I like to think I'm getting smarter. . . .

So, I'm obviously not the BEST blogger in the world.
Nor, am I the wittiest, or smartest, or most creative, blah, blah, blah. :-)
However, I like the idea of blogging, and really want to try and make it work.

In the last month I have packed up a house (for seven people), had 3 of my children's birthdays, shipped Christmas in boxes to a different continent, flew with five kids (and only myself as "adult supervision") to a different continent (arriving 20 hours later with the same 5 kids and 18 pieces of luggage in tow that I started with), took finals AND received straight A's (I will be stoked about that for awhile), and . . . . .well, that's all (I think), but I think it's a pretty good list.

Life is good. I say this a lot. But I truly believe it!

I've learned a lot on my journey to this point in my life, and the more I learn, the more I realize I have a whole heck of a lot more to still learn. NOW, if I have the brain capacity is the next question! ha ha

In the last three weeks, I have some especially good words of wisdom that I want to share.

#1: When there is a need to fly to your next duty station, it is a REALLY good idea to put kitchen utensils in your luggage. Can openers, spoons, spatulas, measuring spoons, etc., are all small enough to stow away, but really add up in cost when you have to buy them all, because it is still another 1 1/2 months before YOURS arrive!

#2: You will always miss your family and friends the most! But a good mattress is a close second! (I am counting the days til my lovely bed arrives with its sweet comfort. versus the plywood-sorry-excuse-for-a-mattress they "loan" you til yours arrives.

#3. Castles really are magical.

#4. Never underestimate the power a 3 year old can have over any GRANDMA (whether it's his grandma or not. And whether she speaks the same language or not.) In fact, lets change this to: Grandmas are ALWAYS awesome!

#5. Not all video games are evil (okay, okay, don't hold this against me. ;-) A Game that involves music AND my whole family playing, can't be all-that-bad.

#6. A smile means the same thing in ANY language! I may not speak more than 6 words in German, but I can smile at people and 9 times out of 10, they smile back.

#7. Technology is AMAZING! We would have been LOST while driving SOOO many times by now, if it were not for our lovely GPS that makes the journey with us each time and "recalculates" when we mess up.
AND, I love that I can call my family AND see them as we talk through an amazing thing called the internet, and skype, and a computer!

#8. There REALLY is a time difference between us and those back in "the states" It may be coming to the end of my day, but it is just beginning for my family in the Northwest. Weird!

#9. My husband will always continue to amaze me with what he can accomplish and what he's willing to do for me. (Okay, this is NOT a new revelation, but it's still important to point out often).

#10. Goodbyes ALWAYS suck. It doesn't matter how often I do them. I still cry. I still feel sad. BUT, it's also always fun to meet new people. There are good people EVERYWHERE you go!

#11 I LOVE German Bakeries. mmmmmmm. . . . .

#12. This list is longer than I expected it to be.

#13. There are good and bad to everything, INCLUDING military life. Yes, there are some downsides, but I definitely enjoy some of the perks.

#14. I miss Wal-mart. (and paying Wal-mart prices)

#15. Kids can adapt. They're amazingly resilient. They can be bounced back and forth and STILL come out smiling and happy and give amazing hugs.

#16. My Mom and Sister are sorely missed. Whenever we go exploring somewhere new in Germany, I can't help but think "OH wow! I wish mom and Rach could see this!" Don't get me wrong, I LOVE all my family. . . . . It's a mom/ sister thing.

#17. I'm so glad to have lived where I have lived and been to the places I have been. To quote a favorite singer of mine "I've been a lot of places and I've seen a lot of faces so I know, I must be going somewhere. . . ." (2 points to whoever can name the "quoted."

#18. Brain cells may be rusty at times, but can still work with the right amount of prodding.

#19. Einbahnstrasse is my newest favorite german word. It's just fun to say. Go ahead and try it. :-)

#20. I really do spend a LOT of time on the Computer and REALLY need to get off now.

Life is GOOD!

Beck family FAQ's

I get a lot of the same questions asked. Don't get me wrong, it doesn't bother me. Each question I ask for the bizillioneth time, is the first time that specific person has asked it (most of the time ;-)
I was thinking though, that to be more efficient, I should post some question and answers to the most FREQUENTLY asked questions for our family. PLUS, it gets another post on my small, but slowly growing blog. And THEN, I can finally tell people that it's here! YAY! So, what follows is Beck family FAQ's 2009

1. When did Paul join the army?
In March of 2009. He left for boot camp (Basic training) at Ft. Benning, GA in April and graduated in July. From there, he went straight to Ft. Houston in San Antonio, TX for AIT (advanced training). He trained as a combat medic and graduated the first week in November.

2. Where do you go next?
We are assigned to Vilseck, Germany. Paul leaves the week of Thanksgiving. Vilseck is about 30 miles west of the Czech Republic border and a couple hours north of Austria. It is a beautiful rolling hills rural farming community.

3. How long will you be there?
We are assigned to be there for 36 months. There are a lot of variables that could change that though.

4. What about Chiropractic?
Paul has put that on hold indefinitely. He still holds a valid license for the state of Idaho, and will as long as he remains active duty. We still very much believe in chiropractic. It was time for a different career path for us. (one with more stability)

5. When will you (Lydia) and the kids get to Germany?
It ALL depends on how fast the military decides to move. I'm not very optimistic about a fast process. We could be leaving as early as the first part of December, but most likely not until the end of January. (I'm assuming it may be even LONGER because no one wants to work for that week around Christmas either). We'll see.

6. Are you excited?
Very Very VEry excited! It will be a lot easier once we FINALLY get there, though! We're thrilled to give our kids the amazing adventure of experiences other cultures first hand. The school at the base we're going to teaches spanish in the school, and we will be doing all we can to learn German. I'm thrilled with the idea of having trilingual children. (I'm sure they'll catch on faster than me!)
I'm excited to get a passport for the first time. I have never left North America, and barely stepped out of the U.S. It will be amazing!

7. What do the kids think?
They are very excited as well. Understandably, a little apprehensive too. My oldest especially understands the moving around thing. He and the twins experienced two school years in a row that consisted of THREE different schools each year. They were starting to get comfortable here with friends and the school. But they are excited to get to live with Daddy.

8. Are you going to be career army?
Possibly. Paul has applied to med schools, and if he's accepted, we will be transferring over to that program and he will serve out his term as an army doctor. The moving (that comes with an army life) doesn't scare us. We moved 17 times in the first 12 years of our marriage WITHOUT the army :-) There are downsides to a military life, but there are upsides too.

9. Lydia, are you really insane?
I truly believe so sometimes. I like people to meet my parents, because it helps me make a lot more sense. Ha ha. LOVE YOU MOM & DAD!!! Seriously, they are two of the coolest people I know! We have fun and act goofy a LOT though!


********I may add more FAQ's as I think of them, but I have a lot to do today, and this should not take up my whole day. (that would be bad)*****************

Pics from Boise trip

THese pictures of my sweet in-laws making the THanksgiving feast, and Paul and his brothers. The one of just the boots I call "Following in his Brothers Shoes!" :-) There's also a picture of the boys and their adorable Grandma. We love Grandma Blomquist!
I love the uniforms. It was fun to take thousands of pictures! (Though I don't think the boys enjoyed it so much). They were kind enough to humor us, though. I'll try to post more pics from the weekend soon. So much FUN!

He's Home!

So, Paul may not be home for a LONG time (20 days), but I'll take what I can get! He arrived at the SLC airport on Tuesday, Nov. 3rd at 8:30 p.m. We checked into a hotel right before picking him up, and that's when the butterflies hit. I thought to myself "WHy in the heck am I nervous to see this man that I've been married to for almost 13 years?" It was so amazing to see the reunion of Paul and the kids. Of course, I totally forgot to get pictures of me with him that day, so the pictures I have of us are taken a few days later.
We arrived home on Wednesday afternoon and went to my parents home in Rexburg for dinner. On our drive home that night, we noticed a big yellow ribbon as we turned into our neighborhood and then yellow ribbons EVERYWHERE (in all our neighbors yards). They also had hung a huge yellow sign that said "Welcome Home Paul" and was signed by all of them. It was so touching. I LOVE our neighborhood and feel so blessed to be here, AND to have been here the whole time Paul's been gone.
We went to Meridian on Friday to go visit Paul's family. All four of the Beck brothers were there (we can't remember the last time all four were together, but think it's been a couple of years). It was wonderful to see the family (although Paul's sister got sick and wasn't able to make it :-()
My M.I.L went to so much work to prepare a wonderful meal on Saturday (our Beck THanksgiving), and the Beck boys even succeeded in doing something silly together (climbing up into a closet at the church that was six feet up. They also got to go to a hockey game together. YAY!
I can't believe we have already used up 6 of our 20 days. I LOVE having him home. The other day, my 4th child kept asking the same question over and over, and just wasn't quite understanding my response, so I got to defer her to her Dad. LOVED THAT! ;-)
We have a lot we're trying to squeeze into 2 weeks, but that's why we have calendars. I'm not sure when exactly the kids and I will get to go meet up with my sweetheart in Germany. (It all depends on our passports and orders coming through). I'm hoping by Christmas, but we'll see. (I don't count on much with the army.)
I'll be packing up all our stuff here the 2nd week in December, and we'll take it from there.
Life is good. I love my Soldier. I love having him home. I'm excited for this NEXT stage in our life.

Germany, huh?

Well, life just got a little busier as of Saturday last week.
Paul was away on his FTX (field training exercise), which means he has no communication device for 2 weeks! (yuck, I know). He left on Wednesday the 14th early early. I totally mentally prepared myself for two weeks of no Paul contact ( I can't even send him letters anymore)
Well on Saturday the 17th, he CALLED. I was a little thrown off and asked him why, and he said "Well, first of all, nothing is wrong. But did you look at our orders??? THey changed."
Well, I wasn't super shocked. In fact, I wasn't even slightly shocked. I had never fully committed mentally to the idea of Hawaii. I took steps that may have needed to be done, just in case. But, deep down, I felt that it just wasn't going to happen.
SO, back to Paul's call. So then he said "Are you ready for this? We're going to GERMANY!" I said "No WAY!" and immediately felt VERY excited. Funny enough, Germany was never one of Paul's requests BUT I felt it should have been. At least, it seemed to me that it would be a good place.
SO, Paul talked for another 3 minutes to get our SS#'s so the Army can start on our passports, and then said "I'll talk to you in a week and a half."
Now, don't get me wrong. A week and a half is NOT that long, but when you just found out that you are moving to another country and need to do a whole bunch of crap, It's a LONG TIME!
We need to sell our suburban. And get rid of EVEN more than before. I have been trying to weed down, but it is just not easy to do so. I'm going for bare essentials here. (Beds, dressers, clothing, sheet music :-), etc.)
I was excited for that entire day when I found out, and then at around 2 a.m. it hit me how much I have to do, and freaked me out a little. Okay, a LOT!
I miss Paul. Every day, every night, and every minute. I can't wait to feel his arms around me again and have him here to feel the joy of snuggling one of our kids again. They miss him so much and treat their mom better, then what she deserves. i feel so fortunate to have such forgiving children, despite my many imperfections.
But I miss Paul. I get to talk to him again in 4 days and shock the crap out of him that I actually sold his pick-up. (He wanted me to do it, but I hope I did it right)
In 10 days, the force of our family will be home. Man, I am so lucky to be married to such an amazing amazing man. And How I love to know that at the end of each day, he is thinking about me. WOW, I'm lucky.

I Love my husband!

SO, I meant to post something sooner than now. (two 1/2 months later), but I forgot how to do it. And THEN, I forgot to do it at all!

Life is good though!

Very good.

We have received orders to go to HAWAII! We will be leaving sometime in November. Our kids have never seen the ocean, and boy are they going to get a good look now! It will be quite the adventure.

Paul has been gone for 5 months now, and will be home in 39 days!!!!!!!!!!! We are soooo giddy and excited and all that good stuff!

I was fortunate enough to be able to fly down and see him over labor day weekend and spend four wonderful and glorious days together with the love of my life!

It was funny to me, that as I drove to pick him up that first morning, I was SO nervous. I kept telling myself "Why in the world am I nervous about this?!?! I have been with this amazing man for 13 years!!!!!!!!!!!" and yet, I was still nervous. Paul was too.

What an awesome thing to get to hug him after so long without him. I fully understand that many people have gone a lot longer than that without seeing their spouse. I also Know that longer separations are in our future. However, it was wonderful and exciting!

Confession: I had been waiting in the car for about 10 minutes, watching many soldiers walk by, before Paul came out. I did not recognize him at first glance. He was in uniform, just like everyone else, and has lost weight, and it only took me a second, but it was enough to make us both laugh.

He looks so great. Every day he is sending sweet text messages telling me how grateful he is for me and how much he loves me. I never knew that being around a bunch of dorky guys would bring out the romance in my husband that I never knew existed :-) ha ha

He constantly amazes me. I am so in love with my husband. This is a good thing. With every cloud always comes a silver lining also, and we are seeing those. Yes, there is still a cloud, but it's a tolerable cloud.

I'm including some fun pictures of me and my hunny from our Labor Day reunion.

I must also mention, that it is the first vacation we have EVER taken together ALONE since having kids. We have gone to a couple business meetings and family things. But we have never gotten this much alone time in a row. (and I still had to turn him back in every night to his platoon)

It's kind of sad really. But it reminded us that we should try to do this more often than once every twelve years!