My first blog!

Hello, there! My name is Amanda Welch and a very busy person. I have been married to my husband since July 9, 2003 and he left for basic training on July 16, 2003. I accompanied him to Germany from 2004-2007 and then we got orders for Fort Lewis, Washington. I have three small children, Stephen was born on January 3, 2006...Krystina was born March 21, 2007 and Kaelyn was born on August 10, 2008. We also have a dog named Max and she joined our family in April 2004. We currently reside in Olympia, Washington and love our home.

I am currently surviving our first deployment, he is deployed to Afghanistan for a year and this is the first time we will have been apart longer than a month or two. He is up in the air for what he wants to do with the Army; whether or not he wants to stay or if he wants to change his career options; either way, I am here for him.

I am an easy going wife, I do not mind if he goes out with his friends...but he has to give me some kind of warning, just to be fair...he cannot come home from work and say, "Oh, I'm going out with the guys tonight." He gives me a days notice or so, which is great and that's all I ask for. He can pretty much do what he wants, but he chooses to spend his time with his family and I love him for that.

We are best friends, we have endured a lot together in our short time being married, we have lost people really close to us and I have lost a cousin in April. It is great that I have someone to depend on and he is there for me and supporting my decisions, even if he does not fully agree with it.

Since I got married at 18, I have not ever been on my own...until now. I had my first child when I was 20 and having my son, really made me grow up and made me less of a selfish person. I am now very outgoing, forthcoming and honest. I find these all great qualities...I am a listener, supporter, caregiver and love people.

I am just getting a feel of blogging, I decided to start one because my friend Brittany has one that I read frequently and love her personality and her outlook on life. I was brought up in a negative light, and that has hindered my friendships; however, I am overcoming the negativity and moving on to the positives in life, since there are so many to focus on!

You will definitely hear more from me, but that is me and my life thus far and I will definitely write more tomorrow!