Potty Training 201...

...because Gator was Potty Training 101. We begin tomorrow morning. We are armed with a potty chair, Pull-ups, extra clothes, and lots of M&Ms.

See, with Gator, I was highly motivated to get him potty trained. At the time I was expecting Bull and I did not want to have two kiddos in diapers if I could help it. Since I'm not expecting right now, I am not quite as motivated on that front. However, considering that Bull has started trying to change his own diaper, I think it's time to use the "big boy potty."

Of course, I waited for Hubs to come home (which he did today!) because I didn't want him to miss any of this! Actually, I think I'm really gonna' need his help with this one. Gator was so eager to please that potty training came easily for him. Bull enjoys pleasing when it is his idea. Hmmm. I love my kids' differences. They keep me on my toes!

Any prayers that you would like to offer on our behalf would be greatly appreciated!

FL-GA trip

Now that I have begun to breathe deeply again, I can finally update with something of significance! On Sunday we returned from a two week trip to visit family.
We stayed with Hubs' parents for a few days. While we were there, we built swings, picked blackberries, went to the springs, the zoo and the butterfly garden. The boys' personality differences were obvious during our field trips. Gator got a kick out of the zoo while Bull slept. Bull enjoyed the butterfly garden while Gator was petrified of something landing on him. Good times!
Next we went to my parents' river house for the annual family reunion of my maternal grandmother's family. It was a lot of fun! Here's a picture of those that could come (and that's not even half of 'em!). We had a great time playing on the beach, swimming in the river, fishing and catching up.

On Sunday we headed back to my parents' house. While we were there, we played outside, tried VBS (it was a no-go for Gator), went swimming, and took pictures of the grandkids. My niece has grown so much!

On Thursday we headed to Columbus, GA to watch Hubs graduate. My dad chased Bull around the field and Gator watched the graduation from under the bleachers. I got to pin Hubs' jump wings on him.

Then we just enjoyed being together for a few days. We saw "Kung Fu Panda." It was a cute movie, but it has definitely inspired some additional "panda style" karate antics. Like my kids needed help with that. We took some time to familiarize ourselves with the area considering that it is our first choice. We'll see!

Hubs' 5th week

Here's Hubs' first official Army picture. He's so cool!

Here's his week 5 summary:

I just finished my last week at Fort Benning. I am all set to check out first thing Monday morning and drive back home. I'm really looking forward to seeing Christie and the boys.

On Tuesday and Wednesday of this past week, the Chief of Chaplain's Office convened an Accessions Board to review a group of applications including mine. On Wednesday evening I got the phone call I'd been waiting for. The board had accepted my application for active duty chaplaincy following graduation from seminary! On one hand I was relieved. I knew that God had called us out of the Navy to prepare for military chaplaincy. I felt as though I'd been faithful to that call and made myself completely available. On the other hand I had tried to prepare myself for a decision of non-acceptance. I knew that God had a plan for my family in ministry and that He'd work out the details. Frankly, being denied by the Army would have caused us to avoid some difficult seasons of separation. I was willing to minister in a deployed status, but would have preferred to never leave if possible. So as all these feelings swirled around, a peace came over me because the road ahead is clear now. Numerous "what if" questions that Christie and I were sick of entertaining are removed from the table and, in a humorous twist of irony, they have been replaced with a whole new set. But at least they're fresh and new. The truth is that there is great need for the message of hope in the Army and we are ready to stand in that gap.

The basic timeline looks like this: complete last semester of seminary (Aug-Dec), graduate from seminary (20Dec2008), finish the Chaplain Basic Officer Leader Course in Columbia, SC (spring 2009), and report to my first assignment in early April 2009. Exactly when Christie and the boys relocate will depend on where we get assigned since Gator will be in his second semester of kindergarten. Our preferences for assignment are presently: #1) Columbus, GA; #2) Savannah, GA; #3) Germany. But we'll see what happens!

I spent the first three days of the week with the Chaplain of the Ranger Training Brigade (RTB). RTB is where they take young, male, top-notch athletes and train them how to persevere through unimaginable conditions. They are pushed to the very limits of bodily endurance while being sleep deprived (2-3 hours a night on average) and food deprived (around 2000 calories a day while their bodies are burning 3000-3500 a day). They train for three weeks here at Benning, for three weeks in the North Georgia mountains, and then go down to Eglin AFB in the panhandle of Florida to play in the swamps. I drove down with the Chaplain to observe a field worship service for the class in Florida who only had a week left until graduation. You've probably never seen dirtier, smellier, more tired and worn out looking men in your whole life. I literally considered rolling in a mud puddle just so that I felt worthy to stand in their presence. My clean uniform made me feel a little embarrassed. When the (voluntary) worship service started, 115 of the 200 students joined us for worship and nearly everyone else joined the Catholic Priest we'd brought in. Everybody wants some Jesus when you're that beat down! As the service closed, the Chaplain had them sing "Jesus Loves Me." Try and picture 115 of the toughest Rambo-esque men you can imagine singing Jesus Loves Me at the top of their lungs in the middle of a Florida pine forest. God rocks, doesn't He?!

Thursday was spent observing the Family Life Training Program where the Chaplain Corps trains a select group of Chaplains how to be counselors on the next level. The students receive a master's degree in counseling through Columbus State University and go on to provide each Army post with a expert to which Battalion Chaplains can refer clients before engaging Licensed Professional Counselors, Psychologists, or Psychiatrists. I was able to observe a counseling session via video and audio feed to a remote room. What a joy to see a couple enter considering divorce and leave holding hands with tears in their eyes. The combined effects of the Global War of Terrorism impact families greatly. This is one way we can mitigate those effects.

Friday, my last day of training, was spent with a Basic Training Chaplain. We had the opportunity to counsel a few recruits and help address their concerns. Since attending Basic Training myself in November 1994 to January 1995, I had not been around that environment. It was good to be reminded of just how hard it is to convert a kid from mama's boy to warrior in a few months.

Please let me reiterate my thanks to each of you for your prayers and support during this period of training. Many of you have emailed me and encouraged me. Thank you. If I haven't gotten back with you, know that I still love you and will be in touch as soon as I can. May the Lord richly bless you as you seek to serve Him more.

For God and Country,
Hubs

Thoughts for Thursday

1. I am humming the soundtrack to Camp Rock, Disney's newest original movie. "Music's in my soul...This is me,This is real, I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be now...You're the voice I hear inside my head..." Gator has been talking about this for two months now.

2. My children have watched a totally unacceptable amount of TV this week. I pardon myself because I am recovering from two weeks of travel.

3. Swimming lessons started this week for Gator. Monday was great. Tuesday was a disaster. Wednesday was better. What will Thursday hold? Bribery is being fully and unashamedly employed in this endeavor!

4. Apparently C, a little girl from Gator's preschool class has captured his affection. He drew a picture for her with hearts all over it and told me, "Mommy, I want to be her boyfriend." WHAT?!

5. Bull: "Mommy, dess wut?"
me: "What?"
Bull: "Powuh Wanguhs!" (Power Rangers)
uncontrolled giggling...

6. A special thanks to Jay, husband of Bronie, for mowing my grass, and edging this week.

7. Hubs comes home in 4 days!

Wordless Wednesday

Hubs' 4th week

This past week I fulfilled a long-held time aspiration: earning a Parachutist Badge (aka "Airborne Wings") from the U.S. Army Airborne School located at Fort Benning. In so doing I learned a lot about myself. I learned that I can jump out of a C-130 Hercules from 1250 feet, five times with profound calmness when I put my confidence in the Lord and wear some high quality equipment. I learned that sitting on a hard wooden bench in silence while harnessed to a T-10D parachute is uncomfortable and borders on being definable as medieval torture when exceeding six consecutive hours. I learned that the ground is a remarkably apathetic surface; it does not generally discriminate, except it occasionally extends mercy to those that weigh less. I learned that 32 year olds can keep up with 18 year olds given the appropriate amount of effort, but that 32 year olds don't seem to heal up as quickly from the physical pounding. Some of these lessons will be immediately useful to military ministry while others will be simply be stashed away for my grandkids to hear about.

We ended up jumping once Monday, twice Tuesday, and twice Wednesday. The fourth and fifth jumps included combat equipment and the fifth jump was at night. Thankfully, only a few guys from my class got injured and none too seriously. When Friday came, 462 out of the original 520 students starting with me earned their wings at graduation. Christie, the boys, Christie's parents, and some of our family here in Columbus attended the ceremony. I was grateful to have them in attendance. Christie and the boys stayed through the weekend and it was really great to catch up with them and catch up on sleep. Thank you to all who lifted me up during this period of testing.

One more week and I'll get to go home for a few weeks. At present the Installation Chaplain's Office has assigned me to observe the Chaplain at the Ranger Training Brigade which should be a lot of fun. Pray that I will be a useful vessel during this period of interaction with some of the Army's finest soldiers.

Please also continue to pray for the decision of the Accessions board meeting this week. By the end of the week I should have their decision on whether or not I've been accepted to become an active duty Army Chaplain following graduation from seminary. Pray that we would be placed in the ministry context that maximizes our effectiveness at ministering to people.

For God and Country,
Hubs

Hubs' third week and first jump

Below is Hubs' synopsis of week 3. But first an update: Hubs had his first jump today and it went perfectly! He said that it was a lot of fun, but not so much fun that he wants to make it his new hobby. One down, four to go! He also had a good Father's Day yesterday, even though we were away from him. Here's the summary:

By the grace of God, the second week of Airborne School (Tower Week) is over. While offering some fresh challenges, this week was considerably easier than last week. The temperature was ever so slightly cooler (mid-90’s instead of high 90’s) and my body seemed to be a little more acclimatized to the pace of training. Plus, somewhere around half of the training we conducted was done in the shade under covered training areas! Although days went consistently longer than last week (we got out between 6-7pm each evening), we only worked until lunchtime on Friday! My hands are a little sore from numerous opportunities to lift my body weight off the ground by nylon straps called risers that connect my harness to the parachute above. Likewise, my midsection is bruised from jumping about 35 times off a 15-foot platform and having the harness catch me by the two straps securing my legs to the harness. After each of these jumps the instructor would let me swing a few times back and forth before dropping me like a sack of rocks to help me practice falling the right way. As a result, my bum is not very happy with me. In all, I praise God for keeping me safe and helping me finish the week well.
I was privileged to share my faith with a young Sergeant who said he’d been searching for God ever since seeing the movie Passion of the Christ. He asked me to take him to chapel on Sunday and I, of course, obliged him. We’ve had some great conversations since. Pray that Otis will continue to ask questions until he makes a decision.
Next week we have to jump five times from either a C-130 or C-17 Air Force jet from 1250 feet in order to graduate. It goes without saying that I would appreciate your prayers for the intestinal fortitude necessary to follow through with intentionally exiting a perfectly good airplane while in flight. The Airborne School Chaplain has called the C-130 the most intense house of prayer ever built and he may be right. Lord willing, I’ll graduate at the end of the week with Christie and the boys present at the ceremony.
As a second matter of prayer, I’d ask you guys to intercede regarding the Active Duty Chaplain Accessions Board being convened on the 24th and 25th of June by the Army Chief of Chaplains Office. The officers sitting that board will make a decision for or against my application to become an active duty Army Chaplain following graduation from seminary in December. Christie and I feel that Army Chaplaincy, while not an easy road by any means, is the ministry context for which God has called us to prepare. The Army’s decision is obviously a key factor in this journey. Thanks in advance for joining us in prayer regarding this matter.
For God and Country, Hubs

Hubs' second week

We are heading to Florida tomorrow for almost two weeks. We will end up in Columbus for Hubs' graduation and some family time! Here is Hubs' synopsis of this past week. Gotta' pack!

The first week of Airborne School, called Ground Week, was long and trying. For those wanting a snapshot from the ten thousand foot level, imagine running about forty miles, doing almost 300 pullups and 300 pushups, executing various other exercises (i.e, sit ups, flutter kicks, leg spreaders, buddy carries, lunges, standing broad jumps, crab walks, inch worms, et al) galore, jumping six times from a 34-foot tower, and falling into a gravel pit probably fifty times during five days with each seeing temperatures in the high 90's with near 100% humidity and a heat index in excess of 100 degrees. In short, this old man is tired.

Monday began with an Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) at 4am. We were expected to do 42 perfect pushups, 53 perfect situps, and then run two miles in less than 15:54. I intentionally held back a little and finished the run in 13:45. I'd estimate that at least 100-150 of the around 520 students starting the course finished ahead of me. I'd never been around so many stud runners in any military setting. One kid finished in around 11:30! Those that couldn't complete any one of the three events satisfactorily were immediately retested and, if they didn't pass that time, were immediately dropped from the course. We probably lost fifteen percent of the class on the APFT alone. For the rest of that day we received an overview of the training we were to receive, learned how to wear a parachute harness, and practiced exiting a mock airplane door sitting on the ground. We left for the day, totally exhausted, around 5:30pm.

Still sore from Monday, we began to settle into a 5:15am - 5:30pm routine on Tuesday morning that begins with one to two hours of good physical training (PT) in the morning. After PT, the officers and senior Non-commissioned Officers get around an hour and 15 minutes to go back to their rooms to shower, eat breakfast and get dressed for the day. What a welcomed break! We meet back around 8:45 and train outdoors for the rest of the day stopping only for lunch and hydration. Nothing is in an air conditioned classroom and shade is scarce. By the time I get home and peel my sweat-soaked uniform off, shower, eat dinner, call Christie and the boys, and prepare my uniform for the next day, I am absolutely wiped out. I collapse in the bed by 8:00pm every night.

In retrospect, this week I learned how to properly exit an aircraft door as an individual (instead of as a group - that's next week) and how to land in such a way as to increase the likelihood of having a prolonged life. Honestly, the hardest aspect has been the heat which has simply been brutal. I have drunk more water and sweated more than I think I ever have in my life. At one point on Friday the ground got so hot that when I sat on it, the heat transferred from the dirt through the sweat in my pants to physically burn my backside.

The Lord has really blessed me with opportunities to share my faith with fellow students. The non-traditional path I've taken into Army service along with my present Chaplain Candidate status has opened plenty of doors for conversation. I pray that I can continue to be an encouragement to believers and an effective reflector of hope onto those who haven't had their lives transformed by Christ yet.

This past Sunday I attended the contemporary worship service on post called "Crossroads" and it rocked. There was a real community feel to that body of believers and you could tell it was a happening place where lives were getting changed. On Thursday night, one of the ROTC Cadets in my Platoon invited me to a Bible Study at the Airborne Chapel immediately next to their barracks. I participated in that and some 30-40 folks showed up. That was encouraging as well to see the ministry in progress to this group of service men and women despite the highly transient nature of their training.

Please pray for perseverance in the coming week. The second week of Airborne School is called Tower Week and is scheduled to culminate in each student being dropped from a 250-foot tower with a parachute already deployed. The PT will once again be strenuous and the weather, if the forecast holds, will be ridiculously hot. As you can imagine, lots of 18 year olds are looking to the "old" Captain for motivation and I'm trying not to disappoint them or myself. Please pray that my motives and actions will honor God.

For God and Country,
Hubs