Long Time No See

I haven't posted in forever! Two reasons: 1) I did next to nothing interesting while Jerome has been gone. 2) Things got really, really hard. (Let's leave it at that.)

Sometime in the winter I bought the domain for Oranges! (My comic strip...yes, it's called Oranges! exclamation point included.) As of right now, there's still nothing there, but the work to get it there is actually starting! I hope to launch sometime after we visit California.

Recently, I also bought Wolfidy.com and am working to get that up and running as a store where you can buy custom cards, pet portraits, and prints...and will hopefully eventually become an online portfolio as well. It's got more on it only because it's a lot simpler to make than the comic, which is being coded by a friend of mine. =)

That same friend and I were joking one day about how I balance things on my head and quickly threw together Things On My Head. It was a joke, but who knows, it may catch on. When Jerome is back we'll have better quality pictures and probably video. (I won a video camera today!)

My absolute right now project, though, is getting welcome home posters made! He'll be home very soon! Here's a very rough sketch for the one I will be taking with me to meet him:
It'll be centered and colored when it makes it to poster board. Also thinking about maybe adding a fedora hanging off one of the exclamation points.

Peach has grown. She's a year old now and has peaked at about 35 pounds. She's very tall and skinny for her size, like her daddy! Pictures to come soon. As she grew, I've become quite sure she's part greyhound and possibly not lab at all. She's very active and her favorite thing in the world is going for long walks, even though she's still not so great on the leash, she's much better than she was before.

I think that about brings you up to date. More to come soon. Peach pictures, I promise!

No News

In the Army, they say no news is good news. They WILL notify you if something bad happens. I have not heard from Jerome in about a week. And when I did hear from him, he just sounded frazzled and tired. He said he was being moved to another place and he was not sure if he was going to be doing the job he was trained to do or not. Whatever it is he will be doing, he will stay on the FOB (forward operations base).

That's honestly all the news. There's not much going on with Peach and I. we are expecting a house guest on Tuesday. My friend, Livia is coming for a week to visit. She will also help me get some things done that would be harder on my own. (Like going to Costco and taking Peach to the vet.)

The walk to the post office is very pretty and I am trying to work up the nerve to take some pictures on the way. It's a busy street, so stopping to take pictures would likely cause people to look at me weird. Eventually, I will do it.

So, in light of no news and no pictures, I thought you all would enjoy seeing my very first artist trading cards that I made last night. Artist trading cards (or ATCs as they're commonly known) are miniature works of art done on a 2.5"x3.5" card and made for the sole purpose of trading or giving away. The ones I made last night were for a dog themed swap. I haven't perfected drawing Peach yet, so I did Dustie and Rosie.
This was the first one I made. It was a lot harder than it looks. And it looked waaay better in my head.
I think Rosie turned out a little better...but not much. These were my very first ones, though. I will keep practicing. I made thse with cardboard, construction paper, stickers, memo sheets, tacky glue, gel pens, and markers. I am hoping to do some more in the future using pastels and/or watercolor.

That's it for now. I will try to update as soon as I have news or new pictures!

Frozen Peach

So, we all know Jerome went to Iraq, but did you know Peach wanted to go to?

Lucky for me, we convinced her to stay. Not so lucky for her, though. We got snow. Lots and lots and lots of snow. So, Peach, who shivers even when there's no snow, got a sweater.


It's a little boy's sweater. 'Cause who wants to pay $20 for a dog sweater that she might grow out of when you can get a boy sweater for $6 at the PX? I'll bet the boy sweater is more durable, anyway. (Yes I am wearing shorts in that picture. It wasn't snowing inside.)


It's a little baggy on her, but it works pretty good. At first she didn't like it very much, but once she got in the snow...
She really didn't seem to mind so much. These pics were taken before the snow got really bad, by the way...in case you were wondering why you could still see some ground.

The snow is melting now, and I'm kind of sad I never took pictures of it. I wanted to, then I misplaced my camera for a few days...oops. Maybe next year.

Peach and I are doing okay. We're both a little restless with cabin fever (even though I did venture out a few times.) Like I said, though, the snow is melting and we might be able to go for a walk as soon as tomorrow if enough ice is off the sidewalks.

I've been trying to keep busy, though...one of my other blogs, Snail Mail Addict has been getting a lot of attention recently. It even won a random award! I've also bought a domain name and am working on getting a web comic going. I figure that I will try to make my own job right now in a time when no one's hiring. (I'm still going to try to get a real job anyway...being inside all the time sucks.)

Jerome is in fairly good contact with me for now. He is doing well. They're doing some training and things, but he's actually kind of bored. I think he's been watching a lot of old movies and TV stuff on his computer when they're not busy. He's living in a tent with 20 guys and he says that sucks. He says the food is good. He always mentions the food. He also says he misses everyone.

That's all for now. I will try to take some pretty pictures to post up here soon.

So...

It's just me and Peach now. Jerome left a few days ago.

I'm doing okay...it's his job, he has to go. He is in less danger than he could be in. I can't do anything short of putting myself in the hospital to get him home any sooner, so we will just have to make the best of it.

Peach is kind of upset. The first day she stayed by the door a lot. Now if I say 'Daddy' she will run to the door and wait. Other than that she's a little mad at me for not playing rough enough, like he will. I try to make sure I take lots more time to play with her to make up for the time when he would play with her.

Anyway, I thought y'all would want to hear about our final adventure before he left.

Our buddy, Specialist Phillips, had told us that he'd never been to the ocean before...so we made arrangements and went on the Friday before they left.

It was raining when we said goodbye to Peach, but we didn't care...an adventure is an adventure!

Phillips set the destination on his GPS by just going to a random place on the coast. I don't think I ever found out exactly where we went.

It was a kind of scenic drive out to the west coast of Washington, buuut I forgot my camera, so I didn't get any good pictures. I only got a few with my phone. After about an hour of driving in rain that seemed to get heavier and heavier, we finally saw this:
If you can see, is the very, very angry looking ocean. We were looking for a beach we could walk up to, but I was kind of hungry, so we stopped at a little diner. They seemed to only serve fried food...but we weren't going to try somewhere else...by the time we got in it was storming pretty bad.

Jerome had cod, I had scallops, and Phillips, who says sea food is scary, had chicken strips. It was all very good.

The restaurant was right on the water and the water side was all big picture windows. Just looking at the rain smashing against it was kind of neat, and kind of freaky.

So, when we were done, we went back on the hunt for a beach. We found one not to long after by playing around with the GPS.

We parked and got out. A wall of wind and heavy rain met us. I snapped a couple quick pictures:

<--There's Jerome trying not to be blown over.

This one's Phillips, not sure how he managed to pose as the wind was literally blowing us over. -->

We walked maybe 50 yards twoards the ocean before we gave up and ran for the car, where Phillips announced he is now afraid of the ocean. I realy can't blame him...if the ocean looked like that the first time I saw it, I would probably be afraid of it too.

They're both gone now. It kind of makes me feel better to know that Phillips has gone to Iraq before and wil most likely be able to keep an eye on Jerome while they're overseas.

Since then it's started snowing! I will be making another post about the snow with pics of Peach in her sweater soon. For now, I think it's time to get some sleep.

Peach Takes A Turn

Hi, people! It's me, Peach...I learned to work the computer while Daddy and Mommy have been really busy getting ready for Daddy to go. They keep telling me he will be gone for a long time. I wonder how long that will be? More than overnight? That's the longest he's been gone from me and Mommy so far. I don't like it when he's gone too long. I know when he's supposed to come home from work and if he's not home then, I go and wait at the door...and if he doesn't come home soon, I get so upset I have to cry and run up and down the stairs a lot until he gets back.

We got new couches about a week ago. Well, new to us, Mommy says. I like the couches, They're soft and fun to lay on.

They kept talking about the blog and someone should update the bog, so I had to figure out what it was first...but I did and now I'm HERE!! I don't know how to post pictures yet, but maybe I'll figure it out before the next time I post.

Anyway, Mommy and Daddy left me here alone while they go to Tacoma to take care of things and have dinner together before Daddy has to leave. I have lots of things to do while they're gone...like chewing the bathroom mat! I've got to go get on that. The computer is boring, anyway. Later, People!

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Firstly, for those who don't know yet, Jerome's being sent to Iraq. He'll be leaving in mid-December and won't be back until sometime in August. I'm trying to handle it as best I can, but the idea of being left alone for nine months while my husband is in a dangerous war zone is not exactly easy to deal with. He assures me he's going to a good place and won't be leaving the base. We can only hope for the best, I guess. Peach and I will wait for him eagerly.

I've already given him his big Christmas present: a box set of all the James Bond movies to date. I figured he could use his last few weeks here to start watching them. We're just kind of doing Christmas early, though we don't have a set day. He bought me a Zune...though it's not here yet. We'll have awesome winter next year with some super versions of Christmas, our wedding anniversary (December 28!), New Years, his birthday... all those holidays he keeps missing because of his job.

I'm also working on Christmas cards. I hope I have everyone's addresses. Email Mutnik@gmail.com if you think we might be missing yours.

And speaking of mail, I've gotten into http://www.postcrossing.com ...it's pretty cool sending and receiving postcards from all over the world. I've found we have Fort Lewis post cards, though...so if anyone wants me to send one along, let me know and I'll send it along.

So, on to the cuteness. This is what I woke up to this morning:

But then I wandered into the office and this was the view out the window:
Later, I happened to look out our bedroom window and saw frost! You can't see it too well in this photo, but it's there...unfortunately, this is a later photo not the original what I saw, which I ran downstairs to see if it was snow.
Jerome and Specialist Phillips assured me it was just frost. I'm not exactly looking forward to snow, but I think the first time it happens will be pretty neat.

The cold is creeping up, and I'm starting to seriously wonder if Peach needs a sweater. She does shiver when it gets colder outside. I've always thought dog sweaters were sort of silly, but now I think I honestly might buy one.

Anyway, I'm going to get going and start doing chores before it gets too cold to want to go outside again.

P.S.: I've started a new blog- http://eatinginsomnia.blogspot.com Not sure how that one's going to work out, especially now that he's leaving...but we'll see.

Still Around

Not much interesting stuff has been going on here. This is just a little post to let everyone know we're not dead.

...I was going to post pictures, but Jerome stole the camera. He's on 24 hour Staff Duty today and won't be back until 9 am tomorrow. So maybe pictures later this week.

Peach will be very upset over Jerome being gone for a whole day...once she figures it out. Last time he was late coming home, she threw a fit and ran up and down the stairs and whined at the front door until he came back. I hope she will calm down and go to bed eventually.

Today, I will be cleaning, going to the Commissary, walking Peach, and unpacking. (Still.) Then maybe I will make cookies for when Jerome comes back from staff duty. Chocolate chip or snickerdoodle?

Hope y'all have a nice day! ^.^

Princess Peach Pie

Hey, Peach!

What? Do you have a bite for me?

No, it's time to tell the internet your story. Are you ready?

You're going to write about me on the internet?!

Yes. They've been asking about you. You have loads of fans already.

Oh, okay...I guess.

Okay, now that she's not sleeping or anything...

Everyone knew we wanted to get a dog. Eventually.

When we found the apartment that we didn't move into 'cause they lied, I was happy they accepted dogs...but they lied to us, and we never set foot there.

When we moved into the house in Lakewood, I was very disappointed we would not be allowed to have an indoor dog. We were encouraged to walk Kaiser and Zowie, the dogs that the guy in the back apartment owned, but it wasn't the same. Especially since he liked "dogs that know they're dogs, not dogs who think they're people."

When we were told we were being moved into on post housing whether we wanted to or not, one of the main reasons I didn't throw more of a fit was that we're allowed up to four pets.

Originally, Jerome wanted to get a puppy the day we moved in. I put my foot down and told him we have to be responsible pet parents and find a car first, so we can take the animal to the vet. And on top of that, finding a puppy usually takes more than a day...and at that point, I was looking to adopt a slightly older dog from a shelter. It would likely be already housebroken and would be happy to find a new home.

When he left the next morning for California to finally get all of our things, I did not have the slightest idea that he would come back with a puppy.

Then, the next day, I got the phone call. "Do you want a puppy?" He asked in a playful tone.

It turns out Jerome's sister Katie had adopted a little black Lab mix puppy, but decided it wasn't such a good idea to have the puppy around her young children. She was looking to give her away. She was 11 weeks old. Already spayed and microchipped and had already had two rounds of shots. Her name was Apple.

We agreed to take her...though we decided right away to re-name her.

Several days and a looooong truck ride later, Jerome handed me her pink leash outside our apartment...and left again. He had other things to do before he could come back and unload our things.

When he did come home, we decided to call her Peach. After Princess Peach of Mario Bros. fame.

Now, it's been less than two weeks, and in that time, she's grown a bunch and pretty much become a permanent part of the house. It seems like she's always been with us.

I'm pretty sure that long truck ride up here did it, but she seems to be quite attached to Jerome.


They play together all the time. she knows when he's coming home and will wait by the door. She'll sit in his chair and whine if he's gone. It's all very cute.


She likes running around like a crazy dog outside. She likes to eat those leaves. (We still need a rake.) She likes drinking water out of the rain gutter, despite her water bowl being right next to it. She doesn't have a problem going up and down the stairs, but she gets lazy and will bark if a toy falls down the stairs on accident.

She does NOT like the vacuum.

And right now, she's tired:


...which means it's probably a good time for me to run off to the Commissary. I will prolly update again with more puppy pictures and more about Jerome's head soon.

Oh! And I'm putting together an address book, just so we have everyone's information, should we need it. If you think we should have your info, go ahead and email it to Mutnik@gmail.com ...Thanks!

Just Peachy

So, when I started to plan this post Wenedsday, it was going to be all about our new puppy, Peach.



Buuut, we all know how much Jerome loves going to the emergency room. So, I figure that should probably come first...

Thursday was Jerome's first day back from his ten days of 'moving' leave. He flew home to San Pedro, packed up the horrible mess we left in his mother's living room (that I still feel guilty about) flew a buddy down, and drove it all back up here in a Uhaul... (More on this later.)

Well, when he got back, the Army decided he was going to have some shots: Smallpox, Typhoid, Flu, and Anthrax.

After getting all of the vaccines but the Smallpox, he looked really pale, so the nurse told him to go sit on a gurney until he felt a little better, then come back and get the last shot. He did and came back in shortly for his final inoculation.

After that, Jerome decided he had to go to the bathroom. He walked in...and somewhere in there, he passed out. I've been told it was a few minutes before someone else walked in and found him with a little pool of blood under his head. They managed to rouse him at this point, and someone called 911. He called me from the ambulance.

He got three staples in his head!

After he came home, he was acting strange. Repeating things and having memory lapses.

The next day he went back to the ER. There, they asked him some questions, like "What day is it?" "What year is it?" and "Who's running for President?"...after he couldn't tell them who was running besides Obama, they took a CAT scan. Then they decided he has a concussion and sent him home.

He's not supposed to be doing anything. No unpacking, no playing rough with the puppy, no work. That's not how Jerome works, though...if he feels good, he wants to do things. It's hard to make sure he doesn't hurt himself.

...now, about that puppy.


Oh...she is sleeping. Maybe is best to not post about her right now. I will say her name is Peach and we are happy puppy parents...

But I really think she deserves her own entry. It will come really soon, I promise!

Here's The Before...

With the help of one of Jerome's battle buddies, we made it into base housing with (almost) all of our stuff that we had originally brought with us/acquired while we were here.

I was surprised to see that our name is on the front of the unit:

PV2 is his rank, for those of you who don't speak Army.

Even though we were early for our appointment, the nice lady let us in and showed us around. We signed the papers and she handed off the keys and left.

We pulled in the first truckload of stuff with the help of one of Jerome's buddy's wives, Dawn. It's hard to believe we managed to collect all this stuff in just a month. She drove us back to the house so we could finish final paperwork and clean up a bit.

Later, Specialist Hole (Dawn's husband) helped us move the last of the stuff and let us borrow an air mattress and some sheets. We had two truckloads of stuff, but it barely took up a corner of the living room. A lot of it was quickly unpacked into the kitchen.

The next morning, Jerome left for California to get the rest of our stuff...finally.

This leaves me alone. So, because my mom asked, and because I have nothing better to do, here's a picture tour of a mostly empty house:

The front door...

The kitchen...

That's not my sweater...nope nope.

The stairs:

These will be fun to vacuum,

The living room...

Nicely lit by the windows, but empty.

The laundry room...

Complete with brand new Whirlpool washer and dryer delivered this morning.

The back yard...

We need a rake!

Insert patio furniture here.

And look! A shed for Jerome's bikes to live in!

The office...

Don't look at my mess, this is where I've been spending most of my time...

Aaaand the bedroom...

Yay, more mess!

Not much to see right now...but let's see how it goes after all of our stuff gets here.

Besides, the puppy will make for much cuter pictures...even if the background is just a bunch of boxes.

...yeah, I said puppy. Full details on that one next time...