So Isaac is finally at his place of duty.... it is called Taji. He say's what used to be a pretty busy place is now basically a ghost Camp. They still feed them meals though, and that makes me happy :) He had a chance to tell me a little about the job he will be doing and it happened to be around 1:30 in the morning when he was telling me, so I hope I get it all right :) I can't remember the exact name, but it is a lot like a ParaMedic. When people get "hurt" (I'm putting that in the nicest way possible), he and his guys go get them. I asked how busy he thought he would be, and he wasn't too sure. He said he can't get a straight answer, because everyones ideas of "busy" are different. He will be working 12 hour shifts.... 8pm to 8am. Hopefully getting some sleep in the day. I finally have an address for him......
SPC. Isaac McAlister
HHC 369 AR BN
Camp Taji
APO AE 09378
I know I listed things before, that can and can't be sent, but if you really would like to send a package, he is going to need snacks. With working the 12 hour shifts, he is not too sure if he will be allowed to eat. We talked again about things that he would like..... Sunflower seeds, Beef Jerky, any type of nuts, Trail Mix (with NO chocolate), and anything that would help provide energy that doesn't have to be cooked, and won't melt. Also, I know that he doesn't expect it, but would love to receive letters from everyone. So far, I have been his only source of our world. Sadly, I am not the best reporter :(
He has asked that I tell everyone that he Loves you and Thank you for all of your thoughts and Prayers!!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Moving on....
Well, Isaac's mini vacation has quickly come to an end in Camp Striker, Baghdad. As of tomorrow they are headed for another destination.... not their permanent place of duty yet though. They have another stop before they will be meeting up with there actual Unit. As for what he has been up to over the past few days..... Patrols, ping pong games (Yes, ping pong!!), weight lifting competitions haha, surviving the heat, watching Iraqi versions of our new American movies and 3 meals a day :) I laugh everytime Isaac mentions another activity that I never would've imagined him doing over there. Now, like I said before, the mini vacation has quickly ended.... from here on out, it is all work and no play. I am glad that he has gotten to enjoy some of his time over there :) The good news about this all is, he may be home sooner then we thought!! According to someone who sat in on a briefing, his whole Brigade is supposedly going to be home no later then December 11th!!!! Now, his Unit was one of the first Units within his Brigade to be deployed..... even though he is a late deployer, he is still attatched to his Unit, so they will supposedly be home in November!!!! I am not making any bets on this, but I am EXTREMELY excited about it! I would love to have him home long before the baby is due. As for baby, we find out what we are having next Wednesday, so get ready for the big news :) Thank you everyone, for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers, we love you.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Camp Striker, Baghdad
Hey guys,
I received a call from Isaac today and he is currently in Camp Striker, Baghdad. I looked up pictures of this place on Google and it is crazy how much it looks like the Arizona desert.... well a bit dirtier, but the tree's, smog, dirt, etc. He will be staying there until the 18th and then he will be headed over to where he will be stationed. He said until the 18th, he doesn't really have a whole lot going on, except for 2 Formations, one in the morning and in the evening. He is planning on buying a few phone cards tomorrow, so he will hopefully be making some phone calls soon. Also, he is able to use the internet in 30 minute intervals. He doesn't get to use his own computer, so he can't use his Skype, but he will be going on Facebook and checking his Emails. If you wanna send him a message, I am sure he will send one in return. I was able to catch him twice on Facebook today and we were able to im eachother. It has been great getting to communicate with him finally, I think I was about to lose my mind. He says that everything is good and they are feeding him well, which is a relief to me! We hope that everyone is doing well, I will update again, when he reaches his Duty Station :) We love you all!!
I received a call from Isaac today and he is currently in Camp Striker, Baghdad. I looked up pictures of this place on Google and it is crazy how much it looks like the Arizona desert.... well a bit dirtier, but the tree's, smog, dirt, etc. He will be staying there until the 18th and then he will be headed over to where he will be stationed. He said until the 18th, he doesn't really have a whole lot going on, except for 2 Formations, one in the morning and in the evening. He is planning on buying a few phone cards tomorrow, so he will hopefully be making some phone calls soon. Also, he is able to use the internet in 30 minute intervals. He doesn't get to use his own computer, so he can't use his Skype, but he will be going on Facebook and checking his Emails. If you wanna send him a message, I am sure he will send one in return. I was able to catch him twice on Facebook today and we were able to im eachother. It has been great getting to communicate with him finally, I think I was about to lose my mind. He says that everything is good and they are feeding him well, which is a relief to me! We hope that everyone is doing well, I will update again, when he reaches his Duty Station :) We love you all!!
Monday, July 12, 2010
I love having updates!!
Hey Family and Friends,
I received another phone call this morning from Isaac. They have been being trained to the point of exhaustion. To give an example of how crazy the training is, they went to bed at 7pm, woke up at 1am and were not released from training until 6pm!! Bless his heart, but he is still soo positive, I can't help but smile when he tells me about his experiences. He said the weather is still in the 120's and the dust has been blowing. Part of their training is in using their weapons.... he said when they were at the firing range, there were Scorpions and Camel spiders everywhere... that would be enough to make me wanna come home :( Due to the mass ammounts of training and classes, he wasn't able to make it to Church, but I shared our Sunday school lesson and a few Scriptures with him. He said he has really felt the Spirit very stronglly lately and he hopes that when he gets settled in Iraq, that they too will have Church services. They are leaving for Iraq now on Wednesday, not Tuesday. I know that all our thoughts and prayers are helping him stay positive :) Until next time, we love you guys and hope everyone is doing great!!
I received another phone call this morning from Isaac. They have been being trained to the point of exhaustion. To give an example of how crazy the training is, they went to bed at 7pm, woke up at 1am and were not released from training until 6pm!! Bless his heart, but he is still soo positive, I can't help but smile when he tells me about his experiences. He said the weather is still in the 120's and the dust has been blowing. Part of their training is in using their weapons.... he said when they were at the firing range, there were Scorpions and Camel spiders everywhere... that would be enough to make me wanna come home :( Due to the mass ammounts of training and classes, he wasn't able to make it to Church, but I shared our Sunday school lesson and a few Scriptures with him. He said he has really felt the Spirit very stronglly lately and he hopes that when he gets settled in Iraq, that they too will have Church services. They are leaving for Iraq now on Wednesday, not Tuesday. I know that all our thoughts and prayers are helping him stay positive :) Until next time, we love you guys and hope everyone is doing great!!
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Isaac Update!!
Hey everyone,
I finally have an update on Isaac, I just received a phone call from him. He said he had to wait 2 hours for his turn to use the phone, crazy huh.... Well, he went from Shannon(spelling?), Ireland to Camp Buehling, Kuwait, where he said he should be until Tuesday. They are going through training there at Camp Buehling before they head over to Iraq. He said it is a melting 125 degrees over there and it is miserable, but luckily they have huge cases of water constantly being shipped in. They all went the whole trip until around 6am Kuwait time, before they were able to go to sleep. He said it isn't the most comfortable thing sleeping during the day in that kind of heat, but they were exhausted, so they didn't complain. Get this, they have a tent set up serving as an LDS Chapel, so he will be attending Church Services tomorrow! He was really excited for that. I think it is awesome! Isaac is in such great spirits, somehow he seems wiser already. He is such a great example to me. He didn't have one negative thing to say, other then his skin felt like it was burning off..... but thats more of a fact, right haha. Well, his phone calls in Kuwait are only allowed to be 20 mins long, and thats per day, so until he gets to Iraq, we will continue updating everyone this way. He is in hopes that once he gets there, his schedule will be a little clearer and he can set up times for communication. Alot of that will be through the Internet, so everyone get their Skype downloaded :) Also, I am aching to start sending letters and care packages, so I asked him to give me suggestions of what we are and aren't allowed to send... here are the things we can't send: Anything having to do with Religion :(, anything Pork, so no bacon haha..., and of course, Guns, alcohol, tobacco etc., he didn't think we would have a problem with those last few :) As for what he would like to receive: Beef Jerky, or any snack that provides energy that won't melt and will fit in his pockets, Letters, phone cards, and sunflower seeds. I'm sure he will think of more things as time goes by. As soon as he gets his permanent address, I will be getting that to everyone. He loves you all!! Thank you for all of your support!!
I finally have an update on Isaac, I just received a phone call from him. He said he had to wait 2 hours for his turn to use the phone, crazy huh.... Well, he went from Shannon(spelling?), Ireland to Camp Buehling, Kuwait, where he said he should be until Tuesday. They are going through training there at Camp Buehling before they head over to Iraq. He said it is a melting 125 degrees over there and it is miserable, but luckily they have huge cases of water constantly being shipped in. They all went the whole trip until around 6am Kuwait time, before they were able to go to sleep. He said it isn't the most comfortable thing sleeping during the day in that kind of heat, but they were exhausted, so they didn't complain. Get this, they have a tent set up serving as an LDS Chapel, so he will be attending Church Services tomorrow! He was really excited for that. I think it is awesome! Isaac is in such great spirits, somehow he seems wiser already. He is such a great example to me. He didn't have one negative thing to say, other then his skin felt like it was burning off..... but thats more of a fact, right haha. Well, his phone calls in Kuwait are only allowed to be 20 mins long, and thats per day, so until he gets to Iraq, we will continue updating everyone this way. He is in hopes that once he gets there, his schedule will be a little clearer and he can set up times for communication. Alot of that will be through the Internet, so everyone get their Skype downloaded :) Also, I am aching to start sending letters and care packages, so I asked him to give me suggestions of what we are and aren't allowed to send... here are the things we can't send: Anything having to do with Religion :(, anything Pork, so no bacon haha..., and of course, Guns, alcohol, tobacco etc., he didn't think we would have a problem with those last few :) As for what he would like to receive: Beef Jerky, or any snack that provides energy that won't melt and will fit in his pockets, Letters, phone cards, and sunflower seeds. I'm sure he will think of more things as time goes by. As soon as he gets his permanent address, I will be getting that to everyone. He loves you all!! Thank you for all of your support!!
Friday, July 9, 2010
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