Baby Season = Baby Gifts

It seems like it's baby season around here. Ever since I took up quilting I've found myself trying to "make" something for my expectant mommy friends. One (or three) thing I figured out in Guam was:

a) it's a freakin' baby factory

b) baby showers had the frequency of happy hours (mostly because it's an excuse to have a party) 

c) it was very difficult to find an original gift when your shopping options are limited to the BX and NEX. 

So of course I started to wish I had the ability to make unique baby gifts that the mother could actually use. So fast forward to this year when I finally learned how to sew. One thing my sister warned me about when making a quilt for a friend was to never promise a finish date. Well that just confirms I am a slow learner. Because the following two quilts were made in a combined total of four days. I'm the queen of procrastination but I promised (really, myself more than anyone) I would get these done in time for a baby shower and Thanksgiving. The first one was made for my friend Mary who is expecting a baby girl next month. It was my first time trying applique and while a bit time consuming, I think I'll get better at it and therefore I can venture into names or at least initials soon!

The next quilt has been in the works (ie: my head) for months. My dear friend and former Guam neighbor Julie is having a baby girl next month as well. I called her up a few months ago to let her know that I wanted to make her daughter a quilt. Based on her plans for the baby room I picked out some fabulous Moda and Michael Miller fabrics along with an adorable shabby-chic-esque pattern. In my usual ways I started it but didn't get serious about it until about two days before we were headed down to North Carolina to spend Thanksgiving with Julie and her family. Yikes! Since I just don't trust the post office with a hand made piece like this I was determined to hand carry it with me for the occasion. Fortunately when I get working on something I can't stop and I guess that worked in my favor last week. I finished it up the morning we left and whew! It's done! It was my second attempt at machine quilting (sewing patterned lines throughout the quilt instead of tying little knots over the span of the quilt, like the first one) and while it takes twice as much time to do, I think the effect is fabulous!

I think I'm going to take a short break on quilts for now but I am sure it won't be long before my mind is conjuring up another creation. 

It's so wrong...but so right!

I feel like I'm committing the Cardinal Sin. Done the dirty deed. Considered the unthinkable....

I've started playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving. 

Where have my standards gone? I've always sided with Nordstrom in keeping all things Christmas to the day after the day of Thanks.  I suppose it's relief from the two 80 degree days we just had. Or my two years in tropical Guam. Tonight it's a chilly 43 degrees outside, rainy and downright cozy inside here. With a fire in the fireplace, batch of bread in the oven and our Christmas letter in the works, I just had to turn it on. And if I didn't, I'm pretty sure the Mister would have ESPN on.

Joy to the World!

1,000 Miles!

I'm sure I'm the only one who has paid attention to my running log (and that's okay!) so I guess I just have to announce that I surpassed 1,000 miles since I started my blog in August 2009!

I don't normally take pictures when I run (I'm always a hot mess, it's just gross) but here's a few I found from my adventures:

Taking a "nap" break during a run in Sydney, Australia

August 2009

Kona, Hawaii

August 2009

Running with Chels in Fayetteville, NC

January 2010

 Jingle Bell Run in Guam

December 2009

One of a few dozen 5K's we all ran in Guam

Spring 2010

Running break in Guam:

September 2010

Safari Park 1/2 Marathon, San Diego

March 2011

Yosemite 

July 2011

Hopefully I'll keep it up. Especially with this cooler weather we have now, it's perfect for running. Oh and if you want to be impressed, check out Andrew's blog. Andrew is married to my friend Stephanie in Guam and this rockstar has set out to run 1200 miles in 2011. He's doing so well he's aiming to hit 1500 by December 31st. You might want to check it out, it flat out impresses me. 

In the meantime, here's to another 1,000 miles!

My first hurricane...

and it already feels like old hat. I'm reminded once again that my time on Guam (and oddly California) prepared me well for natural disasters. This week has been a doozy for Southern Virginia. We've had a huge wildfire (in the Great Dismal Swamp no less) that has been going on for awhile now and this week the winds were blowing the smoke our way to the point where we had smoke clouds resting below our second floor. Then we get the BIG ONE. Or at least the big one for this area. As a native Californian I thought I was just going crazy. My initial thought was "Oh, an earthquake....wait....HERE??" Once I heard the pot rack clanging downstairs I realized I still had most of the tools in my shed and it was in fact, an earthquake. I love that the top complaint on the news was of wine bottles tipping over.

So that brings me to the hurricane bearing down on us. I just came in from a walk with the dog and the humidity is ripe and ready for action. While no direct hits during my time on Guam we prepared for more than one typhoon. I think we had at least four close brushes the first year I was there. Scary enough that the entire island went into TYCOR 1 (island speak for lockdown), meaning everything from the lawn mower to the lawn furniture and BBQ were shoved into our houses, our typhoon shutters (no plywood here!) were locked shut on our bunkers and generators were gassed up. Trampolines and swing sets were chained to palm trees and our blenders were ready for margaritas. We were like a bubble that year, for some reason every storm bounced off our little landmass while managing to hit neighboring islands and then proceeded to hurl itself into the Philippines or Japan. Considering the last major storm to hit Guam was Super Typhoon Pongsona, who's eye plowed right over the island and winds topped 175mph, we were lucky! Still, we were always stocked up on batteries, water, flashlights, candles and gas for our generators. The island has been known to go without power (and sometimes water) for months after those storms. Nothing to mess with.

So I suppose that is why I'm not freaking out about this hurricane. We live in a well built house, away from the coast and far from any of the area's flood zones plus we have the supplies we need (water, batteries, beer and wine...you know, the basics). We figured there was no reason to take up an inland hotel room from people who are under mandatory evacuation orders. If we get tired of the power being out next week, we'll head up to my sister's house and bunk with her for a few days. She doesn't know that yet but she always appreciates a visit from her fun little sister. =)

For now, bring it on Irene!

Such Creativity!

So I'm back from Yosemite but while I compile my pictures I thought I'd share this awesome post from my Guam friend, Peyton. She has inspired me to become a little more creative with my sewing skills...and it gave me a little laugh this morning!

Attacking the Mending Pile

One HECK of an update!

So a few of you have poked and prodded wondering when I’ll finally update the blog. Of course I keep giving the excuse that I need time to think about what I want to write, edit etc. Well considering I’m sitting in the Petsmart parking lot waiting for Cheddar to finish her doggie spa day (if only dogs enjoyed pampering as much as we do…) and my purse has already been cleaned out, the excuses are up!

So last I wrote I think we had just gone to Palau. Well hope you’re comfy cause your in for a long one but I promiste I’ll try (that being the operative word) to be humorous. Since then we’ve been a little busy. Packed up our entire house, shipped our car, the dog and ourselves to the States! Our time on Guam came to a sad but good close. Lots of goodbye lunches and dinners, happy hours, luaus, picnics and well wishes until we see each other again (and yes the US Navy guarantees you will see each other again…at some point!). It never gets old to look back at how many friends we've been fortunate to make in our lives, an impressive bulk of them on Guam no less!

Additionally we had Colin's last flight with HSC-25. I barely caught his fly-in on video (sneaky sucker!) but my good friend Jackie managed to catch a couple of photos for me! I had the pleasure of hosing him down, a custom usually reserved to a family member or friend upon a last flight. I think he enjoyed it considering he gave me a big soggy hug!

Our "Bail plaque" at the squadron's 

Hail and Bail on GabGab Beach in January

Our church Lutheran Church of Guam held a farewell luau for the five couples leaving island this winter. We were one of those couples and boy did we have a great time! It was sad to see everyone for the last time but again, I'm sure we'll see many of them again someday soon!

Guest of Honor. :)

Pastor Jeff and us!

CHUUK

Our last few days in Mircronesia were capped off with a trip to Chuuk (or Truk, depending on your historical preferences). This is one of those places we’ve been wanting to dive so we managed to squeeze three days of diving WW2 wrecks before flying to Virginia, our next station. Chuuk was pretty cool although it does make Guam look like Waikiki.  All the mud lakes puddles made for a 45 minute trip from the airport to the dock. The distance? Two miles. 

We took a little boat to our ship, the SS Thorfinn, that we’d call home for the next few days. I wish the trip started out better, there was a pretty bad storm that came in and as a result, brought huge swells into the Chuuk lagoon. From previous blogs you all probably know my tolerance for bad seas….nada. Hoping my Dramamine could handle the battle, Colin and I stowed our suitcases, setup our gear and jumped into the dive boat. It took 20 minutes to reach the dive site and I already knew I was soggy toast. When we cut the motor we couldn’t even standup without holding on for dear life. You gotta love watching everyone take their dear time donning their gear despite the hellacious conditions and seagreen shade of my complexion.  Hello?? Girl ready to puke here! I As I shoved encouraged everyone into the water I began to panic as I was about to vomit and couldn’t hold onto the anchor line. I let out the air in my BC (vest) in hopes of a fast descent to get out of the swells….except I couldn’t sink! My lungs were so full of air from the panic I couldn’t allow myself to sink. That’s when my savior, Hayley (our divemaster) swam to me, added some weights to my vest, held my hand and pulled me under. I’m pretty sure this is the only situation I can think of where getting pulled under water in stormy conditions is actually a calming feeling. Pretty sure.

I pretty much spent the 40 minute dive trying to balance my equilibrium while everyone else enjoyed looking at artifacts on an old Japanese merchant ship. Don't I look happy here? ;p

We finally ascended (note: panic setting in again) and as the swells began to carry us we took our 10 minute safety stop (a normal one is 2-3 minutes but they require 10 minutes due to the deep depths of these sites). I couldn’t handle the fact that I was already on the verge of vomiting again so I shot up 3 minutes early and well, fed the fish. All I can say is I feel terrible for the dive guides, our fellow guests and my dear husband who had to witness my first dive with them. Needless to say I spent the rest of the afternoon curled up in the fetal position in my stateroom, sleeping off some of the worst nausea I’ve encountered yet. If you’re still reading this well, I applaud your stomach! I promise, that is the last of my pathetic sickness stories! 

The rest of the dives were pretty awesome. ALMOST better than Palau I have to admit. It was like going back in time, we’d dive 90-130 feet down to these Japanese destroyers and tankers where everything literally stopped in time when they were bombed over 65 years ago by the Americans. While we only dived a handful of the 70 or so shipwrecks, we got to see and touch things like teakettles and rice bowls to tanks and bullets.  Colin even saw a skull on one of the dives I didn’t go on.  I even got to swim with a turtle on our last dive. It made me (almost) forget about the first day and fortunately I will remember Chuuk fondly…I just hope the dive staff of our ship will remember me to such a degree!

Remaining pages of a book...amazing!

One of too many sake bottles I found

Telegraph

Teapot

More sake bottles

I named this dude Speed, it took some effort 

on my part to keep up with him!

Colin, recycling.

Tank

11,000 miles later we spent the better part of a week house hunting in the Hampton Roads area, our next station. Here we are: two virgin home buyers, a big city (make that seven little cities) neither of us have ever spent any time in, and five days to make a decision that will affect a substantial part of our future….that’s a lot ot think about! I think we saw 30 houses in five days, my brain about went on strike. In the end we decided despite finding a great house or two we weren’t comfortable enough with the area to make a sound decision. I mean, buying a house IS a big decision!  So we’re working on finding a short term rental for the time being until we can find a neighborhood and house that we like!

After the failed house hunting trip we headed back across the country to San Diego. Colin enjoyed a couple of days with my family, we even enjoyed the Naval Aviation 100th Anniversary Air Show on North Island that weekend, so fun!

Colin and his friend Matt (also a recent Ex-Guamite) in

front of the first plane they flew in flight school

Perhaps one of the coolest sights I've ever seen. 

The carrier USS Stennis' ENTIRE fixed airwing 

flying over in formation...that's 40 aircraft people. All I can say is whoever coordinated that feat needs a promotion...just sayin'

Only because he just loves commercial travel, Colin flew BACK across the country to attend a month long class in Florida earning him a grand total of 17,000 frequent flyer miles in 10 days. If he ever decides to run for political office, he'll have the campaign stop deal down cold. =) So that left me time with the family, friends whom I haven’t seen in awhile. I've also kept busy with running. Gone are the days of 80+ degrees/90% humidity weather, instead I’m running in gorgeous high fifties , low sixties temps and great sights! I’m running the Safari Park Half Marathon next Sunday and hopefully my ten mile training run today was enough to get me through it on Sunday!

So I suppose everything has been updated. I’ve gone through half a box of teddy grahams which tells me I need to put it away and go pick up the mutt.

Stay tuned for a recap on my two years in Guam complete with an OOG (Only on Guam) photo gallery, one not to be missed. =)

Caitlyn

And so it begins...

Moving that is. I am currently sitting on the floor with my laptop and hubby "supervising" the packing. It's funny, everyone says "Oh they come and do it for you, you don't have to do anything!". Wrong! We've spent the last two days trying to figure out what we'll need for the next 2 months en route to Virginia. Once we siphoned off our bathroom with all the "Don't pack this!" stuff, exiled all of our yard sale stuff to the backyard this morning, we found out we had to sort through all the rest of our junk to remove liquids, food, flammables (spray paint I knew, duh. But nail polish??), batteries, light bulbs and candles. Because they won't do it. Given they arrived 1 1/2 hours late AND took two breaks before noon tells me it's going to be a LONG two days. I pitched the thought of running out to get food for them because it'd only give them another reason to take a break. Oh Guam!

A Guamified Christmas!

Well I love to brag that I tend to be healthy as a horse but of course that only comes back to bite me in the bootie. And boy did it ever! Christmas outdid me this year as I've been down for the count the past four days with the flu. Fortunately it came after the holiday and not before!

We had a nice Christmas here in Guam. It was my first away from home but I'd say being surrounded by so many friends helped tremendously. So did cooking for 20. I took on my dad's Italian Christmas tradition and along with my fabulous husband, we cooked shrimp linguine for our friends on Christmas day. So delicious and easy to make!

 LCG Christmas Eve Service: Christmas at the Caves, complete with a manger scene! Although I wasn't aware there were carabao back in the day...

(yep that does say Bud Light Ct...OOG)

Dinner at the Chance Villa...Buon Natale!

 Given the strange angles of my house, I did my very best to get everyone in this picture:

We had tiramisu, cookies and pecan pie for dessert!

The kiddos!

We went diving with our friends the Fishers and Phillips' the day after Christmas. We dove a couple of great locations on Guam, everyone says they found a cool octopus. I did not. So either they're pulling my leg or the darn octo climbed back into his hole before I could swim over.

Overall, a great Christmas! We pack out in two weeks but not without a trip to Palau. More on that to come!