Military Spouse Appreciation Day

Today is Military Spouse Appreciation Day.  Yesterday my husband gave me the cutest coin ever (see my last blog).  Little things like that make me so proud to be HIS Army wife.  I found these questions on a blog I follow.  Thought it was pretty appropriate for today's "holiday".  I also found a cute poem that another milspouse blogger wrote in honor of today.  Click here to check it out.  I hope all my milspouses out there have a FABULOUS day!  Enjoy!

1. How long have you been a military wife?

2+ years

2. What branch of service is your husband?

Army

3. Active/Reserve?

Active

4. What is his job?

He's in the 82nd Airborne Division (and yes he's actually Airborne!)

5. How many deployments have you gone through?

2 deployments: 1 as committed lovers and 1 married

6. Camo or Dress uniforms on your man?

Either really.  But if I have to choose, his dress blues.  :)

7. What do you like about being a military wife?

The traveling, meeting new people, and the way our love is always evolving.  It's hard to take for granted this kind of love when deployments and field training leave your moments together short lived.

8. Do you live on base?

We live off-post but our subdivision is nearly all active duty military.

9. What is your favorite base so far?

This is our second post.  They each have your pros and cons but I really did enjoy the Bamberg scenery and the easy access to adventurous traveling.

10. What is the hardest part of the military life?

I haven't gotten to the hardest part yet.  To me the hardest part of military life is raising a family on your own.  I know one day I will have to survive a year deployment raising a child or two as both parent roles.  I think that will be a challenge.

11. Do you go to the grocery store or Commissary?

The grocery store.  Commissary is further out for me and the times I do go there, a lot of things are out of stock!  Common things like cheese lol.  Not to mention there are two commissaries on post (one being on Pope AFB side) but Fort Bragg is a huge post so two commissaries really isn't enough for all the families it supports.  But gas prices are always better on post so it's worth the drive!  (off subject I know lol)

12. Do you work or stay at home?

Go to school full-time.  My goal is to commission into the Army after completing my B.S.

13. Do you have a lot of military wife friends?

Yes I do.  Almost everyone I know is connected to the military in one way or another.

14. Do you prefer Walmart or the BX/PX/NEX/MCX?

Walmart is convenient since I have one less than 5 minutes from where I live, but I always keep a lookout for sales at the PX since everything is tax-free. 

15. How did your husband propose?

We went to a little Carnival spot in Orlando.  He proposed to me on a ride called the Paratrooper.  The funny thing is that the ride's name was total coincidence! lol

16. Did you marry him after he joined or before?

We married after he joined.

17. How long have you been together?

3+ years

18. Any kids?

Not yet. The in-laws keep asking though! lol

19. Any kids yet to come?

Hopefully in the near future.  =)

20. Is your husband one of those "I am Marine, hear me OORAH" kind of guys?

For the Marines, no but for the Army yes lol.  He loves the Army and everything it's done for him.  He will tell you a million times over that he wouldn't be where he's at now if it wasn't for the Army.  I swear he tries to recruit everyone he meets. LOL

21. Have you ever done combatives with your husband?

No I haven't lol.  But the occasional wrestle isn't uncommon.  ;)

.22. How many bases have you lived at?

5 with my dad.  2 with my husband.

23. If you could change one thing about the military?

Longer dwell time and change deployments to 9 months! 

24. Do you like military balls?

Never been to one with my husband but I went to 2 in JROTC and 4 in College ROTC. They are exciting and fun.  Just don't get sent to the grog!

25. Where does your family live?

Florida

26. What do you do for a job?

Past jobs have been IT related: data processing for financial institutions.

27. Have you ever gotten in a fight with an NCO's wife?

No. And no one has tried to fight me.  I'm an NCO's wife ;)

28. Name one thing you do when your husband is gone.

Stay busy!  Work, school, volunteer, anything to make the time go by fast.

29. Do you think other wives do that too?

Yes, I think that would be most military wives advice.

And she does it again!!! Good eatin and heart felt grattitude. =)

And she does it again!  Another successful night of Italian cooking!  I guess I cook better when I'm inventing a dish of my own.  My original plan was to just grill some Italian sausages for dinner and call it a night with some buns and sauerkraut.  BUT my husband asked me if I could make some kind of pasta instead buns to go with our sausages.  He really does inspire me when I cook.  Every time he suggests something for dinner, I come up with an amazing concoction lol.   Soooo  my mind began to turn and I decided I would cut up the sausages and make some spaghetti in a red sauce to go with it.
When I get to the grocery store to buy the sauce, the pastas were in the same aisle and I thought "Man, penne pasta would go sooo much better with these sausages"  So I picked up a box of multigrain penne.  As I'm walking to the checkout I stop by the frozen section and (Light Bulb!) "Some garlic bread would be a great kick too!"  *Picked up a box of cibatta garlic bread*  This really is the everyday story of a woman at Wal-Mart. You go in for one thing and always leave with a few more items lol.
So my journey in the kitchen begins with boiling the penne for about 12-15 minutes.  As my penne was boiling I started on browning my sausages.  I cut the sausages in pieces diagonally and added them to my pan with a couple tablespoons of oil. (You can use water instead.) I also cut up a quarter of a green pepper and added that to give the sausages a little more flavor.  Once my sausages were browned, I added my pasta sauce.  You can use whatever red sauce you prefer.  I used a tomato garlic sauce.  I let this simmer for about 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally.  As my sauce simmered I preheated the oven to 425 for the garlic bread.  Before putting the bread in the oven a added a touch of shredded Italian cheeses on top.  I baked them until the edges were lightly browned.  Everything took about an hour prep time and cooking.  It came out amazing and it was quite simple to make! Here's the finished product:

Ingredients you need:

- 1/2 box of Penne pasta

- 1 jar of red pasta sauce

- 1 package of sausages (5 links)

- 1/4 green peppers (chopped)

- 2 tablespoons of oil

- 1 box of Garlic Bread

My husband absolutely enjoyed it.  He said he was speechless lol.

After dinner my husband thanked me for everything. Not just being an amazing cook but for being a great wife.  He told me to come to attention.  (Military lingo lol)  Then he handed me a coin and saluted me.  I saluted back thinking we were just playing Army since I'll be starting ROTC again this fall.  BUT when I looked at the coin in my hand I just about melted right there.

I couldn't be a happier wife.  I know in the near future he will be saluting me for real when I commission but I can honestly say that the best awards always come from my husband.  I hope everyone has a great rest of the week.  Tomorrow is Friday!!! Military Spouse Appreciation Day!!!  =)