The Latest.

Why, hello, bored readers!

I realize that lately my posts have consisted of pictures of Dutch, and those have come few and far between at that! While I consider my beastycat to be incredibly entertaining, I know that I can't really count pictures of him as a REAL update.

This, friends, will not really be a great example of an update either, but what is the point of all this babble if I don't just get to it?

Things here are going well. My mom comes in to town on Tuesday and I am really looking forward to it! We are going to visit Mimi in Alabama and I'm hoping to get some good pictures of Columbiana where my mom grew up. Of course Mimi's house feels like home in many ways too, so it will be great to visit.

Last week I went to my GA orientation and it was... interesting. I am realizing that I will be attending a school with a VERY different student population. NYU was, after class#1, very predictable. It was predictable in that it was always fairly diverse, but often very similar in the same breath. So this will be a real experience.

I do struggle on and off with the prestige of the school. Even typing that I find myself embarrassed at my pride. I know this is an incredible opportunity-- to get paid to get a master's degree. And I know that this is, God willing, not the last school I'll attend. It is just strange.

Army life continues to be positive, to simplify. It is such a unique little world. I am surrounded by women who incredibly intelligent, went to great schools, and some, like Julie, who are currently working on a degree at Harvard. Yeah, Harvard. I'm not sure what I expected, but these women are amazing. Not only are they caring for homes, pets, and in most cases children, they are pursuing education, volunteering incessantly, and all the while painfully aware that the love of their life is across the world. By no means are these women perfect or all put together, but I think that is a true beauty of this life- it is impossible to even appear to have it all figured out. The Army keeps you on your toes. I suppose all that is to say that I have a lot to learn, and happily I am surrounded by those from whom I can learn.

Matthew, if you are wondering, is doing well. He has settled in to his little home and is getting the hang of his job. He is well-liked by his coworkers and is finding the balance of leading and learning. He continues to be marvelously encouraging and supportive of my many endeavors here, and he keeps me thanking God for him each day as he reminds me how wonderful he is. Sappy, yes. But hey- send your husband off to war and see if you don't get a bit sappy, especially when you started that way in the beginning!

I also attended my first "FRG" meeting. FRG is an abbreviation you will probably become familiar with. It stands for "Family Readiness Group"-- each unit has one and it is run by spouses within the unit. It is primarily active during deployments and the role is to keep wives and parents of unmarried soldiers informed about any news. The leaders of an FRG get information directly from the unit's military leadership, so it is legit, though apparently these groups can foster rumors like "they're coming home 2 months early!" So far, those don't seem to be true, and we're still looking at a return of Jan, 09. Anyway, my FRG seems great and I have met a few awesome girls in it as well. I'm going to some training on Monday and then I'll officially be an FRG volunteer. And so, it begins!

Well I think that about covers it. Other than working on some GOAL stuff I'm doing as a contract job, I have been eating popcorn and salsa and watching the Gilmore Girls while I have time before school and job pick up.

So there is a regurgitation of happenings and news. I'll try to up my ante on updates. We'll see!

PS> Matthew's birthday is August 6. If you think of it, e-mail him, or send him a card! If you need his e-mail or address just e-mail me!