Meal Plan Monday - Week of June 20

I don't know what happened last week, but I have two carryover meals. And this week is going to have a few nights out, so here's the plan:

• grilled cheese and tomato soup
• macaroni and cheese with ham and peas
• some kind of chicken (probably a teriyaki marinade)
• stuffed shells

I Have My Own FRG

All right, so everyone knows that my husband is deploying to the Middle East this summer for about five or six months. We like the Army; Matt is one of those guys who could probably be making a heck of a lot more money in the private sector but he chooses to stay in public service. There are a lot of good people doing good work.

But I have to admit that I didn't anticipate this when I married an Army civilian. And I'm quickly learning that even though his position is designated as deployable, even though the Army has been deploying civilians for a while, it doesn't seem like anyone in the great hierarchy has anticipated this either.

We are preparing as best as we can; I made a list and we are working our way through it. I was hoping that I'd find some good information from the Army. I mean, hey, they deploy people all the time so they'd have some guidance for us, right? Wrong.

If my husband were a Soldier, then we'd be all set. You can find tons and tons of information and resources out there for Soldiers and their Families. (That would be the Army's capitalization, by the way.) But my husband is a civilian (note the little "c") and there is very little for us to go on.

I did manage to find the Army's guide for deploying civilians. It was written 16 years ago, in 1995. I think we can safely say that the world has changed a bit since then. It dedicates all of about one page to family preparation for deployment and offers this little gem:

Does your spouse know where and how to use the following: the electrical control box (fuse/circuit box), the water control valve for shutting off gas in case of an emergency (broken or leaking pipe), the gas control valve for shutting off gas in case of an emergency (leaking pipes or a fire)

To which I say: "F**k you, Army, I showed HIM where those things are in our house!"

But yeah, Army Legal Services helped him with a will and power of attorney but refused to do the same for me, because he is a civilian. Despite the fact that the official publication says that legal assistance is available to "Army civilians notified of deployment and their families". But am I going to argue with government lawyers? Heck no.

Matt tells me that I am allowed to shop at the PX and the Commissary while he is deployed, but I can't find any documentation of that, so I'm not going to try. Besides, the cost of living here is pretty low so I'm not sure the pricing is even worth it.

Army Community Services is supposed to be able to assist me with figuring out what resources are available but the guy hasn't bothered to call me back.

All the documentation Matt brought home from a Yellow Ribbon event for a reserve unit was aimed at Soldiers and their Families. Their primary recommendation? Get involved with your Family Readiness Group (FRG). The FRG seems to be the answer to everything. Support system, people going through something similar, people who know how to navigate the system.

But Matt doesn't have a unit, and without a unit there doesn't seem to be an FRG. The overall feeling is that officially, I'm on my own. This has been getting me down a bit.

Thank God, then, that I am not actually on my own. Matt and I have our own unit-- we call ourselves a team, and I don't know why, but other people seem to love the team concept.

We have only been living here nine months, and yet I have a group of friends who told me, "Jess, we are here. No matter what you need, you call us at any time and we will be there." Matt's mom is here, and so are some college buddies of his who have said the same thing. And through the power of the interwebs, the East Coast branch of the team is in close contact.

Maybe the Army will still come through, but I look at all the people I have on the team already and I know that I can do this. I have my own FRG.

Meal Plan Monday (The Return!) - Week of June 13

So, after a seven-month hiatus, Meal Plan Monday returns. Thanks to the Duhawk ladies who told me over Memorial Day weekend that I should hop back on the blog-wagon.

What happened in the last seven months? We moved into the house at the beginning of December, and didn't have a working oven for four months. Oh, and the stove only has two burners. Plus I spent a few months cramming for some IT certifications. Toaster oven + two burners + intense studying = eating out a lot.

I have slowly been getting back into the "making real dinners" thing. Some weeks are better than others, but I hope that starting the Meal Plan Monday posts again will help with that. If only because you'll ask me what I'm making for dinner.

Without further ado (and pardon the lack of sides listed):

• macaroni and cheese with ham and peas
• grilled cheese and tomato soup
• salmon (either lemon pepper or with a sun-dried tomato marinade)
• meatloaf
• chicken (either a basic roasted version or a marinade)

Four Bedrooms, Two Different Ideas.

Yesterday at lunch Matt and I were idly discussing house plans as we waited for our pizza...

Matt: We'll need to buy another bed.
Jess: Why is that? We already have two.
Matt: Yeah. There are four bedrooms. We have two beds and one bedroom will be an office, so we need another bed.
Jess: Ummmm, maybe instead of buying a bed right away we'd wait a bit and buy a crib?
Matt: [crickets]

Goodbye, Hello

Every New Year, the Washington Post publishes its In & Out list. And in that spirit, I write this "Goodbye, Hello" list:

Goodbye | Hello       

        Memphis | Quad Cities     

        The South | The Midwest    

     teaching | tech support

 cotton fields | corn fields    

       corrupt mayors | corrupt governors   

   oppressive humidity | bone-chilling cold      

apartment living | house hunting   

Wolfchase Galleria | Southpark Mall       

tornadoes | tornadoes

Police Women of Memphis | American Pickers                

people who let doors slam in your face | people who hold doors for you              

                                      Southern accents | no accents? (trying to figure that one out)

     Tiger fans | Hawkeye fans

Coke | pop    

Wardrobe Rehab - Sort & Purge

I went through everything in the closet and in the dresser. It took a while, but this is the current state of my wardrobe:

I've already taken some of the "to be tailored" clothes to the tailor. The "to be donated" clothes are headed out today.

Meal Plan Monday - Week of August 30

Yeah yeah yeah, today is Tuesday. We'll all just have to get over it.

I don't have many meals planned for this week for two reasons. First, last week resulted in a LOT of leftovers, so last night was "finish the leftovers" night. Second, we are heading out of town on Friday for Labor Day weekend. Here we go:

• lemon pepper chicken, sweet potatoes, broccoli
• salmon, rice or couscous, peas
• BBQ porkchops, corn, sweet potato fries