Resource Thursday: Recreation Equipment Issue

This week's resource is a lesser-known opportunity that is available on most major military bases. Recreation Equipment Issue is much more exciting than it sounds! They actually allow military (and family) members to rent out TONS of outdoor equipment, ranging from camping supplies, carnival games, inflatable bounce houses, and yard work tools. Equipment options include small mundane things like ice chests or rakes, for occasions when you just need a few extra tools to make things go smoothly. But you can also rent things as large as a tow-able camper for a weekend trip, a lawn mower, a pig cooker, or even a generator! Their prices are much lower than any other rent-a-center, and all you have to do is pick up and drop off at the proper times. We are renting a bounce house from them for our daughter's birthday-- only $45 for the day, rather than the $90 I spent from a civilian company last year, even with a coupon! We have also previously used them to rent lawn equipment when we were tackling cultivating and seeding jobs. You only need the tools for 1 weekend, and then you don't want to have everything in your garage forever, so renting is a wonderful and affordable solution! Check it out at: Lejeune REI.

Top 10 Reasons I know we are back in North Carolina

Well, after 2 weeks in Pennsylvania, we are back to our home in North Carolina! Hubby still has another week of training, but the kids and I are just glad to be back in our own beds, getting back to our routines, etc. It was a little rough getting unpacked and re-adjusted today on my own. We just went through a deployment a year ago, but man I feel out of practice! So for fun, here is my--

Top 10 Reasons I know we are back in North Carolina:

10) Totally empty refrigerator
9) Base traffic
8) Cooking dinner alone
7) Gas less than $3.90/ gallon
6) parking lots full of mini vans and pickup trucks
5) Mosquito bites
4) grocery shoppers wearing cammies
3) a full social calendar
2) friends just a few minutes away
1) flip flops and sandals instead of boots!

Yep, it is nice to visit family sometimes, but there is no place like home!