Well our family has made it through another year . How we did this I don 't know . I must say that this year was filled with a lot of good times . I had the pleasure of meeting several of the marines parents and they were just so much fun . I also spent a lot of time at the beach . For me that is always a good time . I also remembered that a good time does not have to coast a lot of money . Rusty and I have grown more and more in love . I never knew that was possible , but it happened . I am so glad that I have him in my life and that he is the one I go to bed with every night . I have been looking into the future and I know this year is going to be a great roller coaster ride . I am gearing up for it , so maybe I will be able to fly through everything with grace . Amber has been on my last nerve since Christmas . If she makes it through the next year I will be excited . Now don 't get me wrong . Amber is a good kid . She is not pregnant or doing drugs , she is in college , but man she needs a good dose of reality . Ambers ex boyfriend Sam is now back in town and they have hooked up again . Since Sam got back in town Amber has been treating me like dirt under her feet . When I talked to Rusty about it he said " She is trying to play adult , the sad thing is she does not know the rules of the game . " I see Amber heading for a very hard time . Soon Sam will go back to N . Caroline . Then what ? Amber will be back here going to school and hopefully working . I could sit here and tell Amber how hard long distance relationships are . I could tell her that Rusty and I are the exception and not the norm . Most military marriages don 't last . I could tell her all of this , but she wont listen to me , so I am not wasting the valuable oxygen on her . Nikki will be 18 this year , and she has her tattoo picked out . It will be of a mouse and she is getting it on her foot . My dad use to call her a mouse , so he is getting the mouse in honor of him . I don 't care if my children get tattoo 's . I told them that as long as they live here they can only get a tattoo if it casober white women I have not writing much because for the last few weeks my life has been strange . Not in a bad way but in a way that is starting to annoy me . 1 . If your daughters get two very expensive purses for Christmas , and all they can say is . . . . well this is more expensive so I will use this one . Well , I should have the right to return the purses and buy myself something . 2 . If a wine glass breaks and you throw it away and then your husband pulls it out of the trash in hopes of gluing it back together . . . . just because it has the marine corp logo on it . . . . well I should have the right to finish smashing it with a hammer . 3 . If a person is employed and owes $ 4 , 000 in credit card debt , and they can 't put food on their table , well I should have the right to return the $ 300 worth of stuff she bought just because it was on sale . 4 . If a person is employed and their car is not running that great , and they are getting out of the service and they are not sure if they have the gas money to make it home . . . . well they sure as hell should not be spending $ 150 on a new coat . 5 . If you bitch and moan because I will eventually put Ryan in a group home , but you can 't give up 20 minutes of your day to stay with him . . . . well , you should just sit down and shut the fuck up . 6 . If you buy us more wii crap and wonder why no one is excited , well maybe you should have listened and not bought us a wii . 7 . If you buy the largest cat box that you can , and your fat cat still tips it over , you should have the right to wire his jaw shut . 8 . If you post on facebook that you and my father would have been married for 44 years . I SHOULD have the right to post back and scream stop the lying ! You were not married that long , you were not married until right before I was born . You need to stop this lying to protect the bastard child . She is dead . Instead I said nothing . 9 . When your uncle asks is children to look me up and facebook and then introduces me as his cousin . . . . well he should really be smacked with the family tree . I am your niece . 10 . When life happePosted by Over the past weeks this war has really hit me hard . I don 't spend a lot of time thinking about the war . Instead I try to stay busy . I do superficial things , like send Christmas cards to the boys , clean the house , talk to the boys mom 's , and sometimes just wish they they were here . For the most part my day 's march on . So why then am I know questioning everything about the war ? A few weeks ago I found out that a dear friends son was injured in Afghanistan . My heart broke and I just had to pick up the phone and call . We talked and we cried . I got a quilt for the wounded warriors and had it sent out . It was a small token of love and a small way to say thank you . Today this dear friend wrote on my facebook wall telling me that her son is home and doing as well as can be expected . I had joyful tears come to my eye 's . Then the other night hubby and I were sitting on the front porch and he said " I miss the boys . " I just smiled and said that I missed them as well . That was when my husband confessed that he wishes he was over there with the boy 's . He wants to go back to war . He wants to be the one leading the boys into battle . While I cannot judge my husband and while I cannot ever know know what it is like to go into battle , I do have to wonder . I wonder if I will ever not be his mistress . For years I have been placed behind the marine corps and I foolishly thought that once he retired I would not longer be the mistress . I don 't understand . All I do know is that I am glad he is retired and that I will no longer have to pack him off to war . I am glad that he will be able to spend all the holidays with us . Most of all I am glad that my husband trust me enough to confide his secrets to me . The secret is he wants to go back . Another girlfriend sent me a link to a homecoming that one of our service received , but it was not the homecoming the family wanted . Instead everyone got to watch the flag draped coffin roll past . He got a hero 's welcome , its just a shame that he had to die to get it . Yesterday Nikki yelled " mom check yosober white women This year was a year of growth and a year of trying new ideas . I started my eco friendly Friday 's , not save the earth but to save me . I was on a mission to save money and to do my part to reduce recycle and reuse . Now I have not always put the planet first , but I did try . The last week or so I have been busy doing stuff , and some , O . K . a lot of my cheap and eco ways have kicked in . I bought no wrapping paper this year . I told everyone that we will use what we have on hand and after that you can get creative . Sometimes that can be hard . We had three rolls of that clear paper that had little designs on it . O . K . I will use it and I will show everyone that you can wrap something in clear paper . First I found some old tissue paper and I wrapped it around the gift and then I used the clear stuff over it . I also discovered that at the end of the roll was brown paper , so I also used that to wrap gifts . Then there was the tree issue . I got over ruled and everyone wanted a real tree this year , so that is what they got . Threw some twist and turns we ended up with a free real tree . But we had no base for it , and I was not going to give in and go buy one . I was racking my brain , and then I remembered what one of my girlfriends does . She would take a deep bucket and put the tree in the bucked and then fill it with sand and then pour water over the sand . So off to the garage we went . We had a cat litter bucket that hubby was using , so we dumped his stuff out and I sent the girls to the lake to get some sand . I must say that it is very sturdy , and as of yet we have not had a cat climb the tree , but I am sure it will happen . I was talking to the dogs one night and I asked them what they would like for Christmas . I know one of the dogs , butter , wants a new basketball , but what could I get for our old girl ? I really wanted to get her a bed since she is not moving that well , but I don 't want the hassle of trying to wash a pet bed . Then it hit me and I am now on a quest for a crib mattress . A crib mattress sits low to the ground , and I Posted by Monday I was suppose to take one of the marines back to 29 palms . I got up and got some stuff done around here , and then we headed for the gas station . The marine asked if he could buy me gas , so I said sure . A few moments later I looked at him and asked what he was doing ? He was putting diesel in a gas car . I called Rusty and he told me to drive straight home and park the car . That is what I did . We waited for Amber to get home and then we took her car . It was a good thing we waited to go up to 29 palms . If we had left when we originally wanted to we would have been driving through the eye of a massive storm . It was also good that we waited because we got to have a snowball fight in the desert . Now how many people can say that ? Yesterday Chris decided that he was going to drain my gas tank . UMMM O . K . so he gets busy and he comes in and asks me if we had anything he could dump the diesel into . No I am trying to think without sounding like I am stupid . I guess a gas can is to big to fir under the car . So I go out to the garage and I take a look around . I called Rusty and I said " I have a stupid question for you . Will diesel melt plastic ? " Rusty just said " Well I don 't know but you can try it and if the plastic tub melts then you know it does . " So Chris gets all of that done , and he says that he is going to walk up to the gas station and get more gas . I got dressed and walked him . It was not a bad walk , maybe two miles of so . We also had to get a new fuel filter , so it was a good thing that there was an auto zone across the street from the gas station . It was nice to just walk and talk to Chris . He thought it sucked that we could not drive there , but I told him that it did not bother me , because I use to walk everywhere . We were a one car family until about 8 years ago . Chris finally got everything back on the car and he showed me the old fuel filter , and man it was gross . It was a good thing we went and changed it . The more I think about it the more I realize that the diesel being in by accident was a very good tPosted by Let me start by saying that I had the privilege and the honor of entertaining two young men that just go back from Afghanistan . These boys were so happy to have a home cooked meal and a beer . One of the marines Amber and Nikki have known most of their lives . It is strange how a child they would play with every summer , a child who lives in Chicago would now be a marine living just two hours from us . It really is a small world . My children are on my last nerve . I am thinking about lowering my expatiation 's . Maybe then I would not be disappointed . Amber bitched at me because I would not drive to 29 palms when she thought I should . She is mad at me because she had to work and could not spend that much time with JT . Amber is still mad that I am not in the mood for Christmas . Last time I checked it was not her that was driving 4 hours , and paying for the gas . It is not my problem that she has to work . That is called life . As for Christmas I just told her " You know I use to love Christmas and I use to decorate the whole house . You guys bitched and said it was to much and that all of our stuff was ugly . Now I give the opportunity to decorate for Christmas and you still bitch . " Amber shut up and walked away . No decorating has gotten done . Chris is just not listening to anything . I know this is typical shit , but I am so sick of it . Today when he got up I asked him to please do a few things for me . I asked him to put the spare tire and the jack back . I asked him to load all the stuff that was going to the good will , and to go to the store for me . Thats it . That is all I wanted and yet none of it got done . O . K . let me get this straight . I just paid for a new tire to be put on the car . I pay for the insurance , and I give him free liberty with the car , yet he can 't do a few simple things . Nikki does not know which end is up . She thinks everyone is to blame for her problems . I am still trying to figure out I am responsible for her failing chemistry . I am still trying to figure out how it is my problem that she has to spend all osober white women Yesterday I was determined to have a good day . I found out that one of my boys is heading back home ! Yes . He will finally be home . He was suppose to be home for Thanksgiving , and he missed that , but he will be home for Christmas . He asked Rusty and I to go to a bbq with him and then he wanted to come back here . I told him that I would be there for sure , and we would have to look at Rusty 's work schedule . Yesterday Chris turned 19 . We did not do anything big and fancy . I made him the dinner that he wanted and we got him something small . He had a great time , and we were thrilled to see him so happy . Yesterday I also found out that I will be getting two new foster babies today ! I cant wait . I love having babies in the house . Amber ran to a friend of ours , and her daughter was selling candy outside the grocery store . So Amber bought a bar and my friend told Amber that she will be baking on the 22 , so I better bring my Christmas platter over so she can fill it for me . YUM . I also found out that my mom is sending out my dads bb guns , so Santa is going to bring them for the girls . I also saw a bb gun that I wanted to buy Ryan . Yep Santa has lost his mind this year . He is bringing the children guns for Christmas . Then when I logged onto my facebook account I saw that a dear friends son was injured and is now in a hospital in Germany . Damn this war . I just sat there looking at the screen and wondering how and why this happened . I knew what I had to do , but see , I have never met this lady we only know each other through blogs and facebook . I saw that she was on line and I i . m . ed here and asked her if I could have her number . She gave it to me and we talked for a while . This morning I sent here family several links to help them find the resources that they would need . I just knew I had to do something . I just could not , not reach out . Everyone out there , please remember that we have boys and girls fighting in a war , and some are about to leave . Let 's not forget that this holiday season . Thanksgiving was great ! For the first time in a very long time everyone pitched in and it went very smoothly . Ii had a lot to be thankful for this year and as I sat down at the table and looked around I saw all of my blessings . I kept my phone close to me and I was hoping that the marines would call . One called at midnight and it was so awesome to hear from at least one of them . I have heard through the grapevine that everyone is doing good and that is all that matters to me . On black Friday I was suppose to go down and visit with that marine . I was so looking forward to a picnic on the beach , but she blew me off . That 's o . k . I found other ways to occupy my time . I had Chris drop off all the quilts I made for the seniors and they loved them . I told Chris that was not to give them my name , number or anything ! He said they were shocked . I also had Chris pull a name off the tree for me . Another marine and I hit a thrift store and we bought a few puzzles . I think we ended up doing five puzzles this weekend ! It was nice to just relax and do something that I like to do . One of our dear friends , Jim and Dolly , called Rusty and I and asked us to stop by on Sunday , so we did . I grabbed Chris and had him go with us . I wanted him to meet some real good people . Not to mention that Jim has a gun collection that most men would kill for ! We get over there and I head straight for Dolly who is in the process of decorating her tree . Dolly has knee surgery and it has made her knee worse , so I did all the bending for her . It was so nice to chat with a dear friend and to be able to help her all at the same time . All of the guys talked about guns . That is all I really know . Dolly and I just rolled our eyes when they would talk about guns . Sometimes we just don 't understand guys . Chris said that he was glad that he went with us , and he said they were some of the nicest people he has ever met . That was my point . I like introducing Chris to people with high morals and integrity . After that we went to the commissary , and that is always a Posted by Well here it is . Another day and another opportunity to change my life . It is up to me weather or not I make good changes or bad changes . Yesterday I called my mom and we talked for a while . We talked about a lot of our issues . I still do not agree with my mother that she should be raising children again , but my mom said something that really struck a cord with me . She said " If you had died I would have raised your children , but you are lucky enough to have a man that loves your children and would take care of them , and I would not have to raise them . " Last night I was telling Rusty that I spoke with my mom , and reminded him of something that he had said to me . Rusty once said " if you die I would not let your mother take the girls from me . I would fight for them . " Then I told him all about my mom 's and mine conversation . A light bulb went on . My children may have been the cast off . My children may not be the chosen children . However my children have something that the chosen child does not have . My children have two parents that are alive and love them more then anything . What price tag do you put on that ? I am still not in the mood to celebrate Thanksgiving , but in my true fashion I am going to put a spread on the table . I will sit next to my husband and I will listen to all the laughter . Life goes on . One of the marines will not be coming to dinner . She is not in the mood , and I so understand that . So , On either Friday or Saturday I am going to drive down to the base and get her . Then I am going to surprise her with a picnic on the beach . I bought some sparkling cider , and I am going to take down some cheese and cracker 's , and some grapes . I even going to take down wine glasses and china . We are going to sit on the beach and spend some time on our terms . The marine does not know any of this , but I think it will be good for both of us . I need to stop sinking in self pity and go do something for someone else . Life is good . Well , here it is two days before Thanksgiving , and all I want to do is cry . I was standing in the kitchen cooking dinner , cleaning out the fridge , and listening to a cat scream , when it all hit me . Thanksgiving is in two days . I just grab a flat of eggs on put them on to boil . I am standing there watching everything cook and I just could not figure out why I dread this Thanksgiving . Could it be because I said I did not want to do it and yet here I am cooking a turkey , boiling eggs , and thinking that I still need to go to the store and buy stuff so Amber can make the pies . Could it be because I have had problems in my personnel life . I laid my sister to rest . I watched mymother pull a 12 year old off her mothers coffin . Could it be that everything surrounding my sisters death has made mine and my mom relationship even harder ? Could it be that in one of fits of rage I threw my phone at Rusty and yelled " You are so lucky to have both of your parents dead and you have a brother that you have not seen 16 years " . I know I hurt Rusty that day , and yet he just grabbed me and gave me a hug . Could it be that most of my boys are fighting a war that I do not agree with . Could it be because one of the boys won 't be bringing his baby to dinner . I guess that is a little hard for him considering he is in the middle east . Could it be that I am looking at the cost of college going up ? I can 't believe how much I am going to be paying out right before Christmas . I swore that no matter what I would provide my children with a college education . I can hear rusty right now . He is my mind saying " you need to ask your mom for your inheritance " . I will pay for my children 's education even if it means me going back to work with a drug dealer . I just need to remember to not drink the coffee . Could it be that I found out that a couple will be coming to dinner . . . . and I did not invite them , nor do I want them here . There is not much I can do about that now . But I would love to just lay into this couple and give them a good what for , but I don 't think Posted by I had said that I was not going to do the holidays this year . I am so not in the mood . Then I had a nightmare . I dreamt that Rusty woke me up on Thanksgiving to ask me how to defrost a turkey . That is not to far from the truth , he would do that . Amber has been breaking out some decorations in hopes that I will get in the mood . So last night I gave in . I told everyone that I would do the turkey but nothing else . Turkey . Erma Bombeck was right we are the only country in the world that takes fresh bread , makes it stale and then stuffs into a dead bird . Turkey . Can I get one with in a 100 miles ? Well , yes I could . I could send hubby down to the beach to kill one . There are several flawes in this idea . 1 . hubby said that once you hunt man , you can 't go back to hunting animals . 2 . hubby would have to walk on the sand , and he hates that . 3 . the beach is on base and there is no hunting on base . 4 . Even the of obstacles were not there , hubby would bring home a dead bloody animal and expect me to know what to do with it . Hello I am a city girl . So I will be going to the store to buy the turkey . Last night I called everyone and told them what to bring . I am not seeing this as a very eco friendly holiday . I will use organic cleaners to clean the beer pong table . I will use china and cloth napkins . I will not have to turn the heat on because my house will be hotter then . . . I could make the guys pee outside to save on water . I will be able to save on dog food because I am sure they will catch anything that might fall from the table . O . K . so Norman Rockwell would not paint a picture of our Thanksgiving , but it will be ours . I will do my best to make sure everything gets recycled , no food will go to waste , and most of all I will be able to spend some time my family . . . . . marines included . Wasn 't it Erma Bombeck who also wrote the book " Family : the ties that bind and gag " Over the last few week 's while my life was turning upside down , I really tried to focus on other things . One of the things that caught my eye was a show called the 100 mile challenge . This show was on planet green and some people from a town in British Columbia could only eat food with in a 100 miles of their home , and they had to do this for 100 day 's . Rusty and I talked about and we said that if we had to we could do . We are very blessed to live in southern California where we have a lot of food that is local . So now I am looking forward to the new year and I am trying to think of another way to challenge myself . Could the 100 mile challenge really fly in this house ? Well . . . . . it could if I did it a little bit at a time . Rusty has to have his meat and he does not hunt any more , so I know our meat would not be local , but what about the rest of the meal ? This is something I could do say once or twice a week and my husband would not complain . So I thinking that once or twice a week I will do only local meals with the exception of our Meat . Now this also translate into one or two lunches a week that will fit into my 100 mile challenge . As I sit here and look back over the last year I have reached my goals . I made all my blankets , and my no spending diet went great . I have learned a lot from both of the goals that I set for myself . From the blankets I learned that I have to schedule in the time to make these works of art and I had to keep my eye on the goal . Twelve blankets for the shut in 's . I can 't wait to deliver all these quilts ! From the no spending diet I have learned just how much I can live without and how much I do have . I must say that I have gotten creative with some of my meals , and I have caught myself telling the girls to use what they have on hand . My mind has been stretched and wallet remained closed . I am sure that at some point my children have learned something from watching me , and I hope they carry that with them . Today I feel like crap . My ear is killing me . I know it is not infected , I know thsober white women I am sure there is something I should be doing , but I think I have been silent enough . In the past few weeks my world has been turned upside down . In the past two weeks I have shipped 7 boys off to war . A war that I do not agree with . A war that will forever change them . They may have left as men but I know they will come back as men . I know that my boy 's are cold , missing their families and most of all a new reality is being forced upon them . For me I am taking it one day at a time . Sometimes I am taking it one moment at a time . When I want to cry because I am missing my boys , I go cry on Rusty 's shoulder , I remember the good times , and I tell myself that they are o . k . Even if I do not know if they are o . k . Before Ben left we went over to see Deb and Popi . I know Ben . He was going to want to sit and speak Spanish , he was going to want that little comfort . We spent several hours with Deb and Popi , and before we left Deb and Popi wanted to pray over Ben . I told ben to call his mom and put it on speaker phone so his mom could hear us praying . Popi and Bens mom spoke for a while . I have no idea what was said because I do not speak Spanish . Then Popi prayed in Spanish , and when he was done Bens mom prayed over him . I did not understand what was being said , but I know that I felt the holy spirit move . Then Bens mom started crying . I said that I did not mean for her to cry . I just wanted Bens mom to be apart this . Deb assured me that she was crying happy tears . This lady was just so thankful that people were praying over her son . Rusty and I had an anniversary . We went to the Birch aquarium , and then out to lunch . I gave Rusty a bottle gentlemen Jack and one of the kittens . Rusty does not know why , but he fell in love with this all black long haired kitten , so I am letting him keep him . The kitten is in getting fixed today , and Rusty 's day is crazy so I am going to go down to base pick up this kitten . I told Rusty that I would go in the morning , but he really wants his cat home tonight . Is Rusty a grown man or a child ? sober white women My mind is full of choices . I have to choose my direction very carefully . All of my boys have a ship date . Yep , here I go again sending . I am sending boys off so they can come back as warped men . When my phone rings I look to see who it is . If it is one of the boys I so don 't want to answer it because I know what they are going to tell me . I answer the phone and I stay cheerful . I ask all of them " Do you have your will 's done ? Do you have all of your allotments done ? Do you have any loose ends that need to be tied up , do you have all your cold weather gear ? " Then I tell them that I will be there to see them before they get on the bus . What I want to do is to answer the phone crying . I want to beg them not to go . I would be a basket case . I can 't do that . I have to stay strong for them . I know they are scared . I know that they don 't want to leave . I also know of a person who is hiding from her comment . Yep , she joined the service and is now in desertion status because she does not want to deploy for a year . I get it . I would not want to deploy for a year either , but I did not sign on the dotted line in a time of war . Do I turn her in or do I do nothing ? I have been trying to stay focused on what is at hand . What is at hand right now is seeing my boys off . I could talk to Rusty about all of this , but I am not sure how far that would get me . Rusty say 's stuff like " they are marines and marines go to war . " Yes they do and I still think it sucks . I am not sure what Rusty would say if he knew about the chick that is running from her obligations . One of the marines that is not deploying until the spring asked me if I would be interested in working with habitat for humanity . I just kinda smiled . That was on my bucket list . Yes I would like to do that . I don 't have a lot of skills , but I am willing to learn and I am willing to help . So , he is going to get all the info and we are going to go volunteer with habitat for humanity . I figure that will keep my mind off everything going on here , and I will be giving back . Rusty asober white women I am not sure what is going on with me . I have been busy , but doing nothing . I have three babies in still . They are here to gain weight , and since one of them is black he can 't be adopted out until November . For the record yes I am counting my black cats . So far they are all here , so that is a good thing . Rusty actually really likes one of the fosters . Rusty tries very hard to not get attached to the cats , but this one has won his heart , so I am thinking about giving it to Rusty for our anniversary . Rusty even named this cat . . . . his name is Bradley . Amber is still looking for a job . She did get the job as a go go dancer , and she did for a few nights , but Rusty said it was very fishy , so Amber has not been back . Will she ever find a job ? I swear there are no jobs here in California . I have recently started speaking to my mother but only on topics that do not cause an argument . I guess that is something . At least we are doing that . For now I am done with all the quilts for the marines . I do need to make a few for the two guys that are leaving in the spring , but they can wait . Right now I am working on some quilts for the shelter , and a quilt for one of Nikkis friends . I have also been thinking about who I am going to adopt next year . Last year I made quilts for the veterans home , and this year I made lap quilts for the shut ins . It is very heavy on my heart that I need to make baby quilts . So I talked with a fellow j lander and she is going to see if her church could use them . This is a big jump for me because I don 't usually make baby blankets unless I know I am going to need them , but my heart is telling me to make baby blankets . I must say that summer is over and I am so sad to have to put my flip flops away . I need to learn to enjoy the cooler weather , but as of yet I have not . I guess growing up right out side of Chicago has made me not want any cooler weather . Well I need to go to the store and get busy . Life is calling me , so I need to get to it . Well , I have been busier then a one legged man in an ass kicking contest . I finally have no company , and I so love it . It seems like everyone looked at a calender and said lets all go see Kelli at different times . Yesterday I finally got to do what I wanted to do . I cleaned some carpets and did some sewing . * Amber said that she was going to go apply for a job as a go go dancer . I told her to go for it . She walks around here in shorts and shakes her bum , she might as well get paid for it . * I got three new kittens in . They are here just until after Halloween . One of them is black and they won 't adopt out black cats around Halloween . Rusty has fallen in love with this cat and has renamed him bradly . * Speaking of cats , I have mice . How in the world does a women with four cats and three foster cats have mice ? I don 't get it , but the cats are slowly killing them . Which is a good thing . * I think I broke my sewing machine yesterday . I was sewing on some upholstery material when it started acting up . I know better then to sew heavy stuff on my machine , but I did it anyway . I will have to look at it this morning and see if I cant figure something out . I have a quilt that I need to finish damn it . * Rusty and I went to the ball and we had a good time . I did fit into that little red dress , but I think it will be the last time I wear it . It is starting to fray . I must say that I did look good . * I got my hair trimmed the day of the ball . She only took off an inch , but it felt like more . So now it is two inches above my bum . The poor lady and to get on her knees to cut and straighten my hair . I offered to stand up , but she said no . * One of the marines is in hot water and she goes on trial tomorrow . The chips will fall where they may . * time to get busy and get some stuff done . Once we got back from Yuma , I have just been busy , but in a good way . Dayana and the baby were gone when we got back , but another young wife is staying with us while her husband is in the field . Yesterday , Lauren ( the young wife ) helped me get the last of my quilts put together and pinned . That was such a huge help to me . I did reach my goal of 30 pet quilts in 30 days . However I did not get them all put together . So I am finishing up some and I will deliver them next week . I have really been trying to cook Rusty some good hardy meals . After being in Yuma and eating nothing but fast food , he was ready for some good home cooking . Last night I made chicken fried steak , mashed potatoes , corn , saw mill gravy and a lemon cake . I told Rusty that if he dropped dead from all the fat . . . . well I am sorry . He loved the meal . It has really cooled off down here . Our highs are only in the 70 's and I must say that it feels good . I am just wondering if we are going to get one last heat wave . I guess only time will tell . Today I worked on cleaning up the man cave . I swear Rusty just comes in and drops his shit and he will leave it there until he needs it again . Well I put everything away , and I even cleaned the baseboards . This room is bigger then I thought ! We have a ball next week , and I am really forward to this one . For some reason last year I was just dreading it , but not this year ! I am wearing a dress I wore before , I have a purse , now all I need are some shoes . I need to go dig through my closet and make sure that I don 't have any dress shoes . Last night I was telling Rusty that I needed a pair of dress shoes , and he just shook his head as if to say then go buy them . I finally asked Rusty what shoes I wore before when I wore that dress . He said that is he remembers correctly I did not wear shoes . Anything is possible with me . Life is so good O . K . so here it is , a Saturday night and I am sitting in the business center of the hotel blogging . This trip has been awesome , and I am so glad that I made this trip ! Everyday Rusty has kissed me and thanked me for coming with him . These sales are a big job and he truly appreciates the help that I give him . Spending time with the love of my life and knowing that my simple act of helping , means so much to him , is just another way for me to show Rusty how much I love him . Tonight Rusty and I were driving around and I must say that I think Yuma is beautiful . Rusty use to come here when he was a boy and he has nothing but fond memories , and he loved showing me around . There is something magical about a desert community . I love the desert , the Spanish influence and the sunsets here can take your breath away . I would be happy to live here . While Rusty and I were driving around something very strange hit me . I remember my mom saying that she hated Yuma and that it was a hell hole . Yet , here I am loving this little town . This past year has been very hard on mine and my mothers relationship . My mother has even cancelled her tickets , so she won 't be coming out for Christmas . You know , everyone has a right to be happy and to live their lives . That is what I am going to continue to do . I will not allow her to suck the life out of me , I will not allow her to say negative things , and most of all I will not be forced to have a relationship with someone that I have no desire to have a relationship with . This is my life . I choose happiness and love . Tomorrow we will leave Yuma and go back home , and then it is back to my life . Today I should have done a lot of things . I should have packed since I am leaving for Yuma in the morning . I should have changed the sheets on my bed , but I did not . Today I threw everything out the window and I went to base . I went to base to say good bye to some of my marines that will be leaving soon . Today was my last chance . So we did what everyone would do in my shoes . We walked on the beach at sun set and sang we all live in a yellow submarine . I talked with the boy 's , I hugged them and most of all I told then that I love them . We all went to dinner and before we left I asked them if they would mind walking on the beach me when they got back . They said they would . I am going to hold them to that promise . As we were walking out I turned around and said " well boys I will see you in seven months " . That was it . No tears . Here I sit . sand on my feet . Jeans that are wet . Yet , I feel like crying . I can 't cry . Rusty would say " that is what marines do , they go to war . " Can I say that I hate this war . I want it to end . I want to see all my boys stay here . I don 't want to hear that they are cold , or hungry . I don 't want to say my good byes . I don 't want to have to write them letters . I want them to walk through my door and say mom we are home . Just like they do every weekend . I want to smell bbg , and have my house filled with laughter . I know that my time will come . Soon I will be able to do a happy dance because I will be making welcome home posters . Soon . Tomorrow I am heading to Yuma . Rusty is going out there for work , so I am tagging along to help him out , and to spend a little more time with him . I must say that I fall in love with my husband more every day . I want to spend every waking moment with him . Life is good , even if you are looking through the tear filled eyes . So I have a baby in the house . I love having a baby in the house . There is just something about a baby that makes me happy . I love rocking them , feeding them and taking them for walks . I love babies . My baby is 14 . Alison , the baby , has been sick since she got here . Poor thing has an ear infection , a cold in her chest and in her eyes . It just breaks my heart . A few nights ago Alison was fussing , so I went over to the sofa to check on her , and she was running a fever . I told Dayana , the mom , to go get me two clean towels . Dayana just looks at me . I said " The baby is running a fever and we need to cool her down . " I cleaned out the kitchen sink , placed a towel in it and ran some cool water . So there is Alison just chilling in a sink with some cool water . By now I have an audience . Dayana , Amber and Nikki are all watching me . I told them to get me some Tylenol and some jack . They did as they were told . Everyone is watching me as if I am doing something exciting . I gave the baby some Tylenol and I rubbed some Jack Daniels on the babies gums . My girls just laughed at me and Dayana was shocked at what I just did . It was then that it hit me . I had turned into my mother and grandmother . They taught me every trick in the book . My grandmother would say " Your mother is still here and so are you , so sit down and shut up . " This week I showed Dayana so many " old school " things . How did we all survive without some of the modern stuff that babies have today ? Teething gel ? That was whatever whiskey my parents had on hand . Baby food ? That was whatever could be mashed with a fork and given to us . Diaper cream ? That was corn starch on our bottoms . Yesterday Dayana and the baby were still congested so I draped our shower and I told Dayana to grab the baby , and that it was time for a steam bath . By the time they got out , they both were feeling good . There is nothing like a good old fashion steam . Once again I had turned into my mother and grandmother . Is that such a bad thing ? I hear all this stuff about saving our planet and how we shPosted by I have been sitting back and watching Danaya and her husband go round after round . Yesterday was the final blow . This " man " called Danaya and put her in tears . Danaya could not handle it any more so she just handed me the phone . Game on . I pick up the phone and said hello . Then I lost it . I chewed this marine out and I laid it all on the line for him . I told him that as of right now he has two charges that can be filed against him . According to the UCMJ . . . Uniform Code of Military Justice , that he can be charged with adultery , and non support of dependents . I told him that I had already called his Sergent major . I told this " marine " that he better go fill out the paper work to get his wife an i . d . card and get enrolled in tricare . This dumb ass opened his mouth and said " well you don 't understand , I am getting ready to deploy . " That sent me off again . What ? I don 't understand ? I gave him an hour and half to get his ass in gear . All he had left to say was yes ma ' am . A few moments later Rusty called me . The gal that this guy is having an affair with called Rusty ! LOL Rusty said " honey I am not sure what is going on , but if Kelli is on the war path I would get out of her way . " Danaya asked me why she would call Rusty . I had to smile when I told her " because she knows that Rusty is the only one who could tell me to back off , but he did not . " The day goes on and this marine is calling us and giving us updates on everything that he is doing . He was missing some documents , so he ended up giving her some power of attorneys . I told him that he would drive the power of attorneys up to us . If he so much as lied to me or does not show up . . . . I was going to finish hanging him . He showed up and he and Danaya talked for a while . When she got back in the car she was laughing . I just smiled and said " what " ? She said " you are not going to believe this . He went in and confessed to non support of dependents and is waiting to be pulled off the roster to ship . " I could not stop laughing . This dumb ass actually confessed ! After dinner Posted by I never saw this coming . A few weeks ago one of Nikki 's friends asked me why I open my home to anyone . I simply said " entertain strangers for as much as you have known you have entertained an angle . " This week I opened my home up to one of the marines sisters . This gal is young , 22 , and she is separated from her husband that is getting ready to deploy . They also have a very handi cap child . My home is open , and I have been driving them around and I have really gotten to know this gal , and I have a feeling we are going to be good friends . Yesterday I asked Danaya , the friend , and Amber if they wanted to go to the lake . Everyone said yes except Danaya said " How can I take the baby down to the lake , we can 't get her all wet , because of her feeding tube . " I just laughed . I ended up making the baby a chair . . . out of sand . . . . and I shaded her with an umbrella . We had a blast . Later that night I told Rusty that I am glad that we had Ryan because I am now able to share all of my own experiences and help this mom . Never in a million years would I have guessed that my life with Ryan would be able to help someone else , but it has . I have spent the last few days rocking the baby , sewing and just cleaning up around the house . I love having a baby in the house . Rocking a baby is the perfect past time . Life is so good I have been hearing it on the news , and people on facebook are talking . Could it be true that summer is coming to an end ? We are suppose to hit triple digits again this weekend , and I can 't wait . Are we heading for a cool down after that ? It has been a little cooler here , and I have enjoyed it sum what , but I am do not ready for summer to be over with . This weekend we are heading down to Coronado island to watch some old school stock car racing , and then we are heading over to see some of the ships . Rusty wants to see one of the new aircraft carriers and I want to see the hospital ship . I guess we will have to see what is open for tours . Yesterday Ryan came home and told us that his new running shoes made him run real fast for track . I just giggled . I am so glad that he is doing something that he likes . I can 't wait to go to his first race . I had to go to walgreens yesterday and I noticed a sigh that said shingles shot . I just looked at Rusty and said " is that because we will now have a generation that never got chicken pox ? " I had the chicken pox . I had them everywhere . I even ran a super high fever , but I survived . My mom really pushed me to get the girls the new chicken pox shot . I did not want to get it for them because I figured they could get the chicken pox the same way I did . Not to mention I don 't immunize . Well with enough pressure I ended up getting the girls the shot , and now they are saying that the shot is only good for ten years . So what happens when all of these children grow up and become adults and they don 't get the shot ? My life must be perfect because I have a kitten sleeping on my lap . Today I am going to try to get some carpets cleaned , and I still need to do a good scrub down on my bathroom sink area . I have tonight 's dinner done , so I am thankful for that . Yesterday I made some homemade dog food for our older dog . For the past few weeks we have been buying her canned food , and that was getting expensive , so I went back to making it . When we first got Butter he was very thin and malnourishPosted by So I have been trying to tone up a little so I can look good in that little red dress , well it is working . Last night I was sitting in bed rubbing lotion all over my body when I noticed that my arms had some shape to them ! I got out of bed and went to the mirror . Yep , I finally have some shape . All I have been doing is eating less and swimming more . When I go to the lake I not only swim , but I also do some water aerobics , and it is finally paying off . Yesterday Chris and I went back to Dana Point and played on the beach . I swore that I was not going to get wet , but that lasted all of 10 minutes before the waves called me in . Then we hit a few other beaches . I can 't believe that we spent close to eight hours just playing on the beach . By the time I got home last night my feet hurt . Note to self : buy some water shoes . I am just so happy to be getting out of the house more and doing what I love to do . Yesterday my mom and I got into it about her coming out . I finally laid down the law about gcc and she was not happy . She also was not happy that I was not going to cook Christmas dinner and that I wanted to go surfing instead . Whatever you said you wanted to take the children to Disney , so if I want to go surf then I will . This morning Amber confronted me and asked me if they were coming out . I said yes . Amber is so not happy . She said she does not mind if my mother comes out , but she does not to be around gcc . I guess Amber and gcc got into it a lot while Amber was out there this summer . HMMMM told you so . Amber said that she did not want to go to Disney . I guess my mom does not get it . We live here , so we really don 't care about all the tourist stuff . Oh well that is life . I could not sleep last night , so I was up until about 2 a . m . which meant I did not get up until 10 this morning . It felt good to get some sleep , but I thought I would be way behind on my house work . I got most of it done and dinner is in the crock pot , so I must have kicked ass . Now the question is what should I do now ? It is kinda overcast today and ratPosted by Yesterday was so laid back and yet so full of fun ! The girls and I swung in and picked up my girlfriend , and we headed south . So we get everything set up and I am standing there just staring at the ocean . Then it happened . I saw a fin , and then another fin , and another . Holy Crap the dolphins were in so close ! Yep I got in the water and swam with the dolphins . It was amazing . Nikki was standing on the beach yelling at me . I just looked at her and she kept pointing at her wrist . Man it was time to go . I was like a two year old being drug away from her favorite toy . So many waves so little time . This afternoon we are heading over to the coast to see the tall ship festival . I have never been on one of those old three mast ships so it should be a good time . Note to self : grab one of the girls cameras . I am just looking forward to spending time with my family . It is not often that Rusty and I can find something that we both want to go do , so I will have a blast just walking around holding hands with my husband . I have decided that I do want to do Thanksgiving this year . I just want to do any of it , so I am sending the girls off on an adventure . Nikki will be going to Vegas to help pack food baskets and Amber is going to go to San Francisco to see one of her uncles . I asked Chris if he wanted to go some place . He said that he would get back to me . One of the female marines was in shock when I told her that I did not want to do Thanksgiving . So she suggested that we go to the shelter and take care of the animals . I think that would be a great idea . We can go take care of them and then maybe go to the ocean for a bit . Rusty said that he would grill some steaks . I think this sounds perfect . Last night Rusty and I went to dinner and I told Rusty that I did not even want to do Christmas this year . A few years ago the children sucked the life right out of me and that was when I became a scrooge . So last year I made the children do all the decorating . This year they can do the same . I am thinking about going and getting foursober white women I am a stay at home mom . I am also married to a veteran and he is the love of my life . I keep it real here and I hold nothing back . My life is a roller coaster ride , so strap on your seatbelt . . . . here we go !