A Fallen Hero's Homecoming

A soldier from Bay City was killed in action in Iraq, his body was welcomed home today.

Ryan and his C.A.P. flight were privileged to be part of the color guard to honor this brave soldier.

This young man leaves behind a wife and two small children.
Please pray for the repose of his soul and for the comfort of the Holy Spirit for his family.

Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and may Perpetual Light shine upon him.
May the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.

Airman Leadership School

Ryan spent the entire weekend at Airman Leadership School at Ellington Field. They spend their time in class learning about aerospace, CAP protocol, and lots and lots of PT and drills! When we picked him up Sunday evening he was exhausted, hungry, and quite smelly (3 days without a shower will do that to a guy!) He said he learned quite a bit and had a lot of fun. All I know is that it was a very quiet weekend without him!

Home at last!

After a VERY long road trip, I am pleased to report that Ryan successfully graduated from Texas CAP Encampment! I think I was a nervous as he was driving up! When we got there the cadets were already lined up in their flight groups and preparing for the ceremony.

We found our way to the bleachers and tried to spot Ryan in the sea of identically dressed cadets. We found Ryan's flight easily but didn't actually spot him until he processed right in front of us:


Let me tell you he was walking tall and looking sharp! He didn't look like the scared little boy who had left our home a week ago. He was tall, proud, and confident, he was a man now! My heart absolutely swelled with joy and pride...so did my eyes with tears.
After the ceremony, we walked across the field for a big bear hug. Ryan couldn't wait to tell us everything but first he wanted us to meet his TAC Officer:

She is a SAINT in my eyes! She, along with senior members of Ryan's flight, were able to help Ryan through his rough patch and got him back on track. They didn't yell or belittle him. They were compassionate and caring and took great care of my son when we couldn't be there to help him. We are forever grateful for their leadership!
Ryan and his flight were quickly discharged and we loaded up the van for the long trip home. The first thing Ryan wanted was REAL FOOD! So we stopped in Longview for his favorite - mexican food.

We were just about thirty minutes from the place where Doug grew up, so we made the detour to Marshall for a quick trip down memory lane. We visited the beautiful church where Doug was baptized. We saw his grandmother's home and the home he grew up in. We took a tour of the town square and saw where his grandfather used to work. Then we drove into this place:

It was a little shack no bigger than our living room and Doug claimed it had the best BBQ sandwich on earth! Well, we got two pounds of "brown pig" to go and headed home.
We weren't five minutes out of Marshall when this happened:

...and he stayed that way the entire trip home!

I saw him again and this time he's SMILING!

I check the Texas Cadet website every day (ok, five or six times a day!) for updates and today I saw another picture of Ryan on the ropes course...the boy is actually smiling! He's also apparently joking around with the kid next to him who is making the "bunny ears".
Ryan is the kid on the left holding the rope, click on the image for a larger view....and he really IS smiling!

You don't know how much good this picture does my heart! I look at it and I just smile too. We are going to go up on Saturday to surprise Ryan for his graduation. He doesn't know we are coming and I've been feeding him a load of hooey about us not being able to afford the gas and not being able to leave the other kids, yada, yada, yada...
I can not wait to see the look on his face when we get there! You can bet I'm going to be the loudest mama up there when he walks across that platform. We'll have six hours to catch up on the way home. I figure he'll either pass out and sleep from all the exhaustion, or talk our ear off the whole time! I don't care which! I'm just glad he finally came around and is having fun and that we are going to be able to go get him soon.
Thanks to everyone for the prayers! God is so good and merciful!

I saw him! I saw him!

This is a picture off of the Texas Cadet website. They are supposed to be providing day by day summaries of the encampment (heck, they're ONLY three days late!) Anyway, I see this picture today and there is Ryan! See the white pillar in the back middle of the picture? He is the kid to the left of it with his hand up by his mouth (undoubtedly chewing on his pen cap!) I know what you're thinking...all those kids look the same with their military haircuts and identical BDU's...but trust me, a mother KNOWS!
I have been in constant prayer all day for Ryan. He is having such a hard time. I guess it's all my fault. He has never been away from us and the time we finally do send him away, it's to a military camp with people yelling at him one inch from his face! I feel like I've just thrown him into the fire. I'm a bad mother....I'll take the blame (and the cost) for the eventual therapy he'll be going to.
I want to call so bad, yet I am so scared! I want to hear that he's had a total turn around and is now participating and having a great time, but I know that's not the case. I feel like I can feel his hurt and it's killing me that I can't comfort him. At least he's not alone in feeling so homesick. The second lieutenant said that EVERY kid there has cried at least once since they've been there (yeah, like THAT'S supposed to make me feel better?)
Doug is out on a photo shoot on Matagorda beach, otherwise I'd make him call! I just want to hear his voice again and know that he has the strength to make it through this week. Please say a prayer for him....please.