Young and Stupid...

This weekend we had the opportunity to go to a marriage retreat sponsored by our chapel. We got to spend the weekend downtown in a big city in the most amazing hotel we've ever been in. It was nice spending time together not having to worry about work stuff. Lots of quality couple time :) and we found a new old fashioned soda shop...which is very exciting for us. We have missed Pops in Oklahoma. We were able to stock up on some interesting soda flavors that we've never heard of/have.
Spending time with other couples was great and listening to the chaplain made for a great weekend. We discovered some things this weekend. Or rather some things were confirmed for us. We are not a "normal" couple. Stuff that drives most couples crazy about each other don't bother us. Because we have been able to workout the "normal" stuff we are strange. Now of course when we mention that fact we are just told that we're young...give it a few years...and my personal favorite "give it five years and you'll hate each other". We are in a society where even before we are married we are taught to hate our partner for the things they do to annoy us. Even if that thing may not actually annoy us that much. There were times this weekend after listening to the other women *!tch about their husbands I started wondering if there was something wrong with me because I actually am not driven crazy by the things most woman are driven crazy by. But then I had to mentally slap myself and realize how incredibly stupid that sounded. But I do get tired of being looked at like a freak because I am trying to find the best in my husband and not the things that drive me crazy. And the things he does that do annoy me I am learning how to deal with those so that I'm not annoyed by them.
I feel that when people like to use phrases like "give it five years" they are just waiting for us to fail. For us to get to a certain point where we "hate" each other for them to say "told you so". I do not understand that mentality of just wait long enough and they'll screw up.

Rant over...for now

btw... I'm not saying that he doesn't annoy me...I'm just annoyed by things like him picking out my clothes...and interrupting my projects with his ideas that will "improve" my project. But we are learning to work through those things so that in five years we WILL NOT hate each other.

Light bulb...

I think I'm starting to figure out something...God loves Peter. God loves Peter and he is so special to God. God loves taking care of Peter. He shows his love to Peter by providing for and taking care of him. There have been so many times where everything was hopeless and there was no apparent answer to the problem. But somehow it all worked out. It seems like we're doing really well, when suddenly something happens, everything is out of control. And we have no power to fix it. We are pushed to the point that the only thing we can do is pray. And cry. And pray some more. We can imagine the worse possible scenario and everything that can go wrong. But experience has shown miracles happening and the situation being resolved.
That's what is happening right now. There is a situation happening right now that could determine whether or not we are still in the military in 6 months. And at this point the solution is giving it all to God. He is the only one who can resolve this situation and bring peace. He can make it all better. He can fix everything. It doesn't mean he will. Or at least His answer may not be our answer. So it is my responsibility to be okay with whatever His answer is. All I can do is pray...and cry...and pray. And trust that God is in control of everything and that he has our best interest in mind. And deal with everything on a day by day basis.
Life with Peter is not going to be easy. There will always be challenges and scary moments. But we have God. And God is in control of EVERYTHING. I need to remember that and be willing to give him everything.

New Adventures...

The new year has been anything but boring. We started P90X, we started a new nutrition plan, and Peter has been officially diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). This is a diagnoses that will not effect his job in a negative way...especially since he is not a pilot. It actually might help him. Honestly we are by no way surprised by this diagnoses...but having an actual diagnoses makes it a real, and in some ways, life altering issue for us.  ADHD is something that is over diagnosed among children, so most do not actually have it. But I can say that for those who really do have it it is a very real thing. It is basically a chemical imbalance in the brain that causes difficulty staying focused and attending to daily, mundane tasks. That is a VERY simplistic definition of adult ADD. Basically for us it means that Peter does certain things that can be highly irritating and to me feel like he doesn't care enough about me to do the "right thing", but in reality it is something that is an ADD symptom. This is a list of ADD symptoms:

• poor organizational skills (home, office, desk, or car is extremely messy and cluttered)
• tendency to procrastinate
• trouble starting and finishing projects
• chronic lateness
• frequently forgetting appointments, commitments, and deadlines
• constantly losing or misplacing things (keys, wallet, phone, documents, bills)
• underestimating the time it will take to complete tasks

Anybody who knows Peter is aware that this list is like reading his autobiography. Every Single One Of Them. My issue is learning the fine line between an ADD behavior and a behavior that he has control over and CAN change. My personal favorite symptom being Hyperfocus. That's the one where I go to bed and he tells me he'll finish up whatever he's doing on the computer and then follow me...I wake up 4 hrs later and he's still not in bed. At this point I have no idea how to deal with this one. It really is an ADD thing...but I can't help but feel less important...even though he's not doing it maliciously.
The doctor gave him some meds to try out...but the meds were taking away his appetite (a bad thing when trying to do P90X), making him somewhat sick, and making him extra sleepy. Not good things to deal with currently. So he will be trying a new med this week. I guess that medications will help him balance out how he focuses and whatnot...but I do not know exactly how that will change things. It is all a new adventure that will keep life with my airman interesting.

Here are a few Myths/Facts

MYTH: ADD/ADHD is just a lack of willpower. Persons with ADD/ADHD focus well on things that interest them; they could focus on any other tasks if they really wanted to.
FACT: ADD/ADHD looks very much like a willpower problem, but it isn’t. It’s essentially a chemical problem in the management systems of the brain.

MYTH: Someone can’t have ADD/ADHD and also have depression, anxiety, or other psychiatric problems.
FACT: A person with ADD/ADHD is six times more likely to have another psychiatric or learning disorder than most other people. ADD/ADHD usually overlaps with other disorders.

MYTH: Unless you have been diagnosed with ADD/ADHD as a child, you can’t have it as an adult.
FACT: Many adults struggle all their lives with unrecognized ADD/ADHD impairments. They haven’t received help because they assumed that their chronic difficulties, like depression or anxiety, were caused by other impairments that did not respond to usual treatment.

I think this goes for the spouse as well

http://lifewithadhd.tumblr.com/
http://helpguide.org/mental/adhd_add_adult_symptoms.htm

Resolutions...

I have never been a fan of New Years Resolutions. Mainly because I feel that New Years resolutions are made to be broken. That most people make them knowing full well that they will never keep them. So when on the last week of December we decided to start a new fitness/nutrition program on the next Monday (January 2nd) I wanted to make it very clear that this was NOT a New Years Resolution. Peter and I decided to do our first round of P90X. He desperately needs to get into shape for his PT test coming up. He is NOT getting the help that he needs meeting his fitness goals at work...so it is up to us to make sure that he meets those goals without outside help. ...and we need to start eating better and knock the junk food out of our diet. Neither one of us has ever done P90X...but I know that I am excited to start a new fitness program... especially one with my husband. One of the reasons we have not been working out together in the past is because I LOVE working out in the mornings. And that just doesn't work for him. And I REALLY didn't want to workout in the evenings. But now priorities have changed. It is now my priority to insure his success in every way that I possibly can. And at this point that means that I adjust my schedule to fit his in every way. Regardless of what is convenient for me. I was created to be his helpmeet... and that I will be.
Our new schedule consists of us working out when he gets home in the evenings. Making a healthy yummy supper afterwords and enjoying the rest of our evening.

It is looking to be a great healthy New Year. And whether you believe in New Year Resolutions or not... this is a great time of the year to make fitness changes. And as a Beachbody Coach I get to help others find their fitness groove while keeping mine and my husband's in check. A very awesome job.

Thanksgiving...

A year ago I was stressing out about finals and trying to keep as busy as humanly possible in order to ignore the fact that I had no idea when I would speak to My Love again. At this point he had been in Air Force Basic Military Training about 3 weeks. I got to speak to him on Thanksgiving and what I didn't know was that I wouldn't get to hear his voice again until Christmas day. A year later I've been married to My Love for 5 months and we are privileged to spend our first Christmas together as a married couple. After spending 5 months living together it's hard to believe that we "dated" for 2 years long distance. I love being married to him. I love watching him come in the back gate every evening. I love curling up on the opposite end of the couch every evening while we watch Stargate...and then falling asleep about halfway through the second episode. I absolutely adore falling asleep wrapped in his arms every night. There are days when I get upset with him and don't under stand why he does what he does. But there are just as many where I am more then aware of my inadequacies as a wife and how much I suck at cleaning my house. And more often then not the times that I'm upset with him has more to do with my attitude and how I react then something that he actually needs to change. But all in all I love every minute I get to spend with him. Every minute that we're NOT 500 miles apart. Being able to spend every day with him is amazing.

Random...

Here is another set of random photos...

One of our favorite pass times...Stargate SG-1

The lego starwars phase

Our neighborhood white squirrel

Assembling our kitchen table...it was a very exciting event.

Our special stuffed animals...together at last :)

Favorite Part of My Day...

There is one part of the day that I always look forward to. That would be the part where he gets home :)

The ever watched gate...

There he is!!

All the way in the gate :)

The "why are you taking pictures...and are you going to let me in the door" look :D