All Is Well! :)

I first have to thank all of you who have written me lately, asking how things are, telling me that you miss my posts & hope that I'm doing alright -- you all are wonderful! In fact, I am doing more than all right! Life is so good that being on the computer has been the last thing on my mind, & I do apologize for that!  But sometimes, it's nice to take a break & focus entirely on what's truly important ♥

Don has been home now for almost two months!  WOW!  Two Months Already?!!  Time certainly does fly when your worries are behind you :)  It's been so easy transitioning back into our regular routine together.  Although we were apart for 11 months, we just got right back into the swing of things once he came home!  I love it :)  Plus, we've been doing some great traveling!

We went to a town here in Germany called Baden-Baden, which is famous for its bath houses & thermal spas.  What a relaxing weekend that was!  And we also made it over the border to Strasbourg, France.  Add another country to my growing list!  I think I'm at 27 countries now!

And lastly, we just got back from Tanzania, Africa!!!  What an adventure!!  We spent 7 days at the beautiful Saadani Safari Lodge, & oh my goodness was it breathtaking!  Gorgeous beach, lovely people, delicious food, romantic setting, wonderful bungalows!  Plus, game drives, snorkeling, river safaris...  You wouldn't be surprised to know that we took about 2,300 pictures during this trip!  I'll post some of our faves for you to see :)

Next up for us?  Istanbul, next week!!  So the pictures will keep on coming!

Thank you all so much for your sweet notes & emails.  It means a lot that you were checking up on me!  And now that Don is getting back to work {boohoo!}, you'll most likely be hearing from me more often!

Boy, is it nice to be all put back together again ♥

Ooh Hello, My 200 Followers!

Yes! Yes! Yes, you read correctly! I have reached two hundred followers!  I know this is no big news for some of you who have oodles of followers on your own blog, but to me?  Oooh, eee!  Two-hundred is fabulously wonderful!  Thank you, my dears!  I hope that you have as much fun reading what I post & looking at the pretty pictures that I share as I do posting them all!  This blog is such a fun way for me to keep family & friends in the know about my crazy European Army life and for me to share the little inspirations that I find from day to day ♥

I wish I could give each & every one of you a yummy "Thank You" cupcake!

Oh yeah, oh yeah!  Two hundred!  Woot woot!  Happy dance!  But...no wagging tail for Layla :)

The BEST News!

I got THE BEST NEWS yesterday!!  And it came from Don's Unit's most reliable source: the Commander!  Let's just say that I won't have to wait as long as I thought for my sweetie to come home from deployment!!!  OPSEC is the most important thing, so I'm not going to say any more than that...  ♥  But I can't stop smiling!  It's going to be a good year!

I Love This Man!  ♥

Surprise! I'm In The USA! Hello, My Lovely Family!

I'm writing this from my parents' gorgeous home overlooking the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado! Oooh, what a beautiful sight & what a fabulous feeling to be home with my family! I flew in yesterday {what a long flight that was! Lots of time for knitting!} & felt my heart flutter as I passed under the "Welcome To The United States" sign at DIA! I can't believe it's been almost a year since I've been back in America!  After going through security, out the doors I went & there was my lovely family, waiting for me! I won't lie, I got teary just seeing them! I didn't have to be tough anymore, I was home!! Home sweet home!

 I'm feeling pretty much no jetlag, which is fantastic! Although I woke up bright & early with a tummy saying "I'm supposed to have had lunch by now!"  Well, time for eating at my favorite restaurants, doing some shopping, buying goodies to send to Don, & spending lots of time with the ones I love! I'd like to be with Don most of all, but when that isn't possible, family is definitely second best! I love them!

And when I came into the house, a giant smile covered my face as I saw a vase of a dozen beautiful red roses waiting for me. From Don. With the sweetest note ♥ I love you, sweetheart! I'm such a lucky girl to have you for my husband!!  I'm still melting :)

Image from Elephant Journal

My Heart Is Oh So Ready!

You probably won't be hearing much from me for a while starting pretty soon! Don't worry; it's for a very {very very very VERY!} good reason.  Alright, I can't hold it in.  If you want to know where I'll be, here it is: I'll be in the arms of my sweetheart!  ♥  And we'll be together in Portugal!  Ooh, I cannot wipe the grin off of my face!  Four months of this deployment are behind us, which is quite a milestone!  But it's the longest we've ever been apart, & I'm so anxious to have him home again, by my side, back where he belongs!  Now, I wait by my phone  ♥  I am the happiest girl in the world!  And the most excited!  Oh, I'm going to be pacing while I wait for him at the airport!!!

I may post once or twice here & there, but I can't make any promises! While I'm away, I hope that you all have wonderful days & fabulous weekends! If you get lonely, remember all our lovely bloggers from Saturday Around The World!  {And you still have over 24 hours so participate this week!  Join in on the par-tay!}  Go to them for your blog fix! But don't forget about me! :)  I promise I'll share photos & stories when I return!

My nails are painted, the house is clean, my heart is oh so ready!  I will talk to you all later!!

Don't forget to enter your blog in my new Saturday Around The World listing for a chance to be featured here on {Amanda & Don}!  You can enter until Tuesday @ midnight EST.  We're having fuuuun, aren't we?!  My lovely readers around the globe have the best blogs!

Don's Promotion & The Nurnberg Christkindlmarkt!

Here are some recent pictures that I've been meaning to share!

First, a few from Don's promotion to 1st Lieutenant!  His commanding officer said some wonderful things about Don & his contributions to the Battery so far.  I was beaming!  I'm so proud of you, baby!!

Next, a few pictures from the Christkindlmarkt in Nurnberg!  We went over the weekend & it was so much fun!

By the time we left the Christkindlmarkt, it was getting very crowded, not to mention rainy!  So we were there at just the right time.  The gluhwein, which is a hot spiced wine, was absolutely delicious & kept us nice & warm!  We also had sausages {oh so German!} & potato pancakes with applesauce!  Mmmm!

Has anyone ever been to a Christmas Market in the States?  I wonder what they are like & how they compare to the Christmas Markets here!

Our Family Just Got BIGGER!

No, no.  Not that :)  We adopted another Great Dane!  Can you believe it?!!

I received a phone call last Saturday afternoon from the lovely German lady who watches Layla for us while we travel.  She said to me, "Amanda, I have a problem!"  I was at first concerned because I thought she meant that she wouldn't be able to take Layla for Christmas as we'd previously planned!  But no, that wasn't it at all!!!  She went on to tell me that she had been contacted by a woman with a 4 month old boy Great Dane who was in desperate need of finding him a good new home.  The owners of this little boy were so distraught about having to give him away, but they are both in the military, both deploying this Spring, the husband is away training a lot, & the wife leaves in less than a week for the State for schooling!  After telling me all of this, our boarder told me that she had offered to help this woman find her boy a new home, & she told her that she had the perfect couple in mind: us!  She must have known we're suckers ;)

We were stunned!  We'd thrown around the idea of getting another Great Dane, but pictured that happening years from now!  We needed more information...

We met Jenny & her sweet boy that night to see what he was like & to get more information about him.  Wow, what a doggie!  He was born in the Netherlands this past summer, his breeder has been breeding & showing Great Danes for over 30 years, he has had personal training, is already house trained & know most of his commands, he can be let off the leash on walks & will return when called....  Wow!  And he was not cheap.  Plus, his owners had already purchased everything that he needs!  Elevated food & water bowls, two kennels, 4 beds, multiple toys & health products, treats, 3 bags of food.  And he doesn't need to go back o the vet until August 2010!  And to top it off, the owners were willing to give him to us for free, knowing that on such short notice it was more important to find him a good loving home than to try to make back some of the money they had spent.

And so, after much thought, many prayers, & quite a few "Are we crazy to even consider getting another Great Dane?!!", we decided to take him!

We figured this would be good for Layla, too!  If you've been following our blog for a while, you'll remember that we are Layla's 3rd owners.  Poor girl has been handed from Military Family to Military Family.  And so, as you can imagine, she has some anxiety problems whenever we leave her.  Taking this little boy would probably be quite good for Layla too, we thought!

We picked him up last night & brought him home to a very excited girl!  The two of them have been playing ever since, or so it seems.  They are like two peas in a pod, like they are each other's shadow!  They couldn't possibly be getting along any better!

And oh, his name is Lucius.  Layla & Lucius.  How perfect is that :)

To see more photos from my LaYLa & lUCiUs Facebook Album, click here!  You can view this album even if you do not have a Facebook account.  And I'll be updating with all new photos!

Thanksgiving In Dublin!

Yep, you read correctly!  We are going to be spending Thanksgiving Weekend in Dublin, Ireland!  We are so excited!  Don found great plane fares for us, I found a really neat looking hotel with a 3 Nights For The Price of 2 deal (wahoo!) & a fantastic loation, & it just didn't make sense not to go!  Don has a 4-day weekend then, so we'll be able to stay 3 nights in the city!  So exciting!!  I've always wanted to go to Ireland.  What an adventure!  And this will be our sixth country to visit since we arrived here!  We're doin' good!!

If you've been to Ireland & the Dublin area, let me know what is a must-see!  We're going to have plenty of time to really look around.  We want to get into the Irish countryside also!  Wow, it's going to be great!

Love to you all!  Hope that you are doing great & that life is oh so good for each one of you!  ♥

We Love Our New Mini!

Check out our sweet new Mini Cooper S!  It drives so well -- Heaven on Wheels!  And what a change from driving my truck!  Wow!  Parking this baby is a piece of cake!  What a great car for Europe :)

Tomorrow! | & Layla's Vet Visit

Don's parents arrive in Germany tomorrow for a 2 week visit, & we are really excited!  We have such a nice trip planned for while they are here, & I cannot wait for it!  Germany, Austria, Italy...the Alps, Lake Como, Italian vineyards...  It's going to be fabulous!!!

It's been about a week since I posted last -- sorry!  Things have been busy around here as we prep for our visitors :)  Also, I took Layla to the Vet last week.  I realized that it was my first ever trip to the Vet!  Wow!  And boy was she a good girl.  She impressed everyone with her good behavior & she sat on my lap in the waiting room, which got many grins & giggles!  She even has a little habit now for when she sees little dogs: she lays down on her belly quite ways back from the little dog, & then she does an Army crawl towards them, very slowly, as if saying, "Don't be scared of my size!  I can be little too, see?!  Want to play?!"  It is so cute!  Layla at eye level with a toy poodle is quite the sight.  Isn't she sweet?!

♥

Go Pokes!!!

My Oklahoma State Cowboys are set to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated's College Football Issue, & I couldn't be more excited!  We're placed at #7 to start off the season, & of course, I'm here in Germany without any way to watch even one game!  :(  But I will stay updated some other way, I assure you!

GO COWBOYS!!!

Check out the OSU Alumni Association article here!

 

Man, do I miss Stillwater!  My brother is back there for the fall semester, & I asked if he could send me a copy of the magazine.  And maybe a postcard too...  I'm going through OSU withdrawal, apparently!  I told him that I wish I could meet him at the Union for lunch, or hang out reading in the Library, or eat at the local popular restaurants (Joe's, Hideaway, etc!!).  I've even had dreams of being back there!  Funny how that works now that I'm on the other side of the world.  I think I'll go curl up under my OSU blanket now :)

We're Getting A Mini Cooper S!

Don & I have ordered our Mini Cooper S!!!!!!  I'm so excited!  I've been wanting one for a long time, especially since we decided to come to Germany.  What a cute car for Europe!  And practical too!  Going over little bridges, squeezing through tight one-way cobblestone streets & underneath arches!  Perfect!

We went test-driving on Saturday, & obviously we liked it :)  We drove the regular Mini first, which was very nice.  But as soon as Don put his foot to the gas pedal in the Mini Cooper S, we were SOLD!  It was the Sport for us!  That baby has speeeeeed!  Can't wait to drive it on the Autobahn!

We had been thinking about the Mini for so long that we knew what we wanted.  The very cool British man at the dealership who was helping us suggested looking at currently available Minis in the area to see if we could find any that fit what we were looking for.  There were more convertibles than anything, unfortunately.  But he stumbled upon a chili red Mini that is to be made next week, & it has no VIN number or anything!  He called his boss & they decided it must be for a showroom car or something, not for a customer.  They told us if we could decide that day, they would put in our order on this car & hopefully it will be made for us instead of for a showroom!  And so *fingers crossed* we put in our choices for color, etc. & are hoping that we will get this car!  The other way would be to wait at least 2 months for it to be made for us as a 2010 model.  If the first option will work, we should have our Mini around the 1st week of September!

The Mini Cooper S that we ordered will look like the one in the picture above: British Racing Green with white bonnet stripes, white mirror caps, & a white roof!  The salesman, a Brit, was very happy with our choice as this is the traditional style for the British-made Mini Cooper :)  Here is a photo of a 1977 Mini Cooper with the British Racing Green & white details that ours will have.  Classic, huh?!  I am so excited to have our own!

Don is so good to me :)  And I've assured him that he can take the Mini whenever he'd like to drive it -- we will share it like everything else!  But Layla will have to stay in our old BMW...  Although, I have quite the image of her in our Mini, head out the sunroof, ears blowing in the German wind!  You know it'd be cute!!