If you are a loyal reader of this blog I am sure you have been wondering just where in the hell I ran off to. Things have been pretty insane around here for the past few months and I honestly don’t even know where to begin explaining where I have been and what’s been going on.
There were quite a few times when I stat down to write and just couldn’t. My mind wouldn’t let me get the words out. I shot so many photos for product reviews and even edited them. But alas, no words. A wise blogger best friend of mine told me never to force it. Don’t write just to write, don’t review something if you aren’t in the mood, and don’t take on sponsored posts if you aren’t feeling up to it. With everything that has been going on, I just didn’t have anything worth reading for you babes. It has been about a month since I wrote my last blog, so I am sorry if this one is all over the place while I try to explain my new normal and what has changed.
Once the first of April hit I think I started feeling a little senioritis. I knew John was almost done with his training and so moving to Fort Knox was all I could think about. April 25th was our moving date and I couldn’t have been more excited to move. Living back home in STL with my parents was amazing… I don’t think I would have lasted in Georgia for four months, let alone four hours without John in the state of mind I was in at the time. I am so thankful to my parents for letting me and Char stay so long. However, once you are a full blown adult and have been adulting for some time, it’s pretty difficult to go back to living with your parents. But again, it was much needed and I am so thankful it all worked out. With us being an Army family, Charlotte doesn’t have the traditional relationship with her grandparents and other family and friends. Most of what she has known and seen has been via FaceTime and pictures. So, it was wonderful for her to get to spend real time with everyone for the months we were there while John was in school. Even more so since he was so close, he was able to come home every weekend to see us. We really lucked out this go around.
On top of preparing to move, I was busy trying to get House of W off the ground. Running an online clothing shop is no joke – it takes up a lot more time than I was expecting. But, like everything else in life, you get into a routine and it becomes your new normal. I finally think I have found my groove with it all. I am feeling much more organized with the store, so now hopefully blogging will fall back into the mixy mix. I have so many post ideas in mind I just need to bring them to life.
With all the craziness of getting ready to move to a new home, running the shop, and chasing my insanely strong willed two year old around – I had some not so good personal/health issues right in the middle of it all. I’ll share about that in the next post. Too much chaos to chat about in one post. Just know that I am ok and everything is fine now.
Besides the normal stresses of moving, for us, things always feel just a little more stressful. For the past four months Charlotte and I have been living in the civilian world (a person not in the armed services or the police force) which, unless you have lived the lifestyle, you don’t know just how different those two worlds can be sometimes. I was pretty nervous about the change back to Army life. This move would also be different since we would be living on post. When we were stationed at Fort Benning, we could afford/chose to live off post. Here in KY, we couldn’t afford that unless we bought a house – which just wasn’t in the cards for us right now. Buying a home is such a long term commitment and we just have no real clue how long we will be here. It could be anywhere from two to four years. Or less if something crazy happened – you never know with the Army. On post was our only option.
At first I was pretty excited to live on post – when in Rome right? Most on post housing I have seen is normally duplex style living, however here at Knox they have a few areas that are stand alone houses for John’s rank. We jumped at the sound of that, without even seeing it. Which again, is normal for military life. Most people can’t afford to travel to their next duty station and check out the area prior to their move. In hind sight, I wish I had made the drive, because we weren’t expecting what we ended up with. The house we rented in the Fort Benning, GA area was a pretty newish and nice sized house: Large bedroom, big backyard, lots of windows and it was also our first home together so I am sure I am partial to it. When we first walked into our new home in Kentucky, everything seemed to look ok – ok meaning all our huge bulky furniture would fit and there wasn’t mold growing from the vents (these things do happen in on post housing). There was a large living room, kitchen and laundry – even an extra side room that could/would become my House of W room. But once we got to the bedrooms and bathrooms, things took a turn for the … well …smaller. Now I am sure you are thinking I sound like a brat but hear me out. I personally bought myself really nice large wood furniture in my early 20s when all I did was work 50-60 hour a week. Unfortunately, now said furniture will not fit. I have some type of weird bond with material items – likes if I get rid of them I feel like I am getting rid of memories. So, at first I was pretty upset/sad about the setup. As John and I moved things in to the space, it seemed smaller and smaller and smaller and we kept finding more things we didn’t like. After two days of moving things in, we headed back to STL to pick up Charlotte and the dogs and to say our final “see you laters” to friends and family. The next day we turned around and drove back to KY… chaos.
But all the craziness was well worth it once all five of us were all together under one roof again. All the things we hated about this new house suddenly faded away. All the rooms started to come together and look like a home. I am back to cooking dinner while John is outside working on the yard. Char and the dogs are running around the house like wild animals. All the love and beautiful chaos is back in our home. And that is what life should be about: Love and Beautiful Chaos! Not all the material things I think hold the memories – those will always be in my heart. It’s what is right in front of you that is important. John and I just celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary yesterday – with our six years of dating (on and off) to follow next month. We spent the day shopping for and planting flowers…a first for both of us. I hope they live – haha. I love him now more than ever, he is my best friend and my rock. I will continue to follow him on this wild ride they call Army life because I couldn’t imagine my life without him.
So, as I sit here and wonder if the sound of huge planes and helicopters flying over my house will ever sound normal, I can’t help but think how just sweet life is if you just have love and a little chaos.
Christine says
Such a beautiful post, Whitney!! I hope that everything settles down for you guys and that everything will be back to normal again soon!
Jen Kolb says
Glad you finally made it and are feeling more settled in! Kentucky is an amazing place and you’re not too far from lots of wonderful areas to explore! Glad you’re back to blogging as well 🙂
XO, Noelle says
You are AH-MAZING, juggling everything like that. I have a strong-willed almost 2 year old as well as one on the way and can only imagine moving and balancing a business and life, in general. You go girl!
Julie says
What a few months it has been for you! I’m well impressed with all that you had to juggle with and I’m glad to hear you’re pretty settled into your new home and you’re seeing the silver lining…! And happy 3rd anniversary to you two!!
Nikki says
Walking in the prsecnee of giants here. Cool thinking all around!
Karen says
Great post. Beautifully written. Inspired by the wisdom and gratitude for loved ones and every day life you expressed. Thank you for sharing your story.