Unpacking

Wow! I was so excited to be in a one bedroom suite. All the amenities; kitchen with a fridge, stove, dishwasher, some dishes and cooking things. However, it seems that we have a lot of stuff that still doesn't have space and those things will just have to stay in their boxes until we get into the apartment. I worked so hard to bring as little as possible. Grrr...
As for the area; I'm really excited to be here and it looks like we will have plenty to keep busy. Well, I'll find things to do. Mike already has so much to do.
We are in Arlington just outside of Dallas and here's what we've discovered already.
1. We are across the street from the Six Flags amusement park.
2. We are across the street from Hurricane Harbor.
3. We are about 5 minutes away from the new Ranger stadium (I think it will also be the new home of the Cottonbowl)
4. There are a gazillion eating places.
5. The Dallas Temple is close by.
6. The Urgent Care is just 10 minutes away and really close to the Super Wal-Mart!
Yea, I said Urgent Care. That's where I took Mike today so he could get some meds for a major sinus infection! It started on the trip and got worse yesterday. I didn't even wake him up until early this afternoon and I just sent him to bed about 30 mins ago so he could get another good nights sleep. Actually, I just put him to bed so I could have some peace and quiet! I'm NOT a good empathizer (sp?). Tomorrow should be better.
Tomorrow I begin my hunt for our new ward; at least the ward we will be in for the next couple of months. I really excited to get goin'.
So all in all, things are going well and I haven't received any word that my house has burned down...
More later. Oh by the way, we were thrilled to know that Mandy and our good friends, the Reeds had a fabulous time in New Orleans watching those fabulous UTES stomp Alabama! It was thrilling to be able to watch the game and cheer LOUDLY in our humble abode :D
Love to all, VZ

Gratitude

Yesterday (31 Dec) we had planned to be on the road by noon. I realized early in the day that it wasn't going to happen. First of all, Mike and I were fighting a hacking cough and that alone was pretty exhausting. But the main reason for the delay is trying to consolidate our stuff into a car load. I tried to narrow it down to what I thought I would absolutely need but it turned out to be much harder than I thought. So, after some serious pondering I realized...oh my gosh, how did the pioneers do it? And they could only take seventeen pounds! It then became a challenge to take only necessary items. Left behind items included the griddle, my juicer, ALL of my pictures, Brita water container, laundry soaps, towels, alot of clothes, MY ELECTRIC BLANKET, and other things too numerous to mention. In the end I didn't relent on taking my breadmaker or Cutco knives. I also took my mesh bread baking pan. I figured even in the hotel, I can still make bread! Oh yeah, I also couldn't leave my blender. There is so much you can cook when you have a blender!
We finally got on the road around 2:30pm and got to Denver just before the new year. Not a bad drive actually; no snow just windy. We watched the "ball" fall at midnight and then went to bed. Our next goal was to reach Oklahoma City so we'd only have to travel four hours the last day. We stopped in Blackwell just short of OC. Tomorrow, Grand Prairie, Texas.
I'm grateful to live in a time when going from one place to another is a breeze. I grateful that even if I forgot something critical I can either buy it or have it sent. I'm especially grateful that I can be in contact with my family at the touch of a button; I don't have to wait months for a letter. What a great time to be alive! More later...

We're Outta Here!

Originally I was going to stay behind and meet Mike in Grand Prairie, Texas after he saw what the living arrangements were going to be. We decided there was no point in me leaving later. First of all, Mike found out that he'd probably need the car to get back and forth from the base. And the biggest reason is...I really don't want to make the 20+ hour drive in the middle of winter by myself! So...on the 30th (or the 31st) of December, we pack up the car with the stuff we think we can't live without for a year and say our good-byes and head into the sunset (snowset). We're really excited about the move. I know from our travels this summer that our kids will all be fine. I'm looking forward to meeting new people and especially seeing my cousin, Shauna, who I haven't seen in years. So, for now, it's hasta la vista to all and if you're up for the adventure, come and see us. Maybe by the summer I'll have figured out where all the best eating places are. One thing I can't make myself do is cheer for the Mavs, the Cowboys or the Aggies! So, GO JAZZ, GO UTES, GO BYU!

Finally!

Well, it's finally happening! Mike is just finishing a two week assignment in Dublin, CA. When he gets home this Thursday, we'll have a fairly calm holiday and on the 2nd of January, he'll fly out for his final army assignment. After nearly 30 years he'll be able to retire and we'll move on.
This is a mobilization which, simply put, means he's in the regular army. If they wanted to they could send him far away (which he has been eager to do for the last four years) but instead, he'll be stationed in Grand Prairie, TX., outside of Dallas. He'll do what he's been doing for many years, teaching combat lifesaving and leadership courses. The army is so short handed, they're happy to have someone of his calibur on staff.
What does this all mean for our family? I plan on joining Mike in the middle of January. We'll be away for about a year. Rachel and her family are living downstairs and Jana and her family are living upstairs and I'll go to Texas to live the life of an army wife. I've never done that and I'm excited.
Intially we'll be in a hotel for about two months (not as exciting as it sounds; it plays havoc on your body to have to eat out all the time) and then we will be given a one bedroom, fully furnished apartment for the remainder of the time.
Our stuff is basically boxed and in storage and we won't have to take much. I want to keep busy so I'll probably take some stuff that I usually don't have time for (pictures, crocheting, etc.).
Another thing I want to do is get fully involved in the community (town and church). We'll try and jump right into ward activity and lend support to the church there.
So, through the beauty of modern technology, we'll be able to keep in touch wherever we are and let you know what we are doing. Keep us posted on your lives. I'll probably be back for the birth of Scott and Lisa's baby in March.
Till then, I hope your holidays are as exciting as ours. Merry Christmas from us all. With much love, Vicki and Mike

This is a short clip of a class Mike taught in Lincoln, Nebraska. I'm always tickled by some of the positions the guys have to get into to be stuck by a student.

Captured!

We're just headed home after two and a half weeks at Camp Parks. Camp Parks is in Dublin, California just east of Oakland. Mike was an instructor for ANCOC (advanced non-commissioned officer course) which included some pretty serious "war games". I got to play the part of an Iraqi villager (sometimes hostel, sometimes not). In the picture I'm getting frisked! I was really amazed at the seriousness of the training. For example; at one point I was walking down a dirt road with a baby and a soldier told me to "Halt"! I pretended not to understand and she gave me hand signals to get on the ground. And get on the ground I did! It was pretty impressive. But what was most impressive to me is what Mike does month after month to conduct these courses. They're time consuming, sometimes dirty and many times frustrating but alway important to those taking the class. He's my hero! We're still waiting to hear about a start date for Grand Prairie, TX but there are many opportunities to teach every month if Grand Prairie doesn't come through. In fact, the battalion would rather Mike NOT take the Texas mission because it leaves them so short handed of qualified teachers. Whatever happens will work out fine for us. We'll keep you posted. In the meantime we continue to enjoy the travel.

Junk and More Junk

Getting ready for Texas has really been a challenge. How do you get rid of 38 married years of stuff? It's not like I'm a pack rat the way my mom was. I remember when we were cleaning out the family home after she died, there were actually pieces of yarn all knotted together. I think she liked the color and wanted to match it to something. She also had a lot of knickknacks from her days as an elementary school teacher. We don't know that they even meant anything to her, but there they were. We suspect that even she didn't know what was in the cupboards. I have a pact with some of my closest friends; when I die, they are to hurry over and burn the house down!
Anyway, as we went through things that I've had tucked away, I was reminded of the feelings we had when we went to Nauvoo on our way home from Pennsylvania. There wasn't a lot of choice about what they would take across the plains; food, shelter and warm clothes were top priority. I thought about being told that they could only take 17 lbs by handcart. At that point my choice became more simple. Get rid of the stuff that will make my kids life more difficult should they have to deal with it. I thought to myself after we were finished with my moms house; you don't get to hitch a U-Haul to your casket! I think I'm ready to really unload a lot of my earthly trappings. Now if I could get my kids to stop fighting over my stuff. "You take it" "No, YOU take it!"

Where's the Bathroom?

I've traveled 11,000 miles by car since July 7th, stayed in a dozen or more hotels, gained 30# because there really isn't such a thing as diet friendly restaurant eating (seriously, why would you eat a salad when the enchiladas are the best in the world?). My point is; sometimes when you wake up in the middle of the night, you have to sit for a moment to remember where you are before you can go to the bathroom. We're home now and guess what; I still have to sit for a moment to remember where I am.
We got home on the 15th of October after Mike's Army mission in Pennsylvania and Nebraska. While we were away our home was taken care of by Rachel and Jana along with their families. One family upstairs, one family downstairs. Basically all the rooms were "ocupado"! Well, there's really no reason to cause undue stress for the two families so Mike and are making the sacrifice and moving out. Whoa, I can hear you say to yourselves. Where will they go, what will they do? Simple, really. We'll accept another Army assignment and go to Texas for a year. Actually, we'll go to California first then Texas.
Yep, Mike is being mobilized to teach the class he's spent the most time teaching this year. Combat Life Saver (CLS). Most of the soldiers take the class because they will probably be mobilized in the next year. They learn IV's, chest decompressions and other life saving stuff. Mike's a really great instructor and they need his skills so...off we go.
I had a rough time thinking about being away from all the grandkids but had such a great time with just me and Mike that I'm biting the bullet and going with him.
We'll be stationed in Grand Prairie, Texas located near Dallas and Plano (kind of in the middle of Texas). I'm excited to do this and have learned that all the family is fine when I'm gone. So, with a departure date of November 3rd, we look forward to seeing as many of you as possible before we leave.
I can't wait to see how long it takes me to know where the new bathroom will be!