Family Edition Wednesday

So this week's Wednesday post is dedicated to my brother, Chris. He just got married today in San Antonio. He barely told me yesterday..and guess what? My parents don't know. He wants to surprise them... I smell some craziness brewing this weekend!  

He left home 7 months ago to go to basic training for the army and he's already such a man! It's crazy! It's gonna take me a while to process this. The first picture is a screenshot of what he's uploaded on Instagram and the second is a picture taken just last Christmas. He told me that he'd send me some pictures soon. Hopefully he does since I wish I could've been there personally.

I'm happy for him but as his big sister, I worry.

I'm wishing him nothing but the best in this new chapter of his very young life (20!!!).

I'll meet my new (and first) sister-in-law this Friday!

Congratulations, Chris!                          

Us a little under a year ago.

'til next time, stay classy♥

Happy Hump Day!

-M

Greetings from Ft. Sill!

I've neglected blogging because I was basically gearing up for today..my brother's graduation from basic training in the army. Sadly, I don't think I've ever been able to feel pride for my family but I experienced that today and it was a great feeling. I was a little apprehensive of him enlisting but he seems truly happy. I gained a lot of respect for our nation's military this weekend and the ceremony was really inspiring. It gave me chills, lol. Despite some tense moments, I was really happy overall with seeing my younger brother's growth. He's different now, but I think it's for the best. Some pictures:

Top and Bottom:
Candid shots of Chris catching me up on what's been going on.

Family Day

Goodbye picture after graduation

Family

I will say...I miss my dogs and my man though. I've tried my best to live in the moment while in Oklahoma but I miss them. Our trip up was scary due to some severe rain and tomorrow we're supposedly going back home with a tornado warning in our midst. Pray for us!
'til next time, keep it classy!♥ 

Early for a change.

I guess being sick opens up the availability to do certain things...like blogging, lol.
I feel like I've done nothing but bum around and eat these past two days. I'm not used to 
having two days of blank slates. School being out (and having my weekends back) almost feels a little weird but I must enjoy it before it starts up again in June. 
Eric treated my little brother to his first time at Applebee's and then we went to the animal shelter (also my brother's first).
It's crazy to me that he's having these kinds of experiences for the first time at age 12. It makes me feel like he didn't have much of a childhood...I hope this is the beginning of a bonding tradition.
Speaking of the animal shelter, I gotta say Laredo's really makes me sad.
It's like every time I go in there, I want to walk out with at least 2 dogs. A lot of them look emaciated and it feels like even though the people there all have good intentions, it's a sad cycle. 
I wish there was more money invested into keeping these animals alive.. I heard somewhere that close to 80% of the animals are euthanized and that feels like all the efforts right now are just in vain. Money's being wasted getting them tested, fed, and cleaned all so that the majority can be put down a few days later. 
If I could do something here, it would be to raise money for a decent (hopefully indoor) shelter.
Sometimes I wonder why I ended up back in Laredo..not the literal sense because I know that but the deeper, more spiritual way. I wonder if it's to meet Eric or to bring change. As we were driving back home from the shelter, I was sharing my thoughts with Eric. I can't help but still feel betrayed by my ex-roommate. I'm not jealous but it just feels unfair that I'm in town being productive and feeling stifled by the lack of diversity and she's in San Antonio getting drunk most of the time..something she could do here. 
She stayed in SA under our name and ruined my credit (along with my dad's) and she doesn't see much wrong there either.
I can honestly say had I stayed over there, I wouldn't have grown so much but it still seems unfair.
Only God knows. 
Nothing much to report; just venting this week. 
Hope it wasn't too lame.
'til next time, stay classy♥