Fabulous Army Life

Whew!  Packing and loading are complete and we begin our Trek-Across-Texas to see family and friends before making our way to our new assignment in Washington, DC. Fare thee well, Fort Hood and Harker Heights, Texas!  We will miss you! Driving away from our Texas home.

As born-again Christians, we believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He was sent to Earth, born of a virgin, and died on a cross after leading a perfect and blameless life. taking on the burden of all sin, and rising again on the third day, thereby defeating death and sin.  Jesus came so that we could be united with His Father, Our God, in a personal relationship. Our faith is important to us and we love Jesus with all our hearts.  We were absolutely thrilled when our youngest made his decision to follow Christ and show his decision to the world by being baptized.  We are thankful for his faith and proud of his commitment.  Joshua was excited that his Uncle Danny would perform his baptism at our beloved home church, Legacy Church, and that family and friends would be there with him to celebrate his decision.  What a blessed and wonderful night! We are so proud and so thankful that Joshua has given his heart to Our Savior, Jesus Christ...

Nate and Trey make a few last-minute repairs in the house before major packing begins.  We'll miss this house ... it's be a great 7+ years here at The Great Place! And there is light!

Joshua decided on a "Capture the Flag" theme for his birthday party and really wanted to host his party before we left Texas. We were happy to find an area we could reserve at Belton Lake Outdoor Recreation Center so we squeezed it in between the battalion change of command, packing, and loading our house. It turned out to be a really great time.  BIG hugs and thanks to my sisters-in-law, who insisted (based on the total panic on my face as I deliberated how to make this happen, I'm sure) on providing the cupcakes, napkins, food, drinks, decorations, and bandanas for the 'Capture the Flag' teams. You guys are the BEST!

This is the rough-draft version of the speech I gave the night of my Farewell from the 3-82 Field Artillery Family. There was a lot of improvisation on my part as I tried to adequately thank each and every lady who attended. I was very emotional and honestly could not imagine a world without daily interaction with these fabulous ladies. At the end, I gave each attendee a magnet (pictured at the end of this blog post) that I made as a reminder of the amazing ways they had handled a multitude of stresses during our time together. I will forever treasure my time in this unit and with these Families. Best wishes always to the Red Dragons of 3-82 Field Artillery! A good friend once shared a quote with me that I have loved ever since: Stress is when your gut says ‘no’ but you’re mouth says, “Sure! I’d be glad to!” As Army spouses, we endure a multitude of stresses.  Enduring long separations, worrying about the safety of our Soldiers, learning single parenting skills, taki...

Tracey greets me with a sharp pin ... and a corsage. My mother-in-law, Linda, is honored with a corsage. The planning crew ... Ever want world peace? Assemble these ladies and it's done. Amazing table decorations by wonderfully talented ladies. Flowers and color and jewels, oh, my! Beautiful cake by Muffy Patterson, the Cake Diva! Generous gifts from big hearts. Ladies write notes for a farewell photo album. Cannot adequately describe how much these ladies mean to me. It's sunny and bright on the patio of the Dead Fish Grill! Arcy and Sarah say some really sweet things, some of which are true. :) I get through my speech with a few laughs and a few more tears. Red flowers and a red boa ... I am Artillieried up! Black Jack Babes (Missy, Angie, Suzie, Cindy, me, Trish, and Molly) My fabulous family, Rachel and Linda  Missy, Georgia, Beverly, Sarah, Kim, Angie, me, Christine, Arcy, Val, Lani, Chari, Am...

The Red Dragon Ball was an amazing night of great friends, good fun, and fond memories.  Nate and I have been so very proud to be a part of this group and enjoyed this celebration as one of the last events with our 3-82 FA Family.  Army Strong! CAV Tough! Black Jack! Red Dragons! Love these beautiful ladies! We were so excited that Nate's local family members could join us! With Christine. With Leslie. Nate provides his remarks and some entertainment to Red Dragon Soldiers and Families. Leading the way on the dance floor! Nate and his XO, Brian.

Cindy with a 15th BSB candy crest! Giovanni's Italian Restaurant in Copperas Cove handled the delicious dinner. Guests left with a cute take-home favor including a packet of bluebonnet seeds! Nametags, guest book, and take-home favors. Custom name-tags for all guests. Guests wrote notes to Cindy in this super-cute guest book. Beautiful custom cake by My Sweet Diva! Beatiful Dessert Table Farewell comments and gifts presented to Cindy. Black Jack ladies attend Cindy's Farewell.