No more Mirena (Possible TMI post)

So, yesterday, I had my yearly exam, and the hubs and I decided that it is getting to be about time to get ready to maybe have another baby. So I got my Mirena removed and switched back to the pill to try and get things regulated. I am really hoping that getting it taken out will help me with some other areas that I am struggling with as well. I will keep updating as time goes on to let everyone know how it is going. Also feel free to share any experiences you have had, if you have been through a similar issue.

On another note, Christmas shopping is almost done. I have one more thing that I definitely want to get for little man, but other than that, I think we are all done. Oh and it looks like we will be leaving Germany next July!!!!! So excited!

Snow in Germany!

So finally, after we have been complaining about it being so cold for no reason, I wake up to a nice surprise this morning.

Ok, first off, for those of you who don't know, I am originally from Illinois, and LOVE SNOW! I firmly believe that we are supposed to have snow in the winter, especially in December. So, this morning, little man wakes me up, I head to the kitchen to make breakfast. For some reason, I was looking for something on the window ledge, and look out the window, and sure enough SNOW!!! YAH! I know, I'm such a big kid when it comes to this stuff. I'm Pagan, but I still love Christmas.
Every year, I cant wait to get the tree up, and decorated. Finally, got ours up by the way. I love going shopping, but hate spending the money of course. I love seeing all the lights and decorations. On thing I miss about being back home is going to see the Way of Lights. And for the past couple if years, I have been following Santa on his yearly journey. Like I said, I am just a big kid at heart!

Mercury Retrograde

OK, so I am the kinda witch that will read my Zodiac AFTER the fact, and realize, DAMN, maybe I should have stayed in bed. I am also one who usually doesn't give much notice to the Astrological Pain in the Ass.......

MERCURY RETROGRADE(*Spooky Music).

 Personally, I have never noticed much different during the time, and in fact, it usually passes by me without me even knowing it. Not this year!

I am hoping that since it is 900 pm here in Germany, that it is safe for me to talk about this. So pretty much all month, I have been having problems with my phone. First, for some reason, all my contacts that were saved to the SIM card are gone, but still there. I can search through the history, and they are there, but when I go to search the contacts, they are gone. I tried, to save the info from the history, but no luck, the phone thinks it is on the SIM. Also tried to add a new contact, didn't save, but saved. Then by great "Smart phone" decided what it would be fun to just randomly turn off while in my pocket. Yes the phone was locked, and there is no way for the pocket to turn it off, since it was the shoulder pocket of my ACU's. Then it would just turn off when I would put it on my desk. The past couple of days, when I would plug it in to charge, it couldn't make up its mind whether it was charging or not. So that has been the drama with the phone. So over the weekend I was trying to check one of my email accounts and was told that my user name had been locked. That's weird, cause I was just on it 5 minutes before when my computer decided to crap out on me for a min. All that being said, I think I have learned my lesson.
 So what have I learned over the past 3 weeks? Know when to take a step back. Things have been so crazy at work, that sometimes, I just need to remember that I am only one person, and I have other commitments that I have to take care of as well. Maybe sometimes, I need to focus more on my family than my work.
Oh yeah, and keep an eye out for that evil Mercury Retrograde and what lessons may come along with it, cause they will come whether you are ready for them or not.
So how has this Mercury Retrograde treated you, and have you done anything in the past or present to prepare for it? Let me know, I would love to hear the stories.

School Jobs

So as part of Alex's Sure Start Class, everyone gets to take turns to have jobs in the classroom. The week before Thanksgiving and the week of he was "The Inspector" which meant he got to take two friends around the classroom and make sure everything was picked up and mot messy before it was time to go outside. Well I just happened to ask him today what his new job is and he said he was the "Flag Helper." He told me that he gets to hold the flag. I kinda had an idea where this was leading, but we have been trying to get him to tell us about school and what he learned, not that he just had fun. So I ask him, what happens when he holds the flag, and he proceeds to demonstrate holding the flag. So I then say, well what do your friends do while you are holding the flag? "Say the Pledge of Allegiance" Of course it took some coxing, (and maybe some bribery) but I managed to get him to say it on camera. Be advised, he is 5 and a little silly most of the time, I don't know what he was doing while he was saying it. I do know that his hand is up because he wanted me to "pick him" when he was done.

Thanksgiving

So it is 708pm here in Germany. The meal has been eaten, the leftovers put away, dished almost all washed, and some pie eaten. All with some friends from Wiesbaden who came over with their 3 year old daughter. Overall it has been a pretty good day. There was a little bit of fighting with Alex and Kiba at first, but after that it has been pretty smooth sailing. So sitting here has got me thinking.. what exactly am I thankful for?
Well of course there is my husband and son first. Without them, I don't know what I would do. Next I would have to say my job. While it is VERY stress full, especially now that things are starting to close down. I really do love what I do. Not just the day to day aspect of it, but being in the military in general. I am also thankful for the friends and family that are there no matter what. While there may be discrepancies from time to time, I would do anything for them.
Since I am feeling the effects of cooking all day, and the turkey, I'm going to end this by asking "What are you thankful for?"

Finally

After waiting what seems like forever, it has finally happened. I made cut-off for E-6! While I only went to the board last December, I have been waiting for this for quite some time. I am now at a point where I will be able to do my full 20 years. So when I report into ALC (hopefully) on Monday, I will be SSG Ray. It already looks weird. Of course along with more responsibility comes more pay. Which at this point is a HUGE advantage for us. I just officially found out a couple of hours ago, and I am still a little bit in shock that it has finally happened. I do feel a little bad because my Soldier did not make cut-off for E-5, but I have no doubt that she will make it before she leaves here in December. In honor of this accomplishment, I leave you lovely readers with the 6 of Army from my still in progress Military Tarot.

If you would like to see more of the cards I created, please check out my Picassa Album. They are broken into different albums by Majors, Minors, and Court Cards. Feel free to take a look around while you are there.

PS. Later in the week, I will tie this in with how this promotion plays into my practice.

Exhausting Week

Yeah, I know it is only Wednesday, but already, I am ready for it to be over. 

 

So Alex finally started Sure Start on Monday. YAY! As you can see, he is so excited! It was all he has been talking about for like the past two weeks. The only bad thing we have heard from his teacher, is that he is doing the hoarding food thing at lunch time. For some reason, we have yet to figure out where he got it from, he crams his food into his mouth, and trys to hold it in his cheeks. It is funny because he looks like a chipmunk, but we have to try not to laugh to try to get him to stop doing it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. His teachers do know about him not pooping in the potty, but luckily he has not done it in his pants at school, he waits until Momma gets home for that. Oh yeah, and he still wont go to sleep until after ten o'clock so we are still fighting that battle, and of course the follow up battle to get up in the morning.

Since he is going to school everyday, I am definitely feeling more stressed. I have to get up, do PT, come home, take the dog out, take a shower, get myself ready for work, and get Alex up and ready for school and have him there by 8:15. Then to top it all off, have to work a full day, deal with everything that is going along with Transformation, and then come home, and try to get some housework/ dinner done.

I am still waiting to find out about the funding for my ALC (Advanced Leaders Course) that I am going to on October 1st. I am glad to be going, but not thrilled about the timing. This will actually be the first time that I will not be here for Alex's birthday. Plus, with me being gone, this means that the Hubs will have to do everything. I am just hoping that everything will go relatively smooth while I am gone. I will be under enough stress as it is, and will not be nearby if something should happen.

The nice thing is that you can tell that Fall is coming here in Germany. In fact, I would go so far as to say that it has already arrived. It is chilly in the morning and evening, and usually windy during the day. The leaves on the trees have already started to change, and fall. In fact, when I was at work the other day, you could smell someone burning leaves. I never really liked the smell personally, but for some reason, it was nice for once.