'Ello, love!

Well, here we are. Isiee and I arrived in the UK Friday night, March 5th. It was a long flight, but we were able to watch movies and TV shows, and play video games like Tetris and Battleship, which made the time fly by. The only bad this is that I'm sick, so all the congestion made takeoff and landing very painful. Never fly with a head cold unless you're sufficiently drugged!!!

Now we're settled into a hotel room on base (TLF was full, unfortunately, so we don't have a lot of room) and just getting into the swing of things. We hung out this weekend and Isiee took me to his favorite kebab shop, we toured the base, had lunch with his shop chief, rented a car, drove around for a bit, looked at cars for me (BMW, please!), ate dinner at his favorite Chinese spot, Dragon House, and saw "Sherlock Holmes" at the base theater. Did you know they play the National Anthem before every movie?

And right now I'm waiting on Isiee to finish up in-processing at his shop so we can start house-hunting! I've made a list of wants, needs and preferred locations, so hopefully we'll be able to narrow it down quickly!

When I get my computer in the mail (it had to be fixed before we left the US), I'll be sure to post some photos and videos from our mini-trip to NYC and everything we're up to here in the UK.

Until next time.....toodles!

Almost there...

The following is a common occurrence in my life lately:

Friend or relative: "So, how's married life?!"

Me: - shrug - "I don't know. Ask me again in March."

So, almost 4 months married and less than a month to go until we see each other again. The exciting news is that I'll be able to fly out to LA and meet Isiee at the airport, then spend a few days with both of our families. After that we'll fly back to Greenville and make the big move to England about a week later. EEK!

I'm really excited about starting our life in the UK, but there are so many things that make it bittersweet. I'm torn about leaving my family. I grew up in a military family where we moved several times, but we were always together. All this "last" business - last birthday, last Thanksgiving, last Christmas, last trip to NC - is making me a bit emotional. I know that we'll be back to visit, but it's not the same as being able to just stop by every other evening, or get together for dinner or shopping with 15 minutes' notice. We also probably won't be coming back until next year...as in 2011. I'll be missing so many big milestones in my friends' and family members' lives: engagements, weddings, birthdays, etc.

And yes, I know I signed up for this when I married Isiee, but it doesn't make it any less difficult. But the good news is that we'll at least be together. We'll be starting our own family unit and will get to explore so many amazing places, an opportunity that not many get to have.

So, in the world of official documents and government travel, we're halfway there. I have my tourist passport, the no-fee (gov't) passport is in transit, and I'm ready and waiting to fill out the visa application in a few weeks. We're also waiting on our orders to be generated (tick tock...), at which point I can go to Ft. Jackson with my Powers of Attorney to schedule a day for the movers to come get all of my stuff and our wedding goodies, and drop off the car at the docks in Charleston.

In the meantime, I'll hang on to some British wisdom....

We're married!

Introducing, Mr. and Mrs. Israel E. Caballero, III!



So, more than a month has passed by, and Isiee and I are doing well. He flew back to South Korea three weeks after the wedding, so now I am once again back at work in Greenville, trying to adjust to a new normal. I love finally being married to my best friend, but I'm looking forward to being married and actually living together. We have a few more months until that happens, but I'm sure when it does, it will be fantastic! And the fact that it will happen in England makes it even more exciting. And seriously, get your passports ready, because we want visitors!

We hope you'll keep coming back to our blog to keep up with us on this whirlwind adventure that is our life.

Much love,
Kalyn