Marines and Giftwrap

Good Friday to everyone! ;)

Well, it’s official. I am the wife of a United States Marine. Trey finished the crucible sometime around 0730 Thursday (yesterday) morning and had his Eagle, Globe, and Anchor ceremony sometime around 0800 making him officially a Marine! I couldn’t be more proud of him and I cannot wait to finally see him next Thursday after 13 long weeks! I’ve bought him several things for graduation thus far.

A silver box with the EGA that houses an engraved “gold” coin marking the end of his journey. But the coolest gift I found that is from the entire family is the Texas flag that will be flown over the state Capitol 13 April 2012 just for him. (Work with me, I figured I better get used to this Military date/time thing!) The state flag will then be folded and placed in a display case that they will mail to me with an official certificate stating the reason it was flown and the date. I thought it was a pretty fantastic way to memorialize it just for him. So I put together a mock certificate and placed it in a document frame that’ll eventually house the official document. I also put on there that it was from the entire family and a note that stated what was up with all of it.

I am trying to pack things as flat as possible, but this wasn’t going to be a fun one to wrap in a hotel room. Hobby Lobby was out of the right size of bags and then a stroke of genius hit me on how I wanted to wrap this frame.

USMC giftwrap! If you don’t know its suppose to resemble the trousers with the blood stripe down the side. I thought it was pretty fitting even if he doesn’t have a blood stripe on his pants yet. I just took navy blue ribbon and glued it to the kraft paper. Then the same with the red velour ribbon. The bow was simply done by making two loops back and forth then tying a long piece around those loops. I then glued the bow onto the stripe. Sometimes I just amaze myself!

Now if my week would just hurry up so I can get to Thursday and Friday!

Baby Gifts

So one of my best friends and I have the exact same due date. Hopefully her son, Levi, and my son Gene will grow up being good buddies. *snicker* That still cracks me up a little. Levi and Gene. I’m easily entertained. Anyway, I wanted to make her something and with these lovely back spasms making another quilt wasn’t really an option at this time. I haven’t even finished Gene’s yet!

So, I wanted something special. Something custom. Something done with the handy dandy – vinyl cutter!

First coat.

Second coat

Peel!

Monkeying around.

The final production!

New Information on BAH

BAH- You are entitled to BAH from the moment his feet touch yellow footprints. Tell you husband to take a voided check with him. If you need the BAH payments for bills he will have to request from his DI to take the voided check with him to the RAB office (Recruit Admin Branch 619-524-8174). They will be able to set him up about 2 weeks after boot start with payments that are sent home to you. I did not get this benefit. It has taken me nearly the entire 3 months of my husband’s boot camp to find this information. Luckily we only have 3 weeks left (as of 3/21/12) and our BAH and FSA is being paid directly to his account at boot camp. Never fear ladies, you ARE being paid!


Wife’s Guide to USMC Boot Camp (incomplete)

So your husband is off to Marine Corps Boot Camp? (Any boot camp really)

 

To Do BEFORE he leaves: 

Draw up a Power Of Attorney and have it notarized

Fill out form DD 1172-2 and have it notarized

Place social security cards, birth certificates, marriage licenses, POA and 1172 in some sort of portable protective sleeve (i.e. an accordion folder).

 

 

Power of Attorney – Get one before he leaves. Have some sort of signed and notarized document stating that you are his power of attorney while he is gone. This will grant you access to his bank accounts, allow you to sign for him if anything happens in an emergency, and also allow you to get your dependent ID which will allow you to be enrolled in DEERS and the Tri-Care program. *** Please note, this is the statement from all ID card issuing offices If your Military Sponsor is unable to accompany you to your visit(i.e. bootcamp), a valid “General” or “Special” Power of Attorney will allow you to conduct business on your sponsor’s behalf.The POA must state you are authorized to conduct DEERS updates/card issuance/enrollments. You may get this document at your local Legal office. Please, for the love of all things holy, have this statement placed in your POA. The run around you get if you have a POA without this statement is ridiculous. Make sure you have this before he/she leaves!

 

DEERS - This is going to sound funny. You do not have benefits of your Marine until you are enrolled into DEERS. You do not pass go, you do not collect $200. You are automatically enrolled in DEERS during your ID card processing. You really will want your 1172 form with you for this process if you get grief over your POA “not being worded correctly” (experienced this) http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/infomgt/forms/eforms/dd1172-2.pdf filled out and notarized before he leaves, ladies! Instructions to fill this out are here: http://www.cac.mil/docs/1172-2-Instructions.pdf. Fill out sections 1, 2 and 4. This little puppy right here is a voucher that will save your butt a million times. It’s called the DD 1172-2 form if that link ever stops working. Google it and a PDF should pop up. Print it out, fill it out and notarize it. Take it to your nearest RAPIDS office and get enrolled in DEERS after he leaves. Sometimes, people will just hate your POA and the 1172 form is what will get you out of hot water.

 

Military ID - To use TRICARE, you must be registered the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) and have a valid uniformed services or military identification (ID) card. The ID card states on the back, in the “Medical” block, whether you are eligible for medical care from military or civilian sources.When getting care, your provider will ask to see a copy of your ID card and will make copies for his or her records.  Please ensure you have your ID card with you whenever you are getting care or having prescriptions filled.

Ladies please realize that he is in the United States Military now. Just because he is not officially a Marine until he graduates, does not mean you both haven’t signed up for the military. Benefits start immediately (though they may not be in the system until 30 days into boot) and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Go to this site: https://rapids-appointments.dmdc.osd.mil/appointment/default.aspx to make an appointment with your closest ID card issuing office. Have your social, marriage license, Power of Attorney, Form DD 1172-2, and Driver’s License ready when you get there. Don’t expect anyone at any of these offices to be in a good mood. It’s the DMV of the military.

Tri-Care- The second you have your military ID in your hot little hands, you are enrolled in Tri Care Standard.

Let me explain the difference between Standard and Prime in simpleton terms. Tri-Care Standard will allow you to see doctors off base and doctors of your choice. It also means that there is around about a $1000 deductible for catastrophic events. For just regular visits there is a 15% payout. Meaning the military is going to pay 85% of your bill and you will pay the other 15%. You have a copay of $15 for each visit, each time you pay $15, your $1000 catastrophic deductible goes down by, you guessed it, $15!

Tri Care Prime is completely different. You HAVE to see a base doctor at the base clinic. So if you’re needing to see your regular family physician off base you have to call the base hospital doctor and have them refer you to that other doctor. There is no way for them to just see you up front. The benefit of Tri Care Prime is that your medical is 100% covered. No out of pocket expenses.

It’s really up to you and your family which package you’d like to enroll into. If you choose Standard now you can always enroll in Prime later. So long as you enroll by the 20th of the month, your coverage for Prime will begin on the first of the following month.

BAH- You are entitled to BAH from the moment his feet touch yellow footprints. Tell you husband to take a voided check with him. If you need the BAH payments for bills he will have to request from his DI to take the voided check with him to the RAB office (Recruit Admin Branch 619-524-8174). They will be able to set him up about 2 weeks after boot start with payments that are sent home to you. I did not get this benefit. It has taken me nearly the entire 3 months of my husband’s boot camp to find this information. Luckily we only have 3 weeks left (as of 3/21/12) and our BAH and FSA is being paid directly to his account at boot camp. Never fear ladies, you ARE being paid!

 

The Unofficial Wife’s Guide to Boot Camp

This is basically a post about a future post. I’m going to stand up on my soapbox for a moment and whine about the serious lack of information for us wives who were married before I men joined the armed services. I have asked 20 different people the same question and received 20 different responses. I do understand the military is geared for the fresh out of high school, 18 year old, who hasn’t even thought about marriage. Surely we are not the first people to go through this. Of course we aren’t! So why the lack of knowledge? This is where I am going to start writing down everything I find out and publish it so that, in the future, some other poor wife can finally find the answers she NEEDS to know now! I think it’s something that should be taught to every recruiter because even though 99% of those guys coming through the door are 18, occassionaly you might have the 25 year old stroll through your door who has lost 140lbs and been married for a while and can finally feel confident stepping through your hatch.  I can’t wait to share my knowledge with you ladies. :) Good luck!

 

 

Can’t Find Rhinos? Make Rhinos!

I decided a long time ago that because my husband loves the rhino exhibit at the zoo (about the only exhibit he likes at the zoo, mind you), I would decorate our sons room in elephants and rhinoceroses (rhinoceri?) Let me tell you, aside from about 3 outfits I’ve found at Carter’s, rhinos just really don’t exist in child decor. So, in steps the crafty side of myself to save the room!

I started out with 2 12X12 canvases from Hobby Lobby, then on my vinyl cutting machine made 2 rhino decals and placed them at about 11.75″ horizontally across the canvases.

Night time photos in the house are, admittedly, not my best. Anyway, then I found colors that would match little Gene’s room. By the way, I have to insert a small unpaid endorsement for Americana brand acrylic paints. I found a blue I liked in Folk Art brand and it came out globby and thick! It was terrible to paint and entire canvas with, while the Americana brand (the grey) was AMAZING. It was smooth with even coverage. Very much a fan of Americana brand now.

 So, yet another art project complete for my little man’s room!

Quick and Easy Chicken Lo Mein

This is the quickest meal I’ve ever cooked and it’s as healthy as you want it to be.

You’ll need

  • Frozen Vegetables of your choice
  • Noodles (I love Dreamfields pasta made for diabetics!)
  • Chicken breast (or pork, or beef)
  • Lo Sodium Soy sauce
  • red pepper flakes
  • pinch of ginger
  • salt and pepper to taste
Begin by steaming your frozen veggies in a steamer pot and cook your noodles in their own pot until al dente.
Cook chicken separately with a tablespoons worth of soy sauce. Add about a quarter teaspoon (more if you like it hot) of red pepper flakes, and a pinch of ginger. Salt and Pepper the chicken to taste. After chicken has finished cooking, add in your steamed veggies and mix well. When your pasta is al dente, strain it and pour it on top of the chicken and vegetable mixture. Now add about a quarter cup of soy sauce and mix thoroughly. You can make the noodles darker and more saturated with soy sauce the longer you let them sit in the pot. Once they reach the desired soy-ness, put the mixture in a big bowl or plate and serve.

 

The Big News

I’m totally behind on updating the blog I know.

So what’s been up with Evan Chandler Photography? Well, we are 8 days from sending dearest husband off to the Marine Corps. I get a little sad, but I’m more anxious to get it over with than anything. Honestly, the not seeing him isn’t what gets me. It’s the not even being able to call. I know that this small sacrifice will be worth it though and I have so much planned over the next 3 months, I hope to barely notice the time without him.

In other news, big, big news….We are 21 weeks pregnant!! 

It’s a Boy!

We are very excited and Trey should be home just in time for baby boy’s birth. We haven’t agreed yet on a name though we have it narrowed down to two.

I’ve finished school for the semester and I will be taking the Spring off. I’m a bit upset with Tarleton at the moment. Having dropped my major for the list of online majors, they told me I had 2 years to finish the program. I was only a year and a half out so it wouldn’t be a problem. Well they then took every class I would need to finish off the online class lists as well. It’s impossible for me to finish my major. So with all the changes, we thought it would be best to take the semester  off and look for a new school and new major.

I think that’s it in our world. Huge stuff!

 

 

 

Review: The Haan FS-20+ Steam Mop

I bought a new mop. I know exactly what you’re thinking, “WHOOPEE!” Trust me, I’m just as excited as you are!

No, but really, I am actually excited about my very first steam mop and after weeks of research I settled on the Haan. Mainly due to the fact that it steams continuously at 212 degrees fahrenheit and sanitizes any surface in one second flat. Wow! So I found a “Warehouse Special” On Amazon for about $73. I kind of wish I had just spent the extra 10 bucks. I was missing a filling cup, the manual, and a very important sensor that goes on the cap of the mop that tells you, “hey I’m ready to mop.”

However, the filling cup wasn’t a big deal, the manual was easily found on the Haan USA website, and as for the cap? I can buy one from Haan USA for about $6. In the meantime, the manual says the sensor should turn within about 3 minutes… I put a timer on and at about the 2:30 mark water began forming under the mop… aka condensation. It was ready.

 

It’s this point on that I have to make a full disclaimer for myself. I mopped last Friday. Today, is Wednesday… I have hardly used my kitchen all week due to the family’s hectic schedule and illness (me having a cold and zero energy). I’m not proud of what I’m going to show you because this is only from an area about 6 feet wide and 12 feet long.

Goodbye Swiffer. Hello Haan. 

Holy Crap.

first of all, SORRY!! This semester had been insane-de-monium! I actually had to drop one of my classes because of it… well, that and the speech teacher graded heavily on spelling, though, she didn’t know how to spell either. Seriously, you cannot judge my spelling when you cannot spell in your critique of my spelling… hypocritical, no? Makes me want to slap my forehead with my palm.

Luckily, things are starting to draw to a close. I’m getting close to my husband shipping off to the Marine Corps, semester is ending, my job is aware of me leaving, and so many other things that are happening that I can’t even share with you yet, yet!

If you know me, then you know this is my very favorite time of year! I love, love, love Thanksgiving! I love fall! I adore trying new recipes over the month of November and sharing with my family and friends as I find stuff I want to serve on that big ‘ol Thursday dinner. MMM…

Who decided Thanksgiving should be on a Thursday anyway? I vote we move it to a Friday. That way I don’t have to work the next day. :)

More later! I PROMISE!