Over the last few days I've been considering the possibility of starting a new blog...one a little less personal and a little more professional. I would really like to start a blog that is designed to further cultivate the human-animal bond. A blog that has tips and tricks for your pets- whether its just helpful advice or concerns that you might not hear elsewhere- mixed with fun and random facts from veterinary medicine and stories about my own pet! I guess I'm just wondering if that's even something anyone would read...so feel free to give me your input before I venture out on a failure of a limb! :)

Even as I type, our 6 month old cat is trying to sit on my hands, purring desperately for attention and some petting, our 3yr old lab is hiding in the hallway because its starting to thunder and the 1 yr old cat thinks she's too good to socialize with me and Milo. Her loss. Tomorrow I get to go grade some more lab sheets and work on a lecture on Trematodes! Fun right? Trematodes are a parasite in case anyone is wondering, and because I'm a major nerd I love Parasitology. I love being able to say those big long names and know all the weird and crazy things parasites can cause. Unfortunately it also makes me a paranoid pet owner...for example tonight I saw a slightly reddened patch on our dogs stomach and I was like "ringworm?? no, there's still hair there and its not round...a bruise?? no, not dark enough...." and then I saw a bug crawling on the floor and I could have SWORN it was a tick but it only had 6 legs so it couldn't have been...ah the perils of knowledge!


On another note, litterbox liners are amazing, cats can chew through a "cat kong" and growing kittens eat a LOT of food....but its time to sign out now, as I've clearly bored at least one member of my household to sleep with my ramblings (see photo below).

I hope everyone has a wonderful evening...peace out from the south!

The Longest Month

I'll admit it, I'm depressed. Great way to start a blog post, right? Well I figure its better to be honest at least! This morning Mark left for a month of training in WA, so I'm missing him already and feeling pretty down that he's gone for such a long time. I didn't even feel like cooking dinner, so I had cereal. :-P Since his flight left around 11am, I've had pretty much all day to try to stay busy and I've tried to do just that. I did a bunch of cleaning/tidying around the house, washed dishes and wiped counters, ran to base to do some errands, went for a 2mi run at the gym, returned our movie from last night...and it was still only 5pm. Jordan is happy about the new situation though, as she gets the other half of the bed now, but only until Mark gets back. :-)

Mark and I have also been calorie tracking for several weeks now and it has made a big difference! I've already lost 5lbs, but I've got a bit more to go yet...I'm aiming for my pre-wedding weight! :) We usually get to the gym about 3 or 4 times a week but now that its just me, I'm going to try for every night, even if its just for a quick jog. 

I'm sure I'll stay busy, with three pets and a house to take care of, not to mention full time work! Plus I'm teaching a class this semester so that has definitely kept me quite busy!! I really want to be purposeful with my time when he's gone and not just get lazy once I'm home from work. I think its important for me to develop good habits now for future deployments...not that I'm looking forward to them I just think it will be benefit both of us.

Ah well, almost to the end of Day 1.....peace out from the south!

4 months in a (very large) nutshell!

I don't know how I let time get away from me, but it sure is a sneaky little bugger. Here I am, 4 months from my last blog and trying to figure out how to condense those months into something that won't be completely boring or way to long to wade through....yeah not looking promising. :-P

Basically, because I'm now working full time, I have very limited down time and that time is usually spent trying to relax with Mark, keep the housing in working order, non-expired food in the fridge and get enough sleep to make it through the next day. I don't know if its the 30 min drive or just the shock of full time hours after a summer-long break, but it sure is getting to me. It has been absolutely wonderful though to have a purpose, be drawing a paycheck again, and to feel like I am able to use my knowledge and experience to help equip new technicians for the real world of Veterinary Medicine. I have my own office, my own phone number, business cards, a computer....I feel so grown up! And while work can be challenging at times, the physical stress is nothing compared to working in a vet clinic, so I definitely have that to be grateful for!

Since I last blogged, SO many things have happened, most of them exciting and some of them have been good learning experiences for us. As you may or may not know, Mark was in UPT with the dream of being assigned a fighter slot, but he had requested to stay here and be an Instructor Pilot for 3-4 years first, and then receive his permanent assignment. Well, his assignment night came and he was assigned the MC-12. It is a pretty new aircraft to the AF inventory so we don't really know a whole lot about it yet, but we do know that we will be stationed at Beale, AFB in California. Quite the change of scenery and not what we were hoping for but God has a plan in all this, our struggle is trying to figure out what it is. It has caused some very in depth conversations for us as a couple about hopes and dreams and what we do when they're not fulfilled but ultimately we're both excited to get to move somewhere new and see what God has for us there.

Once of the most difficult things for me has been the fact that I will be leaving my job after just 6 months to move somewhere new and begin THAT whole process again. Stinky. I think that many people underestimate how difficult it is to be the spouse of someone in the military, and although they normally think about how tough it must be to have them be gone for long periods of time, it has an impact in more than just that aspect. The job field is definitely one of those...especially when the hubby is in pilot training, because they know you'll only be here a short period of time. And I know legally they can't discriminate against military members or spouses, but they do. It happens, and I'm sure if you called someone out on it, they'd have some different reason for why they didn't hire you, but it seems awful ironic when ALL the Air Force wives have trouble finding jobs in any and every field we're in. Ah well, such is the life I have been "assigned". :)

Sometime in the last couple months, I know that Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years happened, but it was all a blur of family, friends, traveling, house-hunting, and catching up on sleep. But if I remember correctly: Thanksgiving was a peaceful, quiet one in the wake of cooking for 13 people and having 6 of those as house guests for Mark's graduation. Over Christmas we flew out to CA to check out our new base and peruse the housing options. We have decided not to live on base, but are planning to buy, and praying that God would provide the perfect house for us, BEFORE we move.... :) New Years Eve we enjoyed a fun evening in with good friends, yummy food, games, burning Christmas trees, and fireworks.

And now I'm back to working hard and Mark is back to hardly working-I mean, waiting for his training!-until the end of January. Then he will be gone for about a month, at which time we will begin to box up our house and live out of suitcases until we begin our cross-country trek the end of March!

Hopefully I will have time to blog again with a housing update before we actually leave...but at my current rate I might not be checking in again until May! :-P So until next time- peace out from the south! :)

I suppose it is high time I post again, seeing as its been over a month since my last. On the other hand I'm pretty sure Mark, my mom and my older sister are the only ones who read this and they all know what's going on anyways, so this is more for ME to remember than anything else! :)

The last month has been full of changes in the Jordy household, and they've pretty much all been good. In my last post I mentioned that I was going to nanny and also work at an amazing little FroYo shop here in Columbus. Well God certainly enjoys surprising and confusing me because before I even started either job I received an email from MSU (Mississippi State University in Starkville, MS about 30 min away) asking if I would be interested in applying for a position as an Instructional Technologist in their Veterinary Medical Technology program. I was very flattered yet torn because I had already committed my time elsewhere and this technically wasn't a job offer. Yet. After much thought and prayer and a few tearful conversations with Mark (I was very emotional about everything, it wasn't his fault!) I decided to at least find out more about the opportunity. The more I found out, the more excited I got about the possibility of this position, it would be SO perfect for me! So I applied and was immediately asked to interview the following week, coincidentally on my birthday. :) The interview was unlike any I've ever had, 3 HOURS long and meeting with at least 8 different people was exhausting to say the least. When it was over I felt like Tour Guide Barbie at the end of Toy Story 2: "Can I stop smiling now??" It all paid off however, including the new suit when I was offered the position exactly two weeks later. :) I am so amazed at how God knows everything that will happen and we arrogantly think the same and yet, at any moment he may completely take the wheel and say "no, you don't need to go there, I've got a much better route planned for you." I am so thankful that He led me to pursue this job and I can't wait to see what He has in store for me through this awesome opportunity! I've also started volunteering at our church on Wednesday nights in their kids program- KidZone-I'm working with Kindergarten age kids and absolutely loving it! I'm hoping I'll still be able to do that once I start working full time!

Among other good news, Jasmine (our adorable ~1yr old kitty) has rejoined our family after a couple month's stay with my amazing friend Megan. In case you don't know the story behind Jasmine, she was a kitten that tested positive for Feline Leukemia Virus at the clinic I was working at last year and the owner surrendered her after finding out. We were having trouble finding her a home so I decided to foster her until a home was found. As these stories always go, she stole my heart with her squeaky meow and I decided to keep her unless someone else was found. When I began the packing process to move to MS, I debated keeping her as I was moving into Mark's 1bd apartment and already bringing a 70lb dog with me...Plus he's not really a cat person but he said if I really wanted her he would be okay with it. So during the moving process to MS and until we moved to our bigger house, Megan kept Jasmine and over Labor Day weekend she and another dear friend Natasha drove 15 hours from Nebraska to visit Mark and I bringing Jasmine along. :) Now THAT'S friendship. :)

Mark is still loving flying and Lord willing will be graduating the day before Thanksgiving, which brings up the next exciting event...Family visiting!! Mark's parents and most of my family will be here for his graduation and because of the timing, I will be hosting Thanksgiving at our house!! It is going to be a crazy time but a fun visit and I'm excited to be able to host family in my very own, grown up home. :)

Well enough talk, its time for pictures! Here are a few of my recent kitchen experiences and our other adventures. :)

Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies

Making Biscuits-Step 1

Smallest batch I've ever made!

They were as delicious as they look!

Cinnamon-sugar crusted blueberry muffins

Pad Thai Noodles

My birthday present was a weekend in Birmingham :)

Keith Urban concert in Tupelo!

Keith Urban concert in Tupelo!

Best hubby in the world! <3

 That's all for now...I'd love to hear what your plans are for Thanksgiving!! Peace out from the South!

Explorations as a chef...

One of the things I've been enjoying the most since being married is cooking. Cooking in my own kitchen, for my own family and planning my own menu. It has been a little more difficult than I thought to do the menu-planning portion of cooking. I'm used to checking ingredients, and multi-tasking to put together a balanced meal but what I was not used to was thinking ahead and picking out recipes for the whole week and then shopping accordingly. The first couple weeks of marriage, I found myself running to the store multiple times a week to get ingredients for a meal because I was only keeping main things on hand like hamburger, chicken breasts, etc... So I've definitely had to work hard on changing that!

Something else I'm not used to is cooking seafood...which is most likely a factor of growing up in the center of the continental United States, and that my dad isn't really a big fan. Mark on the other hand grew up in New York and had various kinds of seafood quite frequently so after getting married he requested having fish sometime, so I have begun experimenting and have had pretty good success if I do say so myself!

The first try was for our 2 month anniversary dinner; Pecan-Crusted Salmon, and it was absolutely delectable! I can't wait to make that one again. The next was grilled tuna while our friends Lisa and Caleb were over and although it could have been a tad bit more tender, it tasted yummy. My most recent attempt was Ginger-glazed Mahi Mahi, and although it turned out well from an appearance standpoint, I was not a fan of the taste. The marinade had a strong soy sauce flavor and since I am not a fan of soy sauce, I think that pretty much explains my opinion.  

Ginger-glazed Mahi Mahi

I've also been doing a lot of baking recently since I don't start my two part-time jobs until later on this month. We got quite a few cookie cookbooks for wedding presents so its been fun picking out new things to try. I forgot to take a picture of the final product, but I made butterscotch brownies with white chocolate chips and they were pretty delish!

Ingredients prepared in bowls like on the cooking shows!

The one constant in all of my cooking adventures though has been the presence of our adoring dog, Jordan. That morning there were squirrels in the front yard that required her complete and undivided attention....

Besides cooking, our new house has provided me with many little tasks during the day to keep me busy, as well as the amazing amount of laundry and dishes two people generate! This last week on one of the hotter days, I put on my swim suit and gave Jordan a bath in the driveway which was actually pretty fun. For me. She stood there obediently but sadly as I suds-ed her up then rinsed her off looking like I was punishing her the whole time. When I put her in the backyard afterward she ran around like her tail was on fire...I could almost hear her saying "I'mmmm freeeeeeee!!!!!" Once she calmed down, I brushed her, trimmed her toenails and even brushed her teeth! I think deep down she enjoyed her spa day. ;-)

Dogs need clean teeth too!

She is such a great dog and does a wonderful job keeping me company while Mark is gone at work. :)

Not much else is new around here until I start my new jobs, one is a babysitting a 15mo. old boy Monday and Friday and then the rest of the week I'll be working at a local frozen yogurt shop here in Columbus. They hire about 2/3 of their staff from among the student pilots wives and the other 1/3 is students from various schools in the area. I'm excited to start there as they are owned by a Christian family so they are closed on Sundays and because it is such a happy and high-energy place and I'll know quite a few of the other girls that work there. Plus, their yogurt is AMAZING. Mark says he's excited for me to start working there too, so he can come visit me and get dessert :-P

 I hope that everyone has had a good Monday and until next post-- Peace out from the south! :)

Mississippi Adventures

You know how it is....you see something in your house and think "This is the kind of photo you'd see in a magazine!" Unfortunately, I don't have a fancy camera or any training so this is the best I can do to capture a moment like that...

Along with gathering firewood for our little fire pit in the back yard, I've also been busy trying to get the house decorated. Its fun unpacking and putting to use things you maybe even forgot you had! haha...

 

These adorable baskets came from my dear friend Beth and I'm so happy to have such a fun way to use them!

My Wedding Bouquet :)

Since we're finally done moving we now have time to hang out, so this past weekend we hung out with our Sunday school leaders Mark and Phyllis Junkins and some other folks from the group at the Junkins' house to go Armadillo hunting.

Note: picture not from our hunting, it was already dead :-P

 

Now before I go any farther I'll just say that there was a purpose to this...it was not simply killing for fun. But it was fun. But that's not the point. Anyways, after Mark cuts the hay in one of his fields the armadillo's always dig crazy holes all over while they're searching for food and these holes are very dangerous once he puts his cattle out in the field. Hence, the necessity of our actions. I was very excited because for as much as I love animals, there's still enough country girl in me to enjoy riding in the back of a pickup at night with flashlights and shotguns. :) The night was actually a little disappointing because we only got one armadillo after driving through four different fields. On the bright side, before it was dark enough for armadillo hunting we got a chance to shoot a little with Mark's gun and that was good because I need practice! 

 

All in all, it was a good night, fun fellowship with our Sunday school peeps and although my right elbow hurts today from the gun's kick I think I proved myself able to sufficiently aim and operate should I ever need to. 

Well, I hope everyone had as restful, relaxing and worshipful of a weekend as we did! :) Peace out from the South!

Here goes nothing...

Well, here I am, another clueless idiot bumbling about the world of blogging....and oddly enough this is also similar to how I feel about this new stage of life-Marriage. Although I know there aren't pat answers, and no one way is right, I can't help but feeling like I'm still trying to figure out the 'rules' in a new game I've just joined. But it's going pretty well so far. :)


I should have started this sooner, but I've been busy since becoming a Mrs. just over 2 months ago!

The second week of being married, Mark had to go to Texas for centrifuge training for three days, and while he was gone I flew back to NE to take part in the wedding of two very dear friends the new Mr. and Mrs. Caleb and Lisa Howard.

 

Mark was also in the wedding, so he joined me for the weekend in NE but had to return to MS for work the next Monday. I on the other hand, had yet another friend's wedding the following weekend so I spent time with family and friends back home and tried to forget that I was separated from my husband of 3 weeks. :-P

Both weddings were amazing though and a big congrats to both the Howards and the Holschers (Trent & Lindsay :) ).

 

I then loaded my stored earthly possessions into a trailer, along with my loyal friend and brother Ben and began the drive down to my new state of residence. Just over a month after settling in as much as possible, we found a house closer to base and I again packed everything up and hauled it a new place, only this time a much shorter distance away. God truly blessed us with this new house, giving us room to actually unpack, instead of walking around stacks of boxes, and a fenced backyard for our wonderful dog, Jordan. Our house has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, which is a HUGE difference from what seems like a sardine can of an apartment in comparison!

 As I said, God truly has blessed us with this beautiful house! It isn't quite so empty anymore but I don't have pictures of that yet, and since I am still learning the art of decorating I'll spare you the sight for the time being. 

Today we have company, our first house guests in our new home and Mark also has his Transition Check ride today, which is the flight where they test your ability to take off, do basic aerobatics, and land the T-38. Big day and he's really nervous, so prayers are appreciated!

That's all for now, and since I don't really know how you 'sign' a post I'll leave you with this- have a wonderful day, because its Friday, Friday!!! :)

~Julia~