Happy New Year!

I know that you are probably mega confused by the title.  Right?  Afterall, it is almost February.  However, with all that January brought, I knew that keeping any sort of resolutions would be near impossible, so, even though I am six-ish weeks late, I have decided to make my new years resolutions now.

1.  Get up and move!  I know nearly everyone makes a promise to themselves to lose weight in the new year, and, well...I am no exception.  I have gained what I have called "the Newlywed ten" and I would like that to come off.  I also have been seriously lacking in the energy department, and I know that working on my fitness will bounce me right back!  Last week I went to the gym three times and I hope to do the same this week.

2.  Stop being so lazy!  I have seriously got to stop this.  I am even so bad!  I do things like ask my husband to grab the remote on his way to the couch and grab me some water when I actually sit closer to the kitchen.  I will not become my mother on this!  I am going to try and pick up the house more and when I need something I will get it for myself.  I am sure my husband will appreciate this very much.

3.  Finish my semester with a bang.  If I get A's on my last two classes, I will graduate with honors.  I so need to do this.  So, I need to buckle up and do the work.  The first week of the semester I did great!  Now...ehh, I need to get back on the study train.

4.  Get moved!  I know that I am supposed to leave in June.  Where to, you might ask?  I HAVE NO IDEA!  And, if you couldn't tell from the all caps explosion, it is starting to freak my planner self out just a tiny bit.  I know where we asked for, but that means next to nothing sometimes in the military.  So, I am stuck in this for right now.

5.  Volunteer more.  I signed up to work the huge Special Olympics event on base here, so that is a start.  My last weeks here, while I am not working, I am going to bake cookies for the troops that are returning from downrange.  The USO puts that on and I have always wanted to help.  When I get back to the states, I plan to increase my volunteering with animals (I previously helped with the Kentuckiana Pug Rescue, which is where I got my puggie baby from).  And, if able to, I hope to work with the spouse group on base.  I tried to here but, well, they make it difficult for the working spouse.

6.  Become more domestic.  I have absolutely no crafty skill whatsoever, and while I am ok in the kitchen, I need some work in the wifey department.  At least I am new at it, so I have a little bit of an excuse, but I would like to hone my cooking, decorating, and crafty skills.

I am sure I will come up with more later in the year, as I always do, but, other than maybe learning some sort of hobby, right now that is the dream.

Maldives Monday! No. 1

So, I enjoyed my trip to the Maldives so much, I decided that I would make a weekly post about it in order to share the details.  Our wedding was so small and intimate, which was perfect for me, but it didn't leave a lot to talk about, so I will make it all about the honeymoon!

(One of the islands of the Maldives, from the plane)

First off, a little about our location.  The Maldives are a bunch of little islands located in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka.  Being that we live in Europe for the time being, we didn't want to go to the Caribbean or Hawaii for our honeymoon (although I still hope to visit both places!) because we figured for the same amount of money, we could go somewhere that we wouldn't be able to afford to go to in the U.S.  I literally googled "where do Europeans go to the beach" and it came up with a resort in the Maldives.  We looked into it at the travel agency on base, and from the states to there would have been twice as expensive!  So, we decided that we would make that our location since from Germany it would be on the cheap!  We discovered that December and January are peak season to go, and thought that a honeymoon to the beach in the middle of winter sounded perfect!

(Many of the islands in the Maldives!)

There are many resorts in the Maldives, and there is only one per island.  With all of the research we did (thanks TripAdvisor!) and based on the amenities, we chose Meeru.  Meeru had an all-inclusive option, which we really liked.  We didn't want to have to worry about prices of the food, and how much this cost versus that, and it really met all of our needs.  It had an adults only pool, snorkeling excursions, and other things to do.  Plus, they had what was really important to me, bungalows over the ocean!  It was perfect.  We booked it way in advance, although not any cheaper, and had to wait it out.  But man, it was totally worth it!  Stay tuned for the next Maldives Monday!  And if you have any questions, just let me know!  I will answer them for the next segment.

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In #29

Time to get back into the groove of these things!  I love these questionnaires, and it is so neat to hear everyone's stories!  So, now onto...

1.  Since most of the country has had nasty weather, what has your weather been like this week?
Well, since I am from the Midwest and they are experiencing snowpocalypse right now, I am doing considerably better.  Germany is really cold and we are experiencing a bit of ice, but we haven't had much snow since December.

2.  What is/are your best money saving tip(s)?
If you don't have it, don't spend it!  I could not qualify for a credit card until I was 23, so I was used to only spending what was in my checking.  It has saved me a bundle in credit card debt.

3.  What was your favorite vehicle you’ve ever owned?
My current car!  I drive a VW Beetle Convertible, and I love it!  Super cute, fits my personality, and is so fun to drive in the summer.  Sadly, I think we will be parting ways when I move back to the states.  But, I am enjoying it while we can!

4.  What is a question you’d like to see asked in a future fill-in? (Your question & blog just may appear one week!)
If you could talk to the Secretary of (fill in your appropriate branch) what is one suggestion you would like to bring to their attention in order to improve the lives of military families.

5.  Fill in the blank: You might be a MilSpouse if….
(I will be including some of your answers in a future post (with a link to your blog, of course!)
You use so many acronyms when talking about your day that those outside of the military community have no idea what you are saying.

But I don't wanna go back to reality!

The honeymoon, as predicted, was paradise.  The food was great, it was very relaxing, we only looked at the clock for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  It was wonderful getting that time with my husband without any of the every day distractions.  Even schoolwork was at a minimum, because I took my finals ahead of time.

I will post a couple of pictures here, but plan on writing more about this magical place over time.  It really was fantastic, and I suggest to anyone that can to take a honeymoon, late or not, because I never knew how good this special time together could truly be.

The view during our daily swim.

Our home for the week.

The perfect end to each day.

Blizzard Blog Hop!

Hi!  I am so excited to do the Blizzard Blog Hop!  Thanks for stopping by.  My name is Kristen, and this is my blog!

I am newly married to my husband, Joel, who I met while working in Germany, where I have lived for the past (almost seven years.  He is in the United States Air Force, and because of him, I will (sadly) be leaving Germany this summer.  I don’t know where yet, but we should find out next month!

I love to travel, read, and experience, well…life!  I have become a wine lover since moving to Germany, and even went after a degree in History due to my fascination of all of the traveling I have done.  I am starting to try and do the domestic thing, often trying new recipes out and testing them on my friends.  So far so good!

I also have a love of animals.  I have a wonderful old pug named Pugsley who I adopted when I lived back in my hometown in Indiana, and a cat who thinks he’s a dog named Jaeger, thanks to my new home in Germany.  They act like real life brothers, and I just love them to pieces.  I hope to add a new doggy baby to my family once I move back to the good ole USA.  I also plan on starting my Master’s in Education, as I hope to teach Special Education.  My sister is special needs, and I have always felt sort of called to help more in that area.  I think teaching just might be it!

I am just a down home Hoosier that tries to make the best out of life.  I am pretty casual, very silly at times, and very loyal!  It was very nice to "meet" all of you!

I've got...two tickets to Paradise!

No, seriously.  I do.  I am leaving for my dream honeymoon tomorrow!  So, sorry in advance for the lack of posting for a week, but I hope you stick with me, because I think that the pictures will be worth it!

We are going to the Maldives.  If you have no idea where this is, please google it.  It is amazingly beautiful, at least in pictures.  Think "Couples Retreat."

What makes it more paradise than the scenery is that for a whole week, I will not have to set an alarm, or in fact even look at my watch.  I have no phone calls that I have to wait for, or errands that need run.  I will have no papers due or finals to study for.  For one whole week, all I will need to worry about is being with my husband on our private bungalow on the beach.  Nothing else will matter.  And to me, THAT is paradise!

A Christmas story, Part II

Happy New Year!  Yes, I realize that this isn't the New Year's post (yet!) but, I wanted to finish up Christmas, and I realized that if I skip the posts that I want to do, well...I never really get back to doing them.  Bad blogger!

Anyways, Christmas was great!  I really enjoyed spending our first Christmas as a married couple in our house together.  In keeping with my Christmas traditions this year, versus Joel's last year, I cooked a big Christmas Eve dinner consisting of a honey baked ham, mashed potatoes, sweet rolls, homemade mac and cheese, and veggies.  I always snack on cheese and crackers throughout the day while I am cooking, eat dinner, and then open presents...and this year was great fun.  My family is German, so that is why we keep with the Christmas Eve gift tradition.  I don't think Joel was *too* disappointed.

(Joel and his new iTouch!)

Christmas day was a mixture of traditions.  Joel's parents always do a big spread of bagels, meats, and cheeses for Christmas day.  Whereas the Midwestern family I had cooked a big fatty, yummy breakfast with pancakes, eggs, bacon, biscuits, and gravy.  So, we compromised and had breakfast in our jammy jams (courtesy of my traditions) and had pancakes and bagels.  Definitely a win-win!

On 26 January we took a trip with my Goddaughter and her parents, who are close friends of mine, and we headed to Strasbourg, France for their Christmas market.  While the gluhwein wasn't as good, it was a beautiful market where we came away with many French Christmas items!

(Me freezing in France)

(The church overlooking the market)

A Christmas Story, Part I

Sorry for being on such a break!  I noticed I am not the only one, but I still missed blogging.  I hope everyone had a great holiday!  Besides Mass being cancelled due to the bad weather, mine was pretty ok.  I am not usually a Christmas person, but there was something special about spending my first Christmas as a married couple with my husband.  And he was so cute, too!  More on that later...

I took 23 December off of work so we could visit some more Christmas markets.  We took advantage of the day and drove to a town called Valkenburg in the Netherlands.  It was such a cute little town!  Well, besides the blizzard that we ran into!  They have their market in their Velvet Caves, which was great because we got a respite from all of the bad weather.  It was about 50 degrees there, too, which beat the way below freezing temps outside.

Next we drove back into Germany to visit Köln.  It was supposed to only take an hour to drive there, but it took over two and a half hours because we were driving in this, at best...

I had been to Köln before, but this was a first for Joel, so it was pretty special.  And the market did not disappoint!  Very good Glühwein, yummy food, and beautiful scenery.  Well, except for the mixture of rain/sleet/hail/snow.  That wasn't so fun.

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In #25

There is only one week left before Christmas.  How crazy is that?  I can't believe how fast this year has flown by!  I know next year will bring many changes my way, and I hope that, even though 2010 was a good year, that 2011 will be even better!  With my degree out of the way, I plan on spending a lot more time doing what makes me happy, and getting back to loving myself again.

Well, enough of the deep stuff, it is time for Wife of a Sailor's...

1. What is the best gift you have ever received or given? from Jessica Lynn Writes

My best gift was more because of the intent than the actual value of the gift itself.  Last year my husband bought me tickets to see Das Hexen von Oz, which is Wicked in German.  I saw Wicked in London and fell in love with it, and my husband (who was then just my boyfriend) knew I really wanted to see a musical in German.  So. he bought me tickets and we went on New Year's Eve.  Oh, did I mention he doesn't really know any German?  That's right folks, this man of my dreams bought me tickets to and went with me to see a three hour musical in a language he didn't understand.  I love him :)

2. Do you celebrate holidays differently when your loved one is deployed/gone or do you keep tradition? from The Albrecht Squad

This is our first Christmas married, so I don't really know the answer to this one yet.  However, I am sure that I will turn into a scrooge because holidays just won't be the same without him.  So, I probably won't do very much.

3. If you celebrate Christmas, do you put an angel, star or something else on the top of your tree?

An Angel.  It is always an angel.  My lineage is German, and since the Christmas Angel is the decorator of the tree, she shall sit on top of it.

4. What are your three favorite websites?

I am semi-addicted to facebook, so there is one.  I love to travel, so I am on TripAdvisor a lot!  I will also sadly admit google is another.  Between the translator, directions, and looking up things for school, I am on there quite often.

5. On your man do you prefer… boxers, briefs or boxer briefs? Or commando? (yeah, I’m starting to get desperate for questions!)?

Definitely boxers!  I love a man in boxers.  Joel usually wears boxer briefs, but I make him wear boxers for special occasions!

Christkindlmarkt

Christmas markets are one of my favorite wintery things about Europe.  That means a lot, because I hate winter, the cold, the snow...you get my point.  But, I will get all bundled up in my long johns and sweaters and brave the elements for that wonderful feeling of hot gluhwein and other yummy treats.  What is gluhwein, you may ask?  Only the best spiced (mulled) wine that is heated up and does just the trick to melt that chilly feeling away.  Most of the major cities have them for about a month, and the local villages for about a weekend.  Our local village of Ramstein-Miesenbach held theirs last weekend, and we decided to visit.  There are many more to come!  I always hit up the Kaiserslautern one, just for tradition, and this year are venturing out to a few new ones.  I will post them later, but for now here are a few teaser pics from our local one.  Expect the others to be bigger and better!