Today, on my way to work I stopped at Dunkin Donuts (like I always do.. it's next to impossible to make it through a shift in the ER with no caffeine pumping through my system). They have this deal going on where you can purchase 2 pounds of coffee for $10. So, lately, everytime I have stopped for coffee (which is almost everyday) I pick up 2 bags of coffee to send to Tony. Today I was running a little late, but stopped anyways. I became a little aggitated, on my way in, when I saw that there was a line. It was a short line, but still.. who enjoys waiting in any line? Dunkins always has the TV set on the news station, and anytime I see anyone dressed in military fatigues, my eyes become fixated on the screen, just like today. (I know technically it is EARLY Thursday morning, but working second shift and not having slept yet, to me it's still today.. Wednesday.. so bare with me). So, as I was waiting in line, I was half listening to the coversation of the 2 gentlemen in front of me. One of them mentioned Starbucks and me, being the friendly, outspoken person that I am, began venting about the enormous line that is always hanging out the door of Starbucks, and how I have to leave my house at 2pm, if I stop there before I go to work so that I can make in time for 3pm... and there have been times that I still was 5 or 10 minutes late walking through the doors of the ER. One of the guys then noticed the patches on my jacket. One of the patches is from South Carolina, and he asked me if that's where I was from. I explained to him that it was my husband's army career jacket and anywhere he's been, he picked up a patch and put it on the sleeve of his jacket. I proceeded to tell him that my hubby is currently deployed in Iraq and that is why I was wearing his jacket. I am forever telling stories about Tony, and since we were at Dunkins, I told him that when my parents sent Tony some Dunkin Donuts coffee, him and a battle buddy brewed through the same coffee grounds 3 times before throwing them away because they were so thankful to be able to drink such delicious coffee.
As the guy moved forward in line and gave his order, I saw him grab a bag of coffee grounds from the rack. There was plenty of hazelnut and orginal blend left, but no, he had to grab the very last bag of french vanilla. I wanted to bite his hand off! The girl behind the counter explained to him that if he bought 2 bags of coffee he'd be getting a deal. So like any other smart human being, he grabbed another one. As he was paying for his order, I gave mine and I picked up 2 bags of hazelnut coffee for Tony. I moved up further to pay, when the gentleman caught me off guard, sliding the 2 bags of coffee he bought, over to me and told me to tell my husband that he says thank you for everything he's doing. My heart nearly skipped a beat as I thanked him and bit my lip to keep myself from crying. For as long as I live, I will hold, in my heart, his sweet gesture and kind words. That is the first time anyone has gone out of their way and done something special for my husband, instead of just saying thank you. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate every kind soul who takes the time to tell me how grateful they are for my husband and others like him. But this man's actions just stand out from all the rest. And especially around the holidays. A lot of people seem to forget what the holidays are about and become some what selfish, doing everything they can to save a buck or two. Not this man. God Bless his soul.

My parents are officially gone for the next ten days or so. I worked 3pm Monday until 2am Tuesday and then brought them to the airport for their vacation, or shall I say.. for my vacation. I love my parents dearly, but this next week and a half without them here.. yeah, I need a break from them. The only down side of it all is that my sister is having her boyfriend sleep over every night. It's not that I don't like him. It's just not fair is what it is. I wish so badly that Tony could be home spending these nights with me as well.. along with every other night. I'm not going to lie, I am jealous. But what military wife or girlfriend, with a soldier deployed, wouldn't be? My sister and her boy may not be around for much longer though. In about 5 or 6 hours they will be heading to Boston to take the ASVAB for the Coast Guard. I haven't quite decided yet if I am going to miss her when she's shipped off to boot camp. I love her dearly too, but I think it's getting to the point where I need a break from her as well. Sorry Levyii! And it's not like she's going to be in a war zone either. After boot camp she plans on doing the reserves. I'm sure by the time she comes home I will be missing her, and of course a few weeks later we'll be ripping eachother's heads off again. The both of them are going to miss Tony, though, when he comes home for R&R. I guess I could always look at it in a positive perspective though.. that's 2 less people I will have to share him with!
My sister and I actually got into a huge argument last night, and I'm still trying to figure out what caused it, because about 10 minutes later she came down to my bedroom to let me know she cooked dinner and that I should go and eat something. I appreciated the time and effort she put into dinner, however, I was suffering from a severe case of sleep deprivation and barely moved an inch before falling asleep again. Tony ended up calling me around 11pm after he awoke from a really horrid dream he had. We didn't discuss his dream, but instead we emphasized our love for eachother. I ended up falling asleep shortly after he took off with one of his buddies to go do some errands, as it was his day off over in Iraq. I woke this morning feeling so rejuvenated after finally being able to catch up on some sleep. I am trying to avoid taking Benadryl every night, so here I am, wide awake and still blogging.. not even the slightest bit tired. I dealt with this sleep cycle at the begining of the year. Staying up every other night. However, tonight really isn't a good night to be staying up. I have to drive my brother to school in the morning and then around noon time I have to go to the hospital to renew my BCLS license, seeing as it expired back in October. I'm sure after that, I'll come back home and pass out. I promised my hubby I wouldn't work myself into the ground! So I suppose I should start taking better care of myself so he doesn't kick my butt when he comes home for RnR! ;)