As I sit here writing this I am happy and content. I have peace in this moment. J and I had our first truly kids-free weekend together that mostly did not involve work. See...we never took a honeymoon by ourselves as that is difficult to do when you get married while on a 2-week R&R and you want to be with your child and your family and friends. Going away for 5 days to Vegas on a work-trip while one spouse is working and the other is wandering very long blocks alone for 9 hours is also NOT really a vacation. Babymooning in San Francisco, while unforgettable and great, was also not a real escape considering pregnant lady's cankles and Braxton-Hicks contractions and that giant basketball of a baby tagging along.  :)

So this? This was really nice. To be with my husband and not have the kids around. Love ya, kids, but.... sometimes Mom & Dad need some aloney time. After a whole year of being apart and 2 weeks of shared leave time, it was evident that we both needed and deserved to be together.

I was extremely anxious and worried about leaving little H because she never stayed with anyone else overnight before and she's still nursing. She's 15 months-old so it's not like she nurses a whole bunch, but it's something I want her to wean herself from on her own time and I was concerned that it might get an early cut-off because I was leaving her for 4 days. So I got her a ticket and planned on bringing her but my parents talked me into letting them care for her. It was probably one of the hardest decisions I've made but it was also the BEST. DECISION. EVAR (yes, with an "A"). Seriously. G got to stay with them, too, for a night before heading to her other grandparents house. Big surprise! The kids had so much fun! Probably way more fun than they would have normally.  :)

I flew in and arrived around 7:30am. I picked up the rental car and headed to the base. I was almost there when J called and told me he was heading to a meeting and he probably wouldn't see me until afterward. I sank when I heard that but I knew we had the whole weekend ahead of us. So when I arrived on base I just went to the PX. The first place I found myself was the little girl's section because that's where I normally shop.  It's so much easier to buy things for the kids than myself. But then I found the shoes and, oh boy, that was dangerous.  If this mama has one weakness it is shoes. I have WAY too many as it is! But I didn't have any fashion boots. I do now, though, heehee.... Then I found myself in Victoria's Secret lotions and body sprays. Bought G some cotton-candy scented lotion. And if you ever want Swarovski crystal? They got it. Oakley sunglasses? Bath & Body Works products? All in one place? Yep. They have it all.

After I exhausted my time there I went out to the car and discovered only 40 minutes had passed. MAN, shopping can be so tiring sometimes.  0_0  While sitting there eagerly awaiting J's phone call I received a call from a house on post that said our room was ready. SWEET!  They gave me directions and I took off. Only.... I got lost. So I went back to square one and tried to figure it out on my own without calling and looking like an idiot. Only..... I got lost AGAIN. So I called back and they gave me different, more accurate, directions and I ended up at an on-post house that has 8 rooms specifically for those families who have service members needing medical attention. The room was gorgeous - spacious, stocked, and quiet. I waited there some more but by now it was nearly 3 hours after I arrived and still no phone call. So I gave up waiting and fell asleep and, you guessed it, that's when he finally called.

We met in a parking lot and drove off base to eat at Red Lobster. The food was delicious and the company was sweet. Later that night we ended up at a Sushi-Go-Round which was absolutely the best sushi ever. And it was CHEAP!  We will be going back there someday.

Friday started at the hospital as J had an appointment with his Col. in charge of his case and his case manager. They were both really great people who genuinely want to see his knees fixed, see him comfortable and well cared for, and see him home as soon as possible. They made phone calls to possibly (hopefully?) move his MRI up sooner than the end of this month. Who knows what may happen, but it was very reassuring meeting 1/3 of the team who is working with J to get him fixed.

After that, it was an adventure into Olympia, with its punk-rock soul and mind blowing delicious food. Our first stop was a comic book store. And Darby's, in case you are wondering, is a MUST. They have the best, most fresh, original food creations I've tasted. We started with fried Black Bean Balls. They were served with seasoned ketchup and there was not a crumb left on either of our plates. I ordered a Brocco Burger - a 1/2 pound of organic local ground beef, with white Tillamook cheddar cheese, broccoli, more cheese, and a perfectly toasted bun. Oh my gosh, I'm stuffed from eating tacos for dinner tonight and my mouth is STILL watering! J had a Sunrise burger, same basics but with an egg over easy, ham, and cheddar cheese on top. J also ordered a Grog - an unusual concoction of warmed chai tea mixed with rum. Oh, and the artwork on the wall was fun, too.

After our lunch we meandered around downtown a bit and fell into a record store and bought some CDs and used DVDs. We walked by a man painting giant letters on the side of a building - O, L, Y, M, P... We followed signs until we reached the waterfront and we sat there and talked with G on the phone and enjoyed the calm. We were by ourselves in the middle of a bustling city. It was great.

A few hours passed and it was time to find a place to watch the BSU v. Fresno game. We went to The Ram in Lacey and tried to drink as much alcohol as possible. Alas, the food was too great from Darby's and two cocktails and a glass of wine did NOT A THING.  Boo.  I can't remember the last time I was tipsy, I was kind of looking forward to that.  :)  Ah, well. BSU won and we went back to our room and watched Megamind.

On Saturday we drove to the beach. There were cars parked as far as you could see, families with kids, dogs, kites, and even horses. Broken sand dollars and sea shells littered the beach. We saw several that looked like butterflies. We sat on a log and watched the waves and the birds.

It wasn't long before we were back on the road, winding through the lush green trees and getting hungry. We stopped at a place that boasted "Home Cooking" on the sign and when we stepped over the threshold we could see neon signs and liquor. It was a bar.  :)  Sweet. We had pretty good food, watched some ESPN, and headed back to post. We attempted to watch Sex & The City 2 but it was sooooooo bad, there was just NO sitting through that shit.

Sunday came around much, much too soon.  We wanted to see Seattle and this was our only opportunity. So North we went! First stop? The Space Needle that neither of us had been in before. Poor J, he hates heights, but we couldn't pass that up. 

We took the Monorail to Pike Place Market and walked around a bit. We ate at a Chinese restaurant that overlooked Pudget Sound. After that, we headed to the Aquarium.

The Aquarium was so neat and SO family-friendly. They had all kinds of hands-on exhibits. You could pet sea urchins, sea stars, anemones, watch fish in a wave pool, be in an uncaged room with Puffins, and even try on a wet suit! We both agreed, though, that we really missed the kids and it just wasn't the same being there without them. There were so many kids our kids' age running around.  Sadness.

I drove J back to the base and we bought a Magic: The Gathering card set and played nerdy until it was time to leave. It was, by far, one of the best few days of my life. I was anxious to get home but I wanted more than anything to just join these two worlds back up. I know they are doing everything they can to get him home as soon as possible, it's just not soon enough.