treasures

 I am so blessed to have been able to visit my sailor last month.

He has been out a sea a lot as the ship prepares for deployment.

Fortunately he had a little time in port and I, my daughter &

youngest son went out to visit him and his fiancee. 

It is wonderful that my son is stationed in beautiful San Diego!

The weather was perfect and we enjoyed our visit so much! 

We toured the ship (my 2nd time!). 

It s always sobering to see the work environment of our sailors.

It is harsh, in a word. 

 My son is a confident, hard-working sailor with almost

5 years of service under his belt.

I am very proud of him. 

If you can, visit your sailor. See their work environment.

It will give you an eye-opening perspective on the everyday life 

of those who choose to serve in the US Navy. 

It is a life of hard-work and sacrifice and they all

deserve our respect and support .

 I loved having most of my kids together for a few days.

It did my heart good! ♥  

And then, with grateful hearts, we say good-bye for a while.

Happy memories will keep us strong until we meet again.

We will treasure these blessed days.

~♥~

Son and Sea on HLN's Salute to the Troops

HLN aired a short piece about my sailor's homecoming

from an almost 10 month deployment. 

Here's the article I wrote that was the 

basis for the on-air segment. 

~♥~ 

Son and Sea on HLN's Salute to the Troops

update~ January 2016

So, I am woefully remiss in regards to this blog. I'm going to do better!! 

 All is well and my son is still a sailor, still a nuke and is doing great! 

This pic is from a port stop in Hawaii. 

It was a quick stop right before the ship's homecoming 

from a long deployment to the Middle East. 

I was VERY BLESSED to be able to go to San Diego and
see his ship come in.If you have a deployed sailor I strongly urge you
to attend this event if you possibly can!

It is worth every penny! I can say, with NO hesitation, that this event 
was one of the most amazing things that I have ever experienced! 

I will write an in-depth post about it, but trust me when I tell you

it is incredible! My son was deployed for almost 10 months.

Seeing that massive aircraft carrier come into view,
 the rails lined with sailors in dress whites, 

is a sight I will never forget!  

And the moment when I laid my eyes on my son after so long...

well, what can I say? My heart was so full, so very full!

~♥~

This is how it is when your child chooses to serve.

It is  series of hugs... good-bye, hello, good-bye.

It is trying make a thousand memories in a few days,

enough to last you until the next time. 

It is hard and beautiful and bittersweet.

And if you are lucky, despite the distance and the time apart,

you will see that familiar grin and know

that your sailor is still yours, still that boy (or girl)

that grew up so fast... and you will know

that you are blessed.

~♥~

all good things...

 It's true... all good things must come to an end, and our sailor's wonderful, long leave did just that~

it ended.

So this heap of belongings ...

 

 was sorted and packed...

 and became this.

 And it was time for the last hug. 

This, my friends, does NOT become easier. 

That is myth and a not very nice one either. 

It diminishes the reality of these good-byes.

They are hard.

And, for me, saying "See you later" in place of "Good-bye" 

makes no difference. My heart knows the truth.

But I was brave! It is NOT easier, but I HAVE gotten 

better at it. :)

Father and son set off for sunny southern Cal~

San Diego, to be exact. It was a road trip to remember. 

Back at home... I was grateful for having had 

such a marvelous visit with my son.

But, I was a little sad. The house was too quiet.

The dog... well, he was sad, too. 

Soon sailor and dad arrived in San Diego. 

After a short visit, the hubs flew home 

and our sailor reported to his ship, the USS Carl Vinson.

After almost 2 years, our sailor was ON A BOAT!  ;) 

Okay, well, maybe it's not exactly like that...

but more like these photos that he took on his first underway. 

 So, this post is not really about endings. 

It is about a beginning, a new adventure for my sailor.

 And I have memories of all my kids together,

happy, healthy and having fun!

I am so very thankful.

All good things... yes, I really do have all good things.♥ 

 Blessed beyond measure.

~♥~

So the journey continues...