Introductions & Random Details.

I have decided to start a blog!  

What do I do now?

Let's start with an introduction!  

Hey, guys!  I'm Melissa!  And this is where my random thoughts and outbursts have made it onto the internet!  I am 32 years old and originally from Vermillion, South Dakota.  I grew up in Vermillion and graduated both high school and college there.  I have one daughter, Isabelle, she is my miracle..... no really, she really is an actual miracle.  But you'll understand why as we go along and you get to know my story a little better.  I am a girl who happens to be lucky in love.  Which is nice, because I am unlucky in most other parts of life, so I appreciate the balance.  My husband and I are about to celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary!  We've been together for 6 years and are crazy about each other.  I am unabashedly obsessed with my husband and daughter so you'll probably roll your eyes a lot when I talk about them because I can get pretty obnoxious when it comes to those two.  I can't help myself.  Our little family also includes Isabelle's cat, Carley, and our Golden Retriever, Brew.

Eric is originally from Randolph, Nebraska.  He graduated high school from there and then got his undergrad at Wayne State College only like 20 minutes from his hometown.  He just recently graduated with his master's degree in Leadership!  And I say, if a marriage can survive a thesis, a marriage can survive anything.  Eric was enlisted in the Nebraska National Guard for 16 years (4 years active), but felt God's calling to serve the military in a full-time capacity, so after graduating with his master's degree he was commissioned as an officer in the Army.  We recently got orders to Kaiserslautern, GERMANY!  The Germany thing is why I've decided to start a blog.  I am hoping to chronicle our lives and travels as a military family traveling across Europe. 

It sounds like an okay blog idea... right?  Right, guys?  Guys...?  Gosh, I hope y'all are still with me on this, or we probably don't have a fighting chance with this blog thingy.

Currently, my little family lives in Omaha, NE.  Eric is a recruiter for Creighton University until he leaves for BOLC in Virgina this winter, and I am a Dental Hygienist.  I work at a really great dental practice and my career is something I am really proud of.  To be honest, I'm having a difficult time with the thought of leaving in a few short months.  Except that ... Europe and crepes and gelato and bier and wine and the Eiffel Tower and the Colosseum are calling my name (focus, Melissa).  It hasn't been an easy discussion with my husband that I am having to give up my career for his, but the military life is what Eric feels God has called him to serve, and we faithfully follow the Lord's lead, so that is what we will do.  I will continue to work until we leave for Germany next summer, and will fill you all in on what it's like to PCS internationally all by myself.

You should know before we go any further that Eric and I struggle with infertility and pregnancy loss, and I am very sure that I will write about this every so often.  I have been profoundly affected by my losses, and if I am going to put my life on a blog, pregnancy loss is a subject that is bound to end up on here at some point.  Miscarriages, stillbirth, infertility, it's all ugly and messy and excruciating, there is no way for me to put a sunshiney spin on it and still be honest, so it's likely that you'll find some raw moments when I am feeling it, and I've learned the hard way that this is a topic that people don't like to hear about.... so consider yourself warned.

Random things about me that you should know: 

~  I am honest.  Always and completely honest!  I promise to tell you exactly how I feel and exactly what I am thinking.... maybe this won't always make sense (probably because it's always changing and not even my husband can keep up), but at least you'll know where my head is at when I post a blog.  And you can be sure that that blog post is an honest representation of the life I live.  
~  I can't promise that you will like everything that I say.  I do NOT see things as black/white!  I see all of the beautiful nuances and colors in between all of life's situations, and I allow those colors into my spirit to help shape the perspective I need to be more compassionate and move forward in this world (it's super cool to see those nuances, but also makes my heart hurt depending on the situation.  I wouldn't change it even when a certain color sucks really badly, but this all goes into that honesty thing) - maybe that perspective that I blogged about was different yesterday than what I'm saying today, but I love and learn constantly, so that's how I work.  
~  I don't have a lot of layers.  What you see is what you get.  I live my life bare by choice (spiritually, not literally, you pervert) so that y'all will maybe learn something from me, and I from you.  So basically, I'm an open book!  It's that whole honesty thing again.  I can't help myself.  You probably won't have to spend a lot of time trying to figure me out... but honestly, don't waste your time, I haven't figured me out yet because I'm still learning, just know that I what I tell you is absolutely true for me at that moment.

~  I am a really good speller, but I am terrible with punctuation!  Comma's confuse me so you may see random comma's in places they shouldn't be.  I especially LOVE the oxford comma!

~  Thoughts and concepts make perfect sense in my head, but when I put them into words, whether talking or writing, it may be a different story.  Eric says it's what makes me intriguing, I say it makes me sound like an idiot most of the time.
~  I write like I talk.  This blog isn't going to win any grammar awards.  

~  I use a lot of emphasis when I explain things.  I get really excited really easily about almost everything because I think that this world, and all of the people in it are so darn interesting!  In person I talk with my hands, but since you can't see my hands my excitement is likely going to come out as emoticons :o), ALL-CAPS, lots of exclamation points !!!!!!, and Italics, because italics are the coolest thing ever!  Eric thinks that my excitement is one of my more adorable traits, but I understand that it sometimes comes across as annoying.  It's just that I can't help myself and I don't make apologies for loving this world so much.

So.  That's me!  In a nutshell.  Let's see how this goes.  Oh, and hey, welcome to my blog!  I love you for being here and I can already tell that we are going to be best friends!