Thanksgiving Recap & an Update

Hello Lovelies! I don't know how many of you still even read my blog considering how sporadic my posts have been, but I figured an update was in store. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving spent with family and friends, not to mention plenty of good food. :)

I had a fabulous thanksgiving myself and successfully cooked my very first turkey!! I was so incredibly proud of how beautifully it turned out, and how delicious and juicy it was!  

I spent the day over at my deployment buddy Brittany's house and we both helped in making the entire dinner. She made some fabulous home made pumpkin pie, and I ended up eating dinner and dessert twice that day! Shhhhh don't tell! 

This is a glimpse of our feast. Homemade mashed potatoes and gravy made from the drippings, green bean casserole, stuffing, cranberry sauce and some regular and King's Hawaiian sweet rolls. Oh and of course my beautiful turkey seasoned to perfection with delicious rosemary, garlic, onion, butter and salt & pepper. Yum!

I still can't believe how fast the month of November has flown by, and I am so anxious for December to finally arrive! I haven't mentioned it on my blog but I am going home for Christmas to see my friends and family. I couldn't be more excited! The one thing that could make it even more special is if my husband were gonna be home to go too. 

It has been over 8 months since I've seen his face or kissed his lips, and I'll admit lately it has been getting to me that we wont be able to spend Christmas together again this year, (last year he had duty xmas day). This lifestyle has challenged me more in the last two years than any of my previous life experiences and continues to push my ideas of pain and suffering. 

Homecoming is still a while away but I am trying to keep my head up and a smile on my face. After all, what else can I do? Although it has been the biggest challenge to be without the other half of my heart for the greater part of the last two years, I keep telling myself that God has a plan. I know that although there are trials there is still plenty to be thankful for. And I am so grateful that although we're apart I still have the man I love and my family & friends.

Well lovelies it's time for bed and I have an early day at work tomorrow, but I promise to try and make more time for my blog. It's something I really miss.

Until next time-

Hello November!

I have been waiting for you all year. I kept telling myself that if I could make it to November it would all be "smooth sailing" from here. No pun intended...okay, maybe a little pun!

Now that you've arrived the days are flying off the calendar so quickly that I haven't even had a chance to blog but once so far this month and it's already the tenth! For some reason at the beginning of this deployment time just seemed to drag on and on. Maybe because it's a much longer deployment than last time, but for whatever reason it just seemed to take FOREVER!!!!

Now that we are on the tail end of things time isn't slowing down but speeding up. I guess it helps that I have been keeping myself insanely busy with work, trying to communicate with my husband, household chores, bills, and trying to have a social life. 

And because that wasn't enough for me I've also decided to become an independent beauty consultant with Mary Kay. I just signed up about a week ago and am ready to get going! I've been so lucky to have met a ton of amazing and wonderful women and am just excited to have the opportunity to make new friends here in va and to earn some extra money doing something I love. ♥

It's such a joy to have something to look forward to doing instead of the feeling I get when I go to work at the bank. (The "get me outta here!" feeling). Beauty and makeup is something I am definitely passionate about and I'm just excited to learn more and see my business grow. :) 

I've just gotten my WEBSITE up and running and would love to help my followers with any of their beauty or skincare needs. Go take a peek and sign up for emails, see limited edition products and try out the Mary Kay virtual makeover tool to see what looks great on you right from your computer! I can speak from personal use that these products are amazing and good for your skin!

You can also contact me via email: BrittneyT@marykay.com for any questions or concerns. I'd love to show you what amazing products Mary Kay has to offer! 

Well, I'm off to go meet with my director and get started on planning my debut party for this weekend. I'm so excited and can't wait to see how everything goes. :) Wish me luck!!!

Our Halloween Night

{Goodbye October!}

I can't believe October has already come and gone. It seems like the month literally flew by! It's been a bittersweet month for me, because for some reason Halloween has always been my favorite holiday. As a child I couldn't wait to get dressed up in the fabulous costumes my mother would make my sisters and I. Some of my fondest memories are of those Halloween nights. 

Not much has changed since then, except now that I'm an adult I pass out the candy instead of trick or treating but I still love to get dressed up. Usually I go all out and spend between $50-$80 on a costume and accessories since there was always a party to go to back home or something spooky to do. This year I intended on being a little more frugal and opted to not buy a costume. That was until Halloween came and I all of a sudden had the urge to dress up. {Great idea waiting til the last minute, don't ya think?}

So after work I rushed over to Wal-Mart and found some adorable kitty ears, glow bracelets and some candy for the trick or treaters. I was so proud of myself for only spending $12! For the rest of my costume I wore a black skirt, tights and a long sleeve black tee. I did my makeup to match my ears and voila. This kitty was ready to play! ;)

After I was dressed and ready I headed over to my deployment buddy Brittany's house. {Yes we are both Britt's so don't mess with us! haha} We made dinner, handed out candy and watched spooky shows like "Ghost Adventurers," all night. It was low key and relaxing and I loved seeing all the kids in their costumes! Even though I'm no where near ready for kids it made me look forward to having them in the future. 

Here is a photo of Britt and I dressed up...I was a naughty kitty and she was a sophisticated kitty! 

Brittany even got her dogs dressed up, {much to their dismay} and it was the cutest thing. Lady Puggle was a naughty pumpkin and Roland was a naughty hot dog. :0) Aren't they cute? 

We also had a Halloween gift exchange at work and I got my coworker these awesome goodies. I was so happy that she loved everything! ♥

All in all this has been such a wonderful past few days! My hubby was sweet enough to send me flowers on Sunday since he wasn't able to be home to spend Halloween with me. It really touched my heart that he bothered to do something sweet like that, he knows how much I love Halloween and I couldn't stop smiling all weekend!

I hope everyone else had a Happy & Safe Halloween! Now we're headed straight for November and I am so glad the Holidays will be here soon because that means we are getting closer and closer to the end of this deployment!!! I can't wait until next year to finally have my hubby home safe and sound. ♥ Here's hoping these next few months fly by!

I came to fly

"I came to win, to fight, to conquer to thrive...I came to win, to survive, to prosper, to rise...to fly"

Since the very first time I heard this song it's been stuck in my head, and the more I hear it the more I love it. For me a song is so much more than a beat or background music or even the singer's voice. It's about the lyrics...the words that touch your heart and make you reach for something more.

This song makes me feel inspired, like I can do anything I set my mind to...INCLUDING overcoming all the odds the navy and this neverending deployment throw my way.

I want to succeed, I want to survive and sometimes I feel like I am drowning and just trying to stay above water, when I know I was meant to fly.

There are things I do subconsciously that affect my life (and the people in it) without me realizing it. I want to move forward in the right direction and make a change for the better. 

I want to fly...Here's to that.

Homecoming Outfit...HELP!

So with homecoming only a few months away, I am already thinking of what I want to wear the day my sailor is back in my arms. It's going to be winter and most likely freezing, but of course I still wanna look smokin' hot for my man! ;)

I already have an outfit in my head that I want to wear but I can't seem to find it anywhere I look! I've been scouring online sites to see if I can find anything, but so far there is nothing that really catches my eye.

I also have a hard time online shopping because of my size. I am tee tiny and most the time wear a zero in pants and an xs or small in shirts. It's extremely annoying! I wish I had a more womanly body...

Anyway, the vision I'm seeing in my head is a sweater dress with some leggings and a gorgeous pair of boots! I think that would do the trick...I'm gonna have to wear a jacket but I at least want to look good underneath. I need ideas! So far I've found ZIP, ZILCH, NADA that I like.

HELP!!! I would greatly appreciate any good links or photos of something that fits this description...I still have time but it will be here before we know it.

I finally did it!!!!

Hello there bloggy loves! So after months and months of talking about changing my blog name, I finally took the plunge and did it!

I am officially now "The Vintage B." I was inspired to transition to "Vintage B" since it has been a nickname I've used for years and I feel like it just fits...in short, it's me. :0)

Don't worry, I'm still going to blog about the trials and triumphs of navy life, but I'd also like to include other topics and open my blog up to a wider audience.

I'm not sure how to change my url or if that will affect whether or not my followers will be able to see my posts in their readers, but once I figure it out I will be changing it.

I would also like to thank my real life bloggy friend Brittany over at Tales of a Sailor's Soulmate for all her help brainstorming and basically redesigning my entire blog!! I am loving it! :)

There are new and exciting things coming up on the blog and I believe that a giveaway is in the near future! I hope you all have a great Thursday!

A Real Life Love Story

"Do you think that our love can create miracles?" 

"Yes I do. That's what brings you back to me each time..."

"Do you think our love can take us away together?"

"I think our love can do anything we want it to..."

Last night I was perusing news stories online and came across a video that literally brought tears to my eyes and made me miss my husband so very much.

It's the real life love story of a couple married for 72 years, and they were together right until the very end. 

 It was truly a special story. 

Watch the video HERE and be sure to grab a tissue! ♥

I love you like a love song baby

So remember a few days ago when I mentioned my hubby was up for Blue Jacket of the Year for his ship?? Well, HE WON!!!! 

I am so incredibly proud of my husband for all his hard work and dedication this past year and for the simple fact that he has made a positive outcome from this deployment. Congrats Baby!

To celebrate I thought I'd dedicate my song this week to my hubby. Today is Thursday and that means it's time to link up with Goodnight Moon and share the song that moves you this week. :) This is mine, cause I can't get it out of my head...Enjoy! ♥

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Feeling Accomplished

Happy Tuesday Everyone! Today I'm feeling really good and have already done so much and it's barely 1:00 pm! I had physical therapy again this morning and got a hot wax treatment on my hand. It felt AMAZING! With the help of my exercises and therapy I have gained 20 degrees more flexibilty when letting my hand hang down and 10 degrees more flexibility when holding it with my palm facing up. 

My pain threshold still varies from day to day but always feels better when I give it some rest on my days off from work. I have a doctors appt this weekend with my primary to check in and see how things are going so far. I am feeling good and hopeful that my hand will be able to completely heal with therapy and exercise rather than needing surgery. Say a prayer for me that it all works out! :-) 

I am happy that I was able to meet two of the three goals my physical therapist set for me within the first two weeks and hopefully it will only get better from here! As for everything else I have been having a hard time with this deployment lately. I thought it would get easier once October got here, but with the holidays fast approaching it is becoming clear to me that the last few months are going to be the hardest. 

My hubby took his Blue Jacket of the Year test today and we are keeping our fingers crossed today that he wins so he can get capped at the end of this year! That would really help us out financially and would reward him for all of his hard work. However it pans out, I can say that I am extremely proud of my husband for all he has sacrificed these last two years and especially this year. The navy is no joke and they are getting their money's worth out of my husband..that's for sure!

I love you baby and I'm so proud of you! 

On another note, since we are close to being in the double digits soon, homecoming has been on my mind a lot lately. I need to start planning and getting ready for it, because although it's still a few months away I know it will be here faster than I think. 

This time around we want to go on a "stay-cation" and just stay in Virginia. We definitely want to get a nice hotel somewhere for a few days and just relax, have some date nights and pamper ourselves...Lord knows after an 11 month deployment we are both going to need it!

What are some fun "stay-cation" activities you've done?

Overwhelmed

I don't know what it is lately but I have been feeling completely overwhelmed. Between work and starting physical therapy for my hand I have been one busy bee. I'm going two to three times a week and I am really hoping I'll start to see some progress soon and get some flexibility and strength back in my hand.

On another note, My husband has been deployed for nearly seven months now and I can tell you that this deployment seems NEVER ENDING!!! It has been 204 days since we kissed goodbye and said, "Be seeing you." At first I could barely function and can openly admit I was more depressed than any other time in my life. 

I would have good days where I felt ok and bad days where I felt like I didn't even want to be living anymore. Days where it all seemed pointless and my husband and I were both so lonely, hurt and missing each other that we would fight over stupid little things. 

Now we are both doing better but most days I feel like I am just skating by. Going through the motions until he comes home and wishing I could wake up from this bad dream and have my husband back in my arms. 

I have been missing him so much lately and as much as I love to pretend I'm strong and everything is ok for his sake on the inside I am hurting. I never knew what it meant to love someone this much until I met my husband and have gone through 20 of the 26 months we've been married all alone. 

I keep telling myself the rest of this deployment is gonna fly by, but right now it can't go by fast enough. I want to have my best friend and the love of my life by my side to help me with the occurences of everyday life and to be there to lean on when times are hard.

I know this is all a learning and growing experience and I am trying to be faithful in the Lord and believe that there is some method to this madness...that there is some reason that we are going through all this now.

I know the bible says we will all face trials and tribulations but to be of good cheer because Jesus overcame the world, and I am trying very hard to trust in him and rely on his love and mercy to get me through the next few months. Please say a prayer for us, and ask the Lord to give us both strength. You can never underestimate the power of prayer! :)

As for everything else going on in my life, I am trying to find a balance and make time for myself. I have been spreading myself too thin the last few months and have gotten sick twice over a month and a half. I need more sleep, more relaxation and more "me time." I am always going, going, going and I feel like I'm gonna keel over and have a heart attack somedays!

So I apologize in advance if I haven't gotten the chance to comment on your blogs or keep in touch via facebook or twitter. Since my hand is still healing I have been trying not to use it too much and blogging tends to aggravate it. But I hope everyone has a great Friday!!