Army: First Blog From Afghanistan

So here it is, my first blog from Afghanistan, now that I have internet in my room.

I don't have much for you all, mostly because this whole past week and a half has been a blur.  I've been in Afghanistan for about a week now and most of my time has just been spent learning my new job and getting to know those who work around me.  I actually have an NCO who works specifically for me now.  The work has been easy because the outgoing unit is still here so there are two people working every job.  But that also makes our work space very crowded and there isn't really enough room for everyone at once.   But it is fine, because once the unit we are replacing leaves, things will get much more difficult.

I also have plenty of amenities.  There is a pizza hut, burger king, and I think popeyes right next to where I live.  The board walk has lots of electronics and food (there is even a TGI Fridays), but I am avoiding spending money on junk for now.  Soldiers spend there paychecks on a lot of crap around here.  And everyone has old school prepaid cell phones.  Unfortunately, they don't have many girly product options, like soaps, lotions, chap stick, body spray, make up removing clothes, etc, so feel free to send that sort of stuff if you would like.  

Yes, everyone has cell phones here. Even me!

Aside from that, everyone talks about deployment goals.  People say that during deployments, they want to get buff or learn a language, or something along those lines, so here are my goals:

Spiritual: I want to get in the habit of praying every day, and not just for my food. I am not usually good about praying and I know that it is probably the best way to love people.  To just sit down and pray for the people I can't always talk to whenever I want, and rely on God to take care of them and me.  To do this, I have actually started a prayer journal so I can keep track of my prayers and after the deployment is over, I can see which ones God has answered.

Mental: I want to complete my real estate courses online.  This should be a pretty easy goal.  I haven't gotten any farther into it since I left, but that was because I didn't have internet.  I am hoping to get my next lesson done this weekend.

Emotional: I want to learn to be a better wife to my husband.  The most honest thing I can say about this time is that we are likely going to grow apart.  That's just how it is.  It's like going from being married and sharing every aspect of your life with someone, to something less than dating, where we can talk for short periods of time almost daily, but can't even be in the same room together.  This will be emotionally taxing.  While I was at NTC, I felt terrible because I felt like I was single, not like a wife.  (Not for any other reason than I didn't get to talk to my husband much and I felt like I wasn't really able to share my life with him).  So, I want to have realistic expectations, but I also want to find new and more creative ways to be a good, loving, respectful wife to my husband while I am far away from him.

Physical: So don't laugh, but I want to get a six-pack this deployment.  Mostly, I just want to tone my muscles, but my measure of success is a six-pack.  I already have a pretty flat tummy, so I figure it's not that far off.  Plus I have always had good core strength.  But we will see!

That's all I have got for now.  I am hoping to keep you all updated on my goals as I continue through this deployment!


Also, I think I am going to cut my hair.  It seems like the perfect time!

Wife: Preparing for Deployment (Part 5) Orange Chicken

Canned Orange Chicken Mix:

Ingredients

Sauce:
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons orange juice
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger root
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons chopped green onion
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons water
 
Directions

Pour 1 1/2 cups water, orange juice, lemon juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce into a saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir in the orange zest, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, chopped onion, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. (I also like to add chopped broccoli and water chestnuts to mine)

Mix together the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water; stir into the sauce. Reduce heat to medium low, and simmer, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.


Put in jars with about 1/2 inch of headspace. Can in boiling water for about 30 minutes.


For preparing: Cubed 2-3 chicken breasts and cook in a pan. (you can dip in flour and fry cubed pieces). Add sauce after the chicken is fully cooked. Serve on rice.

Life: The things that keep me healthy

So,  this blog is a pretty simple one.  It covers a few of the products that I use to stay healthy.

The obvious one is the Army.  With our workouts, which we call PT (physical training), every morning for an hour and a half, you think it would be easy to stay healthy.  And this was once true, but since I work for the battalion, I find myself working during PT more often than I would like.  And since I have to be at the office by 0545 now, and am lucky to get off by 1700 , it doesn't give me much time at home to get the things I need to (especially for deployment) done and still get plenty of sleep!  So, when given the opportunity  I almost always sleep in.  Plus, I am not a morning person! I would much rather stay up late and wake up sometime after the sun, than be on the Army's schedule.  And, even though some say I will get used to it, I have been getting up at or before 6 multiple days a week for ten years and I still haven't "gotten used to it"  I don't think I ever will.  Anyway, most of the Army's workouts (especially in my unit) includes a lot of running.  I know for my age, weight and body type, a mile run burns about 105 calories.  So, the Army is great for just burning calories, but since it doesn't always happen, I have to add other things to my life.  (If you want help tracking your runs, walks, hikes or just about anything else, I recommend downloading the free Endomondo app from either the play store, or the app store).  

When I can't get P.T. into my daily routine, I love doing Yoga.  My sister-in-law put me on to an amazing website to help, too.  I always found that if I did dvds that I wouldn't keep it up, because eventually I would get bored doing the same routines.  And finding time going to classes is way more difficult than making sure I get to do PT.  Plus, most gyms and studios charge (and that's frequently about $10/ class).  But yogaglo.com is different.  With Yogaglo, you can pick any time duration from 5- 120 minutes, you can pick your level, your style of yoga, a specific instructor, a specific body part... whatever you want! And it is only $18/ month (and you can cancel anytime).  Plus there are literally thousands of videos because they are uploading them all of the time from a studio in California.  You can schedule them for yourself, pick your favorites and add them to your queue.  And for me, yoga has been such a big part of my recovery (see 

Health & Exercise: Yoga daily, Health & Exercise: Yoga Update and Health & Exercise: Learning to Read Your Body to read more about why I do yoga and how amazing it has been for me).  

But that isn't all, of course.  Occasionally, I find myself putting on a few pounds (I fluctuate up and down about 5 pounds during the year).  And when I get to the higher end, I like to retrain my body.  The problem for me is, I work out a ton for awhile, and I get used to eating the calories to back it up.  Then I go through lulls of not working out as much, or eating really unhealthily and it puts on the weight.  Now, a few pounds may not bother most people, but my thought line is that a few pounds can add up fast.  Most people who are overweight don't notice until it is too late, or maybe they just don't want to.  It is much easier to maintain the weight that you are comfortable with, than yoyo-ing constantly.  So, when I start to realize I am adding the pounds back on, or I am just eating too much, I start counting calories.  I like to use Loseit!  You can use their website or their apps to help you track meals and exercise, create weight loss goals, and even create your own recipes so you know how many calories are in your home cooked food.  You can also add friends (making you more likely to achieve your goals).  I mostly like to track calories to retrain my body for how much food I should be eating and to get comfortable "eating less" which is actually the correct amount for my desired healthy weight.  Plus, since it's not really dieting, you can feel free to cheat! If there is a potluck, or your celebrating a birthday dinner, don't worry.  Eat whatever and then go back to tracking the next day!

And last but not least, my husband and I recently started getting Organic Groceries delivered to our door, thanks to our friend Jordan.  Door to Door Organics charges a flat rate for boxes of varying sizes.  You pick the size box you want, how frequently you want it delivered and if you want fruits, vegetables or both.  You can create lists of vegetables you don't like, or ones you love and they try to accommodate.  And you can sub out items for ones of similar values if you want to change something.  Plus, you can then add additional fruits, vegetables, meats, bakery items, or dairy if you want.  And, for all of their food, you know that it is organic, but you can also find non-GMO, locally grown or made in the USA organic foods.  It is always fresh and wonderful! I would highly recommend checking them out.     

And last but not least, when my neck and shoulders are out of sorts, or the stress is piling on, I love getting Nueromuscular Massages from Parker at The Shade Tree Massage Therapy.  Her prices are great for the amazing work she does.  I will definitely be missing her while I am deployed!

Wife: Preparing for Deployment (Part 4) Sweet and Sour Chicken

Ingredients:
2 zucchini
1 can of sliced water chestnuts
1 can of bamboo shoots
1/2 cup small mushrooms (optional)
1/2 cup Smucker's® Apricot Low Sugar Preserves
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
2 teaspoons soy sauce, or to taste
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Directions:

Cook zucchini, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots and mushrooms in a pan. In a separate bowl, mix preserves, cider vinegar, garlic salt, ginger, soy sauce and crushed red pepper. (I normally double this mixture, but I like mine extra saucy!)

After the vegetables are cooked, add the sauce mixture. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.

Put in jars with about 1/2 inch of headspace. Can in boiling water for about 30 minutes.

For preparing: Cubed 2-3 chicken breasts and cook in a pan. Add sauce after the chicken is fully cooked. Serve on rice.