It's been a while...

Almost 2 months to be exact, YIKES! Sorry that things have been so crazy, I just can't get around to blogging as much anymore. Figures this was supposed to be an outlet during the deployment but it's been going so smoothly that I feel like I don't even need it as much. Anyway, I'll give a little update on my life.

Nothing else really exciting happened in February after my last post (at least that I can think of). Let's see Valentine's Day came and went, I was thankful and it was one month down with the deployment and I was also very thankful to have made it a month through.

March was nice because I went to visit Steph in NC for spring break, I love it down there. I had a blast and can't wait to go bck and visit in either May or July but definitely August. I always said if I could move anywhere in the US that's where it would be. However, I haven't ever visited California, but I'm sure that if I visited there I would fall in love with it as well.

April has been crazy already. Easter weekend I went home and went to a family function on Friday, Saturday and 3 on Sunday! I love being busy. It just makes everything so much easier. I hadn't gotten a phone call in about 3 weeks so I was really happy when Dan called yesterday, I also got my first letter. I forgot how awesome it felt to hear his voice and for him to make me laugh and smile in only a way he can. Phillies season is here and hallelujah for that :D So far this season they're 3-1 which is a great start and I can't wait to go to a game. Taylor turns 21 on Monday and I'm really excited for him. This month is going pretty well so far! And a week from today is 3 months down, yay! Brooke (Taylor's girlfriend) and Rhiannon (Brooke and Taylor's best friend) are coming up next weekend, that will be fun. The following weekend is Blue/White Weekend and my dad and brother and whoever else is coming in the RV (possibly my dogs, that should be interesting if they come) will arrive on the 22nd and everyone else will arrive on the 23rd or for the game on the 24th. Such a fun weekend. The last week of school is the following week and I'm done April 30th!

School has been going really well. I have A's in all my classes which is really surprising to me because I thought this semester was going to be really hard. My biggest assignment a 40 book log I got a 97, I was pretty pumped to get that grade. There's only 3 weeks left in the semester and I can't wait for April 30th and to be done. Woot!

The deployment has been going really smoothly and I can't wait to be halfway done which is May 2nd, 3 weeks from tomorrow! :) Dan calls me when he can and emails or facebooks me (now that they can use it) when he can as well, which ranges from daily to every other day or it's even gone 5 days, but no biggie, I survive and I know he's ok! August already seems so close it's overwhelming to think about.

This summer I'm keeping busy by working at a day camp starting June 7th. I have the whole month of May off and I'm trying to plan some things to do. I would really love to go visit Steph again, and at the moment I'm thinking the first week of May would be great for that before her homecoming. June is working and my dad's birthday and Christian's graduation from high school. I can't believe my baby brother is graduating and there's none of us left in high school. July is his grad party/my 21st birthday party on the 10th and I turn 21 on the 13th! I can't wait, even though it's a Tuesday, we'll probably go out after work to happy hour or something. Then a few weeks later is Steph's wedding on July 24th. I would just go down for the weekend so I could get my time off for Dan's homecoming which August is about a week after that! :D It will be a busy but fast summer.

Well that's the update on my life, I'll definitely start blogging more often now, it was really nice to just get all that written out. Have a fantastic rest of the weekend everyone!

An update of the past month and a half

I've been a horrible blogger, I originally made this blog to help with the deployment, but with Dan's surprise visit home for Christmas, pre-deployment leave and Courtney and I's surprise visit to see him off, it has just been so busy. I'm 26 days down, and so happy with how things are going. I've gotten a few phone calls, one today which was extra special because we've been dating for a whole year today, woo! Dan had ordered a gift for me before he left (he's so thoughtful) and it was a white gold Claddagh ring with a ruby heart. I'm not one for jewelry but he always does so good picking it out.

So, what have I been up to in the past month and a half? Pre-deployment leave was amazing and I enjoyed every moment I spent with Dan. It's what's keeping me going. We enjoyed spending time with family and friends, Dan especially loved being home and a civilian for 10 days. We all got to see him off at the airport in the terminal thanks to a very kind woman who told us that there are passes for members of the military's family, so we didn't have to say goodbye at the check in. But! Little did I know until the Friday before Dan left that Courtney and I were going to venture down to North Carolina to see him off. It was the perfect surprise and well worth the 8 hours of driving (there and back) for only being there 24 hours. Seeing him off definitely helped me understand that he was actually gone.

School has started and back in full swing, I hate this semester because I think it's pointless but nothing really to report there.

I got a job at the Olive Garden and I love it and all the people that work there. They are so friendly and welcoming. It also helped that Taylor worked there in the fall semester and I started just a couple weeks ago. I'm a hostess so I'm constantly busy with seating people and trying to figure out where to put them. I like feeling so busy.

In deployment news, Dan was in Haiti which is awesome and I'm so proud. Now they're on their way to an undisclosed location which was where their original deployment was. I love that I hear from him through emails, when the internet decides to work.

Well, I hope that I'm able to update more that I remember I have this blog. Have a fantastic evening all, I know I will be running on the pure bliss from my phone call this morning!

What a busy past couple weeks...

I have been such a horrible blogger. I haven't updated recently at all because I of course procrastinate and have been running around getting stuff ready for the holiday which is over now. I'm kinda bummed it's all over but that's ok. I've been working my full time job so that's been getting in the way of being able to blog, which is a bad excuse. But the holidays crept up on me. Well after I blogged on the 16th nothing really happened until we got snow on the 19th, which was so awesome! Here, we got about 15 inches. I loved it. On Sunday the 20th, we had our usual family dinner at Mommom's and it was so great being with the family. Nothing much really happened the next couple days except for working, until Christmas Eve.

Let me start by saying Christmas Eve is my absolute favorite holiday and I love it because of the anticipation of Christmas. So, I got up pretty early and decided to flat iron my hair which is always a chore but it was for the holiday. Meanwhile, Dan had told me he was going to be at work all day, so I figured I would just video chat with him after we both got done work. He wasn't coming home for Christmas because he has his pre-deployment leave on the 30th. I asked him about his plans and of course I was awfully sad for him since he wasn't going to be home. Anyway, I went to work and was in such a great mood. I didn't really do much on account of the half day. After I got home from work, I started to help out with getting things ready for dinner, but then decided to go to the CVS Christmas Party (I used to work there and am still close with all the management staff and am always invited to the parties). That was really fun, I talked to everyone for 2 hours and ate a small lunch. I decided to ride up to my uncle and aunt's house to say hi really quick and meet my aunt's sister's new puppy, Molly. She is so cute. Finally, I made my way home to my dad's to begin the festivities there. When I got there, my uncle, aunt and cousins were there with their new puppy, too. She's also adorable. My grandparents were there too and it was nice to see them. I rarely see my dad's side of the family so it's always a treat to see them. Everyone came and we ate our dinner which as usual was delicious. I was just hanging out with my family and we were being goofy and taking pictures by the tree and all when my cousin Breanna looks out the window and says "Tori, that looks like Dan out there." I proceeded to say, "Breanna, there is no way that Dan can be home right now." I got pretty annoyed, because he had told me he wasn't coming home for Christmas at all. So people walk in the door and I'm nosey and want to see who it is and my family is going OMG and of course I walk out and see Dan standing in the dining room. I was sooooo happy, I couldn't stop smiling, It was the best Christmas present anyone could ask for. My Aunt Pat started to cry and everyone says I was crying, but I really wasn't. We then went to Dan's house and surprised his family, who no one knew was coming home. That was really nice because we walked in while his uncle was walking in and joked around and everyone was like woah where did you come from haha. Dan also gave me my Christmas present, which was a heart necklace. It has two hearts and the inner heart has diamonds in it and it's white gold. The two hearts are him and I because our thing is he's got my heart. He's so thoughtful. To end the night we went to midnight mass with my Mommom and sister, it was so long, but very nice. I dropped Dan off at home and went to my house to wait on Santa! lol.

Christmas morning, I woke up a little too early (around 630) and Santa hadn't finished brining his presents yet so I waited in the kitchen. Around 8 everyone was told to be up and we started opening presents around 830 and finished around 10. We go one by one from youngest to oldest and then snake back down. We each get 10 presents. I got the Uggs I asked for and a bunch of clothes. That was really nice since I didn't ask for much of anything other than the Uggs, there was nothing I really wanted. I got the best present anyone could ask for the previous night. After opening presents and watching the Hangover as a family, we went to my mom's and opened presents. There I just got some odds and ends and some stuff I could use for up at the house at school. We also got money to buy ourselves things we needed. I was happy with all the presents I got. At my mom's we had a Christmas lunch with my mom, stepdad, my siblings, my stepbrothers and my stepdad's mom and my Mommom. We had traditional turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, etc. Lunch was around two, and I stayed in my PJs all day and decided to finally get ready to go to my uncle's house. My aunt cooked prime rib and that was phenomenal. Dan came with me and there we played with the kids and ate dinner. I love my family and boyfriend. I couldn't believe how amazing of a Christmas it turned out to be.

The past couple days I've been spending with Dan. He was supposed to leave early yesterday but his flight got cancelled and the first one out was today at 3, so he took it. On Saturday, we just hung out at his house and we also went to the mall and it was so crowded. I hated it. Then we went out to a late dinner with his sister and brother-in-law. It was fun. Sunday we woke up early and Dan had his dad drive him to the airport and that's when they found out about the flight. Nothing else really happened, we went out during the day to lunch and then stopped at my house to say goodbye to my family and talked with my stepmom. Then we watched a movie and fell asleep. Today, we went to Wawa to get breakfast (at Dan's request lol) and I took him to the airport and went to the dentist. Not much else went on, and now I'm waiting on this next 48 hours to go by so quick so I can see Dan again haha. It's so crazy how things have worked out but I love it.

Well it's been one heck of a ride...

But I'm thrilled to say, I'M DONE WITH FALL '09 SEMESTER! THANK GOD! I have never been more happy to say that. After two days of finals and work today I have completed the semester from hell. From getting mono to the loss of my grandfather, it has just been a whirlwind to say the least. I made so many more close friends than I had in previous years, I love those girls to death, too. They really helped me make it through this semester and I don't know what I would have done without them. So far for my grades I have 3 A's, 1 A- and one B+ which I'm pretty bummed about but I'm still looking at Dean's List :D !

Anyway, so today I started work at the office again. Gotta love CCHOB. I'll miss them when I won't have a job there anymore. There's a select few I won't miss though, but working there has been an experience to say the least. I wouldn't trade it for the world and I'm so thankful for that job. I didn't do much today though because I couldn't get back into the swing of things, but that's ok, I will be back to my old self tomorrow. I really spent most of my night over at Mommom's because she has a cold and I just wanted to spend time with her and I sat in Poppop's chair, it always makes me feel better. I miss him so much.

Dan came back today and he called me, I was thrilled, but I felt so bad because I was in CVS and I just wanted to get out of there with what I needed to get and call him back. Oh well, he didn't mind. I was just so happy to hear his voice, it put me in such a great mood and I missed talking to him online which we've been doing since we got off the phone haha. Now we'll probably video chat before we go to bed. 2 more weeks :) !

Study study study

That is all I did today for hours straight. I woke up to a nice little email from Dan, it was so nice. I love waking up to "good morning beautiful" whenever I can, it always reminds me of the Steve Holy song, which happens to be my alarm haha. I miss Dan an awful lot, but I'm being really optimistic and positive for us, and still in such a great mood, he'll be home soon :D Then I was feeling all productive and ready to go to campus to study, I even packed a lunch, but then I walk outside and almost fall on my butt. So I go over to the road and it wasn't so slippery, and I decide to try to make it to campus. BIG MISTAKE. I made it down to the main road from our neighborhood, but that road was horrible. I have never driven in worse conditions. Thank God I made it home, after fishtailing down a hill and almost down train tracks and an even steeper hill. I definitely won't ever try anything like that again. I came in the house shaking, but thankful for not wrecking my car. After that I lounged around until noon and studied until about 6:30. It was insane, I'm so glad it's over though. Final numero uno tomorrow at 4:40 pm. I'm starting to study at 11:30 am in the library. Blah.

So I check PostSecret every week and this week there was a very special secret, near and dear to my heart. I emailed it to Dan :)



I'm in love with it, I want to make it the background on my computer or something. Well, the dryer just went off, so I have to put more clothes in the washer and fold more. Then hopefully pack. I can't wait to be home!

Good things come to those who wait

So my brother was just talking about Valentine's Day and his plans for them, and he was saying about how him and his girlfriend are going to spend it together. I just responded with the title of my blog post, because I really don't mind being alone on Valentine's Day. I know that waiting for Dan to come home from his deployment will be much better than spending Valentine's Day with him. I can't wait to experience a homecoming and all the things that come with it. Like how many people beside us military girlfriends/fiances/wives get to experience a first kiss all over again?

Speaking of Dan, he emailed me twice today. He said he was really homesick, and I felt horrible. I don't know what I can do or what to say to him, because I'll never feel that homesick ever. This is his first Christmas not at home, and I think that's what's getting to him. I'm going to get stuff together and send him a package to be there for him when he gets back from the workup. Maybe that will help, at least it will bring a smile to his face. I would do anything to be down there with him on Christmas, but I know it's for the best to not spend the money since he will be home the following week. I also felt really bad because I missed both of his emails because I was out to a late lunch with a friend that I haven't seen in forever. It was so nice catching up.

Today, other than going out to lunch, I studied and then went to a review session where I met a Marine, because I saw he was carrying all his books in an assault pack and wearing combat boots. He was like shocked I knew what his backpack was called and we were talking for a while. He was really nice. But after lunch, I came back and studied for 5 hours or so? It was crazy. I hope I do well on this final. I just can't wait to get it over with.

I hope Dan feels better tomorrow and that he has a chance to email me again. I just want to give him a huge hug and tell him everything is going to be ok, like he's done for me so many countless times. I swear I love him more and more every day that we're apart. Just the things he says in his emails, well, they get me every time. I can't wait to see him. 17 days :)

I should be studying

Instead I'm writing a blog and on facebook. Oh well, my finals aren't until Monday and Tuesday and I planned on studying all day tomorrow and Sunday. I just can't wait to be done. 4 more days, I still haven't started packing yet. I'm going home for a month so I guess I have to pack a lot but I'm going to get clothes for Christmas and I'm sure buy more when I'm home. I need new clothes, someone come be my personal stylist and dress me, I have horrible style.

Anyway...so today I basically did nothing but study this morning in the library and finish another class, 5 down, 7 to go! We had to take an online quiz, and my grade depended on that but I got a 100% so I should be getting an A in that class too. That's 3 A's so far to add to my gpa. I really hope I can make Dean's List! After I got back from the library, we decided to cook tacos for an early dinner around 230. Taylor had work at 4 so it was nice to be eating, and I hadn't eaten since around 11. I just made a taco salad since I'm not much for tacos anyway. When Taylor left for work I took a quick hour nap and decided to watch this movie that my one professor had assigned us to watch and write a one page paper about our opinion on it. It was sooo good! It was called Darius Goes West. Here's the link http://dariusgoeswest.org/playitforward/index.php?oid=dgwx8 It's about a boy with Muscular Dystrophy and how he travels across the United States trying to get MTV to pimp his wheelchair. I was really moved by it and I hope other people can watch it and get the same effect from it as I did. Taylor came home from work around 8:30 and he brought some food with him, so we just ate that and sat around and watched Say Yes To The Dress. (yes, I make him watch that when he really has no desire to). Now, I'm just contemplating bed so I can wake up early to study.

Dan emailed me again today, which I was really happy about. He's hanging out with a Cpl that I met at the ball and I also met his wife and they're both super nice. So that was really good to hear they're making the best out of being on the boat and trying to have a good time. He comes home in 19 days, YAY! :) I'm just so excited to see him again already, even if it's only been a couple weeks since I've seen him. Hearing from him even through an email just makes whatever mood I'm in go away, even though this really good mood is still around and here to stay.