The day is finally here....HOMECOMING!

Hey guys sorry I haven't posted in awhile things have been really busy and I'm in the middle of moving but I will post to catch you guys up on what's been happening. 

So on October 1st my soldier came home! It was one of the most surreal feelings and I couldn't believe it was actually happening. It was one of the best days of my life to finally have my love home! 

This hug was the best hug ever and it was exactly like I had dreamed about! 

This is a picture of me and my soldier wth the sign I made and the shirt I bought for the homecoming.

All the time we spent apart was definitely worth that homecoming and my soldier was definitely worth the wait! It has been amazing to have my soldier home and I will write another post about all the fun things we did while we was home :)

"I Do" Jewlery

My soldier and I are getting married in a few weeks and I make handmade bracelets so I knew I had to make a charm bracelet for the day I say "I Do". 

So this is the bracelet I made that has three charms; I heart my soldier, I Do, and Property of a Soldier. I love charm bracelets with ribbon in between and purple is my favorite color so this was a must for this bracelet. I got the two military charms from Chubby Chico and the I Do charm from hobbylobby.com. It's super easy to make and super cute! 

I sell handmade bracelets on etsy so check my shop out for your own custom bracelet :)

www.etsy.com/shop/CaliInspired 

Nail Polish Review

One fun fact about me is that I absolutely love nail polish! It has became a great hobby of mine to paint my nails and try different types of nail art. I follow different nail blogs on Instagram and I saw one that showed these polished called Julep. So I looked them up and saw that you can create a membership and it is only $19.99 a month for three nail polishes shipped to your door! I was hooked so I signed up and was able to get my first box free and I only had to pay the shipping which was $3.99.

                           

So I finally receive my box in the mail and it looks all cute inside with these wavy strings of paper. I absolutely love the different polishes I received and I couldn't wait to try them. What else is great is that if you want to try some of their hair care or skin care products you can decide to put those in your monthly box instead of nail polish. 

                            

So this is the manicure I created using two of the colors and I always love a sparkly accent nail so it was a must with these polishes. What I love most about these polishes is they do not give off that horrible chemical smell, they actually smell like flowers or candy so it is nice and not as harsh on the nose.

So I'm so excited I found out about Julep so that I will get the newest nail colors shipped to my door every month. You should try it too! 

Being Crafty

So it's less than two weeks until my soldier comes home and I'm busy getting everything ready for his return. I have two crafts to share with you today, one is the homecoming sign I mentioned earlier and the other is a banner I made for our couple/engagement pictures.

I've always loved the saying "Here I am just like I promised" so I knew I had to include it into my homecoming sign that I will be holding while I wait for my soldier at the airport. So I'm not the best painter but I think it came out pretty good. I always love the idea of putting camo and pink together because it brings out my soldier's colors (his uniform) and it also has the pink which is a girly color I like. So I wanted to use both and make some colors capitalized and some in cursive to make it stand out. And last but not least I counted how many days it has been since I've seen my soldier and I put them on there in red glitter to stand out the most.

The second project I decided to make came from the idea that I had to hold a "Just Married" banner when my soldier and I get married but I decided to do something even better. I decided I would make a banner of the date that we are going to get married to hold and take pictures with. I've had these couple pictures planned for awhile because I've always wanted to take pictures with him in his uniform, and I thought this banner would make the picture just perfect. All I did to make the banner was buy a little sample of fabric form Walmart and I used stencils and painted the numbers on the fabric with acrylic paint. In the picture the ribbon looks to skinny for my liking that is why I haven't glued it yet so I'm going to pick up a thicker width ribbon before we take the pictures. And I'll post a picture when we get them taken and show you guys how it looks :)

A lil pick-me-up

Before my soldier left for basic training I told him I wanted to make a build a bear together so I could hold it at night while he's away. I dressed it in camouflage just like my soldier of course! But I also put in one of those voice recorders in the arm of the bear so whenever I press it I hear my soldier's voice say I love you. It has helped me so much. Especially the times in basic training when we had little communication because whenever I needed to hear his voice I just had to push a button. I have slept with this bear in my arms every night he's been away and it gives me comfort like he would if he were home. Even though its something simple and kid-ish it has helped me the most throughout this long-distance and I know I'll keep the bear around for the times when I cannot be with my soldier. It never hurts to have a stuffed animal to sleep with while your loved ones away :)

Homecoming Planning

So it's about three weeks until my soldier comes home and that means that it is time so start planning his homecoming. I have already started a sign that I am going to hold while I wait for him at the airport, but it is not quite finished yet, but when it is I will definitely post a picture. However, I starting brainstorming about if I wanted any decorations for when my soldier comes home and I decided I wanted to make a Welcome Home banner. I am a big DIY girl, and I love crafts, so I thought why buy a banner when I can make one myself. I have seen Just Married banner templates online and I decided to use one I found  because it had cute letters with a circular border that I liked, but I decided to make it bigger so it stood out more.

So this is a picture of my banner. It isn't completely finished because I want to add bows or something on the ends so it doesn't look so frumpy. But I am very pleased with how nice it looks since I just used computer paper. I wanted to use camo print ribbon but they didn't have any at the Michael's near me so I just went with an army green color. Other than that it was very easy to make and I'm even more excited for my soldier to return home. It's crazy that I only have to count weeks now instead of months! 

Comment below if you would like more detailed instructions or the link for the template that I used. :)

Goals

Whether you're going through a deployment or you just need something to make the time pass while your soldier is away setting goals is always something that helps. It can be personal goals, or goals for the future of you and your significant other.

One of the personal goals I set for myself which happened by accident actually was working out. After I visited my soldier in Korea I just felt gross from all the stuff I had been eating and I got this urge to start working out when I came home. I used to be a competitive gymnast when I was younger so I have been naturally fit but I wanted to make myself start eating a little bit healthier and going to the gym. My soldier has always liked going to the gym so asking him for advice or encouragement has helped me stick to a schedule and regimen of creating a more fit life for myself. Whether it is a friend, family member or your significant other it is nice workout with someone or just share your experience and tips with. It has been about eight months since I started a schedule of going to the gym every other day and I can tell my body has changed and I have had more energy and self confidence. I also got a subscription to self magazine because I love finding new workout tips and moves that are geared toward a women.

Another goal or hobby that I have picked up while my soldier is away is the show Army Wives. I started watching it with my mom a few months ago since all six seasons are on Netflix. I absolutely love the show! Even though it is very dramatic and isn't always accurate to what army life is like it is fun to watch and it always has encouraging episodes that I can relate to. The seventh season just came out on DVD so I'm going to order it and I hope to watch the entire season before my soldier returns home. Army Wives has been a great hobby that has helped the time pass because I look forward to seeing each episode and it keeps me busy for a little while since my soldier is away.

Whether it is a personal goal or just a hobby, find something you like that helps pass the time because we all know missing our loved ones makes the days drag on.

Don't forget to keep a countdown because that always helps to see how many days left you have!