Saturday, January 28, 2012

Just Another Day

Today was actually fairly eventful so I thought I would give you all some pictures and such to look at :) Mitchell and I went out to the Border Patrol shooting range after being invited by our oh-so-sweet neighbors. If I haven't mentioned how awesome they are before, just so you know....they are pretty awesome! We are so blessed to live near some really sweet guys and gals while here at Laughlin. Anyways, it had been ages since either of us had shot Mitchell's guns, so naturally we jumped at the opportunity. Here are some photos...


I think we got him between
the two of us!

Although it's hard to tell from this photo...the Mexican
mountains were extra pretty today!

The Border Patrol Station, about 1/2 mile
away to get across to Mexico.

I think that people often don't realize how close we live to the Mexican border. This last photo really gives you an idea. From our house it took about 20 min to get here and while at the gun range we could have walked to the border in about 10 minutes. Those tiny dots in the middle are the checkpoint station.

We also made some DELICIOUS tortilla soup for dinner! The lovely Mrs. Wanda Schroeder gave me a couple boxes of this delectable stuff for Christmas and it was an instant favorite in the Etheridge household!  I highly recommend it to anyone, although finding it anywhere but online is difficult...



Well, that's really all for now! I hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend so far :)

Love,
The Etheridges



Thursday, January 26, 2012

Another Angel

As some of you know Mitchell's sweet grandmother passed away very suddenly this past weekend. Although I did not know her as long as most of the Etheridge clan, I did know her well enough to say that the earth has lost a very special and sweet woman.  I have been visiting his grandparents every summer since Mitchell and I have been together and we were also blessed enough to see them every Christmas as well. Over the past 6 years I got to know Lou and can honestly say that she was one of the kindest and most hospitable people there was. She reminded me my mother in a lot of ways, which is to say she lived every day as a servant and to make everyone around her as happy as possible. Her kind spirit and loving nature were always so welcoming, especially after the passing of my mother. The Lord only knows why he needed her in heaven at this exact time. All I do know, is that her and my mother are sitting up there at this very second chatting away with one another to their hearts content. You will be greatly missed by many grand-mom.


Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Same ole Same ole

I apologize for the lack of posting lately, but honestly nothing new and exciting enough has happened worthy of a post! Therefore, consider this a rather mundane update with some pictures ;)

Mitchell is still in Phase I of UPT. This is the academic phase, in case you missed that from my past few posts. So far this portion of UPT has been pretty easy and it's been nice having Mitchell home a good deal more than he was during his casual job. Sadly, all of that will change once Phase II begins around the middle of February, which includes 12 hour days and he actually starts flying (scary thought right?!). So, I'm trying to enjoy every moment that he has free right now! Anyways, here are a couple pictures from Phase I so far...

The altitude chamber!

;)
The first picture is from when I went to see Mitchell when they had their altitude chamber training. It was a really neat event and everyone there was very "spouse friendly" letting us take lots of pictures and such! Basically, they guys/girls sit in this chamber with a few other classmates and it is supposed to simulate being in a plane in terms of altitude. Once they get to a high altitude, and the oxygen is low, they make them take their masks off depriving them of a small amount of oxygen. It's meant to simulate what it's like if you're up in the plane and something happens and you can't get enough oxygen. 

Other than Mitchell being in the first phase of UPT, school has started up for me again and I'm still working at the same retail store here in Del Rio. I've been having a hard time being content with my job lately, so any and all prayers about my current employment situation would be greatly appreciated. As usual school is rather stressful, but thankfully I will be done by next December (woo hoo). Since there isn't really anything new to report here are a couple random photos from the past few weeks...

Little Winston waiting for his dinner...a daily routine around here.

We made a yummy lemon herd chicken the other night
for the first time! Mitchell was excited to use
his electric knife ;)

Hopefully the next few weeks will be more eventful and I will have some more exciting photos! We are planning to head out to the lake Friday after Mitchell gets off if the weather is nice, so if nothing else we will have the usual lake photos to share ;) Until next time....

Love,
The Etheridges





Monday, January 2, 2012

A New Year

Well, here we are in 2012! I always hate how fast the holiday season seems to fly by, especially when you are able to spend it with family and friends. We were blessed enough to see our family this Christmas, as we flew home to Georgia for a few days while Mitchell had some time off and I was able to get off of from work for a little bit. Other than consuming WAY to much good food, and sweets, we both had an amazing time getting away from Texas for a bit and spending time with people we most likely won't get to see for many months, or a year in Mitchell's case.

In regards to Christmas presents, my sweet husband and his wonderful mother were in cahoots with one another this year! Every year my mom and I would go up to Atlanta during the Christmas season and spend the day together shopping and eating at the Cheesecake Factory. To be honest, this memory had been in the back of my mind since the beginning of December and was a sad one to recall knowing our yearly tradition wouldn't be taking place any more. However, on Christmas day I was surprised by "Santa" with a gift card to the Cheesecake Factory and spending money for a shopping trip! My husband and mother-in-law gave me a trip in memory of my sweet mother. So, Mitchell and I picked a day over our break to head up to the "big city" and we spent the day reminiscing about my mother and how happy she would have been to accompany us! I couldn't have thought of a better way to remember her this holiday season :)


Sadly we didn't get a chance to take many photos (aka we totally forgot and didn't want to lug our camera around) but here are a few that we did manage to get over Christmas vacation...


I have the best husband and mother-in-law!

Lunch at the Cheesecake Factory! One of our favorites ;)

We cleaned that plate right up...

Mitchell's Christmas present ;)

And mine!

Adios Georgia...I hope to see you again soon


Speaking of the new year....

 All in all I guess you could say I have mixed feelings about 2011. I looked forward to it for so long. As soon as Mitchell left for BCT back in 2007 and headed to USAFA I was counting down the days until he graduated. Once we were engaged  in October of 2009, 2011 really couldn't have gotten here any faster! With all those things combined, Mitchell graduating, getting married, and becoming a part of the real AF, you could say it was simply an amazing and incredible year. However, I think 2011 will live on as both the happiest and saddest year of my life. I not only married my best fried and love of my life, but I lost another best friend and true companion, my mother. I don't think anyone can put into words what it's like to lose a loved one, especially someone you thought would be around for a good while and then they are taken away from you so unexpectedly, and on the eve of such a joyous event. Through my mother's death God has shown me to appreciate every day of every year for the people in my life and to trust in his will and plan. As great, and devastating, as 2011 was, I can truly only hope that 2012 brings both joy and more peace in my heart and those around me! 

I hope that everyone had a safe and happy new year and that 2012 is the best yet! 

Much love,

The Etheridges