Adventures with the Morgans

Busy Bees in the Desert

2009-10-25T10:37:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the long hiatus! Things have been crazy crazy crazy out here. Right now Brandon is at school in Arizona. He left on Oct 4 and will be home Nov 20. We were sitting on the couch before he left thinking about our last year. On Oct 4 of last year Brandon was home on leave from Iraq. It's so strange to think we've yet to live in the same house for one whole year straight. We always seem to reach about 8 months and then off he goes. We are so thankful that this separation is just less than 2 months rather than almost 2 years. It's hard to think that while we're in the army we may never hit a whole 12 months of cohabitation, but for us it's okay. Brandon will kill me for gushing about him, but I'm going to. I'm so blessed to be part of his life. The fact that he fights for our country is something I will support always and I know that he's is doing what he loves. The separations and the worry will be a part of our lives for a while, but it's worth it to me because I have a whole life left with him. :)

Now, for the happenings here. First, GO FROGS!!! I'm just so excited about TCU Football. I could go for some tailgating. Again, Brandon and I are living in a state that doesn't care much for college football. Except for USC. Ugh. Being on this side of the country does have a great upside. Very few Gator fans. It's nice. :) And I have to mention TEXAS Football! Sorry Oklahoma Family! But Hook em! I'm trying to convince Brandon to take me to the game if Texas makes it to the National Championship, but he seems a little less enthusiastic and less inclined to spend money on Texas tickets than he was last year for the OKLA/ FLORIDA game. I wonder why? ;)

Here at Irwin I'm staying busy. My job is wonderful! I love it. I get to create events and come up with ideas for middle school and teenage kids all day long. It's fabulous. However, I do live up at my building, the Middle School/ Teen Building (MST). I am there Tuesday through Saturday and more often than not I'm up there on Monday (my day off) as well. But I'm getting the hang of it and learning a lot! Last night we had a Teen Fright Night Dance. I thought it went really well. I sometimes struggle to come up with ideas that will draw teens in and give them something to do to stay out of trouble. Any ideas that anyone has are welcomed! The week ahead will be crazy! Lots and lots of stuff to do. But my job is keeping me busy. The weeks are flying by and soon Christmas will be here! I do miss teaching and having all the great time off during the holidays. :) Hopefully we'll be able to be with family and friends this Christmas. I could use some festivities and the cold weather! Finding a Christmas tree should be interesting this year. Palm tree? Cactus? Hmm... options may be limited.

We'd love to hear from everyone. We miss you all!

Fall is upon us!

2009-09-14T17:59:00.000-07:00

I love love love fall! It maybe my favorite season. While I'm a huge fan of the beach and the sunshine, fall is always such a refreshing time of the year. Something about the weather and the busyness of fall is so exhilarating! Fall in Oklahoma is the most beautiful time of year and we are excited to spend our first fall in the desert. While there's nothing out here that really "falls", including on most days the temperature, I can't be stopped. Here are a few of my favorite fall things:

1. Football season!!! Friday night football games. This just takes me back. Decorating football players lockers, pep rallies, and watching the games under the lights. College games! The tailgating, the crazy fans, the die hard rivals (specifically the one that divides our house! hook 'em!). BBQ and beer while watching the game. What is better?

2. The energy. Everything seems to change in fall. Summer is all about relaxing and no worries. Perfecting the tan and squeezing as much time out of the sun as possible. But when fall arrives everything starts! Life becomes excitingly busy!

3. The weather. Nothing is better than that first day you walk to your car and you're not dripping with sweat. When you can stand outside without melting. The cool breezes and combined with that special fall sun "glow" is so refreshing.

4. For all my fellow shoppers.... how great are fall clothes? Fabulous boots, cardigans, jackets, jeans. Amazing!

5. Finally, fall always seems to be when wonderful things have happened in my life. Fall always makes me think of Brandon. I met him in 6th grade in the fall. My first crush! Then, when we re-fell in love it was fall. Watching football games with him, carving pumpkins, Halloween. It always makes me giddy.

So get outside and enjoy fall! Love you all!

The real world...

2009-09-07T09:55:00.001-07:00

A few perks about entering the "real world"....

I know that everyone around me is already there. Working in their chosen profession and building homes and families! It's been so fun to watch and be a part of your lives. For us, it's been a little different. Brandon and I got married in August 2006! Three years ago. And yet the longest we've lived in the same place is 8 months. Before he deployed in October of 2007 he was in Arizona at school for five months. So basically from May 2007-December 2008 we were apart, waiting to be together. And now we'll be together for at least another year, in the same country, the same house even! I know that it might not sound like a big deal, but for us, it is. Knowing that we'll get to be together for Christmas and Valentine's Day, knowing that we can plan a vacation months in advance, all those things are new to us. We've never been here before. So finally, we are moving into the real world.

Also, I have a real job for the first time. Since Brandon and I have been married I have been fortunate enough to go to graduate school full time so I could finish my Masters degree. I've been so grateful for this! Not having a real full time job was a huge help and allowed to finish school quickly. Of course, I've been teaching for the last two years, but mostly part time or temporary position. Now, for the first time, I have what we've been referring to as a "real world" job. My first day was Friday and so far I've just done A LOT of paperwork! Policies, insurance, worker's comp, safety! Ahhh! I feel a little overwhelmed. But also I feel so ready. It's like the first day of school all over again. That nervous/excited feeling. It's nice that even as an adult (when referring to myself I use air quotes) I have the opportunity to feel this way again.

I am enjoying every moment of my somewhat new "real world". Getting to do a job I'm so excited about, making our house a home, and seeing my husband walk through the door every night are just a few things that are making this place in our lives a beautiful place to be.

We think we're starting to like it here

2009-08-31T18:45:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long since the last post but a lot has happened! First, we've finally moved into our new home. It's so wonderful! It quite a bit bigger than our last house and we don't have enough to fill it, but it's fabulous. Our neighborhood is really cute and we live right off the park. We're having lots of fun decorating and making it our own. Brandon is really excited about his new "man cave" that will be fully equipped with a mini fridge and microwave so as to not miss a moment of any OU games. Boomer Sooner! Can't wait for college football to start!

Also, I have been frantically looking for work out here and there hasn't been a lot of opportunities for teachers since California is on a hiring freeze due to the economy. Boo. However, this just happened to be one of those great occasions when I am reminded that God has plans for us better than what we are hoping for! Yes, I got a job! A perfect job! I am the new middle school/teen program director for Fort Irwin. I will work will all the kids on Fort Irwin grades 6-12 and plan events and activities. I get to do whatever my imagination comes up with! I can take the kids to the beach or to Disney World or camping (but I've crossed that off the list for now because I shouldn't be allowed to take anyone into the wilderness). I really feel like this is something that I've always wanted to do but I've been so concentrated on teaching that I've totally overlooked opportunities like this one. I'm just so excited! I'm nervous too, but i'll keep you updated on how it goes.

This last weekend Brandon and I took a "business" trip to San Diego to look for furniture and bedding. But we did so much besides that while we were there! We FINALLY got to get back on the golf course at a beautiful club in Oceanside, just north of San Diego. It was amazing! I remembered why I love that sport so much! Then we ventured to San Diego and hit up IKEA. We saw so many things that we loved to complete our home. Now our great task is to find a way to get them to our middle of the desert dwelling place. Even Californians haven't heard of where we live so delivery is a problem. But we're working on it. After that we spent some time in La Jolla on the beach. Just watching the waves and surfers is really made us feel like that is a place we could live someday. I really think my soul lives at the beach! Always in a swimsuit just in case the opportunity to hit the beach presents itself. I miss it already! But we are so blessed to be so close. On the last day we went to SeaWorld! Brandon's first time. We saw lots of great things that reminded me of San Antonio SeaWorld and being a little kid! We got splashed at the Shamu Show and visited the Penguins in the "Arctic". It was pretty fun. Dinner on the beach and Pinkberry completed the perfect weekend getaway. It was a blast! We're planning our next trip already.

We'll keep you updated on things out here! We miss you all! Love you!

Vacations and Moving

2009-08-03T11:01:00.000-07:00

What a crazy couple of weeks! So, yes, the housing news was really good. But since then we've moved three more times! It's been a little overwhelming. We are finally in temporary housing on Fort Irwin and our final move, which will hopefully be soon, will be into our house. It will be so nice to finally sleep in our own bed, cook in our own kitchen, and have our own yard!

We did get to go on a couple vacations in the midst of moving. More hotels, but a nice change of scenery. First we went to Lake Havasu in Arizona and met one of Brandon's friends from Fort Bragg there. It was so fun! We rented a boat and relaxed on the lake. It was scorching hot! A heat wave hit while we were there and the temperature got up to 120 degrees! It was good to be around friends.

Big Tony came out to visit and we hit Vegas for the weekend! It was amazing! We were only there for two nights but we almost never slept and somehow that made it feel longer. We stayed at the Luxor Hotel and Casino on the strip and it was pretty nice. Our first night there we ate dinner at our hotel and it was delicious! Then we hit the strip. It was so strange. One o'clock in the morning in Vegas feels like seven at night. It really never sleeps! Brandon found his table game... Mississippi Stud. It's a little like poker, but you can play for hours! He loved the tables and I played the slots! Super Jackpot Party! Dad played the part of observer and supporter. On Saturday we took a trip out to Hoover Dam and it was actually really interesting and impressive! Our last night we ate dinner at Bellagio and it was wonderful! The city is so beautiful in it's own way. We loved it and can't wait to go back!

Vegas and Havasu were both super fun, but we were ready to be home. It was ironic that even though we are sick of not having a house it still felt good to come home to our temporary house. Maybe that means Irwin is starting to feel more like home, which is a good sign.

Thanks for all the prayers and love!

Thankful

2009-07-20T18:12:00.001-07:00

We are so thankful for better days in the desert! We have to admit, this week was rough. It seemed like every bit of news we received was a step backwards. We are still living in a hotel. We were told that our housing on post would not be ready for months. Our reservation in the on post hotel is coming to an end and we will be forced to move. Unfortunately, there are no apartments in Barstow, the nearest city, that will offer less than a 6 month lease. So we have decided to move into another hotel and hope that on post housing comes sooner than later! We are definitely getting tired of microwave dinners and fast food. What I would give for a home cooked meal!

Little blessings have come our way this week. We went on a couple dates to the "big city" and in between looking for apartments, we saw Transformers and the new Harry Potter. I loved them both. I can't believe the first Harry Potter movie was released in 2001! It's been so long and I can't wait for the final movie! We found a couple of really great hole in the wall restaurants that are delicious and found our local In and Out Burger which made our day. So yummy! Today, we had a meeting with our housing specialist and we've received some good news. It's look as though our house will be ready in September, maybe even late August, and it's going to be beautiful. That took a huge weight off of our shoulders and gave us something to look forward to. We have been doing some research and are thinking about going on a little vacation for our 3 year anniversary. Las Vegas or San Diego. Somewhere close, but a little getaway. This will be the first anniversary we will be together for and we are so thankful for that! Finally, and I know this may not seem like a blessing, it rained today! Thunder and lightening too. It was so wonderful. It's so hot and everyone said rain is so rare out here, we were thankful we got to see it.

So things are looking up out here. If anyone has any suggestions about things to do out here let us know! We'll keep you updated. Thanks for thoughts and prayers...

Fort Irwin

2009-07-13T22:45:00.000-07:00

Greetings from the middle of nowhere! We've been here four days and we've seen the entire post. Several times. It's so different from anywhere I've ever been. It's just desert. Not even sand really, more like dirt and dust. Maya appears just as confused as we are.

While we get in processed we will be living in the post hotel. It's not exactly four star. We do have a microwave in our room and a little mini frig which is really taking me back to my dorm room days. The only other cooking method we have available is a community grill in the courtyard that is shared amongst all the guests. Brandon was finally able to get his turn on the grill last night and we had our first "home-cooked" meal in what feels like weeks. It was delish!

There are a few bright spots out here. There is an Einstein's Bagel on post! A little bit of Fort Worth here. I mean, it's next to a Taco Bell and Manchu Wok which makes for an interesting combination of smells, but at least it's Einstein's. Yum. Also, when and if we EVER get housing it will be pretty cute. (The waitlist is 4-6 months... we are panicking a little.) And of course, when we stop to look it is beautiful here! A different beautiful than other places. It's stuff I've only seen in pictures. Finally, and most importantly, Brandon and I are here together. After so many months apart I think we'd live in a cardboard box if it meant we got to live together!

I'm hoping and praying that Fort Irwin will grow on us and that we'll be able to find little joys here. I know God has wonderful plans and I'm working on my patience. I think He's teaching me appreciation for new things and new challenges....

Pictures: 1) Our "home cooked" meal 2) Einstein's! 3) The pet play area. All the pets seem confused by the lack of grass.

Us so far

2009-07-11T18:00:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! It's Kristin and we've just gotten out to California. Brandon has been reassigned to Fort Irwin in the Mojave Desert. It's been a long trip out here and we miss North Carolina already! Just wanted to write and let everyone reading know what we've been up to these last three years (almost three) and what we're doing out here in the desert! I know some of you already know, but for those who don't...

Brandon returned from his second deployment in December 2008. This one was 15 months long! And right before that he was at school at Fort Huachuca, Arizona for 5 months, so really he was gone for 20 months. Yikes. We were so blessed to get to spend Christmas together, and Valentine's Day, and Easter, and our birthdays! It's been wonderful! While Brandon was away I moved back to Edmond for a bit and taught at St. Elizabeth's (the school Brandon and I attended) and that took me back. I moved back to North Carolina in August and continued to pursue my Master's degree. I'll be done in December. Yay! We were so grateful for our fabulous house and good friends and neighbors there. We were sad to leave :(.

Now... we have moved across the country to Fort Irwin. We arrived yesterday after a 10 day road trip in which we stopped for many much needed family and friend visits. But the time flew by and we drove the long road into Irwin. It's unlike anything we expected. We are definitely secluded. Presently we are living in a hotel waiting for housing to become available and praying that will happen soon! We will keep updating about out time out here and hope that you will keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We miss you!