Back into the swing of things

WOW! So I know that it has been well over a year since I updated this, but I am going to try and get back into the habit of keeping it updated so I can keep everyone up to date with Miss Kayleigh’s growth and accomplishments. Since it’s been over a year, I guess I have lots to write about. Lol. Well last year was just surviving my pregnancy and morning sickness. It was slow going until the end came and I could not believe that it was already time to meet our daughter. We went in May 14 to get a folio to get us ready to evict Kayleigh the next morning. We were told to be there around 0500 so we went home and my contractions got so bad so we went right back to the hospital about 9 or so at night. All natural childbirth, Kayleigh Hope Blakeman was born at 0204 on May 15. 7lbs. 2 oz. and 20.5 inches long. She was born with a full head of hair. She was absolutely breath taking! My mom was with us to celebrate her birth. Andrew was truly a proud daddy; he cut her cord, twice actually. Lol. We were in the hospital until Thursday, unfortunately that was the same day my mom had to leave. We came home from the hospital and were on our own with our daughter. We had no clue what we were doing, but we did our best. We survived and sort of caught up on much needed sleep. The next week Jackie came to visit us, she helped us with Kayleigh and got much needed grandma time. She had to leave us 2 weeks later. We were once again on our own. Andrew went back to work and I was truly alone with a baby. I was so worried, until that day came and it was spectacular! It was quite and I got so much done. She was such a great baby. She slept on and off all day. She never missed a meal, food is so important to her. She has been a great baby. She and I have a great time at home during the day, whether we are making bows, taking walks, sewing, swinging, cleaning, playing on the floor or so much more. I love being a stay at home mom; it is by far the best decision I have ever made! I love being here for all of her moments. She rolled for the first time on September 7 and I was there watching her the whole time. I love knowing her and really seeing her. I love spending time with just her and me. She is truly my little princess. I love dressing her and I love having bows in her long brown hair. I know that being a stay at home mom means some sacrifice, but I am willing to make them to spend time with her. She is so funny; she sits in her swing and just talks away. I cannot wait till I am able to understand what she says. She loves to be in her swing and talk, laugh and sometimes watch TV (yes, my baby watches TV). She loves to roll now, every time I check on her in bed she is in a different position, facing a different way. She is growing so fast, so many of her clothes are too small. I can’t believe it, she was in newborn forever and now I cant keep up with her height. She is so long; it’s hard to fit her. She looks cute in whatever she is wearing. We went to Scotland this last weekend to visit Jared and oh Mylanta did she hate the car ride. It was about 8 hours going and she was screaming most of the way. She didn’t want to ride in her car seat. but we survived and made it. We got to spend time with Jared and see Edinburgh. Kayleigh took her first long rode trip, meet her uncle, take her first train ride and see her first castle. Lots of firsts for my baby. We got her a cute purple kilt and a cute onesie. I will post pictures when I can find them in her super messy room. Lol. We survived the drive and finally made it home where she slept almost 5 hours for a nap and still went to sleep at her regular bedtime. Today I was trying to get things back to our schedule and clean our house. I did laundry, got our beautiful pictures from our photographer. I have to get my self back into gear and put our house back together. I am trying to read Hunger Games so I am trying to finish the first book as I wait for the 2nd book to come in the mail. I am enjoying watching my baby grow up. Andrew is doing well at work, he is one of the best workers they have in his office. He is the one that all of the supervisors depend on, he is doing work far beyond his jobs calling, but he is so good at it, the supervisors don’t stop, because they can trust that if Andrew has it it will get done. He is so great at his job! I am so proud of him. We are trying to enjoy our time that is left here in England. We move sometime in May of 2013. We find out our next base in February. I am excited to see where our next adventure is. I really don’t mind as long as we are in the States. We are looking forward to Mike and Jackie visiting in November. We hope that my mom can come visit us. And we plan on buying Caleb a ticket to come visit us during Christmas break. We are so excited to have our first family Christmas just the 3 of us. Well I am really not sure what else there is to say, we are not that busy, Lol. Just loving each moment with Kayleigh and love watching her grow and develop every day. I cannot believe how she grows just over night. Well like I said I am going to try and keep this up to date, wish me lu

Its been a year...wow!

Wow. So it has been almost a year since I have updated our blog. So many things have happened. Christmas, a new dog, trip to Texas, quitting job, weddings, funerals and birthdays…

So last year we got a new puppy in September, a Siberian husky named Koda Sky Blakeman she is a big, fluffy dog with so much energy. She keeps Britain and us on our toes.

Thanksgiving was small; Andrew and I enjoyed our first Thanksgiving alone and made ham, green bean casserole and deviled eggs.

Christmas was great, Mike, Jackie and Jared came to visit, we went to London and other wonderfully fun places around England. They also celebrated New Years Eve with us.

Andrew was sent to Aviano, Italy for 3 weeks to help with setting things up. Shortly after that Rebekah quit her job at the CDC to become a stay at home student. She is only 2 credits away for her associates and has changed her bachelors to Art history; she wants to major in Photography.

Andrew's birthday was goo, he was off work for a friend day. He got a video game that he wanted and a new wallet. He enjoyed his day.

We took a trip to Texas for Lydia’s Wedding and Jared’s graduation. Both were wonderful. Jared graduated on the honor roll and more. We are so proud. Lydia and Brett were married on June 4, 2011 and are beginning their married military life together. We wish Jared, Lydia and Brett all of the luck and all of our love! It was wonderful going to Texas and seeing everyone, but there is no place like home. When we returned home we made a video of Lydia and Brett’s wedding and are very proud of what we accomplished while doing that.

When we returned home, Rebekah got to witness the beauty of childbirth with her wonderful friend. Madalyn a beautiful baby girl was born on June 20. What a wonderful gift!

Rebekah (me) had a wonderful birthday, she got people magazine subscription, Keurig coffee maker, scentsy, donut maker and more. Thank you to all, especially Andrew who made my day so special, by making me a cake. I love you! Yes I am spoiled and have a wonderful family and husband.

On June 28, Rebekah’s grandfather Trent Campbell went to be with God after his wonderful life. We will always have such found memories of him walking me down the aisle of my wedding, bringing us cereal in bed while we watch Nickalodeon in his huge bed. He used to tell us not to lean on the leaf, he was my buddy, He made me a train that is called the Princess Express, that is what he always called me, “Princess Rebekah” I will miss him more than words can describe, but I know that he is in a much better place.

So lately Andrew and I have been trying to travel, but that is not going well. We went to Grimes Graves this weekend. And this coming up weekend we plan on going to see the new Harry Potter 7 Part 2 in 3D in Bury St. Edmunds. Andrew is taking an oceanography class and is doing very well in it. I was taking College Algebra, but that was dropped when I realized that I am not a math person. I will be taking a college mathematics course soon. We are both very into taking pictures and have taken numerous amounts. I will be posting our best photos on facebook as soon as I go through them.

Andrew did his shooting for the military today and got a 38 out of 50, I am so proud. I am going try and start to update this blog more often when something interesting happens.

We wish all of our families our love.

Lydia and Brett enjoy your move and don’t stress…things will be over soon and you will be together in YOUR home.

Mike and Jackie congrats on selling your Wichita Falls house, we are so happy for you!

Kelley we love you and you are in our prayers.

Caleb we love you! And hope that you are making the most of your summer.

Jared we love you and are praying for you and your beginning of AIM, you will do fantastic!

We love you all!!

So our lives have been pretty busy lately, super sorry for not posting on here. Since we have been here we have been to Windsor Castle with some friends. We have been to Huntstanton Beach, which was a super beautiful, but shallow beach. We hit it at low tide. We went to Castle Rising, small, but pretty. We tried Indian Food, oh wait let me rephrase that, I tried India Food. Andrew had chicken nuggets, oh yes I said it. Lol. That is my Andrew Michael. Lol. We had fun.

We have been busy with our jobs. I work at the CDC on Lakenheath and work with 1-2 year olds. I love it, they make the day go by quickly, but definitely keep you on your toes. I love them all. They are terrible 2’s, but so loveable. I love sitting down and having 2 and 3 kids sitting on your lap wanting you to read to them. They make it so worthwhile. We are teaching them to walk holding the walking rings around the block and they are so proud of themselves. I am proud of them too. I work with great people and truly love it. I am learning all the rules slowly, but I will catch on. I love it more and more each day.

Andrew is doing good, obsessed with Mafia Wars on Facebook, and working every day. He is a busy guy. He is a wonderful cook; he grilled our lunch. He is enjoying his job, certain factors make it a rough day sometimes, but he is a great guy working hard. He loves checking the mail and seeing what we get. He really enjoys playing on our new Mac Computer that we got to replace my broken laptop.

Britain is keeping us busy with her craziness. We bought a gate to keep her downstairs while we were at work and somehow she found a way to get around it and when we get home she is upstairs, still haven’t figured that out. She is potty trained for the most part; she still has accidents, but is really good at waiting to go outside. She loves her bones and lost her first tooth last weekend. We were shocked, but her teeth are so small that as she loses them, we will probably never know where they end up.

Our house is totally put together, after not so long. We are so happy to have a home. It is not huge, but snug. Our main issue that is difficult is the fact that we have NO water pressure; it is a test of patience. But we are doing well. We love all of our wonderful gifts that people have given us for our wedding, finally getting to use them. Lol.

Well not much else going on, our 1 year anniversary is August 15, so we are excited about that. Time is going by quickly as we are both working. We are enjoying being together and dread his deployment (don’t know when, it will be a surprise), all in the life of a military family.

We look forward to traveling more and seeing so many things…any suggestions???

Love,
Andrew and Rebekah

Life with the Blakeman's

So to start out, Thursday is my Birthday!!!! Happy Birthday to me!!! 21, oh yeah! So we have been super busy with school, work and life all together. We have all of our stuff and the house is almost all set up. Andrew finally got his fish. Britain is as stubborn as ever, now she is refusing to come. Making us both mad, but it takse patience. We went to London with a friend yesterday, it was a relativly short trip, only an hour and a half. Then Saturday I went to Ely with Kaye, we had fun. We went to Market and Cathedral. I had an interview with the Child Care center West on Wendnesday, cross your fingers I got the job. I am ready to get out of the house. We had a Pig Roast on Wendnesday for the people leaving in Andrew's squadron. Britain goes to her 2nd puppy appointment tomorrow, so wish us luck. Andrew is finally getting into the working groove and enjoying it. I am getting our house together and not enjoying that, lol. I am but it gets old very quickly. School is keeping me busy, I am attending University of Maryland online, majoring in Human Resources Management, no one offers Education over here, so I took my second choice, I am taking intro to business right now, the book is interesting, but you know me, it takes forever to read it. Well speaking of school, i better start working on it. Love you all and miss you too!!

sorry its been so long...

Hey our wonderful followers. I am so sorry it has been so long since we have updated this thing, we have had SO MANY things doing on. Well we got our unaccompanied stuff on Friday. So our kitchen was chaos then Saturday we went to London. I rode the tube for the first time; all I can say is CROWDED!!!!! We literally went from one end of the Tube to the other. Oh I am sorry, it’s not the Tube it is the UNDERGROUND. Goodness me. Lol. It did say “Mind the Gap” like Dave warned me, they said it at EVERY stop. Oh my. It was hot. We went too united about our broken Laptop, got nowhere, a lady (not a claims agent) came over took some notes and copied our paperwork again and said someone will contact us. So that was pointless. Then that afternoon we got lost walking around London, finally we got back on the Underground and rode to the Theater where we got to see the PHANTOM OF THE OPERA!!!! Yes I said it. It was amazing. Such wonderful scenery and just wonderful!!! I got like everything at the souvenir shop. Lol. I am actually wearing the T-Shirt right now. I will put pictures on Facebook when the computer will let me. So we went home after that.
Sunday we went to our wonderful little church and then had to get our house together and cleared up so we could get our household goods on Monday. We have FMO, the loaner furniture in our corner waiting for FMO to come pick it up today. Monday was crazy, I had my wonderful friends helping me put things away and together. Unpacking is coming along, slowly!!! I just have to keep moving. Yesterday we got Andrews car, it is at the shop getting fixed for England and will be done today at around 4:30 or so. That brings us to today, we got internet at home so I will be on more often. Well I better go and unpack, I am procrastinating. Lol. Talk to you all soon.

Things I have learned so far...

Wow ok so it is Monday May 10. I am already worn out. Lol. This weekend was good, Friday we went on the Bury St. Edmunds tour with a small group; we went to our first Pub called the Queens Head. It was good, again with the NO ICE. Oh well, I will get used to it. We then went to the Edmunds Cathedral. It was so beautiful. Pictures are starting to work a little on our Facebook so take a look at our new pics. We went bowling Friday night with our new friends, so sweet!! Then Saturday we slept in till 9, and then we went to Bury St. Edmunds market. We tried to get cell Phones, but they won’t help us unless we have lived in UK for 3 consecutive years or had 2 UK addresses. So that didn’t work, we got phones from the base, not as good but they will work for us for now.
While at the market, we got fruit, bread. I got a new jacket and puzzle. It was really neat a different experience. After the market we came back and went to the Case Lot sale at Commissary, we bought a lot of stuff. It was fun! Then Sunday we went to Commissary to get the things we forgot on Saturday, went to Church and met even more great people. We ate lunch with the Redds, thank you!! We came back home at about 3, I took my final for Art and made dinner. Then we woke up this morning and tried calling Affees to fix my computer that was broken by the Airlines, they couldn’t help us, we had to call Sony. They said we would have to call back later because the people who we needed to talk to weren’t there yet. So we are going to have major phone bills because people keep giving us the run around. I am getting very mad about the computer, I didn’t do it, but no one is willing to fix it. Why make us buy $100 dollar warranty if you’re not going to fix the computer when you didn’t even do anything wrong. Sorry that is my rant, it really makes me super mad.
I was cleaning out our suitcases and realized that I packed all of Sammy’s information my parents need to ship her here, so I have to go to the post office and mail all of that to my mom. It is one of those days, I want to go back to bed and start over!!! I hope it will get better. I am getting my cell phone today. Andrew is calling Sony when he gets back from his meeting, hopefully that will get taken care of.
We are getting to sign our house papers tomorrow, that is exciting. But Andrew called TMO today and apparently they didn’t have a folder on us at all and our stuff is still not here, it has to be here before the 24th, but I am getting mad that they have no information on us. I emailed her a copy of Andrew’s orders, so let’s hope that it gets taken care of. Oh well, today will get better, I hope!!!
So things that I have learned about England. The first day in England I asked Andrew’s master Sergeant, almost drove him nuts.
• In England all the lines on the road are WHITE all of them, even for 2 way streets.
• The only yellow lines are areas that there is no parking or stopping.
• England has no 4-way stops, they have round-abouts, you drive in a circle till you hit your exit and always yield (give way) to the person on your right.
• Parking lots are called car Parks
• England signs are pictures almost no words.
• The lanes are narrow and steep on the sides, cars are allowed to park on the side of the road so watch out.
• Nowhere is actually 24 hours, all their stores here close.
• The Texting or internet might tell you “Unlimited” but it’s not really, we are under the “Fair-Share” program so “unlimited” means 3000 texts and 500mg of internet.
• Cops can pull you over for nothing and call it a safety check.
• It is ILLEGAL or a 500 pound fine to talk on a Cell Phone while driving or Eating or Drinking while Driving. They have no Pity
• If you are parked it a no park zone or in front of a fire hydrant, they have a Car Crusher and without warning, they will just crush your car in the street. NO PITY!!!

“What no one told you about living in England”
(These are things I got in my Spouse’s handout)
• No electrical outlets in the bathrooms, or the “loo”
• Have a GPS in the car; maps of England will absolutely drive you insane
• Annual TV tax- paying for the right to WATCH TV in your home
• Hogwarts isn’t real!
• Clotted cream served with your scone; sounds suspicious, but it’s so good!
• Everything closes at 4pm on Sundays, even supermarkets except for TESCO (their Wal-Mart, but not as good)
• Whatever you do, don’t hit a horse- they always have the right of way and some, especially near Newmarket, cost millions—really!
• Things are not always cheaper on base
• If grocery shopping off base don’t wait for someone to bag your groceries; just grab a bag and start stuffing.
• You must add salt to your dishwasher; otherwise, the dishes will have a cloudy, hard water residue.
• If your child attends British School and forgets PE clothes, they will participate in their underpants (we’ve yet to figure out why!)
• You will learn the capital of all 50 states, courtesy of AFN (our cable)
• Learn to back into parking spaces; it makes parking in these smaller lots easier
• British made DVDs will NOT play in your American DVD player.
• Be prepared to pay for annual MOT and road tax on your vehicle.
• And Finally…
You will make friends here that will last a lifetime!!
I think that is enough info for now. I am trying to get used to it here, I am ready to be done with the hard things like our broken computer. Well ttyl. Hope to hear from you all soon!!

Andrew and Rebekah

So more briefings, about phones and so on. We got a house offer one in Ely (45 minutes away) and one in Lord's Walk (which is literally right outside Gate 2) So we went and looked at the Lord's walk, Andrew didn’t want to drive 45 minutes to and from work every day, especially in the dark winter, they have Car Eating Ditches, they are deep and full of water. So we didn’t even go that far. We decided to go with the Lords Walk it is 11 Lancewood. I am so happy. It is a 2 story house, 2 bedrooms. 1 Bathroom, a cute little house with Pink Carpet. The main problem is no fence in the back yard, we are going to ask how we can maybe get that Okayed to put it, but I am not sure. I am super excited about it though.

We met Andrews Supervisor Tech. Sergeant Hartford and his wife, Kaye. She is soooo sweet; she has all of these plans. They will live in Lord's walk too, just in the nicer houses. lol. But she wants to have a BBQ and so on.
We are took our driving test today, so wish me luck, we both passed you had to get an 80 and that is just what I got, Andrew got an 88, he is so smart!

We went to church last night, Melody drove over and we followed them there, it is so small less than 30 people, very nice people, some old, but I didn’t meet any couples our age, just Kelsey and her boyfriend. I have met so many nice people!!
I signed up for a class called Heart Links it is a class for the spouses of Armed Forces and it is a brake down of ranks, rules, deployments and so on, the things that Andrew learned and just didn’t bring home. lol. That is June 11; I am pretty excited about that. I am taking it with Camille and Kaye. So that will be neat.

So that is what happened yesterday (Wednesday) it is 11:40am here. The days go by very quickly here, which is good, but also not good. Andrew is getting really good on driving on the Left hand side. I hope I don’t have too, but if I do, I at least passed by driving test. When I took my test up for him to grade it, he just sat there; I said “How are you?” He was like “good, you?” I was like “NERVOUS” He laughed and said, “No need you got an 80” I was so relieved!!! I was shaking. Andrew wasn’t nervous he knew the information, even though I read over the book more. Oh well. Lol.

Tomorrow is our trip to Bury St. Edmunds; we are very excited about that, we will hopefully get Cell Phones or Mobile phones here. Pretty excited. Lol. We will go this afternoon and tell the housing office we want the house and ask all of the questions we have. Then we will call and see if our stuff is here or if it is close. I am so excited about having a house and getting ready to move it. I am loving it more and more here each day. I am meeting such wonderful people who are having the same problems or questions as me. I met another new wife today, I lost her name. lol. I am so bad, but I like having that security. She is looking at a house behind where we live, so that will be really neat to have someone young close to us. I am excited to get done with in-processing and start traveling and setting up our new house.

When we looked at the house it was so small, but the more we walked around it grew on me. I think it will be a perfect house for Andrew Michael and I. Super excited and looking forward to you all coming to visit me!!! Well I better run, I am not sure when Andrew is done with his briefing and I know he will want to run to the housing office as soon as he is done. Love you and miss you all!

Rebekah and Andrew