hey

ok so sorry its been so long since i've made a posting here but internet connection is always iffy. so i was finally able to sneak away from the office for a little while tonight and see Toby Keith perform on a USO tour. I've always wanted to see him and even thought it wasn't a full out concert it was still pretty cool especially when he was signing his patriotic songs and needless to say "we'll put a boot in your a**" was sung pretty loud.

Really nothing new to report on here. Not nearly as exciting as my last deployment was but i guess that does make the mom happy. Things are slowly moving along and we have at least started planning the trip home but that makes it hard as well b/c we still have a while to go. I can't imagine if i had gotten over here on time and had to spend the full 15 months. i think the shoulder surgery was worth the pain for that sole reason.

Amanda you will be happy to know that we have both Bonefish Grill and Mellow Mushrooms down in Savannah and i'm a huge fan of both. i can't remember if i've mentioned before but it looks like i'm going to be living with 3 other guys in a house downtown when i get back. still not sure how i feel with going from living on my own for the last 5 yrs to 3 housemates but we are all leaving about 6months after we get back and all want a place downtown so it just works out. i don't think i'd be doing it for longer than 6 months but should be a good way to have a blast when i first get back. ok well thats all i have from here hope everyone is doing great and hopefully i'll see everyone at the weddings if i make it back in time.

news

Hi Everyone!

I want to let you know that I am moving back to MD. I was offered a job at William Hill Manor, it is a assisted living facility in Easton, it is also an EMA community. I will be working in the recreation dept and I start May 1st. I am really excited, they are also breaking ground for an additional 50 beds to open in about 16 months which will open the door to lots of other opportunities.
It was a really hard decision for me since Hannaford treated me so well and I do really love maine. However, I hated be so far from my family and friends, plus I knew I was not passionate about retail. I am leaving in good terms tho, my boss told me that I could always call her if I changed my mind. I just wanted to let you know what was going on!
I will be living at home and communiting at first, until i find someplace closer. That is if dad lets me move back!!



I miss you guys and cant wait to see you!!!!

Emily

Top Five Reasons to Visit Amanda and Kenny Down Yonder

5) Our cherry blossoms bloom before your cherry blossoms. Note: This picture was taken a week ago. I have since been informed that y'all have these now too.

4) Target has really cute colorful purses. My mom said these were listed in the Sun as one of the "must haves" for Spring.

3) BangBang Shrimp, huge scallops, Shrimp Diablo, and the best Pinot Grigiot ever are just five minutes away at Bonefish Grill.

2) You too can sing along to Breathe's "Hand's to Heaven" and other 80s tunes on Kenny's iPod. If you've never heard of that tune, you should download it. There aren't words...

1) Duh - you can play Rock Band

Not making the list (in no particular order):

- The word's best pizza at Mellow Mushrooom makes the perfect post-Pinot Grigiot lunch

- Kenny's kind of a big deal. We can Tivo him.

- You can stop and visit Bobby on your way down at Virginia Tech. And give Anna's alma mater a "holla"

- You can fly on Skybus for just $10. Oh wait....no you can't. But its just a six hour drive.

We heard form Matt

Hello to all,
Welcome back to Tim and Paula,I also expect pictures from the trip to show up on the blog.Paula,pam and even judy how could you believe anything, from John and his email. You should know better by now.
Matt did get to call on Easter. He had little to say,but does thank everyone for the packages that continue to come so often. Things remain the same is his favorite line. It is warmer, and we will not see any more pictures of the trip until he comes home. That was about it,he did get a kick out of the family members that are still willing to give John the benifit of the doubt!!!!!
Love and God keep
mary

Happy B-Day, Will!

I know we do not acknowledge all cousin birthdays on the blog, but given that today is a milestone b-day for Will, I thought I'd give him a shout out. Happy 21st B-Day, Will. You'll actually be able to toast your big brother at his wedding and join the "older cousins" at the Zippy Lewis lounge at the Dunes.

Happy Birthday!

In the spirit of blog participation...

Emily inspired me because I have not posted in a while either. The below is an email I sent last night to my friend Deb who lived with me in my ghetto apartment @ 333 Saunders Ave., in Philly. There were many notable experiences during my tenure there and one of the stand-out perponderances was the appearance of eaten chicken bones in the park across the street from us, seemingly every day. We always wondered how they got there as we couldn't believe many people would be walking along eating chicken wings. It seemed like this would be an activity that required sitting down. Our best theory was that birds would get them out of trash cans and then drop them as they were flying. Flimsy hypotheses I know. Well, the mystery was solved....read on...

MYSTERY SOLVED!

Just had to let you know that at approximately 10:12 pm this evening I spotted a young male walking towards me. Not an atypical occurrence as yet, but read on.... He was about a block away at the time of initial spotting. He was walking towards me and I towards him. As I got closer I noticed he was walking rather slow and was looking at something in his arm that appeared to be an open laptop. My thoughts at the timewere, "Seriously, you had check your email right this second? You need
a Blackberry. Is there Wifi out here?"

But, as we got closer yet, I realized he was eating something. Yes. That was it! In typical Philly fashion and in the spirit of remaining the "Fattest City in the US," he was walking and eating something out of a Styrofoam container (it was open; hence the laptop effect). I did not get a good look as he passed by of what exactly he was eating. But, a few steps, a leap, and a snorfle later, Chloe had sucked up something from the sidewalk. "Drop IT!" I say!! "Drop Iiiiit!!!!"
"Yeah right," thinks Chloe.
So, I stick my hand in her mouth to take out the offending object. And what is it, you ask??? A still warm, still saucy chicken bone remnant. Newly chewed and dropped on the sidewalk for all to enjoy. Tasty! I've washed my hands three times now and swear I can still smell the sauce. MmmMm.

I turned around to see if the offender noticed his offense and the trouble he had caused, only to witness him dropping another bone about 30 feet away. That's when I morphed into Super Jeanine and zapped with my laser beam eye vision. Did I tell you I got that? Yeah, they were selling super powers at Costco for $59.99. They might still have some, but when I got there the laser beams were the only good thing left.
Invisibility and flying were already sold out. You might try on-line though. But, I digress...

So, there you have it my friend. It actually does happen. People wander around Philly in the night time hours eating chicken wings and tossing the bones in a haphazard manner. With a sort of "devil may care" attitude if you will. At least I am no longer powerless to stop them. "Zzzzzzzzt" (sound of my laser beam eyes)

Mystery 19,765 of 333 Saunders Ave./park and its environs - Solved. Case Closed.

Oh and P.S, - and I am not making this up. Just as I was about to hit "send" on this email. Chloe puked up the rest of the chicken bone on the carpet. It just keeps giving and giving. Hand washing #4.

Hey Family,

I have not written in awhile, but nothing new is really going on up here in Maine. The weather is still pretty nasty. We have not had snow lately but we have had a couple days of freezing rain.
I am working on the front end for the next couple of weeks. I am at a store right near portland so there is a lot of culture and low income. I have to deal with a lot of food stamps and wic orders which are a little difficult. But again the people are really cool and the customers are nice. And it does make me count my blessings.
So i think i am going to become a member of MOAC - Maine Outdoor Adventure Club. I went on a walk on the beach with this group that consisted of four people over 50 who all were giving me a hard time becuase they had kids older then me. All in all tho it was a lot of fun. We went for an hour walk on the beach at night then went to this little bar where a band was playing and the GREAT thing about hanging out with older people is that they paid for my DRINKS!!!!

I love you guys and cant wait to see you all soon.
Rian congrats about the house!!!!!

Emily