About Me
- Jeff and Karen Doherty
- We were married in September 2005. We're best friends, and we love traveling and exploring new places. We like sci-fi movies and watching the history channel. Our little boy was born February 1, 2010. He is named Jeff Jr. or JJ. Our daughter Moira was born July 28, 2011. We have a cat named Munchkin. Jeff is a career military officer, and Karen works for a family services program for the Army. We live in Monterey, California. We are making this blog for our family and friends who we miss and want to share our life with.
Monday, June 04, 2007
Jeff Hard at Work
Jeff plays a table top "war game" called Warhammer 40,000. Each player decides on a type of army and then buys the pieces and paints them. They bring their armies to touraments. They spread their armies out on tables with "obstacles" and roll dice to advance and attack opponant. Jeff loves painting "his boys."
His army is made of orks. He paints each one with tiny detail brushes, some of which only have a few hairs. The orks are about 1-2" tall, so there is a lot of detail.
Language Day - Seatiing
Here we are at the beginning of Language Day. By the end of the day, all the seats were filled and people were sitting everywhere on the grass. The Building in the background is one of the Middle Eastern buildings. The 3 stones in the background are pieces of the Berlin Wall.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Army Family Action Plan
The Army Family Action Plan (AFAP) is a program that allows army families to bring any concerns or problems to the attention of command. It meets every quarter at each base and all families are encouraged to participate. People bring different concerns from who gets the new houses, and a need for better lighting in the parking lots, to concerns about insufficient insurance and retirement benefits to these meetings.
The concerns are then sorted by priority and what level they can be addressed at – local, national, worldwide. Every six months, there is a “mid-level” conference where the national and worldwide concerns are addressed and then passed on to the appropriate departments.
Jeff is now an AFAP facilitator. He facilitated the local meeting in February in Monterey. He was invited by the Commander to represent the Presidio in at the Mid-Level Conference in April, in Hampton, Virginia. Go Jeff!
The concerns are then sorted by priority and what level they can be addressed at – local, national, worldwide. Every six months, there is a “mid-level” conference where the national and worldwide concerns are addressed and then passed on to the appropriate departments.
Jeff is now an AFAP facilitator. He facilitated the local meeting in February in Monterey. He was invited by the Commander to represent the Presidio in at the Mid-Level Conference in April, in Hampton, Virginia. Go Jeff!
Vermont Visitors!
We were so happy to see Jeff’s mom and step-dad again! They came to visit us April 14-21. We were unable to get off of work to spend as much time with them as we would have wanted, but it was wonderful to see them again.
They had some adventures touring Napa Valley. They went to see a few missions. Last year they went to the Hearst Mansion and took one of four tours. This year they went back to take another tour. We want to go see the mansion also, it sounds amazing!
All in all, we had a nice week visiting and catching up. We thank them again for making the big trip across country!
They had some adventures touring Napa Valley. They went to see a few missions. Last year they went to the Hearst Mansion and took one of four tours. This year they went back to take another tour. We want to go see the mansion also, it sounds amazing!
All in all, we had a nice week visiting and catching up. We thank them again for making the big trip across country!
Disneyworld - April 1 - 8
We spent a week in Disneyworld at the beginning of April. Karen’s parents, Rich and Sharon, joined us for about a week. It was the first time we’ve all seen each other since we left Florida in November 2005. It was great to be together again.
Jeff was invited to attend Army Family Team Building – Master Trainer classes for the week. So he was in class during the days while Karen spent time with her parents and relaxed. Jeff’s classes were a week of “train the trainer” classes – adult learning types, planning classes, giving presentations, etc. He loved it! He uses these skills while volunteering for AFTB and to give presentations to soldiers.
We bought a week pass to Disney and had a blast when Jeff was done with class each day. I don’t think we saw half of everything, even though the four of us seemed to be all over the parks. It was such a wonderful week!!! We were so sad when it was over. We are definitely moving back to Florida.
Jeff was invited to attend Army Family Team Building – Master Trainer classes for the week. So he was in class during the days while Karen spent time with her parents and relaxed. Jeff’s classes were a week of “train the trainer” classes – adult learning types, planning classes, giving presentations, etc. He loved it! He uses these skills while volunteering for AFTB and to give presentations to soldiers.
We bought a week pass to Disney and had a blast when Jeff was done with class each day. I don’t think we saw half of everything, even though the four of us seemed to be all over the parks. It was such a wonderful week!!! We were so sad when it was over. We are definitely moving back to Florida.
Hi Family and Friends!
We are sorry it’s been so long since we’ve posted! We are having fun and doing great. We’ve settled into our new house, and we’ve been working hard. Our cats are doing well. They love sitting in all the windows in the new house and are on constant watch for birds.
We hope you enjoy our stories and pictures. Well, not as many pictures as we would want. Our camera is safe somewhere at home, we just don’t know where. We’ve unpacked everything but a few boxes of books, so the camera is most likely under a book…
We miss all of you and hope you’re doing well too!
Love,
Karen and Jeff
We are sorry it’s been so long since we’ve posted! We are having fun and doing great. We’ve settled into our new house, and we’ve been working hard. Our cats are doing well. They love sitting in all the windows in the new house and are on constant watch for birds.
We hope you enjoy our stories and pictures. Well, not as many pictures as we would want. Our camera is safe somewhere at home, we just don’t know where. We’ve unpacked everything but a few boxes of books, so the camera is most likely under a book…
We miss all of you and hope you’re doing well too!
Love,
Karen and Jeff
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
We're Moving!!!!
We are moving into a NEW house!!! If we won the lottery, I don’t think we could be happier! We have been on the “new house waiting list” since November 2006, and were told we were #181 at that time, based on seniority. We got a call last Monday that our number was up and would we be interested in a new single family home? The answer was yes, of course!
The U.S. Government currently has a partnership with several private companies to rebuild the old housing that is part of the military housing around the United States. Normally, when we live in military housing, we do not pay rent. If we choose to live off base, we would be given a housing allowance. For this partnership, we are given the housing allowance, and then we pay it as rent to the development company. This gives them the money needed to rebuild the communities.
When we moved into the military housing in November 2005, all of the new homes were occupied and there was no waiting list. We moved into an old home. By military policy, once you have a place to live, you have a place to live. There is no opportunity to move within the base housing. You can leave at any point, but once you're there, you're there.
Since we are here much longer than originally planned, we are paying into the new houses more than most people and we are not receiving the benefit of living in one. The cost of rent off base is much more than we receive for the allowance, so we are forced to live on the military housing. (Forget even buying a home here…)
A group of us families got together and complained about the situation. The Commander listened and had a new policy put in place to allow families like us who will be here long term to move into the new houses… So here we are!
We are now waiting for the City Inspector to come and give the Certificate of Occupancy! We were getting pretty frustrated that we couldn’t buy a house or afford to live in a better situation, but now we’re pretty sure we got the best deal!
Anyone want to come help us move?
The U.S. Government currently has a partnership with several private companies to rebuild the old housing that is part of the military housing around the United States. Normally, when we live in military housing, we do not pay rent. If we choose to live off base, we would be given a housing allowance. For this partnership, we are given the housing allowance, and then we pay it as rent to the development company. This gives them the money needed to rebuild the communities.
When we moved into the military housing in November 2005, all of the new homes were occupied and there was no waiting list. We moved into an old home. By military policy, once you have a place to live, you have a place to live. There is no opportunity to move within the base housing. You can leave at any point, but once you're there, you're there.
Since we are here much longer than originally planned, we are paying into the new houses more than most people and we are not receiving the benefit of living in one. The cost of rent off base is much more than we receive for the allowance, so we are forced to live on the military housing. (Forget even buying a home here…)
A group of us families got together and complained about the situation. The Commander listened and had a new policy put in place to allow families like us who will be here long term to move into the new houses… So here we are!
We are now waiting for the City Inspector to come and give the Certificate of Occupancy! We were getting pretty frustrated that we couldn’t buy a house or afford to live in a better situation, but now we’re pretty sure we got the best deal!
Anyone want to come help us move?
S K Y D I V I N G!!!
What an experience!!! WOW!!! We went skydiving December 16th and it was so totally incredible, beyond words – you have to do it to understand the feeling!!!
We went up to 15,000 feet and did a tandem jump with an instructor. We had a 60 second free fall, and then the instructors opened the parachutes and we slowly drifted to the ground. The free fall was wild; it didn’t feel like we were falling at all, but like we were being pushed upwards. The time when the chute was open felt like we were sitting in the air. When we landed, there was no impact - all of a sudden I was sitting on the ground.
We have to do this again!!!
We went up to 15,000 feet and did a tandem jump with an instructor. We had a 60 second free fall, and then the instructors opened the parachutes and we slowly drifted to the ground. The free fall was wild; it didn’t feel like we were falling at all, but like we were being pushed upwards. The time when the chute was open felt like we were sitting in the air. When we landed, there was no impact - all of a sudden I was sitting on the ground.
We have to do this again!!!
Monday, January 22, 2007
Monterey County Women's Crisis Center
Karen is going to volunteer as a survivor advocate at the crisis center soon. I begun a 60 hour training program to learn about domestic violence and sexual assault. The training will be completed during the first week of February, and then I will volunteer on the crisis hotline. I may also volunteer to be part of the team that meets the survivor at the hospital to help her or him go through the processes.
The classes have been incredible so far, and at the same time sad. We are all excited to be part of this agency. The crisis center offers many wonderful services to the community from free therapy to parent training.
The classes have been incredible so far, and at the same time sad. We are all excited to be part of this agency. The crisis center offers many wonderful services to the community from free therapy to parent training.
Disneyworld here we come!
We are going to Disney in March! Jeff was selected to take Army Family Team Building Master Trainer classes, which will be held in Orlando in March. Karen is going too, to take the Program Manager classes! We are so excited to be selected to take these classes, AND to spend time in Orlando.
Karen's parents and grandma are going to come to visit. This will be the first time we will all be together since November 2006
Karen's parents and grandma are going to come to visit. This will be the first time we will all be together since November 2006
Merry Christmas!
December 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
This has been an amazing year filled with many changes for us. We started off the year settling into our new home in Monterey, California. Monterey is a beautiful seaside town about two hours south of San Francisco. We live less than a mile from the Pacific Ocean in the foothills of the mountains. Monterey was the capital of Mexican California, and it has a lot of historic homes and buildings.
The Florida National Guard moved us out here so Jeff could study Arabic at the Defense Language Institute (DLI). In the course of making new friends and learning about Army programs, Jeff met an officer who was recruiting people to staff the Language Immersion Center at DLI. Until November, Jeff was working as the Officer in Charge of this program.
Karen has become very involved with the Army Family Team Building Program (AFTB). AFTB provides training and knowledge to spouses and family members. “It is AFTB's mission to educate and train in knowledge, skills, and behaviors designed to prepare our Army families to move successfully into the future.” Karen has attended advanced training provided by the Department of the Army and has earned the title of Master Trainer. Karen is also the Family Support Group Leader for Jeff’s California National Guard Company.
In July, Karen began work as a Facility Coordinator for CB Richard Ellis with the McGraw-Hill worldwide contract. This contract includes McGraw-Hill and their business holdings of J. D. Powers, Standard & Poor’s, and radio and television stations. She works with two senior facility managers to support eleven locations from Washington to southern California.
We are proud to announce that Jeff received a promotion to First Lieutenant in late October. Jeff has now served in the military for twelve years as both enlisted and as an officer. He has fulfilled these positions on Army Active Duty, as a Reservist and a National Guard Member for Florida and California. With his promotion, Jeff has been given a new job at DLI. He is now the Executive Officer at the Asian I School. There are eight language schools at DLI, so this is quite an honor. An Executive Officer in this position is equivalent to an Assistant Dean at a civilian school.
We’ve had a lot of fun over the past year, and have taken some great weekend trips around California. If you’d like to read more about our ongoing adventures or see some recent pictures of us, please visit our blog: http://jkdoherty.blogspot.com/
We hope everyone is doing well. We wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Karen and Jeff
Dear Family and Friends,
This has been an amazing year filled with many changes for us. We started off the year settling into our new home in Monterey, California. Monterey is a beautiful seaside town about two hours south of San Francisco. We live less than a mile from the Pacific Ocean in the foothills of the mountains. Monterey was the capital of Mexican California, and it has a lot of historic homes and buildings.
The Florida National Guard moved us out here so Jeff could study Arabic at the Defense Language Institute (DLI). In the course of making new friends and learning about Army programs, Jeff met an officer who was recruiting people to staff the Language Immersion Center at DLI. Until November, Jeff was working as the Officer in Charge of this program.
Karen has become very involved with the Army Family Team Building Program (AFTB). AFTB provides training and knowledge to spouses and family members. “It is AFTB's mission to educate and train in knowledge, skills, and behaviors designed to prepare our Army families to move successfully into the future.” Karen has attended advanced training provided by the Department of the Army and has earned the title of Master Trainer. Karen is also the Family Support Group Leader for Jeff’s California National Guard Company.
In July, Karen began work as a Facility Coordinator for CB Richard Ellis with the McGraw-Hill worldwide contract. This contract includes McGraw-Hill and their business holdings of J. D. Powers, Standard & Poor’s, and radio and television stations. She works with two senior facility managers to support eleven locations from Washington to southern California.
We are proud to announce that Jeff received a promotion to First Lieutenant in late October. Jeff has now served in the military for twelve years as both enlisted and as an officer. He has fulfilled these positions on Army Active Duty, as a Reservist and a National Guard Member for Florida and California. With his promotion, Jeff has been given a new job at DLI. He is now the Executive Officer at the Asian I School. There are eight language schools at DLI, so this is quite an honor. An Executive Officer in this position is equivalent to an Assistant Dean at a civilian school.
We’ve had a lot of fun over the past year, and have taken some great weekend trips around California. If you’d like to read more about our ongoing adventures or see some recent pictures of us, please visit our blog: http://jkdoherty.blogspot.com/
We hope everyone is doing well. We wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Karen and Jeff
New Pets
We have 2 new snakes.
Jeff had a ball python for years. That all ended when Jeff met Karen. Jeff took the snake on his first date with Karen (don't ask) and was afraid to take it into her house, so he left the snake in the car. The snake, being a snake, explored his car and was never seen again. While going to our local pet shop here in Monterey to buy fish, we saw that they had a ball python similar to the first, so we adopted it back in July. The snake has been living happily in our computer room in a glass tank ever since then.
A few days before Christmas, Karen was notified at work that there was a HUGE snake behind one of the copy machines. People were afraid of this (possible) anaconda that had gotten into the building. I went up to the copier and didn't see anything, and then all of a sudden, there was a little wiggle by the cords. It seems somehow a baby gopher snake got in the building. Its about 10" long and thinner than my little finger. I brought it home from work and it now lives in another glass tank next to the python.
Our little kitten loves to sit on the floor and watch the snakes. We are putting up a picture of her getting curious about the python.
Jeff had a ball python for years. That all ended when Jeff met Karen. Jeff took the snake on his first date with Karen (don't ask) and was afraid to take it into her house, so he left the snake in the car. The snake, being a snake, explored his car and was never seen again. While going to our local pet shop here in Monterey to buy fish, we saw that they had a ball python similar to the first, so we adopted it back in July. The snake has been living happily in our computer room in a glass tank ever since then.
A few days before Christmas, Karen was notified at work that there was a HUGE snake behind one of the copy machines. People were afraid of this (possible) anaconda that had gotten into the building. I went up to the copier and didn't see anything, and then all of a sudden, there was a little wiggle by the cords. It seems somehow a baby gopher snake got in the building. Its about 10" long and thinner than my little finger. I brought it home from work and it now lives in another glass tank next to the python.
Our little kitten loves to sit on the floor and watch the snakes. We are putting up a picture of her getting curious about the python.
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