Overdue updates, good news, bad news, and sad news

I know I promised more updates, but a lot has been going on and it's just been too hectic to sit down and upload pictures and make a blog entry... until now.

And that brings me to my first update and sad news.....Javier is gone. He is deployed to Afghanistan for 7 months. It's only been 4 days and it feels like a month already.

Although this is officially our 4th deployment as a married couple, it is different in so many ways. This is the first time we are separated as parents. It's a struggle and challenge for me not to have my other half here to help in the parenting duties and to be my best friend, but it is a heartbreaking experience for Javier to be away from his precious boys. This is also our first deployment during which I won't get to see him at the midway point. Basically, this will be the longest we have been separated. And finally, this is the first time during our marriage, that Javier will be deployed to a combat zone. It means a lot of stress and risk and unfavorable living conditions for Javier. For me, it means a lot of worrying and waiting for the next time I can talk or skype with him. There is more that I want to share about how we're coping with this deployment so far, but I will save that for a future entry... maybe next weekend.

The next update involves both our bad news and good news. A few weeks ago, Javier submitted a package to be considered for a Marine Officer Instructor (MOI) position for our next move. When applying for this billet, all the universities needing MOIs are considered and Javier submitted his order of preference. Of course, Texas A&M was first on his list and a few other nearby schools. The good news is that Javier was selected for MOI. The bad news is that he did not get assigned to Texas A&M or any of the nearby schools. But every cloud has a silver lining, and if we can't be in or close to Texas, the assignment he did get was a pretty good alternative.

We are moving to NEW YORK CITY! It was a big surprise. And yes we know, it's cold and there's a lot of crime and it's far away from family and it's expensive..... but it's New York city. There is no other circumstance that would allow us to move to New York for a few years and then resume our regular lives. So we are moving to New York with open minds and hearts and looking forward to all that the city has to offer. I personally am very excited because a good pal of mine from high school already lives there. I'm so happy to be able to reconnect with an old friend in real life rather than just virtually through emails and phone calls. And we are hoping that all our family and friends will come visit us once we've settled in. We love having visitors and it's a great chance for anyone who wants to see the city and have somewhere to stay for free.

Well, it's getting late. I'm going to close this post and leave you with a nice collection of photos from the past month.

~Latrice