Pictures from Lunch

Lisa, Me, Linda - Ellen had to leave early, but she is also part of the group :)
Minus the scary face, this is the awesome award I received. I am very honored to have been nominated and to have received this.
I love tote bags and shoes... what do you know! I got a grocery tote (how green of me!) full of wonderful goodies. I am already using my water bottle :)

::Sigh:: Moving Day is Here.

Well everyone, the boxes are packed and headed to Oak Harbor, the cars are cleaned out and ready for their bags, the air mattress is out hiding for its once a year use, and there is cleaning to be done! Move number four (in 2.5 years) has gotten under way. I used to get stressed out for previous moves and would have to excuse myself to the back porch to read a book while everything was touched by hands that may not have been cleaned after use. ((YUCK)) But for this move, I think I took it in stride... until! they almost left 11 boxes in the master closet. Really?!?! Who doesn't check every room to make sure they got all boxes? Apparently our movers. Jared and I were looking through the house when I found all of our clothes and shoes still there.

The next big task is cleaning. I hate cleaning as it is, but cleaning a NOW very dirty house that is empty almost seems worse to me. Sure there is nothing there to have to move, but I can nitpick all day! Who knows what they will find to keep our deposit?

My last day at Navy Relief was on Tuesday. It was a very sad day. The people that you meet can make or break the experience you have. The people that I have met in Jacksonville have really made me feel so very welcome. They took me in and showed me the ropes and helped me with advice from their experiences. I will really miss the ladies in the office and know Oak Harbor will not be the same. Jacksonville is by far the most awesome office ever! If you ever head to Jacksonville for a stay and want something to do, Navy Relief is a great place to go. They are always looking for hardworking volunteers :). There was a big lunch for me on Tuesday and a lot of people showed up to wish me farewell. It was awesome seeing how many people showed up! I also received a Superior Service Award signed by the Admiral for the work that I have done at Navy Relief. I am looking forward to going to the office in Oak Harbor and meeting everyone there. I hope I can do as much there as I have in Jax.

Jared and I are headed to visit friends along the way and we couldn't be more excited for these visits!! We are also going to see the sights of Las Vegas and head to the zoo in San Diego before Jared checks in. These next few weeks will test our patience due to the pressure Jared will be under going through SERE and the stress that I will have to endure waiting for him to get finished. Thank you in advance to all who offered a pit stop while we make our way to San Diego. Be prepared for a dinner repay!

Now the journey of 3700 miles to Oak Harbor begins!

See you soooonnnnnnnn! <3 LOOOOOVVVVEEEE Megan

Week and a half left

Good Evening Readers,

It hasn't really dawned on me that Jared and I are moving in a week and a half. It seems as though it isn't very real. Every other move we have had a few days notice. Having over a month of knowing we are moving, it just doesn't seem like it is happening. We have yet to pack or even decide what we are taking with us. It would be a lot different if we were headed straight to our new house, but we aren't. This stop in San Diego is really going to throw things off. I am not one for unpacking, however even I am going to get sick or living out of a suitcase for a whole month. I do not know any other wives that will be in San Diego and I am not even sure if there is more than one other wife going to San Diego. Most of Jared's class is single. I am not anticipating sitting in a hotel for a week while Jared is in a forest is going to be fun. What else am I supposed to do?

Jared's parents are coming for a visit before he deploys. They will be arriving shortly after we get there (about 4 days later) and will be staying for a week. It is good that Jared will get to see them before he deploys and it is good that they will see our new house. I guarantee that it will be put together or even remotely close to being all the way unpacked. We are excited to have visitors and it will be a nice change to be around family where we will live.

Deployment is going to be tough. I know a few husbands have just left for deployment and I am glad they are near each other for comfort and support. Jared will leave within a few weeks of us getting to Oak Harbor and will be gone into the holiday season. I may seem like I have it all together, but it brings tears t my eyes thinking about what I am going to do without him. Jared is everything to me and he does everything for us. Pay Bills! Cut the grass! Maintain the cars and the motorcycle! I am also saddened by the occasions he will miss: my birthday, our anniversary, his birthday, and Christmas. I am already having a hard time with the thought of deployment and don't know how I will manage once he is gone. I know I will have a lot of support, however being in a new town, in a new home, at a new base, and having no family around will be hard.

Thanks for letting me share my random thoughts with you tonight. I really am looking forward to seeing everyone on our next big adventure.

Love Megan

We found a house!

Hello Everyone!

I am back from my trip to Oak Harbor and what a trip it was! WE BOUGHT A HOUSE! I could not imagine the stress I would be under trying to find a house for myself and Jared and not having him there. I knew it would be hard, not as hard as it was. If I didn't have the help and support from my friend Melissa, I would have come home empty handed. We looked at all of the houses on day 1 (about 20!) and then went for a re-look for the ones that qualified on day 2 (about 4). After narrowing the houses down to two, I was finally able to talk to Jared ... this was also a day and half after looking at houses. No talking about houses, no discussing houses, no looking at pictures, no nothing! I couldn't reach Jared until Tuesday afternoon (night in FL) because he was scheduled for 5am flights and was asleep when I was able to call. That is the part that really got to me, I was trying to look at houses how I thought he would look at them. After finally working through the houses with him, we both agreed on the same house... AMAZING! At the end of day 2 we put in an offer (why wait :) ?) The offer was accepted as it was! YAY! Then on day 3 we got financing (this was a financing redo, long story - USAA wasn't very nice - that was HORRIBLE too!!!). On day 4 I got a home inspection done... don't worry, it passed with flying colors! Day 5 consisted of approving the fence plans with the builder and meeting some of the other wives from our new squadron VP-40. Day 6 we spend in Anacortes shopping around the little town and sightseeing. Day 7 we headed back to Jax! As you can probably tell... I was stressed out! Now I am back in town and am trying to relax. There are more papers waiting to be signed and sent back, but I guess those can wait a little while longer. I have posted the link to photobucket to check out some pictures of our house that Jared put up to share. I will put more pictures of the mountains and scenary up when I get a chance.
Here are some specs of the house, for all those that want to know:
3bed/2.5bath - 1701 sq. ft - 2 car garage - new construction - will be fully landscaped front, back, and sides - will have refrigerator put in by the builder :) (part of what I requested in the contract) - will have a fenced side yard when we arrive (also part of what I requested in the contract)
http://s274.photobucket.com/albums/jj272/jstolle/House/

We are leaving Jacksonville on Feb 28th and are planning to stop in Mississippi for the night. Mar 1st we are heading to Oklahoma - planning on spending a full day there :) and then heading to New Mexico on the 3rd. On the 4th we are planning to end up in Las Vegas and spend a full day there. We should pull into San Diego on the 6th, a few day ahead of schedule but I want to see the zoo and spend as much time there as we want.