Melissa, Oh?

This post is random (advanced warning).
I had a dream last night that I was being secretly recruited by the FBI for an assignment of which I had no knowledge of but if I told anyone I would wind up dead. Also being recruited was an exboyfriend who is notoriously untrustworthy so why I would agree [...]

She wants to approve all baby bump photos before they get uploaded to Facebook, so I’m going to be careful about the ones I use here since she hasn’t told me which ones she likes yet. 
But I’m so excited about the first photos I’ve been able to take of my unborn niece, that I can’t [...]

So, this photo was not Photoshopped. But it sure looks like it was, doesn’t  it?

This image cracks me up. It was taken at the Marine Corps ball in November; my in-laws were in town this weekend so they gave us our copy then. This was taken by the portrait photographers hired by the Marines. They [...]

So, I’m a little late on the the whole “look back/look ahead” post that comes at the end of the year, but I was too busy celebrating the holidays to take the time to sit down and think about it! So, better late than never, right?
Last year I wrote about some thoughts on 2008, and [...]

These are good times, my friends. Good times.
As I prepare to run the longest run of my entire life in 3 days, my job this week has been to relax and be stress-free. And you know what I’ve realized? It’s really not that difficult.
There is a lot to be happy about. Whether I’m  going to [...]

I met Gray when he was 16, so it’s a little hard to believe Colleen’s little brother (now my brother-in-law) is old enough to defend our country. Apparently the Marine Corps doesn’t find it hard to believe because they’ve found a spot for him in Iraq for the next 6 months. This will be his [...]

Yesterday was a big day in the family. One of my brothers-in-law, Gray, a First Lieutenant pilot with the Marine Corps, left for a 6-month deployment in Iraq.
Another brother-in-law, Casey, tied the knot with the love of his life, Kristina, in Clearwater, Florida.
A lot of emotions here, but above all, love and pride win out.
More [...]

The first time I ever met Jeff’s grandmother was in April of 2000. Jeff’s sister, Colleen, his stepdad, Gray, and I drove from N.C. to Florida for his brother, young Gray’s, high school graduation. We arrived at Grandma Kochel’s house late – probably 9 or 10 p.m.
I walked into Grandma’s house for the first time [...]

A little background first: I have fainted two times before.
1) 2003, at the doctor’s office, getting blood drawn for a physical. I felt the expected “I’m gonna faint” feeling … but this time, I actually did it. Actually fainted twice in a row, but I’ll count it as once for purposes of this post.
2) In [...]