Is January a Depressing Month?

Dear Amy,

I feel like I haven't really talked to you in such a long time! How are you? Are you enjoying January? I've heard that January is the most depressing month of the year… I suppose I could understand, with the holidays ending and the dreary winter days just beginning. I've always loved January though, with my birthday at the very end, and now with Harry's birthday on the 9th, I especially love January.

The day he left. Harry looks so little here.

I've been busy. I'm expecting a great, big homecoming next week. One I've been waiting almost five months for. (Side note, I realized the other day that I find myself shrugging the time off like it's really not a big deal when I talk to people who have dealt with deployments before. Why??? It is a freaking big deal. Five months is a long time to go without your best friend/partner/spouse. It doesn't matter if someone else deployed for six months, nine months, 12 months. Any deployment is hard and is a long time.) Anyway, busy. For two reasons: I'm getting ready for Jon to be home. Cleaning, organizing, playing with my kid all the while. And I'm finding tasks to keep myself busy. Because, as you know, I'd go crazy if I weren't busy.

I'm curious about your reunions with Aaron after deployments. Were they strange? Obviously they were exhilarating and unbelievably special. But once the excitement was brought under control… was it weird to have him home? I think it's going to be a little strange - in the best way possible. Not strange or weird in a bad way. It's just been five months of an entirely new routine and way of life. I'm used to doing it all on my own so it'll be interesting to see how quickly I'm able to relinquish some of the responsibilities. I hope this isn't coming off bad. I'm ridiculously excited and it's going to be the best weird of my life. Just weird. At least for a few days/weeks.

I have so many thoughts about deployments and this deployment in general. Their affect on the families, on the servicemen and women, on our pets. But this really isn't the time for that. I'm sure you understand I need to be much further removed before I'm ready to talk too openly about that.

That's my dad. And the cabin.

As for the cabin, my dad and stepmom did A LOT of it, but they did not build it. They bought the existing structure and land from a very tall man in Montana who now lives down the street and wants nothing more in life than to be a grandfather. His name is Bob and he built the cabin. When my dad purchased it, the main floor had a bathroom, a bedroom, and a living room/kitchen great room. It also had a basement that was a big, giant garage. They turned that big, giant garage into a much smaller garage and a bedroom, another (beautiful) bathroom, a great room, a mudroom, and two sleeping lofts. All in all, they added a queen bed, four twins, one full, a crib, and a spot to add another full sized bed. And it's beautiful.

I left Montana feeling excited, refreshed and a little sad. I didn't want to leave the cabin or the mountains or the snow or the thin, cold air. But most importantly, I wasn't ready to leave my family. I completely understand your sense of longing. I think it was especially strong this time for two reasons: 1) I was coming home to an empty house with no husband for a few more weeks and 2) there is just something about having a baby that makes you want that baby to be around family.

So yes, Christmas was wonderful, Montana was great, and I was not ready to leave. And my New Year's Eve? I actually thought to myself "I can stay up as late as I want to! I don't have to work tomorrow! I can watch a movie!" So I started a movie, and turned it off at 10. I slept through the ball dropping. But it was kind of nice. Just another night. And I got lots of rest, which I never complain about. Your NYE sounds imperfectly perfect. I guess that's just part of growing up, huh?

Your grown up friend,
Mallory

The Most Awkward Morning Ever

Dear Amy,

Welcome home! Arkansas is really great, despite the terribly disgusting bugs. Can we just discuss these for a moment? Growing up in Michigan we did NOT have cockroaches. Anytime I thought of a dirty, stinky motel room where someone probably was shot, I thought of cockroaches. The were synonymous with filth to me. And then I moved south. And they are all over the place.

Petit Jean State Park. Gorg. Bring the dogs.

I'm not as naive now, and I realize they are just like any other bug, and not a sign that your home is infested with filth, but ooooh man, they still freak me out. I still scream like a little girl when I see one. And everyone down here is so chill about them! They're all used to them, so they're not a big deal. Those suckers are FAST. And they always show their ugly head when Jon is out of town so I have to kill them while dancing around trying to avoid them. It's quite the show.

These were both taken at Pinnacle Mountain. A GREAT hike and close to LR!

Okay, on to more positive aspects of your new home. It's so cute. I can't wait to see more of it, but (A) I love your office, (B) I love your backyard/your neighbors backyard, and (C) the light! Is it really that cozy in real life? I can't wait to hear about all your adventures in Arkansas. Little Rock is so cool. Great shopping, good food, top-knotch antiquing, amazing Farmer's Market... and Arkansas. What a hidden gem, right?! It's totally beautiful. Believe me, you'll really enjoy your time there. Get outside. Take those dogs out and break a few leash laws (or don't. but do it.).

You MUST eat at ZAZA. Please.

On a totally unrelated and weird side note, I have a story. I'm applying for life insurance. Jon got his taken care of with one freaking phone call. Mine has been weeks of back and forth, medical examinations (which are done for your convenience in your own home or at your work - but it's not really all the convenient when I have to go sign some stranger on base and she doesn't have her car registered!), emails, phone calls, letters... This morning I had to give my second urine sample. And tomorrow I have to give my third. Why they need three is lost on me.

Anyway, the examiner did not have current registration, so as you know, it's a no go getting her on base. Well, we decided to meet at the welcome center and I could give her my urine sample there. Yep, awkward. I had planned on getting there early so I could go explain to the people working what was going on, but "getting there early" doesn't happen when it's breakfast time and you have an 8 month old. So we got there at the same time and it was packed, so I couldn't talk to anyone who was working, explaining my situation. She gave me a cup, two vials, and a plastic bag like she was handing me some drugs (not kidding, whispering what to do, hiding them in her purse, leaving the building, etc etc) and into the bathroom I went. SO AWKWARD.

I seriously was so nervous I was going to get caught. Which is crazy, because does it really matter? Also, was that TMI for the blog? I never know now that I have a baby and I talk about all sorts of bodily functions.

So, anyway... how was your morning?

Seriously blushing,
Mallory