Don't you love it, "the moving guy". I'm sure he has a name, in fact I know he does I just don't remember it. I was so excited that he called, everything else flew right out of my head. So, the guy who is driving the truck that has all of our earthly possessions on it called me today and said that the 24th would be the latest date he would be here with our stuff! WOOT! I called the apartment complex we're moving into to tell them "Um, we may need the apartment a few days earlier, we may not, I might know on Monday." Really helpful I am sure, but that's all I got right now.
I am super excited to get our stuff back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So anyway, the rest of the day was taken up by the base wide spouse orientation that I attended. It was nice, met some very nice people but I was the only fliers wife there. Oh well! We took a bus tour around the base (most of the places I have already been to) and got some base information (most of which I already have) and then got a free lunch at the club.
I did get to see outdoor rec for the first time. They have tons to do, lots of sports and various outdoor equipment for rent and they takes tons of trips (everything from white water rafting to surfing to wine tasting). I also went to the base fitness center/HAWC (health and wellness center) for the first time. It is ginormous! But they have some pretty neat classes and services there; you can even get a personal trainer for $30/hour!
Lunch at the club was.... alright. The club is big and it's nice, the food was OK. Not sure if we'll become members or not. I met the base commander (again) and also met the NCO commanders wife. She was super nice.
So, all in all it was a nice day and better than sitting in TLF! But I am really glad that I went to the orientation with Jared (yup, only wife there! Go me!) because I felt like I learned a little more there and got some more helpful details.
Haven't seen Jared all day. He had to check in with the flight doc, get a shot (which he texted me to cry about) and is currently simming. Hoping he gets out of his sim at a decent hour so that we can have PIZZA!!
And that's about it for today ... oh yeah! They serve unsweetened ice tea out here. Hooray!
PS, I went to a spouse social for our new squadron last night. It was pretty fun, met more nice people and am looking forward to making some friends!
Friday, April 16, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
People to meet, places to be!
So, we went out to dinner last night, got back and watched Mythbusters (which is once again on at 9, oh central time zone how I miss thee!) and I passed out on the couch. Jared had to put me to bed. Dunno why but I was TIRED!!
Oh wait, yes I do! Yesterday was... interesting to say the least. It started with me calling the people who were supposed to be releasing our household goods from non-temp (or long term) storage. It had been over a week since my initial call and .... nothing. (Please imagine crickets in the background here). Well yesterday they told me, "Um.... your stuff has already been released mam. It's already on a truck." to which I responded "Ooookay then. Was anyone going to tell me? Could I have the information to contact the driver so I'll know when he will be in California?" I do not know why, but every single time I call to follow up with a government organization, who happens to be controlling some part of our life, I continue to be utterly amazed at their total ineptness. So I called the moving company, and after clearing up a few minor details (like them not having our apt. number or cell phone...?!) I was told the driver should be here on the 24th and no later than the 26th. You had better believe I will be calling the moving company several more times before the 24th!
Well, since I had as firm a moving date as we are going to get I decided to get some other things set up yesterday. I called and cancelled DirectTV!!!!! I could just sing and dance I am so happy to be rid of them. And we signed up for Comcast for our TV and Internet. We had them in Delaware and LOVED them. And hey, we even get the Big Ten Network all the way out here, and in HD!! All that is scheduled to be turned on at our apartment on the 27th.
I also scheduled the electric/gas to be turned on (the 24th) and set up a start date for us to get mail at the new place as well.
Oh, and I almost forgot! Someone dinged our brand new car. A nice dent on the top of the drivers side rear tire well. Even scratched off the paint. Anyway, we spent about an hour at the dealership in Vacaville getting it fixed. Looks a hundred times better now! But man, our poor car. :(
Dinner last night was nice. We went to a place called BJs Brewhouse, only got as far as root beer, but had some great food. It was also nice to see Moira and meet their new little boy Daniel. They adopted him from Korea and he is a real cutie! Just turned 2. She works as a librarian out here and seems to know quite a few wives and asked me to come over for a girls dinner sometime. It also sounds like, from her, that when the squadron is back and running normally again it might not be as bad as I had anticipated. She said that they all rotate desk jobs, and when they don't have one and are not flying they are home. She said she has seen quite a bit of her husband since they have been here. that is good news! The squadrons last day of deployment is June 30th, so they will probably be back sometime in July.
As for today, Jared is in a staff meeting right now and I am baking chicken for Luke casserole tonight. We are going to eat a bit early because I am headed over to the squadron for a spouse social event. Wine and cheese tasting. I am hoping to meet some new friends! I am bringing strawberries. (Which I got at the commissary for 99 cents a container!)
Tomorrow is going to be a BUSY day. Jared has his flight physical in the morning and a Sim in the afternoon. I am going to the base wide spouse orientation in the morning. But it's pizza night! YES!
Oh wait, yes I do! Yesterday was... interesting to say the least. It started with me calling the people who were supposed to be releasing our household goods from non-temp (or long term) storage. It had been over a week since my initial call and .... nothing. (Please imagine crickets in the background here). Well yesterday they told me, "Um.... your stuff has already been released mam. It's already on a truck." to which I responded "Ooookay then. Was anyone going to tell me? Could I have the information to contact the driver so I'll know when he will be in California?" I do not know why, but every single time I call to follow up with a government organization, who happens to be controlling some part of our life, I continue to be utterly amazed at their total ineptness. So I called the moving company, and after clearing up a few minor details (like them not having our apt. number or cell phone...?!) I was told the driver should be here on the 24th and no later than the 26th. You had better believe I will be calling the moving company several more times before the 24th!
Well, since I had as firm a moving date as we are going to get I decided to get some other things set up yesterday. I called and cancelled DirectTV!!!!! I could just sing and dance I am so happy to be rid of them. And we signed up for Comcast for our TV and Internet. We had them in Delaware and LOVED them. And hey, we even get the Big Ten Network all the way out here, and in HD!! All that is scheduled to be turned on at our apartment on the 27th.
I also scheduled the electric/gas to be turned on (the 24th) and set up a start date for us to get mail at the new place as well.
Oh, and I almost forgot! Someone dinged our brand new car. A nice dent on the top of the drivers side rear tire well. Even scratched off the paint. Anyway, we spent about an hour at the dealership in Vacaville getting it fixed. Looks a hundred times better now! But man, our poor car. :(
Dinner last night was nice. We went to a place called BJs Brewhouse, only got as far as root beer, but had some great food. It was also nice to see Moira and meet their new little boy Daniel. They adopted him from Korea and he is a real cutie! Just turned 2. She works as a librarian out here and seems to know quite a few wives and asked me to come over for a girls dinner sometime. It also sounds like, from her, that when the squadron is back and running normally again it might not be as bad as I had anticipated. She said that they all rotate desk jobs, and when they don't have one and are not flying they are home. She said she has seen quite a bit of her husband since they have been here. that is good news! The squadrons last day of deployment is June 30th, so they will probably be back sometime in July.
As for today, Jared is in a staff meeting right now and I am baking chicken for Luke casserole tonight. We are going to eat a bit early because I am headed over to the squadron for a spouse social event. Wine and cheese tasting. I am hoping to meet some new friends! I am bringing strawberries. (Which I got at the commissary for 99 cents a container!)
Tomorrow is going to be a BUSY day. Jared has his flight physical in the morning and a Sim in the afternoon. I am going to the base wide spouse orientation in the morning. But it's pizza night! YES!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Rain, rain go away...
I usually like rainy days (in moderation of course). They make great days to stay home and be cozy. I like to brew a pot of tea, turn on some classical music, light candles and snuggle up under a homemade blanket with a good book. It is also the perfect kind of day to make homemade bread and a pot of soup.
But when you aren't home, rainy days are just rainy days. I feel so cooped up and tired of the gloom. Here I can sorta make tea (no tea pot and no big cozy mugs), play some music on the laptop (not quite the same as the surround sound system), but there are no candles and no soft, cozy blankets. And although I am so thankful for the kitchen facilities we do have, there is also no homemade bread or soup.
Basically, I am ready to hear something from someone about our household goods being released from non-temp. storage.... SOON!! I would like to know when we can actually move into the apartment in town so I can try and set up a few things, like the TV and the power! :)
I hate waiting.
But when you aren't home, rainy days are just rainy days. I feel so cooped up and tired of the gloom. Here I can sorta make tea (no tea pot and no big cozy mugs), play some music on the laptop (not quite the same as the surround sound system), but there are no candles and no soft, cozy blankets. And although I am so thankful for the kitchen facilities we do have, there is also no homemade bread or soup.
Basically, I am ready to hear something from someone about our household goods being released from non-temp. storage.... SOON!! I would like to know when we can actually move into the apartment in town so I can try and set up a few things, like the TV and the power! :)
I hate waiting.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
San Francisco =D
We decided to spend Saturday scouting out San Francisco. We were curious to see what the drive was like and we really wanted to eat some good seafood! The weather was a little dismal, but we still had a great time!
The bay bridge. (I hate bridges!) And how come we keep living in places with 'bay bridges'...?
The city from I-80
I was impressed! (This is Jared's second trip to SF)
In the city making our way to the piers
Some hilly SF streets
Where we spent most of our day: Pier 39
Food, shopping, marina, street performers, aquarium, boat charters... there was lots to do and see!
A small but neat visit
View of SF from the pier
Tropical fish exhibit
Some neat jelly fish
A different variety
Giant star fish; I like the purple one
The bay (it was foggy but the Golden Gate is waaay out there!)
Alcatraz from afar. A must see on another day with better/warmer weather
There! You can see the Golden Gate in this shot :)
Alcatraz in the background
Sea lions by the pier (they were quite loud!)
Lunch!!!
Jared decked out for the crab!
As was I
The crab house where we ate, very nice
View from our table
Crossing the bay bridge into San Fran, this tunnel was in the middle of the bridge?!
The bay bridge. (I hate bridges!) And how come we keep living in places with 'bay bridges'...?
The city from I-80
I was impressed! (This is Jared's second trip to SF)
In the city making our way to the piers
Some hilly SF streets
Where we spent most of our day: Pier 39
Food, shopping, marina, street performers, aquarium, boat charters... there was lots to do and see!
A small but neat visit
View of SF from the pier
Tropical fish exhibit
Some neat jelly fish
A different variety
Giant star fish; I like the purple one
The bay (it was foggy but the Golden Gate is waaay out there!)
Alcatraz from afar. A must see on another day with better/warmer weather
There! You can see the Golden Gate in this shot :)
Alcatraz in the background
Sea lions by the pier (they were quite loud!)
Lunch!!!
Jared decked out for the crab!
As was I
The crab house where we ate, very nice
View from our table
Basically, San Francisco is the equivalent of driving up to Cleveland back home. (Just more traffic.) However, even in the traffic department we lucked out and didn't have any issues either coming or going! There is a ton more that we want to do and see (and eat!) there, but it was a good first trip. We can't wait to have visitors to take on trips!
Friday, April 9, 2010
Golf
The Masters kicked off this week, and so did Jared's golf season. I tagged along to watch, play scorekeeper, ball spotter and photographer, as well as do a bit of reading. Just because my clubs are still packed away with the rest of our household goods doesn't mean I couldn't enjoy the beautiful day!
Practice at the driving range
A chip shot somewhere along the front 9
And the beautiful drive back to base. Jared did very well by ending his round with a birdie and a score of 39 on the front 9!
I ended the day by getting a rather bad sunburn on the back of my neck. Le sigh
Walking up to the Travis AFB golf course: Cypress Lakes. (It is actually a few miles off base)
Practice at the driving range
A chip shot somewhere along the front 9
And the beautiful drive back to base. Jared did very well by ending his round with a birdie and a score of 39 on the front 9!
I ended the day by getting a rather bad sunburn on the back of my neck. Le sighWednesday, April 7, 2010
Dinner Time
Tonight's dinner courtesy of beautiful, fresh California produce
Prepping our fruit salad
The finished product
Prepping the roasted tomato bruschetta
French baguettes, freshly chopped basil and fresh mozzarella
The cherry tomatoes before being roasted
And after
The completed bruschetta
Dinner (with the fruit)
*I made dinner tonight while listening to the Julie and Julia soundtrack ... and have decided this is my favorite meal ever. (Jared wanted a hamburger to go with, but otherwise enjoyed it as well.)
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Answers
"The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song." - Psalm 28:7
~Jared graduated C-17 copilot school with great success and only two days late.
~We had a safe, healthy, fun trip together from OK to CA.
~We were able to stay in TLF and have a kitchen while waiting for housing.
~We found an apartment to live in while we wait to move on base.
~Our brand new car was safely shipped to CA and is working well.
So many answered prayers! We are feeling very blessed.
~Jared graduated C-17 copilot school with great success and only two days late.
~We had a safe, healthy, fun trip together from OK to CA.
~We were able to stay in TLF and have a kitchen while waiting for housing.
~We found an apartment to live in while we wait to move on base.
~Our brand new car was safely shipped to CA and is working well.
So many answered prayers! We are feeling very blessed.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
House Hunting
We have been told, repeatedly, that we should be getting a big, beautiful, brand new house on base sometime in or around October. Awesome! Except that it is April, not October. So for the 6 months until our base housing is ready for us (crossing fingers, knocking on wood, etc.) we have to figure out where to live. TLF is nice, but they won't let us stay here forever.
So today, since we couldn't do anything else to in-process on base, we went apartment hunting. At one point we had hoped to rent a house off base, but the few places we thought might work were gone by the time we had arrived and the current listings were either in the wrong part of town or out of our price range. Sigh. So today we looked at 3 apartment complexes and after mulling it over lunch at Olive Garden (and calling our Moms) we picked one! Hooray! That means we are no longer homeless. We even have an address!!
Besides the apartment, we also have a garage. So all the stuff that wont be fitting into our new place, washer/dryer, microwave, etc., can go in there. We can also fill it up with boxes so the house wont feel so crammed and cluttered. We are hoping that it will work for our short term needs and that we will be able to get into base housing in the fall on schedule and without a lot of hassles!
I didn't have the camera with me today, but I will be sure and take pictures once we move in.
Besides the apartments and lunch, we did a bit of shopping and lots of driving! There are so many places to go, eat, shop, etc. right here! Plus Sacramento and San Fransisco are both only about 45 minutes away. Such a huge change from isolated Oklahoma!
Last big trip of the day was to the base library. I got our card and checked out my first book and was generally impressed. Life is always so much better with a library card! Still have to check out the library in town, but I will get there.
On the agenda for tonight: homemade tacos and watching The Ten Commandments. Tomorrow we get to attend our first church service at the base chapel. I hope it is nice!
So today, since we couldn't do anything else to in-process on base, we went apartment hunting. At one point we had hoped to rent a house off base, but the few places we thought might work were gone by the time we had arrived and the current listings were either in the wrong part of town or out of our price range. Sigh. So today we looked at 3 apartment complexes and after mulling it over lunch at Olive Garden (and calling our Moms) we picked one! Hooray! That means we are no longer homeless. We even have an address!!
Besides the apartment, we also have a garage. So all the stuff that wont be fitting into our new place, washer/dryer, microwave, etc., can go in there. We can also fill it up with boxes so the house wont feel so crammed and cluttered. We are hoping that it will work for our short term needs and that we will be able to get into base housing in the fall on schedule and without a lot of hassles!
I didn't have the camera with me today, but I will be sure and take pictures once we move in.
Besides the apartments and lunch, we did a bit of shopping and lots of driving! There are so many places to go, eat, shop, etc. right here! Plus Sacramento and San Fransisco are both only about 45 minutes away. Such a huge change from isolated Oklahoma!
Last big trip of the day was to the base library. I got our card and checked out my first book and was generally impressed. Life is always so much better with a library card! Still have to check out the library in town, but I will get there.
On the agenda for tonight: homemade tacos and watching The Ten Commandments. Tomorrow we get to attend our first church service at the base chapel. I hope it is nice!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
The Terrain!
Firsts
Today holds a lot of firsts for the Scherff family. First full day at our new base, first time for Jared at his new squadron, first day with our new car, it's even the first of the month!
We also got to spend that part of our trip with my Grandma and Grandpa Lyons. They drove up from Southern Arizona and saw the Canyon with us, went to dinner and played cards the two nights we were there. It was wonderful to see familiar faces in the middle of a long and foriegn trip! We were so glad they could come and see us!
The sky is blue and full of fluffy white clouds. The sun is shining. It is a little chilly this morning: in the 40's. But everything here is so green! Lush grass, beautiful palm trees, lots of bushes and flowers, huge fields and moutains surrounding the base; all completely green.
But, time to rewind. Travel day two was spent going from Albuquerque New Mexico to The Grand Canyon in Arizona. We took a little scenic byway, got off I-40 W and drove up through the San Fransisco mountains. There was deep snow and ski season was in full swing. It is incredible what altitude can do to change the weather and scenery. We spent the afternoon at the Grand Canyon. WOW! It was absolutely, incredibly beautiful. Pictures can not do it justice. And there is no wy to describe it. It was worth the expensive toursit traps surrounding the national park to see!
We also got to spend that part of our trip with my Grandma and Grandpa Lyons. They drove up from Southern Arizona and saw the Canyon with us, went to dinner and played cards the two nights we were there. It was wonderful to see familiar faces in the middle of a long and foriegn trip! We were so glad they could come and see us!
The next time we hit the road was Tuesday morning. We left Arizona and finally made it to California! Our new home state. We stopped over at Edwards AFB in Southern CA. Let me tell you, it is the middle of absolutely nowhere! Just a lot of dry desert .... more desert ... and a random Air Force Base! The base was huge. We drove around a bit, saw the test pilot school and their imense flightline (23,000 ft) and enjoyed our night in their TLF.
Our last travel day brought us, finally, to Travis. We've been waiting for this since last October. Now that we are here it all seems a bit surreal. I am not quite sure if it is the time change, or the strange scenery, or the huge and intimidating size of the base, but I feel like I am in a daze. It is beautiful though, and I am hoping we can settle in and find new friends and get comfortable soon.
Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers during our long journey. They were much appreciated and kept us safe, well and sane!
It is much easier to post pictures to facebook, so for the rest of our trip photos keep checking this link for the latest pictures! http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2385305&id=23322261&l=9b814a6490
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