Another week down...

Yet another week has come and gone in the wonderful world that is Iraq.  But seriously, another week down.

In my last post I mentioned that I was applying for instructor duty...  Well I applied, and later that day I was denied.  I was denied because I don't have enough time at Langley.  December is my two year mark at langley, so then I can call up the people who pick instructors and tell them that I am still interested in becoming an instructor.  Hopefully everything will work out and they will give me orders shortly after that.  Instructor duty is something that I have wanted to do since I was in tech school.  Also the San Angelo cost of living is very low, so we could buy a fairly decent house for a good price!

Work is going well, I have been writing operating procedures out to teach the new people coming in.  We got two new people a few days ago and three more are on their way.  We will have 20 people here by then, and of those 20, I have only worked with one of them before...  We have been working some long days, 14 hrs, 15 hrs, all the way up to 18 hrs.  Because of the long hours I haven't been working out.  Then a few days ago, I found out about a 10K on the 4th of July.  I am planning on running it, but I don't think I will be as fast as I was last time.  I think 3 miles is the most that I have fun since the last 10K.  I also thought about signing up for the Richmond Half Marathon in mid November.  However, I might not be home in time for that.  I did find out that I have until the 11th of NOV to sign up, so I can always wait until right before if I want.

Getting up to run before work has been difficult recently.  If I want to get a run in, I have to get up by 4am at the very latest.  And that is just waaaaaaay to early, especially when Im not sure if Im going to have to work 18 hours that day!

Mary and my Mother can both vouch for me when I say that I'm not a huge fan of vegetables.  My roommate said that I should drink V8 juice for the vegetable serving and also for the sodium that is in it.  He said because of how much we sweat here we need to take in more sodium.  So I decided to give V8 a try... it turns out that stuff is pretty damn tasty!  I am drinking between 2 and 3 of them everyday.

One last funny story: This happened on my day off last week.  My roommate's alarm went off, and his alarm is a song that I guess I was getting annoyed with.  While it was going off I sat up and started to reach to turn it off, before I could get to it, he turned it off.  As he did, in my half-asleep voice I said, "This shit has got to change."  Then I laid back in bed, rolled over and went back to sleep.  I knew nothing of this story until he told me about it when he got home from work.  I must have been sleep walking or something, I dont know.  But it was funny to relive the story.

That is all for now from this God-forsaken land.  I hope that everyone has a wonderful week.  I love you all!

Weekly Roll-Up

Since last Tuesday I dont think there are too many stories to tell...

We do have a little ottoman that we built at work, we keep it outside in the smoke pit.  It was designed as a seat/ coffee table/ ottoman.  After a few days a leg or two fell off, when we rebuilt it we put an extra 2x4 on it (it was to set your coffee mug on while sitting on it).  The extra piece made it look like a dog and we all commented on it and decided to name it Otto.  We gave Otto a tail, and put him on a leash so he doesn't run away (we get bored out here).  Also people started moving him around and propping him up so it looks like he is peeing on the building or putting him on top of one of the other benches.  Its something to do...

Mary also signed a lease on a new house!  We are pretty excited about that.  It is a bigger and nicer place than we have now.  Also basically everyone that I work with back home has volunteered to help her move.

I almost finished my instructor package.  The package is part of the application process to become a technical instructor.  If I am selected we will be stationed at Goodfellow AFB, San Angelo, Texas.  It isn't the most happening place in America, but it is in America!  And the housing market is very good down there.

Wednesday:  I woke up around 3 in the morning drenched in sweat.  My A/C had gone out and my room was now a kiln.  I wasn't able to fall back asleep after that.  I got up around 0500 still drenched in sweat, I took a shower and then sat in my room in my underwear not moving and i was still sweating.  For the record that is not a good way to start your day!  I worked from 0600-1500.  When I got to work I filled out a work order to get my A/C fixed, I left it with one of my Sgts who knows a guy.  Around noon or so I found out that I had to be back at work at 1AM, mind you I still wasn't done for the day.  My plan when I got off of work was to go straight to sleep, hoping that my body would let me sleep in the middle of the day with out any notice.  A sandstorm started moving in around lunch time, so that kept the heat down to about 100 or so, and the wind was blowing and it was hard to see.  When I got to my room, my A/C wasn't fixed, so it was about a million degrees in my room (and that is not an exaggeration at all).  Since I had to sleep, so I could work in a few hours, I decided to change into my PT gear and go to work and sleep in the air conditioned tent we have there.  I got to work about 1600 or 1630 and tried to lay down right away.  I think I fell asleep around 1700 or so and woke up around 1930ish.  When I woke up the tent was blowing around like crazy.  The sandstorm had gotten much worse.  I tried going back to sleep but it was hopeless.  Around 2130 or 2200 I decided to go back to my room, and if my A/C wasn't fixed then I would shower and go back to work.  Where I live is about 1.25 miles from where I work, I took one of the work trucks home so that we could all get back to work in a few hours.  I have taken this route atleast twice a day for the past two months, it isn't a difficult trip, so, I shouldn't have had any problems... I got in the truck, started it up, turned on the lights and realized that I couldn't see anything.  It was pitch black and the sand was blowing like Monica Lewinski (bad analogy?)  I drove really slow so that I didn't hit anything or anyone.  This drive is about a 1/4 mile through a dirt field and then about 3/4 miles on a straight paved road, a right turn about 1/8 of a mile on a paved road, a left turn and then the final 1/8 mile or so is on a gravel road.  The trouble started when I was trying to find the path through the dirt field, I didn't find it and just cut across.  Then I got on the paved road, I thought that I would be ok from here on out.  I saw headlights of a car approaching me on the road, I couldn't see the headlights until they were about 30 feet in front of me.  I kept going straight and traveling slow.  I came to a stop sign, (I couldn't see it until I was at the intersection) I couldn't  tell which intersection I was at.  The turn I needed is about a 100 feet after a stop sign and the area is lit by a set of stadium lights.  I couldn't see the lights so I thought that I was at another intersection (I thought that I missed my turn).  I turned right to take a different route, well I was way off... I took the turn 100 feet before my turn.  I turned around and as I was turning back on the main road I could finally see the stadium lights (I didn't see them until I was about 50 feet from them).  I finally made it back to my room.  I laughed at the fact that I got lost on that short of a trip.

I got back to my room and to my surprise, my room was cool!  I was so happy.  I decided that i would wash my face and hands (they were covered in sand) and then try to sleep until about midnight or so.  When I got to the bathroom, I noticed that my clothes, hair, and eyebrows were now sand colored.  I shook off what I could and then washed my face.  I laid down and got about another hour of rest.

I woke up about midnight on Thursday morning.  As I walked to the shower I could tell that the sandstorm was starting to clear up, but it was also still really sandy and windy.  After I showered, I talked to Mary and Maddox on Skype.  Probably the greatest part of my day (that and having A/C again)!!  Maddox was as cute as possible!  She wanted to sing all the songs that she knew, it was really cute.  She started singing 'row row row your boat' and Mary wasn't doing the hand motions, so Maddox stopped and made Mary do them.  It was pretty funny.  Mary was really happy because it was the eve of her last day of school and then she was going to travel for about a week.  Even though I wasn't rested enough for a 12 hour shift, I was lifted by seeing my girls happy and in good moods.  I also got kisses from Maddox!

Work was pretty good!

I am drinking about 2 or 3 mugs of coffee a day, between 2 and 3 liters of water while I'm at work (another 1or 1.5 liters after work) and the occasional sugar-free energy drink also.

It is 1500 on Thursday now, I have been home for about two hours.  In that time I got a hair cut and tried to stay out of the storm.  The sandstorm is still vaguely here.  Funny story, since my body is so tired, while I was getting my hair cut I started nodding off a bit... That is dangerous.  No worries though, no casualties.

I guess that I had more stories than I thought!  Sorry no pictures to show!  I did find this article: http://www.snopes.com/photos/military/burghardt.asp 

It is kind of a scary story, but the picture is funny.  No worries, the Gunny's job is nothing like what I do.  I sit at a desk in an air conditioned building.  The worst part of my day is when I have to go to the port-a-potty in the middle of the day (those things turn into saunas)!

I miss you all and love each and every one of you.  But my two favorite girls get the most love!

7 Weeks

Seven weeks ago today I left VA for Iraq (Friday will be 7 weeks in country).  It was over a 3 day trip to get here...  but I made it.  That first week I think we had two or three instances when the skies opened enough to rain for about 5 minutes.  The second week we had dust storms.  This week we got another dust storm.  It showed up Monday afternoon.  It was bad!  The sky had a yellowish tint and the sun was blocked.  While standing outside, I noticed that it was more humid than it usually is here.  About 10 minutes later, it started to rain.  The only problem was that since there was so much dust in the air, it rained mud.  It was probably the grossest thing ever.  I stayed outside under a shelter, just so I could experience it.  The rain/mud only lasted about 10 minutes.  Then it stopped raining, and instantly everything was dry again!  The air is so dry that it soaked all of the moisture back up immediately.  Today the dust storm was still here and the wind was blowing really hard today.  It makes the wind feel like sandpaper.

Monday night I went to a recording of the the Colbert Report.  I was pretty excited about that.  I ended up sitting in the third row, center stage.  My favorite quote from the show was: "Hi Stephen's Mom!"  I got a few pictures and I am trying to upload them right now.  However, the internet is still moving slow.

Today is Marc and Kris's second anniversary.  Although they have been together since I was 11 years old (13 years), they have only been married for two.  They are two extremely cool people with a nice house down at the beach.  My greatest time hanging out with the two of them would probably be New Year's Eve this past year.  We all went to Mom and Dad's house and stayed up drinking and playing board games.  We had a ton of fun and walked away with a few stories also, I can't say too much about them, but I will say that one of them involved a blender, my wife, magarita mix, and whole lot of tequila.  Kris also used to send me packages all the time while I was in Korea.  She always sent cookies, Maxim magazine, and even a playboy or two (too bad I can't get those things here).

Im looking for another run to compete in.  When I got here I started training for the 5K, then my roommate talked me into the 10K.  I did that, and now I have nothing to work for.  I mean besides getting in better shape.  There is an 8.5 mile bike race the end of this month.  But I don't have a bike, and I have never thought about riding a bike that far before.  Leading up to my run, I wasn't doing as many pull-ups, and last week when I started doing them again, I could tell.  My goals for when I leave here are to run atleast one 10 mile run, and to be able to do 25 pull-ups without stopping.  Right now, the farthest that I have run at once is a 10K (6.2 miles).  And the most pull-ups I've done without stopping is 16ish.  I think I can do it.

Today I did go take a US History CLEP.  If I pass it then I only need two more classes to finish my associates degree!  Also the college that I attended last fall is compiling all of my college credits to see how many I still need for my Bachelor's degree.

That is all for now, I love and miss all of you!  Bye!

The Moon

I dont know what it is about the moon, but I have always like looking at it.  I remember driving home from Wilmington late one night, and it almost seemed like the moon was watching me drive, it was seemed to keep up with me.  I could spend hours staring at it, not doing anything else but looking at it.  Last night it was real dusty, the moon was hardly visible.  Tonight the moon is casting shadows it is so bright.

I have always felt like the moon is common ground.  The sun warms everyone up, but the moon can actually be examined.  You can stare straight at it, and you wont go blind.  Everyone sees the moon.  It used to be when I would see a cool moon, like a real yellow one or even a reddish one, I would call people and tell them to look at the moon.  I would call people that were physically near me, to share it with them, and I would call people that were far away, just to give them a heads up that they might have a cool looking moon.

So, even though every morning you wake up in your bed, stumble to the bathroom, get ready, do what ever you have to do, drive to work, maybe pick up some drive through or coffee on the way to where ever you are going, work, go home prepare your own dinner sit on your couch, watch TV, maybe have a beer.  I am here, and when I wake up, I have to get completely dressed to even go pee, take a shower with 8 other dudes, carry a rifle with me everywhere I go, walk around in the blistering heat, sit on my bed or my broken lawn chair if I want to sit anywhere, and I have dust every where... We all still have the moon.  Now don't think that Im upset about what I am doing here, or my living conditions, I know that it could be much worse.  I am thankful to have a bed, running water 40 yards away, and internet (even if it is the slowest thing ever).  I am glad that I have those things, but looking at the moon makes me feel like I am home.

The past few days

Thursday I went to maleef (coffee and tea with the Shieks).  There are some pictures from it farther down the page.

Friday was my final run before the 10K.  I decided to do a trial 10K, I ran it in 59 minutes and 56 Seconds.  I was happy with that time.  My goals for the 10K were to run it in under an hour and run the entire thing.  I only had two or three weeks of preparation.  With my trial run I walked twice for a total of about 2ish minutes.

Saturday, I went to work and worked on a few things there.  At about 7:30ish, my Superintendent told me that the General was coming at 1300 to do my reenlistment.  A reenlistment may be done by any commissioned officer, from any US military branch of service.  It just happened that one of the Captains we know, knew a General on base and called in a favor for me.  It was an Air force Brigadier General (1-star).  He was a very laid back and cool guy.  When he got to work, he sat down with me and got to know me a little bit.  Afterwards, we did the reenlistment ceremony.  Basically all you need is a flag, an officer, an enlisted person, and an oath.  There were a couple of pictures taken, they are on the slide show farther down the page.

The Oath:

I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.

After the ceremony, I told him about what we do at work, and showed him some of the capabilities.  After that, he said his goodbyes and then awarded me with a coin.  If you are counting, that is my third coin for this deployment, and my second from a General.

Sunday (today) I got up early and went to go run the 10K.  It was supposed to be the Veterans Serving Veterans 10K, but I think they changed that name... Either way it was a 10K (6.22 miles).  We aren't aloud to run outside with headphones on, so I took some speakers and put them in my camelback and plugged that into my iPod, it works great!  I can't take credit for the idea, I stole it from my buddy in Korea, Thanks VV.  I got many compliments on it while we running.  I finished in 140th place (out of probably 250 or 300).  I didn't walk at all and my time was 54 minutes and 48 seconds.  That is about 8:48/ mile.  I was pretty happy with my time.

Back home:  Mary is doing the MS 150 bike ride.  75 miles one day and 75 miles the next...  That is much much much much much much more than I want to bike in my life.  I haven't talked to her, due to her poor cell signal.  But I did get a text and she said she was tired, but it was going well.  Since she is gone, my parents came up to watch Maddox for the weekend.  They brought there two little dogs, and I know Maddox and my Macy (my dog) liked that!  Unfortunately, when Mary asked them to watch MDX, Mary didn't realize that it was their Anniversary weekend (34 years of marriage).  They were still willing to do it, they get to spend time with their granddaughter... who would pass that up?  My dad also took care of a few things around the house: fixed the mower (it wasn't broken), mowed, drove my car, and who knows what else he found to fix.  Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad, 34 down... a lifetime to go.  Thank you for teaching me how to love another person.

Tomorrow (Monday), is Mason's birthday.  That is my older brother, who lives in Little Rock with his wife and two dogs.  He just got back from Afghanistan a few weeks ago, and we are all thankful that he made it home safely.  Mason and I have brothers for over 24 years (thats how old I am, he is turning 27).  When we were little we got along great, as we got older and went to different schools, we argued more and more.  Then he left for the Air force, and we became friends again.  Some of the greatest memories I have of him are actually violent ones, but we still love each other in the end.  One time we were moving all of the deck furniture into the garage because a hurricane was coming, and he started yelling at me for one reason or another.  Afterwards, he felt really bad and asked me to keep helping him, of course I did (Dad would have killed us if that shit wasn't put away).  One time, I wanted to cut a piece of cake, but Mason wanted to cut it also.  I was holding the blade of the knife by the handle and he grabbed it by the blade... Well believe it or not, the blade ended up stabbing him.  Sorry Mason.  Back when we shared a room, it was time to go to bed one night, and I took a belt and hit him with it.  I don't remember why I did it, I do remember jumping in bed and telling him to be quite because I didn't want to get in trouble.  Sorry for that one also Mason.  There last memory I will leave you with: we were standing in the kitchen horsing around, and pushing each other.  He caught me off balance, and pushed harder than he had been pushing, I flew back a few feet, fell on the ground and hit my head on the door to a cabinet.  Before I hit the ground I was laughing about it, and Mason was lunging to catch me.  He didn't catch me and he felt bad that it happened.  But hey, we are brothers, its what we do.  Mason, I wish you a happy birthday, drink a beer for me, and I'll talk to you later!

That is all for now from hot and sunny Iraq, I miss and love you all!

The top 10 reasons to be in the AF

Memorial Day

A day to remember fallen soldiers.  I heard the history of Memorial day on the radio today.  I was going to look it up and type it all out, but my internet is moving really slow (I can't even check my e-mail).

Back home most businesses close, people have cookouts, drink a couple of beers, and have a moment of silence to remember the soldiers.  Well in Iraq it is another day in the life.  I got up, showered, went to work, typed up some stuff, briefed a Col. on what we do, and then started getting stuff together for a BBQ!

We got a grill the other day and we wanted to have a cookout tonight.  I was put in charge of getting everything together.  Besides the grill we didn't have anything else.  From the chow hall, we scored some raw veggies from the salad bar, a stack of plates, some plastic ware, ketchup, mustard, and a few bags of chips.  Then we headed to the PX.  That is where we were going to get charcoal, a spatula, paper towels, burgers, dogs, buns, cheese, more chips, and foil.  When we got there, we were highly disappointed.  They were out of burgers, dogs and buns.  We got everything else and went back to work.  My Captain said that we should check at the gas station about a mile down the road.  I went and boy was I surprised!!  They had all the normal stuff gas stations should have but in Arab brands and some weird things.  They also had beef burgers, chicken burgers, shrimp, cornish game hens, and milk cream with honey.  I wasn't too sure about that last one.  I got the chicken and beef burgers.  We still needed buns though.  So I went back to the chow hall and grabbed about two loaves of sliced bread.  After that we had everything that we needed.  While I was getting the bread, my Captain was getting the grill started.  Before we grilled, we had a little cigar social, that was relaxing.  Another guy and I grilled the burgers (the PX doesn't sell any seasonings except salt and pepper, so they were kind of bland) and grilled the veggies as well.  The only thing missing was beer, and drunk people.  Everything was delicious and the Captain asked me to start planning for the 4th of July cookout.  I think we might do an entire Pig!  We need cornhole to play also, that would be fun.

I have Tuesday off because I didn't get a day off this weekend (I tried telling my Sgt that I didn't need a day off, but what do I know).  I also found out today that the General who was supposed to do my reenlistment on Thursday, cant make it.  So it looks like my Captain will do it.  Whatever, I'm still getting the bonus!

Also today in the mail I got 5 pounds of protein mix!  I got 2.5 pounds of cookies and cream and 2.5 pounds of cakebatter.  I haven't tried the cookies and cream yet, but the cakebatter is out of this world!

That is about it.  I'm telling you, my life is pretty boring out here.

What day is it?

My previous post was titled "Happy Monday".  Turns out that I posted that on a Tuesday...  I don't know what day it is.

Today was hot, nothing new.  I went to run 6.3 miles, but it was over 100 degrees outside and I have never run in that kind of weather.  I was only able to run the first half.  I started out too fast, and with the heat, it was too much.  Even though I didn't finish the run, I found my limit.  I plan on running tomorrow morning, and lifting in the afternoon.

Tomorrow, Thursday, evening I was planning on going back to meet with the Sheiks.  Their coffee and tea was really good.  If anyone has any questions for the Sheiks, let me know!

Happy Monday!

This morning I got up and ran 4 miles (from my CHU around the lake and back).  I started my run at 6AM, somehow that early in the morning I needed sunglasses and it was in the mid to upper 80s.  I ran the 4 miles in 36 minutes and 3 seconds, a hair slower than 9 minute miles.  I felt good after I ran it.  I was trying to run a 9 minute pace, and I succeeded.  When I got back to my CHU, I took my socks and shoes off and realized that I had a HUGE blood blister on my foot.  I didn't feel it forming, but I can feel it now!  My buddy, who is a medic, told me not to pop it, let it pop on its own and when it does to go see him and he will put something on it to keep it from getting infected.  He told me what he would put on it, but I don't remember what it was now.  After work I went to the gym with my roommate, Nick, and we did chest, triceps, and abs.  After that I got a shower and then went to chow, I had a stuffed pepper and pork with 2 skim milks.  It was really good.

At work we have a few clocks with thermometers on them.  Today I thought that it would be a good idea to put one outside to see how hot it was.  I set it up in the shade around 1400ish,  I checked it around 1500 and it read 108F.  THAT IS HOT!!  The heat here isn't like anything that I have ever encountered before.  When I got to Texas, people told me not to worry because it was a dry heat.  Well Texas is not a dry heat, and everyone that told me that is out of control!  It is such a dry heat here, that when you get home from the gym, your sweat filled shirt has dried.  I think that 108 is one of the hottest temperatures that I have seen (and I know it will get only hotter here).  I have been told that it gets so hot and dry that you cant tell that you are sweating, it evaporates before you notice it!!  CRAZY!!!

Tomorrow, I am planning on running the lake twice (that'll be about 6.3ish miles).  I am going to try to do it in under an hour.  I have never been a distance runner, and I don't think that I want to start.  I think a 10K might be my max... But who knows, maybe I will run this and really like it.  The 10K is on the 31st of May.

Also this evening I have been listening to Harry Chapin and that has put me in a really good mood.  I have been smiling since I hit play!  I even started re-listening to the songs.  I don't have the song on my computer, but "All my life is a circle" is a really good one and reminds me of this place because everyday is the same!

Anyways, I hope that everyone is doing well!  I love and miss all of you!

NOT just another day

It isn't just another day...  I got a box of goodies from my wonderful wonderful wife!!

Last night after reading for a little bit, I turned off my light and started going to sleep.  After 15 or 20 minutes or so, I was woken up by my roommate opening the door.  When I realized what was going on, I saw that he had mail in his hands.  I got a package from my wife!!  It was filled with all sorts of goodies:  Men's health and Men's fitness magazine, newspaper, crossword puzzles, flavored coffee, chocolate covered coffee beans, gold fish, the rubber ball attached to a paddle game, NC flag, protein mix, gum, beef jerky, some pictures of Maddox, some of Maddox's art work, and an Anniversary card from Mary.  I was really happy to get it, and I had trouble getting back to sleep after that.

I woke up Saturday morning around 0550, got dressed, brushed my teeth, and headed over for the Asain-Pacific Heritage 5K.  There were probably between 450 and 500 people there.  The people in charge had 250 or 300 t-shirts to give out (no one knew the exact number).  So the first 250 (or 300) people to finish got t-shirts.  I finished 214th place.  I ran 25 minutes 11 seconds, I was hoping to run it under 24 minutes.  I need to train a little harder I guess.

My roommate, Nick, mentioned the Veterans Serving Veterans 10K that is coming up on the 31st of May.  He said I should run it to earn my re-enlistment bonus (I am re-enlisting the day before that).    I don't know if I want to run 6 miles...  I think 4 miles is the most that I have run at one time.  I am going to start hitting the treadmill more and running the hill.  I will see how I feel, and possibly I will run the 10K, who knows.

After the race, I picked up laundry, had a shake, shower, dropped off laundry, went to the PX, came home, made my bed, read one of the magazines that Mary sent me and then ate lunch.  I plan on making a few phone calls later today, maybe a light workout, possible movie or two, and an early bed time I think.

The past three days and a little bit of the future

Wednesday:

Normal day.  However, we went to an early dinner and then met with some people.  We didn't get home from that until 2130ish (9:30PM).  I went to bed with the intention of waking up and going to the gym in the morning...

Thursday:

Alarm went off... I stayed in bed.  What can I say, Im lazy.  I skipped breakfast and had a protein shake, and while everyone else went to breakfast I payed some bills and other stuff like that.  For work, I went to help the people that I met the night before, I was there to answer some of their questions and teach them a little more about what we do and the processes that everything needs to go through (kind of vague, but get used to it).  After working with them, I went to the gym, came back and had a protein shake.  It was about 1730 at this time, and I was told that we were leaving at 1850.  So I was going to shower, and go get dinner around 1800.  While I was finishing up my shake, I saw some of the people that I work with, and they told me that we were leaving at 1745 now.  So I finished my shake, washed out my shaker and got my uniform back on (no shower).

We went over near the flight line and met a few other people there.  We then took a little trip to the Iraqi side of the base.  We were going to a malif (I don't know if I am spelling that correctly).  The way a malif was explained to me was: a gathering place where friends could come and visit and stay as long as they wanted for no charge.  We went and there were 3 sheiks there.  We were also joined by the Iraqi Special Operations Force (ISOF) First Battalion and their commander.  The 3 Sheiks were also in the ISOF 1st Battalion, but since they were Sheiks they were given special positions to run the Malif.

We had to take our shoes off before we entered the room.  We walked in (no boots, but we did have our socks on) and shook everyone's hand.  After each hand shake we were told to put our hand over our heart as a sign of respect.  We all sat on the floor, and in the Arab culture you aren't supposed to show the bottom of your feet, so we had to be careful when we sat down, and how we sat.  After we had been sitting down for a few minutes, we were asked to introduce our selves (we were speaking through an interpreter).  After the introductions, one of the servers took a bag of stuff to one of the Sheiks.  The Sheik then told us (through the interpreter, of course) that in the bag he had a bunch of prayer beads for us.  The server then came back in the room with a coffee kettle and two cups.  He would fill a cup and give it to the first person, then fill the second cup and give it to the second person.  When the first person was done (to tell the server that you were done, you were supposed to raise the cup and shake it) the server took the cup and poured a cup for the third person.  Then took the second cup and gave it to the 4th person.  So everyone drank the coffee out of those two cups... kind of gross, but whatever.  The server got to me, and I was surprised by the small amount of coffee, it was literally just a sip.  The coffee was a very dark roast, with a strong smell and a bitter flavor.  I loved it, I had 2 servings then and 2 servings later when they came through for round two!  Shortly after the coffee, the server brought a little saucer and glass of tea for everyone (we got our own glasses for this).  They were not tea cups, or mugs.  They were a little glass probably 4 or 5 ounces.  It also had a small silver spoon in it to stir it.  We were told that it was a chai tea.  It was hot and extremely sweet.  I don't like tea, but this stuff was pretty good!

This was my first time trying to have a conversation through a translator, it was kind of awkward, and I was scared at first.  I didn't want to offend them, or look like the ignorant American.  After about an hour, I got into it and started asking questions.  I asked them what they did for a living and that was when they explained that they were enlisted and commissioned in the ISOF, but since they were sheiks they were able to do the malif instead (kind of like a special duty).

After about two hours or so, the ISOF Commander got up and left, and as soon as he did all but about 5 or 10 of the ISOF soldiers got up and left also.  The soldiers that stayed were talking to other Americans in the room.  Shortly after that we all left.  As we were outside putting our boots on, two of the ISOF soldiers came up to me and taught me how to pray with the prayer beads.  That was kind of cool!

We didn't get back to our CHU (Containerized Housing Unit, where we live) until about 2230.  I am usually reading or asleep by then.  I ended up getting to bed around 2315ish.

Friday (today):

I got up at 0550 and went to the gym and worked out for about 45 minutes or so, just cardio.  I had a protein shake and showered.  We went to work and I decided to make a bench with the scrap wood that a got last week, or the week before, I don't know everyday is the same.  I made a bench out of a 2"x12"x8' and 2"x4" scraps.  After that I decided to make a little table/ottoman.  It was really hot and sunny.  I had a hat and sunglasses on to keep the sun off of my head and out of my eyes.  I'm pretty sure that I didn't get burned.

After that I went to lunch.  Then I went to take care of my re-enlistment paperwork.  I am currently scheduled to re-enlist on 30MAY09, I am going to get a pretty healthy tax-free bonus.  I am signing up for another 5 years.  I am pretty excited about it all!

Tomorrow:

There is a 5K on base starting at 0700.  Tomorrow is also my day off, so I haven't quite decided if I want to wake up early and go run.  I plan on working out, however, I wasn't really planning on getting up that early.  I also need to drop off and pick up laundry, maybe go to the PX, and relax.

That is all for now, I love and miss all of you!

Catch-up

So if you haven't read the news: http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/05/12/iraq.soldiers.killed/index.html  Go to this website, it tells what happened.  I am ok, no worries.  The stress clinic is about a mile from where I work, give or take.  We did not hear the shots, but when we were driving home after work, we saw all the cop's cars and the building was taped off.

On to a lighter note:

I purchased a small amount of protein mix and have been trying to stay motivated enough to workout as often as possible.  For dinner I am eating a big salad with VERY little dressing, chicken on the side, and skim milk.  For lunch I have a wrap with turkey, swiss, pickles, lettuce, and peppers (I am going to cut out the cheese).  If I workout in the morning, then I don't go to breakfast.  And I have a protein shake, and maybe ask someone to pick up a few hard boiled eggs for me (I don't eat the yolks).  I am trying to stick to that to see if that will help me lose some inches from my stomach, along with a ton of working out.

When I go to the gym, I start with my normal warm-up: 3 sets of back extensions and overextended sit-ups (set of 20, 15 and 15 reps).  then I do 3 sets of pull-ups (10, 5, and 5 reps).  And finally for my warm-up hanging leg raises 3 sets of 10 middle and 5 on each side.  After that I move onto my main workout, it could be upper body with dumbbells, core workout, or lower body.  Then I move onto some cardio on the elliptical.  When I workout in the morning it is usually to go run.  **Starting the day with cardio is always a good call**.

Work has been ssssssllllloooowwww...  Today I swept the outdoor pad, it had a ton of dust on it.  It was almost pointless to do, because the wind will just blow more dust in.  But it was something to do.  I also helped fill in a hole.  There were a couple of other small tasks, but I can't remember them right now.

While I was sweeping the pad, I was thinking about being home and sweeping out my carport.  All that was missing was the the TV and an ice cold brew in my hand... and the car port and cooler weather, and a family inside waiting to spend time with me...  That kind of made me miss home, but I'm used to not being home.

That is all for now, I miss and love all of you!!

Mail Call!

Today I got my first piece of mail.  It was just a little note from one of my previous supervisor's wife.  When the Master Sergeant (MSgt) dropped it off, he started asking me questions about how I wanted to do my re-enlistment.  He is going to start looking into it, and hopefully real soon Ill sign another 5 years of my life away!  Only this time, I get a bonus for it!!

I had most of today off, I 'worked' about 2 hours.  Then my roommate and I watched a movie, I ended up taking a nap during it.  Later in the day I went to MWR (Morale Welfare and Recreation) and made a few phone calls, worked out, showered, ate dinner, and that was pretty much my day.

That is all from the sandbox, Ill talk to you guys later.  I love you all!

3 years!!

Today is my anniversary, Mary and I have been married for 3 years today.  I dont tell her enough, but she means the world to me!  She is definitely the best thing that has ever happened to me.  If I hadn't been disqualified from the AF in 2003, we never would have met.

We met a Teens Encounter Christ (TEC) team meeting.  TEC is an awesome event, but that's not what Im here to talk about.  We were doing a circle prayer and everyone was standing in a circle, we happened to be next to each other, and everyone was holding hands (I saw the cute lady, and wanted to be near her).  After the prayer, she turned to me and said, "You sweat alot!"  From that moment on I was enthralled, intrigued, in love.  We would talk casually at meetings and online, to her I was just the college boy with no worries in life.  To me she was the most beautiful woman I had ever met, she was straightforward, loved music and she was a teacher (I dated 3 teachers-to-be before her).

About a year after we met, I was offered a job as a Youth Director at a church about 2 hours away, I think (I don't remember how long it takes to drive there).  Either way, by the time I moved down there, we were talking more and more.  I invited her down to my apartment one weekend.  She said that she would come check it out, but she might have to leave Saturday (it was her way out incase I was too weird).  Well I must have been funny and cute enough, she stayed until Sunday afternoon/ evening.  I told her that I didn't want to officially date (mainly because I didn't have money for Christmas presents).  We were kind of officially dating shortly after Christmas, I think.

At the end of that school year (my second year of college), I went on a trip to Europe for 10 days.  That has nothing to do with the story, but after that I moved back home where I was closer to her.  We worked at Summer camp together, that was fun and showed me more and more reasons to love her: she is an awesome musician, great with kids, puts up with me, and loves to joke.  After that Summer, she was still working at the school teaching and I got a job as a car detailer.  We spent a ton of time together and I ended up staying at her apartment a lot, it was great.

That fall we went to Little Rock for my brother Mason's wedding.  It was fun to see family and introduce Mary to them.  I was happy that even though Mary wasn't family, Mason and Jennie were cool with her coming out.  Shortly after we got back we went to Asheville, NC to see the Biltmore Estate, and Chimney Rock.  We went to the top of Chimney rock and while sitting on the edge of the cliff, I pulled the ring box out of my sock (safe place) and made sure that the ring was still in it.  I don't remember my exact words (I was kind of nervous) but I said something like, 'Mary, you once said that you would marry me, were you serious?"  She responded with a yes.  I then showed her the ring and said, "Will you marry me?"  She had no clue!  It was perfect.  She was so concerned about the edge of the cliff, she wasn't paying attention to me, so she didn't see me grab the ring out of my sock.  We went back to the hotel room and called friends and family and told them.  My father-in-law still gives me a hard time about not asking him if I could marry his daughter.  The next morning we went to the Biltmore, it was beautiful.  The day after that we went home and Mary was able to show off her ring.  I was happy, to say the least, that she said yes.  A few months after that I went to Basic Training, and we got married the day I graduated Basic (Cinco de Mayo 2006).  It was kind of unplanned, but my mom was happy that she got to be there.  However, I am the only person I know that didn't get to spend his wedding night with his wife.  Whatever, we made up for it (don't read too much into that).

Anyways, I stayed in Texas and Mary went back to Raleigh for a month or so.  She eventually moved down to Texas with me for a few months.  We had fun, I went to work before the sun came up and got home late in the afternoon, and she stayed home most of the time and did things around the house or around town.  It was good, probably the simplest our lives ever were and ever will be together.  After two months or so of being there with me, she left to go to Grad school in Michigan.  Before I went to Korea, I went to Michigan to see her for a few days.  Turns out we got pregnant while I was there, yes we were trying, don't you ever tell Maddox that she is a mistake!  Mary came to visit me while I was in Korea, she got there when she was about 3 months prego.  When I saw her after she got off the plane, I said the stupidest thing that I could, "You're Huge!"  I meant it in a good way.  She was a hot pregnant lady.  she spent 10 days in Korea with me, not long, but it was good.  I was in Korea for our first anniversary.  I came home 2 weeks before Maddox was born and that was one of the greatest days of my life!!  It was hard for me to leave when she was only 2 weeks old, but I didn't have much of a choice.  But I knew that I would be back in a few months.

I came back shortly before Christmas,  Maddox seemed huge to me, and she hasn't quit growing since then.  For our second anniversary, I gave Mary a pair of tickets to a dinner cruise (we didn't go on that cruise for a long time afterwards, but when we did it was great).

Mary and I have been through alot together.  We had a kid, we have had fights and made up, we have laughed and cried.  But the thing that makes us the strongest, is knowing that the other will always be there for us.  I know that no matter how stupid or ignorant I might be or I might sound, she will still love me in the end.  I see how she is with Maddox, and I know Maddox sees how much we love each other.  Without Mary, I would not be the man that I am today.  If she had written me off when we first met, then I wouldn't be as nice as I am today, I wouldn't have the love that she shows me everyday.

I know this is mushy and might not make sense, but it is for Mary, and I would do just about anything for her!

Mary, I love you and happy anniversary.  Im sorry that I missed another one.

Waste of time

Last week, I was excited because I was helping set-up my work area.  It was solely up to me how to lay everything out.  I asked for suggestions from my superiors and they basically told me to do my best... Well thanks guys!  They got here and in a matter of about 3 hours changed practically everything that I did.  Basically made me feel worthless.  So, needless to say, I was upset this morning.  All of the guys that I was helping set-up were angry because we put 3 full 12 hour days in to get stuff the way we wanted it.  Then we had to go back and change it.

Not only did they change everything, but they basically wouldn't listen to my argument of why I set it up the way that I did.  I take that back, they listened but they didn't hear it.  Since it wasn't their way, it wasn't the right way!  Dammit!  I love being the lowest ranking!

Later in the day I was reminded of something my Mother told me a long time ago.  She said, "Marshall, you never meet a stranger."  At the time I didn't understand it, but now I do.  I saw a guy throwing out some 2 X 4 lumber,  I went over and talked to him and he said that we could have it, and that he had a bunch more if we came and picked it up.  We went and got a good amount of lumber along with a stool and a set of golf clubs.  He also said to check back anytime we needed anything.

That last portion, brightened my day!  Turned my day around quickly.

Yesterday, my entire body hurt.  Almost like I was getting the flu.  I went to bed early and when I woke up, I felt great.  However early morning my stomach started getting a weird pain.  I don't know what is was or why it hurt.  It is now bedtime and it still occasionally hurts.  I thought maybe I was full, maybe I was hungry, maybe I had to go to the bathroom... None of those made me feel any better.  I also didn't have much of an appetite yesterday or today.  let's hope that Im not sick!

That is all from here, have a wonderful day and night!

A day to remember

There are certain days that a man will never forget. His first girlfriend, his first kiss, when he found out that he was going to be a daddy, the day he became a daddy, the day he met the love of his life, the day he bought a ring for the love of his life.  The list goes on and on... But today:  I pooped in Saddam's Palace!  It wasn't the golden toilet, but I still pooped in the palace.  To my knowledge, no one in my family has ever pooped in a palace before (I think that makes me the closest thing to a kind...)

Throughout my travels I have encountered many bathrooms that I felt were picture worthy:  When I was in The Tower of London, I got a picture of me on a toilet, when I was in rural North Carolina, I got a picture of me leaving a colonial port-a-potty, When I was in Korea I got a picture of me pretending to poop in their hole in the ground bathrooms.  While this was the first famous bathroom I have used along my travels, I had business to take care of and didn't take the time to get a picture of it.  That might disappoint some, and relieve others.

I did get a few pictures of the dust storm today!  I might be able to get those to load tonight, we will see.  That is all for now.  Good night, and I love you all!

Dust storm

Just another day (hence the name of the blog).  However, today it was REALLY dusty.  The dust started a little before lunch time and continued...  I went to the PX and got a folding chair so that I would have somewhere to sit in my room.  I also decided that I should get a face cover, it can be used to keep dust out of your eyes and ears and also help keep the sun off of your head and neck.  I figured that it was a good investment.

Besides that nothing new and nothing out of the ordinary, I hope that everyone back in the states is doing well!  I miss you guys.

Care Package

My wife, mother, and mother-in-law have all asked me what I wanted mailed to me.  I DO NOT want cookies or brownies or any sweets!!  I am trying to get back into shape and eat healthier.  Also according to General Order 1B, there is to be no pornography (this includes Maxim and other similar magazines) and no alcohol.

Im am researching websites that make care packages for military.  Here is what I found so far:

http://www.healthytroops.com/

That seems like a fairly good webiste.  All of the other websites give a lot of the stuff that is better for people in the trenches, that dont have access to a PX.  But healthytroops.com, they give protein mix and vitamin packs.  I have access to vitamins here and I also brought my own.  However the protein that they have is very limited. and expensive.  Muscle milk is some of the better tasting that I have had.  I have also had body fortress, the vanilla was good, but the chocolate was HORRIBLE!

Also Chewy bars are good!  They are great for after a workout or a little pick-me-up when you cant get to the chow hall.

Maybe a good cigar or two also... It'll be good to celebrate once we get stuff done.

PLEASE DON'T FEEL OBLIGATED TO SEND ME ANYTHING!  I DO HAVE ACCESS TO THE ESSENTIALS AND THEN SOME.  I am sitting in my bed right now typing this...

I will not be posting my mailing address.  If you would like to get my temporary mailing address, you will need to speak to my wife.

day 3?

I think it is day 3...

Whatever, my alarm went off at 5:30, I went to the bathroom and brushed my teeth.  I came back and saw that Mary was on Skype so we talked for about 40 minutes or so.  That was nice, even though it was bedtime for her.  After we got off the phone I showered and we all went to breakfast.  I had hard-boiled eggs, Turkey Sausage, rice, low-fat milk, and soymilk.  We went to work and got cracking.  For lunch I had two Turkey sandwiches on Wheat with pickles, green peppers and lettuce.  It was really good!  I also had Soymilk to drink again.  I grabbed a diet pepsi, I took it back to work to put in the fridge.  I also noticed that they have non-alcoholic beer in the chow halls, it doesn't even seem worth it.

If I stay up to talk to Mary, then I will be up until atleast 11.  And that is just to start talking.  So if I stay up until midnight on the phone, go to bed, get up at 6 (that is 6 hours of sleep) then I can go work out for an hour, get back at 7, shower, get breakfast to go, and then walk to work... That should get me there in plenty of time.  If I had protein mix, then I could drink that and cut a step out of my morning and save time.  The PX has a limited supply of protein mix so I might have to order it online.  Maybe I will go to the PX buy a small amount of the bad tasting stuff and then get online and order the good stuff.

We are supplied unlimited amounts of water in liter bottles, and I think I have drank 4 or 5 today and also atleast a pot of coffee and the milk and soymilk with my meals

Dinner is soon, and then I am going to workout real quick, shower and wait to talk to Mary.

Since I have arrived there hasn't been too much work to accomplish.  I gave some input on layout and a few other things and made a couple of adjustments.  The food has been ok...  I have been trying to eat a healthy-ish diet.  However, if they run out of the chicken breast then Im stuck with a grilled cheese, a slice of roast beef or something similar to that.  Then when it comes to green vegetables, Im not a fan of many of them... I like green beans, asparagus, and lettuce.  So then I make a salad, but the only thing to put on it is hard boiled egg and pepper, which makes for kind of a bland salad.  For breakfast I get hard boiled eggs and some sort of meat.  I drank the milk once, but all they have is whole milk.  Im not snacking, and Im drinking a ton of water.  I went to the PX to pick-up some protein mix, but it cost almost double what it costs in the states, so I held off on it for now.

Also I tried uploading some pictures and the bandwidth is so low that I haven't been able to as of yet...  But I do keep trying!

I did get to meet a couple of people that were here for a USO tour and had a few pictures taken with them.

Arrival

I arrived Friday evening here at Victory.  Two of the comm Sgts picked me up.  We went and got my room, got some food and went to the BX (I needed a pillow).  Then I went back to my room and unpacked and got settle in.  I also ordered wireless internet ($65/ month), a little pricey, but I want to stay in contact with people.

I got to see Mary and Maddox on Skype last night before I went to bed!

If you are wondering I am 7 hours ahead of Eastern time.  Well it is time to meet up with everyone and go to breakfast and then work.  Ill try to upload some pictures, I was having trouble getting it to work.

Wednesday??

In all my travels, I was robbed.  This kind of thievery cant be happening, I wont put up with it anymore!

I was robbed of Wednesday the 22nd of March in the year of our Lord 2009.  All day Thursday, I kept thinking it was Wednesday... turns out that I was wrong.

I feel so empty inside without that day.  Im just kidding but really, that is a mind blow when you lose a day like that!

Travel

0 hour

Mary and Maddox took me to the base with all of my gear.  We went to pick-up my weapon and my ride to the airport met us there.  I said goodbye to my two favorite ladies, got my weapon, and then started across the water.  We got to the airport, and checked my bags.  Then I went to the 'Norfolk Varsity Grill' to grab a rum and coke before I went through security (don't you judge me, I wont be drinking for at least the next 6 and half months).

Me in the bar at ORF

hour 1

Going through security:

The people in front of me were apparently new to the FAA regulations and didn't have a clue about what to do.  Meanwhile I was taking off my boots, getting my computer out of my bag, and looking for  metal in my pockets.  As I was walking through the metal detector I realized that I still had my dog tags on (Im not used to wearing them), but there was no problem with that.

hour 2

I then looked close at my boarding pass and realized that there wasn't a seat number on it.  I guess that Southwest has open seating...Who knew?

I then went to the USS Norfolk restaurant and got an order of potato wedges.  They were delicious!  We boarded late and landed late... Luckily, I had a long layover in Baltimore.

Hour 4

It was a good thing that I had a long layover in Baltimore.  I had to pick up all of my bags, and then lug them across the entire airport.  I got to the Air Mobility Command (AMC) terminal and they told me that I couldnt check-in yet.  I was with a Captain from the same area as me and we were going to the same place.  We decided to get some lunch while we waited

Hour 6

I to check into my flight, as I was waiting in line I started wondering if I could combine my three bags into just two, I was able to do it Yay!  My awesome wife made chocolate peanut butter chip cookies for me to take to make friends.  I offered the lady at the check-in counter one to start her off on a good foot.  She didn't want one... Oh well.

Hour 7

After check-in the Captain and I went to the USO.  I ended up running into one of my friends from Korea there, she was heading TDY to Germany.  We talked for probably 30 minutes or so, and then she said that she had to go check-in.  I stayed in the USO trying to get the internet to work on my computer (I couldn't get it for some reason).

Hour 8

My friend from Korea and I went to an airport restaurant.  I forget the name of it, but I had an awesome Bacon cheeseburger and fries (delicious last American meal).

Hour 9

We went back to the USO and I was able to get my internet to work.  I sent Mary one last e-mail from the states.  Then it was time to go through security again.  It was all people from our flight, I gave out a few more of Mary's cookies (they were a huge hit!).

Hour 11

I got through security, refilled my water bottle, and watched the sun set, It was beautiful.  Then it got dark and started thundering and lightning, I was worried that they might delay our flight, but they didn't.  The guy that I was seated next to was an army doctor, a really cool guy.  I told him that I was reading 'Deception Point' by Dan Brown (the guy that wrote 'Da Vinci Code').  He told me that if I liked that then I should read 'Angels and Demons'.

Hour 12

We took off, we had a long flight... I dont know how long.  But I think I only slept for about an hour and halfor so of the flight.  They showed three movies: 'Ink Heart' 'Quantum of Solace' and 'Madagascar'.  I didnt want to watch 'Ink Hear' because it sounded stupid.  But I couldnt sleep, so I did watch it and it was stupid.  I slept through the end of Ink Heart and the openeing of 'Quantum of Solace' but when I woke up and realized it was on, I couldnt get my headphones to work, so I missed pretty much all of it, and I watched some up 'Madagascar'.  The food was alright on the flight.  I had the BBQ beef with mashed potatoes.  Later they served a continental breakfast, that wasn't even subpar.  It had a quaker chewy bar, yogurt, and a gross looking pastry.

Hour...

Looking back on it, I dont have a clue what hour we were in at this point.  We landed in Germany and went to the USO there.  It was pretty nice.  They had free internet, coffee and drinks.  We were there for about an hour or so, then they told us to go back through security, so that took another 45 minutes or so.  Then we sat in the terminal for another 45ish minutes.  That wasnt too bad of a wait, there was a little boy (a week younger than Maddox) that was near me playing and it was cute to watch him, although, it did make me miss Maddox.  We boarded and took off again, this flight was about an hour and half I think.  I had a really bad headache by the time we took off.  I think it  was from a combination of not sleeping and being a little dehydrated.  I took some tylenol and  chugged some water.  I also slept almost the flight.  We landed in Italy, and man was it beautiful.  As we were approaching we could see snow tipped mountains, fields and even wind farms!  The Yellow ribbon club at Avaino had hot dogs and chips for us.  They also had a couple of carts full of books for us to take.  I was going to check the carts to see if they had 'Angels and Demons', but before I could look, the Doctor that I was sitting next to brought the book up to me.  I stood there and read it for about 40 minutes or so, it seems pretty good so far.  We re-boarded and took off for Al Udeid.  Nothing too exciting happened on this flight, the meal was pretty good though, it was some sort of chicken and Asian noodles.

We landed at 11:00ish PM local time so about 4 in the afternoon Eastern time (the day after I left).  Us lower ranking folk had to get all of the luggage out of the belly of the aircraft.   A little tip: if you are over 5'5" dont volunteer to be in the plane!  After that we in-processed and got our tent assignments.  I made my bed and then went to the WiFi area to try and chat with Mary.  It was about 7:30 in the evening Eastern time by now (for those keeping track, I was around 34ish hours of travel at this point).  I talked to mary for some time and then went to wash up and get ready for bed (around 4:30 AM Local time).

(I have pictures of the sunset and me in the USO writing an e-mail.  but I cant hook my computer up right now).

Introduction

So, after 4 training temporary duties (TDY) and one that was cancelled, doing and redoing every Computer Based Training (CBT) there is atleast 3 or 4 times, and countless delays... It looks like Im actually going, leaving on a jet a plane.  I have two personal bags packed, one bag of gear, a carry-on, and Ill pick-up a weapon of some sort tomorrow then leave for God only knows how long.

This is a picture of my bags

I will do my best to keep everyone posted on my travels and trials and tribulations along the way.

For now I leave you with a list of upcoming happy events (that I will miss)!!:

Leaving for my deployment

Getting into country

Getting to work

3rd wedding Anniversary (5/5)

Niece Taylor's Birthday (5/8)

Mike E's Birthday (5/12)

Re-enlistment

Re-enlistment bonus

Re-enlistment bonus saving/spending

Mom and Dad's Anniversary (5/31)

Mason's Birthday (6/1)

Marc and Kris's Anniversary (6/6)

Nephew Anderson's Birthday (6/7)

Independence day (7/4)

Mike and Emily's Anniversary (7/4)

Greg and Leslie's Anniversary (8/4)

Dad's Birthday (8/17)

Maddox's Birthday (8/30)

Mary's Birthday (9/12)

Mason and Jennie's Anniversary (10/8)

Halloween (10/31)

Jennie's Birthday (11/10) [I hope to be home by this one]

The preceding list was only of immediate family events.  If I forgot you, sorry!  Please let me know!