain when I was strapped into the parachute.

This last Friday, a couple guys from my house and another guy who’s pretty gungho on camping went down to the beach on base and camped out. It’s nice because the beach is a 15-20 minute drive from the rest of base, so it’s relatively secluded. We rented tents, chairs, and everything from outdoor rec and had a good bbq. The weather was perfect for sitting out on the beach, but it ended up being way too hot to sleep in the tent.

I ended up sitting out on the beach just looking at the stars for most of the night. One of the guys felt sick halfway through the night (ironically, the guy who was the one who came up with the idea to camp), so I drove him back to the houses, which turned out to be an awesome ride. The jungle comes alive at 1:30 AM. I saw two hogs and probably about 20 deer. Some small, some big with antlers. In the morning, I was still awake for the sunrise. So I got some good photos and then went for a swim. This beach was a little different than when I went snorkeling. The water was only about a foot deep until way out. And then you could see where the floor totally dropped and there were 3-5 ft waves rolling in. I really wanted to go hang out in the waves, but once I walked up to where the coral floor dropped off, it was impossible to tell how deep the water was. And even though I’m an okay swimmer, I was having doubts about me and my tevas vs. the

waves and the coral. So I left it at that. Plus at this point I had been under the sun for an hour or so and I was determined to not spend another flying week with a sunburn.

Overall, this has been a pretty good trip. There's enough stuff to do that I haven't hit the "lets go home now" point. But I still miss Ellen and the baby inside! I’ve gotten to see a good amount of new stuff at work that I wouldn’t have gotten to see back at home. The tempo has been slow enough that I’ve been able to keep up with two masters classes (my last two before my final project!). And I’ve gotten the opportunity to take a ton of photos. It’s tough at home to get inspired to take new creative photos because you get used to what you see everyday. But when you go somewhere where everything looks different, it’s easier to get motivated. I bought a tripod before the trip because I knew there would be a lot of good sunset/sunrise opportunities. At night on the beach, I was able to capture a glance of how many stars we could see. Plenty more to come over the next few weeks…

I also learned how to do 3D photography! Here's a sample. If when you click on it, the photo is too large to see all at once on your screen, then save it to your computer and open up in the stanard windows picture viewer, so you can see the whole image at once. It takes a little magic eye skill, but it's not that tough. When you're looking at it, cross your eyes until you see three images. If you see four images, you're crossing your eyes too much. You're basically trying to view the left image with your right eye and vice versa. So when you see three images, concentrate on the center one (which is really the two images overlapping). It may take a second, but once your eyes get used to it, they should lock on and then you'll see the 3D image. When your eyes are locked on, try concentrating on different parts of the photo to see the effect (like the grill in the foreground and the tent in the background).

(Click on it to see full size)

TGFMS

(Touring Guam)

Thank God for Military Spouses! Sometimes it is really hard to be a military spouse. While certain areas of this lifestyle are inevitable and expected, somehow that does not make them easier. Deployments and separation are one of those areas that are expected when you are married to someone in the military but they are difficult for even the strongest of spouses. It is really comforting to have the love and support of family and friends during these times of separations as well as during the "everyday" life which can be quite hectic and unplanned most of the time. But there's this special bond that military spouses have and I'm so glad to have this wonderful group of women in my life.

There are of course those "rules" of deployment that civilian spouses may not know about, and here's where I'll share my wisdom....

1. As soon as the husband walks out the door for a TDY or Deployment, anything and everything will break. You can't be prepared becasue you don't know what it will be, but something will break. In our case, our downstairs toilet has a small leak which has been "fixed" a few times, but of course started acting up once Mason left.

2. We are allowed to cry anytime without judgement. This might be becasue you catch a glimpse of the dirty laundry they've left behind, or becasue you stub your toe and apparently it's worse when there's no one else to complain to, or just simply because...

3. The first few days are the hardest, then it gets better, some days suck, and at the halfway point you're just about THROUGH with the whole thing, but then it gets better again, becasue they will be home (hopefully) soon.

4. There is no such thing as an exact departure or arrival date. It's the military; things change. Which means, don't book a vacation for when they return until they get home and while there may be ideas of departure and arrival dates, they often change. Imagine gearing up for a long separation, saying goodbye, and guess who walks in the door a few hours later to say...well, today wasn't the day. Mason and I generally have the policy of, we'll believe it when the rubber hits the runway.

5. Expect to see baby booms in military communities before deployments and 9 months after deployments...

6. Don't judge what you see us eating for dinner. My single life diet consists of Popcorn, pasta, ice-cream, and apples with peanut butter...why make a big dinner for just 1? And there is never too much ice-cream or chocolate (and for some, wine) to get through a time of separation.

7. We may make utterances about the negativeness of military life, but it's just a phase...we really do love it, or we wouldn't be here.

8. I swear...the doors lock themselves. Why is it that once they leave the keys end up on the inside of the car or house, and I'm on the outside. This connects to the military ID making escapes into bottom of purse ville...

I'm sure there are plenty more...but this is just a little glimpse. I'm really grateful for all the military friends I have made here and in our different military moves because they always understand and are there when you need them to be. I spoke with a friend (non-military) recently who asked how things were going, and I said that everything was going pretty well, and that some days are hard. She pointed out that it's a good thing some days are hard, because that means we're loving and missing each other. Good point. I see lots of people who don't necessarily feel the same way when the spouses leave (they are really excited and the homecoming isn't a thing to look forward too) which makes me sad for them. I'm lucky to have such an awesome hubby I guess!

Well, I'm off to run some errands at the BX and Commissary in my mismatched Yoga Pants and T-shirt...glad to know there's no one there judging, because we've all been there. (I didn't have any great pictures of me and my friends-probably because we're so busy gabbing all the time, so I posted pics of the guy who makes me a military spouse).

(What a hottie!)

Ellen and Baby's Movie Reviews

With Mason gone and being on summer vacation this has left lots of time for TV viewing and Movie watching. While I'm usually content to stay home and watch TV reruns, and movies on TV I have been fortunate enough to get to go see three movies in the theater!

Bridesmaids:
Mason and I actually went to go see this movie in Fort Worth on our romantic getaway weekend (which still deserves a separate posting) and we both enjoyed it. I wouldn't say we died laughing like we had a few years before when we had gone to see Baby Mama in Fort Worth, but nevertheless it was a good movie for a Saturday afternoon when we were avoiding the heat. My girlfriends invited me to see it again since Mason's been gone and I almost turned them down since I didn't think it was that hilarious, but decided to go just for something to do and the company. I have to say seeing it for a second time in a theater filled with women was more enjoyable than the first viewing with about 10 people tops in the theater. It was pretty funny to watch and listen to women near-by whisper things like, "bitch" and "oh no she didn't" and then burst into song at the end of the movie. Sometimes I guess the audience makes the movie. I'd recommend the movie as a rental movie, probably good for a girls' night in.

Something Borrowed:
I went to see this movie Friday night at the base theater; for $4.50 I can't really complain. I actually liked the movie although it wasn't quite what I had expected. I think I was expecting the women to be fighting over a different male character so that threw me off a bit. Again, this is a movie I would rent and see with friends. I guess in the South I get used to the cheaper movies; $4 on base, $6.50 in town, as compared to the almost $11 dollar tickets back home, so it all seems like a bargain. I don't think my girlfriends really liked this movie, but I think movies with betrayal and love stories are hard to handle during times of separation from spouses. I did find myself wishing I was coming home to my husband waiting for me. Baby Kehs must have like the music in this movie, or the popcorn I was consuming because s/he was thumping away with the loud movie noises.

Water for Elephants:
Let me first say, that I got this book almost 2 years ago for free from the Military OneSource website and I probably read 1 page and then it hit the shelves while grad school and lesson planning took over. I was determined that I was going to read this book, this summer and I was even more encouraged to do so when I saw the movie was coming out. Since Mason's been gone I think I stayed up three nights in a row reading this book. I LOVED it! It was unlike anything I had really read before and just didn't want to put it down. I think I read 250 pages in one night once I had really dug into the plot. I feel like my time is limited for pleasure reading and I was so happy that when I got the chance to read, I was reading this book.

Tonight, I ventured all by myself to the movies. I almost chickened out because I was a little embarrassed to go alone, but party feeling sorry for myself that I was going to the movies alone; but I really wanted to see how the movie compared the the book. First of all, I was really glad that I had read the book first (and would recommend the same to anyone else wanting to see the movie). But I felt the movie really lived up to my expectations and I thoroughly enjoyed it. While it wasn't a movie that has to be seen in the movie theaters, I'd watch it in theaters again. Again, Baby Kehs enjoyed the popcorn and loud sound effects because s/he was kicking away again.

So, while I didn't really divulge any movie details, I've been having a fun time venturing out and about. I'm hoping to finish reading The Help before that movie comes out later this summer so that I can go see that movie before my movie days are limited.

Hey! It's Me!

(On a date with Mason before he left; way too much ice-cream even for me)

I decided that many of my blog posting lately have been about my dear husband, so I decided that I would take to time to focus on M-E, although I’m not sure I’m actually that interesting these days. I have approximately 10 weeks left in Grad school which thrills me to no end. I’ve enjoyed learning new tidbits and strategies that I can use in my classroom, but by this 9^th course, I’m getting repeat information and am just done with the weekly papers that aren’t really teaching me much. I have an E-portfolio that must be completed by the end of my program which basically consists of more repetition and LONG papers that require a lot of work. Anyone who scoffs at an online degree should go get one, because I’ve worked just as hard as anyone else I know in Grad school keeping up with assignments and work. I’m pretty proud to say I have a 4.0 GPA which I am hoping to end my program with as well. Mason says I’m crazy to complain when I get an A- on a paper, but I’m at that stage I guess where I really just appreciate the straight A report card look and feel. The class I am currently in will be finished in two weeks, so my hope is that I can bang out these last few assignments early and complete the majority of my portfolio pieces from the last section before I go home for a little vacation.

Which brings me to my next topic that I am going to be home in Evanston for two weeks simply chillaxin. With Mason gone this seemed like a good opportunity to take before the baby was born and not having to worry about leaving my man behind. It’s sort of strange to think that it will be my last kid-free trip back home. I’m looking forward to drinking lots of Jamba Juice and eating Deep Dish Pizza! Yum-o!

With Mason gone, my energy to cook has dwindled. I had finally gotten back to the point where I didn’t really mind cooking, and I actually had the time and then he skipped town and I’m not going to cook elaborate meals with tons of leftovers for myself. I’m also still not really into looking/preparing/cooking with raw meat, so right now my house has no meat in it. That makes it challenging not to chow down on Pasta (or some variety) every night because it’s just easy and not meat; plus I could eat pasta every day. My friends have been nice about inviting me over or going out to dinner, but that can’t be an everyday event. The other night I had a big bowl of popcorn for dinner, which left me feeling satisfied, but questioning if I was really getting BK all the nutrients needed. My doctor also told me at my last appointment that I was dehydrated so I’ve been focusing on getting my fluid intake each day which is somewhat filling.

Baby Kehs seems to be hitting a growth stretch because it feels as though my belly has suddenly “popped” out. In most attire I feel like I’m starting to look more recognizably pregnant and not just fat. I went this week and bought some maternity pants and some longer shirts to cover the expanding belly and hope that they will take me to the end of this pregnancy. Mason even commented during a Skype conversation that he could see the belly while I was just sitting in the chair, although this was probably after I went on and on and on about my expanding girth. I’m almost into the six month, which is really exciting and I’m happy that other than being EXHAUSTED from the Louisiana heat and growing a baby, I’ve been feeling pretty good. BK reminds me that they are all tucked in there by kicking away, although the strangest thing is that although I feel the kicks daily they seemed more frequently and stronger when Mason was around either when he put his hands on my belly or just when we were going to bed at night. It’s as if the baby already senses Dad’s presence, which I think is pretty cool.

The first week of deployment has gone fairly smoothly with a few bumps in the road. I’m on my summer night time schedule. Last night I went to bed as the sun was coming up and birds were coming out…but I just couldn’t put my book down and kept reading. I’ve been to the pool a few times with friends and just been out socializing and working at Sylvan. Nothing to wild. Now that it’s 1:30 am I’m contemplating writing a paper for Grad school or getting back into my book…I think the paper will have to wait for now. Night!

Captain Krypto Kehs

At the end of May, Mason was promoted to the rank of Captain. This is really exciting, because although it is one of the ranks that you are "automatically" promoted to at a set time (which is all changing now) being a Captain means more responsibility, and you are treated like you actually know something. Most people stay Captains for about six years because there are a lot of stepping stones to be promoted to Major. Captain also means a pay bump along with other little benefits.

The last work day before Mason promoted was also especially cool because he was finally given a call sign, "Krypto." You'll have to ask him for the details of the naming over a cold can of pop. All in all we were pretty happy with Krypto because it could have been a lot worse. On Fridays the aircrew wear their Friday shirts under their flight suits but also get to wear their call sign name tag instead of a regular name tag. Having a call sign also shows that you've been in the squadron for awhile and have some "status." Mason was pretty happy that Tuesday morning after Memorial Day to go back to the squadron as a Captain with a call sign; I think he was already getting more attention.

So of course, what did we do but celebrate! Mason was pretty embarrassed by the decorations I put in front of our house, and it took some convincing that I wasn't inviting a bunch of people over to embarrass him, but that I just was celebrating our excitement over the occasion.


Also, many of you know that Mason is a sweaty beast, which means promotion = new cover for his sweaty head. We may need to do a half-way celebration between Captain and Major just so he can get a new cover. I was pretty proud of myself when we were walking home from the pool and Mason started talking about how he thought he should probably get a new cover, and little did he know I already had one wrapped at home for him.



We also had to celebrate with some banana bread, which two loaves conveniently looked like a pair of Captain's bars. This was later packed for the trip to Guam, and from what I hear has already been consumed overseas.


So proud!!!

Mason goes on a shopping Spree

(Note said orange shirt and sweats)

I love my husband and most of his wonderful qualities that make him who he is. However, Mason is EXTREMELY thrifty, which is great at times and has certainly benefited us and our bank account, but has left his closet somewhat lacking in the past 11 years that I've known him. When you've worn a flight suit or blues uniform to work five days a week (at least) for the past four years your wardrobe doesn't need to consist of much besides black t-shirts, black socks, and underwear. Most days Mason comes home from work and changes into his standard orange college shirts (which were FREE) and a pair of shorts. Occasionally he'll put on "real clothes" to go out on the weekends or when we are in public. I'm not complaining, because like him I understand the value in coming home from work and putting on a comfy pair of yoga or sweat pants...not exactly high glamor standards around the Kehs household (which is nice).

Mason has many of the same clothes he wore when he was a freshman in high school, and I don't remember the last time he purchased a pair of regular shorts, but it was probably in college sometime; I remember he hit up a great yard sale where he got two bags of clothes for like $2 one time. Anyways, before Mason left for deployment he decided (with some encouragement) that we have enough money for him to go out and buy a few nice outfits for going out in that actually fit and are not swimming on him, or are just a smidgen too tight. We decided to hit up Kohl's (on of my favorite stores) and low and behold Mason found clothes he liked and felt comfy in. This shopping trip was cracking me up because Mason and I don't go shopping that much, let alone for clothes (together) and so I had to keep reminding him he could buy more than one pair of shorts and more than one shirt.

(goodbye nasty old shirts)

I have to also say that since neither one of us is a fashionista we were laughing at the different styles and at one point when we had crossed from the Men's section into another section Mason says, "uup, we're in the young man's section, and I'm an old man" and turns around. I was laughing so loud at this point it just cracked me up. That and the fact that Mason was reaching out of his comfort zone to shop for those "trendy" polos, plaid shorts, and a Hawaiian shirt which is apparently a must on "the island."

So we arrived home where Mason threw out a pile of nasty old ROTC black t-shirts where the pits were so gross...and he ended up 4 pairs of shorts, 2 button-up shirts, and 5 black t-shirts. Success!!! And he looks pretty good if I do say so myself.

Faux Holidays

During the past month or so there have been several blog topics that I've wanted to sit down and blog about but have been too busy to concentrate on, so I made a list and will be catching up while I'm flyin' solo.

When we got the fo sho word that Mason would be leaving for deployment I decided to make his last little time fun before he left and celebrate some of the holidays that he would be missing while he was gone. We never got around to Faux 4th of July, but I'm sure he forgives me. Really the week was just fun and so some other events (worthy of separate blog postings) got intertwined. The first fauz holiday that we celebrated was Father's Day. While Mason is technically a father-to-be, I thought he deserved a little recognition and really used it as an excuse to buy a cute little outfit for the baby (note this is the first thing I've actually purchased for the baby, and I'm almost six months in).

Really the day was like any other except with a present and of course cake! Can you figure out the icing riddle that I put on the cake?



I'll also post a quick Baby Kehs update since it's been a while. We went this week for our 22 week appointment. We didn't have an ultrasound this time, but once again I was told how active this little one is due to the fact that the Dr. had to chase BK around my belly looking for the heartbeat. There was lots of whooshing noises and that sweet little heartbeat. I've also been feeling the baby kick more and more. The first few times I could not tell if I had gas or was feeling baby kicks, but over the past two and a half weeks I'm for sure feeling those little thump thumps- which is an amazing feeling. Mason puts his head up to the belly and listens and feels, but he can't quite feel anything yet. We also read that you could hear the heartbeat with a normal stethoscope, but tried to listen and just heard gurgling noises. Mason also held up a flashlight to my belly to see what he could see (mostly we just read that the baby can tell between light and dark now). The baby is just over a pound now and the size of a papaya, and should double in size before the next appointment at the end of this month. At that appointment I'll have to take the glucose test and antibody test...whoopee.

I'm happy to report that I have not gained ANY weight yet during this pregnancy which is awesome to me since I'm obviously overweight to begin with, and I know I'll eventually put on the pounds so I'm glad it's been slow and steady for this first half. However, I will admit I have some belly envy. While the shape and hardness of my belly seems to be developing and protruding more everyday, it's not obvious to strangers that I'm pregnant and I'd kind of like that recognition that hey she's not just fat, but her eggo is preggo...oh well, all in time. Getting in a comfortable sleeping position is getting difficult, because I'm a tummy sleeper and have to fall asleep in that position, but it just feels like I'm sleeping on a baseball, so not too comfy.

Anywho- on to the next holiday...we celebrated faux first day of summer, which in Louisiana really just could have been in March...we are well into the 90s and stretching into the 100 degree temps these days, so I kidnapped Mason and took him to the base pool where we met up with some friends and cooled off in the refreshing water. Later that night we went to the Boardwalk and got some ice-cream from Coldstone Creamery using a gift card our awesome neighbors had given us. Ice-cream and swimming = perfect Ellen day.

Lastly, we had more of a recognition of deployment which basically meant more presents for Mason (although somehow I missed the pictures of these). I whole stack of 60 pre-addressed envelopes to me, so Mason wouldn't have to spend the time doing that while he was away (although I think he only took about 20). I also got him a waterproof bag to put the cameras in while he kikes through the jungle island...but don't know if that actually made the cut on the packing list. Overall, a fun last week together for awhile.

Half of my Heart...

...Is going far away today, and I already miss him!!! Praying for safe travels and a speedy return.