Blogging in Transit

Got home last night just in time to unpack and re-pack for our move to Manila via San Francisco. Of course, the car got picked up to days ago, so I had to catch a cab home. How is possible that in this day and age many cabs still only take cash?



Anyway, we're currently in the air headed from our layover from Dallas to SF. Sure hope the cat and dog are okay! They seemed pretty non-plussed about the whole airport thing. Marley meowed pitifully on the way to the airport, but he did that for four days straight when we drove from Abq to FL, so I'm not sure if that's just his natural reaction to traveling. We'll spend 4 days of work/play with my sis and her fan before we head out again, so here's hoping that leg one is indicative of how the rest of the trip will go. Yes, there were hiccups (like that whole part about them forgetting to actually issue the tickets, which was - luckily - quickly resolved by a phone call to Carlson Wagonlit, but it did cause a mini-heart attack at the time. Two adults, three kids, six big suitcases, 4 small suitcases, ten carry on pieces, one three-legged dog, and a cat later...

Stasis

Last week was spent in FL catching up on what it's like to be back in uniform. Turns out that it doesn't take too much time to remind you of all the good and the bad that comes along with it. I spent a whirlwind weekend returning to Virginia to help with the pack out arrangements (all items are now in there proper places) and buy all the last minute items we need (can't ship liquids via pouch, so all of the shampoo, face wash, etc. for the next 2 years has been stocked!). On Sunday we went to C's last volleyball tournament. I am not sure what our options will be in Manila for her to continue at this level of play, but we hope that there are options since it has been such an amazing experience for her. Then I hopped directly back on a plane to come back to FL for two more weeks of Reserve duty. Unfortunately, I also seem to have contracted some sort of sinus thingy, which made taking my pt test (physical fitness test) today a real bitch. I've been non-current for a while since I've been gone from the unit for so long, so I was determined to just get the fucker done, sinuses be damned!!

It's very stressful to be moving while you're not actually present. Actually, it's stressful moving period, but add to that not being in the same state and it becomes infinitely more aggravating. We've had a few freak outs hiccups. First, we were informed (just yesterday) that State will not ship our oversized paddle boards, which were expensive, much loved, and we hoped to get a lot of use out of them in the Philippines. They also told us that we wouldn't be permitted to add them into storage either, so now we are scrambling trying to figure out what to do with these things. We also got a notice in the mail from the city of Arlington notifying us of a required court appearance for failure to pay a car registration fee. If you'll recall we first moved to Arlington for a few short weeks last May before we ended up in Oakwood Falls Church (in the city of Falls Church). We paid the fee to register our vehicle in Falls Church since that has been our residence, and we have been fighting with Arlington ever since. It is so frustrating (especially since we won't even be living in the country when this supposed court date is to occur)! Poor husband has to field all of these things all by his lonesome since I am proving completely useless here in FL. Seems I can't access my home e-mail from my AF computer, so I have to wait until after business hours to take care of anything. Not very helpful!

So to relieve the stress of it all. I am sitting in my hotel room and watching a Say Yes to the Dress mini-marathon, eating Combos (my Cheetos, Dad), and downing Nyquil. Nothing like watching vapid brides in amazing dresses to take your mind off of your own problems! Don't judge me. Anyway, here's some other stuff I've been saving up to share with ya'll:

Just a cool report that I found real interesting (plus I was a competitive swimmer growing up :)

In fitness news, here's a another free workout that's sure to appeal. Also, I came across this on a fitness site I frequent, and, if you've ever done a P90X workout, it is freaking hilarious!

Drumroll Please...

Unless you have Facebook, I know I've left you all hanging since my last post indicated that T-Day was, in fact, last Thursday...I got a freaking 3, 3!!! For all you non-State and DoD people, that is a big ole deal, and I am pretty fucking over the moon about it. I took about 1/2 a day to celebrate by forcing my children to relive part of my childhood and dragging them to Lake Kittamaqundi. Then reality set it, and I realized that we have less than 3 weeks until we move to the other side of the world!


 My friend D wrote up a great description of language training at FSI, so I won't do a repeat here. I will say that language testing at FSI is one of the most painful and stressful experiences I have ever gone through. I think I likened my Chinese test to having my brain sucked through a straw (then spat out onto the table so that all of the native speakers could laugh at me). Well, this was worse.

The test lasted about three hours, although it really didn't feel like it at the time. The speaking portion seemed to fly by, which I was surprised about because that was the part I was most worried about. It wasn't until I got to the reading portion that things really started to go downhill. At some point in the reading I realized that there were some sections of text where I did not know even one single word, and I started to panic. I was already panicking about the time limitations since I am a slow Tagalog reader, but then I started thinking that I was such a fool for stressting snd preparing so much for the speaking and now here I was getting ready to fail the reading portion!

The tester and examiner really push you as far as you can possibly go to see how much you can get out of whatever it is you are reading/conversing about, so you always feel a little behind. I walked out of the test with absolute certainty that I had failed, and I spent the 20-30 min break (where they are discussing what they think your overall score should be) outside chain smoking, trying not to cry, and panicking about WTF I was going to do considering I had just spent the last week busting my ass to get my military orders issued in time to do my check out from State. Imagine my utter shock when I trudged slowly back into the room braced to hear the bad news, and they told me I had been given a score which far exceeded my wildest expectations. Hell, I was just hoping to pass! I was so surprised, I had to ask the examiner to repeat himself to make sure I had heard him correctly.

I have no idea how my perception of my own abilities and others' perceptions can be so divergent. I can only speculate that it is my extreme type A, perfectionist personality that causes these feelings of inadequecy sometimes. I was also convinced that I had failed the Chinese language phone test back when I was still on the road to become an FSO, which turned out not to be the case either. Maybe I'm just overestimating how well other people speak foreign languages? I don't seem to ever have a confidence problem when it comes to completing tasks in English (job interviews, giving speeches, etc.). I wonder what it is about language that so fucks with my head?

Anyway, now that that one last hurdle is over and done, we are on our way! I'm currently in FL trying to get all of my requirements current, which would be way easier if they hadn't cut off my e-mail since I've been gone so long! At least I have access to the system now, and I got a new id card, so I can start checking off items on my military to-do list. I have an IMA job lined up with PACOM, which is looking like a good choice considering I'll be in Asia for at least the next 5 years. Husband is back in VA with the kids while they finish out as much school as they can. He is handling the move almost single-handedly (we already went through the house and separated our shipments, and I'll be flying home this weekend to help with the final preparations, like actually packing suitcases), while I'm here taking care of my military stuff. It's great to be back in uniform and doin' my thang. I have never regretted leaving active duty (I did a short notice separation shortly after A's brith to avoid a 15-month deployment to Afghanistan, which I was notified of thanks to a wonderful, understanding boss and being part of a small, tight-knit unit), but it always makes me sad that I couldn't make that life/work balance happen in the military. The AF just asked too much of certain officers (people in my career field were heavily deployed - to the point that many of us were on a 12 month home/deployed cycle - while other career fields were never tapped to help shoulder the burden), and I couldn't sacrifice that much time with my family. But, sometimes, I sure do miss it, and it's nice that I get to come back every once in a while and play that role again.

More Things I Never Imagined Would Need Explanation

So today I had to explain why it is important not to take your older sister's allowance money and flush it down the toilet. It was more difficult than one might think.

Oh, and I'm exactly one week out from T-Day. Freaked? Maybe just a little.* I'm learning that the more Tagalog I study, the less apt I am at any language at all. Today my instructor and I spent nearly twenty minutes trying to think up a really good English word that describes a situation when you really fuck up. I still can't think of a less profane way to describe it. Luckily since you can make just about any English word into a Tagalog verb by adding the mag- prefix, I'm pretty sure I can still use it in my test.

*If by a little you mean that I may wet myself at any moment.

Exhaustion Breeds Disease

Or so it seems since I was forced to cut out of my Tagalog lessons early to pick up 2.2 from school after she threw up in class. Now I'm home studying economic vocabulary and cleaning up vomit. Such a glamorous life! ;)

I know it's a bit late into 2012 already, but I forgot to post this. I'm particularly fond of #10.*

*Also, I may or may not be the person who submitted #20...just a little disclosure in case you ever happen to be stuck in an elevator with me :)

Exhaustion

I have so many things to blog about and just no time to actually get it down on screen. In addition to all of the usual PCS (permanent change of station) bullshit and my looming language test, we are busy making all of our last minute travel and personal visits. Last weekend I went back to Connecticut to visit my grandfather, who is currently home on hospice. I cannot explain what it is like to say goodbye to someone and know that it is the last time you will ever see them. It was a very surreal and emotional weekend. Totally worth doing but extremely upsetting at the same time. I don't know if my sister will blog more about it, but the one true highlight of the trip was being able to hang out with my little sister for the day (she flew all the way from Amsterdam).

This weekend Husband is in LA visiting friends and saying his goodbyes. I went and spent an awesome Friday night out with one of my BFFs from college.* We had a pretty busy day yesterday filled with Chuck E Cheese birthday parties and one adult going away get-together. Unfortunately, 2.3, as my dad likes to refer to him, came down with the explosive vomits last night so the rest of our weekend has been derailed with carpet scrubbing, multiple baths, and lots and lots of laundry. I stayed with him on the floor of my bathroom last night because he kept puking in his sleep, so I'm having trouble getting motivated to do anything (plus he already threw up again this morning, so our plans to go see the Lorax are going to have to wait).

Next weekend Husband will be in TX visiting the step-kids over their spring break. It wouldn't be so bad, but C has a volleyball tournament, which generally last all day from about 6am when we leave the house to after 9pm. No fun when you have to bring the whole gang along and entertain them all day! I'd consider just dropping her off, but the tournament location is about 2-2 1/2 hours away, so that is out of the question this time around. Then we have just one last weekend here in DC before I jet off to FL for 3 weeks of Reserve duty at my old unit. I come back on a Friday night and that following morning at the crack of dawn we are off to the airport with three kids, one cat, and a three-legged dog in tow to start our journey to Manila.

There is so much to get done and so little time to do it. We do have the household move all set up and ready to execute, only the sorting of things into the different shipment remains. The car shipment is set, the pet shipment is set (other than the USDA certificate, which has to be handled within 10 days of leaving the country, so it will be up to Husband to handle it while I am out of town), school withdrawal dates are set, still no visas but I'll be calling to check on their status on Monday. There's still the issue of T&V's passports and visas**,  homeschool for C***, getting transferred from the traditional Reserves to the IMA****, various insurance arrangements and transfers for everything (car, health, renters, dental...), and so much more. To say that it is overwhelming would be an understatement!

* Just a side note that I wanted to do a post about how awesome it is have a friend like L. We have been friends for over a decade and though we drift in and out of each others lives across continents and life events, she is the rare friend that I can visit with and feel like no time has passed at all. I think that quality of friendship is so hard to find, and I am super blessed to have her in my life.


** they need medical clearances before I can have them added to my orders to Manila - a fact which would have been great to know oh say a year ago when I first asked about what I needed to do!! But there's no use in dwelling on the incompetence of others.


*** missing out on two full months of the 7th grade is just not an option, SMA (special maintenance allowance) fell through because of time requirements, financial issues, and because it would have been impossible to coordinate with when the step-kids usually come over the summer.


**** I have to get current on all of my annual requirements (PT test, physical, dental, shots, etc.) before I can make the transition. The good news is that I already have a job waiting for me at PACOM, so it's just a matter of getting to FL, doing my thang, and getting it documented so we can fast-track the transition process.

Helpful(?) Hints: Passport Edition

Yowza! Has it really been so long since I last posted? February just flew by. We're down to the wire here both for language training and for getting all our crap together! Moving is never easy. Moving internationally is even less easy. Add in three full-time kids, two part-time kids, a cat, a three-legged dog, and the fact that this is our 1st move with State...well, let's just say this is the most complicated move we've ever attempted. Rather than bitch about all the crazy minute details that need to be attended to or that State is apparently the anti-checklist agency (the antithesis to DoD, if you will) where every move is treated like the first one ever conducted. Nope, I'll save all that for my internal seething. Instead I'll try to be a bit more helpful for any random FSOs/wanna be FSOs that come across this blog. Thus, I give you, the passport story...

Background:
Husband and I have a blended family. I have 1 child from my 1st marriage, and he has 2 children from his 1st marriage. My oldest daughter has a scumbag, shithole for a biological father who has no contact with her whatsoever. Now that we live so far away, my step-kids live with their mother in Texas during the school year.

Step Children:
Let's start with the step-kids. The State Dept, which deals with many cases of child custody and parental child abduction between international parents, is naturally very sensitive to the nature of taking children for whom you may not have full custody of overseas.  If you have step-children in the FS, you must have either joint, full, or sole custody to take them overseas. We have joint custody. You will need to submit all divorce/child custody paperwork to your HR Tech. You are also required to obtain and submit a notarized letter of consent from the other parent, which states that they give their permission for the child/children to be taken overseas for the period(s) of custody of the FSO or EFM parent. Your HR Tech can work with you on the specific language (our letter had to be redone at least 3 times and Husband's ex was not helpful or pleased to say the least!) All of this is needed in order to have your step-children recognized as EFMs. Then you can submit an OF-126 in order for them to be eligible to be put on your orders. This process took about 7 months for us between tracking down what was needed and getting all the parties involved to actually take the steps they needed to take. In our case, this length of time meant that we were not able to get their diplomatic passports because they have not been physically present with us since they were added as my EFMs. Oh, and I just noticed the other day when we were turning in our visa applications that despite all this, they still aren't listed on my TM4, haha! Back to HR!! Luckily for us, the Philippines actually has a loophole whereby we can apply for diplomatic visas for them and place them in their tourist passports. So once I get them added to my TM4 we should be able to get them into the country without issue.

One-Parent Signature Passport:
This was the real nail-biter. Since my oldest child, C, has no contact with her biological father, I applied for her passport with just my signature. This requires a a notarized statement of why you can't obtain the other parent's signature. Then, when you are in front of the passport official, you must fill out another statement basically going into as much detail as humanly possible as to why you can't obtain the other parent signature and then take an oath swearing that you are telling the truth. We went to the Special Issuance Agency (SIA) to apply for our passports since I thought it would be easier than going to Main State with all the kids, and the gentleman who took our applications was very kind and courteous. However, he warned me that DoS has begun taking a very hard look at 1-parent signature applications and has started asking the applicant parents to go to court in some cases in order to get a court order allowing the passport to be issued. He was not able to give me a general timeline for how long this process might take if they did not accept C's application as is, so up until the moment her passport was actually issued there was always a chance that they might come back and ask me to go to court. This, of course, would have hugely delayed us, so I have been putting off most of our other moving tasks until I was sure that C's passport would be issued. I was not about to leave the country without one of my children, so until I got that passport, I had no idea what we were going to do. So it was a MAJOR relief when I finally got word that her passport was ready to be picked up.

First Time Diplo Passport:
Hint - If you don't have your TM4, you will need yet another form called the DS-1640. I did not have this form when I went to apply for our diplo passports at the SIA. The SIA people were kind enough to take all of our applications and hold on to them while I tracked down the form, which should have taken about a day or two. Unfortunately, as with many of my experiences  with DoS, something that should take just a few days often turns into somewhat of a journey. To make a long story short, it took just over a month to get this form generated. This meant that our passport processing didn't even start until after the New Year. Hence why I was so concerned about the timeline concerning C's passport.

It's Official!

Finally got my hot little hands on some diplomatic passports. All 5 of them! At some point I might actually write up the saga, but for now, I'm just thrilled to have them in my possession. Now we just have to make plane reservations, households goods shipment arrangements, pet shipment arrangements, apply to the international school...

Island Hopping

Sorry for the length of time between posts. I have been consumed with frantic Tagalog training (realized my test is less than 8 weeks away, and I feel like I am no where near where I need to be to pass the test!) and taking up all kinds of new activities. L & I got Groupons for a Pilates studio in McLean and have attended a couple of sessions (don't think I will continue after the Groupon sessions are up...I wasn't that impressed with the studio). Husband and I are also hitting the ice in hopes of keeping up with our kids. Our instructor has been letting me sneak in on her lunchtime adult class (she's awesome!), and I surprised myself with how well I skate considering I haven't been on the ice since I was a kid. Husband and I also joined a gym (courtesy of Living Social this time). I'm not crazy about gyms in general (I prefer working out when no one is watching), but I don't have any of my equipment here and I was really, really missing my heavy weights. Then, C's volleyball season has really kicked into high gear. She has a clinic on Sat from 1-3, practice scrimmages on Sun from 8-11, practice on Wed from 6-8, Thus we have to help the club set up for the Capitol Classic from 5-9, Fri she has practice at the Washington Convention Center from 6-9, then Sat-Mon is the tournament with us parents helping out with tear down after the tournament has ended. I'm tired just typing all of that out!

But, the most exciting news of all is that we got word on where our second assignment will be. My plan to be a beach bumming FSO is in high gear 'cause we are headed to freaking HONG KONG, bitches! Going from Manila to HKG is like being sent to Hawaii to New York (if NYC had beaches and was made up of almost 70% green spaces. Plus, escalators, people! HKG is the land of the pedestrian commute!). We are so freaking excited!!! This is an amazing post for everyone in the family. Husband will be able to easily find a job (either at the Consulate or on the local economy - thank you weird HKG non-mainland status!), English abounds so it will be easy for the family to get around, there is no quarantine period for animals (!!!), and the international schools are some of the best in the world. Plus, the HKG airport is amazing! You can fly anywhere in SE Asia (likely anywhere in the world), and it is super clean and efficient. The only drawback (for me anyway) is that Mandarin is not the common language, so it will be less of an immersion for me. I still get to come back to FSI for six months between tours to brush up on my Mandarin (which I desperately wanted since it will have been 3+ years since I used the language by the time I get there), and there are pockets of Mandarin speakers within HKG - I will just have to search them out. And I can always venture across the bridge for immersion trips to keep my Mandarin up to par.

So what does all of this mean? Well, we now know where we'll be for the next 5 years, which is more stability than I've ever had in my adult life, and it means we can really start making some plans for the future. And now that we know we'll be in the same part of the world for the foreseeable future (HKG is only 2-3 hours from Manila!) we can take our time and plan out trips to visit all the places we want to see. And, it means that all of you lovely people can take your time with your own trips since we won't be leaving the region any time soon! :)

Walang Balita

I apologize for the recent blog silence. I really do have lots of posts in my head that never seem to make it to the screen. We recently received word that my grandfather is heading quickly downhill. This was somewhat unexpected (in spite of the fact that he is nearing 90), as we did not know until just last week that he had a life threatening illness. My father has blogged more extensively than I am willing to, but this event has dredged up some powerful emotions. I was with my grandmother on her deathbed, but one of my greatest regrets is that I did not get to see her one last time when she was still coherent. Now I fear the same will be true with my grandfather. I had more to say, but I think it's best if I just leave it at that. This is, perhaps, no longer the forum to air my private thoughts.

Bidding Again Already??!!

That's right, folks, the CNL (now called RLP - Recruitment Language Program) bid list is out! I am excited about all the possibilities for our 2nd tour. We are required to bid on everything that even comes close to being a fit for us, but looking at the issues of timing (i.e. when I am due to leave Manila + home leave + time for additional training at FSI), I think our list is narrowed significantly. All of our options are exciting and interesting in their own way, so I think we'll be thrilled no matter where we end up going. Our lists are due in about a week and a half, and I'm not sure how long the matching process takes, so it may be a while before we know definitively where we'll end up in 2014. It's going to be weird to have the next 5 years of our life fully mapped out after living with such uncertainty for so long. If only we had little black passports to match!*

*I promise an update on the saga of getting our diplomatic passports in the next post or so, but it's going to take more time than I have on hand to explain!

Ovetjkin Jr

I'd like to say the above pictures were due to an awesome hockey fight, but, sadly, we must blame that sole piece of metal playground equipment spared by the late 90's, early 00's plastic revolution: the slide. A and the slide don't get along to well and eventually the slide got the better of him. Unfortunately for A it took the school about 30min to track me down at work (I keep my phone off during class and the school had Husband's number written incorrectly). Poor kid sat around gushing blood until we finally showed up almost an hour after the slide one upped him. As usual, he didn't shed a tear. I, on the other hand, wanted to cry the minute I saw him. An ER trip later, A was off to the pediatric dentist to have one of his front teeth removed. Luckily he was able to keep the other one, but it's root was likely killed by the impact, so he may end up losing it at a later date anyway. On the plus side, he looks like a real hockey player now!

I begin to see how fortunate people with careful children are. C was a very calm child with few accidents. Between J&A we've had multiple ER visits resulting in stitches, heads glued back together, heads stapled back together, and now teeth knocked out. His skating instructor suggested it might be best if he wear his hockey helmet all the time instead of just on the ice. She may not be wrong!

Holiday Spirit

I was going to title this post, "Suck it. Bitches." but my husband was concerned that all of the other newsy bits would get lost in my crowing over how I WON MY FANTASY FOOTBALL LEAGUE.* That's right, people. I am AWESOME!!! Bow down to the great power and ability of yours truly to pick the right players and kick major fantasy ass. What? What's that? Well, no. It's not actually a sport. Fantasy football is where people pick players who actually do play a sport and then get points when they do well. You know what, why don't you just Shut the Hell Up. I am the WINNAH!!!

I know, I know, I kept meaning to post over the vacation, but I was too busy trying to relax to get around to it, so there is a lot to catch up on. We spent an awesome (and way too short) few days with the extended Pu clan in good old Albuquerque, where we had a perfect white Christmas. Strangely enough, Abq has never failed to deliver on the white Christmas front. It was a balmy 50 degrees here in DC when we got back! It was so nice to visit with the family and meet my new niece, Lia, who is sooo precious! Cousin Y and J are just 6 months apart and the girls were inseparable for the entire vacation. It sucks that we get to see them so little. We did the usual: ate, ate, then we ate some more. I think there may have been some conversation in there...mostly about the food and how we were cooking it. I must have gained 10lb. Anything less would have been an insult! I would post pictures, but I hardly took any. I have come to the conclusion that I am just a terrible photographer and maybe it would be better for my temper if I just gave it up altogether. My mom and BIL are both excellent amateur photographers, who documented the event well enough for all of us. So I'll just poach their pictures when posted!

You know what else Abq is good for (besides snow at X-Mas)? Sleep!! That's right. I slept with no problems at all the minute I arrived in Albuquerque. I feel like I have finally caught up with my sleep, and I hope it stays when I get back to work on Tuesday. Speaking of which, I have not studied one bit this entire vacation. I have some lingering guilt over this, and I am sure that I will be regretting it greatly when class starts back up. But, right now, it seems like the best decision ever. I so needed a break from studying after this incredibly intense year.

C turned the big 1-3 yesterday, and I came to the sudden realization that I am the mother of an honest to god teenager. WTF? You know you're old when suddenly your kids birthday milestones make you feel older than your own! I took C to see Breaking Dawn Part 1 as one of her birthday gifts. I am happy I did so because she absolutely loved it, but that must be one of the most excruciatingly boring films I have ever seen. They spent the 1st hour solely on long, dramatic face shots of the two leads as they gazed at each other adoringly. And there's still a part 2 to live through!! Have you ever seen the Seinfeld episode where Elaine is forced to watch the English Patient? That is how I felt. I hope C knows how much love it took to sit through that ;)

So I guess that's mostly everything. Oh, I also got a Mac. Yay, me! The only problem? Now I have to learn how to use a whole new OS :( Boo! I'm too lazy for that. I think I'm going to sign up for classes at the Apple Store in Ballston because this no right click thing is killing me (I also never realized how much I used the page up and down buttons!). This is primarily why this post is so short. I am getting to frustrated! Now off to figure out how to sync my iPod without losing my folders. Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. Here's to an even more exciting 2012!

*And also it doesn't really sound all that diplomatic. Bleh. 

Cultura Overload

Otherwise known as Pu Dances the Tinikling and Goes to Church.

I have been meaning to post about the SLS Fair that occurred, oh, maybe a month ago, but I just kept forgetting to get permission from my teachers & classmate to post pics. One of my friends in Hindi posted a video about their class cultural experience, which inspired me to get off my ass and make this post! The SLS Fair gives our FSI instructors an opportunity to share their different cultures with each other. Students don't usually participate, but the Tagalog section is so tiny that our instructors asked if we might help out. First they taught us about two different Philippine holidays, the Flores de Mayo and the Ati-Atihan Festival, that we would be representing. Then we got all Imeldific! L & I got to rock some sparkly gowns, heels, tiaras, and sashes as Philippine beauty queens, but the real fun came when we learned and then got the chance to to teach people how to dance the Tinikling. My teachers made it look incredibly easy and graceful, but, to me, it was like jumping double dutch for two straight hours. I was so gross and sweaty by the end of it! On the plus side, we were by far the most popular booth at the fair. L & I posed for pictures, enticed people to come dance the Tinikling and try on traditional costumes, we played music, and generally had a blast. There was a booth next to us from a different part of the world (we'll be ultra-diplomatic and leave out said country's name) and man were they pissed! They kept complaining about how noisy we were being, and how we kept getting in their space, blah blah blah. As they sat there stone-faced and pouting, I couldn't help thinking how happy I am that we are headed to the Philippines! After having spent so many years not being represented (for a long time the Tagalog section only had 1 teacher, so there was no opportunity for her to participate), my teachers were so proud to have the Philippines be represented so well. Plus it was a total blast (and I got a good workout in!).

Teacher G and Language Supervisor M show off the traditional Ati-Atihan costume

L posing in front of the Philippines booth

Teacher G & I in front of our booth

Teacher S strikes a mean Tinikling

Three lovely Philippine ladies taking a break from dancing

This last week we did something on the opposite end of the spectrum and attended the first night of Simbang Gabi with my teacher. The Mass ended up being in English since the priest was not Philippino, but all of the songs were in Tagalog and we got to converse with people after the service while eating a traditional Philippine breakfast (lost of simple carbs and chicken soup!). The only negative was that we had to get up at 4am to make the 5am service. Mercifully, our teachers took pity on us and let us out of class early to make up for the fact that we started our day so early. This was a big plus for me since the other item on my agenda for the day was to get off my ass and haul the family downtown to get our diplomatic passports. I will post about this journey separately since it was truly its own adventure!

Insomnia

You would think now that my Masters program is finally over (FINALLY!!!) I would actually spend some time updating my blog. Oh you silly readers. Actually a little over a week ago I began suffering from the worst bout of insomnia I've ever had. I've always been prone to periods of insomnia for as long as I can remember. I have these weird memories of childhood nights spent listening to a self-hypnosis cassette tape meant to help me visualize my way to sleep. I can also remember hearing the click of the cassette as the tape ended, lol. As I've gotten older I've recognized that usually these patterns develop during times of high stress, and they usually last for about 3-4 days or until I pass out from lack of sleep (because, as with everything in my life, we don't half-ass things here at Pu's Corner, if I have insomnia it means I don't sleep at all). This last bout, however, seems to be unending. It started the last week of my Master's Program (and the week following my incredibly poor performance during my 1st Tagalog assessment), so I thought once I finished up with school that it would clear up. Alas I think I totally fucked myself up in the head because I have not been able to sleep for almost 2 weeks now.

You would think at some point a person would just keel over from lack of sleep, but apparently you can just keep on functioning. Husband eventually dragged me to the doctor after my own attempts to self-drug did not work (I tried Tylenol PM, Melatonin, and even NyQuil). The doctor prescribed me Ambien, which helped give me a few hours of sleep, but I would still wake up at about 3-4am and then be wide awake until my alarm went off. So I went to see a sleep specialist, who basically told me there's nothing wrong with me (physically) and then gave me some Ambien CR, which is supposed to last longer but ended up acting just like the regular Ambien. I finally got fed up and combined a double of dose of Ambien with some alcohol, which is not particularly safe or healthy, but it did work. I slept from 10pm to 8am this morning. I have never been so happy! Hopefully this will kick my body into gear and get me over this mental block against sleep. I guess we'll find out tonight!

One More Week, One More Week, One More Week

That is the manta I am currently clinging to anyway. Just one last week of dual school before I am so donesies with my MS, and I cannot freaking wait! I foresee many a Tagalog flashcard in my future!!

Anyway, its been a while since I posted any recipes, and the seasons are a changin'. So here's a few of the most popular recipes we've been chomping lately. The key to making these recipes is to use minimal effort and time to come up with the best results possible!

Skillet Roasted Chicken


4-6 boneless chicken breasts
kosher salt
pepper
juice from 1 lemon

Salt and pepper the chicken to taste and add squeezes of lemon over top. Heat a large non-stick, oven-ready skillet over medium heat and brown the chicken breasts on both sides. Toss those suckers in the oven at 400 degrees for about 5-8 min (depends on the thickness of the chicken). Seriously, that's it.

Roasted Winter Veggies


1-2 diced sweet potatos
2 diced parsnips
1 peeled head of garlic
1 medium yellow onion
Spice Mix - paprika, New Mexican chile powder (or whatever kind ya got), cumin, pepper, and kosher salt*
1-2 tbsp olive oil

Combine the veggies in a large glass pan. Add the spice mix and oil, and toss that shit til every bit o' veggie is covered. Roast veggies uncovered at 400 degrees for about an hour, or until the veggies are nice and tender.

Of course you can make this with whatever veggies you prefer. We usually just combine whatever looks best at the market. Turnips, shallots, carrots, butternut squash, and various kinds of mushrooms have all made appearances  in the past with great success.

Hint: Chopping your veggies into like-size pieces will give you the best result since everything will cook evenly.

Homemade Applesauce

8-10 Honeycrisp Apples**
1/2 cup sucanet
1- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup water
1-2 tbsp cinnamon

Peel & core the apples, and add them to a large pot. Add the other ingredients to the pot and bring everything to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 20min (you can use a fork to check the done-ness of the apples). Now that your apples are soft you can either use an immersion blender or I prefer the old fashioned method of using a potato masher to smash my apples because it results in a much chunkier sauce. This recipe is so versatile. You can eat it warm right out of the pot as a dessert, chill it and it eat as regular old applesauce, or you can use it as a topping for waffles or pancakes (you may wish to add more water to make it thinner if you want to use it more like a syrup).

Apple Yogurt

1/4-1/3 cup Homemade Applesauce (see above)
1 cup 0% plain greek yogurt
Sprinkle of raisins
Sprinkle of chopped nuts

Mix that shit up and dig in! Sometimes I even add a little extra cinnamon or swap out the nuts for some Bare Naked Fit granola if I'm craving more crunch. Tastes like fall :)


*I specifically left out amounts on the spice mixture because I like my veggies pretty spicy, so you can choose to add whatever amount of paprika and chile powder you please to achieve the taste you prefer.

**You can use any variety you wish, but I like to use apples that are naturally quite sweet so that I don't need to add much sweetener.

Hockey Man

In addition to cheering C on the volleyball court*, we are hard core hockey parents. Of course since our son is only 4 and just learning to skate, yelling at him to body check the other kids is generally frowned upon. Stupid other parents. So we started him in individual lessons so that he really focus on learning how to throw a good right hook. Today we realized our lessons had really been driven home when A took a face plant on the ice and promptly started bleeding profusely from his mouth and nose. Some pussy bystanders expressed concern, and they even made everyone clear the ice so they could clean it up and examine him (it was really a decent amount of blood). A, however, thought it was all quite hilarious.** His brave face earned a high five from some of the Capitols (yeah, the Washington Capitols!) who were passing through on their way to their practice rink, who told him to "stay strong, little man." They were not as enamored with his penguin hat, however. I guess we were lucky he wasn't wearing any of his Sabres gear!

* Had our 1st parent meeting on Tuesday night. The girls will have a clinic to focus on particular skills on Saturdays and them practice only 2x a week, on Wed nights and Sunday afternoons. Yeah, guess who's going to be missing all of the 2nd halves for the rest of the year :( Well, at least this means the Bills might actually win some games since I won't be around to screw it up for them!


**At the moment...later he really played it up for the some cuddles and the all important candy!

Gobblins

Pun intended. We've got five of 'em here and, boy, can they eat! Anyway, here's some pics of their Turkey Day feast. I was going to do a post about how football broke up with me (and it was a bad break-up, too, none of this let's be friends bullshit), but then the Bills had to go and put up a decent showing today (oh, don't worry, we still lost, but at least we made it a fight). So now, I'm confused. Does football like me or not? Check yes or no. I think I'm going to lose in both of my fantasy leagues, so I'm leaning towards the "no" box.

Gobblins Being Forced to Make Stuffing

Believe it or not this is the best picture I could get of all 5 Gobblins

Yes, this was a child's plate

Let's dig in!

Oh, yeah, we also braved Black Friday* and made a side trip to Santa's lap

*Okay, so technically it was Black Saturday since I had to work on Friday to avoid losing per diem. Long story but basically if you take leave while staying at Oakwood you not only lose per diem for the day, you also have to pay the daily Oakwood rate (meaning I would be out around $200 for just one day of leave). Since I'm already going to be shelling out a small fortune just to go home for X-Mas, I just wasn't willing to do it for a day when I was here in town. On the plus side, FSI was completely empty and finding a computer was a breeze!

Oh to be Twelve Again

Has anyone in the history of the world ever uttered those words? I think the middle school years are best forgotten for most of us, and my poor C is in the very midst of them. We are struggling with school issues, truth issues, friend issues, attitude issues, and she's one of the good ones!! I think the biggest problem is that her keen intelligence far outweighs her complete lack of common sense. Unfortunately I don't think those two trajectories even out until sometime in your late-twenties to early-thirties. As I understand it, these issues are all par for the course for this age, so I am completely baffled as to how the human race has managed to survive all these years.

In the very good new column, C tried out for and made the volleyball team. This is club volleyball (meaning I get to pay for the privilege, lol). There were many girls who tried out, so when the coach called and said C was one of the solid nine to make the team (there will be 12 girls total on the team) she was very proud. We are very proud of her! Last year was tough because it was her 1st year playing, and volleyball is huge (!!) in FL, so she was on a very competitive team playing with girls who had a lot more experience than her. That meant we ended up investing a lot of time (1 1/2 hours driving 3x/week to practice, plus all-weekend tournaments every other weekend) just to watch her ride the bench for most of the season. I think learning to play at that level has really benefited her, and now she is one of the more experienced and knowledgeable players, so she'll really have a chance to shine this season. The international schools in Manila also offer volleyball, so this is something she'll be able to continue throughout the upheaval of moving again.

Happy Veteran's Day

Happy, happy day to all my friends and family who have served (even if it was only in Alabama ;) Having an all-volunteer force makes the sacrifices we are willing to make just that much more special. Much love and thanks to all of you!! To celebrate this special day, my kids made me a special breakfast:

The plate is divided into the five food groups: Crackers, Cheesy Crackers, Cheesy Poofs, Cookies, and Yogurt

The proud chef poses next to her creation:

And, yes, that is strawberry milk in the glass. Go ahead, be jealous ;) 

Oh, and for those who inquired, Delgado is home and doing fine. In fact he is up and walking around with no issues as all. The incision doesn't look anywhere near as bad as I thought it might, and he doesn't even seem to notice that he's missing a leg! He's moving around with much more ease, trying to chase after the cat, and moping because of the Elizabethan collar he's forced to wear while the stitches heal. He goes back in two weeks to have the sutures removed and, with any luck, once those come off we'll finally be able to have the normal family dog experience we've been wanting (long walks, dog park visits, etc.).