IT'S REALLY OVER!!!

That is my personal ORI ending slogan, which is ORI backwards and I could not be more glad...while the ORI is a great thing, it's also a tiring thing and so, again, I am glad It's Really Over! If you keep the BIG picture in mind, ORIs are great, they are beneficial, they tell us what we are doing right and wrong, they show us where we get it and where we need to improve, they show where the process is working and were the process is broken...we had some broken processes, we aren't doing it all right and we need to improve, this is a truth for any organization if they take an in depth look at themselves,;so this should really be no huge surprise and it wasn't to those who look at things with open, honest eyes. However, the what happens next is the real cliffhanger. Will we continue to carry on or will we admit the errors of our way and make changes to "do it right"? Will we blow off what the Inspectors said we need to/should do or will we incorporate their findings into our new routines? Will we become even better or will we just continue to maintain? It's really up to the individual in many respects, but it is also up to our leadership, to continue to follow up on these "findings" and make sure we are all reading on the same sheet of music to move forward to being better! Only time will tell if we "do it right" for the future, but here's hoping we do!

Today the celebratory picnic is going on, then tomorrow is a reward day off, I hope everyone takes advantage of this and spends some time with their families, who probably feel somewhat neglected after the last several weeks of inspection madness. But it is now over, time to regroup and recharge and start on the next chapter of life here on the space coast. It's all good, we passed! We got the best score to date in our command, we are rockin'!

We are also trying to get another rocket in the air and at first the weather was not cooperative, now it's a fuel line leak, so here's looking to tomorrow for our next successful launch! The space business is definitely booming here!

So thoughts of this Thursday...

• Days off are NEVER overrated.
• My MiB is loving this surfing gig!
• Cheesecake is a favorite of mine!
• We are trying out a LifeGroup on Sunday...
• I love to read and have been getting in some pages lately :)

Ciao!

Hmmmm, Thursday :)

Well, well, well...what a busy week we have had. It's been long hours for MiB with the big look that they are having and with that comes calls for help, "can you pick me up, I am stranded", "would you bring water, it's hot and who knows how long we will be out here", "be on the lookout for (fill in the blank), call me if you see anything" and the list goes on. In some ways it's fun, there is a lot more excitement around here, although the long hours and lack of sleep are starting to make us weary. But we know the end is near, in fact, I would say we are now in the fourth quarter and hopefully the post game atmosphere will be celebratory. Hard to say at this point.

Anyway, I am looking forward to getting back to our more normal routine of meals together, bumming around at the beach in the evenings, lazy weekend mornings if we choose. I am also starting to plan the week for our company in October, SeaWorld here we come :) Furthermore, I am attempting to make final decisions for our CALI trip in November as well. And finally, I need to see if we are still on as the host for MiBs side of the family for Christmas this year. Fun stuff for the fall, which is my favorite time of the year. However, I am not sure how fall-like it will be here???

Thoughts:

• I got a new beach chair :)
• Zuchinni muffins are one of my favs.
• I'm so glad I take time to pray daily.
• I can still run pretty fast when I need to!
• The weekend is too far away this week...

Thoughts on Thursday

Another Thursday has rolled around, I seriously wonder where the last week went, it's crazy how quickly life is going by, it's also kind of scary.

We so enjoyed a great 4 day weekend, the adventure to Orlando was fun, we stopped at an outlet mall, regular mall, IKEA, Cheesecake Factory (YUUUUUUMMY) and a few others, it was a great day. Then we did check out the SurfFest in CB. It was a happening place, I think that is all I will say about that. Again, it was a great weekend. I think we will head back over to hit IKEA for a few things with the BIG car, since we were in the SMART there was no room to really bring anything home from there.

So tonight I hope to see another shuttle landing, but right now the weather is not looking favorable. I am thrilled to have finally found a set of linens I like for our bedroom. I went with sage green. I am still getting that room together and it is much harder then I anticipated but I am still working it as often as my non creative brain allows!

Thoughts:

• I like FL
• I do not like sand in my car
• Visitor's are scheduled for Oct :)
• College girl seems to be doing well
• I like to cook; cooking for 2 is harder then for 3

Thursday Thought returns :)

Please forgive my absence...it's been an unbelievable three weeks in my world!

To recap we have had a rocket and shuttle launch here at the Cape, which both were amazing. The Delta GPS rocket launch was the best one I have seen to date! The morning sky was the most amazing backdrop for the contrails of the rocket as it went into orbit. I do wish I would have had my camera; however, I was out for my morning run and cameraless... The night launch of the shuttle Discovery was super cool even if we did go through three scrubs or so and a whole lot of lost sleep before it finally got off the ground around midnight last Friday night. It literally lit up the nightsky into daylight!

Just hanging out waiting w/others from the court.

MiB and me!

Engine Ignition

An amazing sight!

Lighting up the night sky

In other news, we also had the honor and privilege of hosting the most senior ranking enlisted guy in the USAF at our base and in our home for dinner. That was a pretty big undertaking from the beginning and I am soooo glad Lil'Blue was still here to assist me with that evening; it went off without a hitch!

Speaking of Lil'Blue we put her on the plane back to the midwest for college and she is now attending classes as a full fledge college girl. She si settling in and so far it seems to be going very smoothly for her. This big house seems even bigger now. We are trying to stay busy and not focus on being empty nesters, I'll get back with you on how that works out...

MiB has loved the waves created by the two tropical storms. In fact he absolutely loved the playdates with Bill and Danny as they provided "doubleoverheads"! He is enjoying ever free minute on the beach he can!

We have been attending several functions and doing some fun out and about things as well as we continue to explore and get to know our new church and community. In fact this past Sunday night we had church on the beach followed by a time of baptism. Pretty awesome to see people baptized in the ocean!
Right now we are in the beginning stages of an indepth look at our base, so stress is a bit high and I for one will be glad when 23 September rolls around and it will all hopefully be O V E R. For those of you who are my military friends, read that as we are having an ORI!

We are looking forward to a "family day" tomorrow along with the Labor Day holiday on Monday. Since it is a day off we are taking the SMART in for it's first year engine upgrade and oil change so we will get to explore northern O for part of the day. Then head back to our area and hopefully, for MiBs sake, go to a surfing festival. I mean, seriously, who knew they had those? However, the weather may or may not cooperate so we may or may not go.

So my long awaited thoughts for today!

• Take time to love
• Enjoy what you have...
• Never, ever think you know it all!
• His mercies are new EVERY morning
• Attempt to learn something NEW everyday.