Snuggle Time

This was a too cute moment. I felt I needed to share with everyone. I really enjoy my dogs and their company. They have been laying closer to each other as the cooler weather has been here.

Another Day at Work

I was one of the lucky guys from our company that got to go out to the range and clear a spot for some targets that were being brought in by helicopter. The range was difficult to get to so we flew in. The first day we flew in a Blackhawk, the second a Chinook. What a difference! It could be compared to driving our Neon (the Blackhawk) or driving a tour bus (the Chinook).










I perferred riding in the Blackhawk.











The Chinook is the workhorse of the helicopters. It can pick up a tremendous amount of weight. The pilots are amazing. They really showed off their skills placing the targets were they wanted them and flying us around.











Here is some of the ordnance that we blew up. There was stuff everywhere. It was one of my first range clearances and it was a lot of fun. We're hoping to do this again when they have more targets to bring out here. It sure beats working in the office.

Adoption Update

Here's the latest for all you family and friends that we haven't talked to yet. I (Josiah) will be able to travel with Sarah to Maine to pick up Abigail. We're finishing up our last minute stuff, doctors visits, paperwork, and getting last minute items. As we were shopping for baby stuff it was hard not to keep thinking that there was a possibility that the adoption could fall through but we're remaining positive. We're only getting certain things right now, waiting to get the bigger, more expensive items when we get back. Thanks to everyone that we've talked to about baby gear! We've received some great ideas.
It's been really exciting for us. We have two weeks before we head out. We're making packing lists, lists of people to visit (schedule now with us!), things to bring, things to leave behind,... it's a whirlwind of paper, sticky notes, and pencils. We're excited about the new challenge of parenthood. Is an 8" cresent wrench good enough for a rattle? I did get her a Harley Davidson receiving blanket, in HD orange color. (Take that Barbie!) I did find some camoflauge infant clothes in the Cabela's catalog. And of course we'll have to get her a Boston Red Sox shirt. (Sarah isn't so thrilled with my fashion sense. hehehe)
We've been reorganizing the house a little, making room for Abigail and her new things that we have to get. (Military housing isn't the most spacious housing.) Now we have to think about child proofing things and keeping the dogs from slobbering all over her. (Does that count as bath time?)
Like I said, it's been fun and exciting as well as a little stressful. I hope that you guys bear with us. We'll keep everyone posted as we get closer to the adoption.

PRK

Look! No contacts! Hey guys, just a little update. The PRK surgery went great. The moment that I got up from the table I could see fairly well. I had 7 days off from work with strict orders to rest my eyes so my Vicodin and I shared the next couple of days being good friends. Sarah was a saint and kept the house running while I stayed in the bedroom snoozing off and on. (I have never slept so much in my life!) After just a few days the pain went away so I quit the Vicodin and tried to rest my eyes as much as possible. Sarah kicked me out of the house after my 7 days so I could go to work for a day before our 4 day weekend! (I think I was getting on her nerves a bit.)

I'm very functional right now with probably 20/40 vision. My eyes are still sensitive to sunlight, so I make sure I have sunglasses when I go outside.

This is amazing! If any of you have a chance to do this surgery I would recommend it. (I chose PRK over Lasik. I think that it's better, but that's just me.) It's nice not to have glasses or contacts to worry about. It's still a bit weird not taking my contacts out at night or not reaching for my glasses in the morning. Yes, my insurance is great. It makes up for being underpaid and overworked.

Pictures from work

Hey guys,
I thought that I would post some pictures of some stuff that we found at work and disposed of.
This is a 250lb practice bomb that the Naval Station dredged out of their lake. It's filled with concrete. It's funny to see the look on the guards faces when we roll through the gates at Ft Hood. We tell them not to mind the bomb in the back of the truck.







The guys strapped 20lbs of C-4 to the bomb and blew it up. All they found was concrete dust.
















Here's a 60mm mortar that failed to fire so we blew it up with an old hand grenade that was found way in the back of a range. The grenade was rusted solid.

Here is a video of us at the range. We had a couple of blocks of C-4 left over so we decided to try to "punt" a 155mm practice projectile over the tree. The 155mm is filled with concrete. I would say that we made it.

I thought about trying out for the New England Patriots' new punter next season.

Surgery

Josiah had corrective eye surgery this past week. He is loving being able to see without glasses or contacts. This is a great military benefit. I will update at a later time with his new picture. He is still not allowed to be too much in the light. He goes back to work on Thursday. I have started a spin class. For those of you who don't know what that is, I ride a bike for about an hour and then do a core workout. I am hoping this will help me to loose those extra pounds.