The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Man, things have been hectic since I last posted! At the time of my last entry, my time as a Dallas resident was coming to a close (cue angels singing). There were lunches and dinners and happy hours with friends I wanted to see before I headed off. There was final packing, and getting my apartment ready to leave.

On June 23, I had my last day of work. On June 24, I headed to Louisiana to help K pack up his apartment. On June 26, we headed to Dallas for the night. The next morning, we left my apartment for the last time, turned in the keys, and headed to Oklahoma. On the 27th, we had my family reunion in northeastern Oklahoma. On the 28th, we left to head to Virginia. We drove for two days, and we arrived at our destination just before midnight on June 30.

But life didn't exactly slow down once we made it to VA:

• July 1 & 2: House hunting
• July 3 - 5: D.C. for the Fourth of July with friends
• July 6 - 8: Moving what we had with us into our new home; shopping for furniture & necessities
• July 9 - 12: Back to Dallas for ER's wedding
• July 13 - 16: Our furniture & household goods arrive at our house; unpacking process begins
• July 16: Hosting our first houseguest!
• July 17 - present: Visiting K's family & friends in PA

In these weeks, there have been some realizations and frustrations. Because I want to end on a good note, I'll list them in reverse order:

The Ugly

Life has been ridiculously hectic since ... oh ... January, pretty much. Last year, I was in kick-ass shape, constantly training for my next athletic event. This year has been so hectic, what with K coming home from Iraq, the Dallas wedding, the move ...

I posted several weeks ago about how my self-image has a lot to do with how often I've been working out, so it's not good right now. My arms, which I used to be proud of and get a lot of compliments on, are not at all what they used to be. I've lost a lot of strength in a lot of places, and it's frustrating. I'm ready to tone up again.

K and I joined a gym near our house, but we're out of town for the next two weeks. I brought my running shoes with me. I WILL use them.

The Bad

I lived by myself for 4 years before K & I headed to Virginia. That's a long time -- especially for a stubborn OCD girl. I knew it would be a challenge adjusting to living with someone again. I knew it would be even more of a challenge adjusting to living with a boy for the first time.

There have been times I've felt like I'm being a huge bitch, like I'm just picking at him all the time, and there have been many times I've worried that I'm going to become my mother. It hasn't helped that things have been really hectic, and it definitely didn't help that my period was last week. All things considered, though, it's been OK, and I think it's getting better.

What I don't understand, though, is how on earth a person can have so much gas! I have a digestive system, so yes, I get gas from time to time. It's part of life. But the sheer amount of gas that K (and, as a result, I) deal with is ridiculous -- and stinky. Seriously, one night I couldn't sleep for the longest time because K kept farting. He was lucky; he slept through it.

Oh! And when he eats food that has some sort of seasoning (salt, garlic, etc) on it, he will rub his fingers together over his food as he chews so that the seasoning that sticks to his fingers winds up on the food still on his plate rather than being "wasted" by wiping it on his napkin. Eeeeew!!! I finally had to say something when he was doing this over a basket of chips we were sharing.

Also, we have quite a few little things we have always done in our relationship. They were fine and cute when we saw each other two days a week, but too much of a good thing really isn't a good thing. Like when he winks at me and expects me to immediately wink back at him every time. Or when he holds his pointer finger right in front of my face and expects me to kiss it so he can triumphantly punch his fist in the air. They're the little things that make us "us," so I haven't said anything. Plus, I don't want to say something and hurt his feelings.

SPEAKING of hurting his feelings!!! He gets so sensitive sometimes! If I say anything that expresses something other than complete satisfaction, he gets all bent out of shape and says he just wants to make me happy all the time. That's sweet and all, but it's not possible! I don't make MYSELF happy all the time!

He seems really hesitant to tell me anything that could hurt my feelings. The other day, we were talking about what pharmacy I should go to for my birth control pills. I mentioned getting them on post, and it took a good two minutes for him to finally spit out that I should just go somewhere closer to home. Seriously, dude, just tell me that! It's not going to hurt my feelings!

I've asked K once or twice if he's having any issues with adjusting, if I'm driving him crazy from time to time. He just shook his head and looked at me with the same googly eyes he's always given me. I'm pretty sure I married a saint (twice). I just hope he's looking at me like that 50 years from now.

The Good

All silly Mars/Venus things aside, it's awesome finally living together. We found a great house (pictures to come!) in an area that we love. We have a nice back yard that Piper is loving playing in. There's so much to do nearby, and friends are already planning their visits to see us. We really feel like we hit the jackpot. So many times, we've said to each other, "I feel like I'm on vacation! I can't believe we LIVE here!"

It's been awesome getting to choose bedroom furniture and talk about our plans for the house. We've officially broken our previous record of consecutive days spent together (record was 20, which was reached during his R&R last September). It's been nice not having a constant inner clock counting down the time we have left until one of us has to leave.

After almost two years of marriage, we're finally feeling like a real married couple.