Reasons for Milspouse Pride (Pt 1: Army Wife Network)

January 2, 2017 by

I have a confession to make. (You didn’t know this post was going to get so juicy so fast, huh? You are welcome.)

Sometimes, in the day-to-day shenanigans that IS army wife life, I forget about the pride the comes with this calling.

And I don’t mean pride like, “Look at me, I am so awesome” pride… More like, “Wow. My spouse is the bomb dot com. This life can be hard but I sure am PROUD of what he is doing for our country/world/family.”

Maybe, hypothetically, kinda-sorta you find yourself sometimes forgetting the pride-part of this milspouse ride. [Read more…]

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10,000 Reasons to be Grateful

December 28, 2016 by

If you have been with me here at 7 Days Time since we started more than five years ago, you will know that I have been working on a “little” project.

It was inspired by Ann Voskamp’s book, “One Thousand Gifts.” The premise was beautiful, yet simple: To train our hearts and minds to look for God’s small gifts in everything we do, everywhere we go.

So, in November 2011, I started my “Gift List.” The more small, everyday gifts I captured, the easier I was able to find the gifts in my life. It was like seeing Jesus in every nook and cranny of my daily life.  [Read more…]

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Recap: OneWord 2016 (TRUTH)

December 26, 2016 by

2016 has been… well… interesting.

That is really the best word I can come up with to describe it, at least for our family. It hasn’t been bad, it hasn’t been great, it’s just been… Interesting. Or maybe intense. You know. Like camping. (Get it? In-tents? Pretty sure I’ve used that pun/joke on here before.)

There’s been some hard moments, some joyous moments, and A LOT of moments that involved initial confusion then subsequent personal growth.

So yeah. 2016 has been interesting.  [Read more…]

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Life “Tip” (Factor of 7)

December 19, 2016 by

It’s been awhile since we have posted a fresh Factor of 7 here at 7 Days Time. We’ve done a few small ones over the last several months, but we wanted to share one of most recent random acts of kindness with you. Because it was fun. And hey, who doesn’t need a little extra holiday cheer and generosity?

A couple of weeks ago, the hubs, kiddo and I went on an impromptu evening out. It was a random Thursday, and honestly, we hadn’t done much “fun” stuff for a while. Mainly because I am getting more pregnant by the day (obviously) and husband recently broke his leg.  So yeah, we’ve been pretty chill. But finally ventured out of the house.

After a riveting experience browsing at Goodwill and Wal-Mart (I know, we are quite the party animals!) we went out for supper at one of our new favorite restaurants in the area… Mama wanted some preggo-safe sushi, so we splurged. [Read more…]

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10 Commandments of Pregnancy: For the Pregnant Mamas

December 14, 2016 by

The last few weeks we’ve been talking (joking?) about all things pregnancy, of course with a faith-based twist.

We mentioned 10 Commandments of Pregnancy for the General Public, and then for the Husbands. But as a second time mama, I was feeling a bit left out. So I want to revisit a one more preggo set of commandments… For the Pregnant Mamas.
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My Christmas Meaning- A Poem (Army Wife Network)

December 12, 2016 by

I am no Emily Dickinson. Definitely not even close to Robert Frost. And even though I might add a “-th” to random words and say “thou” or “thee” on occasion (just because I can) I will never be a great playwright/poet like William Shakespeare.

But sometimes, I get to feeling a bit salty and try to bust out my mad rhyming skills. Because it makes me feel cool and I think of how to rhyme words like “fo-shizzle” in my head. (Note: I will not be a rapper anytime soon either. So don’t panic. Please put down the phone if you were planning on calling your Congressman.)

Today, I would like to share what Christmas means to me by way of a poem. This won’t be winning any poetry awards anytime soon, but if I have fun writing it (and you get just a tiny bit of enjoyment out of reading it) then I vote yes. Here goes…

my-christmas-meaning

You probably know that I am a proud Army Wife,
It’s no real secret to anyone around,
I, out of necessity, often do things differently,
Living life with “boots on the ground.”

Being married to a soldier,
Changes my perspective on much,
Especially when it comes to holidays,
How we celebrate special occasions and such.

Every year right after Turkey Day,
Seems the fall air and attitude shifts,
So many in our world change from thankfulness,
To the chaos of who gets what gifts.

But to me, Christmas is greater,
Much bigger than shopping and decor,
More profound than feasting and vacation,
Oh yes, to me Christmas is much more.

Don’t worry… The poem doesn’t stop here. Jump over to Army Wife Network to discover what Christmas REALLY means to me.

Dear readers… What does Christmas mean to you? I would love to hear your heart on this subject. Feel free to join the conversation and leave a comment below.

From my family to yours, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Happy Birthday Jesus,

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“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” ~Isaiah 9:6

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10 Commandments of Pregnancy: For The Husband

December 7, 2016 by

Pregnancy is… weird.

Sure it’s beautiful, cool, entertaining and overall MIND BLOWING, but really, this whole growing a baby thing is just sometimes weird.

Last week we talked bout the 10 Commandments of Pregnancy: For the General Public. And now, we move onto another very important demographic in the preggo process… The dear husbands.

If you have had a baby, are currently pregnant, know someone who is pregnant or especially if you are a husband of a pregnant gal, this post is for you. Feel free to share, and please comment below with your OWN “commandments” for being pregnant <or dealing gracefully with a pregnant woman. Creativity encouraged.> [Read more…]

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Humorous Holiday Hacks: Round 3 (Army Wife Network)

December 5, 2016 by

It’s the most wonderful time of the year… Not just because Christmas makes us feel all warm, fuzzy, snuggly and gives us the perfect excuse to eat #AllTheThings. But because I have a new reason to create yet another “batch” of humorous holiday hacks…

These Humorous Holiday Hacks are tips and tricks that, while entertaining, may or may not make your holiday season easier. (But hey, if it puts a smile on our face, that’s something right?)

Before we dig in to this fresh round of all things humorous, holiday-ish and hack-like, feel free to hop over and check out our previous hack batches by clicking here and here. 

Now, let’s get down to business. And by business, I mean let’s get ready to laugh about all things holiday.

humorous-holiday-hacks-3

1. Every holiday season, I just get so dang overwhelmed. I tell myself every year that I am going to keep from getting stressed but it never seems to work. I feel like I am running in a million different directions with my hair on fire yelling ‘What do I do with my hands?!?!’ Talk about a joy sucker. How can I keep the Christmas spirit without losing my mind? 

Hack: Ah, dear reader… Solidarity! Most of us, at some point, have probably been there, done that, spilled spiked egg nog on the T-shirt. But now, I would like to introduce you to one of my favorite terms, actually adopted from this army-wife life. Are you ready? Say it with me: VOLUNTOLD. This delightful word is the key to all things sanity, especially around the holiday season. It’s that odd hybrid of getting someone to volunteer, but in reality its more of a command than a request. (See the connection with the army now?) We personally have to muster up the courage to say, “No thanks” when someone tries to back us in to a corner and voluntell us to do something. (If you struggle with telling others no, you can always pretend not to speak English OR wear earbuds wherever you go so as to pretend you can’t hear anything around you.) Also, be bold and start voluntelling other people in your circle to get to crack-a-lacking and help you out.

I’ve got three more humorous hacks to share with you this year (AND an Amazon giveaway going on– you don’t need any military affiliation to enter/win) over at Army Wife Network. Pop over, check it out and enter to win some extra spending money for this Holiday season.

Which humorous hack was your favorite? Do you have a humorous (or real) holiday hack you would like to share? Feel free to comment below!

And have a very Merry, non-stressful and humorous holiday season!

Laughing through the Holidays,

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“He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy.” ~Job 8:21

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10 Commandments of Pregnancy: For the General Public

November 30, 2016 by

So I’ve been blogging for a hot minute. See also: Over five years.

And in that time, we’ve experienced a lot of life changes, especially in the family realm of things… A miscarriage, the birth of our daughter Charis and now, the 3rd-trimester-point-of-in-process-cooking of another Tiny Human.

One of my favorite mini-series of all time here on the blog are the “10 Commandments of Pregnancy.” They are funny, because they are true.

So today, I want to re-share the first installment of the mini-series: 10 Commandments for the general public, aka friends, extended family and strangers.

Because if I am going to put on weight and wonder how/what my body is doing, I might as well try to laugh in the meantime. (And I invite you to do the same.)

Oh. And if you are a friend/family member or just a random stranger who interacts with a preggo at any point in your life– please heed these guidelines. Trust me. You will thank me later.

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The Broken Leg

November 28, 2016 by

As of this writing, my husband has been a soldier in the United States Army Infantry for just shy of 13 years.

Of those 13 years, he has endured three combat deployments totaling 45 months, as well as numerous other intense and potentially dangerous missions/assignments.

We count ourselves incredibly blessed that the Lord has protected him from injury all that time. Because we have many, many friends and battle buddies that cannot say the same.

Well, about a week and a half ago, that injury-free dynamic changed a bit in our family.

Long story short: My husband recently fractured his fibula (the small bone in his leg) when he landed after executing a required jump into Florida with his current job as a Ranger Instructor.

Let’s just say that this turn of events was NOT part of our no-plan-plan. (But are things like this ever on our radar?)  [Read more…]

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