I am now getting into a groove here in Oklahoma, it’s not a routine because my life and work are anything but “routine”.  There are activities that I enjoy doing which I feel keep me balanced and healthy, they are; jogging/running on a regular basis, working out with weights, reading, blogging etc.

Much of what I just mentioned takes a back seat to my work and family however I keep as good a balance as I can.  I enjoy my new assignment and I cherish the time I have to spend with my wife and kids.

I am also very entreprenurial and have been diligently studying to become a certified “Success, Leadership, and Life Coach”.  I have over 20+ years of leadership experience and the first 40 years of my life have been extremely successful plus I enjoy empowering others to reach for and attain success in their lives.

I have made a few changes here on the blog; I removed all services related to google because of their new privacy policy which in case you didn’t know is not based on your privacy, it’s based around them gathering as much information on you and using it to profit in the guise of being a benefit to you – not cool!

I added the latest book I am reading which is “Pro Blogger” by Darren Rowse, you can see that on the right hand side.

I removed the “Ask Mark” feature due to lack of use and spam comments by bots and other nefarious crack pots.

I added a link to my Daughter’s new blog “Rashell and Amber Brown’s Blog” on the right as well so go check them out and leave a comment.

There are allot of exciting things going on and I will post more as time permits.  Being back in the USA has been terrific and as the summer months arrive I will be looking forward to re-connecting with family and friends.

Leave me a comment and tell me what you think of the changes plus tell me if you would like to see a feature added that is not here.  Be sure to “Like” and “Tweet” this post and I will do the same for you!

Always with my best regards,

Mark Edward Brown

On 3 January we struck out across the west on the plains of Missouri and Oklahoma.  My oldest daughter and I drove our “hot-rod” Dodge Charger and my Wife and our two younger kids (a boy and another girl) + the family pet (a cat) in our trusty SUV drove all day with few stops because of our excitement to arrive at our new destination.

In the early evening we arrived at Fort Sill and checked into our hotel suite.  We unloaded only the neccesities and had a light supper before relaxing a little bit before getting some well deserved rest for the night.

The next day I checked in with the housing office to see if on base housing was available however, it was not.  There was at least a week long wait before I would be able to move the family into a home that would fit us and all of our belongings and we would have to squeeze my two daughters into one room (not something I recommend to anyone).

With that situation understood we linked up with a local realtor named Barbara Clark who is a brilliant woman and really restored my faith in realtors everywhere.  We looked at homes until early evening, took a break and resumed our search again the next day.

Our home search was not what I expected at all and it was a challenge to find all the right characteristics regarding what we all wanted and what we really needed.  For example, a swimming pool would have been really cool to have however that did not work out.  I really like neighborhoods with sidewalks and yet again, that did not work out either.

What it all came down to was a home in a school district where our kids would be educated with care and quality plus a home with enough room to grow with a storm shelter to ride out those nasty tornados and storms that come through this area of the country.

To make a long story short we found the right home, with allot of help from Barbara.  We now live in a small community that in not far from Fort Sill and a picture of our home is below, (our sub-division is called “Shadow Ridge” ~ pictured above)

We don’t have a spare bedroom but your welcome to pay us a visit and one of the kid’s will lend you their room for a night or two.  Please call first so we can ensure you have a clean room to stay in!

We don’t have all of our belongings yet, one shipment is being delivered on Thursday and I am still expecting my military belongings that I shipped from Korea.

The kids are in school and adjusting well, I just started in-processing at Fort Sill and my wife (Kim) is keeping us all in line and behaving appropriately

Leave me a comment and let me know how your New Year is starting, I hope it’s been a good one so far and look forward to reading what you have to share so please comment below.

Mark

I recieved a +K on Klout a couple of days ago from my friend Rich Morris (@RichMorris) for blogging so I want to stay as consistent as possible and keep you posted about what is going on with me and the family…we are getting ready to move ~ but first I have to bring you up to date from what has happened since Christmas.

Since arriving at home just before Christmas we have been focused on preparing for our move to Oklahoma.  Between Christmas and New Years the movers spent two days packing our household goods and one day loading it all up.  These guys were real pro’s and I have no doubts that all of our “stuff” will arrive witn no damage or loss.

There were over 220 boxes and another 230 items such as the couch, beds etc. – let’s just say all that “stuff” almost filled a full size drop deck moving trailer, in fact the moving company told us that our shipment would be the only one that would be delivered by one truck and that they would not have room to add another small load to our’s in order for the load to be considered “full”

We travelled to Willard, Missouri to celebrate New Year’s with our friends and relatives, Kevin, Alvina (@Alvina_B), and Jacob Broz.  Kevin makes the world’s best Bratwurst, I’m not kidding, I have only experienced a taste like this that comes from this one “King of Brats”, and that is my man Kevin, he is the bomb all the way around so thanks to the Broz’s for a great New Year’s eve celebration.

I also met Dave Hamilton and his family, he is a cool guy who runs his own business selling tents, he has many other skills and we had allot to talk about because he spent some time in the 82nd Airborne Corps. back in the day when he was a Soldier.  Dave has a great family and it was good to be in the company of down to earth people with common sense, plus like I said – the Brat’s were out of this world.

New Year’s Day was spent getting the house ready to be “moved out of” and I went for a jog for the first time since returning from Korea as well.  All in all not a bad day and I think I will go to bed early so I can wake up and tackle the 2nd day of 2012!

My family and I leave in 2 days from Saint Robert where they have lived for the last 6 years, as you know I have not been there the entire time due to my luxurious and adventurous travels sponsored by Uncle Sam and if you are just joining us ~ I’m in the Army (still, it’s been 23 years so far).

We are headed to Ft. Sill, Oklahoma where I will be the Deputy Provost Marshal which is like the assistant police chief.  We are excited for the move and new assignment.

There are many other exciting things going on but I will save room for that info. to later.  For now just leave a comment and send good vibrations our way for a safe trip and quick acquisition of a new family homestead.

Bye for now and I’ll blog to you on the other end

Mark Edward Brown