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Comment by wisconsinmom on August 19, 2011 at 4:10pm

Last deployment we emailed a lot. This time he sends just a few words on fb once in a while. I just figure he is busy working and seeing new sights. He always says the air force spends most of its money on the people so he was excited to be staying there.

Comment by wisconsinmom on August 19, 2011 at 1:45pm

Heard from my son this week, he is on an air force base near Venice. He got to go hiking in the mountains and swam in a glacier fed lake or stream or something. Glad he is getting to do some fun things. He hasn't written much so I wondered if he was just working. Welcome Donna. Everyone have a great weekend!

Comment by Sharon P.M. on August 19, 2011 at 1:36pm

Donna - can't speak for the rest but my son loves it there.  He is on the support site, is a Corpsman/surgical tech at the hospital which is across the street from his barracks.  He is actually on deployment to Afghanistan until late spring but he will be going back to Naples until Dec 2013.  He has been able to travel all over Europe on his time off and has really taken advantage of being there.  If your son likes it half as much as mine does he will be very happy.  They are a pretty tight community and he's made a lot of friends there.

Comment by Sharon P.M. on August 19, 2011 at 9:34am

Hey y'all!  Just checking in seeing how everyone is doing.  Devin is at Ft Dix now having his deployment training with the Army.  Thus far he is loving it, they are keeping busy and he's really excited about all the stuff he's getting to do.  Remember, as a Corpsman and a surgical tech it's been all medical for him, he's got a gun now and learning to use radios and drive big trucks and all kinds of stuff about IEDs and the rules and whatnot of the sandbox.  I hang up from calls with him and think to myself, well at least one of us is happy about this deployment! 

I am planning on going up there to see him off when he actually leaves for Afghanistan but we don't have an exact date yet. 

Yes Donna, you are in the right place!  Tell us about your son, what does he do in the Navy?

Debbie, that is sad about Steven, hopefully he will get out and be happy in his new career!  I think Devin is leaning towards staying in, he enjoys what he is doing and has been able to take college classes on line and really there are very few jobs in FL so minus deployments, it's a good thing. 

Carrie - glad you had a nice time with Amber!  Hoping that desk job is only temporary and she's doing what she does best real quick over there!  Corpsman Up!!  :0)

Y'all have a great weekend!  Hugs!

Comment by Pam on August 17, 2011 at 2:56pm

I spent a year at Fort Bliss when my husband was in the Army.  The base itself is nice, but the area outside of the base is scary.  Juarez, Mexico is not the place to visit anymore.  I never even went across the border while we were there and that was back in 1988.  (Gosh, I'm dating myself!)  But that may be a blessing in disguise for Amber.   I know Jamie had to do admin. work a couple days when he was doing his clincals and he didn't care for it at all. 

My husband can no longer take Jamie to the airport because he has such a hard time saying goodbye.  I thought at first he was going through a mid-life crisis LOL, but it's the same everytime we've had to leave Jamie.  I'm English, so I keep the stiff upper lip until he's out of sight and then I bawl, bawl, bawl!!

Comment by Debbie (Stephen's mom) on August 17, 2011 at 2:33pm

Thanks for the kind words, I hope whatever he decides is the right choice.  I just want him to be happy.  Yes Stephen put in the GIBill to so he can go to school if he wants.  He has taken a lot of school in the Navy so he is well on his way. 

Pam I guess they miss home too, friends, family it is not ez.  I have heard to come out of the military is hard also, friends have moved on or maybe in school or married now, so we will wait and see.  I know we skype Stephen every week and now he is call us.  I try not to talk about home life unless he ask and he does have a dog that he misses.  It will all work out.  It is very expensive to go to Italy Pam, I am so glad we got to go last year, now I am poor, LOL but it was so wonderful to see Stephen and all of the sites.

Carrie, yes enough is enough that is for sure and I don't knowabout Amber but Stephen was told 2 years and he would be gone.  Sorry to hear about Ft. Bliss, damn Navy, you can never count  on them. LOL  The Navy has been wonderful for Stephen it was a good thing he went in.   Carrie I hate those goodbyes, I cry for days and then Stephen will say not again, LOL  and of coarse I am crying in the airport because we always take him to get every monent we can with him, I walk him to the door, LOL 

Comment by Pam on August 17, 2011 at 10:18am

Oh wow Debbie - great poem.  I think homesickness will be Jamie's downfall eventually.  I can always tell when he's going through it because the texts, phone calls and skype pick up.  We've always been very active and spent all our vacations together, so as much as he likes his buddies and hanging out, it's what keeps you grounded that really matters.  You can't go wrong with a gov. job, that's for sure.  I'm hoping Jamie does his five years and then comes home and finishes college.  That was the path he was on when he surprised us all by joining the Navy.

Best of luck to Stephen, Debbie!  Where one door closes another always opens!

My plans to visit Italy are on hold.  Jamie is trying to go green, so we don't know where he will be in the coming months. Airfare is still a little steep with four of us going, so I'm trying hard to save those pennies just in case!!

Comment by Debbie (Stephen's mom) on August 16, 2011 at 8:18pm

MAKING OF A MILITARY MOM

 

When the good Lord was creating mothers, he was into his fifth day of overtime.

An angel appeared and said, "You're having a lot of trouble with this one. Why not use the standard model?"

And the Lord replied, "Have you seen the specification......s on this order? Give birth to a child that will become one of my warriors; install values of duty, honor, and country into them from birth while teaching them to be compassionate and loving; safeguard this treasure through flu, sickness, cuts and scrapes knowing that she can't be with them when country calls; embrace them but let go of her precious gift to perfect strangers; brighten their day when all seems confused not knowing the pain they are enduring; have the patience of a saint when waiting for them to return home; and have two sets of shoulders to handle the weight of both love and uncertainty."

The angel shrugged slowly looking down and said, "two sets of shoulders... no way!"

And the Lord answered, "Don't worry, we'll make other military mothers to help carry the burden. Besides it's not the shoulders that are causing the problem, it's the heart. It must swell with pride, sustain the ache of separation, beat on steadily when it's too worried to do so and be large enough to say, "I Understand" when it doesn't.

"Lord," said the angel, touching his sleeve gently. "Come to bed... finish this tomorrow!"

"I can't," said the Lord. "I'm so close to creating something special and unique. Already I have one who heals herself from within; can send joy a thousand miles away in just a small box; able to cheer them up with one phone call and can wave good-bye from a pier, a car or off a runway and understand that it is important to her country that they leave."

The angel circled the model of the military mother very slowly. "It's too soft," she sighed.

"But tough," said the Lord excitedly. "You cannot imagine what this woman can do or endure."

"Can it think?"

"Can it think? It can home school if need be"

Finally, the angel bent over and ran her finger across the cheek. "There's a leak," she pronounced. "I told you that you were trying to put too much into this model."

"It's not a leak," said the Lord. "It's a tear."

"What's it for?" asked the angel.

"It's for joy. Sadness. Disappointment. Pain, loneliness and pride!"

"You are a genius," sighed the angel.

The Lord looked somber and replied, "I didn't put it there

Comment by Debbie (Stephen's mom) on August 16, 2011 at 8:06pm

Pam, we do have the best pizza in town that is for sure.  The wine sound very good from Georgia, both of my kids like dry wine, I wonder where they came from. LOL  Italy is amazing.  When are you going to go Pam?  Well my son is home sick too, he should be out of Italy already and stateside, my son is looking for an early out, he has been offered a job for the Government and would be working at Great Lakes, where boot camp is, that is an hour from me or a little less.  My heart broke when he said he is missing home, I never thoughts I would hear that.  I was hoping that maybe he would stay in but the Navy did not stick to their promise, they told him two years in Italy and then out, he will be three years in November.  Sorry to go on this is the first time I am talking about it.

Hope everyone is well take care and talk to you soon.  Going to MI, leaving on Friday until Sunday.  Stephen says he misses fishing with us and kayaking, he has been looking into kayak told him not to kayak in Italy the waters are way to rough.  LOL

Comment by Pam on August 15, 2011 at 11:06am

I'm with you Debbie, I like my wine a little on the sweet side.  Luckily, North Georgia has quite a few vineyards that use the muscadine grapes and they make for a good desert wine!  Coming from Chicago, I LOVE thick crust or deep dish pizza!  One of the first things we order when returning for visit.  Jamie mentioned the pizza was different, but really good.  He also said there are ancient wells on the base with plexi-glass over them.  So much history and so much to see.  He's been all over the Southern part of Italy in the last 8 months and is now venturing out a little bit.  I think he keeps busy to keep the homesickness at bay!  He still gets bouts of that, but he's adapting pretty well.

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