At Last...

First off, let me share a few statistics... after precisely 6 months, 1 week, 1 day, and 6 hours of training; 10 people from 2 different time zones traveled a combined total of 1,807 miles to converge on the Washington, D.C. area.  Why you may ask?

BECAUSE CARL GRADUATED!!!!!

  

That’s right… after 8 years; Carl finally achieved his dream of becoming a Special Agent.  Given the momentousness of the occasion, we had to make it a family affair, flying in sisters, brothers (in-law), cousins, parents (in-law), sons, daughters… and of course, wives (well, there’s only one of me!).  We all arrived Tuesday and converged upon a beautiful vacation rental home big enough for the entire clan.  Combining 5 kids under the age of 10 in a single house can be entertaining (and quite loud, too!).  After landing and settling in, Mimi and PawPaw took Todd to Mt. Vernon after settling into the house.

This kids loves leaves!

Posing outside Mt. Vernon

Sitting in the rocking chairs

What a beautiful view!!!

Katelynn and I took a nap until Carl’s sister, Rachel, arrived with her family later in the day.  Carl had to work Tuesday, so he arrived at the house right at dinnertime.  After unpacking his truck, which was packed to the brim, we all had a wonderful night of relaxing (as much as you can with excited kids running around everywhere).

The following morning, Carl and I got to sneak out before everyone else.  He had to be at work early before graduation and I was attending a Q&A session with other DS family members.  Once everyone arrived, we all loaded up on big buses and made the journey down to Main State.  The kids were really excited when they saw we had a “police escort” to help us get through traffic – one of the perks of working for a Federal Law Enforcement agency!  We arrived just in time to meet up with Carl and grab a few family pictures before the big event.

A great photo opportunity (and we match - NOT planned)

A family picture before the big event

The whole family!!!

Then the ceremony began.  I can say it was short, sweet, and to the point.  Everyone seemed to understand that after 6 months, 1 week, 1 day, and 6 hours of training, no one wants to hear long-winded speeches or drawn-out presentations.  Everyone received their badges and credentials, with HUGE applause for each graduate.

Receiving his badge and credentials 

After the presentation of credentials, specific awards were given out to select students who distinguished themselves during training.  Carl was honored by receiving the Distinguished Academic Award, scoring the highest academic average throughout all of training (which his sister loving calls “The Nerd Award”).  When Carl was receiving his award, Katelynn shouted out for all to hear, “That’s my daddy!”  It may have been the graduates’ day, but Katelynn stole the show!

Being presented his award by the Director of DS

And just as quick as we got there, the ceremony was over… but the party was just beginning…

Thursday, Carl had to run to work for a few hours to finish up paperwork and check out of training.  We all traveled to the Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History.  The kids seemed to like the Mammals exhibit the best, although Rachel and I loved seeing the Hope Diamond!

Standing with the bear 

The Hope Diamond 

Princess Rachel 

Todd and Madison standing near the dinosaurs

Katelynn saying "cheese" near the dino exhibit

She really liked all the pretty rocks!

Carl met with us after lunch and we began our walking tour of Washington, D.C.  First stop was meeting up with a friend of Carl’s from his days at the Labor Department.  It had been a while since we all got to see her (Todd was 19 months old last time) and it was great to catch up with her.  We then proceeded to walk 5.5 miles along the National Mall and Constitution Ave., stopping outside the U.S. Capitol, the Washington Monument, the White House, and the Lincoln Memorial.  Since the kids were missing school this week, we figured it would be a great impromptu civics lesson.  And since Carl went to school up here and has spent the last few months around here, he became our unofficial tour guide.  It was a little chilly, but a wonderful day for sightseeing.  It was rough on the kids, and meltdowns were inevitable, but all-in-all, I think it was a great experience for the kids (and us too)!

Todd and Katelynn at the National Mall 

The whole family at the Washington Monument 

Washington Monument at night 

Lincoln Memorial at night  

Family picture with Abe Lincoln

The White House 

US Capitol

The whole family at the Washington Monument 

Honest Abe 

Out in front of the White House

Friday, we all piled into our cars and made the 45-mile trek out to Annapolis.  Carl wanted to show the kids where he went to college.  Both boys had been there before, but they were way too young to remember (Trey was 6 weeks old his last time to USNA and Todd was 19 months old).  Everyone was excited to see noon meal formation in T-Court and the ladies were quite excited to shop at the Mid Store!

Naval Academy Chapel 

The Brigade of Midshipmen at Noon Meal Formation

Brigade Staff at Noon Meal Formation

Rachel's family poses with the leaves

The cute couple 

Katelynn wanted in on the fun 

Outside Bancroft Hall

Riding the canon

Beautiful autumn leaves

Tecumseh all painted up for the home football game

Carl said it was weird for him to be back up at USNA showing his nephew, niece, and son around… made him feel old!  Of course, Rachel took every opportunity to remind him it’ll have been 10 years since he graduated next year… so he is, in fact, old!  Gotta love sibling rivalry!

And like all good things, our trip had to come to an end.  We all flew back home and Carl drove his truck back down to Florida for Thanksgiving.  Carl snuck out of the house around 3AM to start the 950-mile drive back to Florida.  It still amazes how he pulls off long drives like that (of course, he’s always exhausted when he’s done).  It took him 16 ½ hours to make the trip, but he purposely took long breaks so we had a chance to get back to the house and settled in before he arrived.

Even though our day at the monuments was a long day for the kids, they all agreed the Lincoln Memorial was the coolest place we visited.  That's quite fitting since Lincoln is Carl's favorite president.  Lincoln overcame a lot of adversity and failure before succeeding.  Carl used to have this picture of Lincoln on his desk at work from the Successories company:

© Copyright 2011, Successories.com, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
MESSAGE:  He failed in business in '31. He was defeated for state legislator in '32. He tried another business in '33. It failed. His fiancee died in '35. He had a nervous breakdown in '36. In '43 he ran for congress and was defeated. He tried again in '48 and was defeated again. He tried running for the Senate in '55. He lost. The next year he ran for Vice President and lost. In '59 he ran for the Senate again and was defeated. In 1860, the man who signed his name A. Lincoln, was elected the 16th President of the United States. The difference between history's boldest accomplishments and its most staggering failures is often, simply, the diligent will to persevere.

Carl most certainly persevered through years of trying to achieve his goal... and after eight years, he succeeded.  He had a lot of help from friends, family, and God to get to this momentous occasion.  I couldn't be more proud of him and all his accomplishments!!!

And So It Begins

So out of the blue on Friday, I get a text message from Carl in the middle of the day saying “This is what I call a tough day at the office…”  Attached are two pictures:

Isn't this just beautiful???

Look at all the colors!!!

Normally I’m not the jealous type, but not only do I love fall foliage (which we get very little of in Florida), but I just finished reading a blog post by another DS wife talking about how her husband left her in China for a week while he went on a “business trip” back to the United States.  Now, here’s my husband telling me how he’s working hard on his Final Training Exercise (FTX) while I’m home with the kids… am I the only one who sees a problem with this?  Being the spouse of a Foreign Service Specialist, I’m sure I need to get used to my husband going to cool and exotic places without me on temporary assignments (of course, he’ll take me there on vacation when we’ve got time), but I have the right to be a little jealous, right?

In other news… Carl finishes training in just two more weeks!!! To say we’re excited would be an understatement.  In fact, it almost didn’t happen and to say “Carl finishes training in just two more weeks” is nothing short of a miracle from God.  You see Carl isn’t a runner… he’s had numerous doctors tell him he shouldn’t run.  And he normally doesn’t run… he does low-impact exercises instead (we love our elliptical).  But my stubborn husband seems drawn to occupations requiring a Physical Fitness Test.  And this job in particular won’t let him graduate unless he passes the 1½-mile run.  Now a few people have asked, “But it’s just 1½ miles… can’t he just run faster?”  To those who asked that… you don’t know my husband (and besides… really???... if it was that easy, everyone could do it)!  In training for this run, he developed serious shin splints and bad back pain.  Of course, all the medical professionals he saw said he needed to rest.  The only problem is you can’t get faster in a 1½-mile run without running, and he didn’t have time to rest.  So my stubborn husband (a term I use with the utmost love and respect) decided to push through the pain and keep trying.  The only problem is… the pain kept getting worse.  In his evenings after training and on the weekends, he saw an acupuncturist for the pain and a physical therapist to learn how to tape his shins and arches.  He was determined to pass.  And those of you who know my darling husband know that when he gets determined to do something, he does it… nothing gets in his way – not even physical pain.  On Friday, as a testament to both Carl’s perseverance and more importantly, God’s grace, he finally passed!  Even though he was completely exhausted and in a lot of pain when he called me, I could hear the sense of relief in his voice.  A big THANK YOU to all those who were praying for him… this is a great example of how God really does answer prayer!

Outside of Carl’s training, things are going well.  We found a place to live in Texas once we move after Thanksgiving.  Todd is ecstatic about finally having a “stairs house” and having an area in his room for a desk (our “little man” likes having his own office – excuse me!).  We’ve found a great school for him that we’re really excited about.  Of course, it’s a little different for us since we’re renting and not buying, but we’ll only be there for two years, so it didn’t make sense for us to buy a house.

Our New House in Texas

We’re having fun with the autumn season… every October brings the Pensacola Interstate Fair.  We missed Carl not being able to join us, but we did our best to have fun anyway.  The kids had a blast; especially since this was the first year Katelynn was tall enough to ride the rides.

Ready for the Fair

The Dumbo Ride

Ready to Swing!!!

The Potato Sack Slide - One of Todd's Favorites

Night Sky from the Ferris Wheel

We also had fun with Carl when he came home for a weekend.  Todd desperately wanted to carve a pumpkin with him.  Now Carl isn’t a big fan of the smell or sliminess of raw pumpkin, but he didn’t have the heart to tell Todd “no” so we went to a pumpkin patch and picked out a pumpkin.  They carved it before Carl flew back to DC.

Having Fun at the Pumpkin Patch!

Not too Shabby!!!

Unfortunately, the pumpkin met its demise with the warm Florida air.  Although he was sad, Todd was understanding and still glad to have been able to carve a pumpkin with his daddy.

R.I.P. Jack-O-Lantern

And of course, there’s the various fall festivals around the area… despite the cold snap (which made it feel like Fall) we had tons of fun!

Who Could Say "No" to this Cute Face?

We’re all getting excited about our upcoming trip to Washington, D.C. for Carl’s graduation.  And by all, I mean the WHOLE family.  This is such a big deal for us… and such a long time coming that it’s a huge celebration for the entire family.  This is a living example that dreams do come true if you put your mind to it, work hard, and most importantly... trust in God.  We’ll be sure to take plenty of pictures and post afterwards so you can all share in the big moment. 

I realize it had been a while since we last posted to the blog, but as you know… life doesn’t usually stop long enough to take a break and write.  We hope all our friends and family are doing well… drop us a line if you get a chance… take care!!!

A New Kind of Family

I support my husband 100% percent in what he does... both personally and professionally.  He's always been drawn to challenging and exciting jobs where each day is different.  That is what drew him towards joining the Foreign Service (FS) in his particular speciality.  And I support that wholeheartedly because I know when he's happy professionally, it overflows into our family life at home.  

But as a new FS spouse who witnessed last week's events in the Middle East along with everyone else, my heart sunk to think about what my husband just got us into as a family.  Could the State Department send us to...???  What happens if...???  What about...???  These are all questions I bombarded him with over the past week.  And since he's in the middle of training, there's been little opportunity for us to chat much and even less time for us to discuss the recent events.  He's tried to calm my fears the best he can, but of course, there are many unanswered questions lingering out there that can only be answered with time (or the time-honored State Department answer of... "It Depends").

However, I've learned something that I think is absolutely fantastic.  I learned we've joined a new kind of family by joining the FS.  The kind of family that rallies around each other during the difficult times.  I witnessed spouses of others in my husband's speciality email, Facebook, tweet, and blog about their support for the FS as a whole and our country's continued presence overseas.  It's a band of people who came together and offered support to any and all affected, despite being aghast at the world events as they unfolded.

Before moving last year, I had lived in the same town my entire life.  The idea of the FS was huge to me but it sounded like an exciting adventure for our family.  And while last week's events gave me a moment's pause, seeing the family we're now a part of made me prouder than ever to expand my horizons and be a part of FS family.  I support the men and women who go overseas to practice diplomacy (which will be us in the future) and have a newly found understanding of the sacrifices they make in the service of our nation.

Farewell to Summer

This summer has literally flown by.  It's been about a month since we have last blogged, but it has been a busy month.  The kids and I have had a great time hanging out at the beach, looking for shells, and Todd has even learned how to swim.

Our little "fish" ready to go

Since I last posted, Carl was able to come and visit us for a weekend and I was able to visit him sans kids.  We packed up the car last week and drove over to Georgia to attend Carl's graduation from FLETC.  After 12 weeks of intensive training, he not only graduated, but received the Academic Award and an award for Distinguished Expert Marksman (he shot a perfect score).

Receiving his awards

Family picture after graduation

My parents also came to the graduation and we all stayed at a house on St. Simons Island.  It was so nice to relax for a few days and hang out as a family.  It is such a beautiful area and the weather was absolutely gorgeous.   After attending Carl's graduation, we went back to his room and Carl had a huge surprise waiting for Todd - a brand new "big boy" bike.  Todd and Carl had so much fun riding around in the quiet neighborhood where we were staying.  Katelynn was even able to tag along in the comfort of a bike trailer behind Carl.

Riding his new bike

A family outing

I had the privilege of walking/running beside Todd while he was riding the bike to make sure he did not fall too hard.  It was hard for me to keep up with him at times.

Carl and I were able to celebrate our 8th anniversary and we drove down to Jacksonville to eat at one of our favorite restaurants - Maggianos.  To make a perfect meal even better, we went to the Cheesecake Factory for dessert!  We had a great time together, just the two of us.  Our anniversary is today, but we knew that we would not be able to be together on the actual day.  Sadly, our time together eventually had to come to an end and Carl had to begin his 2 day journey up to DC.  Katelynn started to cry when Carl left and Todd sweetly came up to her and said, "It's OK, we will see Daddy at his next graduation."  It was so sweet and cute.  We are hoping to be able to see Carl again before November, but it depends on flight schedules.

On the day that Carl left, the kids, my parents, and I embarked on a shrimp boat cruise.  My mom came across the excursion on TripAdvisor for things to do in Brunswick, GA.  We had an absolute awesome time aboard the Lady Jane.  Not only did they feed us fresh, just caught boiled shrimp, but we were able to be up close to all sorts of sea creatures.  During our 2 hour cruise, the fishermen threw out the net three times and we caught everything from shrimp to squid to sharks to horseshoe crabs to sting rays and all sorts of fish.  The kids were able to hold these sea creatures and explore to their hearts' content.  It was truly a memorable excursion.

The shrimp boat

Playing with a fish

She has no idea what she's touching, but she likes it!

All good things must come to an end and we drove back to Pensacola on Sunday making sure that we kept our gas tanks full thanks to Isaac and stopped by the condo at the beach to make sure it was all ready to welcome Hurricane Isaac.  Todd and I were able to do a little searching for shells but the water was rather rough so we did not go in the Gulf.  As it looks right now, we should be avoiding the bad part of the storm and are hoping to find no damage after Wednesday.

This week is an exciting one at our house.  Our 8th wedding anniversary is today and both Katelynn and Todd start school this week.  Todd will be starting kindergarten on Thursday and Katelynn will be starting preschool at a local church in Pensacola.  It's hard to believe that we have a kindergartener but we are thrilled and Todd is very excited.  Sorry for the delay in blog posts, but that hopefully catches you all up to speed.  Until next time...