Congrats to Our Soldier!

Since it's already the 1st of July in Iraq where he is at, we want to congratulate our Soldier on his promotion to Sergeant First Class! We are so proud and know that you will do well (you've already been doing the work anyway, lol)

Wish we could be there, but know we're with you in thought and love!

Congrats Sergeant First Class Kevin Albrecht!!!

Freedom's Light

Tonight I had the honor and privilege to perform with our Stake Choir a program dedicated to our country. We performed a series of songs in a program called Freedom's Light. I cannot tell you the amount of emotion I felt in my heart. I had to keep taking deep breaths so I wouldn't be up there crying instead of singing. The many soloists brought so much to the program. As I scanned the audience I could see in them that the lyrics touched them too. Perhaps they too were thinking about their Soldier who is off in Iraq...or maybe they were thinking about the news ticker that announced another Soldier was killed. Perhaps they were merely touched by the voices that sang.

I am grateful that I had the opportunity to be a part of such a great program. I believe so much in our country and our troops and all that both stand for. I hope that those in attendance were blessed as well.

I am thankful for all the people who worked so hard to put this program together.

I am thankful for my husband who sacrifices so much for us as a family and as a nation. Tonight was dedicated to him...at least in my heart it was..to him, he was who I thought about as I sang...God Bless You Baby...thank you for all you do, we love you and miss you.

Pirates in the Park

Gunner Den - 2008

So this last week I volunteered at our District's Cub Scout Day Camp. It was a long, hot week but I did have fun. My co-leader and I had 15 nine and ten year olds that we were in charge of for the week. Let me tell you how tiring that was. I often wondered if some of the boys got tired of hearing their name, I can tell you I certainly got tired of saying it over and over.

We had some fun events, we did water balloon cannons, the boys loved that. Plus we had archery, orienteering, a Pirate's waterslide and different sports. We had a few crafts that the boys had a hard time with, the wind didn't help much with that.

Overall the week was fun, we sang a lot of songs and put together a skit that the boys performed well. Neil was in my den and that was nice, though he mostly pretended I wasn't his mom, lol.

The most interesting points of this week..

*We were told by one parent that their son told them we were mean and bossy (I thought that was the point of being an adult?!?)

*I was proud of Neil for not punching another kid who continually antagonized him thoughout the week

*Somehow on me sunscreen attracts a sunburn rather than prevents it

*Boys can eat lots of pizza and cookies and still play soccer without puking

*There were a lot of the 9 & 10 year olds who were taller than me! (scary, huh?)

*Over half our den had daddy's who were deployed :(

*The boys enjoyed hitting me with their water balloons on the last day during their "hand-to-hand" combat (maybe that was revenge for being mean and bossy).

*Usually by the end of the week I swear I won't volunteer as a Walking Den Leader again...but the day after camp, I'm wondering what the theme for next year will be!

"Yo Ho Yo Ho, a Gunner's Life for Me!"

*One more interesting fact, Kevin has never been here during Day Camp...ever...blah!

Cub Scout Day Camp

This week, I'm a Walking Den Leader for Cub Scout Day Camp. This is my 4th summer in a row (ironically Kevin has NEVER been here for any of those). I have a lot of fun with it. This year I have 15 - 10 year olds I'm walking with, yes, that's a lot of boys with a lot of different personalities. Our theme this year is Pirates and we are having lots of fun. At end of the week I'll post a slideshow. For now I'll leave you with a pic of me after camp yesterday...I was a little hot, lol

The BEE Movie & a Few Misc Pics

Last night I took the boys to the "movie in the park". Yes, we already own the DVD but it's fun to go and sit in the grass and watch the movie on a big inflatable screen. We had a picnic dinner of KFC and some miscellaneous snacks. We got there SUPER early. We were the first ones there but I am so glad we were because last night was the largest crowd ever. People were crammed in every nook and cranny. We were very selfish with our space, I am glad we were, we weren't crowded. Crowding would have been terrible for me and Neil.

Our friend Polly and Luke joined us and we had a great time. They had a bounce house, tattoos and freebies. Beach balls were flying all over the place. I'm always amazed at how many people there are and yet it's quieter than movie theaters! Well we did have some really loud people behind us but after a few glares, they shut up!The "big" screen

The boys with the "bee"

Dang these bubbles are hard to open!
but once they are, they sure are fun!so serious about coloring!

Earlier this week I attended a seminar presented by Army Wife Talk Radio. It was called Field Exercises and it basically gave a lot of information on how to cope with military life. It was good info. It is really good information for new spouses. It was a lot of fun, the first pics below are pics of our table centerpiece and the cool dog tag cookies we got.

The boys, well two of them asked me if they could sleep downstairs..sure..lol Daniel brought daddy's woobie and crashed. Michael slept in the chair, I don't even imagine that to be comfortable but he slept well! Neil is like me and must sleep in his own bed. Sapper decided that if Daniel wasn't going to sleep in his own bed, she would gladly take over, lol.

This is my new bear, isn't it cute?

In the News Again...

Quoted in the newspapers this week...

http://www.theforthoodherald.com/news/story.aspx?s=26045&q=charlie+daniels

http://www.forthoodsentinel.com/articles/2008/06/20/news/leisure/leisure05.txt

Happy Birthday Daniel

Today the "baby" of our family turns 7. I'm sure that can't be true. Where did the time go?!?!
Can you believe that Daddy has never celebrated a birthday with Daniel. Not on his actual birthday at least..we've had early or delayed but never on. Makes me sad but Daniel handles it well. He is so proud of his daddy and what he does for his country!
Daniel is such a blessing to our family, he has such a quirky little personality. You can't find many (if any) people who just don't love him. He has a sweet spirit and the cutest smile. He is still my cuddle bug and loves me. If I had it my way, he's be my baby forever.

Happy Birthday Daniel! We love you!

And a shout out to Amie! Happy Birthday to you too!

Why I ♥ the Army

I just love Army life (granted there are not so great aspects of the Army that do exist) but where else can you drive down the road and see things like in the pic. I love seeing Army training, smelling the dust kicked up in the air and feeling that sense of pride of being a part of that lifestyle. We were driving to the drive in last night and came across these vehicles driving around. I loved it and naturally had to take pics. I just love the Army!

I also love the Army because of certain traditions and regulations. One being retreat that is done everyday on post at 5:00 p.m. Retreat signifies the end of the work day. It is done with a bugle call. Regulation states that if you are outdoors during retreat you stop what you are doing, face the direction of the flag or the music and render honors...first standing at the position of attention and then saluting. You do this during the entire "song". Well if you happen to be driving on post when this occurs, you should stop, pull over and honor the occasion. Soldiers are to get out of the car and civilians can too if they feel so inclined.

Why am I mentioning retreat? I happened to come on post right around 5:00 and thus had the opportunity to observe this ceremony. Sadly, the people behind me were in a rush to get where they needed to go and were not happy with the fact that I followed regulation. It didn't matter to them that everyone was stopped on the road, many Soldiers outside their cars. My boys and I sat silently in the car (like you should) waiting for it to be completed. The two cars behind me decided to honk their horns. I didn't care. After the music ended, I stepped out of my car to let them know I didn't care for their attitudes and explained what I was doing. Neither cared.

I know there are people who find it annoying. One thing I love about the Army is their customs and their traditions. I quite enjoy participating and honoring our country and those serving our country in this simple but meaningful ways. It saddens me that many can't appreciate the little things. I figure if my husband can sit in 125 degree weather enduring sandstorms for my freedom, I can stand and honor tradition for 60-90 seconds.

My message to you is if you happen to be on post at 1700, do the right thing and if you can't be bothered to do the right thing, well don't get caught behind me, because rest assured I will be stopping my car and honoring tradition and regulation!

What a Weekend!

Yes, I know it's Tuesday but we took an extended weekend, lol. That's just how we roll in this family, lol.

We had a fabulous time this weekend and I thought I'd briefly tell you about and share some pics! It started off on Friday with us going to the Charlie Daniels concert. LaNita was nice enough to invite us as her special guest and we got to meet Charlie before the concert. It was pretty awesome, he is such a nice man. We got autographs and a pic with him (Thanks Heather for sending the pic).

Nita & I before the concert started

The boys before the concert started

Nita and I admiring our pretty toes..Blue and Green..Dale Jr colors, if you don't know, lol
Our FRONT ROW seats...pretty sweet!
Charlie himself!Only my son can fall asleep during whooping and hollering, lol
Saturday Nita and I set off to San Antonio for a wedding of one of our Soldiers (you know we kind of adopt them). It was so HOT!

This is a pic of Nita and I in front of some tree at the Alamo

And us again in front of a fountain (we are gonna start a Nita & Nay Photo Album, lol)

The Wedding Couple..Geoffrey and Kari (so beautiful). We wish them all the best in the world!

We decided before heading home to take a horse drawn carriage ride...our horse's name was Apollo

Us on the carriage, we were sweaty and hot, lol

The hotel that Teddy Roosevelt recruited some of his Rough Riders at..pretty cool history!

I'm skipping Sunday because we didn't do anything exciting that day. It was Father's Day and we missed daddy and just hung out as bums!

Last night we went to the drive-in with friends. $5 for us to see two movies! Not bad at all. We saw Kung Fu Panda and Indiana Jones!

So now I should get back into the groove, get out of my PJ's at 3 p.m. and go get milk that we need, lol.

2:45 a.m.

That's what time it is...I'm awake (obviously). I miss him. I wonder what he's doing...is he thinking of me? Is he hot, is he eating enough? Does his heart ache as much as mine does?

I miss him...

Father's Day 2008

Kevin with the boys the day before he left.

It's Father's Day and the Father in our home is gone...again. I honestly can't remember the last Father's Day we got to spend with him. We miss him. The week hasn't gone so bad. But today I longed for him. I didn't go to church..bad I know. I just couldn't go and hear about fathers. I knew I'd cry and I just wanted to be home with my boys. We've heard from him for 5 minutes by phone a couple days ago (I am very grateful for that phone call). And this morning I woke up to a short email from him.


I'm in a weird position. We miss him but because he is gone so much, I almost can't feel the void. I feel guilty for that. I also know that right know he is in a rather "safe" place and that gives us that "security" we need to get through each and every day. I'm sure that when he reaches his final destination, the feelings will be different. I'm just biding my time for now and being grateful for the peace and comfort I have today.

Kevin, Happy Father's Day! I am so grateful for the wonderful example you are to our boys on how a father should be. I couldn't ask for a better partner in raising these boys, I know if they follow your lead, someday they will make three women, amazing husbands. I love you and miss you!

Email from Kuwait

Just sharing a line from Kevin's email today...

"Nothing but great sandstorms and heat yummy"

Shot Drama!

So had to take Neil in to have his chicken pox vaccine updated (no comments please on why you don't vaccinate or why I should, start your own blog if you want to go there). Anyway, starting early this morning I started to talk to him to prep him because he tends to be anxious about such things as needles. Up until we get to the doctor's office, he understand that we are getting him a shot. We waited in the doctor's office for a bit and he was fine. The nurse came in and talked to us and got him all prepped, he was still fine. The nurse pulls the needle out and Neil FREAKS! He starts yelling that he doesn't want a shot and he's pulling away from her. I try to go and help him understand that it won't be so bad and he's yelling at me that he doesn't want a shot. I try to reason with him, I stay calm telling him that I too had a shot and I don't like needles but it wasn't so bad (I had to update my tetanus today). We try to tell him it's not going to be so bad, but he continues to yell at us that he does not want the shot. I try holding him down but goodness is that kid strong. Finally I'm like, look you need to get this shot, all the shouting in the world isn't going to get you out of this shot. He takes a deep breath and repeats after me, "I am going to get this shot". The nurse goes to stick him again and he is screaming. At this point I am seriously cracking up because it was kind of funny, the nurse couldn't believe the fuss he was making. Ten years old and he was just plain acting crazy. Finally, we lay him down and I have to hold him down and he is screaming at the top of his lungs..the nurse puts the needle in his arm and he suddenly stops in mid-scream and starts cracking up. He realizes that it wasn't so bad. I am totally cracking up at this point and so is the nurse. Neil says.."I feel silly".

When we walked out of the room, nurses and other patients were staring at us, I mean who could blame them, the kid shouted like we were killing him.

The funny part to me is that I was like that as a kid. It always took a few nurses, my mom and the doctor to give me a shot. I still dislike needles and avoid them every chance I get. I giggle because I had flashbacks to my childhood. All I can say is...sorry mom!

Little Black Rain Cloud

Little Black Rain Cloud

I'm just a little black rain cloud,

Hovering under the honey tree.

I'm only a little black rain cloud,

Pay no attention to little me.
Oh, everyone knows that a rain cloud,

Never eats honey, no, not a nip.

I'm just floating around, over the ground,

Wondering where I will drip.

That's how I felt yesterday, but today I woke up rejuvanated and ready to take life on as normal. Yes, we miss Kevin and wish he were home but this is life for us. We have chosen this career and we are a proud Army family. We will take each day as it comes but we won't live under that little black rain cloud.

We are headed to grab lunch at the school, go pick up a few things at the store and then come home for a water fight!

We miss you Kevin, we love you with all our hearts!

Deployment Day

Well our day has come. We said goodbye to our Soldier today. There were a lot of deep breaths and tears. We hung around his battalion area for about 4 hours before we had to bid our farewell. It sucks, that's the best way I can explain it. Just trying to soak in every last minute. It couldn't be about anyone else at that moment, just us. I held it together pretty good, until those ugly white buses showed up. I hate those buses.

I never know what to say to my kids when they are crying so hard they can't catch their breath. I remember last time, people trying to hold back the tears and sucking it up. This time people cried freely. I shed my tears, took a deep breath, grabbed my children by their hands and walked to our truck. As I sat in the driver's seat, tears streaming a Soldier walked by, tilted his head, shot me a shy smile and said..."it'll be ok".

It never gets easier but at least we're started on our journey. Only 461 days and a wake up to go!

Just a few pics to share...

"Promoting" my husband. He will be promoted in Iraq but he wanted me to be the first one to put the new rank on.

We were already emotional...

Saying goodbye to his baby girl Sapper

Going to drop his bags...

Not really as happy as we look.

Loving my Soldier

Daddy and his boys

Me and my Soldier

Standing in formation with other Soldiers.

Don't let me go...

Kevin is the shadow with his hand up...

I hate that bus...

God Speed my love...