Remember when you were young...

So I've been mentally traveling down memory lane and was thinking about our first date together. We had only been talking for about a week when he (surprise, surprise) asked me to go see a concert. I figured, what the hell, and so on November 11, 2005 we had our first date. He picked me up at my apartment on campus (I was a senior at UAlbany) and I saw him...and thought..."He's really cute and has a great smile". He had only been to the area for a few months and didn't know too many restaurants in Albany. I was a poor student and had a few expensive faves but settled on a mexican place downtown...complete with sombreros on the wall. We both drank Corona that night (he was pleasantly surprised that I liked beer...and an import as well) and had pretty decent conversation. The concert was a blues group (not super bluesy) and was in a theater. He playfully tried to get me to sway to the music...and while I enjoyed myself...I talk a little while to warm up. Afterwards we went to a club that had an upstairs with cozy couches....haha...he's smart. So we talked and talked and did one of those awkward moments...where I was looking at the ground...and looked up...and we just kissed. It was probably one of the best first kisses that I've ever had (and yes, I've kissed a lot of men). (sigh)...so we made out at a club...cliché but it was kind of like being lost in your own world. All the noise evaporated...and it was just me and him. He danced with me in the streets (he's a good dancer) and dropped me off at my apartment...with no intention of coming in :)

Our first date, may not be a "great" or "fabulous" first date in many women's eyes. We didn't do anything crazy...no real romantic notions. For me it was perfect. I love remembering seeing his smile for the first time and how he kissed me...and still kisses me to this day. I miss his kisses, his laughter, our stupid way of talking to each other, his hugs, his affection, and his way of loving me. I am so lucky...and wish he was here with me.

He Learns Quickly....

So........
The boys pulled into Greece and I got a phone call at 6:30 this morning from Jimmy. After last port's fiasco with the phones...he knew he better call me as soon as they pulled in. I love how we're finally at the point in our relationship where if something is bothering me, he makes sure not to do it again, and vice versa. It was so nice to hear his voice and have a real conversation. He doesn't have much time to spend there...but he told me he was going to go out to dinner with one of the other guys. I reminded him before he left to try as many different meals as he can! He was drinking a bud while talking to me and I yelled at him for drinking American beer. Apparently that's the only beer they carry...oops. Not much more to update...just trying to pass the time...happily...before he comes home!

Quick Bitch Post..

So many people know that whenever Jimmy leaves me alone, something bad happens. One time our dog decided to act out and piss in the house, another time we got a two foot snowstorm and my car was stuck in the driveway. Mind you these incidents happen when he is gone for no more than a week. So with him being gone for months...you can see why I'd get nervous. The day that he leaves, I find mold under our couches, growing from the carpet. Good thing we rent and the landlord can fix that (hopefully). Then there is an outstanding electric bill from when we lived in NY ( mind you the landlord there took her time putting the utilities back in her name)...so no big deal...it's paid. So now I've been working for only two weeks and those damn kids get me sick! I come home last night with a 101 fever and a sore throat and am freaking out because a)the only sickness I ever catch from kids is strep throat and b)I have no health insurance...mother f*cker. So I wait til this morning and found a health clinic that is open on Saturdays...I get down there...and nope...they don't do walk-ins. So I'm hoping that since my fever is gone that the sore throat will go away too and that I don't have strep. He's only been gone for a little while and I don't want to break in our emergency fund to pay for a doctor's visit (I have plans for that money...wedding or vacation fund). So, once again, crap happens when he leaves...and I always take care of him when he's sick (he's a big baby). He's not here to take care of me. So I sit...with my ice cream watching LOST...waiting for relief.

It's About Time...

So after waiting, very impatiently, for a phone call from Jimmy, I finally got one yesterday. I had been an emotional wreck the past few days, knowing that all of my friends got phone calls, and wondering where mine was. Apparently he had tried calling me several times but there was something wrong with a number he had for his calling card and he kept getting Canada. So he somehow managed to get through and we had 15 mins to talk...and that's all I needed. He had a wonderful time in France (I knew he would) and wrote letters to me about everything he was seeing. I cried the whole time we were talking, and tried not to be too mad at him for the whole calling thing. I had to explain to him how embarassed I was that the man whom I gush about and say how wonderful he is, didn't call me right away. He understood and knows that next time, if he's having issues, to email me and say so. I'll be fine with that. He was so sweet on the phone, saying how much he missed me and loved me. I miss him so much...
To make things even better I received a card from him yesterday that he sent to his mom to mail to me. A very sweet I miss you already card...and discs one and two of LOST Season II! I'm super psyched and now have something to watch at night. I went over to Sam's house last night for dinner and wine with her and Kelly. Almost two bottles of wine later...we were laughing hysterically about the silliest things. I love girls' nights..especially with my friends from the boat...we all know what we're going through and no one else can really understand it. So now I'm off to work...I got my first paycheck today...woohoo!

Flowers are a Girl's Best Friend!

So my ass has been so busy with work and boat stuff that I haven't had much of a chance to blog. I got me some flowers from a certain boy on a submarine!! It's actually a plant, a "love" plant as we say in the West/Peterson household, and it's a gardenia plant which means it will smell lovely once it blooms! It makes me happy to know that Jimmy though of sending me flowers while he was away.

I sent him some pictures, a cd, and a letter in a maildrop and will be meeting up with fellow lovely Lady Alex women to make care packages tomorrow after work. He's going to be so stoked to receive bbq sunflower seeds...he loveeeeeeeees them!

So yeah...not much to report...just trying not to kill children at work and keeping sane with friends o' plenty. Life is swell!

It's Been a Hard Day's Night...

So I haven't had much free time to blog since I started my new job. I am an associate teacher in an infant classroom at a childcare facility in the area. I'm still getting used to things and pray that once we get the kids on a schedule...it will be a little more calm. Going from not working at all to a classroom of 7-8 children all under the age of two is a little chalenging. Yesterday the lead teacher left for an emergency at 11 leaving 7 kids to me and my co-worker. She just got transferred to this classroom and I'm brand new. We somehow made it through...even with 4 crying children all at once. I'm hoping that things get better because I really don't want to change jobs again for a while. This job doesn't pay much at all and if I can't take care of my bills, groceries, and paying my credit card down....I may have to look elsewhere.
I've been doing really well in dealing with this deployment. I hadn't cried really and I've been so busy this week that I haven't had time to think about it. The only time I got upset was last night at our family support group meeting. One of the guys from squadron was talking and announced that all non-spouses had to leave the room because he would be discussing the boat's schedule (aka when and where they were pulling into). Well that made me upset even though I knew I'd get the information from some of my friends after he left. Between that and one of the master chiefs telling Jimmy that he didn't "give a fuck if he has a girlfriend", I'm kind of pissed. I understand their reasoning, but I am his person of contact and should be entitled to information. I can't get on base, have his benefits, or do a whole lot of other things because we aren't married...and I'm fine with that...but the main reason I go to these meetings is to get any shred of information. So yeah...the Navy (not the fsg or my ombudsman because it's not them whatsoever) can go fuck itself.
On a better note I missed a UPS delivery for flowers yesterday. I plan on picking them up today and will post a picture later. Jimmy has never sent me flowers before so this should be good :)

Good Day Sunshine

Thought that I would post some pics from my fabulous weekend with Katie!! We had a great time in Mystic, at the casino, and at the beach...plus margaritas always make things better :)

Me in Olde Mystick Village

In the Ocean!

Sunbathing Beauties!

At Mohegan Sun


Drinking homemade margaritas!

This was just what I needed to take my mind off from Jimmy. I'm blessed to have such great friends who love me!

Bye Bye Sailor Boy

So the time came and went for Jimmy to leave on his long deployment. They had a picnic prepared for everyone on the pier and we all said our goodbyes. I didn't cry as much as I thought I would. I think part of it had to do with everyone being there...I'm not a fan of crying in front of people....so we kept it relatively short and sweet. So a bunch of the wives and myself stuck around to watch the boat leave from the pier. We waited...and waited...and waited. Something broke. They weren't sure if they would be able to fix it to leave that day. So eventually we all left and waited around by the phone to see if I had to go back down there to pick his ass up. In the meantime, as I was cleaning, I noticed something fuzzy on the ground by the couch. I pulled the sofa away and noticed that the entire carpet underneath was covered in a thick layer of green mildew/mold. That was when I lost it and started crying. He hadn't been gone for even a day and something bad happens. I vaccumed everything up and called my landlord the next day....issue still unresolved at this point in time. During my crisis I got a phone call that they weren't going to leave that day. So I went down and picked Jimmy up and was able to spend one more night with him. So now he's gone and I'm still waiting for it to hit me. My best friend and former roomie from college Katie is in town visiting and I start my new job on Monday so I plan to keep as busy as possible. Last night we made homemade margaritas, read tarot cards, and watched Practical Magic. Today was spent shopping at Olde Mystick Village and tonight we'll be venturing to the casino to drink and play slots :) I love my Katie and am glad she came down to see me. So here's to 6-7 months by myself!! Let's hope I make it....

Finances, and Paperwork, and Deployment oh my!

So with this deployment rearing its ugly head soon we've been trying to get everything situated ASAP. There has not been nearly enough time between Jimmy being home and leaving again meaning the financial talk has been put off for a while....thus leading to another episode of me crying because I'm frustrated. We finally figured out a few things yesterday but I still fear that some things aren't being taken care of. When someone is gone for six months a lot of crap can happen. So basically I'm still stressing out about things and I'm once again at the point where I wish he would just leave and get it over with. I know that's a horrible thing to say but I the waiting period is no good and I feel like we're just drawing out the whole goodbye.
On a lighter note I've rediscovered cribbage! Jimmy has a cribbage board and we started playing the other night. We proceeded to drink and play cribbage late into the night and discovered the next morning that neither one of us can drink like we used to. I'm looking forward to my six months of next-to-no alcohol. We've also found a park nearby that has a lake for us to swim in. We've brought Floyd and he enjoys it...a bit too much perhaps. He swam to me and it was where I couldn't touch. I missed catching him and he basically scratched my entire back and I have a huge,red gash under my right eye...I'm looking like a hot mess right now. So, note to self, don't try to hold Floyd anymore while we're in the water.

I Got a Job!

So after two months of unemployment I finally got a job. I will be working at Eagleview Child Center as an Infant Teacher. I get paid to play with babies all day. I'm excited to finally have something to do with my time...and health insurance! That's important to me. So I start in a couple of weeks. That will give me time to mentally prepare for poopy diapers and slobbery kids :)

Ten Things I Love and Hate

In response to Kim's challenge....

Things That I Love
1. My boyfriend/family/friends
2. Music
3. France
4. Books
5. Autumn
6. the Ocean
7. Art
8. Travelling anywhere and everywhere
9. Sleeping Beauty
10. Roasted almonds and chicken on a stick w/tabasco sauce from the vendors in NYC

Things That I Hate/Dislike
1. Liars/Cheaters
2. The President
3. Deployments
4. 6 Months of Winter...it's 4 months too long
5. Hummers...seriously people
6. Children's parents that don't discipline their children and let them do whatever they want
7. Really bad breath
8. The majority of politicians...I used to want to be one...til I realized that my soul would be sold to the devil
9. Religious/civil/racial intolerance...Your race/religion/belief system is not the best...so stop thinking so and stop shoving your idealism down everyone's throat
10. Child molesters...I think there is a special place in hell for them