SHS 7/29

New hunt this week. I had some fun with several of these.


Paint

This was the pink I first picked out for my closet.
Yes, it's Pepto Bismol pink. Yes, I did change it. It is much less shocking now.

 

Green

Basil. How in the world did I live before I had fresh basil?

 

 Eyelashes

How is it possible for a boy to have such wonderful lashes??

Shapes

I love the whimsy of my map push pins.

Clouds

 I love big white fluffy clouds in a beautiful blue sky, don't you?

Next week's assignment:

1. Going Back in Time
2. Something Just for Me
3. Best Part of My Day
4. Night & Day
5. Look Up

Link up over at Rambling and Photos to join the hunt.

Bucket List

There are so many things on my Bucket List, I thought I would share them with you.

These are my top ten, though not necessarily in order.


1. Visit Paris

Ever since I was a teenager, I have wanted to go to Paris. I took four years of French in high school to prepare. I have yet to go, but someday, I will.

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2. Fall Color Tour in New England

Who wouldn't want to walk through this?

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3. See the Aurora Borealis

Oh, the colors...!

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4. See Stonehenge

Ever since reading Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series, I have wanted to go here.

 

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5. Sunrise Hot Air Balloon Ride

I have seen the Albuquerque Balloon Festival. Now, it's time to ride in one.

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6. Alaska Cruise

Well, any cruise really. But I want to visit Alaska anyway.

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8. Lantern Festival in Chaing Mai, Thailand

Just so stunning.

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9. Horseback Riding on the Beach 

With my sweetie, of course.

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10. Hawaii

 To see a red sunset over the Pacific...yes, please.

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 Or a volcano spilling into the ocean!

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Fine, I really want to see it all!

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What about you? What is on your bucket list? I would love to know!

You Capture - Drinks

I have been trying to only drink water lately. I vowed to drink six to eight of these everyday.

But let's be realistic.
I am not going to give these up.

So, I suppose I will have live with both.


Linking up with Beth at You Capture.

Big decision

After 14 years, many discussions, and a bit of anxiety Jerry and I have decided that we are going to get out of the Army.

It has taken us a while to get to this decision and trust me, it has not been an easy one to make.
It has been our life since we got married in 1998.

We have had a lot of good memories in Army life.

Both our boys were born while we have been in, we have survived two deployments to Iraq, and we have seen quite a lot of the country.

 

But, now it's time for something new. 

Jerry has been inquiring about another career on the outside.

He is applying to the Texas State Troopers and several local law enforcement agencies.

 (Yes, he does have a hero complex. Why do you ask?)

I have loved being an Army wife. Well, most of the time. 

I have made a lot of friends and have left a lot of friends.

I have seen a lot of things and I have learned to be quite independent.

And I am going to miss it tremendously.

Ok, not the long deployments, the single parenting, the bureaucracy, the waiting and waiting and waiting...

But, I am definitely going to miss the sisterhood of Army wives that has made life in the military easier to bear.

Without them, I do not think we would have made it this far.

Now, I am trusting God in this new adventure that we are about to embark upon.

Now we finally get the chance to settle in one place, to put down roots, and have our children be around family consistently. 

I will be taking advantage of free babysitting, I assure you.

I am going to be posting soon about the progress we have made on our house that we will be moving into later this week.

If you think about it, please pray for us.

This is going to be a whole new world.

You Capture Black & White

I love transforming photos into black & white.
It just changes the whole feel of the picture.

These are a few that I took during my vacation with my best friend a couple of weeks ago.

A natural spring in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

The reflecting pool at the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial.
 

Lake Overholster Bridge on Route 66 in Oklahoma.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday - On Tuesday

I have really missed SHS while I was gone on vacation.

I love taking pictures and seeing what new perspectives I can get for ordinary things.
Thanks, Ashley, for helping us expand on out photography skills!

Here are my interpretations from this week.


Water

This is one of the springs from Hot Springs, Arkansas where I spent part of my vacation. And, yes, it was hot! 143 degrees hot. But, so very pretty!


Petal

 

 These are my current favorite flowers. I love the contrast in the colors.


Fresh

Mmmmm...fresh ground coffee. Nothing else needs to be said.


Eight

James, my little man, my baby, turned eight this year. I think I will start putting brinks on his head to make him stop growing. Yeah, that's my plan.


Calm

I was surprised how calming painting turned out to be. It's a good thing, because there was a lot of painting to be done with the house renovations.



Link up with Ashley over at Ramblings and Photos to get in on the fun.



Next week:

Wrapped 
Time Together 
Tell Me a Story 
Love or Couple 
Duplicated

Mini Vacation

My long time best friend, Michele and I got together while I was on vacation for a little mini vacation.

No kids, no spouses, so responsibilities for a week.
(Thanks, honey for taking the kids!)

We decided that since we couldn't really go on a long road trip within the time constraints that were imposed on us (thanks, honey), we would go to Oklahoma City since I had never been there before.

And since we left late in the day, we arrived late in the night.
But, that's ok because seeing the OKC Bombing Memorial is much more touching at night.

It is impressive during the day, too. Just not as much.

Then we visited the Oklahoma Stockyards.

Where we got up close and personal with some of the inhabitants.

 Nice piggy!
This one was very curious about our intrusion into his space.


While in OKC, we visited Toby Keith's "I Love This Bar" Bar.

Made new friends at the Osteology Museum. 

 It's a very cool place. If you ever get the chance, be sure to visit. 
And make friends of your own. They encourage it.


Before we left the city, we went to the Route 66 park where I walked the entire length of the iconic highway.

See, now I don't have to drive it all, right?


We got on the real Route 66 and visited several of the sights.

After having all the fun we could in OKC, we headed off to Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Where we played in their tubs.

And torture chambers, otherwise known as steamers and needle showers.

We had a great time together.

I am so thankful for good friends and summer vacations.