Don't Forget Where You Are From

As I type this, I am on a plane headed back to San Antonio. I was telling Brian yesterday that although I will miss my family & friends in MS that I was actually ready to get back home to Texas. In the short month that I have lived there, it has already began to fill like home. It probably adds to it that our "home" in MS has no furniture & none of the comforts that we are used to in a home since everything has been moved to Texas. I think wanting to be in a regular routine is some of me wanting to get back out to Texas. I am just ready for my family to be there with me! I miss them TERRIBLY at night & on days I am off work!

Next weekend, I will drive back to my MS home for the last time for awhile. That brings me to the point of this blog post. Texas has so many great things to offer & my family & I are excited for the new adventure; however, we will never be that family that moves away & bashes our home state. Mississippi has many great qualities. I, for one, will miss my drive home across the causeway & though I haven't experienced many sunrises, I have seen many beautiful sunsets from the causeway looking out toward Ridgeland. The contrast of Mississippi's green grass & trees against a beautiful summer blue sky is hard to beat...you just have to take the time to look at it & remember God gave us such beautiful things & to be grateful! Even in such a small place (in comparison to much larger cities) we can forget to appreciate the small things because we are ao busy in the hustle & bustle of life! Being a southern girl, I am very fond of the politeness of most children in MS & their use of "ma'am" and "sir". I love that many people are courteous enough to hold open the door. I love our good southern food & had to laugh when someone in Texas asked if we have catfish in MS! I especially love my family & friends & all the memories I have made in MS!

Our family is off & away on a new adventure! We will make new memories & call new places home & who knows we may be back to MS one day...or to another state BUT no matter where life takes us...we won't forget where we came from & the place that made us who we are.

Catch Me If You Can!

...am I in Texas or Mississippi? Your guess is as good as mine! :) The last few weeks have been a whirlwind but it has been enjoyable albeit tiring! I was in Texas a little over three weeks until I came home for a few days last weekend. I drove then so I could bring Ruger back to Mississippi and take a load of boxes out to San Antonio. I drove back to SA on Monday. It was a pretty trip. We have gone through Dallas and gone through Houston and they are both good rides. This past time I went through Houston &  for whatever reason it seemed like it was a little easier to stay awake than through Dallas. Either way is a good drive...even if it is 10 hours! I worked my last week with my preceptor Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday. I flew in to Mississippi Friday morning and will leave back out on Tuesday. I will be in SA for about 10 days and then I will drive (Again!) back to Mississippi for my baby brothers graduation. That will be my last trip back to Mississippi for a while...possibly even until fall. Mainly because a lot of family/friends plan on coming out this summer and once Brian and Baylee get over there with me we have to get settled in & get her ready to start school in the fall.

Baylee is doing good. She has been helping her daddy work on the house and doing a good job. With all she had going on the past year we never let her get her permit but we finally got the things together and she will be able to get it here in Mississippi one day next week. The rules are a little bit different in Texas so there are a few things she will have to do there but she may not have to keep her permit the whole year before she gets her license (Of course, this also depends on how well she does with her permit!). The weekend of Hunter's graduation is Brians May drill so we will head down to Nola with him and then he and Baylee will go back to SA with me to take the rest of our things. Baylee will stay in SA with me (other than little visits to MS before school starts). Brian will come back to Mississippi to finish up the house and then the plan is for him to be in SA with us by the beginning of June. Baylee is excited about the pool, possibly getting a job this summer, all the things to do in SA and starting school in the fall. She will be going to a show choir camp here in MS the beginning of June and one in SA the end of June.

Brian has a telephone interview Monday with an ambulance company in SA. He has already spoken to the operations person there and really likes him and the company sounds good. Should he officially get offered the job, he is hoping to start the beginning of June so he can give his supervisor in MS a good 3-4 weeks notice because they have been shorthanded. His supervisor knew that we were moving when he accepted the position but Brian still wants to be courteous. He has worked really hard on the house but we have a lot left to do still. Maybe not as much as it seems but you know when you are the midst of it, it seems like a lot...especially when you are in a time frame. We were hoping to rent our house but we may put it on the market for a short while first and see how it goes. If it doesn't sell fairly quickly (Within a set time frame...we haven't decided how long yet...just have to look at our finances) then we will rent it. 

Out in San Antonio, things are going well. It is different living in an apartment when you are used to a house and extra space but the apartment is nice...even though it is small! At least, it doesn't take long to clean! :) My work is fabulous! I still have to get used to the equipment, processes and what the doctors like, etc. but I got it in MS so I know I will catch on in TX. I LOVE my coworkers...as well as my other friends I have met there in SA. They have done well to help me adjust and fill me in on all things Texas! I can't wait for my family to get over there so they can enjoy it as much as I do!

Well...guess that is enough rambling for now! I just wanted to do a little update to let everyone know we are doing good and how we stand on everything! Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!

Choo! Choo! Chugging Along!

Hello from the Alamo City! :o) I hope life is treating everyone well...no matter which state or city you are reading this from! Things with the Garrett family are chugging along as smoothly as could be expected. Considering we are living in two different states and paying bills on two different houses...things could be so much worse but God is truly good! Just to give you some updates of what has been going on...

Brian & Baylee made it back home safely, of course! Brian had to head to work the next day after making it back to Mississippi so he was pretty exhausted. Thankfully, he got blessed with a not so busy day on this past work day and he said he FINALLY was starting to feel rested. His first day off, he and Baylee did SO much around the house. He has gotten her bedroom, bathroom, extra bedroom, living room, hall closet and dining room completely cleaned out. There are still some things in our bedroom/bathroom & a small amount of things in the laundry room cabinets & kitchen cabinets that we were not able to get to before we moved our other things over here. Everything else, he has gotten moved in to the garage. Some of it will come to the apartment but most of it will go into our garage here once we get it moved. We got rid of SO much and cleaned out SO much but we still have SO much! Anyone else know how this feels? He has also gotten a lot of the priming done around the house.

Baylee has been a huge help to Brian. She has painted & cleaned with him. She has stayed with Bebe once & will stay with Sally & Danny this Saturday
night. Brian & she will be doing something (I don't know what) I am sure for her birthday on Sunday...I can't beleive she will be 16!!! Next weekend, his drill weekend, she will be at my moms house IF my mom is feeling better. (She - my mom - is having horrible tooth pain...please say a prayer for her!) She "may" (we haven't decided yet) come over here with me the second week in May. Of course, she will be right back over there (Hattiesburg) for Show Choir camp in June. She will turn around & go to a Show Choir camp here in Texas in late June. Brandy & her family will be coming right at the end of that Show Choir camp so we will be out and about with them at least one of those days and we are very excited about that! Other than that, nothing real new going on other than possibly getting her permit soon. We waited for awhile for lots of reasons and actually are glad we did...but do watch out when she finally hits the road! :o)

I will be driving to Missisippi April 17th and returning back to Texas on April 21st. I, unfortunatley, won't be able to get out and visit with anyone. We still have a lot we need to do to the house so that we can put it in on the market and/or up for rent. Feel free to bring your garden tools for my flower bed, or pressure washer or a paint brush and come and visit. Ha! :o) Only joking...sorta! I will be back again for Hunter's graduation around May 9th but not sure how many days I will actually be in Mississippi. Baylee may come back with me to Texas then depending on how the house stands & if Brian goes to Chief's Academy for two weeks or not. I will be back again in June to go to Baylee's Show Choir program concert & to bring her back home but that will just be a brief trip & I possibly will only be in Hattiesburg for the day and heading back home afterwards but we again will see how it goes. I have two more days of orientation (Mon/Tues) and then I start working with patients on Wednesday. I am very excited about it and have already met a few people & found a great hair dresser! (She is no Kelly but what can ya do?)

I guess that is all for the Garrett family update! More to come!

Miss y'all lots!!!

Tiff & Dar Take On San Antonio!

I was so glad my mom was able to come and help me unpack! We got a lot done around the apartment & everything looks great! (Although, I did make her leave a few boxes for me to unpack to give me something to do while I am alone!) Baylee will love her room! I still have a few things to do here and there around the apartment but I am trying to hold off on spending too much until we get more done around our Mississippi house and get caught up from all of our moving expenses. 

While she was here, we hit a lot of the nicer strores in the area as well as some antique stores and thrift shops and had a BLAST! We were like two ladies on a mission! After all of our hard work we took about a day and a half just to relax. One of the things we did was a River Boat Tour at the Riverwalk downtown in a boat like the one pictured above (I haven't loaded my photos up yet! Photo used is courtesty of San Antonio's Visitors Bureau.) The cruise was nice, the weather was good and of course the company was fabulous. We also went to a church in downtown that beautiful named St. Joseph's. (I will do a seperate post on this one sometime!) We had some of the most delish seafood I have had in sometime sitting at a little table right on the river. It was peacful & very relaxing. Everyone that walked by gawked about how delicous our food looked (Seriously). We took some time to visit The Shops at La Cantera (This place is Beautiful!), had gellato and then went to the Palladium IMAX to watch a movie. On her last day here, we got up early and went to church and then had brunch before she flew back to Mississippi. It was a nice visit. I wish we could have done more but it was nice to show her around the city, have her help and have her company for a few fun things! I look forward to next time! 

Home Sweet, New Home!

We made it!

It seems - surreal? - odd but nice? I am not sure the exact word to use here. We love it here and are very excited to be here, of course! The home we are moving out of in Mississippi was our "first home". It is the only home Baylee remembers. We loved it but strangely was not sad as I left, even knowing it was probably the last time I would "live" in that home. I am sure at some point it will hit me but it just hasn't yet. The only odd feeling is having our things in a different place.

We left out about 0600 yesterday morning an arrived about 1745 last night. Just in time to pick up our keys. I am very glad that we had planned ahead & gotten everything taking care of. It was interesting trying to get the uhaul trailer close enough to unload the things we had packed. God was good though, as usual, and no sooner than we had the door open on the uhaul a downstairs neighbor had her husband go get us a dolly. (Is this even how you spell it? I don't think I have ever had to write that before.) They said "hand truck"...or something like that. I dunno. You know I say odd things...as my husband says...like an 80 year old. Oh well, 80 year olds are cool. So there's that.

Next, a guy about our age walked out on his balcony with his daughter and offered help in which I declined. However, he put on his shoes and was downstairs helping before we knew it. They had just moved here from Jacksonville, FL a few weeks earlier with his wife's job. Brian promised him a grilled steak when he gets back to Texas...so yeah...excited about that. That man can grill a mean steak!

We have everything unloaded out of the uhaul and his truck. We took the uhaul back last night & had Del Taco for dinner (Think Taco Bell with less grease & fresher ingredients). Brian LOVES Del taco...that man. We parked my car, which is still full to the roof...quite literally...in our garage which happens to be huge & we are excited about that! We will have plenty of room for things to be stored there, as well as our bikes and Brian's things out of the garage at the house.

So today's game plan: 

•Clean the bathrooms (Yes, they look spotless but I am not chancing it!)

•Unload the Tahoe

•Pick up our things in storage 

•Go buy new mattresses for both rooms

•Map out my path to work & other important locations before Brian leaves Texas

•Continue to unpack

Tomorrow I have some HR things to do at the hospital & afterwards we might sight-see since Brian & Baylee leave Wednesday morning.

Wednesday my mom flies out here & she will help me finish unpacking & we will get everything decorated (Brian wants things to look nice but gets aggravated with the whole girl decorating process of move something 10 times before you find a spot for it which happens to be the first spot you picked anyway.) We got cash & gift cards as going away gifts so we will put them to good use in our new home!

Over the next month or two Brian & Baylee will continue to work on the house in MS & packing anything we left behind. We will have it up for rent hopefully soon!

I think I covered most everything now! I have more to say but this post is already way too long but I promise to check back in soon!

We are all doing great & we appreciate all the prayers, love & support our family, friends & coworkers have provided for us!

Until next time...love from the Garretts.

Our New Family Member

How could you not love these two faces? These are my two favorite boys in my life right now! Ruger, our newest addition, fits right in. Brian bought him for me for Valentines Day. Yes, I know, *swoon*...sorry ladies ...he's mine! :) Last year my baby boy Storm passed away. I had missed him terribly and my sweet baby knew it so he brought another sweet boy into my life! So when you read about "the boys"...here they are & Ruger is now the baby around the Garrett house! He is already spoiled! I am not sure if they will miss me or him more while I am over in Texas the next few months!

San Antonio Bound!

Hello Family! We can barely believe it but in just two short weeks we will be moving to San Antonio! This has been something we knew was on the horizon but now that it is finally here, it seems surreal.

Brian won't be transferring military units until the fall but we wanted to get there before then to get settled in, find a church family and get Baylee involved in the community before she starts school in the fall. I applied for four different jobs and God blessed me because I was offered all four. This allowed me to pick the one we felt was the best fit for our family. I will miss my current work family terribly & my new coworkers have big shoes to fill! I have no doubt they will be almost as great as my current coworkers!

Many people have asked us, " Why San Antonio?" I am not sure that is a question that is easily answered but I will make an attempt. After Brian's last deployment, we knew he wouldn't be at the Station in NOLA long. We also knew wherever he transferred to, we would want to live close to that area because long distance life is for the birds! Neither of us want to be away from each other too long. Brian has always liked Texas and wanted to live there. I am indifferent but knew Texas would accept my nursing license. That began the journey towards Texas. We ultimately decided on San Antonio. At the time, neither of us had even visited the area. We have since been twice and fell in love! I believe God has a season and place for everyone and right now ours is San Antonio. We are very excited about all the attractions, wildlife/natural areas and culture the city has to offer!

Baylee has had a tough few years at school and is very excited about hitting the reset button in Texas. We had decided as a family, due to several circumstances, that we want Baylee to restart tenth grade in Texas. By doing this, it provides her a more stable foundation as well as better opportunities for growth. God is really moving in this area for us.

Currently, our plan is to rent an apartment while renting out our home in Mississippi. Brian & Baylee will take me over to get the apartment settled and then they will come back and get the house ready before they ultimately move to San Antonio with me. Should we decide to stay in San Antonio, we have researched and talked to several home builders & will build a house in a neighborhood in the same community we will rent our apartment in. (West San Antonio area.)

We are in Nola for Brian's drill weekend. Time to pack up and get out of here! We will keep everyone update on us via this blog. If you are interested in being notified when new posts are added, add your email address to the mailing list on the top right corner of the blog. You will have to follow the instructions to make sure you are added properly. (You will probably have to check your junk email to finish the process.) Also, even if you don't blog, you can comment at the bottom of each of my blog posts. Should you have to use the anonymous feature, make sure to at least put your name at the bottom of the comment so I know who it was from and can answer you! Be on the lookout for more posts!

Love y'all!

Follow Through Friday (Yeah, Its Sunday.)

Okay so I know its Sunday...and hey...who knows...I might not even know what I am doing here BUT I came across the ladies on InstaGram who are holding each other accountable and a lot of other awesome ladies are linking up so I figured I would join so lets see if I am doing this right! :)

So basically, these ladies are giving a run down of their weekly plans for fitness from what I can tell...are giving you a run down of their previous week...so here we go. :)

This past week....errrr...ummmm....does packing & unpacking a car count as exercise? How about walking the dog up & down the stairs at our hotel? :) Okay for realzzz....I did okay this week exercise wise. When I wasn't at work I did go to the gym and pump out some weights and cardio a few days. Other than that can I admit here...I was l-aaa-zaaaayyy? Extra a's added for effect if ya didn't know.

Plans for this week?

Monday: #5amclub Hitting the gym for 45 minutes of cardio before work. #12hourshiftprobs
Tuesday: Repeat of Monday.
Wednesday: One hour of cardio; Thirty minutes circuit training/weights
Thursday: Repeat of Wednesday.
Friday: Repeat of Monday.

So there ya go...hold me accountable peeps.

Oh the bestie and I text updates and our weigh ins...which are on Thursdays each week. Scary stuff up in here folks.

My Journey to Fit! ~ Weight Loss ~

This really has been a journey...one that so many struggle with on a daily basis. Over eight years ago my cousin Traci and I started a blog (which I have now imported all the posts into this blog) to journal our weight loss journey. I went back today and read my very first post (found here). During the beginning of that journey my starting weight was 262 pounds! That was so scary to type! On & off for years she and I worked so hard to try to achieve weight loss and we definitely had our ups and downs. As I imported the old blog posts over to this blog I noticed something...I stopped posting my "starting weight" and instead I just posted the number of pounds I gained or loss. The truth of that is, during the time of trying to lose weight I actually GAINED weight...that folks...put me at my ALL TIME HIGH of 285 pounds! That's right people...I was gaining on that 300 pound mark! I don't even know how or why it happened but it did! I think some of it came from my frustration with my PCOS (which is another post in itself)!

This photo my friends was one of the starting photos from our weight loss blog. I was embarrassed enough about this one but last night I found two more on my computer that were way worse!

Who IS that girl anyway? Are any of you reading this looking at these photos and thinking...that could be me...that could be MY starting photo...could it? Well I am here to tell you...that might be what your starting photo looks like but that does NOT have to be the final photo. 

Starting last January (2013) I finally said enough is enough. Enough of using my PCOS as an excuse. Enough of just not trying. I had tried several times for a few weeks/months at a time but didn't see the progress and finally gave in to temptation again. I remember at some point coming across a blog on pinterest and coming across THIS post (go ahead...go read it...I will be here when you get back). Reading that post by Mama Laughlin was an awakening for me. I could have very easily typed every single word written there. I know EXACTLY how it feels to feel better just by hiding your "rolls", I know what it feels like to put on your "best" outfit and still know you are the biggest girl in the room, I know what it feels like to feel like you look your absolute best & put on the fake smile when you are miserable inside BECAUSE of the way you look on the outside. I KNOW how this feels. I STILL fill this way at times. 

I have come a long way in the past 12 months. I have lost 63 pounds...gained a few back...constantly struggle to stay on track or get BACK on track but the biggest thing I have learned the past year is that it CAN be done. IT CAN. There is no excuse big enough to not live a healthy life. I hope that through my blogging I can encourage someone else out there...DO NOT GIVE UP. 

YOU ARE IN CONTROL OF YOUR OWN DESTINY. PERIOD.

HERE ARE BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTOS TO HELP ENCOURAGE YOU.

THERE WILL BE MORE TO COME!

I HAVE ONLY JUST BEGUN!

:o) T!ff@ny