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Gabe had his eighth birthday and I can still remember the cold and snowy day in New York when he was born. No cold and snow for his 8th however. We had a heat wave. He had his party on Saturday at Build A Bear, a shop that is conveniently located everywhere we’ve lived. We even found one in Melbourne at Chadstone. Chadstone also had a 3 story Borders Book Store with an escalator. If I got paid money for all the times I mention Borders in this blog, I’d be rich. Chadstone is as close as you get to an American mall in Australia. In fact, when our Aussie friend Martyn went to an American mall, he told his wife that it was just like Chadstone. Build a Bear parties involve being led around the shop by a cheery worker who helps you choose, stuff, and name a bear. The kids had to jump up and down, kiss a heart, hug their bears, and take a pledge of responsibility. Gabe wanted to buy his stuffed dog a football uniform to wear while watching the Super Bowl and Zeke wanted to buy his bear a High School Musical t-shirt. When we finally left the shop, Josiah declared that he could never get a job at Build A Bear. All that smiling and happy talk would be impossible. For Gabe’s birthday dinner, we went to Chuck E Cheese. On the drive there the kids did a sing along to Gabe’s new High School Musical CD thoughtfully given by his Aunt Marie. She sent the CD and a whoopie cushion. I’m not sure which one will eventually annoy me more. I had high hopes for a night at Chuck E Cheese that wasn’t full on. I thought, “it’s Tuesday night, hardly anyone will be there.” Silly me. A school had an event going on and it was it’s usual madhouse. The kids got busy spending their coins on the games. Abby loves to punch the ducks, Zeke loves to squish the spiders, Gabe declared moving magnets easy, and Josiah couldn’t figure out why some little kid can win millions of tickets on ski ball when he can only win two tickets every time. After we left the madness, I told Josiah that just as he could never work at Build A Bear, I could never work at Chuck E Cheese. Abby asked why not. Josiah said, “Because it’s loud and crowded and filled with obnoxious children.” There are somethings the boy does notice, but his giant baritone sitting in his classroom for him to take home today was not one of them. For dessert we went to Krispy Kreme in honor of Dale and conveniently arrived while the donuts were hot. When we were choosing the donuts, the donut guy said that if the kids brought in their report cards, they could get a free donut for every A. Too bad their father isn’t here to steal all the donuts they’ll soon be collecting. On the way home, Abby decided to ask everyone in the car if they were an optimist or a pessimist. Josiah’s reply was, “I am not the guy who would say the glass is half full and I am not the guy who would say the glass is half empty. I am the guy who would say, What glass?”

You may have noticed Mosul in the news more frequently lately. Most recent news stories I’ve seen describe the streets littered with burned out cars and debris from bombed out buildings as if these are signs of Mosul descending into chaos. The interesting thing is that as the initial reports of increasing terrorist activity in Mosul were being aired, most of the pictures accompanying the stories were from other locations. As the media has begun to focus on Mosul, everyone is shocked at the images. I was just as shocked by what I saw when I first arrived almost six months ago.

Chris’ unit, 1-8 Infantry, came to Mosul as an attachment to the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment as part of the US move to assist the Iraqi forces in fighting al-Qaida in Mosul. As reported in most major news sources, the strategy is the same as was used successfully in Baghdad last year. This success comes at no small price. On Monday, 28 Jan 08, an armored vehicle from 1-8 Infantry was hit by an IED while on patrol in Mosul. Immediately after the explosion, the convoy started receiving small arms fire from insurgents in a nearby mosque. Five US soldiers in the vehicle hit by the IED were killed in this attack.

On Wednesday, 30 Jan 08, the US Department of Defense released the names of the 5 soldiers. They are:

Sgt. James E. Craig, 26, of Hollywood, California
Staff Sgt. Gary W. Jeffries, 37, of Roscoe, Texas
Spc. Evan A. Marshall, 21, of Athens, Georgia
Pfc. Brandon A. Meyer, 20, of Orange, California
Pvt. Joshua A. R. Young, 21, of Riddle, Oregon

Please pray for the families, friends, loved ones, and mates of these soldiers. Remember to pray for Chris as he continues to lead his unit.

Rest in Peace.