There's Just No Way Around It.

You can't cry pretty.

You can cry horrible.

You can cry atrocious. 

You can cry ugly.

But even though your face gets disfigured, red and puffy.  It's hard to breathe and you may feel vulnerable.

Crying helps.

A Sweet Morning Moment

I woke up to a kiss from my Bear,

and

a card from my Bug.

"Happy Veterans Day Mom, I love you!"

I will miss the celebration at the Mesa Vet Center, where I read the names of Honor the last couple years in a row.

Missing Arizona

The Best Halloween Party Ever

Be-Lated Birthday

Last month my little Bug turned 6.

He spent the actual day in Georgia with his Dad, but before he left we celebrated.

with a request for "Cheesecake"!

And oh boy it was a fun party.

 

September

What have you been doing this month?

Me?

I've been spending time with my Grandmother

'Putting up Fruit for the Season'

Peaches,

Pears,

Raspberries,

 

and Tomatoes.

Home

I made it.
Flying to Georgia and back wasn't nearly as bad after I blogged about it last night.
Writing helps me.
I hope it helps you too.

After tucking my little ones in and kneeling in prayer.  I thanked God for my children, thier sweet love and for our safe travel.
I am off to dreamland.

Blessings,

Me

Airports

Last time I flew I sat next to a fellow combat vet.  We talked about my blog and as we both sat down disturbed, he mentioned about how I should write about how stressful it is for vets with PTSD to fly.

We get anxious and extremely irritable. From security to the flight attendants, to the smells on airplanes, it just plane sucks.

That long of a period of time where you aren't in control of your own life.

Whew..

And since I'm flying tomorrow I thought I would write about how much I hate to fly.

I used to Love it and find it exciting, but now...

Airports make me feel uneasy and I start to feel sick to my stomach.

Security brings out the anxiety.

I feel like an animal being sent to the slaughter house. Stripped of my possessions and herded through a small gateway.

 It's even worse with kids and all the gear you have to haul.

Take off your jacket,

remove your shoes,

stick your tiny 0.5 oz bottle of hand sanitizer in a separate container,

separate all electronics,

try to make sure the kids don't have any contraband in their pockets,

and heaven forbid you wear a long skirt or a dress that goes to the floor. 

You're sure to be sent through the body scan or the ever so invasive pat down.

They ask if you would feel more comfortable being patted down in a separate room.

"No thanks, I think I'd rather have the rest of the herd watch as you grope my entire body with your blue non-latex gloves"

Body Scans and Pat Downs make me feel invaded.

I was relating my woes to some friends of mine and they suggested that I apply for assistance through TSA. 

I had no idea that TSA had done something so cool to help Injured Veterans.

Check out their website Here.

I applied for assistance once and let me tell you, Salt Lake and Denver TSA members who helped me get a HUGE two thumbs up and a raving review. 

I had four legs of travel that day that started at 7am and ended at 11pm. 

The head of security met me curbside in Salt Lake, thanked me for my service and told me a bit about his own, he smiled and was kind to my children, but he really took the cake when I got to security and realized that I had left my purse in the trunk of the car. 

Luckily I had my ID in my back pocket. 

He sent me on through security and escorted me to my gate.  He waited at the curb until my dad brought my purse back.  The kids and I had already boarded the plane.  He brought it through security and gave it to the flight attendants and took an enormous amount of stress off.

I was met in Denver by the head of security who helped the kids and I get to our connecting gate.

That evening when I flew back through Denver on my way to Aspen, I was met by two beautiful ladies who watched my bags for me so I didn't have to lug them into the restroom.

Their cheerful smiles and kind hearts really made the end of the trip pleasant.

Thanks Ladies!

...Atlanta on the other hand....gets a two thumbs way way down.

Maybe I'll give them another shot sometime to see if my opinion changes.

How Did You Spend Your 9/11?

My Mom was hosting some international guests. So I spent the ten year anniversary of the attacks on America at Temple Square in Salt Lake City

We listened to Music and the Spoken Word,

and enjoyed other sights surrounding Temple Square. 

We spent the afternoon at the Utah State Fair. 

The local Marine recruiters had a booth where they were holding a contest for the most pull ups or hanging on the bar.

Each person who participated won a prize depending on how well they performed.

I thought it would be fun to try, but absolutely did not want to make a fool of myself by my lack of physical conditioning.

I mentioned this to my Mother who was more that happy to embarrass me by telling the Marines that I wanted to try. 

(My poor pride couldn't back down after being called out, no matter how weak my upper body strength is)

So I took a shot at it.

.....

I won a lanyard.

(I was hoping for the T-Shirt, which was the best prize)

But...

I wasn't in good enough shape.

Maybe next year :)

Challenge Aspen Day's 3 & 4

So on Wednesday we woke up at the crack of dawn to drive to Utah where we would explore a portion of the Colorado River known as the West Water Canyon. 

Challenge Aspen partnered with Colorado Discover Ability and a group of different volunteers guided us down the river.

The first morning we paddled and paddled and went through a series of rapids.

(unfortunately I don't have pictures of the rapids, because my camera was safely tucked away in two Ziploc baggies.  

 

We camped on a secluded beach on the river.  The river guides made us a delicious dinner of Fajitas.

The stars were amazing that night. And the view of the river and the red rock was spectacular.

 

Day 4 started with an early morning coffee call followed by breakfast burritos and a group picture on the beach.

I tried to be of some assistance by helping to fill the inflatable kayaks known as duckies.

Secretly, I think I was more of the comic relief because I would jump into the air and try to force all of my body weight down to try to pump up the duckies. 

It sort of reminded me of this

I looked ridiculous, but I hope someone had a good laugh watching me. 

Then pose for a picture and....

we're off. 

My roomie and I paddled the kayak but in all reality,

I wasn't very good at it.

We would turn to the left and then to the right.  I never did seem to get into a good paddling pattern.

O' well, I guess I'll have to give it a try again sometime. 

I hopped out of the duckie and swam to a larger goat...err...boat (sorry, typo)

However, I wasn't extremely talented with the oars either.

Think I might need a little more practice.

Our trip ended with the beauty of a bald eagle flying overhead.

Who could ask for a more majestic ending?

Challenge Aspen Day 2

Day 2

Equine Therapy

It's late, and we leave bright and shiny early tomorrow for the river portion of our trip.

I don't have enough time to write anything that will do justice for the day we spent at Sopris Equine Therapy, 

so the pictures will have to suffice, until I have more time to write about the great experience with the horses. 

Mine was Bonnet 

I braided her hair just like I used to do with My Little Ponies when I was a kid.

.

Challenge Aspen Day 1

So....

after a very long day of flying, I finally made it to Aspen Colorado.

The drive from Utah to Colorado isn't too long, but NO, I had to take the LONG way to get there. 

(by way of Georgia)

So the kids and I woke up at the crack of dawn and flew to Denver,

from Denver we flew to Atlanta where I dropped off the cuties with their Father.

After some long lines, and a very invasive pat-down in Atlanta, I waited to catch another flight to Denver,

And then from Denver to Aspen.

It was a late night, and I was exhausted.

Day 1 consisted of a morning at 

Glenwood Hot Springs

The water was warm, I swam a few laps, went down the water slide, but my goal for the day was

a back flip. 

Now I have been terrified of the back flip for most of my life,

My dad got me to try it about fifteen years ago and I over rotated and landed on my back.

(not fun)

So my goal for the day was to have a successful back flip.

.....and I did.

Marvelous! I have checked something else off of my list.

Afterwards, my roomie and I decided to treat ourselves to a massage at the 

Spa of the Rockies.

It was beautiful and serene.

I enjoyed a cup of jasmine tea while relaxing in a comfy chaise lounge while I waited for my massage.  

The room was beautiful and the massage was quite relaxing.

I came back to the hotel and napped until dinner.

Oh what fun to have a much needed vacation.