The Medical Board & A Mother’s Day Sale

Our house has gone through a few changes in the past 10 weeks. One includes a new job, which is going well, another involves two new faces in the form of Adopted Yorkies and lastly we have gotten one step further in our medical board process.

The Medical Board process, for those non military folks, can take anywhere from 6 months to two years depending on injuries and claims. Our timeline is on month 7 and counting. Why does it take so long? The answer may not be very exciting or definite but it is an answer of sort. Basically if the board has all its ducks in a row, you have all your ducks in a row, can get appointments scheduled all in a row… do you see a pattern. Now Ducks are not easy to come by, timely appointments, meeting those in charge and agreeing on the outcome is a very rare thing. When they happen you dance when they don’t you keep your head down and keep trucking along. So far our ducks have been in a wavy row, and things are looking good. A few papers get kicked back, then we do a mad scramble to find our copies of medical records, run to turn in the new paper work and wait. Usually waiting to do the paper all again. Processes are a funny thing. Some have their purpose, to weed out the not so honest or committed, others are just simply time wasters or stall tactics. But they are the processes we have to deal with. We are in no hurry if it means The Soldier gets compensated correctly and fairly.

So while we wait, we try to enjoy our time with the new dogs, eachother, thankful to have a job that I go to without dread and that moonlighting as an artist. Just so you know tehlia.com is having a mothers day sale. Use coupon code GIVEMOM20 for a 20% discount on all items listed.

January Went Out With a Blast

January’s winter storm in the Pacific Northwest took our breath away in the sheer power of it and also some of its beauty. There were moments when I knew standing under a tree was a bad idea but the need to document some of it was too much to hold it.

So far this February has started in classic Northwest fashion, bright warm and happy. You can always count on at least a week of freakishly warm weather to get us Seattleites to break out of the house and bathe in the sun. We are a happy city for a few more days.

What weather events get you giddy?

New Year with a Full Glass

2011 has been filled with some good, some bad and some frightening moments. Several people have surprised me in great ways and a few have saddened me beyond comprehension. But I will look at this glass and the next year to come as beyond half full.

2011 Year In Review:

Holiday season ends for tehlia.com on etsy with a bang. I reach milestones and goals.

January, my husband “The Soldier” deployes to Afghanistan

April he was injured in an IED (roadside bomb) explosion

April tehlia.com hits 200 sales

May the Soldier is back to me in Kentucky. Lots of doctors appointments and questions

While taking care of The Soldier between doctors appointments and meetings, I create  The Forks Farm .com on etsy and get a blog going for that business idea

July the big move back to Washington, our home while the Army continues to “fix” The Soldier

Both shops are slow to adjust but steady.

August we start to get settled into a new home with fruit trees and more lawn then we can handle.

Sept Oct Nov go along with only a few hiccups and some good news (if you can call it that) of The Soldier going in for a medical board, military review for medical retirement from the Army.

I discover that my need to create is also quenched by creating on the computer… The Soldier suggests taking classes to gain more knowledge and establish a business around something I already do.

December the transition begins. I start researching classes, online and in person, for WordPress, HTML and graphic design. I revamp The Forks Farm to include graphic and web design.

Tonight I will have a glass of wine or three, will turn on some movies The Soldier has been wanting to see and get excited for the first Business day of the year and starting classes.

2012 is bringing a lot to our home and future. We are still in the Army with questions in the air. We have a move ahead of us and many many plans. The Etsy shops are going well thankfully winter has a couple months left and scarves to be made.

What 2012 plans do you have brewing… work, life, school, starting a business, losing weight, travel?

Share it with us in the comments below

Busy Hands Happy Heart All Because of Cotton

December for a handmade shop owner/artist tends to be a busy time. Scarf orders rolled in and my hands got to work. One day my making record stood at 4 scarves equaling 8 hours of work. My wrists were tired by the next day but more orders meant they would get a few coffee breaks and then back to work they would have to go.

The Cotton Scarf Section

The Surprise Standout for the scarves… RED. I know what you are thinking, of course red, but last year it was Olive Green. I wasn’t prepared for Red at first and then when my 3rd order for the color came in off I went to the store. Cleaning out every red cotton bundle I could get my hands on.

Red in the shop

Between military ceremonies, mourning the loss of another soldier, keeping My Soldier on schedule and writing in a few blogs I managed to keep most of my sanity. I like to think that the orders, those cotton scarves and the short family reunion over Christmas has all helped. I have fresh ideas coming for spring right after these scarves get shipped out. Time to start thinking about Valentine’s Day.

Awarded a Purple Heart. My Husband, The Soldier

When a day becomes something bigger then a single moment. When it becomes a day that is etched onto your heart and in your memory, it becomes apart of your soul. But when that day is recognized and given an honor, an award, it can leave you feeling thankful.

The day that is etched into my memory… April 16th 2011, my husband was injured in Afghanistan. Other then the  bruises that were left all over his body, his injuries were invisible, still are invisible, but exist. That day, that phone call will never leave me. It was a day that could have gone so differently and I am always grateful that it didn’t. And on this day December 12th, My Husband, My Soldier was able to walk, shake hands, stand at attention, speak and have a Purple Heart pinned to his chest.  I have attended many military ceremonies, helped in pinning his next rank on his uniform and been proud. But this one was different. This one meant he was home, with me, walking, talking, breathing and smiling that smiling. This ceremony meant there will be more and I can’t wait to see them.

Pearl Harbor & A Childhood Memory

My father was in the Airforce which means we have lived in many places. One place in particular we happened to live for several years, Hawaii. Having done parts of Elementary School in Hawaii, living on Oahu at Hickam AFB you see many things, cultures and events. And I have retained a lot of those memories.

The attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec 7th 1941 happened 70 years ago but everyday on Hickam and Pearl Harbor you are confronted with the reminders of that day. From 1987 to 1992 I would visit my father often at his work in the Headquarters building which was the Barracks in 1941. Walking to his office and through the long halls to his desk meant a trip through history. Pictures of the attack, bullets holes outside, bullets holes that had come through the walls. I would run my hands over them and couldn’t help but imagine what it would have been like. To be my age living on base 50 yrs ago, at the time. To be a scared 9-12 yr old child whose family and home was being destroyed. But then to have the juxtaposition of a pristine water tower unmarked because the Japanese thought it was a shrine or temple. Knowing that fascinated me and scared me at the same time. A shrine was important but people were not.

Have we learned anything since then? Are things different now? Do we still have the same values? Do we protect the United States in the same way? And do we hold Shrines and Temples above human life?

What Does December 1st Mean For You?

The first of the month brings on a few exciting things. One is a paycheck. Military and most Gov’t agencies get paid on the 1st and 15th. Which means Rent and a few bills will get paid. Grocery shopping that was getting put off will happen and perhaps a fun dinner out. The First of THIS month means Christmas is almost here.

For the past 10 years The Soldier and I have not celebrated holidays in the traditional sense of gift giving. We don’t buy for each other or anyone else in our family specifically for a Holiday. We celebrate Birthdays and Births, we give gifts just because. But when Christmas or Valentines day rolls around we run and hide. We don’t have a huge anit-consumerism theory or follow a specific religion that stops us from the gift giving process. What we do have is a disdain for the “Gimme Gimme” attitude that happens on the morning of Christmas. The overwhelming wrapping paper and the way once a gift is opened it gets pushed aside to open the next.

 

What we do instead is have a calm, family & friend filled few weeks of parties, bringing hostess (thank you) gifts with us in the form of wine, food or handmade trinkets. We bring hugs, smiles and laughter, we bring love. If I know a friend has a pension for the color green and I just made a set of washcloths then I bring them. If I see something at a craft fair, a glass charm and I know my Mother would love it then I purchase it. But it will be given when I see her. Not held on to until Christmas. It took two Holiday seasons for family to realize that they didn’t have to “worry” about us for the holidays. They didn’t have to second guess their gift, fret over if they spent enough, if we will like it or if it arrived in the mail on time. We have literally been told “We love knowing you two are happy to be with us and don’t expect anything more then happy in return”.  So, although we do give gifts to others and ourselves we don’t let a holiday dictate the type of gift or timing of the giving, we give because we want to and hope you do the same.

Holidays & Getting My World Ready

It is Thanksgiving Day. And I am so excited for this time of year and the year to come. We have had a few hard things happen in the past year to two years. One being my husband almost dying in an IED explosion back in April while deployed in Afghanistan. Life has moved on, slow improvements and things are looking great for him, me and us. The beginning of the Holiday season means a new year with new stories, new ideas.

The past two years I have found an outlet for my creative whims by sharing what I make on this blog and others. I have discovered that I make pretty great things and can make a little something by selling the very best of what I create. The unexpected discovery and one that my Soldier has been subtly suggesting for months has been a love for creating Banners, buttons and fancy things for Blogs and etsy shops. And for some reason we hadn’t thought of using it for “real” with benefits work until The Soldier came across job listings on Craigslist for people/businesses asking for WordPress knowledgeables to make a blog for them. Seriously. I knew people hired out for website designs and even to help with blogs. But I didn’t think some of those people would be businesses.

So, come January we have a few plans laid out, which include classes with other people and actual teachers, that will help me make a living doing what I love to do. CREATE!

Happy Holidays and for the US folks reading Happy Thanksgiving.

Asteroids, Involuntary Manslaughter and Ex-military Politicians

Busy week in the world of news. So glad something else is happening and the Kim K thing along with Justin B scandal has been pushed to the side for a minute. But I am still wanting it to be replaced with something more substantial than… Yesterday a man was convicted of Involuntary Manslaughter for “killing” Michael Jackson. Whether you believe it fair or not I felt the coverage and treatment of the whole things was ridiculous. When did we start broadcasting, celebritizing Druggies and their Drug Dealers  on TV. I know it had to deal with MJ but when will it end with the celebrities getting front page of the NEWS. Keep it to Court TV or Entertainment tonight. It is not a presidential address when the jury returns and shouldn’t be treated like on. OK off of that box.

And onto another. This one was not on TV, CNN or even FoxNews. I had to find this one on the Military Report website. They stated that “Senator John McCain …has stepped up his push to block working age retirees from using TRICARE Prime. McCain suggested to the powerful 12-member Joint Select Committee on Debt Reduction it would help avoid spending cuts that would directly impact readiness.” I am a child of a “working age” Retired Military, I have seen struggle, hardship and pain caused by the military on my fathers face. He worked hard, spent time in wars did his Twenty+ years in the military and deserves to have his full medical insurance coverage. If McCain weren’t receiving his Government paycheck and were of “working age” would he be willing to give up and find it fair to give up his medical insurance coverage? I wonder how far you have to get from where you came before you forget where you came from and shit on those who served just as you did or longer. Alright Soap box #2 is over.

In other news. An Asteroid is coming!

An asteroid the size of an aircraft carrier will pass Earth to within eight-tenths of the distance of the moon Today. The closest approach to Earth of an object this size in more than 30 years will occur around 6:28 p.m. ET. The asteroid will pass within 202,000 miles of our planet, NASA said. Are you ready? Did you even hear about this amongst the celebrity chatter. Do you think if something serious were about to happen that they would interrupt your “regularly scheduled programming”? I hope so.

Something Possessed My Body & I Think I Like It

Last night after dinner… I did the dishes. I know, scared the shit out of myself. I actually cleaned the entire kitchen and swept with mopping involved. All in one hour after finishing our meal on a Sunday evening. Could have been the weather, possession of my body by the good cleaning witch or perhaps it was just a nice evening. Either way I did something I usually don’t do.

Because we have the agreement in our home, he works, brings home the bacon, so I take care of the house (work) and clean the kitchen. We share laundry, bathroom and those other cleaning things. He is in charge of his army gear. But because I am in charge of the kitchen it gets cleaned when I want and how I want. Which means Sunday being our lazy day, I leave the dishes and chores for Monday morning. Not yesterday. And because of this random event Monday morning has been unusual. No dishes, sparkling kitchen and time. I answered emails, did the morning dishes with a smile and now writing this post hours before I normally would have. Lets hope the cleaning possession sticks around. I like her so far.