June 15th, 2011 - Getting Ready for Dad's Deployment

This time last year, we were wrapping up our four and a half years in Budapest, Hungary. I never imagined then that we'd be in the position of getting ready for a year long deployment. I don't know why.......I am married to a soldier. However, for the past 6 years Keith has belonged to a specific section of the Army that only deployed to war zones 2 or 3 months at a time. I think I got a little too comfortable in that part of the Army.

It seems that the wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan are drawing down (that is atleast what our President is saying). I am not kidding myself though, he's going to a dangerous place that is full of people who do not want him there and don't like him simply because he is an American. I think many soldiers going these days wonder what the heck are we doing there. Regardless of why we are there.....there is where my husband has orders to report to. We passed a truck the other day with the words - Welcome Home Daddy....we missed you! In midsentence Keith stopped and said to me, "that's why I'm going Holly...so some other guy whose spent a year away from his family can come home".

Things have definitely changed though since the last time Keith was deployed almost 11 years ago. Our communication will be much more frequent. We have skype, email and he can even have a phone on him. With our itouch and ipad we can do face time whenever we are near wifi. Believe it or not...that's available on the base Keith will be on. He assured me last night that if something as simple as a broken leg happens I'll probably know within hours and will probably be contacted by him. Keith has more than once exclaimed to me his top priority is to keep him and his younger soldiers safe and return them to their families. I will cling to that statement.

Three hundred and sixty four days ago we returned from overseas. It feels like time has flown since that day we stepped off of the plane. I am praying that the next 364 days (starting next weekend) will go by just as fast. In that time we will celebrate one 15th wedding anniversary, four kids birthdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter and the end of another school year. I love my soldier so very much. His safety will be my first prayer in the morning and my last prayer in the evening. I'm hoping to use this blog both as a place for me to make sense of my days and for Keith to read about our days while we are here in Texas...........................................

Waiting on Our Soldier.