Cue the Superman Music!

Hello! Well I've made it to Khilagay...finally! I spent two week in Bagram just trying to catch a flight to Masari Sharif, but due to weather and other circumstances I had to wait a while. Oh well, I made it! Khilagay is MUCH nicer than expected, we have good internet, free phones, decent food, and all the buildings are heated. I was given the impression it was going to be very different from what it actually is like. Jess and I get to email and text and talk regularly which is the greatest thing about this place. The people are cool and work very well together. We haven't had any patients yet, but that's not unexpected because not a lot goes on during the cold season. I'll try to add some pictures of the scenery around here, it's actually pretty nice. Anyways, this is just a short note but y'all stay safe and feel free to remind my wife how beautiful she is...b/c she is!

It's been a while

Well it's been quite a while since I updated this blog. In the interim, I have spent a month at Ft Dix, NJ for the greatest training of my life. I did so much stuff to prepare for this deployment that I won't ever have to use, not even the day after never. It was only a little bit frustrating but oh well, it's over and I will never do it again. Fortunately, Jess got to come up to NJ and spend a week with me. We went to NYC with the fam and did quite a sizable amount of damage. We checked out ground zero, but weren't able to get the grand tour. It was still pretty incredible to think of how big them buildings were and how big of a change in our lives they have made. We checked out the statue of the bull on Wall St and laughed at the line of tourists taking pictures with it b/c there was one line taking pics with the front of the bull and another line taking pics with the ass of it. I know that I would have been in the line of ass pictures had I wanted a picture. That night we got to go see Sister Act on Broadway. It was great even though the songs in the play were all different from those in the movie. Afterwards, we strolled through Time Square on our way to dinner. Jess immediately flashbacked to the days of TRL and where the mobs of tweens once stood hoping to catch that fateful glimpse of Carson Daly. The next day we hit up 5th Ave and Barney's. We did find a purse for $18,000...yes the equivalent of a car but I promise you that if Carey Bradshaw had mentioned it one SATC, it would have been this year's big Christmas craze despite having the equivalent value 5 slightly used Gremlins. Se la vi! I did find a Lindt chocolate store and decided to try their 99% Cocoa chocolate. Despite taking a rather small nibble, it is still so bitter I could only manage to eat a few bites. However, the expression on Jess' face when she tried it was priceless. I would try to describe it but I lack the vernacular. Just trust me when I say it was priceless. That night we ate at Les Halles, one of Anthony Bourdain's old stomping grounds. It was delicious and very much a French eatery...more butter than Paula Deen ever dreamed of y'all! We exchanged gifts that night, with the big gift being a game of Taboo. Guys vs Girls quickly ensued and of course the MEN won! The next morning, Christmas Day, we went to a nice old church then to a delicious steakhouse before making the trek back to Ft Dix. A lovely thing about taking the NJ Transit train is that at NY Penn Station (a very busy hub), they don't announce which track the train will be arriving/departing from until all of 10 min before the 300 passengers try to blitz simultaneously. So you can imagine four tourists with luggage trying to keep pace. We faired rather well I believe. I had to say my goodbyes to my parents that night as they were headed further into Yankee land to visit family in Massachusetts. Jess and I relished our last day together on the 26th. She surprised me with some Tex-Mex for my last dinner in the Estatos Unidos...she spoils me, I'll admit it. The next day I had to tell her goodbye and that just sucked, plain and simple. That evening, I popped some Benadryl and boarded my first international flight only to wake up flying somewhere over Germany. After a brief layover in Leipzig, I boarded another flight and ended up here in Manas, Kyrgyzstan where I've been ever since. I head to Afghanistan shortly and will eventually end up at my final destination. In the meantime, I have tasted Russian beer and tried to pass the time. There isn't much to do at transit centers like this but they have amenities like a movie theater and decent internet. Jess and I have found a plethora of iPhone apps to help us stay connected. We can now send each other video messages, altered pics, and even call whenever I have a wifi connection. All in all, it ain't that bad and could definitely worse. Hopefully, where ever I end up has decent enough internet to allow us to continue using these toys. I'll try to update this blog when I get the chance. I shall leave y'all with a tidbit of info that is no secret but still fun to say...my wife is amazing!

honeymooners

So a bazillion years ago, we went on our honeymoon to the Florida Keys - Marathon Island, more specifically. Early early early (4 30am) Sunday after the wedding Trace and I loaded up the truck and drove 3 hours home to San Antonio in order to catch our 9 00 flight to Florida. We spent the majority of that day flying and driving which doesn't sound so bad, but we were exhausted. It was on the first day of the honeymoon that the reality of Trace's deployment really hit home. Planning a wedding is the most fabulous distraction ever. We spent the next couple of days lounging in our cottage, swimming, having several near death experiences (canoeing and scootering), eating and driving - we did a lot of driving.

We managed to snap just a few pics.

obligatory honeymoon drinks in souvenir glasses



75 and sunny every day!

somehow my makeup didn't make it into my suitcase. a week without having to wear makeup is definitely my kind of honeymoon.

We were much more diligent about documenting the honeymoon with the video camera that Trace bought for his deployment. I have watched all the videos at least 10 times since he left. The videos are taking forever to upload, so I will have to do some research on that.

ghetto much?

Our amazing wedding photographer told us that she wanted to rush some prints to us before Trace left for New Jersey so that he could take some actual photos with him. He left before they arrived, but when the prints showed up at my front door, I instantly teared up. She sent 3 different images in a couple different sizes. Here is a ghetto sneak peek of one of them.



I took this picture of the picture with my phone and emailed it to Trace....and then mailed him the actual photos.

could it beeee more official?

After 2 ceremonies, 2 honeymoons and a bunch of explanations, we are officially Mr. & Mrs. Teas for the whole world to know. We could not have asked for a more perfect, more special time with our families and friends. I'm working on several blog posts to cover the weekend's activities, mostly for myself - because I don't want to forget anything!

After 5 days in Florida, I sent Trace packing. On Saturday, Trace and I reluctantly made our way to the airport. We packed Sully in the car so he could soak up as much of Trace's scent as possible.

Trace had to pick up his weaponry at the airport. So, the other airport patrons and I watched in semi horror as four uniformed people opened gigantic gun cases and inspected the contents. I was ill at ease and I knew what was going on, I can only imagine what the other people were thinking. We spent about 30 minutes in the USO waiting area where they force fed us kolaches and candy. Eventually we had to part ways and I watched Trace through security and stood on tip-toes until I couldn't see him anymore. I'm sure I looked psychotic as I stood there, but that was only the beginning. I handed the pay for parking lady a teary snot covered debit card and pressed ahead. Since we were half way to the dog park, I took Sully to participate in his favorite past-times - sniffing and peeing -- and my spirits were immediately lifted.

Later in the afternoon, I packed up the dog to head to Waco. We didn't have any real plans, but Dad casually mentioned that he had box seats to that nights Baylor football game. I peer pressured Austin into coming along so the three of us set out to what would be the most exciting football game I have ever been to. After 4 nail biting quarters my Bears beat OU for the first time in history. Emotions were already running high that day and I may have shed a few tears. Trace would have totally made fun of me. The next day my Uncle Tim and his boys came up to Waco and we all went to the Baylor girls basketball game - not as nail biting, but still a win for good ol' BU.

Sully and I came home to San Antonio today and started the grand task of fitting all our new goodies into our already stuffed full apartment. I think it will be a work in progress for a quite some time. Right now, I'm spoiled in the fact that Trace is readily accessible. We are able to text all day and Skype at night. I try to not think about what it will be like when he actually leaves the US. The wedding was the best distraction EVER. Now, the fact that Trace is leaving leaving is never far from my thoughts.

another 15 minutes

In nursing school, I stumbled across a waste-time website. I eventually got my brothers involved and clued Trace in on the wonders that it Reddit.com. It is basically a catch all for anything nonimportant that is on the internet - stupid pictures, funny videos, people asking outlandish questions and expecting equally outlandish answers. It became a part of life during boring lectures and continues to be a source of entertainment when I find myself suffering from shift work disorder ;)

Recently, one of the "hive-mind" asked if anyone had ever been on Extreme Makeover Home Edition. When I saw the request, I immediately text messaged trace and below is a link to what transpired. I find Trace and his writing especially endearing...

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition

Trace is answering as "Imthekitty"


Also, only another 9 days until wedding day!!!

aaannnnd nothing makes deployment more real than having a meeting to sign your Last Will and Testament.... :(

Mike & Molly isn't funny

We've been slacking a little bit on updating this blog...so sue us! Things have been different than usual 'round here lately. I had a TDY (air force speak for a temporary training exercise) in Baltimore for 3 weeks for trauma training. During that time, Jess worked her (cute) butt off. It sucked in all honesty. That town is nothing but an overgrown ghetto. I'm sure there are nice parts of town, but they are few and really far between. No wonder they send nurses there for trauma training (e.g. gunshots, stabbings). Definitely came to the conclusion that it's really gonna suck come 19 Nov!!! Sully sure got spoiled rotten during my absence though. How can you resist his cute little face though? He got to sleep on the couch and even on the bed! My first night back, we got in bed to go to sleep and he comes up and gives me a look like "where am I supposed to lay down?". When I'm here, there's plenty of room for him on his own bed or on the floor as far as I'm concerned.

It's even been so long that we haven't even gotten to tell y'all the good news...Jess got into grad school. As if there was ever any doubt that she would, we got official word saying they'd be honored to have her as a student/future alumni. She'll begin her domination in January. This will hopefully keep her mind occupied in my absence. She still tries to act like she didn't think she'd get in, but it's a sham.

Anywho, things are getting finalized for the wedding. It's gonna be the bomb-diggity (yes I just said that)! We'll see y'all there! Thanks to the amazing shower a few weeks ago, we've been trying out our new toys. The Keurig coffee maker could very well turn us/me into coffee drinkers, hopefully not to the point where we don't function properly without our morning joe, but at least regular consumers of fair-trade completely organic coffee of course (note the sarcasm). Jess put the new crock pot to AMAZING use tonight. She whipped up the most amazing pot roast that completely restored my faith in homemade pot roast. I say restored my faith in it b/c growing up, every time we went to Nana's house she always had a pot roast in the oven when we arrived so, naturally, I assumed she made it herself. This went on for 24 years, literally! It wasn't until I moved to El Paso for nursing school that I learned she had been buying them from a meat market down the street and just warming them in the oven for us all those years. Imagine my devastation when I learned of such a monstrosity. Duped by my own Nana; oh the humanity. Thank you Jess for giving me the ability to believe again...thank you!