Our Trip to the Oldest City

A couple of weekends ago was a long weekend, thanks to the Superbowl. We decided to take a day trip down to St. Augustine with some friends. It's one of our favorite get away places. It's the oldest city in the US and, as you can imagine, it's full of history.

There's this AMAZING Popsicle place called The Hyppo.  They have all different kinds of flavors and they're sooooooo good.

Look at all the Hippos on the wall!

Juan, a worker at The Hyppo (he was super cool)

Cody and Juan

Cody in front of the mustache popsicle

We went on our way with our super delicious popsicles. We headed Castillo de San Marcos. It's this beautiful fort located near the water in St. Augustine.

Castillo de San Marcos

This is us and some friends outside the fort. Isn't it pretty?

The firing of the cannon at Castillo de San Marcos

After visiting the fort, we made our way to the St. Augustine Lighthouse.

Isn't it gorgeous?!

And of Course, we climbed the lighthouse. You can't just go to one and not climb.

We even got to see a gorgeous sunset at the top.

Cody at the top, with the sun shining on him. Isn't he handsome?

Laura and Me at the top

Cody and me at the top

Overall, we all had an amazing time exploring St. Augustine. If you ever get the chance, visit the oldest city. You won't regret it.

World's Best Alfredo

We absolutely love Italian food. In fact, we eat it at least once a week. We had the habit of going out to Olive Garden or Carrabba's and spending a fortune on pasta. So I had to figure out a way to make delicious pasta at home, that wouldn't cost a ton or take hours to make.

Well, I came up with this AMAZING alfredo sauce recipe. Believe me when I say, it's the world's best. I've been asked by so many people for this recipe and it's often requested by friends and family.

What you'll need:

• 3 Tbs butter
• 1/2 c Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 egg yolk
• 8 oz of heavy cream
• 1 pinch of nutmeg
• salt to taste

How it's made:

• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
• Add heavy cream. Stir constantly.

• Add in salt, nutmeg, and cheese, stirring constantly to prevent sticking.

• Once cheese is completely melted, mix in the egg yolk.
• Simmer over low heat for 3-4 minutes.
• Serve over your favorite pasta and garnish with a little bit of Parmesan
• Enjoy!

A Devastating Evening

Last night a cell of severe weather cut through Georgia. It hit Fort Stewart pretty hard. Tornadoes tore through the post, tearing up houses, cars, trees, power lines, an elementary school anything in the way. Luckily, no one was injured. Sadly though, many families lost everything.

Photo Courtesy of Christine Krause

 

Photo Courtesy of Christine Krause

Photo Courtesy of WTOC

Photo Courtesy of WSAV

Photo Courtesy of Segar

Photo Courtesy of Segar

But our community has come together in order to help those effected. There has been so many people that are donating things, opening up their houses, cooking meals, offering rides... It's amazing how people can come together in a time of need like this.

Hold your loved ones close, you never know what could happen. Send prayers to these families. They have a long road ahead of them.

How to Survive Any Duty Station

PCS season is among us! I'm sure we've all been there. New orders come in and you learn you're going to a duty station with a horrible reputation. Now what? There isn't anything you can do to change it. So I guess you just have to deal. Right? Wrong. There are ways to make any location bearable.

• Explore the surrounding areas

The town that the post is located may be terrible, but what about the towns 30 minutes, an hour or even 2 hours away. Visit museums, state parks, national parks, local shops. You never know what you might stumble upon. We've found some hidden beaches and an alligator habitat, simply by exploring.

• Make friends.

At times, this may seem impossible. But you can do it. Go to spouse get togethers, join a book club, join Meetup (they have all sorts of groups with different focuses. i.e. photography, crocheting, etc), or host some get togethers at your house like game nights or a bonfire. Living anywhere gets a little easier when you have friends to do things with.

• Have run away days.

Everyone gets cabin fever when they're stuck at home for extended periods of time. So plan run away days. Get in the car, pick a direction and drive. You never know what you'll find. You'll be getting out of town and you'll get to see new things.

• Try local restaurants and stores.

Try restaurants that aren't found anywhere else. Shop local shops. You never know what hidden gems you may find.

• Make the best of the time you have there.

You're only in this location for a short period of time and you'll probably never come back. So make the best of it. You may regret never going to that state park one day.

Weekend Excursions!

Over the weekend, we went exploring! We had a great time. 

On Friday (it was a long weekend), we went to Hunting Island, South Carolina. This is one of our favorite weekend trip locations. It's so beautiful. 

We got to enjoy the sound of the waves crashing on the beach and the seagulls flying overhead. It was a little chilly, but the sun kept us warm. 

We spent the day looking for sharks teeth. We ended up finding 60, the most we've ever found in one day. We also found 2 sand dollars and saw 2 starfish in the water. 

Cody looking for sharks teeth

On the way home from Hunting Island, we saw the sunsetting behind these gorgeous sailboats. So we pulled off at this boat ramp so I could get a picture...or two... or a hundred. but who's counting?

The sun hadn't set completely yet, so we got in our car and drove across the bridge into Beaufort, South Carolina. There's a cute little park on the left as soon as you cross the bridge. It's gorgeous. So I got some awesome shots of the sunset. 

Isn't the sunset gorgeous?

Saturday morning we got up and drove to Tybee Island, Georgia. We live super close to it (about an hour and a half) but we've never taken the time to actually explore it. Well, that has changed. 

Tybee is a lovely area. There's a gorgeous lighthouse on the island that we climbed. 

The stairs inside the lighthouse

Us at the top of the lighthouse

View from the top

We had a ton of fun. The island was beautiful! There's even a military museum across the road from the lighthouse. It's super neat. If you're ever in the area, you should definitely check it out. You can also see inside the light keeper's house.

On the way home, we discovered something that was pretty cool. 

A shipwreck. Isn't it just so cool?! 

Overall, we had a pretty great weekend. If you're near Fort Stewart, go explore! You'll find lots of cool stuff!

Personal Tragedy

So I normally try not to post anything negative on here, but I have to today. I'm from a small town in Kentucky. A town where everyone knows everyone. I grew up with the kids in my graduating class and we're all pretty close. 

This past week, I lost a good friend in a car accident. Justin was an amazing guy. He was probably the sweetest, most caring guy you'd ever meet. He'd take the shirt off his back and give it to you. He was actually my first boyfriend, if you can call a 5th grade romance a boyfriend haha. But we stayed close all of middle school and into high school. After high school, we went our separate ways. I moved to Georgia and he stayed in our hometown. After all, that's what most of the farmers' kids did. 

Right before we went home for Christmas, I talked to Justin. I just wanted to catch up and see how he's doing. He was doing well and it was great to hear. After coming back to Georgia and getting back into the swing of things, I see about a terrible accident that occurred. I searched, trying to find a name. No luck. Then all of a sudden, his name popped up. His cousin was talking about how hard it is on him to lose Justin. It hit me like a truck. I was on the road when I found out. I fought tears, but I finally gave in. How could he be gone, when we had just spoken? I wasn't able to attend his funeral, which shattered me. But my thoughts are with him and I know he's still with us.

As much as my heart hurts, I pray for his family. It's harder on them. I pray that God comforts them in their time of need and heartache. And I ask that you all please do the same.

Rest easy Justin. You'll be greatly missed. 

Cheesy Potato Soup

Growing up, my family went out to eat every Sunday together. It'd be me, my mom, my dad, my grandma and my grandpa. Most Sunday's we went to O' Charley's. Although my entree might change, I always got the Potato Soup, just like my mom.

After I married my husband, I moved to Georgia. There is absolutely no O' Charley's anywhere near where we live. How on earth would I go without my Potato Soup? By creating my own of course. Now this soup may not taste like O' Charley's, but I like it way more. It's not only delicious but it's super easy to make. It's a family favorite in our household!

What you'll need: 

• 1/2 of a large onion, chopped (I use yellow)
• 5-6 large potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
• 3 Tbs butter
• 2 1/2 c chicken stock
• 1 cup shredded cheese (I use Monterrey Jack)

Directions: 

• Chop onions. 

• Melt butter in a pot. Saute onion until translucent. 

• Cut and peel potatoes 

• Add in chicken stock and potatoes. Bring to a boil.

•  Reduce heat. Simmer until potatoes have softened.
• Using a potato masher or fork, mash potatoes. I like to leave some small chunk in my soup. 
• Add cheese. Stir in, until melted. 
• Serve with a little sprinkle of cheese on top. Enjoy!

Quick and Easy Chicken Noodle Soup

Cold weather is here and nothing can warm you up quite like a big bowl of soup. I, personally, am not a fan of canned soup whatsoever. It just doesn't taste like the homemade version. So I decided to come up with my own recipe for my favorite, Chicken Noodle.

You will need:

• 2 Tbs unsalted butter
• 1/4 c sliced celery 
• 1/2 c sliced carrots
• 1/2 c minced onion
• 8 cups of chicken broth (you can use more if you want it more soupy)
• 1 rotisserie chicken, shredded (watch out for bones)
• 3 1/3 c egg noodles
• 1/2 tsp dry basil
• 1/2 tsp dry oregano
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Directions: 

I just wanted to show off the new knife my husband got me with my name on it.

• Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add in celery, carrots, and onion. Cook until tender. 
  

• Add in chicken broth, shredded chicken, noodles and all seasonings. Stir to combine. 
• Bring to a boil, then turn down heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Enjoy!

15 Reasons Why Being a Military Spouse is Awesome

                                       



This morning I was sitting at home after my husband left for pt. I always hate when he has to leave, even if it's just for the duty day. I got to thinking about the different aspects of the military lifestyle. We all have reason why we may not like our spouse being in the military, but no one can argue that there are definitely some great things that come from it.

• The Benefits: Who can really complain about free healthcare? And of course, the housing allowance helps to keep a roof over your head, despite the not-so-good pay. 

• Free Gym "Membership": People are always paying tons of money to get a gym membership. But as a military spouse, you get to go to the gym on post for free! 

• The Commissary: It's great. Do I really need to explain this one?

• Military Balls: I don't know about you, but I love the excuse to be able to dress up nice and go dancing with my husband. 

• The PX: You can get name brand items such as Bath and Body Works, Marc Jacobs, Coach, and Michael Kors all in one place for pretty reasonable prices. 

• Military Discounts: Can you really argue with this one?

• You get to have friends all over the world

• Travel: This is probably my favorite aspect of the military lifestyle. You get the opportunity to live in places you normally wouldn't. You get to experience so many new places. 

• You learn to be very independent: When your spouse is gone for extended periods of time, what other choice do you have?

• You get the opportunity to be super creative: You have all those care packages to decorate and letters to write. 

• Road Trips! Every few years you get the opportunity to take a long road trip that you don't have to pay for! Cheers for PCS season. 

• That uniform! I love to see my husband in his uniform. I think he looks so sexy!

• The Pride: I feel so proud when I get to see my husband in his uniform. It's one of the best feelings in the world, knowing that he is willing to make sacrifices to keep our country safe. 

• You learn to be Flexible thanks to the military's last minute planning and constant changes.

• Tuition Assistance: This is definitely an awesome benefit of being a military spouse. Not only for me, but also my husband.

What are your favorite things about being a military spouse?

So Soon!

I'm really excited. In 9 days we will be heading home to see our family! I absolutely cannot wait. I've gotten almost everyone's gifts finished up. I'm really excited...Minus the 12+ hour drive. But on a happy note, we plan to geocache all the way home.

We had a lovely Thanksgiving with lots of food (of course!). That evening we went Black Friday shopping (it should be called Black Thursday). We grabbed a few Christmas gifts and new Fitbits for us. Our old Fitbits are falling apart. We got in and out and were home by 930.
Saturday we went to our friends' house for Friendsgiving. It was a lot of fun. There were about 12 people there. Instead of the traditional Thanksgiving meal, we had a taco bar. We spent the night playing games such as Concept and Cards Against Humanity. We had a lot of fun. Although, I got called white trash because I don't like the show Good Eats. It's just a very slow moving show  and isn't really my thing.
Now, the rest of the week  I will be finishing up the last of our gifts for our Homemade Christmas. I'm pretty excited about it. In two weeks, I get to see my family!

I'm Blessed

Throughout my entire life I’ve heard people talk about how God has financially blessed them, but I never understood how that made sense. That is, until yesterday. 

They took Cody’s BAS out to make up for when he was gone a few months ago. We didn’t know it came out Thanks to that, we had a check bounce for our car payment. We’ve never had that happen. That meant next month we’d have to pay $600 total (each month we pay $300). We wouldn’t have money to go home for Christmas, or to pay for food. We were devastated and absolutely terrified. 

I called the  credit union we have our loan through. I told them what had happened and that we’d make it up next month by paying double. But we’d have to separate it between paychecks. The woman asked if we were just trying to pay to get caught up. I said yes. She said “Oh, well in that case.. You’re car payment is only $289 a month. You all have been paying ahead every month and that goes towards the next month. So you only owe $72.98. That’ll get you until December 31st.” I was so happy. I knew we could afford that. I got off the phone with her and cried. It was such a relief. A huge weight had been lifted. 

We now didn’t have to worry about next month’s finances. We would be okay. But as I said, this month our account was wiped out because of bills and the BAS pay cut. We only had roughly $30 left in our account to buy food and get gas. 

Right after Cody got home, he started to change clothes. There was a knock at the door. It was a man from a local church. He handed us a huge bag of food and said “We’d like to help you with your Thanksgiving. Here’s a bag of food and a $25 Food Lion gift card.” We have never met this man, and for some reason he stopped by our house. In the bag was absolutely everything you’d need for Thanksgiving dinner. Plus, we now have enough money to last us until next paycheck. 

I honestly believe that God blessed us with all this. We were so scared we wouldn’t be able to afford our bills next month, but now we don’t have that fear.

Just An Afternoon Vent

Have you ever just hated the way your life is going? Or felt like no matter what you do, things just never seem to get better? Well, I'm at that point right now. It's been an awful week. I got some bad news and am currently waiting to see the outcome of it. Plus, I just got told Cody will be working on Thanksgiving. We had plans for the holiday and as well as Black Friday ( I was going to do some Christmas shopping). But now those have been thrown out the window.

It irritates me because they chose him to do it, instead of a single soldier. None of the single soldier's have plans for Thanksgiving, but they choose a married soldier who does. This kinda thing always happens to us. Always. Cody always gets screwed over, thanks to his stupid, spiteful chain of command.

It's times like this that I wish he had never reenlisted. Work will always come before anything, while he's in. And that is a super crappy feeling. I know we'll never be able to have a normal, happy life until we are no longer military affiliated. That's still so far away.

How to Make Cute Washcloth Reindeer

Christmas is approaching quickly. If you're like me, you're trying to find the perfect gift for everyone on your list. Why not make some cute gifts, that are super easy and quick to make?

I think these washcloth reindeer are absolutely adorable. And I'll teach you how to make you're very own!

I think these reindeer are absolutely adorable! And I'll teach you how to make you're very own! So grab a cup of hot chocolate or eggnog, turn on some Christmas music and get crafting!

You will Need: 

• A washcloth
• Brown pipe cleaners
• Pom poms (I chose red. You can do brown or black)
• A rubber band
• Ribbon
• A bar of your favorite soap
• Googly eyes
• A hot glue gun

How to make it: 

Lay your washcloth down so that it's in the shape of a diamond. 

Place the bar of soap near the center of the washcloth, but not quite in the middle. Like this 

Next you will fold the bottom corner up to the middle, covering the bar of soap. 

Fold the top corner down and around the back of the soap. You should see the corner at the top again, but on the back.

Now, fold up the sides so they meet in the middle. Tuck the top corner underneath. Tie with a rubber band, making ears.

Fold a pipe cleaner in half and set it aside. Fold another pipe cleaner in half, and cut it in the middle. Fold one of the halves in half and cut it again. Twist the two small pieces around each side of the pipe cleaner you have set aside, making antlers.

Put hot glue on the bottome of one side of the antlers. Secure them between the two ears.

Now glue on two eyes and a nose and use ribbon to tie a bow, hiding the rubber band. 

You now have an adorable reindeer that you can give someone or keep for yourself!