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Mugs has been reminding me lately to start getting organized for my upcoming redeployment. I, of course, have been procrastinating. While I enjoy moving every couple of years, I detest preparing to move. When I left Virginia for the start of this deployment, I had one duffel bag a little more than half filled. At Fort Benning, Georgia, I was issued almost 3 duffel bags of gear, such as body armor, additional uniforms, sleeping bag, etc. I haven’t been too excited about returning with 4 duffel bags again. This afternoon, I went to the PX and bought a footlocker to mail some things home.

Empty Footlocker

The first items into the locker were 3 pairs of boots I was issued at Fort Benning. I’ve worn my original pair of boots for the past year and haven’t needed to use the new pairs. I don’t have to turn them in at Fort Benning when I redeploy, so I definitely don’t want to lug them around in a duffel bag.

Boots in Footlocker

After that, I added combat uniforms, PT uniforms, PT sweat suit, socks, T-Shirts, and other miscellaneous items. The footlocker filled up very quickly. I might even mail another box of additional items.

Full Footlocker

This is the last time I want to move!

Five years ago, when we headed overseas to live in Hawaii, our pets did not travel with us.  At the time, the quarantine was long.  Our Siberian Husky, Czar was 12 1/2 and Hawaii would have been a torture for him, so he was given to a friend and ridiculously spoiled for the last year of his life.  Our Ragdoll cat, Magnolia also decided she loved the good life lavished on her by a dear friend.  So, for close to 5 years, we have had no pets.  When you must live as a renter, it is very difficult to keep pets.  It severely limits your choice of places to live.  So, we told the kids that when we returned to the States and owned our home, we would once again get pets.  Dale’s deployment delayed the fulfillment of the promise, but now that I’ve started, there’s no stopping.  Dale went with the children to choose fish.  They happily named them which I discovered was probably not a good idea after some fish died and had to be replaced.  I had somehow missed the time worn advice of “Never Name Fish!”  However, fish were not enough.  On Saturday, we will be bringing home a Golden Retriever puppy.  I have spent the last several months reading dog breed, dog training, dog care, and dog cleanup books.  The kids and I watched multiple episodes of the Dog Whisperer and on Saturday, we wandered lost through the aisles of the pet store choosing brushes, dishes, toys, leashes, etc.  Before Dale brought home Czar, our first dog, there was no preparation, no research, and no plan.  Reading all these books and watching all these shows, I have concluded that we did everything wrong with him.  Czar was never completely housebroken, he chewed up everything, and ran away every chance he got.  We loved him dearly, but here’s hoping I can do it right this time.  For the last month, I have felt like I am preparing for a baby.  Instead of nursing/formula, crib, and diaper brand decisions; I must now decide which dog food, kennel, and brushes are the best.  Dog food is very complicated now.  There is endless research on dog food nutritional value and endless personal reviews that alternate between “this food is excellent” and “this is rubbish, it made my dog sick”.  For now, I am going to feed him the food the breeder uses as well as a dog vitamin.  Yes, a dog vitamin.  In the midst of debating how much I’m willing to pay to ensure my dog has the proper nutrition, I’m feeding my children waffles with peanut butter, chocolate chips, and syrup for dinner.  And no, I didn’t give them a vitamin.

My R&R leave is quickly coming to an end. For the first time, the promise that my deployment time will fly by has finally come true! The last 2 weeks have passed in the blink of an eye.

My R&R leave is slowly approaching. I have less than 2 weeks until I fly to Kuwait and then on to Dulles. People love to talk about how quickly the time passes during this deployment. Before I came over, some mentioned how I would be home before I knew it. It doesn’t seem that a single day can go by here without someone commenting on how the days are just flying by. I just don’t see it. Now as I approach R&R, the days seem to be dragging by even more slowly!

This morning, I went to the CSH for my 4th shot in the Anthrax vaccine program. The whole program consists of 6 shots administered over a period of 18 months. After that, the program continues with annual booster shots. My next shot, #5, is due 6 months from now. At that point, God willing, I’ll be home and assigned to the Pentagon.

Last night I noticed some weeds sprouting in the gravel outside my trailer. The leaves looked like dandelion leaves. This morning, I noticed that they had bloomed. So here’s a nice picture of my private flower bed.

The last two days have been warm and the insects and frogs have started making sounds at dusk. I am praying that Spring is arriving. Last week, while my parents were here, the weather was cold. We had the pellet stove burning every day. Winter did not want to give up it’s hold just yet. As well as the cold last week, we had sickness. Zeke and Abby both got the gastro (as they say in Australia), better known here as the stomach flu. It was a bad one. I slept on a cot in Zeke’s room for a few nights because he had “the throats”, his wording for throwing up. He still periodically informs me, “I’m all done the throats, Mommy.” Throughout their times of sickness, I fought the fears and worries that tried to beset me. “What if I get sick? How can I handle this?…” My worries can just go on and on and on until I work myself into a tizzy. Then, being in a tizzy makes me mad and I begin to rage at the injustice of Army life. “Why did they have to send my husband to Iraq? Why do tours have to be a year or longer? Why won’t this tour ever end?” My rage does me no good. For the Army, Family is far far down the list. Although it is capitalized. In the midst of my worried and angry mood, Zeke came walking down the hallway towards me with a giant tin of marbles and dropped them. Marbles were soon rolling everywhere. I looked at him and said, “You and me Zeke, we’re both losing our marbles.” My friend Martyn calls from Australia to encourage me. My brother, Howie calls and prays with me. Then, all the things that God has been trying to speak to me are once again heard. Peace comes again into my heart. God is faithful to me. Throughout this deployment, God has been faithful to me. I am surrounded by people who have helped me when I’ve needed it and I know would help me again. I tell myself, “think on the good not the bad, be grateful not selfish, love…always hopes.” Spring is full of hope. I see it in the robin looking for worms, the daffodil that has just opened, the yellow stems of the forsythia, the soft buds on the pear tree. “Play some baseball, Mommy?”, Zeke asks. So, out Zeke and I go to pitch and hit and hope for the best part of Spring which will arrive in just over a month.