Saying Goodbye

I have taken a temporary leave from blogging to take Joy to Ft Hood. The boys and I went with Joy last week to say goodbye for the next year. The trip was pretty good. The first night in the Killeen area we found a hotel with an indoor pool. That is a rarity in the south so it was awesome. It was a great way to spend time as a family before the goodbyes began.

The next day we went to stay with one of Joy's friends that lives in Killeen. She was kind enough to open up her home for a few days so that we could be "at home" while Joy was making her final preparations for the deployment.

It's amazing how much stuff the army expects one to take in two medium sized canvas duffel bags. I know that they are leaving for a year, but it's still incredible. There are a couple of uniforms complete with boots, a gore-tex jacket and pants, a wet weather coat, a polartec fleece, a chemical suit, chemical boots, wet weather boots, a sleeping bag, a gas mask, several undershirts and thick socks, goggels, body armor, kevlar helmet, army pt (workout) clothes which include two warm up jackets and pants and shorts and t-shirts, empty ammunition magazines and other odds and ends that I can't remember. I offered to pack Joy's bags for her. After rolling everything as small as I could and cramming it in as tight as I could, there was still a few more things that needed to fit in the bags so I had to stand in each of the bags and pull up as hard as I could. What an adventure!

There is something a little but unnerving about packing chemical gear and gas masks. On one hand it is encouraging that they have that gear, but on the other hand if they ever have to use it... That can't be good. The body armor is really cool. Joy shouldn't have to wear it much because she will be on a base, but in my opinion its the coolest gear that she has.

The few days we spent at Ft Hood went by with a blur. It hasnt really set in that she is gone. I was really worried that my older son Aaron would have a hard time saying goobye to his mom. He is very emotional and often has difficulties with emotionally stressful situations. However, the grace of God was strong that day , there were a few tears but so far it's been ok. Aaron says that maybe we can do a few more boy things during the deployment that moms don't like that much... I don't know what that means exactly, but I am sure that it will be fun.

Here is a photo from our last day together. Until next time.