So, its been a while.

Greetings from Oklahoma, on the border of Texas! Just in case you were wondering, yes, it is as hot as it sounds. It was 111 for 8 straight days when we got here, and I just wanted to puke.

I've been meaning to write for a while now, but generally have been swept up in the poignant words of my friends' blogs when I get on here! Its fun seeing where everyone is at right now- there have been a lot of transitions in a lot of my friends' lives lately, and it is so evident that God is good and my friends are some really awesome people!

Anyways, back to life here. I have been making the 6 hour trek between our "two homes" every two weeks, going back to tend to my flower children (especially my roses) and the lawn, and taking care of fun things like license renewal and scholarship stuff at KSU. I have decided that I truly value my solo drives- it gives me time to think, renew my vision, plot out papers and ideas, and catch up on some tunes. 

I've been pretty active in the ACS (Army Community Service) office here at Sill, volunteering a few mornings a week to get the AFAP (Army Family Action Plan) conference off the ground in September . AFAP is the part of the Army that addresses problems within the Army community, especially for the families affected by all of Army life's issues. They've effected legislative change on a number of issues. I won't actually be here when the conference is in session, but its been great to spend some time with some awesome, dedicated people who really try and make the Army community the best it can be for the families involved. Its really rewarding to see all of the stuff that goes on behind the scenes with these wicked smart, sweet people. And, its nice to just get out of the house!!!!!!!! (And, use someone else's air conditioning :))

There are also a number of awesome, dedicated ladies who have really changed the Career Course experience for wives here (that's what we are here in Oklahoma for, by the way). The Captain's Career Course is 6 months long, which means that the guys are in class for 9 hours a day and/or in the field. What this means for wives is that a) you are in the back roads of Oklahoma with nothing to do, b) no one in their right mind will hire you because they KNOW you are only here for 6 months, c) you don't even know where you are moving when this field trip is over (though we are praying with all we've got to return back to Riley!), and d) while some people easily make friends, it generally takes a lot of personal initiative. So some Majors' wives (the Majors are instructors who are here for 3-5 years) decided that they are going to organize community and opportunities to get all of these wives (i.e. people like me) together, and ease the process of life in transition. It has been really great, and I've connected with a lot of other awesome ladies (p.s.-yes, I keep saying "Wives" and "ladies" instead of spouses, because Field Artillery is still a male-only branch in the Army). They've also orchestrated some great sessions on the experience of being a Commander's wife and the ways of handling that life and put it together in a fun format. 

Even with all of that, I am so looking forward to the fall, when I will be back home and in classes. I am beyond pumped for school to start again. In the meantime, I have been making full use of the library here! I've finished two of the three books by Malcolm Gladwell, Blink and Tipping Point; Freakonomics; and some old classics that I keep finding references for in a number of the books I use in my research (The Communist Manifesto, Diplomacy by Henry Kissinger, The Wealth of Nations, and a book on Afghanistan to name a few). Hopefully, I don't show up on some PATRIOT Act hitlist with my Marxist titles :)

Anyways, that's all for now!