Weekends

Weekends are easily my favorite part of the week. I know, I know, everyone would say that. I have been particularly enjoying them lately because I have been getting to see Jake. It's no fun being apart during the week, but it makes it much easier when we can look forward to seeing each other on the weekends. We appreciate our time together and each other so much more when we spend time apart. Got to look on the bright side, right?

Father's day weekend, Jake came down the Charleston. He got off work pretty early, but unfortunately had a tire blow out on his way down so the drive took him a bit longer than expected. Once he got to Charleston, we decided to head out for a date night. We went to my favorite area, Shem Creek. It is a fun little creek that goes out to the ocean. It is lined with vibrant restaurants and has an awesome boardwalk. There are tons of boats, paddle boarders, and even dolphins. It is always busy, especially during the summer months. We had to wait awhile to be seated, so we sat on the rooftop deck and watched the sunset. It was the perfect evening.

Saturday started out with getting Jake a new tire. We also did a little bit of shopping. I found a dress for the Marine Corps ball in November! I got it now because I don't know what my options in Japan will be. My mom also convinced the lady to give me a discount because the beading was coming apart in a few areas. It was originally $235 and I got it for $99! I guess I learned my bargain hunting from my mom. Finally, another thing I can check off my "to do before Japan" list. 

Jake and I spend the next few hours at the pool before my dad got home from a work event. We packed  up the car with all of our beach gear and headed to Sullivan's Island, my other favorite place. We could not have asked for more perfect weather. My parents recently purchased paddleboards and taught Jake and I how to do it. We were fine in the tide pool, but weren't quite ready to go out in the ocean.

My parent's "beachmobile"

For father's day, we had a lowcountry staple and Jake's favorite, lowcountry boil. We also had hummingbird cake. Then it was time to send Jake back to Camp Lejeune. My parents and I then did a "tour of beaches," starting at folly beach and ending on Kiawah Island. Drives and beach walks are our favorite sunday activities. 

Overall, it was pretty much the perfect weekend. Even though it is no fun saying goodbye to Jake, I knew I was going to see him again this weekend. It was my turn to make the 4 hour drive up to Camp Lejeune. I  had an excuse to go up there, because I needed to start the process for my overseas medical screening. I won't even get into that, just another item on my to-do list. I got to see the base(and get stuck in awful base traffic) and I also got to see where Jake lives. We then headed down to Wilmington, since there is NOTHING to do in Jacksonville. We had a room at a very cute hotel right on the riverfront in downtown Wilmington. 

The view from our room

The pier at our hotel, right across from the USS North Carolina.

After we checked into our hotel, we decided to explore the waterfront area. We immediately decided we LOVED Wilmington. We have a thing for waterfront towns. We found a waterfront restaurant with live music and stopped to eat. 

The most perfect salmon salad

We got to see another perfect sunset on the water

We then headed to a free concert on the waterfront. During the summer, they have a free concert every Friday night. They have different vendors and food trucks set up. This Friday it was a Dave Matthews tribute band. It was very crowded and very awesome. We listened to some music, explored some more, found some live country music and a rooftop lounge and then headed home. 

We had originally planned to go to Wrightsville beach with friends on Saturday, but the rain made that plan pretty much impossible. Jake and I drove around Wilmington, got lunch, drove around Wrightsville beach, and then headed back to the hotel. Luckily, the rain cleared up by the evening. Some of our friends happened to be staying at the hotel next door, so we met up and headed out to another seafood dinner. We then met up with another group a friends. It was good to see friends and to explore a new city. Then Sunday came and it was time for Jake and I to say goodbye again. Luckily, we will see each other the next two weekends as well! 

Jake update: He is doing very well in school. Logistics school is less demanding than TBS, so he has more time to workout, study, and sleep. He is enjoying learning about the different things he will be doing and talking to lots of people who have already been to Okinawa. He has also been teaching himself how to "cook." His latest discovery, how to boil pasta. His roommate says he can tell he misses my cooking, and me. Or maybe he said he misses Lexie. 

Until next time,

J and M

Life in the Lowcountry

Lots going on down here in the lowcountry. I promised myself when I knew I was going to be down here without a job that I would NOT just sit at home and obsess over my latest netflix series. I am pretty proud of myself because I have kept myself pretty busy.

A typical day

Up at 6:15. Yes, that is 6 am! I didn't even get up that early when I was working. My mom walks the dogs around this time every morning. Lexie has learned this and makes me get up to take her on a walk with them. I've learned to love morning walks, even though I am not a morning person.

   

I really can't complain when my morning walk looks like this

Have I mentioned how much I love this place?

After our walk I have my morning juice/shake and then head to yoga. I figured that if I had lots of time on my hands, I might as well be in the best shape possible. We already know how I feel about running. It takes a lot for me to just go out and run, especially in this heat. I'm no good at going to the gym either. I get distracted very easily and don't always push myself as hard as I can. I knew it was going to take me finding something I really enjoyed. I decided to try Bikram yoga, aka "hot yoga." Let's just say, I'm a little obsessed. It is 90 minutes in a 105 degree room. I love how I feel afterwards and I love seeing how much I improve each time. I have been going about 4 times a week and have never once dreaded going. I also discovered an awesome juice bar next door!

Sweaty and happy with my juice

Ok, so I might have a juice obsession

This one is carrot, cucumber, apple, lemon, and ginger. YUM

After yoga is a shower. You cannot do anything until you take a shower. Bikram yoga is probably the sweatiest I have ever been in my life. It looks like I jumped into a pool each time I am finished. In the afternoons after I have showered, I head to the pool, run errands, or do some chores around the house. I have also been cooking dinner for my parents most nights. 

This is the life

Unfortunately, it has been raining a ridiculous amount so I haven't been able to enjoy the pool/beach as much as I've wanted to. At night, I have been hanging out with my mom. She likes to get out of the house at night so we run errands, shop, go to movies, or dinner. We have been having a blast together! 

I have been thoroughly enjoying my time here in Charleston. I know the next few months are going to fly by, so I'm trying to enjoy every minute I have here.

until next time,

M

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Websites for Cheap Trendy Jewelry

I have been meaning to do this post for awhile to let you all in on my little secret, especially those who ask where I get my jewelry. I heard about these websites that have daily deals from Facebook. The deals include everything from jewelry to home items. I started using these sites when statement jewelry started to become popular. I had never been a big jewelry person and wanted to step up my jewelry game, so this was the cheapest option I found. For example, the yellow bubble necklace above was only $10.99. I got the two smaller ones during a blowout sale and snatched them both for $4.99. Way better than the alternative, spending $45 on one necklace at J.Crew. 

Here are the sites:

Groopdealz

Very Jane

Sassy Steals

I'm sure there are plenty other similar sites, but these are the ones that I have found to be the best. It will ask you for your email and then you will receive the daily deals. My only complaint is that sometimes your order takes a long time to arrive. But, you can't beat cute, cheap jewelry!

My most recent purchase

I'm so excited! I think this bracelet will compliment many outfits. They also have a similar necklace, but I thought it was a little much for me. 

Happy shopping friends!

Until next time,

M

Can't Complain

As a human race, we always have something to complain about. The weather, jobs, money, kids, your body, and the list goes on. It is inevitable that we will complain, despite all of the things we do have and all the things that are going right in our lives. The grass is always greener on the other side and you always want what you can't have define our society. We always have something to complain about, because we are constantly comparing our lives to others and wanting what other people have.


My current complaints:

-I miss my husband. I miss coming home to each other every night, eating dinner while chatting about our days, taking the dog for a walk as we hold hands, and snuggling every night.
-I don't have a job. It not only makes me feel like I'm wasting time I could be working, it makes me obsess over every dollar I spend. No job= no income= no fun.
-It has rained almost everyday I have been in South Carolina.
-I miss my friends.


I was obsessing over these complaints in my head the other day, mostly because I was missing my husband and was feeling sorry for myself.  Then, I reminded myself about all of the things that are going right in my life.

-I am currently living completely free in a beautiful house
-I get to hang out with my parents everyday, who are pretty rad and lots of fun to hang out with
-I am getting treated to wonderful dinners and fun activities while third wheelin' it with my parents
-I don't have to go to work every morning
-I get to focus on myself for the first time in a LONG time
-I can go to the pool or the beach any day I want without a care in the world
-I have an awesome tan
-I am healthier than I have been in awhile
-I can read whenever I want and have a whole library full of wonderful books to chose from
-I have a really cute, cuddly dog
-I have facetime which allows me to see my cute husband's face whenever I want
-In a few months, I will be moving to a beautiful tropical island

TAKE THAT complaints. Whenever you find yourself complaining, think about all things that are going right in your life and all the things you do have. I promise you, you will find more things to be happy about than to complain about.

So I leave you with this

Until next time,

J and M

Another move down...sort of

Friday May 24th was my last day at work in Virginia. It was so bittersweet. The people I worked for were so good to me and became such great friends. I loved playing with their little guy every day and watching him grow and learn over the months. It was hard for me to say goodbye, but I know we will keep in touch.

That next Tuesday was moving day. Moving has been quite the process. There is all sorts of paperwork, calling around, signing things, and tons of little tiny details that have to be taken care of. It has been a pain in my you know what. The actual process of moving our stuff has not been short of problems. We did not even have a moving company until a few days before they were scheduled to arrive. Yes, I was freaking out a little bit. It did make me feel better knowing I wasn't going to have to pack a single box. All we had to do was separate our stuff into different shipments and the do not pack area. The movers arrived at 8:30 and did not leave until 6:30 that evening. Needless to say, I was not a happy camper. We have a fairly small one bedroom apartment. We do not have that much stuff. It should have taken only a few hours, but our movers were obviously taking their sweet time. But, all of our stuff is packed up and on its way to Okinawa. We won't see it for over 4 months and have to live out of suitcases until then. It's a pretty crazy feeling.

Graduation was the next day. It was such a great day. I felt like a very proud wife all day. At the same time, it was very hard saying goodbye to our friends we had made. We feel so lucky to have met so many great people at TBS. We made such awesome memories and hope we can continue our friendships even though we are spreading out all over the world.

Friday, Jake, Lexie, and I headed down to Charleston. Jake got to spend about a day here until he left for logistics school at Camp Lejeune in NC. It was way too short of a break, but I keep reminding myself we will have time off together in August. I am not too thrilled about being away from each other for the next few months, but I am excited to spend time with my parents in my favorite city. I know Jake is going to do great at logistics school and he is very excited to learn more about his MOS.

 Love you guys! Good luck at MOS school and your duty stations. Thank you for all of the great memories and for being wonderful friends!

Our apartment all ready to be packed up

See you in a few months boxes

Finally in Charleston!

Jake all ready to report to logistics school

Lexie wasn't happy to see Jake go

I get to spend all summer with this cute face

So there it is, a half of a move. Check back in 4 months to see how the Okinawa side of our move goes. Meanwhile, we will be in limbo. 

Until next time,

J an M

Jake Graduates TBS!

After 7 grueling months, Jake graduated from TBS last week. If you aren't sure what that is, you can learn more about it in my post here. All of Jake's family was in town and it was wonderful time, even if we were grumpy half of the time due to moving stress. Sorry Guys.

Jake, we are all so proud of you! TBS is not easy in the slightest and you made it through with flying colors. There were lots of late nights, early mornings, cold days, but you never complained (much). You studied hard and tried your best at any task you were given. I am so proud of you for following your dreams and working hard to succeed in life. CONGRATS, you did it!

Until next time,

J and M