I haven't talked too much about my husband the last two weeks because he was away for Emergency Medical Ministry training. It wasn't an easy training, but I'm certain he learned a lot from it. He got back Saturday morning and we're all thrilled to have him home. It's never easy when your spouse is away...especially when they're in Hawaii without you!! :) I SO wanted to be there with him...as did the twins! Here's a few of the pictures he took for us. One of the afternoons he was going to try surfing, but the waves were quite wild. I'm glad he didn't! The afternoon before he left there he went snorkeling though. I'll have to post pictures of that later since we haven't developed the film from the underwater camera.

Yesterday we took all our boys to the ocean and walked along the beach. There wasn't a whole lot to do there since it's fall, but we found several sand dollars and watched people fishing (or whatever you would call it) for clams. They stick pipes in the dirt and try to pull them out. We're thinking we'll have to try that one of these days...although none of us like clams so we'll have to give them away or something. Today we went to church off post where the twins and I went while my husband was away. Next week we'll start going to another chapel on post where my husband has been assigned and then we'll go there for their second service. This afternoon we were talking about how nice it was to be there this morning. The tears and sadness were not anywhere to be found today! It was wonderful to worship with our son one last time as well. He talked about it being different going to church with us and his dad not preaching. This afternoon it was beautiful outside so we fished at the lake on post.We really miss our daughter not being here with us. She called today and said, "This is the longest we've ever been apart, mom." We're looking forward to her coming for Thanksgiving...only one more month!!! It's strange to think how different our lives are now and that there will be times her and her brother visit separately. Before our son arrived, I thought it would feel like it did when he would come home for the weekend from college, but it feels nothing like that. He's my son, but he's also a man now...about to start his very own life apart from us...and that's just strange! We won't see him as often anymore and that's hard to accept. I'm pretty sure I will sob all the way home from the airport on Thursday!

Thank you to everyone who prayed for my husband over the last two weeks. He really appreciated it!!

Today my 20-year-old son and I went to the ocean. We also went to the zoo and aquarium just off the beach. It was so different from a zoo you would see in Texas. None of the terrain was man-made! As we walked around looking at the animals, experiencing the strange sights and feel of small sea creatures and just enjoying our time together, I thought about the small little boy who once walked by my side, holding my hand...much like the many moms and small children we saw throughout the day. I was reminded that it wasn't so long ago that he called me "mommy" and I was grateful that he wasn't too old to go to the zoo with his mom. I was grateful that, even at his age, he was wowed by God's amazingly wild and interesting creatures; that when we walked by a fun photo booth he said, "Hey mom...we could take a picture together!" As we were leaving, this little boy about 2 years old was walking towards me and he looked so much like my son when he was that age that it immediately took me back to what definitely doesn't feel like that long ago! I am glad for times like today when I can spend time with my first-born. He will leave for the Air Force soon and, even though I'm extremely proud of him, I will miss him terribly!

Our "fun in the snow" day!

Yesterday we enjoyed 70+ degree weather by the water and today, forty-five minutes from our house, we were playing in the snow! It was an awesome afternoon!

Our "fun in the sun" day!

The weather was absolutely amazing today and the twins had a half-day at school so we headed for the water for the afternoon! We could not have asked for a more beautiful day! The only thing that would have made it any better was my husband and daughter being with us. (We miss you!) The thing I loved most was watching my boys enjoying each others' company.

It was a wonderful day with my boys! Maybe tomorrow we'll go hiking and play in the snow...

He's here!!!

My oldest son is here to visit and already checking out his dad's gear. I know he's so excited about his training that is just around the corner. It makes me proud and makes me want to cry... It was so nice to see his smiling face when we were walking towards him at the airport and even nicer to get a hug!! I'm going to enjoy every minute of the next ten days and try not to think about saying good-bye until we see him again for graduation in December.

Looking Back

I was reading back through some of my old posts from the beginning of this journey we are on and time seemed to stand still for just a moment. I remember this day like it was yesterday.

May 12, 2007: How real is it getting for me? On Tuesday our son swears in and in 17 days my husband leaves for three months of training to be a chaplain in the Army. The day after he returns we move. I crawled into bed last night thinking that in three and a half months I'll be crawling into bed in a totally different place!"

It's really weird to look back at old posts. That was five months ago and we made it through the seperation of training! We've been here a little over a month now and to think that I was sitting in a different house when I wrote that is just strange! Our son is coming to visit for 11 days next week and by this time next month he will have been in training for five days. I can't believe the time is drawing near for him to begin his new adventure either! Today we were talking on the phone and I was choking back the tears as we talked about him telling his sister good-bye. There has been so much change in so little time for our family, but God has been faithful to take care of us all and we praise Him for that.

As I look back, I'm happy to see the changes thus far haven't been as tough as I thought it was going to be and that we've all grown from of it. Though it can be difficult, there's nothing more fulfilling in life than following God's will. I wouldn't change it for the world!

Yesterday afternoon I could not get going to church off my mind so when the boys got home from school I told them we were going. I knew they had Awana for the kids and bible study for adults, but what I didn't know is that God had something else there for us. After getting them to the gym, I headed over to where the adults meet.

Walking into a room of much, much older adults gave me the feeling I was a little out of place. Sitting down to have none of the 15 or so older women say hello made me feel so even more, but I was convinced God had laid that thought on my mind to go so I wasn't budging.

About five minutes later, this lady about my age taps me on the shoulder and asked me if I was new. I replied with a yes and she said she was to. She quickly jumped at the invitation to sit down beside me and I immediately thought to myself, "She has something to do with me being here tonight." I can't explain the feeling that came over me, but it was as if God was saying to me, "I hear your prayers."

Within about a minute of her sitting down, we discovered that both our husbands were chaplains. Not only has it been my prayer to meet another chaplain's wife on post, but that my boys would meet other boys their age. She happened to have three boys (and a girl) and one was the same age and in Awana with them. We also discovered we weren't alone in how we were feeling on Sundays and that after much prayer were led to this church. After church we stood around and talked and introduced our children, and the boys and I left feeling God had done something amazing. As we pulled out of the parking lot, one of the twins said to me, "Mom, God answered your prayer!" That probably spoke to me more than anything else. To know that my children truly recognize the hand of God humbles me and brings such joy to my heart.

After church, I also had the opportunity to meet another really sweet lady whose husband is in Iraq and I look forward to getting to know her, too. My heart goes out to the women I am meeting whose husbands are in the war. I know it can't be easy and I pray I can help out in some way, or just be a friend to them. I praise God and thank him for his blessings on us last night and always. He never ceases to amaze me!

"The better part of one's life consists of his friendships."

- Abraham Lincoln

I just wanted to thank everyone who wished me a happy birthday, sent me a card, an email and/or called me today. I miss all of you and appreciate your friendship!

Worship the Lord today!

Jesus said, "...a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”

We're about to leave for chapel and I've been praying for weeks about my heart and what I've felt each Sunday morning over the last few weeks...asking the Lord to heal my hurting heart and allow me to work past this pain I feel. Last night I just sat and worshipped Him and it was healing to my heart. I'm looking forward to corporate worship this morning, and although I've not been vocal with some of the painful things in my life - like missing my home church's time of worship - I know many of my friends have been covering me in prayer. For that I am grateful.

May God allow each of us to work through whatever we are going through in life and worship Him in spirit and truth today!!

Snow-capped mountains, waterfalls, rivers, warm sunshine on our faces...enjoying God's beautiful creation together - that was our day!

Never too old for the Pumpkin Patch

The twins and I visited a nearby Pumpkin Patch today and had so much fun together. They didn't have school, and it was BEAUTIFUL outside, so we spent the afternoon enjoying the outdoors (surrounded by pumpkins!).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere... Big ones...

Really big ones... Little ones...Weird ones...

DJ thought pushing the wheel barrel was fun...even when it got really heavy once they started picking out pumpkins to take home. I'm sure glad he liked it so much because I sure didn't want to push it through all those fields! After finding their pumpkins, we got lost in a cornstalk maze. I started to get a little worried that we wouldn't figure out how to get out, and it wasn't like anyone was standing nearby to help us. The twins weren't worried one bit. In fact, they thought it would be really funny to have to call dad to come find us.The Pumpkin Patch also had hayrides and games and a petting barn. This was my favorite picture from there. Aren't they all adorable?!

My Warrior

He's a Soldier.

He's a husband.

He's a dad.

He's a son.

*

Into battle he will go one day,

No gun upon his chest;

Just a bible and our prayers,

For it's the cross he represents.

*

He marches with our Soldiers,

No matter what the cost,

For the One who called him said,

"Follow me, for some are lost."

*

He's my hero!

He's my love!

He's their chaplain,

For our God.

**************

As I was just about to sit down to eat lunch with a friend today, my husband walked through the door in his ACUs (camo uniform) and painted face. He had been in the field to see his Soldiers. I felt so honored to be his wife as he quickly grabbed his lunch and headed back out. Typically, I'll just start praying when I have thoughts of him going off to war, but today was different. I wanted to write a poem about the man I love who is willing to follow the Lord, even in times of war. Although he will never carry a gun, he's still a warrior...

After a long, hard day he still let me take his picture! He said it was a really good day and he loved spending time with his Soldiers.

Home Sweet Home

Well, since so many have asked to see the house, here you go...

This shows how the living room, dining room and kitchen are set up. My husband had to have his trophy bucks on the wall...even though there wasn't much room. There's a big wall behind the table, but I was adamant about them NOT going there!

Here's a close-up of the living room. It's a little strange because we couldn't get the whole shrunk in here, but it's nice and cozy! We have four large windows that take up the entire wall to the right. Here's a close-up of the kitchen. It's small, but I love it! It's easy to clean and was just renovated before we moved in.

Here's part of our master bedroom. It was tough to get a good shot. The bed falls right in the middle of the room so you can tell there's a lot more room on the other side and behind me, where there's also a master bathroom and closet. We had to put part of our shrunk in our room since we couldn't find anywhere else to put it.

Here's DR's room. We've still got a little decorating to do, but he's happy with it!
Here's DJ's. He got the larger one...sweet DR gave it to him!We're almost completely settled in...only 12 boxes to go! We miss you all back home!!