Jon's Basic Training Graduation

Disclaimer: This is mainly for my record, so I'm going to try to be as detailed as possible. So I'm sorry if thats boring to some of you. Also the humidity was terrible. So don't mind the super pretty hair do's. Also, there is going to be a lot of pictures, not all of them are going to be very exciting though.

The time is finally here! 

Jon graduated from Basic Training.

It was the worst best trip of my life...let me explain.

We started our trip on monday by driving down to Vegas after everyone got off work. Our flights were early Tuesday morning so we (me, Taegen, Mark, JaRene, JoLee, Delecta and Lucas) figured driving down monday would make things a little easier on us. Well, here's where the trouble began. We got directions from mapquest, but apparently they were for the wrong hotel. Ours was a couple minutes from the airport, but the one we pulled up to was out in Henderson. He thought this was a little weird, but just figured they lied about the travel time. turns out, Mapquest pulled up the wrong address. By the time we got to the right hotel it was 9pm. Taegen had fallen asleep, but that didn't last long. When we went to check in they didn't have the right paperwork we needed. You see, JaRene's nephew was getting us a deal on the hotel since he works for the hotel chain we were staying at, and since it's a discounted room there is special paperwork from him that we need. Well it was faxed down but apparently they never got it. The paperwork for the hotel SC were supposed to be sent there as well, and that didn't arrive. We eventually got everything squared away but it took over an hour. So by the time we got into our rooms it was 10pm vegas time, 11pm our body time. Taegs was exhausted. We walked into our room and he freaked out. I don't know what it was, but he hated being in it. It took a good 3 days for him to get use to staying in a hotel room. The minute I closed the door he started crying and ran to it wanting out. It was weird.

We woke up early Tuesday morning to make our 9am flight. Everyone else got on a 6am flight so it was just me and Taegs. I didn't get much sleep, I was just a little excited :) So I was pretty exhausted to begin with. We got on the flight and Taegen slept for an hour and a half. Mind you it was a 4 hour flight. He actually did pretty good for the remaining of the flight. The people around us were really good and Taegs had a fun time playing with them. He'd stand on my knees and play peek a boo with the people in front of us. They all loved it. We had a short lay over in Charlotte and then had another 20 minute flight to get to Columbia. He did great on that flight too. We got off the flight and went to the rental car company where I find out the only car they have is a big E-350 Economy  van. Ummm no thank you. I called JaRene and asked them to come get me. Turns out they had to rent a car in Atlanta and drive the rest of the way to Columbia so the rental car they had reserved at the airport in columbia was still available. So luckily after a little bit of shuffling around we got it all worked out. We hopped in the car and off to the hotel we went. We got there, check in, then went to eat at the waffle house. Which is great and all, but to me is just another Denny's. I don't quite understand all they hype about it...JaRene! haha.

We woke up super early and headed over to the Army base Ft Jackson. Luckily we left early enough that we didn't hit a ton of traffic.

We got to the field, did a little shopping around at the booths, then parked ourselves in the bleachers and waited for the big event. I can't tell you how excited I was! After an hour the soldiers were bussed over to the field and we saw them all getting off. Of course they were too far away so we couldn't see Jon, but just knowing that he was over there was super exciting.

About an hour later the ceremony began. They had a few people talk about Army related things then the Army theme song came on over the PA system and a whole bunch of smoke bombs went off. After a minute we see the soldiers marching in formation towards us. It was absolutely amazing. I couldn't help but cry. The pictures just don't do it justice. We recorded it and I'm hoping to be able to get a digital copy. 

They all stood in formation for a little bit while someone else talked for a little bit, then they finally gave the go ahead for everyone to rush down and find their soldier. They had to stay on the field in formation until their family found them. With all those soldiers you can imagine how many people were there. Once we finally got down to the field, I had a really hard time finding him. Jon had told me before hand where he would be standing, but there was so many people that the rows had long since dissolved. JaRene then yells my name and points me in his direction. When I saw him his eyes were searching the crowd but he wasn't moving. I forgot to ask, but my guess is he heard JaRene yell my name so he was trying to find me. Because when JaRene first spotted him she said he was just standing there not moving or looking around at all. Seeing him for the first time was incredible!!!! He was so handsome in his uniform. We were told we had to keep things "G" rated haha, so we spared everyone the make out session. Finally being in his arms was the best feeling. I'm actually tearing up just thinking about it. Once I gave Taegen to Jon he did not want to go to anyone else. I went to give Jon a hug and Taegen actually pushed me away. Like "no he's mine!" It was pretty funny. Jon loved it. The whole trip Taegen wanted daddy more than anyone and Jon LOVED it. When he left back in July Taegen was going through a mommy phase and wanted only me. So the change just made Jon feel so good. In fact, any time Jon had to leave Taegs would freak out. It made Jon feel so bad yet so good at the same time.

first kiss :)

Look how happy they both are!

us with Jon's parents Mark and JaRene

Jon hugging his mom

and his dad

Taegen was so happy to finally see his daddy!

After we said our hellos, we met a few of Jon's friends, specifically Enslow. They became really good friends, in fact Jon actually introduced him to the gospel and actually baptized him! Now that I think about it, I don't think we even got a pic of them together :( After that we all got in the car and headed to his barracks. He had to get a few things before we could start our day. For family day we were allowed to hang out until 2030 (8:30 for all of you not familiar with military time. I'm trying to get use to it, and its fairly difficult), but we had to stay on base the whole time. After graduation the next day he would be granted an off base pass. But for now, we were limited to the activities on base. We went shopping, ate, visited the church house to meet the missionaries, went to the park, hung out at the Solomon center which had games, a bounce house, a rock climbing wall, and tables and chairs to relax. 

I tried to capture Jon's facial expression but he turned his head right as I took this pic. He was just grinning from ear to ear watching Taegs jump around.

My soldier, relaxing at the solomon center

eating lunch at the park/pond

yummy peanut butter

I love this picture! We were practically inseparable the whole time

The next day was graduation. He left early again and had 2 hours to kill before everything started. Taegen got pretty restless to say the least. Grandma took him out to play in the dirt for a while. (pics from both family day and graduation day)

We got so many comments on Taegens hair. I guess mohawks on babies is only a western thing. We didn't see anyone else with this hair do, but back here in UT you can't go anywhere without seeing a mohawk on a baby. It was really weird.

The ceremony began with the band marching out playing a few numbers. Then the soldiers marched across the back of the field then forward towards us into formation. A few words were said to honor the POW/MIA soldiers and a few other things, the soldiers then all said "The Soldiers Creed". This too was amazing. They all said yelled it in unison...It was POWERFUL and moving. I hope we got a video of it. I'll be posting some videos after I finish this long post. They then all marched in front of the stands for the "Pass and Review". After that I was able to run to the other side of the field and pick up my soldier to sign him out for the day.

 Jon is in the 4th row back, in the middle on the left.

We signed him out then headed off base. Everyone else had to go pack since they were leaving that night. So we went back to our hotel and put Taegs to sleep. We then went to the boot store for Jon to get new better boots and Taegs found this hat. He was actually putting it on his head, leaving it there and walking around even though it was covering his eyes and he couldn't see. He'd then shake his head to get it off. He just wanted to be like daddy :) We then went to eat then we found the Columbia temple. It was small but really pretty. After that everyone else had to leave. Jon said goodbye and we had the rest of the night with just our little family. It was nice to be just us again. We didn't really do much, but it was still nice.

Playing on the steps of the temple in the water

 Our little family in front of the Columbia temple

 siblings Jon, Jolee and Delecta with Taegs and Lucas

 playing in the dirt :)

Jon and his mom JaRene

I had to drop Jon back off at the base by 4am. So we got up and left by 3:15, and good thing we did. I missed the exit and started freaking out because it was dark and I didn't know where I was going. Jon kept me calm and directed me to where we were supposed to be going. Luckily Jon wasn't late. Jon left his bags in the car to ensure that he'd get to see me again. He was told he would be getting a weekend pass to spend with us off base, but nothing was for sure. He told me he'd call me when he was done with everything they were doing so I could go get him. Here's where the trouble began. I dropped him off, hoping this wouldn't be our last goodbye, but not really knowing what was going to happen. He gave me directions to get off base and when I got there the exit was closed. So I had to turn around and find another way out. Once I got off base I got on the freeway going the wrong direction. When I finally got back to the hotel my room key wasn't working. I had to go to the front desk and wait for the night manager to notice me since the doors were locked. He made me a new key and we finally made it to our room. I got a text from Jon saying things were going to take a couple hours and he'd call when they were done. I didn't hear from until 1300 (1pm) when he told me to be on base by 1700 (5pm). He was only being given a couple hours to hang out with us. No weekend pass. I had been crying and stressing out all morning and then he tells me this. I broke down. I thought I would now have to find something for me and Taegen to do by ourselves the next day. I hate being alone in unfamiliar places. This was my worst nightmare coming true. But at least we got to see him one more time. We left at 1600 (4pm) to get there on time. Luckily we did because I got lost. I mean WAY lost! I was 4 exits north of where I was supposed to be. And the exit I got off of once I noticed this lead me to another highway instead of just a road where I could get right back on the freeway. I ended up doing this twice! I was crying, Taegen was crying...it was miserable. I ended up finding a cop that gave me good directions to get to the base. We finally made it and went to the park to wait for Jon's call. when he did finally call he told me I needed my DL, car license plate #, registration and insurance papers before I could sign him out. This would have been fine except I had left my proof of Insurance in the hotel. Seriously, I was so pissed. I even thought about grabbing it, but forgot to grab it as i was leaving. We ended up getting things worked out and I was still able to sign him out. But man it was stressful. We were both mad he wasn't getting a weekend pass like he was originally told. He then told me he was getting an on base pass for sat and sun. So from 1200-2000(12-8) on sat and 900-1900 (9-7) on Sunday. the only problem is my plane left at 830 sun morning. So we would only get saturday to spend together. :( At least there was a little bit of good news. There wasn't much to do on base since we had done it all on family day. But just being together was nice. I picked him up again Saturday morning and we hung out all day. We went to the park, the PX, the mini mall, the solomon center, we drove around to kill some time. We did just about everything. I also tried to arrange to get on a later flight so we could at least spend some time together on Sunday. It was going to cost me $450 to switch it unless I missed my flight then did what is called same day confirm. I had to call within 3 hours of the flight I wanted to get on and hope there was a seat available. Anyone who knows me knows I hate not having everything planned out. But it was the only way we could spend another day together. So I missed my flight and ended up making it on the lastest flight which was at 6:30. So we got to hang out from 9-4:30 on sunday as well. 

 Taegen loves birds. So as soon as he saw all these birds he went running straight to them. Oh course they all flew away. But he just chased them around.

 dancing in the car

 shopping in the PX

 eating lunch...I mean Taegen

 Taegen loved this toy at the park. He would get on and rock back and forth. He totally knew what to do.

 They were both just standing there looking at the toys, ok Taegen was looking at the toys and Jon was looking at Taegs. But I could help just snapping a pic of father and son.

 my sexy soldier!! :)

 wearing daddys hat

We said our tearful goodbyes, which was honestly one of the hardest things I've done. We had gotten so use to life without each other that when we were finally together again it was heaven. Leaving was torture. I drove to the airport and find out that my plane has been delayed 30 mins. Ugh! We could have spent that time with Jon. Oh well. The first plane ride was only 40 mins but we had an isle seat so Taegen of course wanted to get down the whole time. Once we landed in Atlanta we had 2 1/2 hours till our plane left. Yup, it didn't leave until 2220 (10:20pm) And Taegen stayed awake the whole time. There was way too many people and things to see for him to actually sleep. Once we got on the plane he eventually fell asleep (we had a window seat this time) but after a while he couldn't get comfortable. He tried changing positions almost every 1/2 hour. Taegen likes to sleep curled up or on his back. Neither of which he could do comfortably while on my lap. The poor lady next to me, she had either Taegens head or feet jabbing into her. I don't think she minded too much though. I'm sure she was just happy that he slept. Needless to say I maybe got a total of 1 hr of sleep during the whole 4 hr plane ride. We landed in vegas at midnight and we took a taxi to get the car and we drove straight home. We didn't get into Stg until 3:30 and I didn't get in bed until 4. Wow what a trip. It was nice to be home, but I sure do wish Jon was home with us. It's been really rough these past few days without him. Luckily I have Taegen here to distract me and keep my  mind off things. These next 12 weeks need to fly by. This time though we'll be able to talk every night. Thank heavens. That's going to help tremendously! Here's a pic of Taegen socializing at the airport with some people from France. They just loved him!

All in all the trip was a success. It was just one of those trips that had a whole bunch of unnecessary problems. Nothing major, just really annoying. We're hoping that I'll be able to get a buddy pass and fly out there just me one of these weekends. Jon will be getting off base weekend passes almost every weekend after the first 4 weeks. So hopefully we'll be able to figure something out. Going out there by myself would be so nice. 

We miss Jon so much and can't wait until his AIT is over!!

Love you

MUAH!!

Basic Training

Aug 8-16
Instead of getting the M-4 like Jon thought they were getting, they got another M-16 just heavier. They are carrying around a lot of weight between their guns and body gear. They went to the electronic range to do some practicing. They actually had steak for dinner that night! Needless to say Jon was in heaven :)
They've been doing a lot of shooting lately, staying at the range really late, then getting up and doing it again. They're almost done with this phase and will shortly move on to the next. They have to do an 8 mile march, a 3 day field exercise and nick at night. Which is where they crawl on the ground for about two football fields, with their faces as close to the ground as possible while live ammo is being shot above their heads. All the guys are rotated into leadership positions (Platoon Guide, Squad leader & Team leader). Jon hasn't hasn't been put in yet, but he'll get the opportunity to lead everyone soon enough.
They got their ASU (dress uniforms) which everyone was really excited about, shiny shoes and all. He says they're really uncomfortable.
17-20
Finally finished their 3 day exercise. "the field exercise was tight. We learned a lot of tactical movements. Entering & clearing a room, reacting to fire, indirect fire & searching dead & live hostiles. Entering & clearing a room was way fun. Kick down doors and get your 4 man team in the room in under like 4-5 seconds. Reacting to fire was fun too. We loaded up with blank rounds and played war in the forest. Indirect fire (mortar fire) sucked. You hear the whistle, yell incoming and hit the ground before it hits. Then someone yells a direction and a distance and we all run there and sprawl out on the ground".
They had hand grenade qualification and Jon got 6 out of 7! "Yay, I can throw a grenade. haha". They did convo training and Jon got to be the gunner. "I was just chilling with my top half hangin out of the roof. It was awesome"
The final PT test is sometime soon, followed by Victory Forge, then graduation! Yay, its finally almost here. Less than 3 weeks left!!
Final PT test is sometime soon, followed by Victory forge, then graduation! Less than 3 weeks left!!!!

How is Jon doing?

Well I figured it was about time for me to write down what he's been doing. This is mainly for my own journaling purposes. I want to remember what he had to go through. So this will consist of the things he's told me in his letters, minus the mushy and personal stuff :) Mainly just the basic day to day stuff.
 I haven't been able to talk to him in over 5 weeks now, but I've gotten 11 letters so far (which are definitely the BEST part of my week!)

He left Tuesday July 5th and immediately went to reception, which is where all the processing of the soldiers is done. He was there until Sat. He then moved to the other side of the base to where the actual basic training would take place. He called me on Sun to give me his address, let me know he made it there ok and that he probably won't be able to call me very much anymore (up until this point he was able to call me almost everyday) He started basic training on Monday the 11th.

The first day was a lot of classroom stuff, pretty uneventful. They were issued their M-16's and are required to take it with them every where they go. They even have to sleep with it right beside their beds. The following day they conquered what is called the Victory Tower. (Rappelling down an 80 ft tower using only a rope for a harness, among other things) He was really excited for this. His drill sergeant is working them pretty hard, which is to be expected of course. He says he thinks he may have been placed with the hardest drill sergeant, which is both a good and a bad thing.

He says that everyday has 90-100% humidity with a heat index of 110-115 degrees. Holy crap its hot! But very green and very pretty. (just thought I'd mention that) 


He was able to go to church for the first time on the his 2nd Sunday there. This is one of his favorite things to do. They don't get much free time, but going to any religious service is allowed. One Sunday after church they had to "pull tiny weeds out of tiny crack in a giant parking lot...GAY!!!".

He made "A Group". During basic training they split everyone into 3 groups A, B or C (this is separate from their company or platoon). This is for running purposes. The fastest runners are placed in group A. 1 week into BTC he was able to run 2 miles in 15 mins. By the 23rd he was able to do it in 13.35 mins!

On the 19th they went through the gas chamber. They make them experience the gas so they know what it feels like. Obviously no one likes this part of BTC. He said it was completely miserable! The minute he walked in, all his exposed skin started burning/stinging. They make them take their masks off and breathe in. which "burned from the inside out". His nose instantly started running and eyes watering so hard he couldn't see.
They had to do land navigation, which during the day he said isn't too hard. But at night is miserable. Everything is so flat that he had a hard time figuring out where he was.

7/20: He said they hiked 1 1/2 miles to a course where they hopped over little walls, walked across logs, rolled under logs, climbed up a cargo net, climbed down a cargo net, played on some monkey bars, and rolled/crawled through the dirt so low their faces had to rub the ground. They next day they were going on a camping trip, which he was SOO excited for!

They started the electronic simulation fo shooting which let to the actual shooting range with live ammo. They had to do grouping and zeroing (which I believe has to do with the sights on the guns and making them shoot straight). He qualified on the first try. He had to get 8 out of 10 shots in a 3 cm circle minimum. For the next 2 1/2 weeks(as of 7/27), shooting is the main thing they are working on. Including pulling the trigger smoothly, shooting at pop up targets, etc. Plus they are doing combatives (I'm not quite sure what those are yet). Jon is loving it this part. Getting to shoot his gun all day (or at least a lot every day), he is loving it. Lately (Aug 4th), they have been at the range until 10-11 and then up again at 4:30 to go straight back. Getting ready for ARM (Advanced rifle marksmanship)

Daily routine as of 7/30 consists of:
waking up at 4-430, form up outside by 5, do PT for an hour and a half, go to breakfast, get changed, do training with their rifles, do a class, go to lunch, more training, and classes, go to dinner then more classes  until they go to bed at 9:30-10:00. Their days are pretty full.
Jon qualified sharp shooter, 32/40. Yay! I'm so proud of him. He thinks he could have done better, but if they got expert, which is like 36-38/40, then they got phone privileges every Sunday. So he thinks he psyched himself out stressing about it. But thats ok. He still did amazing!

They had to do a confidence obstacle course. I'm not quite sure what this entails, other than it had a zip line, but he said he was kind of excited about it :)

Aug 8th they got their bullet proof vests along with a M-4. They have to wear their IBA's (Internal body armor) FLC's ( a vest thing that hold magazines and grenades) and their assault packs (which is a backpack that they carry their wet weather gear, knee and elbow pads, poncho etc) and their helmets. "We are loaded down like mules :) "

This is all I know for now. Like I said, I got all this info from the letters he's sent me, I've just left out the mushy and personal stuff :) All in all, he says he's doing really good. He enjoys some days and others he is pretty miserable. But thats to be expected with BTC.

I'm so proud of my SIT - Soldier In Training! He's practically going through hell over there and we're just back home living life like normal. It almost doesn't seem fair that there's nothing we can do to help him other than sending him letters. He LOVES letters! Most times after I finish reading his letters I feel so helpless. I can't help him with his nasty blisters or sore muscles. I can't even talk to him to tell him we love and miss him. I can't imagine living back in the days when snail mail was the only form of communication. I HATE snail mail! Its so slow, especially on the base. They get so much mail they have to sort through each day that it takes 2+ weeks to get things to him sometimes. :( But, it's all down here from here. We passed the half way mark and I fly out to see him in 24 days! I can not wait!!!!!!

It finally came....

My sealing cancellation finally came through. We've got the go ahead to be sealed together...finally! Now if only Jon would come home so we could actually do it. :) Can't wait!

The broken chain

I'm pretty sure I've posted this before, but its my favorite poem so here it is again...

The Broken Chain

Author Unknown

We little knew that morning that

God was going to call your name.

In life we loved you dearly.

In death we do the same.

It broke our hearts to lose you,

you did not go alone;

for part of us went with you,

the day God called you home.

You left us peaceful memories,

your love is still our guide;

and though we cannot see you,

you are always at our side.

Our family chain is broken

and nothing seems the same,

but as God calls us one by one,

the chain will link again.

Today would have been my moms 48th birthday. I can't believe its almost been 5 years since that awful car accident. That day is both fuzzy and blurry yet clear as day in my mind. Its probably kind of hard to understand. I remember so many details of that day, but at the same time not enough details. I can't believe its already this time of year again. I love and miss you mom!

Happy Birthday!!

  

Don't mind my forgetfulness

I'm constantly sending pictures to Jon so I forget that I haven't posted them on here. So here's just a few.

One day Taegens hands and feet were cold so I put socks and gloves on him. But he decided he didn't like the gloves on his hands, he wanted them on his feet. Ha ha silly boy.

 He's officially a toddler! He falls and hits his head or any other body part almost daily. I see new bruises all the time. Here's one to prove it. He was running down the hall away from me. He didn't want his diaper changed. And the next thing I hear is him freaking out crying. I heard him hit something. I think it was the door frame. Thats the only thing down the hall he could have hit that would have left this lovely bruise/goose egg.

 Here's another injury he just recently got. He figured out how to climb onto the kitchen  chairs and from there onto the kitchen table. One day he was ornery and climbed onto one of the chairs and started slightly jumping. I warned him, but of course he didn't listen to me (what kid likes to listen to their mom :) ) and he kept wiggling and the chair tipped over. He hit his mouth and got a lovely fat lip. Since then he's had multiple bruises on his face from falling and hitting things. One of which he just got today. I swear if I'm not careful, someone gonna think I beat my child or something.

 spikey hair :)

 Here's my alien! He found JoLee's swim goggles and kept making me put them on him.

  Me and Taegs. My shirt isn't dirty, its my mirror. I hate the stupid tooth paste spots on the mirror!!

Any the most recent and my favorite...

"38 days till we go see daddy"

I just made this board today and I LOVE it! You can write with chalk on both sides of the "Days Till" so you can change it to whatever fits your needs. So cute and super easy. (It has to be, I'm pretty challenged when it comes to being crafty haha)

In uniform

There is a facebook page for Jon's battalion. They post pictures, videos, share details of what they're doing, and answer any questions anyone may have. Jon has been in a couple of the pictures, but this is the only one I have. 

(he's 4th from the right) :)

A big change

I am officially UNEMPLOYED! :) 

My last day with the credit union was Aug 1st. It was bitter sweet. I will miss the people, but I'm so excited to be able to stay at home with Taegen now. I've always told myself I wanted to be a stay at home mom, and now that it's finally here it's kinda strange. I really don't know what to do with all my spare time. You see, I hate cleaning! I'm one of those people that I have to be in the mood or it just doesn't get done. Of course I try to keep my house picked up so its not a pig sty, but deep cleaning is just not my favorite thing to do. House work in general is just not something I enjoy doing...poor Jon :) Except cooking. I don't mind cooking. I always feel so accomplished when I finished a good elaborate meal. Cleaning just doesn't give me the same satisfaction. I do like a clean house, but a good meal is so much more satisfying to me. (Maybe thats why I have 25lbs to lose before I got see him for his graduation haha) So my whole point is that other than keeping Taegen entertained, I'm out of ideas of things to keep myself busy. Since we live in Toquerville and don't have the most reliable ca,r I can't just drive into Stg every day to hang out with people. So Toquerville area I stay. Now what to do in the Hurricane valley that doesn't cost a bunch of money?!?!

Any suggestions?

We've been to the water park a couple times, but I don't wanna do that everyday. I've thought of picking up sewing or crocheting. I'm not super crafty, so I don't know how well those ideas will turn out. haha.
But so far, I'm loving being home with the little man. If I'm being honest, I think this might make the time that Jon's gone go by a little slower, but I know it'll be worth it in the long run.

Having Jon gone has been really hard. Oh course I knew it was gonna be hard, we did this same thing last year. He was working in Illinois and I was here. But we were able to communicate everyday still. Jon left exactly a month ago tomorrow and on Sunday it'll be 4 weeks since we've talked. I've sent him a letter everyday and I've gotten 5 from him so far. (3 two weeks ago and 2 this past Monday) He says he's sending 1 every 3 days or so. Oh how I love getting those letters! But it's just not the same as being able to talk on the phone. Normally are allowed to call on the weekends, but his unit is full of "young punk kids" that can't seem to "shut their mouth and get in formation" so they're all getting punished by not being able to call home (among other things). Sucks that us back home have to suffer because of people we've never met. But thats the way it works. So I'm just hoping and praying that those boys can figure things out and start playing by the rules so I can talk to Jon.
Other than not being able to call, he says he's doing pretty good. He has good days and bad days, but as a whole I think he's ok. They hopefully are in white phase now. The 9 weeks are split up into 3 phases, red white and blue. Red phase is the first 3 weeks, white is the next 2 weeks, and blue phase is the last 4. Jon said because of his unit the might not move into white phase on time. But hopefully they're there now, or will get there shortly. Jon got flagged with leadership abilities, so he said he's in charge of a group of the men. I don't know for sure what that actually entails, but I'm so proud of him!
I know these next 5 1/2 weeks are gonna be rough, but I'm so proud of him and his decision to do this. It's definitely going to be a lifestyle change for us, but we're excited. Its because of him joining the Army that I was able to quit my job. Sacrifices will have to be made, and I'm prepared to do that. But I know we will be blessed for doing this. In one of Jon's letters he said that it really hit him that he's in the Army, and that he knows there is a reason for him to be there. Only the Lord knows what that reason is. We're putting our life in the Lords hands and have faith that everything will turn out ok.
I love you Jon! I'm so thankful for everything you do for our family and I can't wait to see you in 41 more days!!!!!!