The past week has been a bit crazy for the Brown Family. Last weekend we went to VA for a family reunion and saw my parents, Granny and Papa. We really needed the time away from Fort Bragg. It was nice to be normal for a few days. In saying that I know I need to explain for the non-Army what I mean...
Ryan works 12 hour days. He is up at 4:45 and home by 5:15. When he is home though, he is often receiving phone calls or texts about work. Everywhere we go, we see soldiers and end up talking about the Army a lot. The Army is our life... not his life, but ours. I am the one doing laundry, cleaning house, paying bills, cooking meals and taking care of pretty much everything here. I have heard from a few people, "why don't you just ask Ryan to cook?" If I were to wait for Ryan to cook our dinner after he is home, it would be 7 at night before we ever ate. :) Plus, this is how we like our life. I handle it here, and he keeps me safe. Ryan will be the first to say that we are an Army family, when he signed up, it was both of us that would be having our worlds change.
So in saying that, it was nice to be with my Momma, Dad, Granny and Papa who made us relax and forget all the worries of life in the Army for a few days. Sometimes, we just need a break and a get away to be with family. We even got to shoot some with my Dad and Papa. This was a treat for both us because we very rarely get to shoot with them. It was nice to relax and learn somethings too.
Speaking of Ryan's crazy soldier life... He left the house at 2 am this morning for a 20K 'ruck march.' This means that he hiked in the woods for 12.5 miles in full uniform (helmet, boots, long pants, long sleeves). He carried with him his gun, water pack and a huge ruck sack that had 35 pounds of equipment in it. I am proud to say that he did a fabulous job and finished it before his time limit! Over half of his unit did not complete it in the time allowed or were hurt because it was such a rough ruck march. I am so proud to have such a strong soldier!
I have been working on finishing up my classes for this semester. This weekend I will be turning 23 and I do not want to do a bit of homework on my birthday. I have already registered for my next semester, in which I will be taking 21 credit hours (5 classes). We sure have a hectic life, but you know... we love it.
We are taking life day by day and counting our blessings along the way!
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
NO deployment
We got word this morning that it looks like Ryan will not be deploying. They have enough people for their launcher crews. But, as with everything with the army, this is not guaranteed. So it could change again... but we are going with what we have been told.
It seems like I should know better with the Army, not to plan anything... not even a deployment!! We know this deployment was in God's hands from the beginning so we are continuing to say our prayers and trust Him.
We are living day by day and counting our blessings along the way.
It seems like I should know better with the Army, not to plan anything... not even a deployment!! We know this deployment was in God's hands from the beginning so we are continuing to say our prayers and trust Him.
We are living day by day and counting our blessings along the way.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Deployment
Yes, you read the title right. You might want to be sitting down before you read this entry...
We received word on Friday that Ryan will be deploying in a few months. He will be going to Afghanistan. That is about all the news we have at this point. I have had quite a few questions from our family members about it though and I figured you might be wondering the same things:
1. Will I be moving back to Ohio: No, I will be staying here. This is our home and where our support system is at. If I move, I would loose contact with the people who have the most contact with my husband while he is over there. This is just what works best for us and our family.
2. Information: I will NOT be able to post information about dates, locations or addresses. If anyone is wanting to send Ryan something while he is gone such as a card or a box of goodies, you can send it to our house and I will send it over. We are not able to give out any information like that to anyone! I WILL be able to post when I hear from him that he is okay and safe. The army does not kid around about people knowing information. We have a thing here called OPSEC, it means in short, that my husband can get in HUGE trouble if I would post or tell someone something about location, time, dates or missions. It is for the safety of my husband and his unit that I will only be able to give limited information.
3. How long will he be gone: He will be gone longer than 6 months but less than 12 months. :)
4. What will he be doing over there: Ryan will be doing the job that he trained for at Fort Sill... Rockets!
5. How are we all doing and handling the news: We are doing okay. We knew this would come eventually because we made the decision about a month ago that this would be a career for him. This is what he loves and I love being an Army Wife. So this life works great for us :)
That is the majority of the questions we have been asked by family and friends. We ask that you keep us and Ryan especially in your prayers. These months are going to fly bye and he will be in the sand before we know it. So we are enjoying our time together until then.
We are taking life day by day and counting our blessings along the way :)
We received word on Friday that Ryan will be deploying in a few months. He will be going to Afghanistan. That is about all the news we have at this point. I have had quite a few questions from our family members about it though and I figured you might be wondering the same things:
1. Will I be moving back to Ohio: No, I will be staying here. This is our home and where our support system is at. If I move, I would loose contact with the people who have the most contact with my husband while he is over there. This is just what works best for us and our family.
2. Information: I will NOT be able to post information about dates, locations or addresses. If anyone is wanting to send Ryan something while he is gone such as a card or a box of goodies, you can send it to our house and I will send it over. We are not able to give out any information like that to anyone! I WILL be able to post when I hear from him that he is okay and safe. The army does not kid around about people knowing information. We have a thing here called OPSEC, it means in short, that my husband can get in HUGE trouble if I would post or tell someone something about location, time, dates or missions. It is for the safety of my husband and his unit that I will only be able to give limited information.
3. How long will he be gone: He will be gone longer than 6 months but less than 12 months. :)
4. What will he be doing over there: Ryan will be doing the job that he trained for at Fort Sill... Rockets!
5. How are we all doing and handling the news: We are doing okay. We knew this would come eventually because we made the decision about a month ago that this would be a career for him. This is what he loves and I love being an Army Wife. So this life works great for us :)
That is the majority of the questions we have been asked by family and friends. We ask that you keep us and Ryan especially in your prayers. These months are going to fly bye and he will be in the sand before we know it. So we are enjoying our time together until then.
We are taking life day by day and counting our blessings along the way :)
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
New pages in our book of life
I have been contemplating doing a blog for quite awhile now. Our lives are crazy-busy and there is always something going on. I figure that this way, everyone can stay 'in the loop' with our family. Speaking of 'in the loop' I should probably catch everyone up on what has been going on!
This past weekend we watched the 4th of July fireworks with some amazing new friends on base. The fireworks are not even close to what we see at Red, White and Boom; but they will suffice. It was still nice to see fireworks and be with my soldier. I was surrounded by my amazing and wonderful Army Family. There was a mix of people there; army wives with husbands and kids and even a pregnant wife with a deployed husband. It made me so thankful that God's plan for Ryan is to be here with me, at least for today.
I say 'today' because things in the Army change in a heartbeat. We have learned to live day by day and count our blessings along the way. It may be a rough life at times but we truly love it.
Update on my life: I am going to school full time to earn my second degree! I am going to have an Associates in Interpreting in American Sign Language as of January 2012. Now I know I am not the normal student, but I have loved the journey it has been. I finished my Bachelors in Communication at Ohio University in 3 1/2 years. I will be completing my Associates degree in a little less than 1 year. Ryan tells me I am on the fast track. I have such a heart for Deaf people and can't wait to be an Interpreter.
Update on Ryan: Ryan works 12 hour days but still has not become a morning person like myself. I keep telling him the Army is going to make him one. Today he is playing with rockets. Yes, you read that right... and he is loving every minute of it too! He is doing great in the Army and our goal is that he will 'go airborne' before Christmas. For those of you that do not know military terms, bare with me... I forget how much we use these terms on a daily basis. Being 'airborne' would mean that he goes to school for 3 weeks in Georgia then come back to Fort Bragg and gets to jump out of planes. (That is the simplest explanation!) This has always been Ryan's dream, since he was little. Being airborne is a pretty sweet thing to be in the Army. It is very 'wanted' by all soldiers.
Update on Us: This week is 11 months that we have been married. HOLY COW!!! Neither of us can believe it has been that long. We made a trip to Gigi's Cupcakes in Raleigh to celebrate. Below is pictured 3 cupcakes we got. They are huge and so yummy!!!!! We enjoyed them and will be going back sometime.
I think that catches you up on The Brown Family... except for Sasha Bell of course. She is loving North Carolina but loves the air conditioning more. She does love her morning walks out before it gets super hot though. She turned 5 in May but we still consider her the best pup in the world! She will always be my "baby" no matter how old she gets! Dogs truly are man's (woman's) best friend!
This past weekend we watched the 4th of July fireworks with some amazing new friends on base. The fireworks are not even close to what we see at Red, White and Boom; but they will suffice. It was still nice to see fireworks and be with my soldier. I was surrounded by my amazing and wonderful Army Family. There was a mix of people there; army wives with husbands and kids and even a pregnant wife with a deployed husband. It made me so thankful that God's plan for Ryan is to be here with me, at least for today.
I say 'today' because things in the Army change in a heartbeat. We have learned to live day by day and count our blessings along the way. It may be a rough life at times but we truly love it.
Update on my life: I am going to school full time to earn my second degree! I am going to have an Associates in Interpreting in American Sign Language as of January 2012. Now I know I am not the normal student, but I have loved the journey it has been. I finished my Bachelors in Communication at Ohio University in 3 1/2 years. I will be completing my Associates degree in a little less than 1 year. Ryan tells me I am on the fast track. I have such a heart for Deaf people and can't wait to be an Interpreter.
Update on Ryan: Ryan works 12 hour days but still has not become a morning person like myself. I keep telling him the Army is going to make him one. Today he is playing with rockets. Yes, you read that right... and he is loving every minute of it too! He is doing great in the Army and our goal is that he will 'go airborne' before Christmas. For those of you that do not know military terms, bare with me... I forget how much we use these terms on a daily basis. Being 'airborne' would mean that he goes to school for 3 weeks in Georgia then come back to Fort Bragg and gets to jump out of planes. (That is the simplest explanation!) This has always been Ryan's dream, since he was little. Being airborne is a pretty sweet thing to be in the Army. It is very 'wanted' by all soldiers.
Update on Us: This week is 11 months that we have been married. HOLY COW!!! Neither of us can believe it has been that long. We made a trip to Gigi's Cupcakes in Raleigh to celebrate. Below is pictured 3 cupcakes we got. They are huge and so yummy!!!!! We enjoyed them and will be going back sometime.
I think that catches you up on The Brown Family... except for Sasha Bell of course. She is loving North Carolina but loves the air conditioning more. She does love her morning walks out before it gets super hot though. She turned 5 in May but we still consider her the best pup in the world! She will always be my "baby" no matter how old she gets! Dogs truly are man's (woman's) best friend!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)