Military Life

  • Colorado,  Military Life

    Deployment Diaries: Surviving Solo Parenting to 2 under 3

    We knew at some point in our marriage and Stephen’s career in the Army that he would have to deploy. What we didn’t realize was how soon it would be after moving to Fort Carson and having a second child. At the time of his departure, our son, Levi, was just 6 months old and our daughter, Lillie, was almost 2.5 years old. It’s been almost two weeks since I started the long road of solo parenting to two small children during Stephen’s deployment. I can already tell this will be a season of life like no other. I’m going to share what is working for us, what has helped…

  • first snow in colorado springs 2021
    Colorado,  Lifestyle,  Military Life,  United States

    We’ve Moved (& More Life Updates) | Germany to Colorado

    Whew, it’s been a while yall! The last blog I wrote was back in June of 2021. I can’t believe it’s been almost a year since then. So much has happened since we moved from Germany to Colorado, so let’s do a recap of the last year… We came down with military orders in August 2021 that set us to leave Grafenwoehr, Germany in early November 2021. That’s when things really got busy. I got pregnant for the second time in a few short months after a miscarriage, we had to make all of our out-processing appointments, organize and purge things from our home, and get ready to ship all…

  • home in germany, kaltenbrunn military community grafenwoehr
    Germany,  Military Life,  Personal

    We’ve Moved! A Tour of Our New Home in Germany

    (March 2021 update: whew, I read back over this post and realize I had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. I’m not going to delete things out of this post, because I think it’s important for me to remember what I liked about Kaltenbrunn at first. But, this place was terrible. The dog park backyard turned into nothing but piles of poop, the small playground was nothing but a spot for dogs to pee on, and the small rooms developed mold quickly. There was drama, baby mama drama, and even more drama! We were fortunate enough to move to a bigger government house in the neighborhood called Netzaberg,…

  • moving back to america, colorado springs
    Military Life,  North America,  Personal,  United States

    America, Here We Come

    3 years ago we made the decision to stay in Europe and move from Italy to Germany. I never could have imagined that just a few years later we would be itching to leave and return to the U.S. Between a rough pregnancy, the COVID-19 pandemic, and some health issues with our daughter — it hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows this past year. Thanks to the determination and sacrifices of my husband, Stephen, we are heading to Ft. Carson, Colorado in just a few months. We’re finally moving back to America, y’all! A Recap of Our Time in Germany Our time in Germany started off a little rocky. The…

  • House Hunter International, A Home in Italy
    Europe,  Italy,  Military Life

    House Hunters International – A Home in Vicenza, Italy

    Choosing your first home as a married couple is no simple task, but choosing one in another country…that takes a lot of patience and time. But I can say without a doubt, that once we started looking for a home in Vicenza, Italy, this decision was one of the easiest ones we have ever made as a married couple. I knew we had found the ONE when we stepped out of the car in Costabissara with our translator. I looked over at my husband, and he had this stupid grin on his face. I asked him what he was smirking about and he responded: “I can smell fresh grass!” One of…

  • a fresh start
    Europe,  Military Life,  Personal

    A Fresh Start

    In a little over a week from today, I will board a one-way flight across the ocean. With a new address, a new phone number, and my new last name….all of this feels like a fresh start – a blank slate. While it may not seem that big of a deal to many millennials or some of my fellow readers, keep in mind that I come from a small town where people don’t usually leave. This is a MONUMENTAL event for my family. I asked my dad the other day if he had ever been away from his family, even for a couple months. He simply laughed and said no…

  • Europe,  Italy,  Military Life,  Personal

    The First 48 Hours Living in Italy

    Whew… it has been a complete whirlwind since the moment we landed in Venice at 0900 on Monday morning. We finally made it to our new home around 1630 after an hour bus ride and waiting for a rental car to become available so we could move all 7 of our suitcases to the house. In these last couple of days, I have come to LOVE many things about life in Italy. Heated floors and light switches by the bed are possibly the best things since sliced bread. So is my husband who let me sleep for three hours but then drug me out of the house to go get…

  • Military Life

    100 Days Down

    I’m going to go ahead and apologize in advance for celebrating basically every milestone that comes our way in the future, but at this point in my world (and this new military wife life), these accomplishments are pretty much everything to me! So what about 100 days?! It has been exactly 100 days since I last saw my husband, when we parted ways after our honeymoon at the airport. I was preparing to come back to America, and he was heading off on a short deployment. My heart was broken and I literally had no idea how I could survive the next couple of months without him. I had fears…

  • Military Life

    How To Conquer A Military Move

    Three long months I waited for the day that the movers would come to carry all of my belongings away. Three months of hoping I packed everything, inventoried everything, and that I didn’t pack anything on the “not allowed” list. My situation is probably different than yours or the seasoned military spouse. I’m what’s considered to be a deferred spouse. In army terms, this means that I married my husband after he was already assigned a station. Or in other words, he’s been living in Italy for a year or more before I will be arriving. Why does this matter? Well, it means I had to do all the packing, planning, and…