Final post

It's hard to believe that one year has passed. When it first began, it felt as though the end would never come, but here we are. Jason and I have been married for a year, and we have weathered our first deployment.


I want to thank everyone for reading the blog and supporting us. I hope you've enjoyed the adventures of Amanda and Flat Jason. If you are interested in checking out the adventures of Amanda and Real Jason, you should click over the Stapp Family blog, StappShot.

Much love, the Stapps.

He's Baaaack!

Finally! Captain Jason Stapp is stateside. He got back to Camp Atterbury the first week of March, and he was with a group of soldiers who were bussed to the Ike Skelton Training Center in Jefferson City, March 8.

The welcome-home ceremony was relatively short. The speakers kept commenting about how they knew they were the only thing between the crowd and their loved ones. (We couldn't see each other until he was released.) Carl Vogel didn't even talk, but told Mike Alden, master of ceremonies, to say thank you on his behalf to keep the party going.

After getting released, some of my family went to save seats at Chili's while Jason, John and I tried to find Jason's gear, load it and meet them.

Laissez les bon temps roulez!

I wasn't as much fun as Flat Jason had hoped for on Mardi Gras. I stayed home from work and the pantry was running a little low. I left him to party by himself, but I should have known it would be hard for him to stay out of trouble. He stole a couple of Jamie's no-bake cookies and Dustin's beer from the fridge. Tsk, tsk, tsk.

My husband is more sentimental than me...

...and I like that.

I started out strong: I got up on Valentine's Day and made pancakes - all by myself. (Be impressed. I've never done that before.) I even cut them into heart shapes. And I put my homemade Valentine card at his plate.

Later, I got to talk to the real Jason via Web cam. We played some games together and chatted for a while before he said that he had looked for some red velvet cake in the chow hall, but there was none to be found. Instead, he made due with the dessert available. I said it was too bad because I know how much we both like that flavor of cake and laughed at an inside joke, but it wasn't until after we had said good-bye that I realized the real significance of the red velvet cake.

That was the flavor of our wedding cake. Most couples save the top layer of their wedding cake to eat on their first anniversary, but not us. Our wedding cake was only one layer, and it was so delicious (thanks, Mom!) that we decided to eat it while it was fresh. How could I have forgotten about such a prominent wedding tradition? I thought about it the whole time we were at the Mud Room...

Erin of the Mud Room specially ordered us a rice bowl to paint and make a semi-matching set. Jason painted a dragon on the other rice bowl, so I needed to figure out how to paint a dragon. The only one that I could even come close to was Trogdor the Burninator. By the time it was completed, I had decided to see what sort of fancy desserts were available at Cold Stone Creamery.

Success! Cold Stone had some red velvet petite fours covered with dark chocolate. Mmmm! We gave one to Jamie and Dustin and ate one ourselves while drinking out of our sweet toasting glasses.

Happy anniversary, my sentimental one!

Letting off steam at the Mud Room on Thursday

Happy Anniversary to me

It's coming up fast...Valentine's Day AND our first anniversary. Traditionally, the first anniversary is the paper anniversary. In modern times, newlyweds have taken to giving clocks.

In keeping with tradition, Jason wanted to get me a book, but he was afraid of accidentally getting me a knitting book even though he knows I crochet. So, I suggested that I get my own book since I obviously know what books I would like and I recently received a Barnes and Noble coupon in my e-mail.

After listening to Bob Krist and Ralph Lee Hopkins speak at a National Geographic photography conference, I met Flat Jason at Barnes and Noble in Independence. We shared a piece of cheesecake and FJ read The Crochet Dude's Designs for Guys while I decided on the book I wanted. We also talked to Georgia, who just happened to appear at B&N to study.

Oh, Jason also mailed me another present: a yellow paper rose and a roll of anniversary toilet paper.

Courtwarming 2009

Lauren was nominated queen candidate for the 2009 EHS Courtwarming, so Flat Jason and I went to Eldon to watch the proceedings. Lauren looked amazing, and Flat Jason was sure to relay a message from the real Jason: If you don't win, punch the other girl in the face, grab the crown and run.

Well, Lauren didn't win, but she didn't cause a scene (although I'm pretty sure she could have outrun Andrea hobbling on her crutches). All three queen candidates are great friends, so when Meagan won, the other two were happy for her.

Super Bowl, super fun

Flat Jason's presence was requested at MU Extension 4-H State Teen Conference by some of the State 4-H Council members, but he didn't really mind. He got to meet Miss Missouri Lacey Fitzgerald. She didn't seem to mind either. Ha.

Later, we were invited over to the Costas for a Super Bowl party. Diana, Flat Jason and I had chips and salsa while we watched, umm...mostly talked through, the first half of the game. We also switched over to Puppy Bowl a few times. I was excited that the kitty halftime started several minutes before The Boss took the stage at the real halftime.

Jason C. grilled steak when he got home from work, and Diana made green beans and potatoes. I did nothing but enjoy a wonderful meal. After the game, I got to try out their Wii. It was so much fun! Now I just need to convince Flat Jason to buy me one.

A pleasant winter shower

With Jason coming home and our welcome home/wedding reception wingding just around the corner, a few family members were generous enough to throw us a wedding shower. Even more family members and friends were generous enough to attend and give or send gifts. It sure was nice to visit with everyone and we got to enjoy cake made by Kim and punch made by Aunt Ginny. The lovely flowers that adorned the table were from Jackie.

I had wanted to make Flat Jason come, but it was just as well that he didn't. No boys came; he would have felt awkward. So when I brought all the loot home, he took his time going through it. We got several nifty things that will make our married life better, including matching towels, matching bed clothes and Pyrex bowls. He had fun wearing the bows, but do you think he's going to pitch in with his share of the thank you notes? I don't think so...

Flat Jason's vacation funds

Can you see how excited Flat Jason is? That's because he now has a new piggy bank in which to save his vacation funds.







Our friends Mandi and Jason went on a Carribean cruise to celebrate Jason coming home from his tour in Afghanistan. While they were in the Cayman Islands, they picked up a small trinket for us. It's such a thoughtful gift because Jason and I are saving for our eventual honeymoon to France.

Ernie's on Saturday

When Jason and I started dating, he wanted to eat at Ernie's. I was opposed to unfamiliar eateries, but he insisted and Ernie's won me over.

It had been a while since I had eaten there so Flat Jason and I went to Ernie's on Saturday. I tried to get there early, but it seems I'm chronically late. There was quite a crowd a little after 8. We ended up chatting with a nice lady named Bernetta from Moberly. She was eating breakfast while her husband was in a meeting.

Breakfast was delicious, but in the end my eyes were bigger than my stomach. I couldn't finish my stack of pancakes, and Flat Jason wasn't much help.

Wait for a lane

Hmm...either bowling is getting more popular or the people of Columbia are going stir-crazy, which wouldn't be hard with this confusing summer-fall-winter weather we've been having lately.

We had to wait a few minutes for a lane this time, but that just gave us more time to talk. Even though the waiting took some time out of everything, we still fit in two games. I got a 102 and a 91.

Kiss me at midnight

Flat Jason sure had fun on New Year's Eve! We braved the cold to stop by the Magic Tree in the south part of Columbia. There was a lot more blue in it than I remember, but, as always, it was incredibly beautiful. There was a steady stream of cars filled with people who made their way through the neighborhood to see the Magic Tree. A nice young lady volunteered to take our photo.

Then, we drove to the Schad house. We watched a few movies and celebrated at midnight. Cheers and happy 2009!