HAPPY BIRTHDAY AIKO!!!

Happy Birthday to the cutest little pig dog that there ever was! 

Happy 5th Birthday Aiko, and heres to many more!

(these are not in any order, because despite my best efforts, blogger hates me today, and wont even upload half the pictures I wanted)

- Alana

I feel like I know you

Hey Bestie!
Okay maybe you're not my bestie. But you may feel like it, I hope at least some of you read this and think to yourself "yeah, that Alana chick is pretty cool, I feel like I know her"
There are several blogs I read out there that give me this feeling, not all of them, but I can think of a handfull that I look forward to their blogs, and I feel like they are my friend sharing with me a story. These are some of the bloggers I would totally love to meet in RL. I wont list them because one of my biggest fears is rejection and I don't want them to read my blog and think "wow, that's kind of creepy"
I have never met another blogger, that I met through bloggy land first. I have a handful of friends that I knew prior to them (or me) being bloggers and now we continue to follow each other that way.
Anyone else feel that way? It doesn't have to be about me, just any fellow bloggers.
I really hope to meet some other bloggers someday, even though in RL I am pretty shy, I think it would be fun.

- Alana

Mom's Day!

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

This is from when my mom visited me in Okinawa. It was the first time I had seen her in person in about 2 years. (Thanks to Skype, we would see each other regularly via the internets) 

My mom is my best friend and I would be lost without her. We talk on the phone daily, often several times a day. Living a bajillion miles away from her is hard, but since we are stateside now I see her every few months. I'm totally not lying when I say she is my best friend, Oh, she's your mom you have to say that, No I don't. But she is, when something happens good or bad, the first person I want to call is her. When I hear a funny joke, or watch a good movie, the person I call to tell about it is my mom. When I want to cry because I left the milk in the car for 5 hours on an 80 degree day, I call my mom (and she laughs at me). 

I love you mom. 

Saying Goodbye.

(no, I am not saying goodbye)


Goodbye is just a part of Military Life. 


We all leave, we are all left. Friends move away when they get new orders. About every three years it's time to move for a Marine Family. Sometimes it's just to a different unit at the same base, sometimes it's across the globe. 


A list of our moves: 
I was born and raised in Tucson, Az. 
Early 2005 We moved to Chicopee, Mass. Stationed at Westover Air Reserve Base. 
(in 2006 we moved from an apartment to base housing)
Early 2008 We moved to Okinawa Japan. Stationed at Camp Courtney. 
(in 2009 we moved from base housing into an off base house)
Late 2010 We moved to Helena, Montana. Stationed on recruiting duty. 


Moving every three years is a huge pain in the ass. There are boxes stored in my house that haven't been unpacked since we lived in chicopee. But the worst part is making friends and saying goodbye. 
It's not often you meet people on the same rotation as you, so usually you or your friends are leaving while someone is staying behind. We were lucky in Okinawa, many of our good friends were on the same rotation as we were so we all were together. My two best friends and I all left the island in a matter or months from each other. With Paul and I being the last to leave. 
I am still in contact with most of my friends from our travels. But it's hard to keep in touch when they are so far away, and our current lives are so full of work, and play, and trying to make new friends. 


We have made new friends that are leaving soon. That's the luck since we got to Helena, we make friends and then they leave. I have just a few people here in Montana that I would call a friend. 


I deeply love each and every one of my military friends that I have made over the last 6 years. I treasure so many of the friendships I have been blessed with. I hope that we all get to see each other again someday. 

My baby sister got married.

Wednesday November 23,

My sister became the 6th woman in our family to get married on this day. 

<3

My father walked her down the isle

They said their vows 

My parents saw their baby get married. 

We took fun pictures 

Paul and I also celebrated our 5th anniversary

And the happy couple got silly. 

Andrea and Matt on New Years Eve two years ago while sister was visiting me in Japan.  This last two weeks of wedding stuff has been bananas. But it all came together beautifully.

Friday Paul and I started our drive home and got back to Montana yesterday. 

Now we relax. 

One thing I learned this weekend.

No matter how long you are apart it's easy to pick up right where you left off. 


Love you Nikki. 


That's just how things go when you move around all the time though. You make friends then you move, make more friends then you move. Sometimes you come full-circle and you are back with old friends again and things just fall back into place. 


I need to find some old pictures of us and scan them in. I am sad I didn't get any of us this weekend. I fail. 

Day Ten

Day 10 - A picture of the person you do the craziest things with

The hardest part about this post was choosing a picture. Hands down, craziest things have been done with this girl. She was there for much debauchery and bananas craziness.

I miss you C and we'll have crazy times again someday.

PCSing & Friendship

Making good friends is hard enough. Moving every three or so years to a whole new part of the country (or world) means you have to make new best friends. Tonight was the second time since we arrived on Okinawa that we have had to say goodbye to great friends. I cried. I tried to not let it be seen but it was unavoidable.

It's good and bad I guess, In 10 years when Paul retires we will have friends in: California, Arizona, Montana(hopefully), Idaho, Texas, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont and who knows where else. We have made some amazing friends thorough the years, and saying goodbye always sucks. Goodbye never means forever though, I always try to say "see you later" because who knows when we will cross paths again. I have made some amazing friends because of the military, people who I may not see for years, or physically talk to on the phone for months, but they are people who I know will be there for me if I need them.

Goodbye never means forever.

Thats what friends are for

As you may have noticed, i had a few extra dogs for a few weeks. Well Gerty and Oliver have gone home, their mommy is home from the East Coast now. (Aiko is so terribly lonely at times it's sad) but one of the ways she thanked me was with yarn, and it's some amazing yarn! it's all alpaca, it's so soft i cant stop touching it! i've already started with the cream one, i'm working up a cowl (neck cozy) designing my own pattern so it's going slow but i will hopefully be able to cast on the actual pattern instead of swatches tonight after dinner! behold the power of yarn (sorry the pic's arnt great, the weather has been iffy so the lighting was poor, and it was cold out!)

My Best Friend

My best friend is a girl i have known all my life, she is a really neat person. She was once this little tiny girl that i couldnt stand to be around, i used to wish that my parents would take her to the grocery store and leave her there. I wanted her to stay away from me and my barbies. When my friends came to play she wasnt allowed near us. Despite this she has always been there for me. when none of my friends would play with me she would, as i got older and no one else would cover for me she would, when we grew up and none of my friends would drive my drunk ass home she would. This is a true friend. She may seem self involved, but self love is different than selfishness, my sister is very vain, she is beautiful why shouldnt she be, but she is the most selfless person i know. when i needed somone to live with me becuase i was lonely she moved in, when the dishes needed to be done she did them. My sister took care of me when i was drunk and puking all over myself. She drove me to work when i got my DUI and lost my liscense. She was even there to pick me up when i got my DUI. When i think back all of my best, funniest and worst memories are with my sister. remember when we tried to hike 7 falls and didnt quite make it becuse we thought we were going to die and we ran out of water? remember when we pretended we were zoo animals in the living room with the plant stands? remember when we were at work together when aunt vicki died? Leaving you was harder than anything, and though when you come to visit you drive me up the wall, and i sort of want to choke you in your sleep i would never kill you, just make you pass out for a little while. I always worry about you, its because i want you to achieve so much, since we have become grown ups (you offically since your last birthday) i have had all these ideas for you, i want you to see the world, i want you to travel and take pictures, and meet cool people, and then i want you to tell me all about it. i want to do these things too but i want to talk to you about the Nile, and the Great Wall of China, and Paris. I think that would be the coolest thing ever if we could grow old and be best friends, and travel the world, and tell stores to our kids about it. Thanks for being my BFF sister.