Ten

I have been tagged by Dana at Happy Life as an Army Wife to list ten things that make me happy.  Sorry it took me so long to do a new post....I've been working on this one!!

1. Jesse.  Now, how could I start off this without him?  I don't feel like getting all mushy on you, so I won't.  He is the love of my life, he makes me laugh, and he's a total goofball.  He is what I am not.  We are pretty much exact opposites.  I am indecisive, he is decisive.  He can sit there and tell someone what he thinks without them getting offended, and is fearless in doing so.  He's proud of what he does and loves his job.  He's great at hanging pictures (I know this is weird, but it amazes me!).  He's confident and outgoing.  He's a good handyman, and wants to learn and do all that he can.  He is, for the most part, motivated.  A lot of the time you can't get the boy to sit down!  He can be a little nutty, but always means well.
2. Stryker & Spuz.  I love animals.  They are awesome.  I am a huge animal person.  I have a hard time if either one of them aren't around me.  My crazy, goofy, 90 lb labrador/german shepherd has a great temperament, never jumps on people, and is easy to train.  He is great with kids, other animals, and is a gentle soul.  He scares strangers who don't know him, often because of his size (yes, I think that's awesome).  When he looks at me he melts my heart.  Spuz is a fuzzy little man that we adopted at 3 weeks (yes, bottle fed even!).  He has an attitude of a cat, but rarely does anything destructive.  He loves his mouse toy, his scratching post, and canned food.  He doesn't eat too much, but gets daring to go outside.  Usually noises scare the bejesus out of him so that doesn't last long!  He is a cat who has a mean streak (I'm not gonna lie he will occasionally attacks me in my sleep), but always keeps an eye on me wherever I go.  And he's fascinated with water.  Either way, the two of them never judge, and are great companions.
3. The US of A.  How can I not love this place?  The more I think about places that are third world countries (like Afghanistan) I am more and more grateful that I was born here.  Many of you have heard stories of your own of experiences your family members have had with Iraq and Afghanistan with how people live.  I think it's hard to wrap your mind around living in places like this.  How many people's houses are literally mud huts, they have arranged marriages, and don't know their birthdays (just to name a few things that Americans don't often think about).  They fear for their lives because people like the Taliban are so forceful, vicious, and heartless.  You know those movies where they kill everyone in your family besides one person?  That happens there.  In real life.  They don't have clean water much of the time, many people don't wear clothing that looks clean, and if they do it doesn't stay that way.  They are far from the luxuries that we have here, and they take whatever they can get and as much of it as possible in fear that they won't have it tomorrow.  We take so much for granted.  We are so lucky here.
4. Mil Spouses.  I have to admit, I never thought that I would be so grateful for such a group of people.  Fort Benning was the beginning of my journey as a true Army Wife, and I have met so many amazing, beautiful, strong, resilient men and women along the way.  In no particular order:  Katie, Ashley, Cherie, Cassidy, Crissy, Kristen, Dana, Chantal, Clarice, Cathy, Kelly C., Kelly R., Sarah M., Heather, Clarice, and Merideth, you all have been amazing awesome women who I have been inspired by or gathered great strength from.  Thank you for being in my life (and sorry if I missed you in my name drop!!).  For all of you in the blog-o-sphere of life, you too make me laugh and sometimes make me cry.  I enjoy knowing you and reading your stories, they are both motivational and inspiring.
5. The Great State of Washington.  I love this state.  You have everything here.  You have oceans to your west, mountains to your east, and desert on the other side of the mountains.  You have rivers, lakes, and the Puget.  You have great wildlife like seals, whales, elk, deer, and bears.  You have evergreen trees standing tall on every hillside, and Mount Rainier is an amazing sight in the background.  You have the amazingly destructive yet beautiful volcano that is Mount Saint Helens.  There is great food, organic is huge here.  Wild salmon, clams, oysters, and more fresh seafood are abundant here.  Lots of wineries.  And if you get bored, you have Idaho to your east and Oregon to your south.  They too are full of amazing and beautiful adventures.  Wherever the Army takes us, I see us coming back here to stay and spend the rest of our lives when the craziness is over.
6. The Ocean.  Yes, I touched on this on my previous point, but I want to say it again.  I love the beach!  Chances are if its somewhat nice out and I have time off, that is where I'll be.  Granted the Pacific Northwest doesn't give you warm sand, warm water, and you definitely don't want to swim in most of the waters here (even though they do surf a lot in certain places here).  I love the fresh fish, shopping, and most of all the water.  Long Beach, Illwaco, and Ocean Shores Washington are a couple of my faves up here (Oysterville is near Long Beach, visit there to get yourself some very fresh oysters if you're an oyster lover).  You can't deny Oregon though (believe it or not their beaches are different), with Astoria, Seaside, Cannon Beach, and Lincoln City.  While your out there visit the Tillamook Cheese factory (get yourself some fresh and local ice cream and cheese!)  Not to mention most all of these places have their own farmer's markets in the summer with amazingly great treats.
7. Laughing.  I think this pretty much explains itself??  It's always nice to get a good laugh...
8. Baking.  I absolutely love doing it.  I love mixing things by hand and seeing the end result.  I also have a sweet tooth which doesn't help any!  I do make some killer care packages though filled with all sorts of sweet treats.  I want to expand my horizon with this, and will likely do so.  I think I'm going to make cupcakes from scratch for when Jesse gets home on leave.  My mom bought me a cupcake tower for my birthday and a cupcake icing decorator tool for Valentine's Day.  So I likely will give that a try!  I even saw them make icing from scratch on the Food Network with vanilla from a vanilla bean (by the way, check out the Food Network Magazine...They have stuff other than baking in there.  Some GREAT looking food!).  Love it!
9. Chocolate.  Dark chocolate is the best, but I'll take anything I can get!  I have to say, dark chocolate fondue (like from the Melting Pot) is to die for!
10. Starbucks.  What can I say?  I am from Washington, the great state of where the first Starbucks was founded.  Need I say more?  Oh yes.  I normally order a tall white chocolate mocha with caramel sauce.  Jesse and I both get the same thing. :)

Thank you all for listening to me babble!  Now I have a task for a few select members of my blog-o-sphere.  I get to select three people to pass this task on to and keep the tradition going.  Soooo, my three choices are:  Chantal, Cheryl at My Air Force Journey, and Hell Cat Betty.