Love the Boy, Hate the Uniform

E's deployment date already got moved, to a slightly earlier date, which made me panic briefly before I sternly told myself that it didn't matter, and we might as well get it over with as soon as possible. I know that the date may change at least once more, as the military typically likes to shift things around.

The military is like some sort of sadistic lover, tugging at your emotions just for the hell of it. I want this third wheel of an establishment to be out of our relationship, and I'm relieved that E is getting out of active duty pretty much as soon as he gets home from this deployment. I'm grateful that this is very likely the first and last time I will need to go through this process. I have so much respect for other families who do this multiple times, or for a lifetime. 

The worst part of it, is that I have a countdown app on my iphone that has events like his deployment, my graduation, important birthdays etc. Deployment is the next event, and I look at that number every day, the one that tells me how many days and hours I have left with my love (its probably a bad habit). When I had to move that date, I suddenly lost a few numbers, a few days that I assumed I had with him. And thats what made the panic flare up. 

But if I'm being reasonable, I know that the sooner we can start this the sooner we can get this over and done with forever. So I keep repeating that in my head over, and over, and over...

Drink Mix Review Part 1

Because his departure is looming ever closer, we've begun to start accumulating more things and setting more solid plans. We seem to have a solid plan for storing all his stuff, and for moving some of my stuff from my apartment in to live with his stuff while I flee with the essentials to my hometown for the duration of this little slice of hell.


We also started taste testing water flavoring mixes, because we know he will need to stay super hydrated, and that plain water gets dull for him after a while. Neither of us like the taste of fake sugars, especially aspartame, and we wanted to stay as far away from those as possible. I soon realized that trying to find drink mixes with only real sugar was pretty much impossible though, so we started finding ones with less offensive sweeteners like sucralose and truvia. We know that he will get sick of just one type/flavor of drink mix, so we're trying to find a few that he likes. So far we've tried:


 True Lemon, which I loved, but E found too tart for his taste. Not surprising, because plain lemon juice in water is one of my favorite things, while he generally prefers sweeter drinks. So he found this boring, and it will probably not be included (though I get to keep the rest of the package =D).

We also got our hands on some Mio. I liked it after the first sip, but on the second, I noticed it tasted a bit like gasoline...and then I couldn't stop tasting gasoline until I just couldn't bear to take another sip. E, on the other hand, liked it a lot, though we both agree it needs to be very watered down. A little goes a LONG way. In any case, E wants to try a couple more flavors, but thinks this might be a keeper for him. It is super easy to use and will probably last a long time, plus its really small and will be easier than boxes of powder sticks to tuck into care packages.

The last one we have formally taste tested was Crystal Light Pure Lemonade. I liked this one the best, especially when I watered it down considerably to dull the burn your mouth sweetness that all these kinds of mixes have. It didn't have that awful aspartame tang and aftertaste, though you could tell there was still something fake tasting about it. But all in all, I thought it was the best so far. E agreed that it was good, though he still preferred the Mio, and thus it stays on our short list. 

We have a couple others I picked up at an REI store that have real sugar, that we are going to get to later this week. Other than that, school is heating up and I have a huge to-do list to accomplish this week!

Confirmation

We have a set date & time now.


Be still my heart.


Somehow it makes it feel more real.


Before the date was solidified, there was still a remote chance it could be called off. But I can't say I didn't expect this. I know I have to do this, so I'm just really ready to just get this whole thing over with.

Spring Break 2012

Everything I've been avoiding thinking about is suddenly staring me in the face now that break is over. It was only a week, so why does everything seem so much closer on this side of it??


Regardless, I had a simple and relaxing break at home, caught up with a couple close friends and family. I know I'll be back for an extended period of time in two months, so I wasn't rushing to try and see and do everything. I have a hefty list to keep me busy this summer instead.

These are a few of my favorite things:

Just a few snapshots of life.

<3

Canada Planning Pt. Deux

Ok. So onto Victoria, B.C. for the second leg of our trip. 


Butchart Gardens: 

Sea Kayaking: 

British Shopping: 

Canada Planning

E is leaving just a few weeks before I graduate from college. Upon my graduation, my mom and younger brother are headed up here so we can take a long-awaited trip to Canada. Basically, I'll be busy for about a month after he leaves, first with finals, then with Canada, and finally with moving out of my apartment and back home at the end of May. Frankly, I'm glad of the distractions, and really, planning my Canadian mini-vacation is a good distraction for right now as well. I know saying goodbye is going to be horrifically difficult, but a small part of me will be glad that at least we can start this thing and not be caught up in thinking about it and preparing for it constantly, which has been emotionally draining. Basically, I'm ready to start it so it can be over. 


OK. So. Canada. I'm thinking of starting in Vancouver, since thats where I really wanna go.


Gastown:

Stanley Park:

Robson Street:

Kitsilano Pool:

Granville Island:

As well as general exploring, bars, nightlife, and lots and lots of food. Brother will be of legal drinking age under Canadian law as well, so that should be fun!

As for Victoria, BC, it looks beautiful and I'll be updating my must-see list shortly. 

Upsides and Downsides of it Being March

Upsides:


-Winter is losing its grip
-Days are getting longer
-I get to start slowly buying things in prep for deployment
-Spring Break is next week and I get to go home
-I get to start planning my Canadian vacation with mom and brother


Downsides:


-This is probably the last full month I have with him before he goes


And that pretty much trumps eveything else.


.