Our Random, Fun Life!

So I recently read a blog where a man defended his wife for being a stay-at-home mom. As I was reading it, I kept thinking to myself, good for him! Then, as I thought more about it, I started to think about the blog itself. Sure, this blog and others talk about how we stay-at-home moms are raising our children and bringing them up to be productive members of society, but they never really seem to answer the question of what we do all day. Before I had kids, I never thought I'd be a stay-at-home mom. I often worked well in excess of 40 hours per week and worked on most weekends. I often wondered what it is I would do all day as a stay-at-home mom and if I'd get bored. Shortly after my daughter was born, I was laid off due to downsizing so I got the chance to prove myself wrong. I was now going to be a stay-at-home mom, and as my mom always used to tell my sister and me, "You are my job. And I always do my jobs well." I now have two kids and couldn't imagin...

I am an introvert. I am shy. I get extremely nervous in social situations when I don't know anyone. I'm not good at small talk. These are not really good things when you are a military spouse. I recently read an article in the Huffington Post online (from August 2013), and I really liked how it discussed being an introvert. I've seen several articles before and I don't know that any hit home as much as this one did. I have struggled with being an introvert my whole life. I grew up as an Army brat, meaning we moved every two to three years. I loved my childhood and wouldn't change much about it, but it was difficult. Most of my friends were made through gymnastics. I was always jealous of my older sister as it seemed effortless for her to make friends while I often struggled just to get up the courage to talk to people. I'm not a kid anymore, but I still struggle with my introverted ways. I try to get involved around post as much as possible so I can ge...

I detest running. I always have and probably always will. Growing up, my running goals were to run 60 feet down the vault runway, and no more. I considered myself athletic growing up, but my sports were limited to gymnastics, cheerleading, indoor soccer (one season), track (one season), and diving. (Please save the cheerleading is not a sport discussion for another day.) You could argue that I liked running because I mentioned I did one season of track, but let me clarify that I did one season of running the 100m dash and 4x100m, so basically just a little bit farther than in gymnastics. I know that running is good for me as it is a good cardiovascular workout, and I concede to that. I even went out and bought a BOB Duallie jogging stroller, used for a steal and definitely not new. My husband would have some serious words if I spent $450+ on a new BOB Duallie , whether it was on sale or not. And I will even say that this new to me jogging stroller is leaps and bounds better than ou...

About 2 months before we PCS'd (moved), we decided it was time to try to eat up as much of the food in the pantry as we could. This led to our realization of how much we were wasting, food and money, at the grocery store each month. I would go to the commissary (military grocery store) and grab random things off the shelf, buy random meat products, and impulse buy fruit and vegetables. By the time I'd get around to making dinner, I'd use maybe half of the things I'd buy. That was when we decided to make a change. We decided it was time to meal plan, and stick to it. Or at least stick to it so long as I remember to thaw the meat in enough time. Now, we sit down with those cookbooks that you impulse buy at the checkout stand and mark which recipes we would actually think about eating, pick out a week's worth of meals, and make a grocery list. I am very deliberate with our grocery shopping list too. I write down everything the recipe calls for and then go to our ...

I love and adore my husband. We have been married for almost 5 years and have 2 beautiful children. Since being married, we’ve had 4 different addresses in 3 different states. I wouldn’t trade my life or my husband for anything. From the outside looking in, however, you may not think we are so in love. We don’t hold hands, and we rarely go on dates. If you catch us kissing in public, you are one of the very few who has done so. I have two issues that prevent my husband and me from holding hands. First, my hands have a tendency to get clammy. And second, my fingers are pretty bony. My husband always jokes with me about my sweaty hands. If we do hold hands, it’s only for a couple minutes because he can’t stand the pain much more than that. But my husband also has his own issues with handholding. His aren’t physical, but stem from the regulations at West Point and in the military. His Bugle Notes from 2002 mention only offering your arm when needed for assistance or at...

Let me begin by saying, I am no Emily Post. On occasion, I have been known to break a rule or two of etiquette. The one rule that I try not to break, however, is to RSVP to an invitation. My mother may have had the biggest influence on me when it comes to RSVPing. She insisted on sending in the reply and doing so within the first few days of receiving an invitation. While at times I may send in my response the day before the recipient is asking for it; I usually try to send in my RSVP within the first few days. I am surprised though at the number of people who never send in a response, wait until the very last minute to send in a response, or send a response in late (sometimes even a day or two later). The first time I really had anything to do with RSVPing wasn’t until college friends started getting married. Prior to that, the only real commitment I had to make well in advance was for spring break. I can still remember getting my first wedding invitation. It was ...