Deployment Positive Thursday- Week 24

Well, I think it is safe to say that the summer has been a busy time for me- and honestly, I couldn't be happier about it! Just looking at my blogging, or lack there of, it's easy to see that I haven't had a spare moment the last few weeks. (I'll admit though, that my scarce blogging habits can also be blamed on the fact that we just don't have all that much to report- it's still hot and sandy in Afghanistan, and I'm still not-so-patiently waiting for R&R.) To make up for my lack of posts recently, I'm blogging everything that's been floating around my mind lately in one mammoth post. So today's DPT is a BOGO, if you will.

To start, I have to admit, I am loving that I am able to honestly say we are about halfway done at this point. It's so funny because the last 5 1/2 months have been such a blur, but also have seemed to drag on at the same time. Now with the promise of midtour leave seemingly right around the corner (obviously still a huge exaggeration at this point: we still have over three months until October even starts), I feel like we are finally making some real headway.

Sometimes it is hard to imagine that 2012 will ever actually get here, but yesterday for the first time ever, I saw a commercial for a line of 2012 Chevy cars and trucks! Hearing the word 2012 mentioned in a commercial for a product that is actually available to the general public RIGHT NOW was an amazing feeling; it's hard to explain, but it makes everything real. It's like when you are a kid and all you want is for Santa to come, but it's only December 1st and you still have 24 whole entire days to wait. You never think you'll actually get to Christmas Morning (at least, I never did when we started our Advent Calendars), but as more and more families begin to put up their Christmas Trees and decorations, you realize that soon Santa will come. That Chevy commercial made me realize that this deployment will eventually come to an end, that this lonely feeling will not always be my reality, even though sometimes it doesn't feel like it.

As June comes to a close, it feels like ages ago that we were in Disney. But today is a day to celebrate, not only because it is the last day of another month that we can forever bid farewell, but because of two very exciting events that happened in the Dolan household today. The first: Mom finally got her voice back after being told by an ENT not to talk at all for the past six weeks (we cheated a little at Disney, but who wouldn't) due to swollen vocal chords. And the second: Dad's big 60th birthday! We had the whole family over tonight for dinner and dessert by the pool and it was just a perfect evening. A great way to close out a pretty bum month!

And, with the start of July, brings another trip for me! Tomorrow I leave for 6 days in Germany visiting with family and friends. We grew up visiting my grandparents every summer, and as Mark and I grew older it got harder and harder to find time for all of us to go. I haven't seen my Oma in three long years (since I took a weekend trip to visit her while I was studying in Florence in '08) so I am definitely ready to wrap my arms around her. Mom Dolan helped my pack tonight (have I mentioned I hate packing? Literally I did dishes for as long as humanly possible tonight just to avoid it, then stomped around the house groaning about how much I was dreading the task ahead of me for almost a solid hour) but miraculously I fit everything into a single carry on suitcase! I'm pretty darn proud of myself.

I told Andrew that after post-deployment block leave and our Honeymoon, Germany is a vacation priority. It kills me that it is such a huge part of my life (and family) that he doesn't know. I dream of the day when my grandmother can finally meet him. Since my grandfather was in the military during WWII, she knows what it is like to have the love of her life away fighting a war, and she often tells me what a tough journey it is. She finds it so hard to fathom that Andrew and I are able to communicate so often and quickly. In her day, it took weeks and weeks (sometimes months) to get letters to one another, and she and my Opa wrote every.single.day. That is what I call love, and I think it is an excellent example they set for us.

Deployment Positive Thursday- Week 23

23 June 2010 was- to that point- probably the hardest day of my life. It was the day Andrew was recycled when he was 40 hours away from completing Mountains Phase at Ranger School. Him calling home to report the news was the single worst phone call of my life, and at the time we both had an impossible time being positive about anything. It was the hardest thing in the world for me to hear the sound of such sheer and utter disappointment in the voice of the man I loved so dearly, knowing there was nothing I could do to make it better.

At that time, I didn't think there could be any worse feeling. A year later it still stings, but now I feel as though everything has been put into perspective. On Sunday there was an incident involving one of our closest friends in Afghanistan that hit a little too close to home. Everyone is alive and "okay", but my world was completely shaken.

I am not going to get into detail because it's a private matter for the family involved; but ever since I heard the news, I haven't been able to shake the "what if's" from my head. It made the fact that Andrew and some of his our closest friends are over there at war. Not just playing games with guns. This week more than ever, I just feel so thankful for the little blessings in life. The way Lillia came running to me and jumping into my arms when I came home the other day. The sheer pride I feel for being an American. Even the fact that Andrew is thousands of miles away from me means so little when there is the promise of a life together on the other end. When Andrew was recycled, the 9 additional weeks he would spend in "the bad place" felt like an eternity. Now looking back, it seems like the blink of an eye. I can hardly believe that we are almost halfway through this deployment, and I know that the moment I see him and wrap my arms around him that same feeling will return. Where did the time go?


It's funny because I can already feel this year blurring together in my mind. It is one of the strangest feelings ever. I find myself forgetting what month it is, or what time of year; something that is very out of character for me. It's hard to explain. For instance, yesterday I heard something on the radio about a band coming to the area in September. My initial thought was "why are they advertising for something 8 months away?" Apparently in my brain it is currently February. But then last week I thought it was November for a split second. I have to really concentrate and think to figure out what month it is. I don't know what's going on, but it's a very foreign feeling to me. I've always been the one in my family and in my circle of friends who remembered the exact dates of things that have happened in my life. This deployment; no such luck. I'm not even remembering if things happened before or after Andrew left. It's freaking me out a little bit to be completely honest. Has anyone experienced this when dealing with long separations?

The positive of this all is that by the time 2012 gets here I'll probably be being treated for mental illness and I won't know which way is up. In all seriousness though, I am longing for the true feeling of "where did that time go?" and "I can't believe it's all over!" I pray each and every day that that day will hurry up and get here already, but I know this is just a small step in our journey. A journey that I am so excited to officially start as husband and wife just over a year from now.


And, incase you're wondering:  click here to recap what was going through my mind a year ago today...

Deployment Positive Thursday- Week 22

Seven Championships in Ten Years.

Boston, you're my home.

Okay there has been lots going on lately and in my mind I was going to write this post tomorrow night about something completely different, but sorry... I'm gonna need to brag about my hometown for just a second.

Since 2001 we've racked up 3 Superbowls, 2 World Series Victories, 1Larry O'Brien Trophy, and of course the newest member of the club: 1 Stanley Cup. That ain't too shabby. There is something about being from a small city with a huge heart that just makes me so proud. Even thought I'm not technically "from" Boston, New Englanders (with the exception of those Western Connecticut folks) stand together behind their teams. It's a magical thing, really. It's one of my favorite things about going home; seeing people in Red Sox, Patriots, Bruins and Celtics gear everywhere I go. Just thinking about how crazy the parade is going to be for the Bruins this weekend is making me positively giddy. If only Andrew and I could celebrate in Boston with the rest of our city...

I was pleased to learn that Andrew was able to wake up super early (about 3:30am local time) to watch Game Seven tonight this morning. They played it on AFN at the MWR and I can totally picture his face and all of his excitement as the game unfolded. (Here is where I add that originally I had planned on blogging about him and how much progress we are making on this deployment. A quick update will have to suffice: 150 days down as of yesterday and today marks exactly 5 months. All told, it's been an exciting week as far as benchmarks are concerned).

But the fact of the matter remains that this is America. We're a baseball country and if nothing else proves that to you, check out Sports Center's Number 1 play of the day just an hour after the Bruins won Lord Stanley's Cup.... Johnny Gomes in makes a diving catch in left field. In a baseball game. The All-star break is right around the corner (okay, still like a month away yet, but I've told you before, a girl's got to have things to look forward to) and the Sox are kickin' some serious tail. Keep it up down the stretch boys, and we'll make it 8 parades along the Charles in 10 years. Welcome to Title Town, folks.

Currently Missing . . .

• Piles of dirty ACUs
• Date nights
• A strong shoulder to rest my head on
• Driving around in the truck with no place to go, listening to country music and talking about nothing and everything all at the same time
• Fighting over the remote
• Motorcycle rides on beautiful spring and summer days through cornfields and back roads
• Text messages and phone calls in the middle of the day
• Combat Boots at the door
• Screams and shouts of boys too concerned with video games to care about anything else
• Monopoly Deal
• Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Deployment Positive Thursday- Week 21

A Message From a Far Away Place...

"To my family and friends - Thank you so much for the cards you sent and the support you have shown both me and Kristina while I have been gone.  I think I can speak for everyone over here when I say that it means a lot to know that we have all of you in the states rooting for us and watching our backs while we are gone.  I feel extremely blessed to have such a strong network of friends and family back in the states.  Thank you, and I look forward to seeing you all as soon as I can."

And my positive for the week...

I recently realized that we are officially more than halfway to Andrew's midtour leave! I can't believe that next week will mark 5 months for this deployment, it doesn't seem like things are going quickly by any stretch of the imagination, but this is a huge milestone!  It feels great to have such a big chunk behind us... plus the summer is bound to fly by on the homefront. I've got lots to look forward to and keep me busy so really, when you think about it, fall is right around the corner!

Also, I would like to add that this is a fabulous time to be a Bostonian. Bruins are on a roll and the Sox are kickin it in New York! That's more than enough to make me and my soldier two very, very happy fans!

Happy Birthday to my One & Only

In case you couldn't tell by basically every other post in this blog, I am a woman who is completely, madly, head-over-heels in love. What I don't say often enough is how lucky I am to have a man like Andrew in my life; someone who fights for what he believes in, who is strong yet caring, and absolutely perfect for me in every single way. Forget the Army and separations and deployments... nothing matters to me except for that feeling I get when he wraps his arms around me again and every second, every tear, and every worry of the time we spent apart completely disappears into thin air. I feel so blessed to have found my missing puzzle piece so early in life. I know you are going to say I was way too sappy on this, but Happy Birthday, Andrew, I love you so so much!

A little over a month ago, I started collecting birthday cards from family and friends for my favorite soldier. All told, I received 52 cards. Yup, you read that right. F-i-f-t-y T-w-o!! Enough to make up a whole deck of playing cards! You guys are amazing! I bundled all the cards up, along with some other birthday surprises and sent them off to Afghan-land three weeks ago to allow for ample time for shipping. I was ecstatic when I found out he had gotten the package last Saturday, exactly one week early! Andrew decided to wait until today to open his cards and eat the cake so I don't have anything to report on that yet, but I can't wait to hear what he thinks... more on that later.

I also had a little bit too much spare time on my hands, so instead of designing Save-the-dates one afternoon, I decorated the inside of the care package as well. Your birthday only comes once a year and I love to go all out!

Hope you enjoy pictures in my posts, cause you're about to get a ton of them:



Most of the cards before I sent them out





Ransom note style letter... "Read me first" 




With Andrew's Favorite type of puzzle inside. I used to make these all the time when I was studying in Italy (and one during Recycle at Ranger School) for Andrew to complete. I only gave him one letter and he figured it all out! 




CAKE IN A JAR!! Andrew's favorite- Carrot! I also attached little poems to each gift inside the box!





I had so much batter, I made extras for us to eat back home with the kids. I saved these for today so that we could all be celebrating Uncle AJ's birthday together! For 3-week-old cake, it wasn't half bad!




Fork & Knife to eat it with :)




Candles that spell out his name (the "W" is behind the A, don't worry, he is not going by Andre!)




I really wanted to make my own cream cheese frosting, but all the recipes needed to be refrigerated which is only slightly impossible when shipping packages to Afghanistan... so I settled for Duncan Hines which got the job done.




Red Sox Fans are from Mars, Yankees Fans are from Uranus - Why Red Sox fans are smarter, funnier, and better looking
Couldn't pass this book up!





The inside of the Care Package





...which of course I had to plan out





Stuffed to the brim with goodies and cards!

 Even though I didn't get to talk to Andrew at all on his birthday, I have to keep reminding myself how spoiled we are to get to communicate as often as we do. I took today as just another lesson to never expect anything when it comes to deployments or the Army. Obviously nothing is going to stop because some Lieutenant's fiance somewhere wants to talk to her soldier on his birthday. After being blacked out on May 17th (our weirdly special day, read about it here) and today, I've decided to pre-prepare myself for no communication on my birthday, our pre-versary (1 year til our wedding date), our anniversary and the date he proposed. This way, if I do get to hear from him on these days, I'll be absolutely positively giddy.

So with that, I think I'll call it a night. A million thank-yous to everyone who sent a card for Andrew's birthday and for everyone's continued prayers and support.

Deployment Positive Thursday- Week TWENTY!

OMG'sh (that's for you, honey!), we've made it through 20 weeks! woo!!! Sorry, I feel like I have been majorly slacking on my blog lately, but now that I'm back in the real world, I promise to get back on track.

Mom Dolan and I had a great trip to Florida, and once all the work was done it was time to let loose and PLAY! It was such an amazing vacation, and it felt so good to just throw all our cares away and just be like little kids again! We also spent a lot of time with her brother, Uncle Steve, who has worked for Disney for over 30 years and gave us all the behind-the-scenes secrets and stories. He works in resort development, which I've decided is basically the coolest job EVER! Also, he introduced me to "Hidden Mickey's" which I quickly became obsessed with. I may or may not see Mickey's when I close my eyes at night....

Here are some of the photo highlights of our trip (all taken from my iPhone, so please excuse the grainy quality):

Checking into the Polynesian! Absolutely Beautiful... with a bride there, no less!

Mickey was waiting for us on the bed!!!

Finally here!!!

One of my only memories from our Family Disney trip 20 years ago was getting these balloons with my brother! We were so upset when my parents deflated them before we got on the airplane (and definitely threw a fit in the airport, I'm sure) but were overjoyed when they were re-inflated once we got home!

Dinner with Uncle Steve. Please note my magical glowing ice cube! 

Back to the park for a late-night visit!

I LOVE THE BALLOONS! The Castle is behind me, even though you can't see it!

My favorite Parade!

"To Honor America!" 

Day 2: Lunch at Coral Reef at Epcot

Mom and I on the Nemo Ride!

Greetings from the Future

Mickey Ice Cream... I felt guilty eating him!!

My Favorite Hidden Mickey... can you see him?!

Last day, about to check out :( My balloon is still going strong though!

So after 5 long days of hard work, we had a great Disney vacation! My favorite part was when I started to get sad about leaving and not getting everything done, and then I realized that this will not be my last Disney trip! I'm marrying into a family that LOVES Disney and goes as much as possible!! I can't wait to come back with Andrew someday and race to see who can find the most Mickeys!! Oh, we've got so much to look forward to... If 2011 would just hurry up and end already, that would be just fantastic!