PCS/Life Update

OK so it's been a while since I have even been on this blog thing and I really want to get back into it. Life has been busy for us.

First I finished up two of my last three classes at Savannah Tech toward my Patient Care Tech certificate! Last one will be done this semester! Whoop whoop :)

Second Emma has been out of daycare so I am trying to find ways to keep her busy. We are doing swim lessons and attempted a gymnastics class, that was interesting. She loves her swim class and thanks to The Little Mermaid, says she can swim like Ariel now. She probably doesn't fully understand but says she is excited for our move to Hawaii!

Today I spent most of the day running around like a chicken with my head cut off to get papers turned in for our move. Last time I updated I think we were at 274 day mark... Today my tracker says 55 DAYS! eekkk

I can't believe what all we have to get done. We will be having yard sales and prepping this house for our departure... I shouldn't say WE because it will be ME! Rob has training for one month in Alabama so he will not be here and won't be here until right before we move. So in true Army fashion it is up to this mama and wife to get stuff done. The joke is on you Army people because THIS girl has got this under control! Packers have been scheduled and briefings have been set up... in 55 short days I will be living in paradise with my amazing daughter and awesome husband and none of this stuff will matter.

This blog was kind of pointless but maybe I'll get back into it and have something better to talk about!

Until next time XOXO 

Beef & Barley Soup

I ya'll haven't heard it is freaking COLD here! There was "supposedly" going to be snow in Savannah last night but instead we got ICE! So so so cold... like our heater is frozen and not working so we have the oven propped open and a space heater going. Anyway cold days are SOUP days! Tonight I made some beef and barley *I used brown rice* soup and it was SO yummy. Here is the recipe...

Beef and Barley Soup

Ingredients:

- 1 tsp oil *I use coconut oil*

- 1 1/2 lb lean stew meat

- 1 cup chopped carrots

- 1 cup chopped onions

- 1/2 cup chopped celery

- 2 cloves chopped garlic

- 6 cups water

- 1-2 tsp salt *I left this out*

- 2 bay leaves

- 2/3 cup barley *I used 1 cup of brown rice*

- fresh ground black pepper

**- I added 1 can of no salt added diced tomatoes**

What to do...... 

- Brown the meat in a large pot with 1 tsp oil

- when meat is done browning add the chopped carrots, onions, garlic and celery. stir together and let cook for a few minutes

- now add the water, bay leaves, diced tomatoes and salt/pepper if you're going to use it. once it starts boiling put lid on it and let simmer for an hour stirring occasionally

- add barley *in my case brown rice* cook 30-35 more minutes

Hope you enjoy! 

XOXO

Stuffed Bell Pepper Recipe

Last night I wanted to make something new and yummy... After looking in my refrigerator I decided I would find a good stuffed bell pepper recipe. Since we are not eating red meat I needed to find something with ground turkey or chicken. I looked on www.skinnytaste.com and WOALAAA I found it. So here it is...

Turkey Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients:

- 1lb 95% ground turkey meat

- 1 minced garlic

- 1/4 minced onion

- 1tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

- 1tsp garlic powder

- 1tsp cumin powder

- salt to taste *I left this out*

- 3 large sweet bell peppers, washed and with seeds out *mine were small peppers*

- 1 cup fat free chicken broth *I used water*

- 1/4 cup tomato sauce

- 1 1/2 cups cooked rice *I used brown rice*

- olive oil spray *I used coconut oil*

- 1/4 cup reduced fat shredded cheese *Rob used it not me*

Here is what I did...

-I put about 1tbsp of coconut oil in a large pan and added the minced garlic, cilantro and onions let it cook until onions are soft, about 2 minutes. 

-Add the ground turkey, cumin and garlic powder, brown meat several minutes until cooked.

-Add tomato sauce and broth *water* stir together and let it simmer about 5 minutes. Then add the cooked rice.

-After it has simmered a couple minutes spoon it into the bell peppers that you have already cut in half, lengthwise and de-seeded. 

***Rob likes his for with a kick so for his I added chopped jalapeno peppers***

-Place the stuffed halves into a baking dish *whatever left over mix and sauce you have pour over peppers* and cover it tight with aluminum foil then bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

This was super yummy and is one I will definitely make again!!! 

Hope you enjoy!

XOXO

OH Happy Day!

It is OFFICIAL... we belong to the Army for another three years *and hopefully more after this!*

Which also means we WILL be Hawaii bound in just a few more months. I know I know I already said we knew that is where we would be going but the funny thing about the Army is the curve balls and the timing of them. Literally as I posted my blog about my Hawaiian bucket list my dear sweet man texted me asking this,

"if they say Germany is available do you want to go?"

Now yes as you can imagine my head spun completely around on my shoulders and I did NOT text back I called because I wanted to tell my husband 

"ABSO-FREAKING-LUTELY!!!!"

What actually came out was closer to

"why are you doing this to me? I just posted a Hawaiian bucket list!" 

After discussing it more we decided YES if Germany were available we would go. So he went into the meeting and Germany WAS available IF he waited to re enlist until after going to the board and IF he got his promotable status... A LOT of IF's! Mama does not like IF's. But we decided to wait a bit and then we decided, after some pushing to re enlist from the Army happened, that we would stick with our original orders and head to Hawaii. 

So there it is. Robs ceremony was today at 1400 and I am so proud of him. He is such an amazing husband and daddy and also an amazing Soldier. He has so much pride in what he does for the country he serves and I could not be more proud to call him mine.

These next several months will be jam packed with craziness and on top of that I will working on getting healthy! I have decided to try a 24 day challenge with AdvoCare and if I like what I see I may go on to do more. BUT where this is going is I will be posting healthy recipes I am trying at home so I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

XOXO

O'Ahu Hawaii Bucket List

As I sit here looking at my tracker on my phone it says I have 274 days until HAWAII! That is crazy to me. It still does not feel real that in just 9 months, 39 weeks.... 274 days I will be on island time for three years! It is all so bitter sweet. So I started thinking about things I wish we would have done while in Savannah that we never did because we just kept putting them off, thinking we had more time. Well our time is coming to an end and we only did a handful of fun things that Savannah has to offer.

I want to go to Hawaii with a list. A list that we can have and see and check off as we complete. What better place to share that list then here?!? :) 

So here is my list and with each thing I will tell a little about what makes it sound so cool to me!

1. Hike up the Ha'iku stairs.

Ok so yes I did see this when Instagram posted a picture of it yesterday but then I looked it up and thought wow I think I really would like to do that! Back in 1942 the stairs were installed to enable antenna cables to be strung from one side of the valley to the other. There are 3,922 steps.

2. Attend a Luau/ eat Hawaiian cuisine.

I have been to a Luau before but it was when I was much younger and I want to go to one again with my family <3

3. Go to North Shore and watch surfers do Banzai Pipeline.

It is know for its massive waves and surfer competitions and I think it would be really awesome to see.

4. Hike to Makapu'u Point.

It is about a mile each way to a point the is 647ft above the sea.

5. Visit Pearl Harbor and USS Arizona.

USS Arizona is the resting place of 1,102 of our fallen Heroes. Our men and women fight daily for the freedoms we have and I just want to pay tribute to the ones who gave their lives for us.

6. Hike Diamond Head.

It is a 0.75mile hike to the top of the craters edge. It is one of O'Ahus most known attractions.

7. Visit Kualoa Ranch.

During World War II the US Military used it as shelter, protection and defense. It is 4000 acres of sacred ground today. We will be able to horse back ride and ride ATVs as well as hike the area.

8. Take a picture on the Leeward Coast.

The hiking is amazing and Ka'ena Point is beautiful and it has the highest number of nearshore humpback whale sightings.

9. Tour the Dole Plantation.

Who doesn't like pineapple?!?

10. Skydive!!!

Something I have always wanted to do and can you imagine the views!

11. Visit Queen Emmas Summer Palace.

This caught my eye first because of course I have a little Princess Emma that will someday be a Queen! It served as a retreat for Queen Emma of Hawaii from 1857 to 1885.

12. Jump off the rocks at Waimea Bay.

Cause who doesn't want to jump off a big rock into the beautiful water!?

It's time for an update....

I think when you sign up for the military part of the contract is that you are allowing them to tap your phone lines and put monitoring systems in your house to hear what you are saying because all we could talk about is how excited we were and what a great opportunity it would be to go to Germany and BAM an email response saying, basically, sorry but NO! Anyway I just have to trust that there is a reason for everything and that we are going to an amazing few years in HAWAII! I mean it's not a bad place to be stuck... It is no Ft Drum NY/ Ft Polk LA/ Ft Campbell KY so I better thank the big man upstairs for not sending us there. Someday I pray Robs military career takes us to Germany.... Add it to my bucket list!  

Also I would just like to say how great it is to have so many amazing people out here and how strange it feels to know so many of us will be going in different directions over the next several months. It was amazing to get to know all of these awesome people. I obviously will post some sappy blog when my PCS time comes near but for now I will just leave it at this small paragraph. 

I will give a special paragraph to my friend Robin Boleyn... She and her hubby, Jason, and daughter, Jasmine, will be PCSing in SIX short weeks to Ft Eustis VA and she will be missed. Over the past year or so I have gotten to know Robin and her daughter mostly during the guys deployment because she was an easy person to talk to and during my hair cut sessions, that I would swear I could only stay an hour for, I would end up staying closer to 2-3 hours. Thank you Robin for being so great. I can't wait to see what is ahead for you and Jason as you embark on the next leg of your Army life! You are an amazing person and will do great things! 

<3 Krystal XOXO

Choices.......

Hawaii or Germany............

Both are amazing obviously for different reasons. Hawaii for its beautiful, sandy beaches and gorgeous waterfalls. Germany for the culture and history and the opportunity to explore Europe! We have been struggling with what to choose and lately it consumes my every thought!

I tell myself all the time to "pray about it" and I have been... believe me it is an all consuming thought/prayer. "What do we do God?" Sometimes I wish I had a telephone to Heaven because I would phone my good friend and ask Him to please tell me what is the best choice. But I don't have a phone so I have to trust that what my thoughts and feelings/gut are telling me is in some way what God is telling me.

The other night we sat at the kitchen table and wrote out pros and cons for each of our two choices... First let me rewind and say this, we have orders for Hawaii and have a report date of October 2014 BUT with Robs reenlistment next month he has been told he can request Germany. So no matter what we are leaving Savannah GA and yes that makes me a little misty eyed. Back to pros and cons... 

HAWAII:

Pros: Its is closer to San Diego CA, which is where most of our family is so they would be able to fly for cheaper to come see us. The obvious, it is Hawaii... while we have heard some complaints about living on an island we think it is what you make it and we would try to go in with an open mind and make that decision for ourselves. My grandparents vacation to Hawaii every year so we would get to go visit them on their island. Travel, we would get to travel and hike and see some cool stuff, plus my photographer eye would LOVE the sights and the gorgeous picture perfect places.

Cons: Isolation of living on an island, there would only be so many beaches and waterfalls and volcanoes to see before we probably would get a little stir crazy seeing the same things so many times. Cost of living is so crazy in Hawaii... a gallon of milk is like $7 we hear. Our furr babies wouldn't be able to come... while my husband doesn't see this as a con I do! I have never not had animals and will miss my babies so much! 

GERMANY:

Pros: Location, we just think it would be an amazing experience to live in another country and learn about the history and culture and language. Family, my Aunt and Uncle live pretty close so when they aren't busy working we could meet them somewhere and get a grand tour of something new. Travel, we would be able to go to Paris, Rome, Belgium, London, Spain... the list goes on and on and well you get the picture. 

Cons: Flight cost for family to come visit would be very expensive. Time difference from CA... I am so used to talking to my parents everyday and would go through some serious withdraws not getting to just pick up the phone and call. Not getting to take the furr babes.

Ok so there it is our first brain storm blog... Sorry it is so long but like I said I am going to lay out ALL my thoughts for you to see because it might help someone somewhere... Good night loves!