~From the Adults~

Marcus and I would like to wish each and everyone of you a very Merry Christmas. We hope that you all enjoy your families and all the good food. Thank you for all your prayers for us this year as we have gone through half of the deployment so far. You'll never know how much that means to us to know that we have friends out there scattered across the country praying for us. Yes, it is hard to be apart on Christmas but we are going to make the best of it and enjoy ourselves here and clear across the world. I sent him 3 boxes for Christmas and in one of them was a tree and some lights and ornaments. He is enjoying that and says it makes it feel just a little bit like home and a little like Christmas. I also sent him some Hickory Farms and he has been chowing down on that. Said that is by far his favorite thing he has gotten in a box!! Doesn't take much to make him happy! =) We are over half way and have just about 3 months to go!
I will be going to my parents for Christmas this year and will be there for about 8 days. I'm looking forward to seeing them and spending time in CO. I hope to see some snow and then leave it all behind and come back to a little warmer place!
We could never forget the reason for the season! Jesus!! He has been so good to us this year and we can't thank him enough for all his blessings!!
Merry Christmas!
Love,
Marcus and Julie

From the Dog!

Merry Christmas from Gunner!!! HAHA He is not a very happy reindeer in this picture. I had to bribe him with food to get this picture. I have tried since then to get another one that is better but he is now scared of the antlers!! I know I'm so cruel but I thought it was so funny. I sent it to Marcus and he said he had his laugh for the day!

~Projects~

Here are a few of the cards that I have been working on. I'm trying my best to get them out before Christmas!! I hope that each and everyone of you have a very Merry Christmas!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I hope that each and every one of you have a very Happy Thanksgiving!!! My sister Janae is coming here to spend it with me. I have been shopping to get groceries for the "big" dinner and then I got some of her favorite snacks. I know...pat myself on the back for being such an awesome big sis! HAHA Thank you Janae for coming to keep me company this weekend!! I love you!!
I have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving!! God has truly blessed me and I have nothing to complain about. I have a wonderful husband who I'm very proud of!! Marcus I love you with all my heart! Thank you for loving me and taking care of me. Thank you for serving this country so I can live free. I wish that you were here with me on this holiday but since you aren't I hope that you have a good day and that they feed you some half way descent food. When you get home I will make sure that I fix you a big turkey dinner because I know that you are really missing it this year, if I could I would have fixed it and shipped it to you!! I love you Marcus!!
I have great parents!! They have been through a living nightmare this past year and a half but have been true examples of what a Christian should be through it all. We have had ups and very low downs and at times thought we saw the light at the end of the tunnel only for it to go dark again and we take several steps backwards!! But last week God worked a huge miracle and the nightmare is over!! Thank you Mom and Dad for being great examples to your family. Thank you for caring for and loving us and accepting Marcus and Brent into the family and loving them as if they were your own. We love you!!!
I have four cool sisters and one cool brother in law!! We don't always get along but hey what siblings ALWAYS get along. Jalynn is going to be giving me another nephew in January and we are excited for that. Brent you are an awesome brother in law and alot of fun to be around. Janae, you are a blast to be around and we have so much fun when we are together. Jill I don't get to see you much but I still think you are the best little sister and I wish that we could live closer and go shopping!!
God has been so good to Marcus and I this year. We have a beautiful home, a car to drive, food to eat, a beast of a dog and last but not at all least....we have each other. What more can you ask for!! We serve an awesome God!!
I hope that you all have a great holiday and that you eat lots of turkey and stuffing and pumpkin pie!! Think of all our service men and women this holiday season...I know that they all miss home and wish that they were sitting at the table loaded with food. We miss you Marcus and can't wait until the day you come home!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVNG ALL!!!

Tag!

I was tagged by Lisa! Here is how it works....You take your fourth picture from your #4 album and post it. Here is my picture! Made me pretty happy to put this up! =)

Marcus on deployment!

I tag Melissa and Kristi!

It's been a long time!!

I'm sorry it has been so long! I will make sure that I update it really soon!!
Hope that you all are having a good week!!

Photo Shoot!

My friend is trying to expand her portfolio and so took these pictures of me and Gunner! I wanted some to send to Marcus! It was alot of fun but Gunner wanted to play more then take pictures!! Oh well!

Happy Fall!!

I thought this was really good and thought I would share. I think that it would be a good object lesson for a juniors class or something!! I hope that you are all enjoying the fall weather and falling leaves!!

A woman was asked by a coworker, "What is it like to be a Christian?" The coworker replied, "It is like being a pumpkin." God picks you from the patch, brings you in, and washes all the dirt off of you. Then He cuts off the top and scoops out all the yucky stuff. He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, and greed. Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see."

Tears

This week has been a little rough for me. I have really been missing Marcus alot. I went to the Christian bookstore this week and bought a new CD and put it in on the way home and heard this song and I cried all the way home. It has really been a blessing to me and I wanted to share it with you and I hope that it will be a blessing to you too. I hope that you all have a good weekend!

Tears are a language
Often you've wondered why tears come into your eyes
And burdens seem to be much more than you can stand.
But God is standing near, He sees your falling tears.
Tears are a language God understands.

When grief has left you low, it causes tears to flow.
When things have not turned out the way that you had planned.
But God won't forget you, His promises are true.
Tears are a language God understands.

God sees the tears of a broken-hearted soul.
He sees your tears and hears them when they fall.
God weeps along with man and takes him by the hand.
Tears are a language God understands.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCU-UtO7Ke8

Yummy!!

How would you like to see this appear on your table? This is one of the meals that Marcus had on one of his stops! I can't believe that he ate it! I think that I would have sent it back and asked for a grilled cheese sandwich or something! UGH!

Beautiful!!

Thought I would share a few pictures of a sunset that Marcus saw one night. I thought they were beautiful and I wish that I had been there with him. I think that sunset are romantic!!

I'm posting a picture and letter that Marcus sent out in a mass email yesterday. I hear from him several times a day and I have talked to him on the phone three times!! It helps so much that we are able to email back and forth and that he is able to call me. It is different talking on the phone on the boat because he has to hold down a little button to talk and there is a delay, but I don't care because at least I'm talking to him!!! Hope you enjoy and I will post more when he sends more out. When he sent out the email yesterday morning he was five hours ahead and then when I talked to him last night on the phone he said they are now six hours ahead.
Well, we are well out to sea in the Atlantic Ocean. Obviously, for the sake of operational security (which, as you might imagine, is constantly stressed), I cannot say exactly where, but it is safe to say that America is not the closest land or even the closest continent at the moment. We are five hours ahead of Eastern Time, and have been crossing a time zone every few days, so my biological clock is getting a work out and everyone’s body is a bit confused. For pilots, and all aircrew for that matter, regulations outline a very strict crew day/crew rest cycle to ensure that we get the appropriate amount of rest before we launch a multi-million dollar hunk of metal equipped with machine guns and a squad or motivated killers into the air and careen around the skies of foreign territory in search of our nation’s enemies (probably a good idea). However, when you’re crossing time zones at the rapid rate, trying to adjust your body’s clock and normalize your circadian rhythm becomes challenging.

Sleep becomes even more precarious due to the mode of transportation. There are several ships in our ESG (Expeditionary Strike Group), and I am stationed aboard the largest one. However, even on a ship as large as this there is good deal of rocking and rolling. We have experienced some fairly heavy seas over the last few days with some large swells. It is nice being rocked to sleep at night, however there are disadvantages as well. As the ship rolls to starboard, every unsecured door on the decks above and below the birthing area can be heard as they bang open, and then as the ship rolls hard to port all of those doors slam shut. I have been on several forays in an attempt to find all of these doors and secure them, but I can never seem to find them all. The best remedy is a set of ear plugs and a mental ability to block out the noise.

There has been only minimal flight operations so far during the trans-Atlantic. Obviously, the main goal right now is to get into the theater of operations, everything else is secondary. This presents some conflicting interests between the Marines and our chauffeurs (the U.S. Navy). They want to make a bee-line for our destination, and we want to fly. The problem is that all aircraft that fly on and off of ships have strict wind limitations or envelopes for take-off and landing. Since the runway is a ship, it can be maneuvered to give you any winds you want, but the Navy doesn’t always want to play. It is always preferable, and sometimes essential, for aircraft to take off into the wind (headwind) for purpose aerodynamics and increased lift capability. So, for example, if the winds are out of the west and the boat is heading east, we have a direct tailwind and so are out of our wind limits. If they Navy won’t turn the ship to give us proper winds, we can’t take off. So we have to work out drug deals with the Navy to get our flight time, but sometimes they just say no. That is probably more than any of you wanted to know about flight operations aboard ship.

So, in the spare time we do a lot of drills (i.e. man overboard, abandon ship, general quarters, etc.). Not very exciting. Once we get where we’re going things will become more interesting. We won’t be staying any one place for more than a few weeks unless something breaks out that requires our unique skills and abilities. We can be used in a variety of missions ranging from long range raids, prisoner snatches, humanitarian assistance, non-combatant extraction operations, casualty evacuation, etc. We will be going ashore in several locations to conduct operations from expeditionary land bases for short periods of time. As we are cleared to release information I will pass along whatever I can about where we have been and what we have done. I will send pictures from time as well. The picture attached to this email was taken a few days ago at sunset at the stern of the ship. No, it wasn’t photo-shopped. I didn’t superimpose my picture on a brochure from Carnival Cruise lines. It really is that beautiful out here.

Thanks for taking time to stop by and chat. I look forward to hearing from anyone that chooses to reply. Ya’ll take care.


Marcus

A Marine Corps Wifes Prayer

I found this today when I was reading Chicken Soup for the Military Wife's Soul. The original title was A Navy Wifes Prayer but I changed it to fit me. It brought tears to my eyes and I decided to share it with you. We are now on day 5 of this deployment and I'm not going to lie it has been very very rough. This being our first deployment you kinda go into it not knowing what to really expect, but God has been helping me. I have cried many a tear and I miss him so much but I know that God is going to give me the strength to make it through this time. Marcus is doing good...I have gotten quite a few emails from him since he has been gone. He is taking some classes right now and getting some night qualifications done in the helicopter. I'm not sure when his first port call is or where they are going because it has changed so much and he can't really tell me where they are or where they are going until after they have already been there. But God is keeping him strong and safe. Thank you all for your prayers we really appreciate them.
Ok here is that poem/prayer:
A Marine Corps Wife's Prayer
How often we've stood on the dark flight lines and piers....
"I love you," "I'll miss you," whispered through tears.
During long seperations, in peacetime, at war
my night filled with dreams of this man I adore.
With only my memories to hold close at night
I live for the day God returns my sunlight.
Yes, life goes on when your loved one's at sea
but the ache never leaves, the fear stays with me.

Dear Lord, I need your guidance, your love

help me be brave, keep your watch from above.
Hold my dear one so safe in your heart and your hand
bring him home to his family...this hero...my man.
Of us, Lord, I pray he'll be filled with such pride
of how we carried on without him by our side.
Please, help time to fly quickly and soon I will hold
the hand of the man whose eyes chase the cold.
Whose voice brings delight, whose touch eases the pain.
How will I ever say "Farewell" again?
With your help, dear God, I'll try to stay strong
and pray that his time here at home will be long.
Still, "I know that the Marine Corps will need him," I sigh
but we'll face it together, Dear Lord, you and I.
Sue Ellen Groseclose-Combs

This weekend we had some friends from FL come to see Marcus before he left and we had a great time!!! Thanks Jason and Marci for making that long trip. While they were here we drove to VA to drop a bunch of Marcus' things off at the boat and he gave us a tour of the boat while we were there. It is pretty interesting but I'm SO glad that I don't have to live on that thing for 7 months!! :) We also enjoyed a great meal at the Cheesecake Factory and it was so YUMMY!!! I think that I gained 10 pounds this weekend! :)
Marcus is leaving in a couple of days so we are trying to spend alot of time together now. I have been an emotional wreck so far but I know that God is going to help me be strong and get through this. Thank you all for you prayers....Marcus said that he appreciates them all.
Hope that you all had a great weekend!

~Here~

Just letting you know that I'm still here......just busy getting Marcus ready for his deployment. We are trying to spend as much time together as we can before he leaves. He is supposed to be leaving sometime next week..we don't have an exact date yet. Please pray for us as it is going to be a LONG seven months for both of us. Hope that you all had a wonderful weekend and that this is a good week for everyone.

~So Cute!!~

We had a great oppotunity to feed and pet a 14 week old baby tiger!!! I was so excited....I love cats and this was awesome for me. He was a little vocal about things until I put the bottle in his mouth and then he was content. He was so adorable and I'm glad that we got this chance to do it.

~Our Cabin~

Here are a few pictures of the cabin that we stayed in while we were on vacation. It was so pretty and peaceful up there in the mountains. We really enjoyed our vacation and just being with each other.

~Horseback Riding~

Today we went on a 2 hour horseback ride through the mountains. We had a blast. If you know anything about Marcus you know that he loves western movies and books and this was right down his alley. He loved it!! He decided that if he was going horseback riding he needed to look like a cowboy so we bought him a hat, shirt and some boots. He wanted everyone to know that this was just for fun and that he wasn't trying to be some redneck cowboy. =) He tried to get me to be a cowgirl and I politely declined. We are enjoying our time up here in the mountains and I will post more pictures later on. We are sitting in our cabin relaxing for the day and enjoying the peacefulness.

~Fun with Clark~

We were in South Carolina for the weekend and we had fun with our niece Clark. She loves Uncle Marcus and Aunt Julie and they love her just as much!!!

Congratulations!

Friday morning 1st Lt Marcus Moyer became Capt. Marcus Moyer. Congrats on making it this far Babe!!!! I know that it always hasn't been easy and there are many more hard times to come but through it all you have shown that you are a great Marine. I'm so proud of you and your service to our country.
Marcus will be deploying this month and will be gone for about 7 or 8 months. Please keep him in your prayers that God will keep his safe while he is over there. I'm not looking forward to this at all!! It isn't easy saying goodbye to your husband and not being able to see him for months at a time. He will be gone over all the holidays and that will be hard for both of us, but I know that God will give us the strength to make it through it all.

Swearing to uphold the constitution and the responsibilities that come with the promotion.
Lt.Col Synder and I pinned his Capt. bars on him (I'm on the other side)

My Father-in-law....

Two years ago today we lost a great man. Dave was the kind of person that would give you the shirt off his back if he knew that you needed it. He loved spending time with family. I think that his favorite time of the year was Christmas when all the kids came home. He was the BEST stocking stuffer there ever was. We always ended up with more things then could ever fit into the stocking. I remember one time when they came to visit us he overheard me telling Marcus that I needed some kitchen utensils and when we went there for Christmas that year what was in my stocking but the kitchen utensils that I had asked for. Another time they were visiting I told Marcus that while we were out we needed to run by walmart to get a few things and while we were there I needed to get some more towels and washclothes. Well we went to walmart and left them in the car, or at least we thought we had, we got the things from the grocery side and went over to household goods and there was Dave getting us some towels and washclothes. He was a giver and loved doing it. He loved talking to Marcus about trains, planes and history. They would stay up until all hours of the night talking. When they talked on the phone he wanted to know all about the plane or helicopter that Marcus was flying and how it was put together and how it ran. I never understood how they could talk for hours about an engine of a plane but they could. They would take it apart and put it back together piece by piece. Marcus loved talking to his Dad!!! We were talking the other day about Dave and Marcus was telling me that you never wanted to go into a museum about trains, history or planes with his Dad. He said that you had to get up at the break of dawn to get ready to go and then you were there when the doors opened and left when they closed. I'm so happy that Marcus has such great memories of his Dad.
Marcus and I miss him so much! We don't understand why God took him so soon, but know that he is in a better place and that we will see him someday! We love you Dave!!!

Sour Cream Chicken

This one's for you Lisa!! =)
This recipe is from my Mom and has become one of Marcus' favorite dishes. It is very easy to make!!
Sour Cream Chicken:
Boneless, skinless chicken breast or tenders~put them in a pot and cover with water and boil until tender. (don't drain the water when they are done, you will need some of it later) Cut into bite size pieces and put in the bottom of a 9x9 pan.
Mix together 1 can of cream of chicken soup, 1 cup of sour cream and 1 can of the water that you boiled the chicken in. Pour on top of the chicken and the bake at 350 until bubbly on top. Then top with the topping and bake until nice and brown.
Topping:
1 pkg of Ritz crackers
melted butter
French fried onions (optional) I do the crackers and onions

Before
After

Fourth of July

"And I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free and I won't forget the men who died who gave that right to me." I'm a proud American!! I enjoy my freedom and appreciate all the men and women who are all over the world fighting for it right now. I'm also proud of my husband who is serving our country! Thanks Babe...I love you!!
This fourth of July we went with our friends Travis and Jenny to Wilmington. We ate at a seafood place along the riverwalk and it was yummy!! Then we pushed and shoved our way through the crowds to find a nice spot to watch the fireworks. I'm not sure if we found the perfect spot, with the screaming kids and the drunk guy behind us yelling "we love you america", but at least we had a nice view of the fireworks.

Marcus and Julie
Julie and Jenny
Travis and Jenny
Little too much to drink??

I'm here...

...I haven't gone away. I will post here in a couple of days.
I hope that ya'll have a good week!!

A great website!

I found this really cute website. It has alot of REALLY cute purses!!! I'm trying to talk Marcus into letting me get a few of them.....still working on it!! =)
Hope that you enjoy it.

www.etsy.com

Excited

Marcus is coming home after three weeks being gone. YAY!! I hate hate him being gone. Oh well~that is part of being a military wife.
That is about all that I have to blog about right now. I'm sure that when Marcus comes home I will have more pictures.
Hope that you all have a wonderful evening.

The Tornado

The pictures below are of the tornado that went through the base where Marcus is training right now. He said that it was pretty scarey to watch it coming straight towards you. The noise is deafening! No one was hurt and all the helicopters are ok. The path of the tornado went right between the barracks where he was staying and the helicopters. It is a miracle that none of them were hurt and that none of the helicopters were damaged. Thank the Lord for keeping his protecting hand on them.

Check out my Slide Show!

Not Yo' Mama's Banana Pudding

This is Paula Deen's recipe and the best banana pudding that you will ever put in your mouth!! You won't go back to your old recipe after you eat this. Hope that you enjoy!!

2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed, or equal amount sweetened whipped cream
Line the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top. In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Playing in the mud.....

....is fun when you are a dog and have a friend to do it with. Gunner and Zoe had a blast!! I dog sat for a friend the other day, it was a rainy day and the dogs were tired of being inside and were getting really hyper. I didn't want them in my house so I opened the door and let them out. When I looked out the door a little later this is what I found!! YUCK!! I was wishing that I hadn't let them out. They were so dirty!! I had to give them both baths and then had to come in and take a shower myself because both of them thought that I needed to be muddy too. :)

Gunner and Zoe
Isn't your face supposed to be black?
Look at the muddy nose!!

All clean!!