Far From "Square"

Let me just start by saying that being home is amazing! All of the tears and changed dates and Army drama were more than worth it if we get to spend the rest of our lives just as we are now, surrounded by family and friends. I have never been so thankful for my home.

I'm also thankful to be home because now I can go to Michael's and Hobby Lobby whenever I want! No more limited supplies from the one tiny Hawaii craft store when I'm trying to make things from Pinterest! So in celebration of this blessed event, I decided to make a fall wreath.

Imagine my surprise when I walked into Michael's to find a Christmas explosion, with not a fall color in sight! Since I was not about the let Michael's ruin my craft store fun, I took Husband by the hand and forced to him to search high and low for fall crafting supplies. After Husband started to whine, I broke down and asked a Michael's worker where they all of the fall supplies were hiding. Her reaction was nothing like I expected. As soon as the word "fall" passed through my lips, Michael's worker got the most disgusted look on her face, as if she could not believe I had the audacity to even ask for such a thing. She then proceeded to tell me that I was crazy for waiting so long and if there was anything fall left, it would be in the clearance isle.

Husband and I tore through that clearance rack like there was no tomorrow and we managed to scrounge up just enough supplies for my fall wreath. And it only cost me $4.37. Not a bad reintegration into the crafting world if I do say so myself!

Here's how it's done:

Step #1: Get Dad to give you a board of some sort. Then make him cut it to the shape you want.

Step #2: Separate the weird package of leaves and iron down the crinkly ones.

{Do not put the iron directly on the leaves! Iron through a towel or you will be sorry.}

Step #3: Hot glue the leaves to the board, just however.

{Notice I'm working on Mom's ironing board, which happens to be older than I am.}

Step #4: Hot glue any decorations on top of the leaves.

{I got carried away and forgot to take a picture. Dang.}

Step #5: Hang it proudly on the door! 

Now in some cases, there may be a step #6: Get made fun of by your family for making a square wreath.  I don't mind it though, because at least I'm home. :]

It's All About Point of View

A little over a year ago, Husband and I moved out of our apartment, packed all of our goods into storage and checked into the Inn on post. That night, Husband would leave for deployment and I would spend the first of many nights alone.

That room tormented me from the moment I walked in the door. Just knowing that it was the last stop on the countdown to deployment would have been enough to make me hate that hotel room. Of course, with my luck, that wasn't all that made me hate it. Not two minutes after we had stepped foot into the room, a innocent bug flew from the corner toward Husband's face, causing him to throw his phone in defense. Sadly, his phone split in half upon impact, therefore keeping his command from contacting him if necessary. On a normal day, Husband would have cared less. But 4 hours before a deployment and he was a stressed out mess. Not wanting to miss any important information, Husband decided that we should head over to the Battery early, ending whatever couple time we had left.

I can't even begin to describe how I was feeling as we loaded his bags in the car and took that short drive across post. I do, however, remember every detail of that drive, from the street lights shining off of the newly formed rain puddles to the look in Husband's eye: a mix between pride for the mission and the devastation of leaving the one you love behind. As we pulled into the parking lot, all the strength I had left disappeared because for only the second time ever, I saw a tear run down Husband's cheek. Remembering that one tear and those last moments we spent in the car together before Husband had to walk away will always bring an ache to my heart, even if I'm wrapped in his arms. Thankfully though, we will never have to relive those moments again as we are now staying at the Inn on post for a different reason.

Husband is 5 days away from calling himself a civilian!! 

So now, for a very different reason, Husband and I have moved out of our apartment, packed all of our goods for shipment and have checked into the Inn on post. This time around, there is nothing sad about this hotel room because Husband and I are about to start a very exciting new adventure, together.

The Swing of Things

When your husband comes home from deployment, it's like falling in love all over again. 

He'll buy you presents...

You'll hug and kiss...

He'll take you on adventures...

And take you out on dates.

Then, when you think it just can't get any better, this starts...

But you'll still love him anyway <3

The Girl Who Cried Ghost

Sometimes, Husband likes to play tricks on me. Most of the time I find them slightly more annoying than funny but Husband really loves them. The ghost incident that occurred yesterday was much worse than a normal trick though; it was 99% terrifying and 1% funny [although the more time that passes, the funnier it becomes]. It started like this:

Laying in bed at approximately 0510, Husband wakes me up to inform me that he thinks he heard something. He then goes on the tell me how he woke up way before his alarm because he was convinced he saw something moving in the room. He then leaves for PT, leaving me cowering under the covers, trying to decide if he was lying or if I should seriously consider we have a ghost. I eventually fall back asleep and don't think twice of Husband's story when I wake up.

A few hours later, I decide to jump in the shower so I can have plenty of time to get ready before Husband gets home for lunch. [On a normal day, I would have at least an hour before I would expect him home.] So I'm in the shower, shampooing my hair and singing louder than necessary, when I open my eyes. As my eyes adjust, I realize that there's a face colored blur on the other side of the curtain but with all of the steam and soap, I can't really tell what it is. Instantly, Husband's story comes rushing back to my mind. I immediately begin to question my sanity. To prove to myself that I am not really crazy, I blink my eyes a few times and lean a little closer to the shower curtain to get a better look at the "face". The closer I get, the more I realize that there really is a face on the other side of the shower curtain. For a second I just stand there, frozen in terror, trying to decide if there is a ghost or a kidnapper in my bathroom. I decide neither is good, but either way I'm going to have to face it.

Bravely, I tear back the shower curtain to find Husband standing on the bathmat with the biggest smile on his face. And then I cried. Not just normally tears, but uncontrollable sobs of relief. I hadn't even realized how truly scared I had been until I realized that I was not actually being haunted. Naturally, Husband felt absolutely terrible and promised never to play a trick on me again.

I'll let you know how that goes. 

:]  

Island Adventures

Husband and I go on outings we like to call "island adventures". On these adventures, we head out of the house with water bottles, music and some tennis shoes, just in case. We buckle our seat belts and go wherever the road takes us. On our last adventure, we were driving down a random road along the coast when I looked over and saw the peak of a lighthouse peaking out from behind a mountain.

[See the tiny lighthouse behind the palms?]

Naturally, we needed to hike the path that brought us closer to it. So up we went! We climbed and climbed, twisted and turned along a path that seemed to go on forever. Along the way, we stopped to enjoy the beautiful scenery (and to catch our breath):

And then finally, we made it to the top! Much to my surprise however, we did not find a lighthouse at the end of that path. Instead we found a miniature lighthouse decoy!

For my first real lighthouse, it was a bit of a disappointment. Luckily, the view from the top made up for it because it was absolutely stunning up there on that mountain top.

After enjoying a view like that, how could we keep the smiles off of our faces?



Even with the lighthouse disappointment, we still had an amazing adventure together. And really, that's all that matters. 

Date Day

A week or so ago, Husband and I decided to have a date day and my first place of choice was Dole Plantation! All I had on my mind was the pineapple ice cream but Husband had other plans for us. He had his heart set on completing the giant pineapple-shaped maze that happens to be the largest in the world. Normally, I would have been all for adventure but having previously been in that maze, I knew it wasn't going to be as easy as Husband seemed to think it would!

As soon as we got our tickets and stepped through the turnstile at the start of the maze, Husband realized what he had gotten himself into:

The purpose of the maze is to get a stamp from nine different hidden stations hidden throughout the maze. After ten minutes, we ended up right back where we started without even one stamp on our cards. So we went in again...

Twenty minutes later we had found the same station 3 different times. So we decided to change our plan of attack:

We crept through bushes...

We made our own paths...

And after an hour of searching, we had still found less than half of the stations! Accepting out defeat, we strolled out of the maze and straight inside for pineapple ice cream!

Two minutes after I got my ice cream, my cone decided to crumble into a million pieces and a giant blob of ice cream landed right on my leg. Husband and I locked eyes for just a second before he reached over, grabbed the scoop off my leg and popped it right into his mouth! It was definitely a date day I will never forget!

Hawaiian House Pets: Husband Edition

Let me just begin by saying I had almost forgotten how disgusting and weird Husband really is. In the year we spent apart, all of the burps and farts and wet PT socks in the kitchen faded from my mind. Within the first week of Husband being home, I quickly remembered. Of all the things that Husband has done in the last few weeks, his "house pet" is by far the worst.

In our apartment, we have two bathrooms. This means I get my own bathroom where I can cover the counters in makeup and hair products without having to worry about Husband messing it all up. While I was busy reveling in the glory of personal space, I neglected to realize how concerned I should be about giving Husband his own space. When I went into Husband's bathroom to collect his towel on laundry day, I looked down to discover the world's biggest spider living on the baseboard.

After bravely snapping a picture, I ran from the room to get Husband so he could kill the beast. When I frantically told him about the monstrous spider living in his bathroom, I was not at all prepared for his response which was, "Oh yeah, I knew it was there. I'm keeping it, like a pet." I'm sure the look on my face was a mixture of disgust and disbelief. Even for Husband, this was a new level of gross and weird.

Obviously I was not about to let Husband keep a "pet" spider in his bathroom. So I grabbed the can of Raid and ventured back into his bathroom. But in the few minutes I was gone, the spider escaped. In an attempt to keep the spider from returning, I sprayed every inch of that baseboard anyway. With Husband's track record, I'm sure I'll walk in to find the spider's dead body on the next laundry day.

Deployment Can Kiss My Ass...

...because Husband is home!!

It still feels like a dream but as I look over at his sleeping face as I type, I remember that I'm the luckiest girl in the world! Of course, Homecoming pictures will be up as soon as I can tear myself away from my Loverboy.



The Preparation

It took me a while, but I have finally decided on a homecoming dress.

The homecoming sign was a little harder. For a while, I just stared at the blank board. I didn't want it to look like every other homecoming sign, now did I?

But after quite a bit of thought, a few spills and more paint on myself than on the sign, I was finished! My sign is like no one else's:

[Don't worry, my sign will not be leaving the house!]

With my dress and signs, clean house and beer, I am now more than ready for Husband's homecoming!

Can we fast forward now?

The Man of the House

With Husband gone, I have taken over the role of Mr. Fix It.

First, I changed the shower head in the bathroom, which was actually a lot easier than I thought it would be.

Then, Mom and I built a grill. Not nearly as easy as the shower head, but we still got it done!

More recently, I tackled a much larger project: the car. You see, the AC in the car was broken. The first quote I got to fix it was $150. The second quote, which I got from the place on post, was only $39. Little did I know, the mechanic there thought he could pull one over on me because I'm a girl and would not actually be fixing the AC for that price. Even though I asked for confirmation of the work I was getting done, he only checked the AC for that $39. To actually fix it would be another $200. Naturally, I was not happy when I discovered he had flat out lied to me and I let him know it. I also let him know that I would be taking my business elsewhere. And that place was Checker.

After a phone call to my dad, I decided that I would just fix the AC myself. So one trip to Checker and $35 later, I found myself staring at the engine with absolutely no idea what I was looking for.

[my view]

So I googled it. After I knew what I was looking for, I spent the better part of the afternoon staring at the engine, trying to figure out where the mystery part was. And then I found it. Twenty minutes later, I was in the car, cold air blasting, on my way to Taco Bell for a celebratory taco.

I'm sure Husband never thought he would be coming home to a plumber, builder and mechanic!

I sure hope he knows how lucky he is to be married to a badass like me.

Army Wife Style

You know you're a badass when you have camo band aids on your matching running blisters.

Husband would be so proud.

Megan Who?

I've been thinking lately that it's about time I share a little more about me. Then I saw Beckie participated in a link up called 100 Facts About Me and I decided to play too. But I can tell you right now, thinking of a whole 100 facts about myself is not going to happen. But some is better than none, right? Ok, here we go!

#1: I am terrible at sharing feelings. In fact, I hate it.

#2: I'm a lefty. But I do most everything right handed because that's the way my brother taught me.

#3: I don't eat anything from the ocean. Or anything with the bones still in.

#4: Water is my favorite beverage. I never go anywhere without a bottle of it. I blame Arizona.

#5: I love shoes. Heels are my favorite but husband won't let me wear them around him because they make me taller. It's very sad.

#6: I am ridiculously naive and extremely gullible. Not a good combination in my experience.

#7: One of my goals was to grow my hair long enough to cover my ta-tas. Now that it is, I refuse to cut it.

#8: Brand New is my favorite band of all time. But country music is my true love.

#9: Husband and I want 3 kids. But we will not be naming one of them Ariel. Even though Husband really, really wants to. Gag. [Sorry if your kid's name is Ariel.]

#10: I've been told that I'm very bossy. But I can't help it that people just listen to me, can I? Husband is the only one it doesn't work with. Even my giant brother listens to me.

#11: I hate being alone. I get lonely instantly and I have no idea how to entertain myself. I'm kind of freaking out about staying alone in Hawaii until Husband gets back. I may not survive.

#12: I have my own waxing pot and we have a love/hate relationship. My eye brows look fantastic but I always seem to forget how painful bikini waxes are until the wax is already stuck on.

#13: My alarm clock is never set for a logical time. In high school, I woke up every morning at 6:27am.

#14: I'm a Chevy girl at heart but I drive a Dodge. And all of my vehicles have been trucks. Unless you count Husband's girly car but I did try to veto that one.

#15: Mom is my very best friend. Even when I'm away, I talk to her every day and I can tell her anything.

#16: Caffiene and I don't get along. And my insomnia has gotten so bad that even my sleeping pills aren't really helping.

#17: I am a giant wierdie and I don't try to hide it at all. I make up words and make wishes on my "birthday minute" and tons of apparently crazy things.

#18: For a class assignment I had to choose my most valuable possessions. I chose family and Husband's love and didn't get full points because my choices were not tangible things. I'm still bitter about it.

#19: I had Invisilign braces for about 9 months because I felt like my teeth were crooked. I still wear a retainer at night because I'm terrified my teeth will move. Husband makes fun of me and asks if I "have my teeth in" like I'm an old lady with dentures.

[Pre-Invisilign and also my 21st birthday]



[After Invisilign and baby nephew, Max]

#20: I have incredible self esteem and think I'm pretty amazing. Nothing can really convince me otherwise, even mean people and drama starters.

Twenty is good, don't you think? How about this: If there is anything else you really want to know about me, just ask. Email or comment and I promise I'll answer because I'm really not shy and besides sharing feelings, I don't hold back either. 

The Waiting Game

When we got married and I moved from Arizona to Hawaii, we knew Husband would be deploying within 6 months of my arrival. Knowing we would just have to store everything during the deployment, Husband made the executive decision to leave all of our gifts at home. Even though I knew this made sense, I was bitter. I wanted to play with all of my our new presents!

After Husband deployed and I came home to Mom and school, I was even less thrilled with the idea that our presents were not in Hawaii. Having to look at them, day in and day out, for the better part of a year did not sit well with me. The longer they went unused, the more irritated I got.

Yesterday was the straw that broke the camel's back. I was tired of living like a transient, always waiting for the the good parts of my life to happen. I was ready to be happy with the way my life is now. So I got a giant box and packed it with my very favorite presents and other things that I just didn't want to live without anymore.

When I make my way back to Hawaii in about a month, this box will be flying with me. I don't care that it's going to cost $30+ to get it on the plane and I don't care that it's going to have to be moved again in another 6 months. I want to be comfortable with my current life and if it takes silverware and cake plates to do that, then that's what's going to happen. I'm going to stop waiting and just start living.

Finding the Good

Deployments are terrible. As much as I wish they could just disappear and everyone could have their loved ones home all the time, I know that will never be possible. So in this bad situation, looking for the good, no matter how small it may be, can be the only thing that helps maintain sanity.

Having said this, I believe that I have found the good that has come from husband's deployment:

My husband is one of those men that likes to think he's 100% badass and 0% sensitive. He's always talking about "manly" things and one of his favorite things to say to me is, "Because, Babe, I'm a grown ass man!" Needless to say, this delusion has caused him to be slightly less than romantic in every day situations. Well, when he's aware of it at least. His subconscious is another story. For example, he likes to pretend that he doesn't like to snuggle, so we go to sleep on our own sides of the bed. On multiple occasions however, I've woken up in the middle of the night to him snuggling me so tightly I can barely breathe. So I've always known there was a sensitive side somewhere behind that "manly" front.

Much to my surprise, this deployment has severely toned down the manly-ness. I would've thought that being with only men all day long, for months on end would have worsened his condition. [Thankfully, I was wrong.] His behavior during this deployment has made me feel more appreciated than ever before, as he constantly thanks me for the packages and love I send his way. Along with all of that appreciation, he's also constantly telling me how much he loves me and how excited he is to start our lives together in what I like to call his "lovey voice". Before this deployment, it had never really existed. Now, I hear it at least once in every conversation.

[On R&R, when he "fell even more in love with me."]

I am loving the change that this deployment has brought out in my husband. I think that it has strengthened our marriage and helped us to communicate all of our feelings better. It just confirms for me that he is the one that I want forever.

What good has come out of your family's deployments? 

Maybe It's A Man Thing...

...or maybe it's an Army man thing. Either way, there is no mistaking my husband's obsession with zombies. First, he read the Zombie Survival Guide. Then, during leave, we went to the shooting range where husband discovered zombie targets. In a state of pure joy, he sent that target down range.

Then he shot that zombie to pieces.

[Can you see the joy on that handsome face?]

After the targets, I thought the zombie love would settle down a little. I was wrong. The other day, I got a call from husband who was, unmistakably, thrilled. He then proceeded to explain to me that he had just gotten hundreds of stickers that read, "ZOMBIES ARE REAL!!!" Now, with the help of a few friends,  those stickers are stuck all over the base in Sandland. Boys will be boys, I guess?

Heaven only knows what the next zombie related activity will be. I can't wait to find out.

Pick-Me-Ups

In the past few days, I have been a major Negative Nancy. Seriously, my grouchiness levels are so high that even I don't want to be near me. But luckily, in between all of my pouting, whining and slouching, two things have caused a smile to grace my lovely face.

#1: Most likely, my newest obsession.

What is it you ask?

It's the nookcolor!

And I love it! It's so fancy and new and I got the cutest little case for it. And with all the reading possibilities, I won't even have time to dwell on the fact that husband is gone again! Hopefully, anyway.

#2: As soon as husband got back to Sandland, he was told their "boots on the ground" date! As always with the Army, the date could change between now and then but I don't even care. Regardless of any changes, he will be home on or around that date so I already made my plans for my grand return to Hawaii.

And the best part is:

I got an amazing deal on a flight!

So now I just need to find more and more things to fill my remaining lonely days with happiness. I would really love to have another part time job to pass the time but I know that's completely unrealistic with my Hawaiian return fast-approaching. Perhaps I'll busy myself with losing the 5 pounds my butt gained while husband was home. By the time I accomplish that, maybe I'll have come up with a spectacularly fun plan for staying busy...any ideas?

Saying Goodbye

Saying goodbye after two weeks of constantly being together sucked. Seriously sucked. As I was completely unable to control myself, I clung to husband and sobbed in the airport. People stared and I didn't even care. But one part of that awful day actually went my way. Let me start from the beginning...

Driving to the airport, I was trying to hold back tears and soak up all the love I could in the little time I had left. Before I knew it, we were in the parking garage, pulling his bags out of the car. Slowly, we walked to the ticketing counter, hand in hand. And it was there my small miracle happened. Not only was husband's flight delayed five and a half hours, I was given a special ticket that let me walk him all the way to the gate. With such unexpeded, good news at such an awful time, tears suddenly became the furthest thing from my mind. We were happy.

We left the airport, high on our small victory and spent every second of that extra time together. Eventually, we made it back to the airport and I used my special ticket to go through security to wait at the gate with husband. In our own little world, the annoucement of the flight boarding shocked me into instant tears. Suddenly, all my time was gone and it was time to say goodbye. As my tears fell onto husband's uniform, other wives walked away from their soldiers with smiles on their faces and not a tear in sight. I really don't know how they did it, because that goodbye was the worst of all we've gone through.

I still haven't recovered.

Best.Day.Ever.

This is all you get for now.
Pictures of the hugs and kisses will come later.
You know, when I'm not busy enjoying every second of R&R with husband :]

My Love, My Valentine

Two years ago, Chris was deployed. We were "just friends". I sent him packages and letters and we talked all the time. One day, I opened the mail box to find a stack of pink and red cards, all addressed to me. Of course, they were from Chris. I flipped through the stack and found one was special...

...so I opened all of the other cards first. Some were goofy and some were super sweet. I loved every one of them. Then I got to the last card. Again, I read the note on the back: "This one's special. Open it last." Suddenly I was nervous. With shakey hands and a racing heart, I opened the card that would change my life, the card that told me Chris loves me. Less than 3 months later, Chris was home and we were engaged.

This Valentine's Day, it's my turn to do the surprising. Of course, nothing could ever top the card that changed it all, but regardless, husband deserves something special. So I got out my supplies and went to work on my masterpiece.

I cut. I glued. I shopped. I packed.

And I created the best surprise Valentine's Day box ever. The one that will greet husband with my love when he gets back to the sand after R&R. He'll open it and pretend it's cheesey, with it's pink paper and explosion of love. But secretly, he will love it. And when he gets to the card with the note that says, "This one's special. Open it last." he will smile. And he'll remember how our love began.

Our Beginning

A year ago today, I woke up with a smile. I showered and gathered my things, a smile never leaving my face. Then, I left the house for the last time as Miss Megan Rice.

Now, I know that all girls think their wedding was the best wedding of all time. But here's the thing, mine actually was. My wedding was, without a doubt, the most perfect wedding in the history of the world. Here's a little taste of my perfect day:

And that, my friends, is the day my Liberato Lifestyle began!

On a side note: Do you think that it would be wierd if I wore my wedding dress around for the day. Maybe just for a little while? You know, since it's my anniversary and my husband is deployed and all. People won't think I'm crazy, right?