The Evergreen State

So I have found a new love....the state of Washington! In only about two months of calling it my new home, I have never been so happy to do the simple things: Drive down the street, as the massive, vibrantly green trees envelope me. Take my daughter on a walk in beautiful 70 degree weather as I watch kids laughing and playing....enjoying the great outdoors. Eating fresh seafood till my hearts content! These may not sound like such extraordinary things, but if you have known where I had to live for the past five years....you will understand why I cherish and appreciate these moments. Because two months ago, I couldn't have done any of things and so much more.

I feel like I am slowly finding myself again here. Like I have been lost....wandering and desperately trying to find my true self. So much change in the last seven years of my life has caused me to have to let go of little pieces, even fragments, that creates who I am. And it such a good feeling to put the pieces back together in my own puzzle. But its almost if the puzzle is rearranged somehow...for Mommyhood has created another part of me. A better part of me. I find myself rejuvenated somehow...finding my passions again. Reading more, writing more, crafting more, and enjoying the outdoors more. And I thank my precious daughter and The Evergreen State for bringing me back to life.

 Hiking through the Hoh Rainforest

Hiking the rocky shores of Rialto Beach



A Life Unexpected

Although there are many people who can't imagine ever leaving their home state behind, I have become a person who can't wait to keep moving on. Calling a new place "home" every few years has become a welcomed adventure... well most of the time. Unfortunately, where we move is not really our decision...the Army does that for us. Well, they pretty much call the shots when it comes to our lives. Sound awful? I bet it does. And sometimes it is. But life is all about taking the good with the bad. And moving around the country has had much of both for our family. I have seen so much, done so much, that I never would have if life had went according to my original plan. That plan was to stay in South Carolina, meet a strapping, wealthy man and work hard molding the minds of little ones as an SC teacher. Well, we all know life never goes according to our plan. A tricky, sometimes quite annoying thing takes over.... Fate. You see, I am a true believer in those sayings "Everything happens for a reason" and "You can't control your destiny." Now, if you know me... you know I am a complete control freak. So how could I believe in fate and how in the world did I ever become an army wife!?!? Good question. My husband would say it was his strapping good looks and amazing charm. And I just let him go with that ;)

Fickle Fate.... it has brought me down a road I never imagined. A road untraveled for many. A "not-so-normal life." But what is "normal" anyway? For me, normal is having a husband who is not always there....but desperately wants to be home kissing his daughter goodnight. Normal is....living in places that seem so foreign, but searching hard for things that make it feel like home. Normal is...constantly trying to connect with new people, hoping to make meaningful and lasting friendships. Normal is...missing out on those special moments and days with your family and the people that matter the most. Moments you can never get back.

But sometimes he is home kissing her goodnight and sometimes you find the excitement of an new home you never imagined. Sometimes you find a friend who feels like you have known them forever and when you do see your loved ones, you appreciate and cherish those memories so much more.

What I'm trying to say is you should never try to fight your fate. If you let it....it can bring you so much joy and allow you to see the good, when sometimes all you can focus on is the bad. I have learned to let go of the wheel.... and follow the road that has been paved for me. And that road has brought me some amazing adventures and experiences that I didn't have planned in the first place.

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"Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart."

Marcus Aurelius

Of Loss and Love

Okay... I have come to the realization that I am simply AWFUL at keeping up with this blog! I am making a NEW New Year Resoultion (..is it too late for that?) to make a post at least once a month.

Once again, so much has happened in our lives since my last post... but I am only going to focus on the two major life changes of 2011:

On June 5th, I lost one of the most important people in my life...my wonderful grandmother, who we called Meme. She wasn't just a grandmother... she was so much more in her 89 years of life. She was a wife to one, a mother to three, a sister to eleven and a friend to many. She was an amazing cook, artist, gardner and seamstress. I have so many memories of myself all wrapped up in her. Although she is gone, I have kept them close to my heart and hope to never let them fade away. I want to share all of them with my own children someday. I want them to know how important of a person she was and how she gave so much to her family.

From her life and death, I have come to realize how important family traditions are. My deepest regret is not realizing that during my time with her. I wish I could be in the kitchen with her, making Sunday sauce and her apple pie together, learning her special touches that always made hers the best. I wish I could be next to her sewing machine, asking her questions on how to make that perfect hem. I wish I could be picking tomatoes in her garden, listening as she tells me the secret to making them so ripe and juicy. I wish I was sitting next to her, trying my best to paint Capri, Italy...one of her favorite places in the world. I wish... I wish.


But all I can do is remember what we did share and pass those memories down to the next generation of our family. They will know what a remarkable woman she was and how much she loved us. Then our Meme will truly live again.

While we suffered a great loss to our family, we also gained great joy by welcoming our daughter, Lana Josephine Keating, into the world. After 27 hrs and 38 mins. of labor, she was born on December 23, 2011 at 9:38 P.M. 5 days late, of course. We already knew she would be stubborn... she is her father's daughter. :) I had planned on blogging through out my pregnancy to share all the wonderful and not-s0-wonderful moments. Now, I will just have to share my experiences of Mommyhood!

Our lives are now complete. This little person has showed us what unconditional love truyl means and has made us both better people. Thank you, Lana. We love you, to the moon and back.

So that was 2011 for us. Now 2012 brings another move for this military family. In less than a month, we will be calling Washington state our new home! We are thrilled for this new adventure and cannot wait to explore the west coast. Finally Army...you got it right! Oh, and you better believe it....this girl is going to Forks!

Time passes so quickly... even when we try to stand still

Myself and my wonderful teaching partners during Dr. Suess Week

Well.... it has been quite awhile since I last put my thoughts down at all! Our life has been so crazy busy ( in a good way) that I actually forgot that we created this blog!! Now that I look at the date... it's been exactly one year and 7 months since you last heard from us.

Now... how do I sum up all that has happened since then???

Well, just when all hope was lost for me starting my teaching career..... an amazing opportunity arose. Since September of 2009, I have been teaching in a small town 40 minutes away from Lawton called Duncan, Oklahoma. Mark Twain Elementary has become my second family and I can't imagine NOT being there. I started teaching the 19 most amazing second graders last year and now I am teaching 83 fourth and fifth graders. Yes... you read that number right!!! 83. But I have 2 amazing teaching partners, who I like to call my Everyday Heroes, that I work with. Along with our teaching assistant (AKA Our Lifesaver), we are quite the team. I don't know what I would do without these 3 wonderful woman who make a difference everyday!

Although teaching has been exhausting... and when I say exhausting... I mean mind. body. soul.... it has been the most rewarding, fulfilling, inspiring experience of my life. It's wonderful how the little ones of our society can teach you more than you ever imagined about life.

Check out our webpage:http://teacherweb.com/OK/DuncanMarkTwainES/5thGrade/t.aspx

As for Rory, the Army has kept him very busy. His unit has been training many different groups, from the British Army to the Australian Army! The great thing about him doing the training is that he stays stateside! Rory has also made a huge decision that will soon make a huge change in our lives.... he has decided that his time serving our country has come to an end. In two years, his contract will be up and he will be getting out of the Army. This is a decision he has wrestled with for quite some time and has finally come to terms with. The great thing is he already has many job offers for when he makes this transition. As always, I support whatever will make him happy!

2010 was a year full of many celebrations:

1. a new addition arrived in our family. I became an aunt once again as Ava Christina Saman came into the world on June 2!
2. My best friend since I was 15, Jessica, tied the knot and I got to stand by her side as her Matron of Honor in a beautiful ceremony back home in Myrtle Beach.
3. I also got to spend time with my college girls and take a walk down memory lane... literally. We took a walk together on our college campus USC and reminisced about all the amazing memories we shared together.
4. We got to travel back east to Pittsburgh for Rory's cousin's wedding and spend a great time with the Keating family
5. We took my nephew to Disney World...but I was more excited about the part when we went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter!!!
6. We spent Christmas in Florida with my family, including my aunt, cousins and my grandmother. It has been so many years since we all have been together for the holidays.

2010 was quite good to us. Hoping for even more amazement this year! Okay... so now that I have caught you up to the Keating Speed.... let's hope I can keep this blog going this year! :)

As the Seasons change... so do we....

Fall are you here yet?!?!? While summer has been great ( minus the 107 degree OK weather), we are so ready for the change of the season. I can't wait to see the leaves change into those beautiful autumn colors and feel the crisp breeze across my cheek!! I have not seen a true Fall since I left South Carolina.. two years ago!!

As Summer is coming to a close, the everyday "normalcy" of our lives is coming to a close as well. In a few weeks, Rory will be leaving for Washington State to train a unit that will be shipping out overseas. While he is gone for almost a month and a half, I have decided to make a huge change in my life. After leaving South Carolina with high hopes and dreams for my future as a teacher, I have faced nothing but hardship and disappointment through the many moves we have had to make for the Army. I feel like I have been on an emotional roller coaster... never knowing where it is taking me or if I will ever have a chance to get off. At many times, I have been lost. confused. angry. bitter. I couldn't understand why God was putting us through such a difficult beginning to our life together. I have held on so tight to my dream that I refused to cling on to another. All I knew.. all I could see.. was that life was being unfair. Why must I sacrifice so much just to be with the man I love??

After many months of soul searching, I am finally coming to the realization that I need to simply accept the road that life has brought me down and move on. So, I have decided to create my own tutoring business. If I can't teach n the classroom.. then I will bring the students to me! :) The idea is very new and I have just started the brainstorming of this project. I just hope that my hard work, passion and dedication to this will bring me the happiness and success that I have missed out on for the past two years!!

Our Lil' Place in the World

As most of you know, leaving El Paso meant leaving our big and comfortable house behind. Unless your taste is shag carpet, flower power wallpaper and green tiling, Lawton does not have much to desire when it comes to housing. So, instead of living in the 70s- we opted for a smaller townhouse, which is more our style ( meaning its in the 21st Century!) Its small, especially with our three crazy animals (who really don't get along) and very different from what we are used to. But for now... its our home. Check it out:

Our Home Office

Our Master Bathroom... laundry room is in here too on the right.

This is our front door, stairs leading up to the first floor. Gate is there for our little escape artist, Anakin, who has decided he does not love us anymore and tries to get out at any good opportunity.

Our living room... yes, our TINY living room with Jade and Anakin hanging out.




Our Dining Room.. right off of our even smaller kitchen. Its so small I didnt even bother taking a picture of it! :) Oh, and Lyra saying "Hi" under our new table.

A view of our Guest Room

Other View... so if you come and visit us this is where you will be staying!! :)

Guest Bathroom

Stairway up to the second floor

Our Bedroom... with a new comforter set my Mom and Dad got us for my Bday!

Yes, Im Going (Back) to Carolina.. in my mind!

(My 25th Bday Dinner)

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June has come and almost gone.... like the quickness of a summer day. Why is it that summer days seem to go so fast? I spent 8 days in wonderful South Carolina and it flew right on by! Although my trip was over even before it began, it really made me think about life and how fast it passes you by. In just two years, my life has drastically changed. It seems like yesterday I was running across campus, trying to make it to my next class on time. And now I am celebrating my One Year Wedding Anniversary with my wonderful husband. Driving down those Carolina roads, I started to remember how much I wanted to leave... how I was dying to get out of college and start my life. I wish I could talk to that girl and tell her to slow down... stop and look around... take in everything you are experiencing because one day you will really miss your life in this moment. As much as my trip made me realize how much I miss my Carolina, I know there is a reason life has led me down a different path... I am meant for something more. My trip down memory lane reminded me of this quote:

"All changes, even the most longed for, have a certain melancholy;for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves" -Anatole France

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