Stay Tuned! - Blogged by JME

We have been experiencing some technical difficulties. N8's laptop screen got cracked on the plane on the way to Cali and so he has been waiting to have it repaired before he can send me pictures. He received the replacement screen today and will be getting it fixed, probably this weekend. Keep checking back here to see some neat pictures that N8 has been able to take while in Cali, including some from his trip to a little Danish town called Solvang.

Long Distance Dating - Blogged by JME

How do you keep your love alive when you are apart for six months, a year, or longer? It is a tough thing to be apart. Staying close when you are married and live together takes some work and it is nearly impossible to do it when you are apart if you aren't constantly doing things to keep your relationship growing.

N8 and I have come up with a few ideas and plans that will keep us connected and also help us continue to do the things we enjoy together while being so far away from one another. One of the things N8 and I love doing together is going to the movies. The last movie we saw before he left was "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince." We both have read all of the HP books and have really enjoyed watching the movies when they come out. These are a few of the movies that are coming up in the next year that we are looking forward to seeing together.


In theaters 09/09/2009



In theaters 10/16/2009



In theaters 03/15/2010

Now I know you are asking yourself, "How do you see a movie together while you are in two separate countries with 8 hours difference?" Well, you see, movies come out in theaters in Germany just like they come out in theaters here. All we do is plan a day that we want to see a specific movie and then go on the same day. We'll be able to talk about the parts that we liked as though we were in the same theater. Of course, sometimes he will have to see the movie a few hours before me, but it's all the same.

Another thing that we have discovered is Skype. Whoever invented this should be famous. I think it will be a major source of communication for us while N8 is in Germany. Not only can you instant message each other, if you are equipt with a camera and microphone, you can see each other and hear each other as you talk to each other. You can even play games against each other. The best part of it all is that it is all FREE! Forget the phone. That was so in the past. Too bad we didn't know about this last time. Oh well, you learn as you go. We will be able to do so much. Family Home Evening, let everyone see and talk to him on Thanksgiving and other holidays, etc. We are both very excited for this.

I know some people I have invited to see my blog have had experiences where they've been away from their spouse for a long period of time, either for the military or other reasons. If any of you have any other ideas for us on what we can do to stay connected, we welcome them.

5,194.4 Miles (Here we go again) - Blogged by JME

N8 came home from active duty in August 2008 after being gone for 18 months. He definitely had seen the world. He was on the USS WASP, an amphibious assault ship, traveling the ocean blue. He'd been to many places that I will only hear of, including Halifax, Panama, Puerto Rico, Columbia, Nicaragua, Oman, Bahrain, Africa, and Spain.


When he finally came home from that adventure, we moved into a little basement apartment in Kaysville while he worked in Clfield and I worked at a clinic in O-town. N8 was also in the Active Reserves as a weekend warrior working one weekend a month at Ft Douglas in SLC.





Around March, N8 received mobilization orders. Now he is off to see the world again! He will be working at the Hospital in Landstuhl, Germany. He flew out of SLC on Monday, July 20th to SD, Cali for training before going on to bigger things. He will be working with the chaplains at the hospital offering support to wounded soldiers coming from Iraq and Afghanistan.
The job he has is very important and will most likely be very stressful. It will be a lot of blood and guts. N8 will be seeing a lot of the ugly side of war, as a lot of these men/women coming to Germany are severely wounded with brain deaths, amputations, etc. He will be supporting and comforting soldiers as they pass, along with the soldier's family members. It sounds pretty grim.

Landstuhl, Germany and O-Town are 5,194.4 miles from each other (in case you wondered about the name of this blog). N8's orders are for 350 days. The clock starts as soon as he gets to Germany, and you better believe I will be counting. N8 loves to hear from home when he is far away. If you want to let him know what is going on with your family or send an encouraging little e-mail, or just keep in contact with him, his e-mail address that he will be able to access in Germany is: vbergfamlee@hotmail.com.

***These pictures were taken by my very talented photographer sis. Click here to see more of her work.

One Last Getaway - Blogged by JME

As soon as we found out that N8 received orders for active duty and that we would be apart for another year, N8 decided it was time that we take a vacation. As N8 started the planning, we realized how long it had been since we had been on a real vacation, just him and I, on our own.

Not counting times that I had visited him or him visiting me during the last deployment (because that was visiting, not a vacation), our last vacation -just him and I- had been on our honeymoon . . . FIVE YEARS AGO!!! So yes, it was about time if you ask me. Nate took charge and planned an amazing vacation to California and Disneyland!!! Why not go to the happiest place on earth? We both were like kids ourselves, running to get in line, crying when we had to leave (only once), seeing our favorite Disney characters. N8 loves Chip n' Dale and made sure to point them out every time we saw them. All in all, it turned out to be an amazing vacation and one that was sorely needed.

N8 was amazing when it came down to planning our vacation. In fact, we not only went to Disneyland/California Adventure, we went to an Angel's/Dodger's game and watched the Dodger's kill the Angel's. We became Dodger's fans real fast so we wouldn't get jumped on the way to our car by any Dodger's fans that thought we might like the Angel's. I think we almost got jumped anyway because of our bright yellow 'Bees' shirts. We really stood out. Everyone else was either wearing red or blue.

One of the days we were there, N8 and I decided to go on a drive down by the beach and maybe stop for a while. The beaches were really crowded and so we thought we would just drive around and sight-see. As we were driving along, I looked out my window and saw a golden angel that was on top of a building. It took me a minute to recognize who he was, but then exclaimed "Hey! It's Angel Moroni!" I don't think I expected to see that there and so it didn't register right away. Out of all the roads that we could have taken to sight see, we took the one that took us right to the Newport Beach Temple. Of course we had to jump out and take pictures.

One of the highlights of our trip was being able to meet two of our most favorite yellow people, one who's head looks kind of like a pineapple, and one who actually lives in a pineapple: Sponge Bob Square Pants and Bart Simpson! They were both very friendly. They didn't talk much but what can you expect? At least they took the time to let us get our picture with them.

N8 and I also were able to go to the Medieval Times show. We ate our food with our hands and watched knights dual to the death. We got crowns and felt like royalty. Our knight threw me a flower and won second place! Go blue knight!

What a wonderful vacation, one I would recommend to all! I think I have just dubbed N8 our official vacation planner since he is so good at it. Maybe in a year we can do this again!!!