"Sun in the sky you know how I feel"

Flying over the Cuyamaca Mountains into San Diego brought a huge smile to my face. Once I landed and got out into the open air the weather couldn't have been more perfect. The beautiful landscape, palm trees, beach, mountains, desert and great food, makes California stand out from the rest of the states.

Billy and I decided to rent a car so we wouldn't have to rely on anyone to drive us around. The 10 minute drive from the airport to my sisters house seemed endless. I couldn't wait to arrive and see their faces. When they opened the door we couldn't hold back our emotions. I was so happy to see my mom, sister and her kids. The only one missing was my middle sister Fernanda who lives in Brazil, and who I miss so much. My sister kept her Christmas tree up so we could open up gifts and celebrate Christmas all over again. Tristan and Karina were so excited to pass out gifts, as well as open up their own gifts.

Our time in Diego was fantastic. We spent time with family, friends, and visited our favorite places. We even made time to go jogging in the mornings and hike while we were there. I must say though; it doesn't matter where you, as long as you surround yourself with people who love and nurture you, that's all that matters. I am thankful that I have that.

It’s going on 5 months since I’ve been in Arlington and the time sure has flown. In the last few months, I’ve been able to travel quite a bit, in fact, I am traveling now. I’m on my way to San Diego to visit my sister, mom, niece and nephew. Billy will also be joining me. He could have opted to go to an exotic place like Abu Dhabi, Dubai, or Doha but instead he asked for time off to spend time with me and my family.

Prior to this trip we were fortunate enough to spend Christmas in Beaufort, SC with his family. We stayed with his sister Katrina and her husband Jonas, who are always so hospitable and they make us feel at home, and they never have an issue with us bringing our dog Dante “Dewey” along. Billy’s sister asked us what we wanted to do while in Beaufort, and we responded, “relax, rest and hang out with family.” That's exactly what we did. We watched movies, ate a lot, walked downtown on the waterfront and slept, slept, slept; Billy more so than I (poor guy was exhausted from traveling nonstop for almost 2 months).

The icing on the cake was waking up Christmas morning and having our family around. Seeing our nephew, Gavin open up his gifts with such excitement was "priceless". I feel fortunate to share moments like these with the ones I love the most. People are not perfect therefore families tend to have their ups and downs, but at the end of the day, I truly feel blessed to have my family.

Now we’re on our way to San Diego, CA, for an extended Christmas with my side of the family. This trip will also be about family, but we definitely will go site seeing as well as eat lots of Mexican food. When it comes to Mexican food no other state has California beat; sorry Texas.

I spent my teenage years and early 20’s in San Diego. Billy and I met while working at Sea World when we were in high school. After a couple years of dating we got married and lived in the North Park/Normal Heights area for several years. During those years my family and Billy's family all lived in San Diego. Now only my younger sister, Renata and her kids, Tristan and Karina remain.

It's been exactly 2 years since we last saw her and the kids. My beloved mom, Maria is also visiting from Brazil, so we'll be able to spend time with her too. Even though we are all spread around and don’t see each other as much as we'd like, we do keep in touch often. I can’t wait to see my niece and nephew. They are adorable and have grown so much since I last saw them. This visit is long overdue.

Thanksgiving in White Plains, NY

Two weeks prior to Thanksgiving, I spent some time in Manhattan and had an incredible time. I had been in the city once before, but this time around I wasn’t worried about sightseeing. I just wanted to walk and eat, which I did. We even went clubbing one night at some hip, crazy, packed, night club. New York City is incredible. There’s nothing you can’t do, the people are direct, not “rude”, and the city is alive and filled with energy. Little did I know that I would be heading back to New York for the holidays.

Billy had just returned from Lisbon and received orders that he would be needed during Thanksgiving week in Upstate New York. So, I'm heading to White Plains, NY for an entire week and spending the holiday there with Billy and our dog Dante. There are times I miss having a routine, a schedule, a job, but right at this moment just being free to pick up and go feels nice.

(update after our trip)

Thanksgiving in White Plains was spectacular. We took the train early morning into NYC and watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Later that night we ate at a real Diner. Aside from their regular menu they put together a Thanksgiving Menu for the evening. We sat inside the diner and ate until our heart's content. It was Delish! We even brought a little leftovers for “Dewey”. Most importantly we were together during the holiday.

I heart NYC

I arrived home all charged up from my trip to Beaufort and I was counting down the hours to see Billy, who would be arriving from New Zealand the following day. We were excited because we’d be able to spend at least a week together before his next trip, but instead he received notice saying he was needed in New York City within 24 hrs, and would be there for a full week before heading overseas for another week.

My heart sank with disappointment. With a zillion things for him to do before jetting off to Dulles, he asked that I join him in New York City for the week so we could spend some time together. First of all, I thought “my husband is pretty awesome to place me into this equation”, and second of all “hell YES!!! I will go to New York City”. The only stipulation was that we would have to go separately, but I didn’t mind that at all. We got him on the plane and I booked a ticket on the Vamoose Bus to meet him NYC.

The Vamoose Bus leaves from Rosslyn, VA to NYC on an hourly basis, every day of the week and it’s only $60 round trip. This bus is awesome; it has free Wi-Fi and plush seats. Plus, you save money on gas, tolls, and parking, and it drops you off in Manhattan in front of Penn Station. If you want to save money and don’t mind the 4hrs commute, this is the way to go. Needless to say, I left the following day and the bus ride was fantastic.

Billy offered to pick me up at Penn Station, but I declined because I felt I could get myself to the hotel using the subway. This way he wouldn’t have to deal with city traffic. Prior to making this decision, I called the hotel concierge before leaving DC and he encouraged me to take the subway. I wasn’t too familiar with the subway system, but my thoughts were I speak English; I’m in NYC how difficult could it be? Billy thought it was funny and kept saying, “you go miss independent city girl.” So, with luggage in hand, I took the subway and got myself to the Mid-Town hotel where I would be staying for the next 5 days. It felt so nice to see Billy and how exciting it was to be able to spend time together in the Big Apple.

Halloween in Beaufort

Since I am currently not working and Billy is off on another trip, I’ve decided to drive to Beaufort with my side kick Dante “Dewey”. I didn’t think I’d be heading back so soon, but lately I’ve been in a bit of a funk so a trip to the LowCountry to get a dose of love from friends and family is just what the doctor ordered.

The drive is 9 hrs, but with Starbucks rushing through my veins and a selection of rockin’ music, I will be fine. My father instilled in me a sense of adventure and fearlessness which has always allowed me to be independent, open minded, and courageous. I’ve never had a fear of traveling alone or doing things by myself. If I had the opportunity to be dropped off in a village in the middle Africa I would get a rush out of that. I live for that stuff and I can’t wait for that time to come.

So, with all that said, I’ll be arriving in Beaufort just in time for Halloween. Not quite sure what I’ll dress up as, but something will come to me. It will be nice to be at my sister-n-laws house for a few days, and tonight, she has a group of friends coming over. We’ll have a bon fire going, lots of candy, drinks and other goodies, as well as a jam session of Rock Band. It’s going to be a blast!!! I better get on the road...time is a wasting.

Emotional Roller Coaster

The wheels have hit the ground full speed, and boy it's been a harder adjustment than I ever predicted. During a 5 month period I've gone through 3 different stages: the Honeymoon, the Irritable and the Break Down stages. This is something I had never dealt with before, but I've been told by several seasoned FS spouses that what I have been experiencing is totally "normal", and that these stages will be revisited every time we are at a new post.

The "Honeymoon" stage was when we first moved to DC and everything was so exciting. A new job for my husband, living in a gorgeous city with tons of things to do: museums, restaurants, theatre, nightlife, shopping, etc...I felt like a kid in a candy shoppe. I was out and about almost everyday exploring and getting to know the area.

A couple months after, the "Irritability/Frustration" settled in. Mind you, Billy and I have always been glued to the hip. When he was in law enforcement he had the occasional 2-4 day training and once in a blue moon he would be asked to travel. Now fully trained and ready to start his new assignment, and as predicted, Billy is starting to travel a lot. Even though we make decisions together, and this 2 year assignment is something we talked about and agreed upon, I was not as prepared as I thought. The adjustment may have been easier if he chose to work out of a field office. Instead we chose a different route. A route that involves a 2 year assignment and requires him to travel at minimum 50% of the time. Once he finished training for DS as well as in his specialized field, it felt as if Billy was all of a sudden gone. Then reality set in, here I was in a new city with little to no friends, while my husband was off having a life, traveling the world, making contacts, and loving his new job.

I started feeling a bit jealous and sorry for myself, and although self-diagnosed, I believe I fell into a small state of depression. I would literally break down in tears from time to time, and I felt very isolated and angry. Why was I in this new city, with no friends while my husband traveled? Why did I give up my job, my friends, our house in Beaufort to come and live alone half of the time? Why did I miss him so much? Why did I feel so co-dependent? All these questions and emotions ran through my head. So, needless to say, this was my "Break Down" stage.

I was not made aware of these stages until I attended a seminar by a retired DS spouse on Cultural Adjustment of the Foreign Service. I felt like this meeting couldn't have come at a better time for me. It was so helpful and it opened my eyes to what an unique but challenging lifestyle the Foreign Service is. Moving from country to country every 2 years has its allure, but uprooting so frequently can take its toll. This meeting also made me realize that our spouses are sometimes just as stressed, scared, worried as we are. They just express it in different ways. After all, Billy may be traveling to beautiful countries quite often, but then again, he is working, and working long hours at that. Long flights, jet lag, hotel after hotel, meals on the go, all is taxing on a body. I know he misses his home. I know he misses us.

In the meantime, I am discovering that this new life is making me stronger. I am experiencing new sides of my inner self had I not been put into this current situation. The world has a way of preparing us for what's to come, and I feel that is what is happening to me. I am grateful for my close friends and family who continue to be a leaning shoulder for me. Most important, I am thankful for my loving husband, who even though far away at times, always makes our relationship top priority. Now a days, I am having to learn to literally just take one day at a time and live in the moment.

Graduation Day

After 7 months of training, studying and taking tests, Billy’s big day arrived on Tuesday, September 28th in the Benjamin Franklin Room at the US State Department. He and his fellow colleagues graduated and received their credentials.

We were thankful to have been able to share the special day with his mom, two sisters, nephew and our good friend Eileen. When the director called Billy’s name up to the stage, I couldn’t help but feel proud of all my husband’s accomplishments. A quick flash back of when we first started dating came to mind. We met at Sea World when we were 17 and during our lunch breaks we would have long chats about what we wanted from life, relationships, and about the future. Now here we are. We’re finally seeing our hard work and accomplishments unfold before our very eyes, and that is truly a gratifying feeling.

We’ll be posted in DC for the next 2 years. Billy has been selected to a very important assignment, which will require alot of travel time. When he’s home our time together will be extra special, and once he begins to accumulate some comp time, we hope to extend some of his travels overseas, so I can accompany him from time to time.

Now begins a new journey for me as well. The world is my oyster. What’s my calling? There are so many various directions and paths to consider. We’ll see what unravels.