Weekly Happenings...a bit late

Oh my goodness, you guys. I am so sorry. I know that my somewhat-regular weekly updates are all that keep you going in life (sarcasm...)! But honestly, I do feel bad. For those of you that I have promised to keep updated-- I have failed. It's a good thing though- I've been keeping busy and having a good time!

We have now been here for six weeks. Wow. Here's what's happened since I last updated ya'll...

1. Keagan and I went to a Twins vs. Nationals game! When Denard Span got traded to the Nationals...I immediately looked at the schedule to see if the two teams would face off. Lucky for us...they did! On a weekend...so that we could go together. It was a lot of fun, and the Twins won. We got to sit in a section with other Twins fans...which really annoyed the Nationals fans nearby. We've loved being so close to D.C. and think it's so cool how anywhere that we go, we can see one of the landmarks that we used to only see in textbooks and on the news. Our capital is rad.

2. We had an "ant fiasco" of sorts. We've had a few little tiny ants crawling the windowsills since we moved in. So what'd I do? I bought ant traps. What'd the ant traps do? Attract every ant in the neighborhood! We had a gross couple of days...and I'm sorry for anyone who feels sorry about the little guys, but Keagan and I even had an ant-stomping party on the kitchen floor because we figured that was quicker than waiting for the traps to actually work. Finally...they're gone...

3. I started a couple of books that I've seen recommended by friends. Unbroken and Soul Cravings. They are both super-enticing in their own ways...I highly recommend both!

4. Kiley came!

Keagan's sister stayed with us for about 1 1/2 weeks while waiting for a place to live. She lives about an hour away now...so it'll be nice to have family near. I was happy to have someone drag me out of our apartment.. :) We had a good time visiting Great Falls Park, exploring Downtown Fredericksburg (lots of antique stores, neat shops, and fun buildings), checking out some restaurants, shopping in Potomac Mills, and walking the canal walk in Richmond. I also LOVED having someone to sit and watch hours of Anne of Green Gables with me!

We also enjoyed a few adventures...

Adventure #1- Tornado warning in Fredericksburg. While walking from store to store, we started hearing about an intense storm coming through. Being from Iowa, a predicted thunderstorm doesn't really phase us, but we soon realized it's a different story out here. They're simply not used to storms, and often lose power because of them. Stores were closing early due to the threatening weather, the Marines were telling their wives to have emergency plans in place, and we were scolded for walking outside. There was a brief, stormy moment, but it amounted to nothing.

Adventure #2- Car Troubles. Keagan's car began acting up on Sunday. Since he was on base Monday-Friday without being able to come home, it was my job to figure it out. On the way to the repair shop...Kiley was following me and told me I should probably pulled over. I did...but since we were only 1/2 mile from the repair shop, I decided I'd give it a go. I turned the car back on, turned my wheels, and heard a thud. When I went out to investigate...I saw this...

Yeah...not good.We waited for a tow truck and got it to the repair shop...where it is still waiting as we decide it's fate. I was very glad it happened when it did- off the road, when I had someone with me, and during a week where we only needed one car. In hindsight, I probably should have had it towed to start with, but seriously...we're from Iowa. We don't run from storms and we don't call tow trucks. Maybe I need to become a little more "Virginian." :)

~~~

I have also had a few more events with other spouses. It's great to get to know them and have some friends in the Marine Corps. 

Keagan hasn't had quite as much fun- this week he had Range Week #1...which meant really early mornings, hikes to the range, lots of shooting, and hikes back late at night. This also meant I dropped him off at 3:30 AM Monday morning, and haven't seen him since (it's Friday 10:00 PM). Next week looks the same...but I'm very happy that my family will be visiting and keeping me busy. :)

-Hannah

Government Island.

Remember when I said in a previous post that we went to Government Island and I was kicking myself because I left my memory card out of my camera?? Here's why.

And in case that didn't sell you....
there's this:

The squirrels are like your best friends there! I about died. If it wasn't for the two women walking up behind me and no doubt judging me for taking a million pictures of this guy and talking to him...I could have stayed for hours. Or at least until the squirrel told me I was nuts...

How I Documented Our House

You know the whole self-worth roller-coaster we all ride every now and then? Yeah, the one where one minute we're shaming ourselves for the fact that we really like caffeine, haven't worked out in over a week, and need to buy more sundresses. The next, we're proud of ourselves for making awesome homemade pico de gallo, making the living room smell good, and driving down I-95 like a city driver. Yes.

But really, sometimes we need to get off of that roller-coaster and do what actually makes us happy. For me, it was this. I had seen other people document their lives in such artistic, awesome ways. I had seen many photobooks that looked much nicer than anything I thought I could pull together. But, I wanted  to try, and I wanted to do it how I wanted to and not worry if it compared to anyone else's.

I'm normally quite terrible at digitally documenting my life. I may take a lot of pictures (mostly of trees), and may have a lot of pictures from other people, but I just keep them on my Facebook and call it good. I hardly ever print any pictures, and the only reason I have pictures in frames in my house is because I had to print some of our engagement pictures off for bridal showers. So really? This was a big step for me.

I had decided awhile ago, that I really wanted to remember each and every place that we live. I knew we'd be moving around due to the military, so I wanted some way to remember each place. This is what I settled on. I wanted to remember the basic things- like what each house looked like, what our yard looked like, and what I had hanging on the walls, but I also wanted to remember the unique characteristics- like the crazy colored carpet, the cat that lived outside, and the little knick-knacks that I find so charming. So, thanks to a $20 coupon for Shutterfly and a little motivation, I finished my book.

I'm so excited to look back someday and be able to appreciate all of the little places that we lived and called home. It surely isn't perfect, but please enjoy a little taste of Home #1- Iowa. You can view the thumbnails below, or click the link to view it larger.

Click here to view this photo book larger

Click here to create your own Shutterfly photo book.

Weekly Happenings- Zero Week Part 2

June 1st? Seriously? How'd it get to June? It's hot enough to be August, but my internal clock has no idea how we got to this page on the calendar. The months have been flying by so fast. We've been graduated for over a year, married for 9 months, and in Virginia for almost 1 month. It seems unreal.

This past week was ridiculously hot- 90+ degrees with full humidity every day. I guess they weren't kidding about the weather out here. Sorry for the Midwesterners who are just begging for summer, I hope you get it soon!

As I posted on Monday, Keagan had the day off of training, so we spent our Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery. There really are not words for how incredible it was to be there. It was nice to have a free Monday to remember our troops and relax a little. Then Tuesday came, and it was back to the grind.

Keagan had fairly long hours again. Since it's still technically Zero Week, they were doing more in-processing and such. Things picked up a little more with training this week, but next week the "normal" training starts.

Wednesday and Thursday, I spent most of the day on base, attending some L.I.N.K.S. classes for TBS spouses. If you are a military spouse or family member, I highly suggest attending any L.I.N.K.S. session that you can- they gave us so much information! It was nice to spend some more time with other spouses as well. I also spent a lot of time driving around and running errands for Keagan. Besides a few wrong turns at first, I'm getting a lot more used to the area.

Other than that, we got an update on our kittens back home! They are adorable. Also from home, my little sister made it to State Track and set the school record in two events- the 400 and 4 x 4! How exciting- she definitely doesn't take after me.

We bought tickets to the Twins vs. Nationals game next Saturday, so that will get us through the week!

Have a great week...and June!