In need of a little humor.

Tad bit annoyed with the airlines. Shawn works 12 days and mixed in there is one day off so he can come home. Now it looks like the flight home is overbooked and may have to spend half his day off commuting home. Yes, I know, rookie wife rant.

Lets hope charter airlines are better then commercial because this industry is not wife-and-puppy-friendly.

I needed a little humor, so I thought I would share. So proud of myself, learned how to embed photos. Go me!! I may get into this blogging thing yet! 

Now to a night of pizza and economics paper. Whoohoo. Unhealthy and exciting Friday night. LOL We all have them, don't judge. :-)



Loving You...Craziest Thing I've Ever Done

You know those *sigh* days? That is my week.

I love my independence, friends and really my whole life. It really is pretty perfect (besides the lack of a beach, of course) but going into a week knowing that the husband will be home one of seven days is rough.

When Shawn was first called back, I had a hard time adjusting. Real hard time. Friends and family are amazing in sharing in our excitement that he is going back to do the thing he loves, but it didn't make it much easier for me. I dreaded the days he was gone. I would sleep very little and anticipated the days he would be home. The irony of life gets me. Wives who can't stand their husbands get them every night while I adore him and see him a few times a week. Ok, maybe it's not irony but rather cause and effect :-)

Cue the soundtrack....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGAmWyj8dRw

Living in dread one moment and and anticipation the next is no life. It reeks havoc on your emotional state and you miss so much of life! I hear so many people who dread Mondays. Ohhh the Muuundaaays. Do you realize that Mondays make up 1/7 of your entire LIFE? To dread 1/7 of your life is honestly, really kind of depressing. Anymore, that's kind of my approach to Shawn being gone on trips. Yes, we have fun and love being together, but am I going to sit around a watch life? Not anymore!

"You do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." - James 4:14

The past few months I have had so much joy. I am blessed with some of the best people in my life and there is a new excitement in me for the things to come. I am connected to a church I love and have made amazing friends and have reconnected with old ones. I have ideas and inspirations of things I want to do and I just can't wait to see where it all goes.

This is still a hard week but the amazing thing is the joy I have in the midst of it all. I still have few minor meltdowns at work (thank heavens for a praying co-workers and an understanding boss) and had to deal with housework, dogs, dog messes and bills seemingly alone, but I am so blessed. It's easy to rely on someone for emotional support all the time, but that really isn't fair for a person to carry that. Through all this I re-learned how to give it to God and let Him be my support, it's amazing how easily we forget the basic lessons.

Continually learning my first works over.

Much love!

And if I was from Paris, I'd say oh la la la la la la la...

One evening while checking his monthly schedule, husband discovers he has ten days off in a row. "Where do you want to go?" Ok, first off, I have to brag about the amazingness of my job for giving me a week off at a week's notice. Second of all, I have to question if my husband can handle ten days straight in Kentucky. Or with me :-)

"I want to go to Paris."

"Ok. Two seats from CVG to CDG. Booked." click And that, my friends. Is how it is done.

The old me would have flipped out, but Shawn is slowly transforming me into this spontaneous person. I told him I would work on it (translation - plan on being more spontaneous.) Immediately I'm contacting embassies, credit card companies, looking at hotels, transportation, and checking out French for Dummies from the library.
Originally the flight had about 40 open seats, when we were packed, checked in and ready to board, there was one first class seat. Shawn tried to get on the jump seat (8 hour flight, mind you...in basically a bleacher chair) but wasn't able. Last minute a lady comes to the front and says she can't board because she is sick. SCORE! I still get the first class, by the way. Both ways.

Flight went fast, we didn't get our luggage and went without for two days. Most fashionable city in the world and my husband is in orange and blue sweatpants. Couldn't have been black or grey. No. The luggage gods wouldn't have thought that was funny enough.

We had THE BEST hotel. Highly recommend it without hesitation.

Saw everything. The Louvre, Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower (although I am sure you never would have expected that from the pictures ;-))  Walked at least 10 miles a day, some days up to 16 hours. Sat in a sidewalk cafe and watched the world go by. Had a crepe. Met people from all over the world. Unbelievable trip. I use such few words because all the words in the world couldn't properly explain it.

And, at the risk of sounding completely cheesy, I got to spend a full week with my husband. It blows my mind how blessed some woman are to do this every night. We laughed at my attempt at French, (I was constantly saying si instead of oui. Pretty sure they spit in my food.) We saw breathtaking sites. Practiced our photography in the jardins. Watched children play soccer. Made up stories about lovers walking past. Watched a "high speed" 25 person police foot chase through a grassy nook. It was relaxing and inspiring all at once, engaging every sense. Totally grasping the concept of "c'est la vie." I can see how artists, writers and architects were so inspired. Every inch of my romantic side came out and I was able to just get lost in it all. But the best part was, I was lost in it with my best friend.

I am so blessed I get to travel. To meet people. To understand cultures. To realize that once I get out of my little world things really aren't as stressful or complicated as we make them out to be. It really just put things in percepective.

ABCs of a Pilot's Wife's Life

Life with a pilot is an interesting challenge. Humor keeps my mind on straight, so myself and a few fellow pilot wives have compiled the ABC’s of being a Pilot’s Wife. Corny? Yes. But I also think it gives you a glimpse of what life, in all it's unpredictable funness. (Yes, I made up a word. It's a privilege I have since my masters is in communication. Other then working the deep fryer at McDonalds, it's all I've got.) 

A :: Adapatable - a pilot’s wife’s life is never stable. Schedules are given on a monthly basis, furloughs (the fun word for "layoffs) happen and situations/issues/delays are always coming up. You know how annoying a layover or delay is? We don't like them either.  A good pilot wife must always be able to adapt to these situations all while exhibiting the utmost grace and style, because her husband is just as annoyed and complaining just makes it worse. 

B :: Budget conscious - Along with having many student loans to be back, most pilots aren't home to pay the bills so we have to make sure that everything is paid on time. He lives of on pretzels and peanuts, but somehow find it necessary to splurge on the latest and greatest cellphone.

C :: Calm- Situations arise and plans change at a moment’s notice, which if you know me, is killer. Things happen at home all the time that you have to deal with and make do by yourself. It is important to remain calm, cool and collected (look there’s three C’s!). Don’t freak out over the small stuff.

D :: Devoted - Crazy schedules, terrible pay, long hours, nights alone — only a wife that is truly devoted to her husband could put up with these conditions.

E :: Envy - sitting on a balcony overlooking the ocean in Hawaii and weekends to Miami is something ANYONE would be envious of. That is a perk of flying!

F :: Flexible - What? You won’t be home for Christmas? You got JA’d an hour before my surgery? You have to go for a four week training when? Where? Your crew base is moving to WHERE? When are we moving? When are we moving again? Can you call in sick for my due date? What if I am a week overdue? Honey, my water just broke, where are you?

G :: Grateful - Grateful he finally came home and sometimes grateful he is finally leaving again.

H :: Humbled - As incredibly difficult it can be to be a pilots wife, I always remember I have always had a roof over our head, food everyday, and every night we have always had a bed and warm place to sleep at night and my husband is doing the job he loves. 

I :: Independent - You mean, I live half of my life alone? I got married but you are gone 50% of the time?!!! Guess I’ll have to entertain myself while you are away.

J :: Jealous - Seeing the country and even the world at times? 

K :: Kissable - Always be the one he wants to come home to. The one he can’t wait to kiss when he gets home. Absence makes the heart fonder.

L :: Long Distance - You’re going to be gone how long? Having no idea when you’ll be able to work a rendezvous between your schedules, missing him the whole time.

M :: Money - or the lack of - ladies let’s tell the world the REAL truth - contrary to popular belief, pilots are not “rolling in the dough”.

N :: Numbers - The amount of numbers these guys retain is amazing! From runways, heading and altitudes, to tail number and go times. How about converting temperatures from C to F? Or remembering the seat number of a famous celebrity on their flight. These guys can sure hold their numbers.

O :: Online - Communication is the key word in any relationship, but even more when you are married to a pilot! When he is away communicating with him by email, phone, skype or pigeon - it is a must!

P :: Patience - We need an endless supply to deal with the flight delays/cancellations/schedule problems/vacation issues/etc… Not to mention his “extra-curricular activities” that sometimes take him even further away from family time (like softball, computers, etc)… I know I am constantly praying for more patience…

Q :: Quick - Flight delays, weather delays, it seems like pilots are always hurrying and scurrying. Schedules are so unpredictable, that you may or may not get a sizable amount of time with your man. Only 36 hours till he leaves again? Better get in all the fix-it stuff at home, visit all the extended family, and try to fit in some alone time.

R :: Reserve - Being a new First Officer or even a new Captain, being on reserve or “on call” is totally normal. Getting a line is really something to go out and celebrate!

S :: Strong - enough said right? We deal with a lot of up and downs, happiness and craziness. However, it’s not just about us; it’s also about our husbands. We must be strong for them and make sure they’re aware that we are with them on this wild airplane ride through life. Being there and being strong for each other is a must.

T :: Trust - There is no way a pilot’s wife can survive without trust — seriously, you’d run yourself crazy. The job of a pilot keeps him away from his wife and in questionable situations quite often. However, the best pilot wife must trust her pilot — there is no other choice. Trust him and the vows that you both made to each other - those will hold you together while you are apart. Blows my mind when woman can't trust their husbands and they are home all the time. 

U :: Uniform - They do look sexy, don’t they?

V :: Valuable - So many things in this industry are valuable. The limited valuable time spent together as a family. The valuable training. The valuable lessons learned from each mishap.

W :: Worry - All the time! Every time there’s news on tv of a crash, bankruptcy, change in the business, etc. Worrying about whether he’ll make it home on time for something important. Worrying about everything!

X :: Xeric - If you get transferred to PHX?? Hey, don’t judge! You try to find a word that relates and starts with an X . . .

Y :: Yo-yo - Like a yo-yo our pilots are always going out and back from hub to outstation to hub.

Z :: Zulu - As pilot wives we MUST know what this refers to… Sometimes, my husband and I refer to zulu time more than local time. Maybe that’s why pilot watches have so many time settings… at least one of them will be zulu!


Ok, a little long, but thought it was very insightful and had to share!