Eye surgery, fun at Tybee, and travels!

Last week, Justin was fortunate enough to have laser eye surgery done, called PRK. It is similar to the LASIK eye surgery. It is truly an amazing thing. Justin can now see WITHOUT his glasses or contacts! The surgery was a pretty painful thing, though. He was given Valium and Percaset and a bunch of different eye drops to use. The funniest thing was the second night after we got into bed. We had forgotten to turn out the living room light, and Justin had already taken his Valium for bedtime. He said he would go get the light. As soon as he got up, he about fell right back down and said, "I think I better sit down. This Valium must have taken effect FAST. Whoa....I am not used to this!" Poor guy even woke up a few mornings in a lot of pain. However, he says the surgery was totally worth it....AND the Army paid for it, so it is even better. :) I truly can't imagine being able to see without my contacts or glasses. My contacts are a -7.50, so I am basically blind. I can only see blobs of color when I don't have my contacts in. It's a weird feeling. But I am thankful Justin was able to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to SEE! :)

Last night, Justin and I went out to Tybee Island 1 last time. We met my friend Merilee there along with her hubby Steven and their 3 kids: Susanna, Aiden, and Connor. They are such sweet kids! I had a lot of fun taking family pictures of them on the beach. But it was quite a painful experience, too.......literally! The sand gnats were just awful last night! They were biting us like crazy. I even have little red marks all over my arms today from the bites. I look like I have chicken pox! I hope they go away soon. They itched so bad! When we were done, we went over to eat some dinner at Spanky's. It was a great evening. I'm glad I got to hang out with Merilee 1 more time!

So now it is Thursday and I am sitting here writing while the cleaning lady is here in our house cleaning away for our move-out inspection in the morning. It is time to go. I am sad, but excited for next week in Indiana with cooler weather! It is still in the high 80's down here and humid. So I am ready for Fall weather! I am looking forward to spending time with family and friends, going to a few bonfires, going to the Creation Museum in Cinci, and even going with the nieces, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law to a pumpin patch. Yay! We'll stop by Clarksville, Tennessee tomorrow night and Saturday night so Justin can see college friends, and then we will be in Indiana from October 11-19. Then, on October 20th, we will drive to Missouri to begin our adventure there.

It's almost the weekend....have a great one everyone!

It's Hard to Say Good-bye!

We move from Georgia on October 9th....that is 1 week from today! So I am finally realizing it is really time to say good-bye to Georgia. How sad! We have been stationed down here at Ft. Stewart, Georgia since October of 2006.....wow.....3 years! We will truly miss the Savannah area. There is so much to do here. It is a classy city. :) Forsyth Park, River Street, Tybee Island, friends.....

I am trying to say good-bye to all my friends down here, but it is hard.

Rachel, her baby boy Thomas, and me

I drove up to Ft. Bragg, North Carolina for 2 days to say good-bye to my friend Rachel, whom I met at Ft. Stewart 3 years ago. She has become one of my closest, truest friends. We reminisced of how we met. God truly places people in our lives exactly when we need them. Rachel and I had both recently married (me in June of 2006 and Rachel in October 2006).....we both had just moved to Georgia.....she was from Kentucky and I was from Indiana....she was a teacher and I worked at a school.....it was meant to be from the start! We clicked instantly and now it is hard to say good-bye! When we see each other from now on, we won't just be a short drive away. Ah, but that is the way of the military....you meet great friends and then you have to leave them. I know that in my head, but it is still hard on the heart!

I had lunch a few days ago with my good friend Katie as well. This girl is so much fun! I am so happy for her as she is having a baby in December....she has wanted this for so long! But now I have to leave and won't be able to meet her baby girl Madison. Again, I am sad to go. But I will always remember the fun we had on the cruise together. Remembering 70's night on the ship will always make me smile....what a fun trip!

Oh and my friends from Button Gwinnett Elementary.....they are really such a wonderful bunch! I feel like they are family! They welcomed me so lovingly when I began working at the school in January of 2007. I will miss all of them terribly.

It is hard to say good-bye, but I will never forget this place or the people here. It has become a 2nd home to us (Indiana is our 1st home of course). And I WILL come back to visit no matter where we are stationed next. Good-bye Georgia. Good-bye Georgia friends. I love you all! :)