God Bless the USA!

Ok, I'm a terrible blogger and I know it. It's been way too long and I know it! This is also the second time I'm writing this particular blog because I just accidentally deleted it, so this will be shorter and sweeter than before!

Almost 2 weeks ago I returned from a wonderful trip back to the US of A...truly, the most wonderful place in the world! I spent 3 weeks there and even though I missed my husband and pups (actually, I only missed Brian & Susie), I loved every second! It began when my inlaws graciously picked me up from the airport, let me stay with them and then drove me to Breezewood to meet my mom! Thank you mom & dad r!!

It was wonderful to pull into 188 Riemer Rd. If you know me at all, you know I'm addicted to my family and have a really hard time being away from them. It was just so comforting to be back in familiar territory again! I saw lots of family in those 3 weeks, including my nephew and 2 nieces and it was just amazing to be in their presence again and witness their hilarity firsthand. I also attended my cousin Gina's absolutely beautiful wedding in Michigan and loved spending time with her and her mother/my godmother Nini all weekend! I also learned how to make ravioli with my famous grandma, which was an incredibly special day for me!

It wouldn't be a trip to Pittsburgh without seeing some of favorites (minus a few)! I was again reminded of how lucky I am to have the b-2 crew to call my friends! I absolutely LOVE those girls!

I also spent time with my DC friends on my way out and loved catching up with them, especially since they were people that I used to see on a regular basis!! Especially enjoyed getting my Wii Mario Kart on while wearing a snuggie... (Bonnie- you really should practice more!;))

Even though I loved being home, I obviously missed Brian terribly and it was wonderful to be reunited with him and I arrived back home to a houseful of fresh flowers !...(and food that I had made him 3 weeks prior, still in the fridge...hmm)...

Things have been pretty good since I've been back - weather has improved a bit and I'm back to enjoying my life of leisure -- lunches and coffee with girlfriends here! This past weekend, Brian and I left the pups at home and went down to the Dead Sea Movenpick hotel for the day. We got a day pass which was totally exorbitant, but it was still fun to get away for a few hours and enjoy the sun. We had a leisurely lunch, sat by the pool all afternoon and swam in the hydro-pool (code for lots of water jets) and enjoyed the indoor dead sea pool too. Pics from Movenpick:












Not much else new to report, but you can be sure that when there is, I'll post it 2 months late! A huge thanks to everyone who took the time and effort to see me when I was home! I really do love you all!

Groundhog Day???

I am convinced that I'm starring in my own version of Groundhog Day lately. Each day I wake up (now a bit earlier than before because Petra whines and cries and is ready to start her fun filled day early, meanwhile Susie is content to sleep in with me)....and I let the dogs out and start the painful process of breakfast. I then figure out what I'm going to cook that day, which is a challenge when your husband is a carnivore only. We *try* to eat a lot of paleo (http://everydaypaleo.com/) or primal (http://www.marksdailyapple.com/primal-blueprint-101/) but let's face it...I'm Italian and sometimes I just need a heaping plate of pasta and Brian is still a 7 yr old and just needs some chicken fingers, so it's a constant challenge to try to stick somewhat to a diet that goes along with our daily workouts. Which is next on my daily to-do.....working out. I've jumped on the Crossfit bandwagon with Brian finally...I have done it off and on for about a year but only since coming out here have I embraced it more regularly and taken it a bit more seriously. I've gained 2 lbs (DAMN IT!) but i'm hoping it's muscle. Brian is a certified crossfit trainer so he "trains" me, and when I am not busy swearing angrily at him for making me do something difficult or really heavy, I'm definitely getting better. This is the most consistently I've worked out but mostly that is because I basically have nothing else better to do. I also sneak into my friend's gym about once a week and get my yoga in, but I am missing doing that more frequently. I recently joked with a friend out here that I didn't even work out this much before my wedding!!

After working out, I come home and start dinner, Brian comes home, we eat, take the pups on a walk, etc etc and then each retire to our computers! Annnnd that's about it....I go to bed and start that all over again. I do have some things that break up my week, ie my social group or coffee with a friend but generally that's how I spend my days here in Amman! Dogs, grocery shopping, crossfit, cooking. Oh, and illegal dvds that we get for about $5 each.

Thank God I am returning to civilization soon!

pic below of petra and i hiking outside amman...

Corn, Petra and other musings...

Hello friends and family. My apologies for the lapse in blogging. To recap, Brian and I had a wonderful little Christmas together, and it was special to spend our first Christmas together just he & I. I cooked an almost identical meal to what my family was having so I felt close to home that way! We had so many gifts under our tree to open -- love our families and thank you for being so, so generous to us!

Things are pretty good here. I've started a "social club" so-to-speak. There are a few spouses of guys in Brian's office that are here and not working like me, so each week we get together and do something fun together. It gets us out of the house and engaged with other women in our same boat. It's funny - we all seem to have the same exact trials and tribulations! So far we've gone out to lunch, coffee, etc, but as the weather improves we will be spending time out and about in Amman, the Dead Sea, etc...

So...corn. Jordanians have a weird obsession with corn, and I just feel like I need to mention this phenomenon. I've never seen so much corn in my LIFE. At the grocery store, they have 5x as much canned corn on the shelves as they do all the other canned veggies combined. They also sell hot corn in the grocery store. And on the side of the roads. And at the mall. And right outside the video store. And...well, you get my drift. I'm tempted to get this corn and see if it really warrants this much attention.

Speaking of the grocery store, here are 2 pictures that I snapped at our local Safeway. The first is "Mutmeg".....AKA Nutmeg to you and I. This is Janglish, folks, when Jordanians are speaking or writing in English and it's just a little bit wrong. God love them for trying, but it does provide me with entertainment. The other is a type of soup that I will never, ever eat. The ingredient list on the back was NOT helpful in determining what kind of soup it really is but I'm assuming it's some type of chicken and leek...but it still makes me laugh !






In other news, we are 1 week in with a new dog. We've added to our family with a doberman puppy named Petra. For those who may not know, Petra is the most visited tourist site in Jordan and is considered a Jordanian national treasure.

It's been an interesting and stressful few days for us, her and Susie. They have a tenuous friendship right now but seems to be improving daily. We are also working on the housebreaking part which is quite possibly one of the grossest things I've ever dealt with! Attached is a picture of her with Susie and Brian. She is already Susie's size at 6 months, and we think she'll probably double in size once full grown. At least Brian will never have to worry about me going on any walks when I've got her with me!! Jordanians hate dogs and are scared to death of them...even when they are calmly walking by our side on a leash, we encounter pretty ridiculous reactions from neighbors. Oh well, to each their own, and once upon a time I was one of those haters!




Believe that's all for now -- I will be home in March for a beloved cousin's wedding and I couldn't be more excited to head back to wonderful USA for a few weeks! Chipotle will be my first stop...if you know me at all, you know this is pretty obvious.

Happy New Year!

Random thoughts as 2010 winds down

This has been a crazy year. I finished my tour in Iraq, was reunited with my fiancee, married her a month later, and then we moved overseas two months after that. Somehow, we still managed to squeeze in a good bit of travel in the midst of all this craziness. Here is a snapshot of where we've (either T or B, or both) been this year (because i know you're reallllly interested):

Iraq

Jordan

Austria

Germany (does a brutal 9 hour layover count as a visit?)

Turks and Caicos

Montana

Chicago

NoVa

Pittsburgh

Nellysford (Grandpa's cabin!)

Charlottesville

New Jersey

MD

Next year we hope to add a few more destinations to this list ... Oman, London, Paris, Prague, Dubai, somewhere tropical for our first anniversary ... I hope I can get the time off work ....

A visit to the first world

Thera and I visited Vienna, Austria in mid-December. Even though it was a quick trip T and I were really glad that we were able to visit a good friend before he leaves Vienna this summer, and also to see the city during the Christmas season. The Christmas markets were in full swing and we hit a lot of them and had a great time despite the cold and some rain! Typical Viennese weather, apparently.

The Rathaus (City hall) Christmas Market

Amman is a good place to live with great people, plenty to see and do, and some wonderful scenery. That said, it was nice to take a quick break and experience the orderliness, the cleanliness, and the beautiful architecture and history of Vienna. Oh, and the gluwein (mulled wine) wasn't too bad either!

The Stephansdom (St Stephen Cathedral) and Christmas Tree

We love the classic Kathe Wolfhart-style Germanic handmade wooden ornaments and managed to find a few places at the markets that carried them. They were in much shorter supply than I had expected! We found several ornaments, one of the pyramid spinner things, some smokers, and a nutracker or two. These ornaments remind me of home and are what I grew up with, I am so glad T and I got to experience Austria and start our own collection!

We had some great meals, hilarious conversation, and really enjoyed ourselves with the niceties of Europe! We're back in Amman now with the Christmas season in full swing with lots of Christmas parties and even a few Santa sightings. There are more Christmas decorations out here than I would have imagine and the weather is getting cold....we even got snow here last weekend...of course we missed it because we were in Vienna...typical! Regardless, even though T and I are away from our loved ones this year and missing everyone a lot, we will still make the most of our first Christmas together!

Christmas and HHE - wooohooo!

We were so excited to finally get our HHE (Household effects) and to decorate for Christmas! It was kind of like Christmas morning unwrapping all of our things that we haven't seen in months, and the only snafu was that Brian's rugs never made it. Hopefully they are back in the States, safe in storage.

the aftermath of unpacking 98 boxes ...

Our place really feels like home, now that we have more of our belongings and put pictures on the walls. Amazing how much that changes things!! We still have a few more things to do before it's complete though, which mostly includes changing the fluorescent light fixtures....No thanks to those ugly things!!

It was also wonderful to get my kitchen things, like my blender, mixer, more pans, etc. Many of our things were wedding gifts that we are just now using because we never unwrapped them before the wedding! Now we just have some empty wedding frames to fill! We still don't have all of our pics from our photographer...don't even get me started!

Take a tour of our house!

Susie is also adjusting well...now that she has her doggie bed and toys. We are bad parents to have forgotten both her bed and toys to include in the earlier shipment....at least we remembered food!

Decorating for Christmas was fun...although my little Christmas tree fit perfectly in the corner of my little condo in Alexandria, it looks a bit silly here, but we don't care! I have been collecting ornaments from all the places I've been, so those and the beautiful White House ornaments that I've also collected through the years make it beautiful and meaningful to us! And who knows if we'll have a white Christmas or not!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and your loved ones!!

Lowest point on Earth

To celebrate Brian's 30th birthday, he and I headed to the Dead Sea last weekend, which is also the lowest point on Earth. We first took Susie to a kennel up in the desert a little north of Amman near Madaba ... which was an experience in itself. Long gone are the days of luxurious Alexandria Doggie Day Care with the couches and webcam.

The route we took from the kennel to the Dead Sea was beautiful...winding roads, valleys, cliffs, and the color of Jordan --- BEIGE. It was a great drive and your ears pop as you descend deeper from elevation into the canyons and valleys.

We stayed at the Kempinski Hotel Ishtar. We got a great rate and ended up with a "villa" (AKA room with a view of the Sea). It was really lovely and the hotel is beautiful, albeit a bit confusing and spread out in a way that neither Brian nor I think makes much sense. There are several pools, a "lazy river" and then of course the Dead Sea. We really loved the adult only Infinity Pool - biggest one we'd ever been in, overlooking the Sea. It was also warm enough to almost be a hot tub, even though the weather was perfect - sunny and probably mid to upper 70's!

The Dead Sea was an experience that I think every single person should have. It begins when they give you a pair of crocs to walk around on the rocky shoreline. You then go to a big bucket where someone has just brought up mud from the bottom of the Dead Sea. You throw away your inhibitions and smear this black mud all over your body. Some people just dabble in it and put some on their arms and legs...and others went to town, and coated their faces, scalp, hair and every inch of skin they could reach. The minerals are supposed to have healing and purifying properties on the skin and hair. You let the mud dry in the warm sun, then you can either rinse the mud off in the Sea or use an outdoor shower. It's more fun to rinse off in the Sea, but because it is SO salty, I don't recommend rinsing off your face in it!!

Speaking of the Sea, it's pretty crazy. Due to the salinity of the water, you literally float on top of the water. It's physically difficult to NOT float, or to try to bob around, because your feet just fly up! It is like sitting on a float ... minus the float. People take reading materials out there, basically sit on the water and read. It's a sight to see, that's for sure, and a really cool experience.

We had a great time, and can't wait to go back - we plan on heading to the Dead Sea a lot in the next few years- even just for a day trip - as it's only 45 minutes away or so. We also can't wait for people to visit (hint hint!) to show off this incredible place!