"Where in the World is".....

Just when you think you might know where your child is you find out differently. One of the girls that she is traveling with posted that they were in Qatar "enjoying the sunshine". She thought that Shay was probably sleeping in the tents. It was a loooong flight and lots of people did not sleep. I am hoping to hear from her today if time permits. I do have a mailing address and the first box is going out today. Just some of her mail, magazines, Twizzlers, Trailmix and a headset/microphone so she can Skype with me.

Puppies are doing great. Growing like they should and Binde is being a great mom. I am showing the bigger puppies, Boomer and Yummy (8 months) this weekend in Brooksville. Wish us luck.

Germany and Italy

Shay arrived in Germany this morning and called me at 538am EST. I didn't mind the wake up call. It was a long flight and she did not get her window seat as assigned. Some jerk decided it was his right to sit in any seat and Shay is not one to rock the boat (or the plane in this case). So, she had to sit in the aisle seat and got bumped every time someone walked down the aisle and was not able to get any sleep.

She then called me this afternoon to let me know they were in Italy. She got her window seat for that leg of the flight and was able to get some sleep. They had about an hour in Italy before they were continuing on to Al Udeid. I am not expecting a call for a few days. If I get one I will be happy though. They will spend the night in tents and then get issued their protective equipment and weapon before continuing on to Sather Air Base.

I am doing well. Thanks to all of my Air Force Moms, family and friends for support and thinking of me and Shay. She will be fine and will be home before we know it. Heck, it seems like just yesterday that she found out about the deployment.

Day 1 of Deployment

Shay is on her way. She departed Spokane, WA yesterday and arrived in Baltimore last night. They will stay for 2 nights (I don't know why) and then depart on Tuesday heading to Iraq with stops in a couple of other places for fueling. I just talked to her. She is up and waiting for the others. Plans to do some site seeing. Perhaps taking the train into DC. She has always wanted to visit there and I have always intended to take her.

On another note, the puppies are doing great. Getting bigger every day. Binde is a really good momma to them. I hope they appreciate her. HAHA

Update on Deployment (and other news)

Shay received her flight information yesterday. She will be leaving Spokane on Sunday. Spends 2 nights in Baltimore then it is 2 refuel stops in Europe before hitting the "Deed" for weapons issue/training before landing in Baghdad.

So, it hit me yesterday. My stomach is in a knot. I am excited for her but nervous as well. She is doing something I never got to do. Wish her luck.

Also on the home front, Binde had puppies again yesterday. 4 this time. 2 boys and 2 girls. Here is a picture from when they were minutes old.

The one on the bottom is a girl and the cream is a girl. They are all healthy, fat and moving around a lot. Binde is being a great mom and making my job easier. Hubby stayed home with them today but probably after this I will be bringing Binde and pups to work for the next week or so.

Back to work.

A note for Rie Rie

Thank you for stopping by my blog and leaving the kind words. I tried to post to your blog but it is not setup to accept comments. I really hope you decide to change that as so many others, like yourself, would be stopping by to leave you words of support and encouragement as you go through this journey. Most of us Air Force Moms call BMT (Basic Mom Torture). Having gone to Basic and AIT in Georgia from Seattle it is a world away. Back in my day we didn't have cell phones or Internet so we had to write letters and call (collect) when we could. Now these kids who have grown up with the wonders of technology are expected to write home to the parents. Don't hold your breath. I received maybe 2 letters from my daughter. 1 was the information about graduation and the other was an actual letter. I also only got 2 phone calls. Not sure how the Army works but with the Air Force it depended on the mood of the TI.

I recommend blogging as much as possible. It helps. Join a Army Moms Yahoo Group. I am sure there is one out there. It helps to talk with others in the same situation. You are not alone! Plan on going to graduation. It is an awesome experience. To see the child that left your door become the adult that serves their country. Amazing!

Good Luck

Deploying

Well, it is happening to me. I am going to be one of those parents who has a child serving in the military overseas. Shay received word that she will be deploying to Sather Air Base in Baghdad. She has to be there by Jan 15th so not sure when she has to leave or which route she is taking. Lots of things to find out and lots of things to do. I did find a website that helps me determine what time it is and what the weather is. Current local time in Baghdad. I guess I am going to have to blog more so I keep my sanity. I am very proud of her and I know she is going someplace that is very safe. But it does not keep me from being nervous. Keep with me on this journey.

It's only been 2 months

since I last blogged. Life is so busy and I feel like I don't have much to blog about. But I do update on facebook so pretty much anyone who would rad this blog already knows what I am doing because they are friends on facebook. Let's see, what have I done? Did I tell you that Shay and I went skydiving? Yup, sure did.

Out of the plane

Flying high

See the ground below?

And here is Shay's picture. For me it was a "Been there, done that" moment and I don't have to do it again. But it was something I have always wanted to do. Hubby was a saint and sat all day with us waiting.

I should probably give a puppy update. We had three puppies on May 4th. Well, Binde had the puppies. She was an excellent mom. We kept 2 of them and the third one (little girl) went to live with her daddies family. They are:

2 Stars Rolling Thunder (aka Boomer) & 2 Stars Simply Irresistable (aka Yummy)

We went to a B Match this weekend (Oct 18th). Yummy and Boomer got first in their class. Then they competed against each other for Best Jr Puppy. Boomer won. Then he competed against other Best Jr Puppies in the Non Sporting Group and he got a Group 4 (4th place). We are very pleased with the results of this breeding. Here are Boomers and Yummys ribbons.

I went to Seattle for a week in September. I attended my 30th High School Reunion and got to see my Shay Shay for the weekend. Then my plan was to train the rest of the week but I got sick so was only able to train a few times. But it was really nice to see my brother and friends that I have not seen for awhile. I will be back in Decemeber for the Black Belt Promotion. Wish me luck!

Did I tell you we got a new car? We had to because the Envoy did not have enough room to transport 5 dogs. I thought we would get another Town and Country van but we ended up getting the Ford Flex. I really like it. It is like a station wagon on steroids.

We sure do turn some heads when we are driving around. Still don't see too many of them on the road yet.

Well, that is about it for now. Maybe I will have something to write about later. I mean, we are going to Key West for Fantasy Fest over Halloween Weekend. Should be fun!