Counting Down… again

Hi Everyone! Not much time to write as I have to run to a staff meeting in about 15 minutes but I just wanted to say a quick “hello!”

Well, here we are, the first day of MARCH! Yes, you read that right- MARCH. In like a lion, out like a lamb, right? That means I can officially say “I’m coming home THIS MONTH!” Ahhhh!

As you can tell, I’m pretty freaking excited! Yesterday marked 3 weeks until I see the three M’s! We have a great day and a half planned for Seattle. I am excited to try a little crumpet shop in Pike’s Peak or Pike’s Place or whatever that market area is in Seattle. I’m not 100% sure what a crumpet is, but it has a pretty positive connotation in my mind- something flaky and fresh and doughy full of good-to-eat things. Which is awesome, in my book.

I also cannot WAIT to have a latte with REAL steamed milk. Oh, and milk. I haven’t had milk in over 5 months! (other than in one Starbuck’s latte in Dubai). And I think Seattle is a GREAT place to be re-introduced to American coffee- yum!

Wow- I literally can hardly contain my excitement. Our conversations and emails from home have slowly started migrating from “what did you do today, what are you doing tomorrow?” to “Oh my gosh I can’t wait to see you, it’s so soon, what are we going to do? Where are we going to go? Ahhhh!”. I was just thinking last night back to October, when I was living on ABOT. Where it was hot, and unfamiliar, and lonely. We were on SUCH a wedding/honeymoon high, but depressingly, we weren’t on that high together. It was so bittersweet to be able to look back at memories and pictures and so much happiness, but being so incredibly lonely because we weren’t together, and had just embarked on a very, very long time apart.

And I’m not saying that it’s gone by fast. Looking back at October, it’s like it was years ago. The wedding seems ages and ages ago. I literally feel like I have been all over the world and met a hundred new people and experienced a million new things. It’s been one heck of a roller coaster ride. But now that it’s almost over, I can’t believe 5 months are already behind us.

The winter Olympics are over, the snow is melting back on the East Coast and (I think/hope that) it has stopped raining in San Diego. We’re making our post-deployment plans, making our lists, checking them twice. It’s so great that March is finally here and the seemingly endless months? Well, 5 of them are behind us, and only 26 days to go!

Nicole and I are diligently counting down, we are cutting off one of our paper chain links every day and the chain that used to do a double loop is now almost to a single loop- we can actually see the chain diminishing, right before our eyes.

Like I said, you can tell that I’m excited. Alright, well off to our staff meeting and a workout and watch but I will try and think of something of actual interest to write about.