Hooah!

I am writing this inbetween itching my numerous bug bites and applying copious amounts of mositurizer to my sunburned arms and face. Today was the annual Wives Swamp Walk here at Camp Rudder. Nearly every unit in the Army has a "GI Jane" day where the wives of soldiers in the unit get to participate in some obstacle courses, fire weapons, and experience a bit of the trianing that our husbands do every day. Here at the 6th RTB, we give a new meaning to GI Jane day. Because our husbands are instructors at the toughest stage of the toughest school in the Army, they expect that their wives will also be tough and they make sure we have the chance to prove it once a year.

Our day began with inprocessing (read: signing a waiver stating we won't sue the Army if we are grievously injured), medical screening, and equipment sign out. We were each issued a snap link and safety line for the waterborne operations portion of the day. Once the room full of women was equipped, we were briefed by the Reptile Team on the various types of venemous and non-venemous snakes we might encounter in the swamp. We also got to hold a baby alligator and see the newest alligator in residence at Camp Rudder, Vincent. Vincent was recently acquired from St. Augustine in the hopes that he will breed with our female alligator and produce many baby Ranger Gators. Vincent is one of the largest alligators in captivity at nearly 12 feet and 575 lbs. I think many of our civilian and Air Force guests were beginning to doubt their decision to participate at this point. But before anyone could think of defecting or making a quick break for the exit, the RI's (Ranger Instructors) headed us out to the range.

At the range we were given a demonstration of how to load, fire, and clear a malfunction on the

M249 (Saw - Squad Automatic Weapon) and the M240B. We then lined up, received ear and eye protection and proceeded to load and fire both weapons. It was incredibly fun! We fired the Saw in the prone position and I was actually pretty darn good. Well, until it came to clearing the malfunction. I definitely don't have the upper body strength to pull the chamber all the way back. But I was a good shot! After firing weapons we loaded up in the back of transport vehicles and bumped our way precariously down the road to the site for waterborne operations.

At the river, we were briefed on how to tie our snap link and safety rope, how to load and maneuver the Zodiac boats, and how to cross the rope bridge safely. Following the briefing we dined on MRE's in the (relative) shade. While certainly not five star quality, I would say that the veggie burger in BBQ sauce was rather tasty given my extreme hunger. It was made all the more enjoyable by our RI screaming "Food is for fuel, not enjoyment! I see far too many ladies enjoying their food! Eat it whole and get moving!" While the majority of us Ranger Wives simply ignored this directive and continued to explore creative uses of our condiments to mask the taste of the food, the Air Force and civilian wives appeared a bit distressed. We tried not to laugh too much. I think some humor (mostly the yelling part) is just inherent to the Army and not really appreciated by civilians or other branches of service.

Following our lovely meal, we lined up for the rope bridge. Basically, the rope bridge is a length of cord strung from one bank to the other and secured on trees. Ranger students tie a length of safety cord around their waist, leaving an arm's length of the cord, with a caribiner attached, extended in front of them. The caribiner is snapped onto the rope bridge (cord) by the RI and the student places one hand on either side of their caribiner. The student then uses his hands on the rope and his feet in the water (kicking - the water is over 12 feet deep) to move across the river. The caribiner and safety line ensure that if you let go of the rope and go under the water, you can reach up and pull yourself back above the surface. The water looked inviting primarily because we knew it was cooler than the 110 degree weather. The fact that it was so muddy and brown that you couldn't see anything in it was a little concerning but, we dove right in. Our dive team was on hand to assist anybody having difficulty swimming in full clothing and combat boots and also to watch for water moccasins (venemous snakes) and gators. I am proud to say that I crossed quickly and successfully!

Following the rope bridge experience, we loaded up on the Zodiac boats. Well, first we had to carry the boats to the water. Our group decided to show up the competition by lifting our boat overhead to carry. Of course, our RI guides did most of the work but we looked enviably cool. :) Once loaded, we pushed off and rowed several clicks down the river to our docking point. I'm quite sure that our RI's will appreciate Ranger students much more after having to listen to a boatful of women sing Row Row Your Boat (in a round, no less) all the way down the river. We may have made fools of ourselves but we had a blast. After narrowly escaping a complete capsize by mistakenly steering our boat into the side of the dock, we managed to get out and onto dry land, where we began our swamp movement.

There is no way I can adequately describe a Florida Swamp to you. Just imagine an extremely big, dense pile of liquid mud. Now imagine stepping into it up to your armpits. Oh, and some parts of it are actually bubbling. And it stinks like a sewer. And underneath, where you are walking but cannot see, there are huge fallen trees. And things swimming. And some parts are randomly deeper, much deeper, so that you take a step and fall into it. As you walk you can feel your pants and boots filling with gritty, nasty, stinky, hot mud. We made it through by judicious use of our walking sticks (long sticks that our husbands usually use to test the depth of the swamp before stepping ahead) and imagning that we were really in a mud bath at the spa. As we exited the swamp and continued to walk on dry land through the forest, we fantasized that the grit squishing between our toes was really a fancy exfoliant, sloughing off the dead skin and revealing more beautiful feet with each step. It was a bit of a stretch, considering the smell, but we made it work. In spite of some navigational difficulties, which I like to refer to as sight seeing or swamp appreciation, we arrived on the road and were relieved to see our transport vehicles waiting. We loaded up and headed back to Camp. Our ride home for "Personal Hygeine Hour," (yes, that is actually what it is called) was a little less glorious. We were not allowed inside any of our husband's vehicles due to the swamp mud we were covered in, so we were forced to ride in the bed of a truck.

As much as I enjoyed my GI Jane experience, I was happy to use liberal amounts of fragranced bath gel and various scrubs in my nice, clean shower as soon as I got home. After scrubbing (and I do mean scrubbing) every last inch of swamp grit off, all the ladies changed and met back up at the Battalion area for an awards ceremony and some BBQ. My certificate and cute Swamp Wives t-shirt definitely made the experience worth it..........;) Any of you that feel like a true Florida vacation, come on down in August and join me next year. Rangers (and their wives) Lead The Way!

(I only have pics of the weapons as we could not bring our cameras to the swamp. The command and local media are going to send us pics that they took of us so I will post some actual swamp pictures as soon as I have them.)

The Girls invade Birmingham......

At the museum there is a giant map carved into the walkway. The girls enjoyed being "giants" in Birmingham.......

They also enjoyed being dwarfed by the plaster casting of Vulcan's foot. As you can see in the second picture, Sam is quite insistent that her "baby" accompany us on all outings as of late. Most of the time Mom ends up carrying her or pushing her in Sam's umbrella stroller. And yes, it is a little awkward confronting the stares of strangers in the mall as I push a doll while both of my children walk, but it is significantly less awkward than the fit Sam would throw if her baby was not in the stroller........I pick my battles carefully and all I can say in my defense is that at least this "third child" is quiet, well behaved, and doesn't require much in the way of feeding or potty stops. :)

More of Birmingham

On Friday, we headed to Vulcan Park on the hill overlooking Birmingham. Vulcan Park is an educational museum built around the statue of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire and forge. The statue of Vulcan is the largest cast iron statue in the world and was built in 1904 for the World's Fair to represent the birth of Birmingham's iron and steel industry. Iron mining created the city of Birmingham and many of the original factories and mines still stand today. In fact, the majority of vehicles and weapons used in WWII were made in the iron factories of Birmingham, AL. The museum is located on a hill that was once a huge mine and overlooks the entire city. Each exhibit tells the story of Birmingham's history, first as a mining town, then as the gateway to the Civil Rights Movement, and finally, as home to one of the largest and finest medical complexes in the United States. For two history fanatics, this was a great stop on our trip! The museum is fascinating and the city, beautiful. Add one more thing to the list of things I am learning to love about the South: the wealth of national history, of struggle and triumph represented in each small town and burgeoning city here.

Birmingham, AL

On Wednesday morning we loaded the minivan with suitcases, the DVD player, plenty of Polly Pockets, colorbooks and crayons, snacks, and a few baby dolls and headed out for Birmingham, Alabama, about 5 hours from Camp Rudder, FL. Were we staying for a week, a month? Oh no, just a few days. Our many travels in the minivan with two toddlers has taught us to be prepared with plenty of amusement and fruit snacks to keep them distracted from the fact that they are strapped into car seats.

This was our second trip to Birmingham but it will not be our last. Kaitlyn's Cleft Team is located at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Children's Hospital and we go once a year for check ins. Last year we had to go during the school year so we did not get a chance to see the city at all. This year we decided to go up a day early and stay a day after so we had a chance to see Birmingham. Birmingham is a fascinating southern city, full of our nation's history and we had a great time experiencing some of the city's magic. On the drive up we stopped at Priester's Pecan Factory where they have been making Pecan products since the early 1900's. We got to watch the candy being made and sample quite a bit. Duane had to call Mom and rub it in a bit as they share a great love of Pecans and Pecan Pie. He made up for it by buying some pecans to ship to her though. :)

After arriving in Birmingham, we settled into our hotel and got things ready for the next morning. Cleft Clinic starts early and so we made our way to UAB Children's first thing in the morning. UAB is rated among the top 3 Children's hospitals in the U.S. and is the single largest employer in Birmingham. The clinics and hospitals span the entire downtown portion of the city and are surrounded by the actual UAB campus. The sidewalks and restaurants are filled with medical students, doctors, and nurses in scrubs on their lunch or dinner breaks. Children's itself is a huge building that spans two of the city blocks and is decorated brightly with all artwork at a child's eye level. It is a fun and engaging place and Kaitlyn loves her visits there. We feel incredibly thankful that we have the opportunity of receiving care at Children's. Kaitlyn's visit went exceptionally well this year. She has never had an abnormal hearing or speech test so she was actually exited from both clinics this year!!! This means she will only need to receive future screenings if we feel there is a problem that develops. I usually go into the booth with her when she does her hearing tests but this year, she went in by herself and was perfectly comfortable following the directions. She is growing up and becoming so confident! All in all, it was a great visit, with no surgeries expected in the near future.

After the hospital, we spent the remainder of the day at the Birmingham Zoo where we saw everything from monkeys and gorillas to alligators, Flamingos, and hippos. One of the Gorillas there was the first in the world to receive a heart implant. The surgery was performed by both Vets and cardiologists from UAB that normally operate on humans. Pretty fascinating! The zoo was beautiful and we had a fabulous time and were exhausted by early evening - well, mom and dad were................

Fashionista in the Making

This is what Sam decided to wear for a day of playing in the neighborhood.......do I need to say more?

Our Little Firecrackers

4th of July weekend arrived with a bang here in the panhandle of Florida.....literally. We are in the midst of hurricane season and the 4th was a stormy day. We spent most of the day indoors, relaxing and avoiding the torrential rain, high winds, and lightning. We rarely get the chance to hang out and do nothing as a family so it was nice to just watch the storm, listen to the thunder, and read and play games. By evening the storm had cleared and the neighborhood gathered in the circle to set off a few fireworks and a LOT of sparklers and Pop Its, as most of our neighbors have little kids too. We spent the rest of the 4th chatting with old friends in the circle and getting to know new friends who have just arrived at Camp Rudder. Long after the sun had gone down and the kiddos had fallen asleep in laps, we finished off the last of the juice boxes and headed on in to bed. Yep, you know you can no longer claim membership in the "cool people" club when you think a good party consists of conversations about breastfeeding tips, positive discipline methods, and your favorite brand of fruit snacks over juice boxes stolen from the kids' stash...............And a "late night" means after 10pm. We have officially become our own parents and we don't really have the energy to fight our descent into "uncool." We hope you still love us anyway! ;)

Hope your 4th was as enjoyable as ours!

Two Little Ballerinas.....

Here are a few pictures from Samantha's first Ballet class. Kaitlyn has taken ballet at the Eglin Ballet School for 1 year and just had her first recital in May. Poor Sam has been anxiously waiting to turn 3 so she can join her sister. Last Thursday was their first class together and Samantha was so excited to put on her ballet and tap shoes.

Silly Girls

Here are Kaiti and her friend Haley and some of the other neighborhood kids around the campfire, making smores and being silly. The other pictures are of the girls goofing around in new PJ's. I can't believe they are 5 and 3 now, out of diapers and baby things.

Samantha Grace is 3!

We celebrated Sam's 3rd birthday on Saturday afternoon at the Rudderville Park. While her actual birthday is May 26th, we decided to wait until Daddy was home to do the big party so he could enjoy all the frosting covered faces, sticky ice cream hands, and general toddler chaos. He was not disappointed.

The majority of the little kiddos from the neighborhood headed down to the park on Saturday afternoon to celebrate, make crafts, run around, and get sticky with various forms of sugar. Sam is obsessed with Dora and Diego so we had Dora decorations and made Dora door hangers for our bedroom doors - thank goodness for those self sticking foam thingies! :) We had cupcakes and ice cream and the kids ran themselves tired. After presents, everyone went home and changed into swimsuits and headed for the neighborhood pool where the parents tried to take naps in the sun and the kids caught their second wind, effectively ending nap time for us old people. To top the day off, we grilled with some friends, made Smores and the girls got to have a little friend spend the night.

Today Sam and Kaiti and their sleepover buddy Haley got to have a Dads and Daughters "date" to see Shrek 3. I came home this afternoon from a leisurely shopping trip in Destin to find two little girls tuckered out and taking naps - something they never do. All in all, it was a pretty spectacular weekend!

Daddy is Coming Home!

Just a little celebration - Duane passed Jumpmaster School yesterday and graduates today.....and comes home this evening! He has spent the past 3 months in schools at Ft. Benning, GA with only 1.5 weeks inbetween so we are definitely glad he is coming home. The girls have begun to believe that Daddy lives in Georgia....or "Gawga" as Sam says. Jumpmaster is an incredibly difficult school with a failure rate near 90% so we have been on pins and needles awaiting the outcome of the final timed inspection and Duane made his time yesterday! He is now officially certified to push people out of planes........And he did rather well, maintaining some the higher test scores in the class and receiving 100% on the initial test that fails over half of the class on the first day. Now if I could just get him to take the garbage out with that level of efficiency..............:)

Memorial Day

"The nation that forgets its defenders, will itself be forgotten." Calvin Coolidge

Hope ya'll are enjoying your Memorial Day Celebrations with family and friends. The girls and I are relaxing, BBQing with the neighbors, and swimming at the Rudderville Pool. Duane is still at Ft. Benning for his second school and is spending his weekend studying. :(

For obvious reasons, Memorial Day is a holiday close to our hearts. Please take some time today, in between the BBQing and suntan lotion applications, to remember the men and women whose sacrifice has paid for the freedoms, small and large, that we enjoy each day. I know that our country is not perfect, our leaders not without fault. There are numerous things to complain about and be frustrated with in America today, but we are still the only country founded purely upon the principles and ideals of freedom. It is a struggle for us to maintain these ideals and sometimes, we fail. But in the end, the very freedom to strive towards the ideals upon which we were founded is owed to the men and women who have died under our flag. Don't taint their memory with complacency but rather purpose to be actively thankful for each small blessing of freedom and strive to maintain the ideals that our nation was founded upon all those years ago. God Bless America!

"There are those, I know, who will say that the liberation of humanity, the freedom of man and mind, is nothing but a dream. They are right. It is the American dream." ~Archibald MacLeish

"We have enjoyed so much freedom for so long that we are perhaps in danger of forgetting how much blood it cost to establish the Bill of Rights." ~Felix Frankfurter

"My God! How little do my countrymen know what precious blessings they are in possession of, and which no other people on earth enjoy! " ~Thomas Jefferson

"Our great modern Republic. May those who seek the blessings of its institutions and the protection of its flag remember the obligations they impose." ~Ulysses S. Grant

"Patriotism... is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime." ~Adlai Stevenson

Samantha Grace

With all the "end of the school year" events, we have tons of pictures of Kaitlyn on here and none of Sam. No, we do not lock our second child in the closet..........Really, we take her everywhere too. Here are a few pictures of Samantha Grace so you don't think we leave her at home with the cats. She is growing like a weed and can't wait until she can do all the things her sister can. Mommy can probably wait.....both for the sake of sanity and the fact that I want one of them to stay little! They grow way too fast.

p.s. the second picture was taken in Duane's room at Ft. Benning, GA. barracks (Olson Hall) while he was at school there. We got to see him when we drove up to fly out of Atlanta. The girls were beside themselves with excitement. Of course, now that he just left again, they are under the impression that we can "go with Daddy" when he goes TDY for Army schools............I suppose he could just throw them in the rucksack.....hmmmm.........

PreK Graduation

I can hardly force myself to believe it, but Kaitlyn is officially a Kindergartener. She "graduated" from PreK on Thursday evening. I don't remember anything like this in the northwest so it must be a Southern thing. The PreK students actually wear a cap and gown and have a "graduation." It is just about the cutest, funniest thing you've ever seen. The kids have practiced all month. I'll admit, I've snuck into their practices - one of the benefits of teaching at the school. Duane's parents were still in town so they got to attend the graduation with us. The "graduates" sang the alphabet in French, the weather song in French, (which I have never heard before but it is pretty amusing), and for their grand finale, "Kindergarten Here I Come." They then received "diplomas" one at a time while anxious parents angled for the perfect shot and 4 and 5 year olds attempted to pose, all of which ended up being rather comical. A reception followed, with cake and punch. I think I can report with much confidence that the reception was the most enjoyed part of graduation for the graduates. Probably had something to do with the cake and copious amounts of frosting........... While the graduates enjoyed frosting and sugar filled punch, the parents stood around in a daze, attempting to comprehend that their "babies" are now officially on their way to Kindergarten...... All in all, it was a success!

Kaiti's 1st Recital

On May 6th, our little ballerina made her stage debut, performing in the Eglin Ballet School Annual Recital. Kaitlyn has been taking ballet and tap at the Eglin Air Force Base Ballet School since last summer. She is in the 3-5 year old class which means that they manage to practice a few plie's and grand jete's in between making faces at themselves in the mirror and sliding across the floor in ballet shoes. Somehow, their very talented teacher is able to turn this into an adorable recital. Let me just say, it was quite the event.

We spent all day Saturday at the rehearsal. The ballet school is comprised of students age 3 - 18 so there were 29 separate dance numbers, including the Mom's dance. That's right, some of us old moms were convinced to make fools of ourselves and perform a dance that we learned on Saturday afternoons. Let's just say that we did a lot more laughing at ourselves than dancing. We're not sure how the dance actually looked but we had a great time learning it together and the daughters had a great time laughing at their mommies.

After a long dress rehearsal, we all arrived on Sunday afternoon at the base theatre and headed backstage. Samantha sat with Duane's parents and cousin who had come in from Oklahoma for the festivities. To complicate matters, Camp Rudder was hosting its' annual Open House where we open the Camp to the public to view everything from an ambush demonstration to a parachute jump. Duane was one of the jumpers. He jumped at 12:30 and literally ripped his chute off and raced to the base theatre just in time to catch Kaitlyn's first number. Of course Kaitlyn thought it was pretty cool that her Dad jumped out of a plane to be at her recital - Rangers Lead the Way......even to ballet recitals..........:)

Kaitlyn performed a tap number to "RESPECT" which was pretty hilarious. Her ballet number was to the song "Butterfly Kisses" and of course I cried. She was adorable and loved the stage. While many of the little ballerinas were a little intimidated by the stage lights, Kaitlyn ate it up. I'm thinking if we encourage her love of the stage, perhaps Duane and I will be able to retire in a first rate nursing home..........

All in all, it was an exhausting and adorable event. I can definitely see the wisdom in having only one recital a year because I think it will take me a year to gear up again.....and next spring it will be Kaitlyn and Samantha.

Build A Bear Field Trip

We are approaching the end of the school year here in Florida and Kaitlyn's PreK class recently took their final field trip fo the year. As the most traveled PreK in the state, they had to have a pretty spectacular trip to top all the amazing trips they have been on this year. Ms. Sterling and Ms. Kuchnia took all 18 PreKers to Build A Bear at Destin Commons. Each child got to make a bear, eat lunch at Johnny Rockets, and play in the water park. The best part of the trip for Kaiti was her Daddy. Duane made it home from 2 months at Ft. Benning just in time to chaperone the trip. They had a fabulous day and Duane needed a nap when they got home.......

In Memorium

"our government officials often talk of the 'boots on the ground' in Iraq, most often forgetting that those boots were filled with thinking, living flesh-and-blood Americans"

"War is not just John Wayne giving an eloquent speech before he dies, but young men dying without a word and sent home with what is found of them."

(SSG. Darrell R. Griffin, Jr.)

The words above are words written by our dear friend. He knew what he was talking about more than most. His feet filled those "boots on the ground" in 2004-2005 with the 1/5 Infantry Battalion Bobcats and again in 2006-2007 with the 2/3 Infantry, both in Iraq. Darrell is the man who stood beside my husband through the toughest of times, who promised me before they left that he would take care of him as best he could and bring him home to me and our little girls. He kept his promise. But then, I knew he would. He was the friend my husband knew he could count on in any situation and his wife is the person that I could call at 3am when the fear of that deployment seemed overwhelming.

Throughout our lives, we meet many "good friends," friends we love to be with and friends that share many of the important events in our lives. But even more rare are those friends that we connect with at the heart, those who seem to know what our deepest fears and our greatest joys are without ever exchanging a word. This is the type of friendship that we shared with Darrell and Diana. Through each event in our life, we grew closer. We celebrated our husband's promotions, the birth of our two little girls, the addition of their "little girl," a whippet named Luna, and we cried on each other's shoulders during the tough moments of training deployments and a year long Iraq deployment. We laughed together, worried together, shared holidays and many a weekend BBQ together, debated the issues of the world, cried together, were outrageously silly together, supported each other, and gave strength when it was needed. We jokingly refer to each other as our "chosen family," meaning that while you can never choose your natural family, sometimes you get to choose to add some "adopted" members. Darrell and Diana are definitely part of our family.

When the guys of 1/5 Infantry returned from their year in Iraq, we both received orders. Duane and I PCS'd (Permanent Change of Station) to Eglin AFB in Florida and Darrell and Diana stayed on Ft. Lewis but moved to 3rd Brigade. Unfortunately, 3rd Brigade was preparing to deploy to Iraq. Just 8 months or so after returning from Iraq, Darrell deployed again with 3rd Brigade. Despite our distance, we have remained as close as family. Diana and I can talk for 3-4 hours on the phone without realizing it (much to our husband's chagrin) and when Darrell was home on R&R for 2 weeks, he and Duane spent hours discussing how to get back to the same duty station and be together again. We have spent the last 8 months of Darrell's 2nd deployment praying for his safe return to his lovely wife. Diana and I shared pictures of our kids (hers is the 4 legged kind, and just as sweet!) and talked for hours about worries and joys and future plans. So, when she called me on the evening of March 21st, I assumed it was to dish about the latest and laugh a bit. What she said changed my world. She told me simply, "Darrell's gone." I knew what she meant but I somehow thought there must have been a mistake. There was none.

Darrell, the man who never left my house without telling me how precious my children are and what a wonderful mother I am, is gone. Darrell, the man who never was in my presence without mentioning how beautiful his wife of 12 years was, is gone. Darrell, the man who called me from Iraq when he could have called his wife, just to reassure me that my husband was fine after a close call, is gone. Darrell, the man who rushed to the site of a battle when he heard that my husband's platoon was involved, who rushed to be at his friend's side without thought for his own safety, is gone. Darrell, the man who told me that he would bring my husband home, that he wouldn't let my two little girls be without their Daddy, is gone. Darrell, the man who sat on my back porch, drinking wine and discussing the issues of the world with my husband, or who did crazy, silly things with my husband that left Diana and I rolling our eyes in amusement, is gone. Darrell, the huge body-builder of a man, who held my babies with a gentleness and reverance I have yet to see again, is gone. Darrell, the man who could talk for hours about how in love he was with his wife, who still paused from speaking to watch her walk across the room as only newlyweds do, is gone. Most days, it is a little much for me to comprehend.

In the month since he gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country, many people have memorialized him. Soldiers, chaplains, reporters, family, and friends have spoken about his dedication and commitment to soldiering, his intense study of the world around him and the book he was in the process of writing. All of the things they have said, at memorials in Ft. Lewis, Germany, Iraq, and his native California, are true portrayals of the man he was. Me, I am just his friend's wife. I know he was an incredible soldier and philosopher but I remember him most as the man who stood by my husband, who shared dinners with my family, who rejoiced in the birth of my children, who loved his dog Luna like a child, and who loved his wife Diana as if they were newlyweds. In my mind, these things made him great. And they make him irreplacable.

The Cake

Oops! i forgot to include pictures of the cake......here it is!

Kaitlyn's 5th Birthday!

Kaitlyn Elise Wells has turned the big 5! I'm not sure why 5 seems to be such a big birthday - perhaps because it is the age that "real" school begins or perhaps it is because you've passed your toddler years and been around for half a decade, but whatever the reason, 5 is a BIG birthday in the world of a child. Kaitlyn turned 5 on Thursday, March 1st. Birthday's are huge in the Pre-K, with a balloon and bag of treats at your seat to begin the day, Mom bringing cupcakes for snack time, and handing out incitations for all your classmates. It is a tradition here to invite the whole class - yes, all 18 of them. Kaitlyn proudly distributed her invites on Thursday and then headed to Ballet class where she handed out more cupcakes and got to hear the Happy Birthday song again. Whew! What a day!

Today, Kaitlyn had her big party. Many of her classmates and several neighborhood friends attended her "Army" party. Yes, our pretty princess decided that she wanted an Army party so she could show her school friends around Camp Rudder. So Mom has spent the last few weeks scouting out camoflauge party favors and decor. We had dog tags for each little guest and, upon arrival, they got their faces camo'd up by Daddy. We then headed out on a march to the reptile house where we got to see the gators, Hillary and Stump, and get pictures on the statue of Big John, the original Camp Rudder gator that died a few years ago. After our trip to the Reptile House, the kids marched back to the playground and enjoyed a reconnaissance effort (Scavenger Hunt) for camoflauged eggs, filled with treats. By this point, most of the little recruits were starting to fall out so we broke for chow (cake and ice cream) and opened gifts before playing some more and heading home for naps. Overall, it was hugely successful and I think the Mommy's and Daddy's enjoyed the afternoon naps as much as the kids did! Kaitlyn's cake was made by my friend Trish, who is amazing! She made pink dog tags for the cake!

We cannot believe Kaitlyn is 5!!! We really don't want to consider how old that makes us.............. :)

Retreat

We really need to keep this up more don't we??? It has been so crazy around here that I've had little time to sit and type. We are prepping for the FCAT, the dreaded Florida State test, sending out quarterly grades, having steering committee meetings for the FRG, Valentine's Parties in Pre-K, etc. etc. etc. The list goes on and on and I find that I barely have time to take an extra breath. But today, as I was racing around on the base, trying to run a few errands before picking Kaitlyn up from Ballet, I was forced to stop and breathe for a moment.
As I was hurrying into the commissary for cheese and crackers for the Pre-K party tomorrow, I heard the opening bugle sounds of "Retreat." For those of you who have never lived on a military installation, this is the bugle song that is played each day near 5pm as the flag is lowered and folded for the evening. When "Retreat" is played, everyone halts and stands to face the nearest flag. Following "Retreat," the National Anthem is played. As I stood in the crowded parking lot with harried mothers and busy soldiers and airmen rushing to finish up that last errand before heading home, something incredible happened. Everyone stopped, turned toward the flag, and placed their hand over their heart. Mothers hushed small children and set their groceries down. Soldiers exiting their vehicles paused in motion. Veterans paused and took off their hats. The young and the old, in uniform and out, paused. Not a sound could be heard but the playing of the Anthem. For just one moment, everyone forgot about their busy lives and joined together to pay respect to the symbol of our nation. And then, the music stopped and mothers picked up grocery sacks and held the hands of their children, soldiers and airmen returned to their tasks, veterans placed hats on their balding heads and the buzz of a weekday evening resumed. But as we all walked away to continue our errands, I noticed a difference. The mothers seemed a little less harried, the children slightly less rambunctious, the soldiers and airmen a little less rushed, and the veterans stood a little taller.

The most incredible thing about those few moments is the fact that it happens everyday on military installations around the world. For me, I am usually in traffic and miss this tradition. But on Thursday evenings, I am waiting for my daughter to finish ballet at the base youth center and for just that one day a week, I have the privilege of stopping and taking a moment to remember the things that are most important to me. Because that is what "Retreat" is. Sure, it is a little inconvenient to drop everything,but the privilege of that moment far outweighs the inconvenince. In that brief span of time, as I watch the flag lower, I am reminded of all the things I hold dearest: my family that I live so far from, my husband who is home safe, my little girls who bring me so much joy, and the many freedoms that allow me to enjoy so many things. In the chaos of everyday living, I am given a moment once a week to focus on the many privileges I have as a citizen of this country. I am given an opportunity to be thankful for my family and to be thankful for those who served with my husband and made the ultimate sacrifice. I am given an opportunity to enjoy the incredible silence of a crowd of people all thankful for the same things, coming together to honor all those who have gone before to provide us with those gifts. It is a tradition that I have come to cherish.

There are many aspects of being an Army family that can be frustrating, challenging, even heartbreaking. But there are also moments when you realize that it is worth it, that you cannot imagine another life. Standing at attention while the flag is lowered is one of those moments. For those of us in the military, it is part of our everyday life. Pausing to honor the flag and all it stands for is something we do on a regular basis, something our children grow up knowing. It is a privilege that the rest of America does not get and that I can't help but wonder if they would not benefit from..........

LJPS Lionettes

Just wanted to show off our Liza Jackson Lionettes Dance Team. I have missed coaching Cheerleading since we moved but have been lucky enough to be able to help coach our middle school dance team. Like our school, the dance team is relatively new and small. Only two of our girls are 8th graders. The remaining 6 are 6th graders that are brand new to the squad and to dance teams in general. On Tuesday night we performed at Ft. Walton Beach High School, along with 2 other middle school dance teams, as part of the send off to Nationals for the Ft. Walton Beach High School Dance Team, the Stars, defending UDA National Champions. The other two middle school teams that performed were over 20 girls strong and their dances were choreographed by professionals. Our team had 2 girls out sick so only 6 performing on the huge stage all by themselves. And to top it off, one of their two routines was choreographed by our team captain, not a professional choreographer. Alexis is part of the Northwest Florida Ballet and did an incredible job with her choreogrpahy. The girls were by far the most technically proficient and they brought the house down. They were incredible! Besides being amazing dancers, these girls are just incredible young ladies and I am so excited to get to work with them for the whole season next year!