Mini Pies

Before Timmy left, we had a small get together to send him off.  One of my favorite things to make are mini pies for desert, and they're always a huge hit.  I typically go with banoffee, but this time added mini apple pies to the mix.

Timmy started helping me, and got waaaay to into it.

Creating works of art for the apple pie crust topping

Apple pies made in a muffin tin. Genius!

Banoffee pies made in a mini muffin tin.  Also genius!

They don't have the banana or whip cream on them yet, but still delicious.

I found the apple pie recipe on Pinterest, which linked back to this blog.  The banoffee pies are courtesy of my friend Talia Christine and can be found here.  Let me know if you make them and what you think!

Then there was one

I dropped Timmy off yesterday morning to ship out to the desert. Before I get into exactly how I feel about him leaving, I thought I would answer the multitude of questions I've been asked that basically boil down to "why are you letting him deploy?"

1) Good timing. We are at a great point in our marriage, I feel comfortable enough to be alone in our new country, and he won't miss anything crucial while he's gone. Originally Timmy was supposed to leave in August, which meant gone for Christmas. We would much rather him be here for that, so why not go now?

2) No children. I get that there will still be deployments after we have kids, but I guess I'm kind of hoping that if we get enough out of the way now, there won't be as much of a need for him to miss birthdays or holidays later on.

3) If he doesn't go, someone else will. Timmy actually replaced someone who couldn't deploy due to legitimate medical reasons. If he hadnt volunteered then perhaps someone about to have a baby, or who has I'll family members, or whose marriage is on the rocks would have had to go instead. It definitely isn't easy for us, but probably tons less stressful than for others.

4) We've been lucky. Most families I know, the military member is home for a year and gone for six months. Timmy has been home for 2.5 years, waaaay longer than is normal. We don't want to push our luck. :/

5) It's our decision.  Much easier to deal with something you choose to do rather than having to adapt to someone telling you that you have to.  Make sense?

Despite the fact that we made this decision together, and we are both perfectly okay with our choice, it doesn't necessarily make it easy.  I'm getting ready to spend six months away from my husband, my best friend, my other half.  Of course I'm not happy that he'll be away, and am already looking forward to the day he gets home, but it would have happened whether we like it or not.  At least we got to make the decision of when.

Hopefully I've helped shine a light on our decision making process and the incredulous reactions will stop. Others' responses actually puts me in the same mindset of this blog post in which I share my feelings on men/women who do everything possible to get out of deployments and PCSing.  I still feel the same way, and wish I could knock some sense into the women who say "I would never let my husband do that."  You married into the military.  You don't get a choice in the "letting."  Why not get over yourself and deal with it?  Harsh?  Possibly.  Realistic?  Yes.

I'm going to go home now, sit with my dogs, and get back to life.  My husband isn't here, but I don't get to mope and cry forever; I had my day, time to get on with it.  In six months, I'll get to write a post announcing his return home and how happy I am.  Can't wait!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Timmy and I are celebrating our fourth Valentine's Day together in Garmisch, Germany.

But since we've only been married for 1.5 years, have no kids, and still have no problem coming up with ways to celebrate or keep the romance alive, I thought I would turn to one of my favorite blog's author for tips to help those who could use some tips [and I wanted something put aside for my future self to read].

Hello Be Freckled readers!  I'm Dawn, and I blog over on Hello Dearie.  I'm so glad to be here today to talk about how my husband and I keep our romance alive.

Michael and I have been married almost ten years...wow, that's so weird to even think about!  We were pretty young and still in school when we decided to get married so we definitely didn't always have money to have fancy dinners or gifts for holidays.  Even though we do not have everything figured out, I would dare to say that we've gotten some things under our belt over the past 10 years :) Since I love lists, I decided I would come up with my top five ways to keep the romance alive....even after children!

1.  Seize the moment.  If you're like me, you want everything to be perfectly planned for a date night to happen or even to spend alone time together.  I've learned that some of our best times to be together are lying on the couch after Anne's in bed just talking and catching up on life.  Make a cup of coffee and use this time to "be" with your spouse.

2.  Don't be afraid to ask for help.  I'm one of those mothers that hates to ask anyone to keep my child.  I always feel like I'm imposing.  I have found that this is not always a great thing.  Even though those couch nights are great, I think it's important to have a planned date night every now and then.

3. Always have a kind word. Being a wife is hard work.  When you have children that jobs seems to double.  As women we tend to always have a sharp word when our husbands aren't "helping" or doing the things we think are important.  I have found that I get a much better response from my husband when I use kind words rather than sarcasm or harsh words.

4. Listen. This is a gift that keeps on giving.  Think of the people you love most or make have made the best first impression on you.  It's probably because they looked into your eyes and listened to whatever you were saying.  Your spouse is no different.  If you're really listening to them, they'll be more likely to listen to you! 

5. Don't neglect intimacy.  You get my point!  Be intentional with your alone time ;)

I can honestly say that our love has only gotten sweeter with time.  I am so thankful for him and how he leads our family.  

I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Shall We Dance when Susan Sarandon is talking about why marriage is important:

”We need a witness to our lives.  There's a billion people on the planet, what does any one life really mean? But in a marriage, you're promising to care about everything.  The good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things, all of it, all of the time, every day.  You're saying 'Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it.  Your life will not go unwitnessed because I will be your witness'."

Flowers from Hubby

Timmy has never gotten me flowers before.  Not because he isn't thoughtful and sweet, he really is.  I actually told him not to bring me any since I'm not particularly fond of those kinds of gifts...I'd rather have an evening out for a date, or a simply necklace I can show off.  So imagine my surprise when he brought me home a vase of lilies.  They are absolutely gorgeous and a wonderful surprise...I think I like flowers more than I imagined I did.

p.s. I'm so so so behind on my book reviews.  We are supposed to get internet in the house next week, which will allow me to do many needed projects!  Can't wait!

Winter Wonderland

We were finally blessed with snow that stuck around for a few days, so of course the dogs and I immediately headed out to take advantage of it!

The dogs had some amazing snow mustaches.  Sass' was better, but she never sits still long enough for pictures.

I made the worst decision in the world right here.  Couldn't feel my knees.

We stopped to visit the wooly ponies.

My favorite bench.

View from our patio.  Love the snow!!!

Snow topped evergreens.