A Little Update

Posts on here are pretty few and far between I apologize!

What's been going on lately... we are going to North GA on Nov 8th-11th with some of our really great friends from Guam and really they were more like family, our Guam Family.  They left the rock 2 weeks after we did and live in TN so we are meeting them up there to stay in this cabin for the weekend!!  Should be a blast for all... 4 adults and 4 kids!  Blake and their 3 kids have known each other for 3 years and became very close and it was really sad to say good-bye but it made it easier to tell everyone that we would see each other in a few months (we knew we were going to have a GA apple season trip probably the beginning of the year and we invited them before we all left Guam).  I'll post pictures of our trip once they are uploaded.

As soon as we get home we are moving AGAIN into a house on base.  We went and looked at it today and I think it'll be perfect for us and especially Blake.  Where we live now there is only one family with 2 kids that play so he is going a little crazy.  The drive to take Blake to school can take anywhere from 15-45 minutes depending on traffic but from base he can either take the bus or it's about 10 minutes if that to drive him... Score!

So since being back stateside I have applied for so many jobs/places I can't keep track but with the hours I need, no one is hiring.  Aaron and I have said/agreed that Blake comes first so my hours HAVE to be around his school.  Earlier this week my mom sent me an email with a job opportunity that was to good to pass up!!  I will be working for her boss, from home doing searches that are critical for the law offices that I will be helping with.  This is perfect for me since I can work from home and in my own time (for the most part) so that I can be here for Blake.  Everyone involved is excited for the change since it is very time consuming for them and I will have something to do again and get paid to do it!!!  I go Monday to the local office here in Jacksonville to learn how and what I am suppose to be doing and I am excited.  I just hope I live up to the expectations that are set for me especially since my mom is involved...  I always take pride in anything I do but this just adds more pressure.    

A while ago while we were still in Guam I wrote a post about my baby girl needing surgery for her neck/spine, well I am happy to report that she had it in done July and is doing fabulous!  Surgery was on a Thursday and she was home on Sunday.  Friday when the surgery center let her out to potty she was dragging them.  I really didn't expect the surgery to fix the issues with her walking, running and instability since the issue has been ongoing for 9 years (we just didn't find out about it till 2 years ago).  So my thought was that the nerve damage was done and that at least in that regard she wouldn't get better that the surgery would just stop the trama to her spinal cord.... boys was I wrong!  She is running and playing like crazy and can bend her knee and elbow joints better than ever and isn't in any pain.  Fast forward 3 months, I took them in for their annual and to get their teeth cleaned and while Lilli was there for her teeth cleaning the Dr noticed a lump that wasn't there the week prior at the pre-op, they did testing and they thought is was a Mass T Cell tumor (cancer tumor)... insert very sad face.  We decided to have it removed and that happened 2 weeks later, and it did turn out to be cancerous but the least aggressive kind.  So with all things considered this was the very best I could hope for, they were able to remove all the cancer cells in that spot so now we just have to keep an eye out for other lumps that may pop up in the future.  Even with all the craziness she is still my happy baby girl.... she just HATES going bye bye in the car since she has ended up at the vet one too many times lately!

TTFN

Welp...

not what we expected but okay nonetheless!
 

We found out about a week ago that we probably won't be getting our orders until March or April and to be honest I was a little relieved and bummed at the same time.  I wanted to go home to just be HOME but the move will be less stressful this way b/c everything is spread out and I won't be rushed.  I was however a little sad that my baby girl won't get the surgery she needs until we PCS (move on military orders).  A few days after getting this news Aaron surprised me with "x" amount of money to take a trip home to visit family and get off this rock! 

So this is our plan...

March April- ship off Household goods

March 24th-April 17th- stateside trip to TX and FL.. YAY YAY YAY

beginning of May- Aaron comes home from deployment

Beginning of June- we PCS

The plan is I will do the HHG (household goods) shipment whenever we get orders, alone which will take upwards of 3 months to get to Jacksonville, FL (our next duty station) and I will also ship off my car at the same time.  This will get both our HHG and my car there about June-ish.  We will arrive probably the second week of June and find a house unpack, pick up my car in Orlando, go finish the details on Aaron's new ride at the dealership and then @ the end of June I think we are going to drive to TX for our annual July 4th hang out session with the Longview crew!!  Although plans change especially being attached to the military Blake and my tickets are bought and Aaron has to be checked out of Guam in June there's not too much that will happen to hamper our plan this time around!

Anywho, we are very excited to be going home and spending time with both our TX and FL family for a month... it'll break up the time so these last few months don't drrraaaaggg by :)  I am ready for some good food, good company and maybe a teeny bit of shopping (you stateside people have no idea as too how lucky you are at all the options you have). 

Since family is about the only people who read this we will see you all very soon :)   

No News

Well the title says it all we haven't received orders yet but Aaron did hear from his detailer Christmas Eve saying the we should get orders "soon after the holidays probably mid-January".... well we are in mid-January and no orders :/  I will be sure to update when we hear something.

While we've been waiting we are figuring out all of the little things that will be needed like changing our health insurance over to a stateside policy and rental car pricing... OMG why are they so much.  Okay they aren't bad but when you have to rent one for possibly 2 months it gets pricey.  Especially with other moving expenses that pop up!!

Anywho, nothing else has been going on on  this lovely island so I won't bore you with details!!

TTFN

 

My Original Baby Girl

Yes the original Precious "Lilli" Gaither as opposed to her baby Scrappy Doo Gaither.  This post is about her, as most of our family knows she walks weird and always has kinda like a toy soldier, very stiff... like she doesn't have knees or elbow joints or something.  She was never able to jump onto the couch or bed and she stopped jumping down from them a while back b/c I think she hurt herself one time since then she uses steps.  She got to the point many years ago where she wouldn't play ball outside which she loves.  I never really understood it I just took it as it was and thought, "well she has arthritis", since the vet has always told me that for a breed that's known to have loose knees her knees are great.

Well since being in Guam the issue has gotten worse and her bad moments are much more frequent than before.  I talked to a neighbor and put her on some great glucosamine pills that seemed to help tremendously with her walking and she even played ball out in the yard :)  This made me think Arthritis and joint issues.  Later on she had some bad spells and I ended up taking her for X-Rays to see what the real issue was so that we could take care of it once and for all... so I though.  I dropped her off at the vet and while in their care they noticed she couldn't stand on the linoleum tiles in the office so wile doing the x-rays of her back legs they decided to go on a hunch and do them of her neck as well.  Turns out she has a Atlantoaxial Luxation which is a very serious disease she was born with and will suffer from for the rest of her life.  It is basically the first two vertebrae aren't fuse together so the head hangs down and slowly causes spinal cord damage.  Oh one little problem, there is nothing we can do for her here on Guam and she would have to be seen in the states and the only real treatment is surgery.  I was scrambling when I got home trying to find a vet in the states to give me an estimated cost; turned out this specialist charged like $7,000 and don't get me wrong I absolutely love my dog but at that point I have to think about our bank.  I decided that I would just wait and see how things went till we go home (back stateside) well here we are.  

Here is Lilli's x-ray

you can see the second vertebrae is sticking out away from the first.  The surgery fuses these 2 vertebrae together with screws and bone cement.

They had their health certificate visit on Monday and the Dr. told me I should really have her seen by a specialist and at least talk to them about our options even if surgery wasn't an option.  I was thinking about how she would do during the procedure and her age.  Then the Dr told me that since she is gradually getting worse she will get to the point where she can't use her legs at all... my heart broke.  She just turned 8 and to think in a few years she won't be able to walk which mean surgery now to save her or putting her down when it came time.  The latter was hard, still is when I think about it esp when my mom has 2 Yorkies that are going on 14 and 13, yes they are showing their age but they are happy and still here, so knowing my girl could have that as well if given the chance.  I knew what Aaron would tell me after hearing the first estimate I got.  You see we have a different view about our dogs, not that he doesn't love them but it's just not something he would do b/c we could pay all of this money and then she could die tomorrow of something unrelated.  For me it's my baby and the thought of putting her down is heart breaking when there is a chance I could help her to live a fuller happier life than ever.  So I started doing research again and found a Neurology center in Jacksonville that can do it for less than half the cost as the first.  YAY YAY YAY :)  I told Aaron and he jokingly said "just put'er down"  he says things negative about Lilli cause he knows it gets to me (even though he's never serious) but I knew this time he was kidding and I think I can convince him it's needed.  Even if he knew it was he would want to see me beg ;)  So it turns out she WILL be getting her surgery once we are in Jax and hopefully not be in anymore pain and can live a happier life!!!  I told Aaron that if I can find someone to do for a decent price I will make it happen no matter what I have to do.

All this puppy talk... the dogs left Guam on the 21st and are actually sitting in Atlanta as I type waiting to get on their plane for Tally!!!  I have been a crazy puppy mommy checking their flights and tracking them to make sure they did get on those flights.  We had a minor bump but nothing my amazing mom couldn't take of for me, love you!!  They are staying with her and my dad till I get there.  Their Yorkie family will be whole again (my mom has Scrappys daddy and brother) and lots of playing will take place!!!  Makes me happy!

TTFN

Positive News

Hey peeps... well as teh title says we got some decent news this week that hopefully turns out to play in our favor.  The guy taking Aaron's place at the sqaudron here on Guam got his orders this past week... ya ya so what right.  Well that means we should be next, Aaron thinks within a month (fingers, toes, legs, arms and whatever else crossed).  Normally they send out the overseas bullets first so if he has his (overseas) then we should be getting ours since it's a rotation type thing!  I am oh so hoping that this is true b/c I would LOVE to be home for Christmas and have family around and to be able to have those 2 weeks to get a house (I have no doubt it'll only take one time going to Jax to find the perfect one but...)

As of now, I quit my job on December 20th (assuming we would get them in January there would be no point in going to work after Christmas break January 6th) but if we end up getting them sooner then I will quit ASAP.  That talk was a little difficult for me since I love my job and my boss and the fact that they asked me to stay and just let my husband go on to Jax without me (jokingly of course).  The shop will be in a rough spot a few weeks after I leave but I have been training a friend of mine to hopefully take my place eventually!

We are having a BBQ on the 30th of this month as a good bye thing and have all of our friends over and rent a bouncy house for Blake and all of his friends!  That's gonna be the hardest part of leaving... the saying good bye; my family knows I hate them and I'm no good at them.  You'd think I'd get used to them eventually being married to a military man and all but it doesn't... take my word on it!

Anywho, there isn't much going on in the Gaither household except for packing up some Rubbermaid totes so I don't have to wash clothes when everything arrives in Jax and well I don't trust the packers.. any of them.

I will of course keep everyone updated on here since I know family reads this and we will send emails when the time comes to pass along ticket info :) hopefully that will be sooner than later!

TTFN

The Count Down Begins

Well now that it's October I think it's safe to say that we will be outta here soon.  We are still hoping our orders get here in December... or January.  

We have been talking about it a lot lately and it finally hit me that everything from here on out will be our "lasts" on Guam as a family.  With Aaron leaving for deployment on December 2nd everything we do from here on out will be our last.... thank goodness :)  Although I love Aaron and will miss him so very much leaving this island can't come soon enough.  We have about a month and a half till my furry babies leave me... tear, and then about 2 months till Aaron leaves us, and then hopefully 3 months till we leave!!!

Aaron brought up something I was curious about with our pack out, he is going to have a friend of his come to the house and help me out with it... in other words he is going to be in charge of making sure everything gets written down on the house hold goods list AND that everything makes it in the crates.  Many ppl here have issues with things not being marked and then placed in the cab of the truck.  Not to mention the movers taking things in their pockets, so needless too say I am happy that he will have somewhere here!

I have been looking up furniture for the living room so when we get there I will have an idea of where I need to go b/c apparently leather furniture... real leather furniture can only be purchased in a few places.

 

Other than the usual we haven't been up to anything since well, there is nothing to do here... just dreaming of home :)

New Toy

Okay maybe not a toy or anything that I actually can play with by any means but.... only the BEST blender EVER!!

 

Behold the Ninja!  Like I said before I love my Mocha Frappes and I had a Oster blender that was great but just didn't cut it when making mixed drinks or frappes.  They always came out frothy... like liquid on the bottom of the cup and foam on the top.  Well I saw this at the BX about a week ago and looked into them and thought that this would solve my problem.  Lo and behold my Blue Hawaiians are yummy and my Frappes are perfect!!!  

Another thing I am excited about is the Wal-Mart Family Mobile plan by T-Mobile now has SIMs cards for the iPhone 4... YAY!  This means I can keep my cell phone when I move back to the states and just take it to a Wal-Mart and have them insert and activate a plan for me as soon as I get stateside.

TTFN