Military Wives Prayer

I am a very proud Army Wife and Marine Daughter and today I found this little prayer that I would like to share with my many other Military friends :)

Dear Lord,

Give me the greatness of heart to see the difference between duty and his love for me. Give me understanding that I may know; when duty calls him he must go. Give me a task to do each day, to fill the time when he's away. And Lord, when he's in a foreign land, keep him safe in your loving hand. And Lord, when duty is in the field, please protect him and be his shield. And Lord, when deployment is so long, please stay with me and keep me strong.
Amen.

I am surrounded by and was raised by an amazingly STRONG military women, my Mother and I want to say THANK YOU for all of your support and guidance.

Since I got married in September and moved to El Paso, TX,  I realized very fast that the only way to be happy when you move away from ALL of your friends and family is to make new ones! But...the only way I have found to do this is to get involved and step outside of my comfort box/zone. I have become very involved in our FRG (Family Readiness Group) and I LOVE it. Without these people, I would really be having a very hard time right now living in El Paso, so Thank you! So if you are a new military wife or even been a military wife for years, try finding out about your local FRG or Military Wives Group and give it a try, you might just find out that it is a lot more fun than you expected and there are MANY people in the same boat as you!

I want to give a special wish to a few of my friends, stay strong and you can do it! The McKenna Family, The Russell Family, The Venable Family, The Blanchard Family, The Calloway Family and The A'etonus Family along with all of the rest that are currently or in the process of being separated from your loved ones for countless hours, days, weeks and months for a deployment, duty, or training and we know the list goes on!

Race for the Cure & Fight against Breast Cancer

As I wrote in my last post 'Training'; we did the Race for the Cure on Sunday and it was amazing to see all of the supporters and survivors participating. Saturday morning I went to our mall: Cielo Vista to volunteer with a new group I am now working with called; Volunteers with Energy. They are partnered with Texas Gas which helps out our FRG. Myself and 3 other wives went to help sign people up to do the Race for the Cure on Sunday; it was a very exciting and emotional day. Many of the other women helping sign people up for the walk were Survivors. It is a great feeling to be around women who have truly fought for their life and made it!

Friday night was very windy (as in 65 MPH winds) and Saturday ended up being very chilly and windy as well (but only about 20 MPH). This was very disappointing seens how Friday was about 75 degrees and I had pulled out some spring clothes. There were about 16,000 people at the walk, it took us 30 minutes to get from where we were in the starting line after the gun was shot! But we had a fabulous team of 13 people from Apache Troop (Hubby's work). Here are a few pictures.

Our team name "Taking the GIRLS for a Walk"

My supporter & I 

All of the awesome Hubby's

All of the wives :)

TONS of supporters!!

We all know I LOVE my ZTA's

After the walk on Sunday we came home and took a little nap before going out for our 99 min run seems how the big event is just around the corner! But this is nothing compared to my Mom and Sisters who took part in The National Fight against Breast Cancer Marathon in Jacksonville, Florida.

 

My Mom after 26.2

 

Emily after 13.1

 

Laruen after 6.2

Just a few facts:

1. 
   
   Every 13 minutes a woman dies of breast cancer
2. 
   
   You are NEVER too YOUNG to develop breast cancer
3. 
   
   One in eight women or 12.6% of all women will get breast cancer in her lifetime
4. 
   
   Diet and exercise make a difference
5. 
   
   For more information go to Susan G. Komen website

Training...

Training for what you might ask?

The El Paso Spira 1/2 Marathon and yes my first running race EVER! My Husband is and has always been a runner and since the day we met has been getting me into running. He did a great job of it when we lived in Columbia, SC but getting back into it here in El Paso, TX has been challenging to say the least.

I have always enjoyed taking part in such things as Breast Cancer Walks and Walks that help raise awareness. A dear friend of the family has been going through a very hard time dealing with and overcoming  Breast Cancer. In October I found out information for the El Paso Breast Cancer Walk and got a team together and we walked as did my Mom in Columbia in honor of Deneen. My Amazing Mother found out about the only Breast Cancer Marathon, it's in Jacksonville, FL. That will be happening on Sunday, February 21st and she has taken on the challenge herself to run her first ever Marathon as. She has definitely inspired me to set a goal such as running a 1/2 marathon and going for it. The one that I will be taking part in with the support of my Husband running by my side is sponsored by Michelob Ultra on March 7th. I am doing it for me and for my Birthday! There are a few people in my life also taking on such challenges, it is great to push yourself (and eachother) to try new things!

My upcoming run/walks:

1. February 21st Race for the Cure 5k

2. March 7th El Paso 1/2 Marathon

3. April 30th Relay for Life

I challenge all of my followers to find something in your area to participate in that you have never done before! You will be surprised at the number of walks/runs that happen all around you each weekend. It is also a great way to find out more about yourself and the things you enjoy outside of your norm.

Visit with Mom

My Mom finally came to see where we live in El Paso, Texas on January 29th -February 1st....I mean we have only be living here for 6 months now :) I wish the whole family could have come but I will take what I can get! We tried to do and see everything in just 2 1/2 days. I had so many places that I have told her about and wanted to take her to that when it was time and she was here I could not even think where to start. But I will give you a rundown of the trip: Friday I left work early to pick her up at the airport and of course her flight was the only one behind schedule due to the weather(snow), but I finally got her and we got home about the same time as my sweet husband you showed up with a bouquet of roses for me and flowers for my Mom as well. We let Fritz get showered and changed and we went to Carlos Y Mickey's for dinner....they have the Texas size (bigger than your head) Margarita's that are SO GOOD!

Saturday we got up and got ready to go for a hike in the mountains, it was kind of chilly when we left but not too bad. We climbing all the way up to snow and ice on the ground...but it did not stop us!

This hike only took us about an hour and half so we decided we would go to the Mckelligon Canyon to walk and run. It is about 5 miles round trip but the fist 2.5 is up hill. At the top, you are at 4,780 feet elevation so it is butt kicker for sure! I love going there because it is one the few places that has a start and end point. My Mom and I ran the whole way back just in case we did not burn enough calories on the way up :)

When we got home we were hungry and wore out, we needed some rest before we got going again to the Outlet Mall to SHOP.  Then we went out to dinner to another one of our favorite restaurants; BJ's. Mom loved it!

Sunday we went sightseeing around downtown El Paso. Places that I had not yet been to,  we ended up driving the wrong way down a one way street, thank goodness everything was closed and there was no traffic! We also went the National Cemetery, to my work then just my Mom and I went to do more shopping while waiting for my oil to be changed. When Fritz's parents were here at Christmas they were very generous and bought us our first complete bedroom set. We still needed to pick out a bedspread and all of that jazz, so my Mom and I went searching,  and found something that I loved and knew would not be too 'girly' for Fritz!

Thanks MOM :)

At the National Cemetery

Outside of my office

And our Master Bedroom almost complete!

I cannot wait for the next visit with my Mom and ANYONE else that would like to please come see me/us!!