2014 Instagram Highlights

Started the year off fun

Baby likes her elephant chair. 🐘

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Jan 1, 2014 at 8:42pm PST

and then there was snow, lots of snow.

Snow day #overit #isitspringyet #butteamerica #montana

A video posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Jan 1, 2014 at 10:30am PST

snow means drinks... of course

#NationalMargaritaDay 🍹

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Feb 2, 2014 at 1:54pm PST

pink hair !

Pink hair again 💕 #pinkhair

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Feb 2, 2014 at 1:22pm PST

we got our address in California!

We got our address for Camp Pendleton housing! I am so excited! It's starting to feel real! #campendleton #McCawleysMove2014 #leavingMontana

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Mar 3, 2014 at 1:48pm PDT

then we emptied the house and left Montana

So much room for activities! All that is left is the stuff that will go with us in the car. #mccawleysmove2014 #seeyouincalifornia

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Apr 4, 2014 at 12:06pm PDT

our adventure brought us to Virginia, where we had fun with family and had some yummy beer

#cheers #yuengling

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Apr 4, 2014 at 4:32pm PDT

Auntie Maggie

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Apr 4, 2014 at 5:53pm PDT

and we learned some new tricks

New trick today. 😳😁😣

A video posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Apr 4, 2014 at 6:28pm PDT

dogs had fun with Auntie Andrea

Day 2 of #100daysofhappy #ilovemydogs Cooper, Aiko, & Renji I missed these guys so much they are my happy 💕 #bostonterrier #dogsofinstagram

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on May 5, 2014 at 7:17pm PDT

we finally moved into our new home

Silly goose put herself up there.

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on May 5, 2014 at 10:22am PDT

we did some exploring

The backdrop looks fake, it's so beautiful! #oceansidepier #familytimeispriceless

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on May 5, 2014 at 6:39pm PDT

found a Coco Curry

Evey even liked it! #cococurry #cocoichibanya #japan #curry 🍛👍

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Jun 6, 2014 at 6:45pm PDT

mama got a new ride!

I'm gonna miss my Jeep, but this is way more practical. #toyota #corolla #newtome

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Aug 8, 2014 at 2:28pm PDT

we wrapped up summer with lots of fun outside

Two of my favorite people. 💕

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Aug 8, 2014 at 8:50pm PDT

and a trip to the pumpkin patch!

Daddy surprised us with a trip to the pumpkin patch 🎃👻

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Oct 10, 2014 at 5:27pm PDT

November was the Marine Corps Ball, always a good time

Marine Corps Ball 2014

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Nov 11, 2014 at 12:03pm PST

then I cut my hair off, and dyed it pink

Oh yeah! #pinkhairdontcare!

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Dec 12, 2014 at 4:17pm PST

evey had a wonderful second birthday

Birthday trip to the beach. 🎂

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Dec 12, 2014 at 2:18pm PST

even though she busted her head open a couple days before

Healing nicely.

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Dec 12, 2014 at 12:31pm PST

Santa went about as well as we expected

We went and saw Santa today. Went just as well as last year. 🎅

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Dec 12, 2014 at 5:44pm PST

christmas was spent with family, playing inappropriate card games

Family fun #cardsagainsthumanity #CAH #inappropriate

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Dec 12, 2014 at 7:39pm PST

and I ended the year with more fun hair colors!

Fun with hair color #pinkhairdontcare #purpleroots #pinkhair #purplehair #hair #nofilter

A photo posted by Alana 🌺 (@alanamarie26) on Dec 12, 2014 at 7:41pm PST

Follow me on instagram if you don't already, you can see all the things you miss here and on facebook. I'm looking forward to sharing another wonderful year with you.





Just a click to vote- no registration necessary-

 

Fours

I know I talked about trying to blog twice a week until the end of the year, but I got sick with a terrible sinus infection the last week of school. The endless sinus headache, and vertigo I have had has really limited my ability to do anything but watch Gilmore Girls. I am still not up to par, however today is the first day in a week I haven't been eating an enormous ibuprofen with my morning coffee, so that's a plus. 

I decided to do something a little fun this week. I found this last night on Scattered Seashells, and it looks fun! 

4 names people like to call you other than your real name:
1. mom

2. sister (my sister calls me sister, we are weird) 

3. Alana-Banana

4. Banana 

4 jobs you have had:

1. Manager at AAFES

2. Motorcycle sales person (I was terrible at it) 

3. cook in a takeout Italian restaurant

4. Courier for a real-estate company 

4 movies you've seen more than once:

1. Star wars series

2. Indiana Jones series

3. Harry Potter series

4. Strange Brew

Del Mar Beach Camp Pendleton December 2014

4. books you'd recommend:

1. Harry Potter 

2. anything by Chelsea Handler

3. Bitter is the new black - Jen Lancaster 

4. I have read so many books but my mind is blank

4 places you've lived

1. Tucson, Arizona

2. Chicopee, Massachusetts 

3. Okinawa, Japan

4. Helena (and Butte), Montana 

4 places you've visited

1. Washington DC

2. Mexico

3. Glacier National Park

4. Las Vegas, Nevada

4 places you'd rather be right now

1. Okinawa

2. anywhere else in Japan

3. my moms house in Arizona

4. Okinawa

Okinawa, Jp September 2010

4 things you don't eat

1. raw carrots, they are just gross

2. raw onions

3. radishes 

4. natto

4 of your favorite foods

1. Kraft mac and cheese

2. cheeseburgers 

3. french fries 

4. eggs

4 TV shows you watch

1. Gilmore Girls

2. Archer

3. Bobs Burgers

4. South Park
(I don't watch a lot of TV, we don't even have cable, just netflix and hulu)

Okinawa, Comprehensive Park 2010

4 things I am looking forward to this year:

1. making through it in one piece 

2. vacation to NorCal

3. summer 

4. how sad is it that I can't think of anything?

4 things you are always saying:

1. Stop climbing on that!

2. You are not a monkey!

3. I'm tired, is it bed/nap time yet?

4. In or out dogs! in or out! 

Bates Nut Farm 2014

Just a click to vote- no registration necessary-

  

Sunday Social

This Weeks Questions:

1. What is something you’ve always wanted to do but are afraid of? 

I see a lot of people answering this question with Skydiving. I guess I am one of the few that have gone skydiving. (BTW- it was amazing!) I can't think of anything I wanted to do but was afraid of. I can think of things I wanted to do, but didn't make the time for, like scuba diving. 

2. Where do you see yourself in five years? 

On a beach with my husband and two babies. 

3. What are you looking forward to before the end of 2013? 

Moving. and the several family vacations we have planned. 

4. What are your hopes for your blog? 

That people will continue to enjoy it, and once Evey hits a year I would like to have all of her weekly/monthly posts published into a book for her. 

5. Do you always see yourself living in your current town/city? 

Nope, We'll be outta here in a few months. We'll come back to Montana someday to show E where she came from though. 

6. What is your morning routine?

Get E up, feed her, change her diaper. Put her in her bouncy seat and make coffee and 2 eggs. Feed dogs. Eat my eggs while she serenades me with her screechy baby calls as she talks to her toys. Change her again. and then we do what she wants, feed her again or put her back down with toys while I internet, sometimes a walk..



Just a friendly reminder, I was nominated for the top 50 Military Mom Blogs by VoiceBoks, you can vote for me here. Thank you for your support.

I need glasses

I made it almost 30 years without needing glasses. But I've been getting headaches and my most recent eye exam showed an astigmatism and a very low prescription needed. Mostly I will need them for reading, computer use and night driving. I guess, that's what the guy said. I just want my head to stop hurting, and I'd like to be able to drive at night again. Well, I can drive at night, I just have a hard time seeing, and I get really nervous when cars pass me going the opposite direction because I cannot see very well.

So anyway I went looking at glasses today.

BTW, taking pictures of yourself in the glasses department of any store is just a little weird. But I only had one person ask if I needed anything and I explained that my husband is out of town (truth) and I don't trust myself to buy glasses without someone else's opinion (also truth).

Rectangle -

 

Pink-

 

Oval-

 

Calvin Klein-

Converse-

Blue-

Turquoise-

Pink 2 -

So those are the ones I looked at today. I have yet to be even close to making a decision, but I'd like to order them tomorrow.

Lady Gaga

I fucking love Gaga. She is so, just awesome. I love her music, I love her message.

I also love this song, it's my favorite off the album and the video is bad ass.

Get Facebook Buttons

oh and BTW! I created a facebook fan page for my blog. Yeah I was bored today. But if you want to follow me and you don't have a way to follow the RSS feeder, you can click on the link and 'Like' My page and I'll update it whenever I post a new blog.
Enjoy!

edumacation

I spent the better part of 2008-2010 busting my ass in school. I am not a great student but if it weren't for math I would have had at least a 3.5 GPA, but nearly failing one math class screwed that up bad.

The last class I took was History of the American West, earlier this spring. That class really burned me out. It was terrible, the teacher wasn't great. I don't feel like I learned much. Quite a bit of this was due to my own extreme laziness. Which I also partly credit to being a bit depressed, since we were still new to Montana, and I was still completely hating the bitter cold winter.

Well it's time to get back in the game if I ever want to graduate. Also I am currently living in a sweet spot for my Major- History/Environmental Management(minor in english), I want to work in the National Parks Service or Forest Service, or teach. My ideal position would be summering in a place like Yellowstone, or Yosemite and teaching visitors the history of the area, both natural history and early American history.

I would love to share my love of the outdoors with other people. I'd love to give future generations the education on preserving our nations history.

Source: travel.nationalgeographic.com via Alana on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via Alana on Pinterest

So that brings us to now. I am trying to decide where to jump back in. I am about 40 credits in on 120 required for a double major with a minor. Gah! 81 credits to go! So most classes are 3 credits each, thats 27 classes to go. If i do two classes a term thats 13 terms. 5 terms in a year (Spring 1&2, Summer, Fall 1&2) So I could theoretically be done in 2 years. 

Well thats not as bad as I thought. 

Assuming I don't fail math again. 

And I can maintain a GPA. 

And I don't die from exhaustion.

3 classes a term is considered full time for my school, because they are shortened terms, 8 weeks long I think. 

So yeah, what to do now? 

I am thinking to get that Math out of the way, also since the local University is in session right now I could probably find a tutor for relatively cheep, which I know I will need. 

As much as I hated my other writing course, I may want to just get it out of the way too. Or I could do something like humanities, or a computer class. 

le' sigh

or I could take another class for my History, or start classes on my EM, because I haven't even started those yet. 

or I could work at Mc'Ds when I grow up. 

10 song shuffle

1. Europe - Final Countdown {Very Best of Power Ballads}

2. Dashboard Confessional - Hold on {Swiss Army Romance}

3. Cash Cash - Party In Your Bedroom {Cash Cash}

4. Radiohead - Creep {Pablo Honey}

5. Demi Lovato - Catch Me {Here We Go Again}

6. Kiss - Rock and Roll All Night {Dazed and Confused} 

7. Kanye West - Pinocchio Story {808s and Heartbreak}

8. Boys Like Girls - She's Got A Boyfriend Now {Love Drunk}

9. Talking Heads - Road To Nowhere {80's Night Ultimate DJ collection}

10. Plain White T's - You and Me {Every Second Counts}

You want to know?

1. Name five of your favorite new blogs that you're reading.

• Rockin' Mama
• Ramblings of a Marine Wife

Okay so those are really the only "new" blogs I am following right now. I am already following like 200 so I try to not accumulate too many new ones. 

2. When you were a young child or teenager, did you have an idea of how many children you wanted and what their names would be?  Did you follow through on your ideas?I knew I wanted kids, I know just a few years ago I had plans of a boy and a girl. Now I don't know, I know I want kids but I don't know how many or what kinds. (except human kind, I already have enough of the fur kind)
3. What is the silliest thing you fight with someone about?  It could be your spouse, sibling, parents, co-worker, etc.Okay so this may not be a fight but, My sister and I can't say I love you, if one of us does we know either something is wrong or the sayer is drunk. It's just totally weird. 
4. What is your favorite scent that others may not find very nice?Ex. gasoline, sweat from your sweetie, etc.Skunk. It reminds me of Summers in the White Mountains of Arizona, Pinetop-Showlow. We used to spend 1 week a year up there and  driving down the highways late at night we'd smell skunk. Since then the smell of skunk reminds me of summer vacation. 
5. What are your thoughts on plastic surgery? (Have you had it? Want it? Regrets?)I am totally getting a breast reduction/lift after kids. I have 38/40 DDD and I have been loosing weight everywhere but my boobies. They are huge and they make my back hurt, I have poor posture and it's because of them. They will go away. I would love to have little perky B's but I probably won't go smaller than a C. 

Hoo Are I?

1. How often do you wash your vehicle?

About once every other week. We live down a dirt road and I like to get my car muddy on rainy days. There has been a lot of those lately.

2. When riding in a car with someone who usually drives, them or you?

Them, I don't like to drive, and I've been told I drive scary.

3. How many states have you traveled to or through?
Almost all of the lower 48 except the ones around the Great Lakes and the upper Mississippi River. Oh and never been to or through Florida.

4. What kind of music do you listen to the most?

Ke$ha and Lady Gaga. Or 80's pop. Or the Pop station on the Sirrus satellite.

5. Do you prefer the window down or air conditioning?

windows normally, but it's damn windy here so the one day I needed it I turned on the AC.

A few firsts

[jacked from amy's blog]

First Kiss: I really don't remember my first kiss, but my first make-out kiss was also my first boyfriend Tom my sophomore year of HS (i was a late bloomer)

First Friends: Teresa Skibinski, we met when we were 3-4ish

First Home bought with Husband: we've never bought a home but our first home together was the apartment we rented in Chicopee, Mass.

First Teacher: Kindergarten, Mrs. Curtis

First Big Trip: We used to go to the mountains every year for summer break, but We did go to California to Disney Land when I was like 7 or 8

First Job: stuffing envelopes for Real-estate agents.

First Addictions: The Sun. I became a sun worshiper at a very early age.

First Dog I've owned: My very first dog that was my responsibility is Aiko. My baby girl.

First R Rated Movies: I think it was Candyman, the horror flick.

First Surgery: tonsils. I was about 7.

Todays Playlist

Day 4- Todays Playlist:

I just downloaded this album, I loved the music in the movie and it totally had me dancing in my seat. I can't wait to listen to it, I may leave for work early so I can drive around and grove in my car.

Wee bit of me Wednesday ( but instead of wednesday it'll be thursday)

{one} what was your first job?

putting flyers on peoples doors, riding around on my bike or roller blades.

{two} have you ever seen a stand up comedian?

I havn't but I would love to see a live taping of Chelsea Lately!

{three} when was the last time you played mini golf?

I think I remember going to Golf 'n Stuff in Tucson before I left for Mass, so like 7 years ago....

{four} what was the last picture you took?

Last night I took a picture of my cupcakes with my iPhone, but on my actual camera I think it was snow.

{five} burnt food: yes or no?

This girl loves a burned hot dog.

{six} if you have a pocket full of change, what do you do with it?

put it in my purse or my cup holder in my car.

{seven} can you touch your tongue to your nose?

nope, not without touching my nose with my fingers.

{eight} do you scrapbook?

I have, but not currently.

{nine} do you buy lottery tickets?

every now and agian, just out of boredom i'll buy a scratcher ticket.

{ten} do you prefer to be in front of the camera or behind it?

both, but I am usually the photographer.

Wee bit of me Wednesday

{one} what is your favorite breakfast food?Hashbrowns. I also love sausage egg and cheese breakfast burritos from los betos.
{two} how many pairs of shoes do you currently own?millions, okay maybe only hundreds. well, really probally only like 50 if you count flipflops
{three} city or country?Country, close to the city.
{four} what is your favorite part of your job?I just started today, so far I'd say the fact that I even have a job is pretty awesome.
{five} what is your favorite junk food to snack on?Bread and cheese.
{six} have you ever been mentioned in the newspaper?Not that I know of, except maybe in the police blotter... ;D
{seven} do you use post-it notes?Addicted to sticky notes. I would forget everything, like taking out the trash thursday morning, with out them.
{eight} do you have freckles?just a few really light ones, and some on my knees.
{nine} is it okay for men to wear pink?no. not if it's the only color, like a shirt with pink and yellow and grey, that would be okay.
{ten} when was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper?I leave love notes for paul all the time, so like last week.

I should be doing dishes....

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?

September 2000 I was fresh out of High School, I think I was working for Long Realty, Driving the courier Truck. I was living in an apt on with my (now ex) boyfriend. I think in general I was mostly being a rebellious youth.

2) What are 5 things on my to-do list for today?

1. gym
2. dishes
3. clean floor of knitting room
4. pick up computer room
5. laundry

3) Snacks I enjoy:

• pickles
• chips and salsa
• popcorn
• cucumbers and taziki sauce

4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire:

• I would finish school and travel around to National Parks educating and working with the Parks. I would also travel abroad every chance I got, Australia, China, India, Japan, Europe, Africa. Lots of travel.

5) Places I have lived:

• Tucson, Az

• Chicopee, Ma

• Okinawa, Japan

6) Jobs I have had:

• food prep
• babysitter
• motorcycle sales & service
• courier
• pizza delivery
• receptionist
• cashier
• retail manager
• retail merchandiser

A bit of me (friday)

{one} how would you describe your style?

Jeans and a tee shirt, all they way. I wear tank-tops a lot and flip flops. Shorts every day I can. Living in Okinawa, those days are frequent. I'm very laid back. As much as I love dressing up, for me putting on tinted moisturizer is a big deal.

{two} what would your perfect day look like?

Early morning hike in the woods, like Yellowstone. Afternoon picnic lunch on the forrest floor with Paul and maybe my family. Dinner at the campfire with everyone I love. And a night under the stars.

{three} what would be the best workplace perk?

I get naps.

{four} if you could have the starring role in one movie, which would it be?

Something that films on location, Roman Holiday would be cool, but I'd want to be Audrey Hepburn

{five} what tv show do you wish would go off the air for good?

Reality Shows, except the cool nature ones. Survivor is not in that category, it can go, Amazing Race, it can stay.

{six} chocolate or vanilla?

Vanilla!

{seven} if you could date any celebrity, who would it be?

So many to choose from! I think Brad Pitt cleanly shaven is my choice.

{eight} if you could have been the author of any book, which would it have been?

7 Habits of Highly Effective People, I bet that guy is pretty well off, and highly effective. I've been feeling like a bump on a log lately.

{nine} what's your favorite type of flower?

Hibiscus.

{ten} what do you think is your most attractive feature?

I have a nice rack.