In memory of Private Troy Nealey

3 years ago today my friend Annette's son Private Troy Nealey was killed by enemy fire in Iraq. I received an email from her the next morning telling me she would not be able to attend my wedding (which was 5 days later) because Troy had been killed. I read the email at 6:00 AM and I will never forget that moment, sitting there in the dark with only the light of my computer, tears streaming down my face. I called my mom crying and couldn't imagine my friend's pain.

Troy had only been in Iraq for a month and he was 24 years old. He left behind his parents, 2 brothers and countless friends. He was very much into 4H growing up and in his memory, an award has been created to benefit kids who show their livestock. His mom presents the award to the winner each year. I know Troy is smiling down from heaven.

A week after my wedding I attended Troy's funeral. I had never been to a serviceman's funeral. It was the largest funeral I have ever been to, and it was so moving to see all of the veterans from previous generations lined up to greet all of the mourners. Troy's funeral was a beautiful tribute to a young man who served our country and whose light was extinguished far too soon.

Here is a video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcoaIYG6Uhk

Here is a memorial in Troy's home town of Eaton Rapids, MI

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dmalewski/3558376394/in/set-72157602100186330/

Offer came and was accepted!

Woohoo, my baby has a new job!! He starts mid November. Yippeee!!!

Still waiting

The offer hasn't come yet. The HR department is a little bit behind, at least that is what they keep telling Tarzan. We are waiting patiently, but if it doesn't come by Thursday I'll have to put him on my 2010 benefits. I have to choose my benefits at work by Friday, but hopefully I'll be able to take him off if he gets a job.

We went test driving cars on Saturday. I like the new Buick Lacrosse so much - it's beautiful and drives so nice, however I decided that I want an SUV. I like the Chevy Traverse so now Tarzan is shopping dealers for the best price. Unfortunately I won't be getting leather/heated seats. That is my favorite option, but that version of the Traverse is like $46,000 sticker price - which we will not be spending. I suppose I'll live with cloth. I'm trying to convince him to let me get aftermarket heated seats even on the cloth - the dealer said it is possible. Maybe we'll get a dealer to throw it in.

That's all for today. I'm off to yoga now.

Chicagoland here we come!!!

Yeah Tarzan! He is getting an offer from the company in Chicago. They called him yesterday afternoon and are fedexing the offer today (not sure if it is arriving today or tomorrow). Hopefully the offer is in the ballpark, and if so - CHICAGOLAND HERE WE COME!! Yes Io we are hoping it has mandated IVF coverage, but the company is not headquartered in IL, so I'm not sure how that works. We'll look at the benefits this weekend! Yippeee 9 months of being laid off for my Tarzan is coming to an end!!

Like I said initially he will be staying in a studio hotel to make sure he likes it and we may only see each other once or twice a month. If he likes the job (which I think he will), then we'll rent a condo since we don't want to sell our house in Michigan (we love our house here). Claudio, Guido and Pachi (the cats) and I will head to Chicagoland. Tarzan and I were joking last night that we'll live like we did in college - haha.

So much to do before he starts. I need a new car ASAP so hopefully we can go test driving on Saturday morning! I'm thinking the Chevy Traverse may be the better choice if we are going to be transporting "stuff" back and forth between Detroit and Chicago. TTFN.

Our weekend in Chicago

We left for Chicago at 6:00 AM on Friday so we could get there in plenty of time for Tarzan's interview at 1 PM Chicago time. It is one long drive however - 6 hours! Elgin is northwest of Chicago - practically to farmland country, so it is a long drive from our house in Michigan. Anyway we made it in time to drive around and check out the area and have some lunch. I then dropped him off at the interview and did some more driving around. I had 4 hours to kill so I wanted to check out some potential places to live and see if we liked the area. It is very rural in some areas, but there were some very nice subs and it's not far from stores and stuff. I then went to the mall and did some shopping, got my eyebrows and upper lip threaded, walked laps around the mall like an older person, and finally settled in Barnes and Nobles. I bought the book The Four Agreements which was my yoga studio's book club book last month. I bought a pumpkin spice coffee, sat down in a comfy chair and read! It was nice.

At 5:30 PM I picked up Tarzan from his interview and he had a big smile on his face. He said it went very well. He was one of 4 final candidates out of 400 applicants. I'm so proud of my baby! He is supposed to hear this week about an offer, so we shall see. We aren't going to get too excited until he gets an offer. If he does get a job there he will stay in one of those extended stay studio hotels for a month or two to make sure he really likes the job. We don't really want to sell our house in Michigan, so if he likes the job we will most likely just rent a condo or small house. Then the cats and I will move to Illinois. I work at home for my job so all I have to do is plug in my computer and Vonage phone and I'm good to go. I will be looking for suggestions on where to live from people in blogland!

We were very tired after the long drive on Friday so we just ate in the hotel restaurant and were asleep by 9pm. However we woke up at 4:30 AM on Saturday wide awake! Oh I hate when that happens. We were smart and did not head to downtown Chicago at that hour - haha. I eventually fell back asleep at around 6:30 and slept until 8. We finally got downtown and spent the day walking around, enjoying the city. I must be getting to be an old lady however because after a couple hours of walking my hip started to hurt - left hip flexor muscle - man old age sucks! Then we went to an Italian Festival - all in all it was a great day, but exhausting once again. A great weekend.

Today Tarzan is in the car on his way to an interview in Boyne City, MI. It's 4 hours north of here so once again very far away, but my dad has a cottage nearby so he may stay the night and visit with my dad.

On another subject we have started car shopping, although it Sunday afternoon when the dealerships were closed. My short list is: Buick Lacrosse (love it!), Buick Lucerne (sort of old ladyish) Chevy Malibu, Chevy Equinox, or Chevy Traverse. If I decide to buy a car over an SUV I really, really like the new Lacrosse although it's more expensive than the Malibu. I could get a loaded Malibu for way less than the Lacrosse, but the Lacrosse is sooooo pretty. I do like driving an SUV too, so until I do test drives on them all I don't think I'll be able to decide. My only requirement in any car is heated seats. I love heated seats and must have them!

Help Rascal Find a New Home

I'm trying to find my sister's cat Rascal a new home before she takes her to the pound. My sister can no longer take care of her after a difficult divorce and she is moving out of her current home in about a month. Rascal is a 7 year old white and black long haired cat with the sweetest personality, but she has had a challenging couple of years with the family situation. My teenage nieces and nephew are often gone to their dad’s house and that leaves Rascal all alone. She is very affectionate and friendly; loves to be held, cuddled and petted. She loves to sleep with her owner and just loves attention. She is great with kids, dogs, and other cats. She is also very vocal and loves to talk to anyone and anything throughout the day. She is declawed on all 4 paws; however she still likes to go outside once in awhile. She never ventures far; just hangs out on the backyard patio or plays in the flower beds. Rascal does have an on again/off again litter box issue. Every once in a while she will urinate in the laundry basket or in a pile of clothes, however it is not every day or even every week; just once in awhile. I believe Rascal will return to her meticulous litter box habits once she is in a stable, loving environment and has the tender loving care she needs after this stressful time in her life. She has no medical issues and is very healthy. Rascal deserves a home that will love her and care for her furrever. Please contact me at soapchick@comcast.net for more information. I'll be gone this weekend, but will be back Sunday night.

Her hair looks a bit shorter in this picture because she had a lion cut shave this summer, and it is still growing out. I love this cat and would take her if I could, but my 3 cats have claws and one of them is very territorial and would not accept her. Please help me find a home for her. I'll drive up to 5 hours from Michigan to deliver her to her new home.

Elgin, Illinois - any bloggers near there?

I will be in Elgin, Illinois tomorrow while my husband has an interview. I need to find something to do between 1 PM- 5 PM. Any ideas? I thought about going to a yoga class - but none of the studios have mid afternoon classes. I thought about going to a spa for a massage or pedicure. Are there any bloggers there who would like to meet me for coffee? I will be too afraid to drive into downtown Chicago so I need to stay close to Elgin. Let me know! The company is paying for a hotel room so hubby and I are staying the night and then will go to downtown Chicago on Saturday. I'm looking forward to a day off of work and a fun weekend.

Prayers for my cousin and her husband

My sister called me tonight with the terrible news that my cousin's husband lost several fingers today in an accident on their farm. They are farmers in a town near Lansing, MI and have 3 young children. We just saw them at my grandmother's 100th birthday party last month. I am praying for his pain and recovery, but also for their future. They own hundreds of acres and not only have crops, but also have a farm full of animals - cows, pigs, horses, etc. I pray that God helps them handle this devastating situation. For those of you who pray, please keep them in your thoughts.

Hmmm what to blog about?

I really don't have much to say lately, so here are some bullets.

• Hubby and I are babysitting our niece and nephew tonight (age 3 and 1 1/2). Kids are a lot of work! I was exhausted by the time they went to bed. I think I really will be okay if we never become parents. I'm used to the life I have now I guess.
• I'm excited that my nephew Reed who is 15 is applying to be an exchange student next year for an entire year. He wants to go to a Spanish speaking country so we shall see. Wherever he goes I'll be visiting him. If he does get into the program and spends his junior year of high school abroad, I'll be so dang excited for all that he will get to experience. It will open his eyes to the world and he'll come home fluent in another language! If it is Spanish then he and I can have secret conversations in front of our other family members!
• We are car shopping. Tarzan has been looking for me and in the next week or two I'll go with him to do some test drives. I need a new car. Our 2001 Cadillac, while totally awesome to drive and so very comfortable, is stalling now and then and I don't feel safe driving it.
• I'm studying for my PMP certification (Project Management Professional), it's a total pain to study but I hope to take and pass the test by February. I should have taken it 6-7 years ago when my company would pay for it, but I was lazy. Now I have to pay for it on my own, but my company is pretty much making me do it. However it will be good to have in case I get laid off again someday.
• Tarzan has had a ton of job interviews lately! Woohoo! After 8 months laid off, his activity is really picking up. He's averaged 1 interview per week the entire 8 months, but this week he had 5 interviews. One of which was a second interview and he is already scheduled for the final interview on Tuesday - that one looks really promising. It's only 2 hours from our house so he could rent an apartment or cottage for awhile and come home on the weekends. He has some more interviews next week in Chicago and Northern Indiana - a bit farther away, but we don't care......just give him an offer!
• I've continued going to yoga 4-5 days per week and am doing the level 2 classes now, but I have yet to lose any weight. It's making me mad. I may have to go on Weight Watchers or something to lose the 8 pounds. I suppose I have to give up the ice cream since my metabolism is crap now that I am in my 40s.

Yeah it's Saturday - Chicken Chili

The weather is crappy today in Michigan; cold and rainy, but hey I'm not working, so it's a great day! Tarzan and my 15 year old nephew Reed are at the U of M versus MSU football game. They route for MSU, but I'm a graduate of UM so our family is split. haha. Anyway it's not looking too promising for my team at the moment.

I did some shopping this morning and I just finished putting the ingredients to White Chicken Chili in the crockpot. It should be done by the time they get home. Reed is staying the night tonight. I love having company over! I'm going to make some pumpkin muffins shortly - we can have those for breakfast tomorrow. Yummy!

White Chicken Chili - Crockpot Version
1 onion chopped
1 celery chopped
2 carrots chopped
2 cloves of garlic minced
28 ounces of chicken broth
3 or 4 15 oz. cans of white cannellini beans or white northern beans
1 4 oz. can of chopped green chiles
2 pounds ground chicken or ground turkey (can use chicken breasts or thighs too)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper (optional)
3-4 squirts of tabasco or chili sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown chicken or turkey. Put all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for 4-6 hours. Great on a cold, rainy day!

Pumpkin Latte and Instant Coffee

Disclaimer: for the most part I've given up coffee. I haven't had any in weeks. I stopped buying cream because I'm trying to give up dairy. Well without cream I don't like coffee, hence I haven't made a cup of coffee in probably 2 months. I've been drinking tea - green tea, herbal tea, raspberry tea, whatever tea and not even every day. However I've been dying for a cup of real coffee this week; sucky weather in Michigan, very long week at work, another surprise birth announcement from a friend who I didn't know was pregnant, and those attractive Starbucks advertisements showing the Pumpkin Spice Latte. Therefore, I just ran to the Kroger by my house that has a Starbucks and I got me one!!! Hmmm yummy. While I was there I did the taste testing to compare their regular coffee with their new instant coffee. I got it wrong!! I picked their regular brew for being instant. I actually liked the taste of the instant one better! How funny. Anyway....I got a coupon for a free cup! Woohoo!