i will give a quick recap of what went on this weekend. this weekend was james FAREWELL CEREMONY at CAMP MABRY in austin texas and his unit is 2ND BATTALION, 131ST FIELD ARTILLERY. it was VERY EMOTIONAL. james has been gone since MONDAY 6/4 and we were SOOOO EXCITED that we were going to get to see him again!! well, my 2 boys, grandma and i left on SAT so that we could make sure we would get there on time for sundays ceremony. we spent the night there in austin at an EXTENDED STAY of america and it was REALLY NICE. anyway, we got up REALLY early because james wanted us to be there by 7am because there was suppose to be TONS of relatives there to watch. so we got there by 7:15am and thank GOD we did! we got GREAT PARKING and also front row for matthews wheelchair! it was REALLY NICE! the day was REALLY not too hot but it was really muggy and THANK GOD the sun was not officially up (until right before the ceremony started). well, as we pulled in, James saw us and called me on my phone. he was WAY OVER across the field in front of the buses. you could just see him waving at us! we were just sooo happy to be soooo close! so, we sat there at the bleachers waiting, we could see the troops marching in formation practicing for the upcoming ceremony. it made it soooo real. how can i explain the pride i felt or the emotions i was feeling seeing my husband WAY over there preparing to go to war? knowing that he will be away from us for a LONG TIME? knowing he will be missing so a YEAR of our life together and a YEAR of my kids life too? it was pretty emotional and all i can do is smile and wave at him so far way across a FIELD and soon to be a across the WORLD! i missed him ALREADY and he was right there across the field from me....anyway, as they got into formation there was FOUR group of soldiers...the band, then james group (smaller than the other) which was HEADQUATERS, and then alpha & bravo group which was REALLY LARGE (over 150 in each unit). they marched on field and i was SOOO PROUD.
i found out later after talking to james that when he started marching onto the field, he said that he looked at us and he just LOST IT. he told me, "babe, my eyes were not just tearing up, the tears were running down my face and snot and everything...lip quivering etc" he said that thru the whole ceremony, he would be ok until he saw us and then he would start to cry all over again (and he had a birdseye view of us). he got all of his buddies crying too!! my beautiful family man of a hubby...he will be MISSING his family sooooo much...i know that WE will be missing HIM BEYOND anything. so the ceremony continued with TONS of speakers etc....it was PRETTY EMOTIONAL ESPECIALLY when they retired the battalions flag. their flag has all these tassles that had all the wars they had been involved in or all the deployments they had been on since the unit was formed 1916 (THEY WERE CALLED THE LOST BATTALION) well, what they do is they roll up the flag and put a black sheath around it symbolizing that the unit is no longer in residence at their base camp...wow, that one got me REALLY GOOD...well, after the ceremony, the troops where let go to be with us the family....we were sooooo blessed because we got to be with james unitl 8pm!! :) very nice! well, where we were at, there was just the 4 of us and indi. then how we found each other, i will never know but first our sister-in-law INDI was there, then we saw our good friends JULIAN & SABRINA, then here comes TIO ZEKE, TIA CYNDI, KATIE, ANGIE, then INGLIS, TESSA, MARISSA, IAN, a friend, then MS TOLIVER & TERRI & then last but not least, SGT WANDER & HIS WIFE....there was 21 of our AWESOME family there. you can NEVER understand how WONDERFUL & AWESOME it was to see so many people there supporting james....i know that i was so TOUCHED and just so THANKFUL for them being there. all of them made the TIME and EFFORT to be there so early in the morning and make the trip from san antonio just to be there for james....words can't describe it. well, we were waiting for james and when he got there, he was CRYING and boy, it was soooo hard to see that. he was soooooo touched by his family & friends being there.....he told me he was very surprised and HONORED that they made it there.
we were able to all gather and talk to him and just hug and be hugged by james and it felt SOOOOOOOOO GOOD.....i got matthew out of his chair and he was holding both boys in in his arms and he was crying and just giving them kisses and it was just soooo beautiful and touching. a news crew came over and interviewed james and he was just crying and talking about how hard it was going to be leaving his family. (family in corpus christi saw the interview. we are still trying to see if we cand get a copy of it!!) well, afterwards, we walked over to the area where refreshments were given and it was REALLY NICE to be able to talk to james and the family. we stayed there for about an hour or so and just being surrounded by our family & friends was just the best. after we left, james, grandma, and my boys and i just hung out. we went to CABELLAS outdoors and just ate dinner there then we had to take him back to CAMP SWIFT. from there, we were AGAIN BLESSED because we got a treat and were able to take him home with us becuase he had his truck out there.
so, we had one more evening with him. we spent it at home enjoying eachother and he cried again because he tucked in the boys for the last time for a LONG TIME. the routine and all were so special to him...i can only IMAGINE what he must be feeling leaving him family, his boys behind.....not to have or take part in the nightime routine or EVERYDAY routine....my beautiful hubby....the next day, we had to drop him off at his unit by 11:30am and then he was off, back to CAMP SWIFT with his buddies. he actually LEFT for EL PASO (FT BLISS) at 1am this morning. he called me to let me know. wow, he is gone.....it is setting him that he is no longer here and won't be "coming home" soon or "around the corner". instead he is HUNDREDS of miles away but STILL IN TEXAS! that is a comfort. i just PRAY PRAY PRAY that they let him come home for the birth of JOSHUA MICHAEL. that would be such a BLESSING. we think it will be possible...i can't wait to schedule my C-SECTION so that he can let them know. i know that it will probably be an in and out kind of thing but to have him there would be a blessing....
anyway, so that was the ceremony. it has sank in that he will be gone for a couple of months. i COMFORT my self that i will GOD WILLING be able to see him AT LEAST in EL PASO before he leaves to IRAQ. they are suppose to get a 4 day pass but we have to go up there. i am DETERMINED to be there unless something MEDICALLY stops me! i can't WAIT TO SEE HIM AGAIN....it will be hard for the boys but i will do my BEST to keep them busy....
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