Home Alone

AAAAHHHHH!!

 

 

Sorry everyone, I simply couldn't resist! You may not think it's funny, but I had a good laugh. Currently, I am on day 13 of my new life in Florida. Unfortunately, 11 of those have been spent...alone. Justin is currently off in New England somewhere for survival training. I definitely have it better off than he does, but I'm not gonna lie, the last week and a half has been dreadfully boring. I consider myself introverted enough that I can survive on my own without spiraling into a depressive state and sometimes, actually enjoy the time to myself.

I always try to see the positives in any given situation. Otherwise, I doubt I'll make it out of this navy wife life with my sanity intact. So, the positives to this current situation (new location, no husband, no friends, no job) are as follows: I get the bed all to myself, I can cook fish (I love fish, the husband does not), and I get full reign of the remote. Not too bad. And in the grand scheme of things, 14 days is nothing.

Anybody who knows me knows how frugal I am. I hate spending money just out of sheer boredom. I am proud to say that while Justin has been gone, I have not gone shopping (besides for groceries) and I have not had fast food once! Yay me! I have spent the last week and a half unpacking the house, applying for jobs (fingers crossed for me, y'all!), reading, cooking, watching an embarrassingly large amount of TV, and taking pictures of my dog, India. My apologies for jamming your Facebook and Instagram feed with my dog, but she is just so cute!

Justin and India have a love/hate relationship and I was finally able to capture one of their many stare downs. I absolutely love this picture! They crack me up.

I think India could tell I had a higher level of anxiety than normal. She has done a good job acting as guard dog. Even though her favorite pastime is sleeping, I take comfort in knowing she is still on high alert.

Of course the exception to the above statement have been the super loud thunderstorms. Poor thing is not used to such loud noises, so she seeks refuge under the bed during these times.

My India dog has never played with toys. So, I found it weird that she found this stuffed bear in our guest bedroom and kept it in her bed as her snuggle friend for the day. Silly girl!

This one is just precious. She loves her new bed! Ain't she cute?!!

That's enough of the India pictures. Onto a more serious topic. I have never really lived by myself. I always had a roommate in college and right after college I married Justin. I get really panicky at night when it comes to being alone. I have always been this way, ever since I can remember (I am sure my fascination with crime shows don't help). I made sure that we got a house in a safe neighborhood, we are not in the city, and every single lock is always locked. I have pepper spray and keep my car keys by my bed. I still just cannot shake this panicky/anxious feeling I get every night that someone is just bound to break into my house!

Do any of my readers have this issue? Honestly, sometimes I feel my anxiety in these situations borders on abnormal. I know that spending nights alone in inevitable for me. So, does anyone have any tips or opinions on how to help me overcome these seemingly irrational feelings of mine?

Hopefully I have more exciting things to post about soon. But until then, hugs from Florida! :)

Few Friends

Moving day. It is upon me. Justin has been in Jacksonville for almost a week. Now it's my turn. I had been saying that I felt that I was in denial about the whole moving process. Which is not hard since I do not have to do any packing or anything like that. Up until 3 hours ago, my house looked completely the same (with the exception of a missing handsome husband :)) Now that I have taken everything down off the walls, begun my last load of laundry, and have started making a list of belongings that I need to make sure to bring with me, I am starting to get sad.

This move has been harder on me than the previous one from Enid to Corpus Christi. I could not quite figure it out. I mean, Enid is in Oklahoma. All of my family is in Oklahoma as well as all my friends. I had a job that I loved and a little rental house Justin and I could call our own. I was thrilled to be making this move down south and see what else was out there.

A few days ago, I was relaying this thought process to my friend, Jennie, she brought up a good point--- Moving to Corpus Christi was new and exciting for me! I was going to a place I had never been before. I was going to enjoy warm weather, the beach, and all of the fun stuff living by the gulf had to offer. Now, 6 months later, another move is upon me. Except this this time, it is not exactly new and exciting. I have moved away from home, I know what it feels like to live by the beach and enjoy gorgeous weather. The newness of my new lifestyle has worn off and right now I just want some stability. That Jennie, she knows what she is talking about! Which brings me to my next point...

I have been blessed to have two wonderful women enter my life during my time here in Corpus Christi. Jennie and Shannon have been my rocks the last 6 months. Both have such valuable things to offer and contribute to our friendship and I am forever thankful for the both of them.

I joke around a lot, but I truly adore Jennie. This awesome Marine pilot knows how to have a good time, be spontaneous, and doesn't take any crap. She accepted me as the other "staple girl" in our group with open arms. She always has a couch for me to sleep on, is available for nice conversation at a weekly dinner date, and is an all around wonderful friend. She will have an amazing career as a C-130 pilot and I could not be more happy for her.

God truly had something to do with Shannon and I becoming such great friends. How ironic that we both got our masters degrees in counseling (at the same college I might add), both married Navy pilots, and both have ended up down here in Corpus Christi?! I definitely look up to Shannon, and her and Kyle have been great to Justin and I. They are always willing to give advice and Shannon has helped me in more than one stressful situation! I always looked forward to our weekly walks. It was nice to know someone who honest-to-goodness knew exactly what you were going through and is able to help process the situations. Even if all I needed to do was rant, Shannon was there and I hope I was able to extend the same courtesy. I have also thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her daughters better and I will miss them dearly as well.

Although leaving my friends makes me sad. I realize that I can choose to be upset, or see the situation in a more positive light. I have been a navy wife for a little over a year and I have already met so many different and amazing people! I try to not see it as saying "good-bye", but more "see you later". The beauty of the military is that you never know when you could cross paths with the people that you have met again! You just never know! You can tell me the chances of that are slim all you want. For me, I take comfort in knowing that there is always that possibility that I could end up in the same place as they are one of these days.

So, as my days in Corpus Christi turn into hours, I want to say thank you, Jennie and Shannon. What amazing women you both are and I am truly honored to have been blessed with your friendship! I love you both!

Military Moving Moments

Well folks, as you all know Justin and I will be making our way to Jacksonville, Florida soon! He will be leaving on Monday and I will leave 8 days later. I guess we were pretty spoiled on our moves to Enid and Corpus Christi because this move has been TERRIBLE!

Terrible almost does not begin to describe the anxiety and stress this move has caused me. Within the first 2 days of Justin getting orders, I cried, yelled, threw my hands up in the air, and was all around exhausted by the time we got everything figured out (which took a good week or so).

Without boring you with the excruciating details, I thought I might impart some words of wisdom. Whether you are military or not, I hope that this helpful tips can help on YOUR future move!

1. Get it out of your head right now. Everything will not go perfectly. This will save you a lot of grief in the future. Going in with a Plan B can help you not wallow in self pity every time something goes wrong. Go with Plan B, stay flexible, and move on!

2. Stay positive! There's no point in being a Negative Nancy when there is absolutely nothing you can do to change the situation. I was pretty upset about the fact that I have to stay behind a week to wait on the movers to get here. This will be the longest Justin and I have gone without seeing each other since we have been married. Not to mention I have to make this 1,100 mile journey all by myself. However, I realized that I get an extra week to hang out with my friends! So, no complaints here!

3. Don't be scared to ask for help. Offering pizza and beer can go a long way. Plus, most people either have or will be in a situation similar to yours in the near future. So, most people are more than willing to help a friend out.

4. Remember to enjoy the adventure! Even for me, remembering this gets hard some times. I get wrapped up in the moment, start getting sad/mad about moving, and get overwhelmed. However, the big picture is that I am once again going to live in a place I never thought I would! I get to share this with the love of my life and I will make wonderful memories along the way!

These pointers are helpful for me and I hope they help you as well! If Justin and I ever get brave enough to move ourselves, I am sure I will have more "helpful hints". Until then, I will enjoy the movers doing all the heavy work :)

I sure am going to miss this house. And the view!