Kristen's post!!!

Hey dudes & dudettes!!!  It’s the wifey this time; apparently Coy has been extremely busy! Haha!!  But seriously, he has been!  I’ll do my best to give you all a heads up on what we’ve been doing since the last post…of course I cannot give details regarding Coy’s training because I am not the one going through the training so you’ll have to wait for a post from him to get the skinny on that stuff!

Oh goodness!!!!!  Where should I begin?!  I’ll start with 12 years ago when Coy and I first met…if you would’ve asked me then what I thought I’d be doing in 12 years,...this would not have been my answer!  By “this”, I mean sitting in a stinky hotel room in San Antonio, alone on a Friday night, sipping on an ice cold Sam Adams while my husband is training on an enormous aircraft, well simulator, until wee hours of the night!  BUTTTT, as horrible as this situation may sound to most, I have to say it could be worse.  I’m happy Coy is home and I am able to follow him wherever the Air Force sends him…with a smile on my face.

Now to the good stuff…

I think the last post was about us in Boston, which was totally different than the beachy vacation Coy had in mind after his deployment!  I told him he was fired!…He is no longer head of the vacation planning committee!  If you’ve known us for a while you’ll know that Coy is a great planner…especially for really cold vacations!  Cold as in ice and snow everywhere!  Like him and I are the only tourists!  I love him so much!  Haha…but I hate the cold weather…Boston was a total New York vaca all over again!  For those of you who weren’t our friends back then…. Coy and I went to New York in, I can’t remember…’03 maybe…and it was mid January!  Yep, freezing, literally!  We couldn’t go outside the empire state building due to ice, and we sat on ice atop a double-decker tour bus…yep, outdoors…sitting on ice!!!  It was miserable…and fun!  So, I've learned Coy likes to go to the East during the winter months apparently!  I don’t mind the cold – if I’m prepared…like snow skiing in Colorado or something!  Oh well, stories for the kids one day, I guess! 

Well, since Boston, we went back to Delaware.  And that was sort of a stressful trip.  Coy had to get all his ducks in a row before his/our journey to San Antonio…and by ducks, I mean he has soooo many checklists to complete every time he goes or leaves somewhere.  Like before he deployed, a checklist…before he left to come back to the states, another checklist…When he got back to Dover, a checklist…he was there maybe a week and before he took leave, another checklist…then he went back when his “vacation” was up and had to get ready for San Antonio…another checklist!  It’s crazy!!!  And I’m not sure exactly what these checklist entail, but he has to go from office to office getting signatures and briefings and whatever else the AF tells him to do and it takes days!!!  So for all you who thought I had Coy all to myself whenever he got home from deployment – think again!!  Haha…the only thing I had to myself was Coy’s dirty laundry and a queen size bed when he went to work!  But I’m not complaining, I wouldn’t change the way our lives are for anything.  All this time alone has actually given me a few really good ideas…I may start creating checklists for Coy!  I mean, I have to be as important as the Air Force, right?!  So if he completes the Air Force’s checklist, mine should be no problem!  I’ll have to try it and let you all know how it turns out!  Anyway, I think my friend Sam Adams is making me get off track!  So while we were in Delaware, we purchased a house…and by purchased, I mean we’re building a house!  We are so excited so please don’t rain on our parade.  There are so many perks in Delaware for first time home buyers…and we are taking advantage of what they have to offer! 

This is us on our lot

Within the week we were there, Coy completed his checklist, and we went back and forth with the builder negotiating, met with the mortgage people, agreed on everything, and signed and initialed…I don’t know about 1,000 papers…poor trees!  We are building in the same neighborhood as our friends Tori and Mike.  It is a cute area only 7 minutes from base.  To answer everyone’s question, no we do not know exactly how long we’ll be in DE.  We should’ve already been living there since we left TX...but I chose to stay with my parents while Coy deployed.  I have my fingers crossed that his time in DE is extended because we haven’t been there yet due to his training and deployment.  We’ll see… but I know whatever the Air Force wants she gets…and I’m ok with it.

My sis-in-law

 My aunt, mom, me, & sis-in-law

From Delaware, we went back to NOLA to get clothes and whatever else we needed for the next few months in San Antonio.  We arrived in Louisiana on a Saturday...and after a long day of traveling I had the first ever Battle of the Decades Alumni Rally at my high school!!!  I almost didn't go because I was super tired and had an enormous headache, but my alma mater is also my mother's, one of my aunt's, and my sister - in - law's!!!  So it was a must that I attend and share this special moment with them!!!  For those of you who aren't familiar with what this event is, I'll sum it up by explaining that rally happens once a year in high school and it is the funnest day ever that the entire school (unless you're an  anti-school type) looks forward to!!!  There are 5 grades (8th, freshman, sophomore, junior, and seniors) and we each have themes and compete for championship titles in silly games, cheers, skits, participation, etc.  It is a great time!!!

This particular rally was a little different than usual...it was on a weekend with alumni from the sixties & seventies, eighties, nineties, and thousands!  So much fun!!  Each class's theme had to be related to things that occurred during their decade...so sixties & seventies were "sesame street seniors" then L80's Just Wanna Have Fun", "I Love the '90's", and I cannot remember my classes theme (haha), but it was fun stuff like the Saints winning the Superbowl, the 610 stompers, etc.!!!  It was a great time, especially my mom and Aunt in the '80's section and teachers we all had still there a judges and some were even participating!  I even drank a beer, in the stands, on school property...in front of teachers :)  Good times for sure!!!  I can't wait for the next one!!! 

 We were flying pigs!

Me sipping on a miller light on campus!

At this time, it was the end of January...that means it was time for Dallas's birthday!!!  Our baby girl is 3 now...which is 21 in dog years!!!  So we had a celebration for her...beer, king cake, frosty paws, and doggy bags which included soccer balls...because Dal loves soccer (she plays soli-soccer)!  We think she had a great time...eating the treats of course, but not taking pictures with her martini glasses and shot glass necklace!!! 

 Dallas taking a sip of beer for her 21st birthday!

The next day, we were on our way to San Antonio…without Dallas.  There were no pet friendly rooms available.  Hopefully we’ll be able to bring her here at some point…but if we can’t, she is perfectly fine with her maw-maw and paw-paw in New Orleans.  I was way stressed when we first arrived in San Antonio.  I mean, Coy and I have been to 8 different states in the past year!  That’s not including the different states we slept in on our way to and from places or his deployment and my cruise!  I don’t know about him, but I’m exhausted!  I wish there was a housewife uniform!  Like he can just bring his same bags from place to place country to country.  I have to pack, unpack, and then repack!  It’s crazy!!!...And each place has different environments, of course…so the wardrobe I have to pack is completely different than the flight suits Coy has to pack!  I’ll tell you, I used to travel for my job and I learned to be a light packer…just one carry on…now, I’ve lost my touch!  I have so much baggage…literally!  I think it’s because I stay weeks at a time…and if that’s not the reason, it’s the excuse I’m sticking with!  I can’t bring travel-sized liquids…I need the full size of everything!  I’m just a typical girl.  

Getting back to the point, we arrived in San Antonio to an old run down hotel room on base.  It’s a place to sleep with a roof over our head, so yes we are thankful.  However, if you are a female and just mad at the world at that particular moment because you’ve been driving for two days, haven’t really slept, and just got separated from your husband you were following on the interstate because San Antonio has some jacked up crazy roads and you arrive in such a place..., you find everything wrong with it!  Hair intertwined in the white bath towels, the smell, etc.  I think Coy and I just needed to relax and not think about house plans and why I can’t follow him, a GPS, and talk on the phone at the same time!  Long story short, we’re doing great in this yankee candle scented “home” for the next few months…it’s not that bad after all…I’m happy to be spending time with my hubby.  The cleaning ladies love me here because I wash our own towels and borrow their vacuum to vacuum myself!  All they have to do is take out our trash...and that's if I don't beat them to it!  

Coy has a couple dudes in his class…I met them the night of the Super Bowl…they’re all very nice.  There are no wives here (from Coy’s class).  We’ve been out a couple times with them…we went to this pizza joint called Big Lou’s Pizza where we regretfully enjoyed a 42” pizza…there was five of us and we ate about half of it.  I don’t want to see pizza for a while!  That same night we went to a comedy show at the River Center.  Comedy shows are always a good time!!  Coy and I love to laugh!  

This week we went to a place called The Flying Saucer (similar to Lager’s – a bar/restaurant in NOLA)…they have SO MANY beers to choose from!!!  And if you know Coy and I, you know we love beer!  Coy had a tour of Texas beers and a couple different ones after that…I had and loved the Chocolate Truffle which consisted of Young’s Double Chocolate Stout and a splash of Lindeman’s Framboise.  It was delicious! Or delicioso as they say here!  Today I went to the mall…for a long time!  I got lost on the way, but it’s ok…I made it there and back in one piece without backing into anything!  

Coy just got home from his SIM…he’s excited I’m doing the blog and said he’ll do the next one!  I’m sure you all understand he’s been busy.  Work. Wife. Blog.  That’s the order.  haha!  I’m sure I left some things out, but I’m sure Coy can add whatever I forgot in next week.  I hope everyone is doing well…Happy Mardi Gras to all of our family and friends! 

~Kristen