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Stephanie Howell

reading, organizing, shopping, momming too close to the sun. Home is wherever the Army sends us.

The Adventure Continues…

Alaska // via Stephanie Howell

First there was upstate NY

then the PNW

then Columbus, GA

then Texas

then Columbus again

then Savannah.

Next came Newport, Rhode Island

then Italy

and Virginia.

 

Now we can add Alaska to the list!

Jimmy will be taking command of a battalion at Fort Wainwright in June 2018. We are SO PROUD of him and so thrilled about this journey. I cannot believe or wrap my brain around the gift we’ve been able to give our sweet girls.

The absolute best thing about the internet is the connections I’ve made. I’ve received so many encouraging, and advice-giving messages and emails the last few days. If you have ideas or thoughts or advice, I’d love to hear.

Love to all of you!

xoxo

s

 

Comments

  1. You are one courageous and inspiring person. I have only moved three times but I know first hand how difficult it is to meet friends as adults that share common interest. I know through tough times I want to be near my lifelong friends and am thankful for all the different ways to communicate but as I get older solid friendships are hard to find.

    • Thanks Liz! I’m better at it the older I get, although it certainly IS very hard!

  2. I am in constant awe of your tremendous dedication and sense of adventure! You will be great no matter where on the map you live. You are giving your girls a gift in seeing the world and appreciating different cultures. While Alaska couldn’t be more different than Venice (I’ve vacationed in both), I trust that you will embrace this new experience. See the parks, walk on a glacier, watch a totem pole being carved and buy an ulu!

  3. So excited for this next adventure! I couldn’t believe my ears when Dennis shared the news with us. Can’t wait to see the beautiful scenery you will be capturing and the stories you will tell.

  4. Congratulations, that’s so exciting! I have never been there, but I hear it’s beautiful in Alaska. Are you enjoying VA? I am from the DC area. Did you get any snow with this storm?

    • It’s okay. The girls LOVE their school but I’m finding it very hard to be connected here. Stay warm! Yes, we got a few inches!

  6. I live in Canada and can help you stay warm. Buy your winter outerwear at LL Bean. You won’t find another store that has a warmth rating on outerwear and you need the warmest.

  7. It takes a very special woman to be a military wife and mom, you always handle everything with such grace. My youngest daughter, who is 30 weeks into pregnancy #3 will be PCS’ing 2 weeks before her due date when her hubby reports to Georgia to don his Drill Sgt hat. I can’t wrap my mind around packing, getting kids enrolled in a new school, a new duty station and giving birth in the space of 14 days. Alaska will be thrilled to have you and I can’t wait to hear about your new adventures!

    • It’s just what we do I guess! Part and parcel of loving a brave man. It’s an honor to be sure!

  8. I’ve been following you since Savannah, maybe Columbus the second time around and I’ve loved reading your adventures and watching your darling family grow. Many congratulations to J, what an achievement! (I’m a former military brat and also served (British military), so your Army Life tales make me smile.)
    Alaska will be amazing!

  9. Teach me your ways, Stephanie Howell! We are undecided on my husband’s military future and I am feeling sooo drained at the moment, I don’t know if I have the energy to move yet again. What do you do to stay so positive (maybe it’s just who you are), how do you get through the chunks of training and deployments where it feels as if you’re completely alone in raising your kiddos? I so want to be a supportive wife, but right now with a 9mo old and 3yr old I feel like I’m drowning at times. Helpppp! Maybe I’ll go through your old posts and see if there is one about this. You’re such an inspiration! Thanks for sharing your journey! ❤️

    • Oh, this one is tricky and complicated and messy. I struggle. I struggle to not be bitter with Jimmy when it’s the Army that’s truly making me angry.

      Bottom line is this. There is no other option for me. What else is there? Leave him and not have him and not live this life? NOT an option. So I choose joy. I choose positivity.

      My children are watching and internalizing and deciding what attitudes they will have towards what their daddy does. I refuse to have a pity party or complain. That is a bitter sickness that will infect the entire family and make it harder for J to do what he does.

      So I choose joy. I love him and I’d follow him anywhere.

      • That is such an awesome approach to what can be and I am sure IS a difficult life at times!

  10. Have lots of clocks and make sure the kids can tell time! The constant light in summer and dark in winter can be VERY disorienting, you might find yourself not eating dinner until eleven o clock at night in the summer and wanting to go to bed at 5 pm in the winter.
    Get outside during the light of day every day in the winter, if you can. It really will make a difference. See the ice museum. Go to Alaskaland. Eat lots of sourdough pancakes!

  11. Oh I am hoping that you will take us on this journey with you. I look forward to reading about your family adventure…. we are just going into Autumn here in Christchurch, New Zealand and I have been readying my Merino woollens for winter…suggest you do the same. Lots of New Zealand Merino in the wardrobes of the family!!! Plus many other layers I guess. Blessings

  12. How exciting!! I’ve always wanted to go to Alaska…can’t wait to “live through you” on your next adventure!!

  13. Dress warm! Haha! It is easier to buy extra warm clothes in colder climates. They are really hard to find when you live somewhere warm. Land of the midnight sun. Truly a different adventure. Have fun!!! Hugs

  14. My husband grew up in a military family and I so admire the adventures he grew up with (Boy Scout camp in the Alps, weekend trips to Amsterdam and Paris, meanwhile I was at Cowtown). He knew nothing different. I asked him if he was ever upset when his Dad came home and said they were moving and he couldn’t have been more confused by it. The kid still makes friends in the blink of an eye. Admiring you and your family along with your attitude and thank you. And thank Jimmy.