How do you stay connected being thousands of miles away from each other?

Let's face it: my husband isn't coming home for ten more months. How do you feel close to your spouse while they're thousands of miles away? What do you send to your loved one to ensure that they know you're always thinking of them? If anyone has any ideas to add...pleaaaaase let me know :)


Here are the ideas that I've gathered so far:

-the normal...emails, letters, phone calls that are always positive
-photo books
-themed care packages
-custom photo calendar with important dates, holiday messages, count downs, and notes
-cd with music and your own commentary on it
-the book What I Love About You by Kate & Dave Marshall: you fill out one and send the other to your spouse to fill out
-hidden notes inside of the packages
-trading pillowcases: sleep with them for a while so they smell like you and then send them to each other
-spraying my perfume on pretty much anything that I can before I send it to Ronnie
-keeping a bottle of Ronnie's cologne and spray it on my bedding (especially at night)
-I tell Ronnie EVERYTHING about my day...when I do that, it feels like he was almost here for it


Well...I guess that's all for now! Any suggestions would be really appreciated!

where has the time gone?!

Day to day, it seems like time is going by sooo slow...but when I actually look at the calendar, time is actually flying by! It seems like it was just yesterday when Ronnie deployed. Everything is going great right now though! I'm working full-time as a REO Asset Manager at my mother-in-law's real estate business and on top of that, I'm enrolling back into school for criminal justice (as I'm writing this actually!).

After about a month and a half of choppy video and internet, we finally figured out a way to actually talk regularly...call forwarding! We pay about $1/hour for him to skype to my cell phone. SOO worth the money! Ronnie's been working a lot so I don't talk to him a ton or anything, but it definitely beats going about 10 days at a time without talking!

I'm just SO excited for R&R! 15 whole days of spending time together in Florida at Disney World and then Siesta Key Beach? I think yes! :)

Needless to say, Ronnie is fine so far. I'm just trying to rely on his training to keep him in one piece!  Anyway, not much else to update other than that...we're just trying to beat this deployment one day at a time :).

Finally have internet again...

As of today, I finally have regular internet again :). Ronnie has my laptop so I can only use the desktop right now, but whatever... I got my first paycheck today and a new laptop is calling my name this weekend!

It's been just exhausting since I got back to Nebraska. I literally work all day and then come home (and I ALWAYS have something to do to get the apartment unpacked...) and do work around the house. A friend has been helping me paint our bedroom a light shade of blue...but we've only got half of that done haha. By the end of the weekend, my goal is to have everything unpacked and be settled in.

It's been hard lately with Ronnie not around...he's always been the one who asks me how my day was or let me vent until it's all out. It's just not the same... but I'm starting to plan our vacation to Florida this weekend too! At least that is something to look forward to I guess. I'm just so mentally exhausted I can't even think right now.

I did get some pictures of Ronnie since he's been in Afghanistan though! (Either his hair is getting darker or he's just really dirty haha.) I posted them on my facebook just so everyone could see. I know it's not his fault but I haven't got ANY regular mail from him yet...it's been over a month already :/. I know others are getting stuff in the mail from their spouses...ugh. Just another thing that sucks at this point.

Hopefully I hear from Ronnie soon...I just need to hear his voice right now!

Where do I even start?

It's been a while since I've updated....but it's been a long couple weeks...so bear with me. My parents flew in the first week of August to help me put everything in storage and then a couple friends helped me out with the rest of our stuff. Then, the 19th, my mother-in-law flew in with a family friend to help me drive the cars back to Nebraska. We started driving the 20th in the morning and stopped in Boise around 8:30 PM that night...and had some delicious Brazillian food for dinner. I didn't even know what Brazillian food was haha...Anyway, we started driving again in the morning and drove clear to Sidney, NE and stayed the night there.

We stopped in Laramie, WY because the oil light came on in my car (which turned out to be nothing) but I swear we popped the hood, no more than 30 seconds pass and then we had not one, but two cars of guys asking if they can help us out...okay, I'm glad for the help but there's definitely a line between friendly and creepy. A man asked us if he could help (as Lynette was on the phone with her husband, who is a mechanic) and after we told him we had it covered, he asked us if we wanted to shower at his hotel, and then after we said no (trying not to freak out and put my boxing skills to the test...) he asked us if we wanted drinks from his truck...needless to say, we left soon after that!

I've already seen a few friends since I've been back and it's been great! Today I also started my first day at my new job, which seems pretty cool! Last night around 3 AM, I got a facebook notification from Ronnie and so I skyped him....I barely remember talking to him but I do remember Ronnie laughing at me because I was video chatting with one eye closed. I also got a call on my way to work this morning so I got to start my day out wonderfully! :)

Well...I'm off to do some endless laundry and unpack some more... :)

wearing down...

Well, it's been nine days now since I've been able to talk to Ronnie at all...and even that phone call was only a couple minutes long. Lord, I miss him so much it hurts. I get frustrated when other spouses hear from their husbands sooo much and I haven't even got to skype Ronnie ONCE since he's got to Afghanistan. I've got to talk to Ronnie three times (I think) since he's been there and the longest I've talked to him was 14 minutes I believe. Forgive me for my pity party but I don't have anyone to complain to really...and even if I do complain to someone, it doesn't seem to help. Oh well.

It's already almost been a month, which kind of helps thinking about. I'm not really sure how I've made it this far other than keeping busy with friends...

Anyway, I've been busy with cleaning and getting the house ready by this Friday... although I did go out with friends last Friday night for my 21st birthday. I just can't wait for this to be over with. We start driving early Saturday morning and I'm thinking we'll get there by Sunday night...and I've already asked my mother-in-law if I can start working as soon as I get there. I miss working...especially now that he's gone. As soon as I start getting regualar paychecks again, I'm buying myself a birthday present...a new laptop :). Yeah, I could buy it now...but I'd rather wait until then.

Well, I'm off to watch tv and hopefully get to sleep soon...I really need to get up early and get some major work done...and I'm praying that I wake up to his phone call<3

Finally sinking in...

I haven't updated in a while so I figured I'd do so...

I haven't heard Ronnie's voice since Sunday morning...He tried to call me this morning over skype but I missed it :( I was laying on my phone so I couldn't hear it. I can't even begin to explain just how much that sucks. He sent me a short message over Facebook saying he'll try again tomorrow if his internet is working...I hope he does. He was only able to talk for a couple minutes on Sunday and I haven't talked to him more than 5 minutes at a time (a total of three times I think) since he's been in Afghanistan. It's really beginning to suck.

I think it's finally sinking in that he's deployed and not coming home for a year. This is the most awful feeling in the world...I know we can do it, I just have to take it one day at a time.

Well, tomorrow is my 21st birthday and I'm going to dinner with some friends. That's really all I have planned...but I would give anything to just see his face for my birthday. He has been gone every other birthday since I turned 18....here for my 18th, gone at OSUT training for my 19th, here for my 20th, and now we're both missing our 21st birthdays together. It's not the fact that I'm turning 21...alcohol really isn't a factor. I just miss him, that's all. I miss his smile, his hugs and kisses, his laugh...and just holding me when I have a bad day.

Oh, Lord please grant me the strength to get through this year<3

It's been a BUSY week!

Well, my parents flew back to Nebraska this morning...it's been a fun week though! Monday, they flew in pretty late so we didn't do much...Tuesday, we saw a Mariner's game (in the two years that we've lived here, we've never been to a Mariner's game...Ronnie's not much of a baseball fan though). Wednesday was more sightseeing...Pike's Place, Space Needle, Duck tour and walking around Seattle. Thursday we saw Captain America and hung out around the house. Friday we got everything moved into storage (which SUCKED...of course I picked the uhaul that doesn't have a ramp!) and Saturday we went to the mall...

This was perfect timing to keep me busy too...Today I finally (after 8 days of not getting anything but a short email) got a five minute phone call from Ronnie. They've been really busy and his phone still isn't working but it sounds like they might get internet in a week or so and hopefully they'll get a day off soon...

On a lighter note, I finally turn 21 in five days :) I promised Ronnie we would celebrate our 21st birthdays together when he's home from deployment so I'm just going to a restaurant with a friend... and in 12 days, I'll be moving back home!! I'm so glad I'll be getting back to work and getting a routine down...and that way I can start planning our vacation to Florida in January!

My goals to meet before I see Ronnie again in January? Get back into shape (can't really have an excuse when my house back in NE has gym equipment in the livingroom...), get back into school (hopefully the third time is the charm when it comes to finding something I like haha), and get back into softball...maybe I can find a team to play with at school?