Awww nuts...

Well, we are still proud of the car. Nothing has changed regarding that, but, we do have more of a reason to love and hate her at the same time. This is what went down these past couple days...

Before purchasing the car, Chad & I ran the car by my father for him to do his 'look and see' check-up that dads with car experience do before their children buy a car. He noticed that the thingy's on the brakes (rotors or something) were worn and it probably was in need of some brake work. So, as we were 'haggling' with our salesman, we mentioned the brake situation and he proceeded to drop off $500 for us. This made us happy, because we knew the brake changing experience was only really going to cost between $210 and $300. Profit never sounds like a bad thing. Well, because of what all they had to do, it ended up costing about $320. Grrrr #1. But the brakes do work well...and we did still profit...but seriously.

After the deal was done and the brakes were new and non-squeaky, we decided it would probably be smart to get the tires checked and rotated, maybe aligned and whatever else those tire guys do. Chad & I, while they were working on our car, decided to walk across the street and enjoy ourselves a nice lunch at Outback. MMMM. Then we got a call....dun dun dun. The tire guy says, "there's a couple problems with your old tires, and it may be necessary for you to replace them completely". So, luckily we were pretty much done with our lunch, and we proceeded to re-cross the street and see what was up. Turns out the tires were pretty much slashed on the inside from wear and tear and they weren't going to last much longer. Not a good thing when you are about to embark on a 2000 mile journey home. So, $625 we got brand new, non-slashed, perfectly healthy tires. Grrrrr #2.

So, the bad news is that the car we thought we got at a great price has really turned out to eat more of our pocket book than we had hoped. But, the good news is, we have a perfectly healthy, ready-to-drive and beautiful car that is probably working better now than it was when it was first created. All we are really worried about is being safe and we believe we have done everything we need to to make that happen. Sometimes, it just hurts, haha.

Just had to share our latest experiences with you. Thanks for listening. :) Don't worry, she's still loved.

The Car is Purchased...

Well, Dave Ramsey would be proud. Chad & I spent a very long 4 days out looking for a used car that would prove good to us for the next 4 or 5 years. It turned out to be a lot more draining of a process than I originally had imagined, but in the end, I believe we won. We found a 2004 Pontiac Grand Am in great shape and for a good price here in San Angelo. It just so happened to be our favorite car color, which is charcoal gray. It has black interior with the usual things a 2004 vehicle should have. It runs nicely and it's definitely going to get the job done, or at least we hope it will. My biggest thing was finding one with enough room for adults to ride in the back seat comfortably and to be able to fit baby seats in there, for the far-off future of course. :) But anyways, we are excited about it and happy about our purchase...oh yea, and we paid cash for it! There's nothing like getting it done all in one swoop! It was a little weird writing the check for that big of an amount though. Biggest one I've ever done! Here are somes pics...

We're proud of her. Now we just have to come up with a name for her...:)

Glory Days...

Well, as you can probably imagine, our first few days with each other have been wonderful. It's so weird that they can be gone for that long and then come home, and it's almost like he never left at all. I guess that's how you know you've found the real thing. No matter what you go through, all of the elements stay the same. Love, playfulness, laughter, and happiness. It's been great. And I definitely DID shave Cass...I know you'll be proud to know I absolutely fit that into my list of things to do! haha. And it paid off if you know what I mean...and I know you do! ;) haha.

Here are a few pics of his return. This is in the baggage claim of the massive Mathis Field Airport in San Angelo. So glad he was finally in my arms again. And he got skinny, that punk, haha! :) I'm not complaining...just jealous!

This week so far has been filled with car searching & hanging out with the family. We went out on Friday night with my family to Graham's to go dance the night away. It was a good time. Then we went and played Disk Golf out at the lake Sunday afternoon when the weather was gorgeous. It was just one of those days where you couldn't keep yourself inside...we had to go do something fun in the sun so we went with a group of my brother's friends to learn the new game. It was a great day. Here's a pic of that...it was a blast...I encourage you to try it.

Well, he's running me out the door real fast before we go eat, so I'll be back with more later. Adios! :)

The Countdown...

Well, I finally got the call yesterday from Chad saying he was home safe to NC. He is currently on the way to the airport in NC with his brother to get on the plane towards Texas...and ME! He arrives at the San Angelo airport at 11:00 pm tonight. We made signs the other day and we (as in my family) are all very excited for his return. Only 10 1/2 hours until my dreams have come true again.

He is so excited to be home. When he called yesterday, he was like a little kid let loose for free reign in a candy store. He got to sleep in our wonderful bed last night (I'm jealous) and when he inprocessed this morning we were rewarded with an extended Rest & Relaxation period. It's usually 2 weeks for the guys when they return before they have to return to work, but our commander decided it would be silly to make everyone come back on a Thursday or Friday, so he threw in an extra weekend and we don't have to be back until March 10th. That's super-exciting! You can never have too much paid & free leave!

Now, I must return to my monstrous list of things to get done by 10:30 pm tonight. I left quite a few things undone so today's time might pass faster. YAY for the return of true happiness!

Home Again, Home Again...

I am currently anxiously awaiting the call from my wonderful hubby's cell phone to mine saying he has landed in NC and home safe! We are so excited he is going to be back! I'm sure they are all very ready to get off of the plane and on with their REAL lives.

Come on phone...just RING! That's what you were made to do...:)

P.S. I get to actually SEE him, HOLD him, KISS him, TACKLE him in just a short 36 hours from NOW! Woo-hoo! :)

Movie Review & More...

Well, I thought 27 Dresses was a really cute movie. I must admit that I felt like it was a slight knock-off to a couple other romantic comedies that I already love, including How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days, with the whole 'write an acticle that upsets you' thing & The Holiday with the whole "I'm deeply in love with my co-worker but am too ashamed to tell him" thing...but it was still cute. I really like James Marsden...he's super-cute and very likeable on-screen. Some of those dresses were truly hideous. Thank God I've never been in a wedding like that! I have to admit though, I think I may be qualified to put 'professional bridesmaid' on my resume here in just a couple more weddings, haha. It's fun though and I love helping out with the biggest days of my best friends' lives. They always create memories you never forget (especially yours Cassandra! Thanks!:)).

We're only 4 short (in theory) days away from seeing my wonderful hubby. They have changed his return date about 4 times now, but I think we may have it finally. I never put all of my hope in one basket though...I KNOW better than that by now! This is why we must be flexible. It hurts, but in the end it's all good. I just want him home safely...that's my main concern...then we can move onto the rest.

Ohhhhh, to have him in bed with me at night again...what a wonderful, and very missed, feeling. MMMmmm.....

Movie Night!

I'm going to go see 27 dresses with my best friend, Elya, her fiancee, John, & another best friend, Ashley, tonight at 10:35. Kind of late to start a 2-hour movie, but I'll be a trooper and hang in there. I bought us theatre-style candy at the store today so we could save a collective $10 on the over-priced stuff they have at the movie counter (don't tell on me, please! :)). I'm excited to see this one because I like Katherine Heigl a lot and the guy in it (I've lost his name) is super hott. It should be a great romantic comedy...which I have decided is currently my favorite movie category. I'm over all of the on-the-edge-of-your-seat horror films I used to watch and the goofy comedies I've always loved (don't worry, Dumb & Dumber is still my favorite of all time). I think I just enjoy the happy ending feel of the romantic movies out there. I'll be sure to come and report back to those of you who haven't seen it yet. Off to Starbucks for a pre-movie mingle. Adios for now...