Photo Slideshow

I just posted a photo slideshow of John in my last post. Those of you who get email updates may need to click into the actual blog (look for a link of some sort in the email) in order to see the photos! Just fyi :)

Busy Busy Busy

As you all know by now, Josh was home for about two weeks at the end of March/ beginning of April. We had a wonderful time together and with family. Josh was very thankful for the much needed rest and visit with everyone.

While Josh was home we were blessed with the most precious little bundle ever -- John Allen Anthony. He was born on 31 March, weighed 6 pounds 7 ounces, and measured in at 19 inches. Josh is an amazing father and did such a wonderful job with John while he was home. John loved to fall asleep on his daddy's shoulder or in his daddy's arms. The memories we have already are precious to us and will be treasured forever.

Friday 10 April was one of the hardest moments we've gone through as a family. Josh had to say goodbye once again to return to Iraq, but this time he had to leave his son behind as well as his wife and family. There's a chance that Josh will only have about four months left of the deployment, but it could last several months longer than that. If it's only a few months longer, then Josh won't miss too much of John's "firsts" and the new things he learns to do (crawling, talking, etc.).

Josh just called me early this morning (about 3am) to let me know that he had arrived safely in Iraq. Hopefully I'll hear from him again soon and be able to talk to him for more than two minutes. He's still working on going Active, and we're waiting to see where God leads us with that situation. He has a PT test either late this month or sometime next month that will determine what happens with all of that. Please keep him in your prayers as his knee has really been bothering him lately.

As I hear more from Josh on how he's doing and what kinds of things he needs in care packages, I will keep everyone updated. **PLEASE DO NOT SEND LARGE AMOUNTS OF CANDY** I will also try to post pictures every now and then of the baby and update y'all on him.

Waiting for him,
Ariel

Update

Hey, everyone. Sorry it's been so long since I've posted an update on here. Things have been kind of crazy and busy lately with trying to get things ready for the baby and everything. I talked to Josh this morning. He is doing well. He is super excited that R&R is steadily drawing closer, and he can't wait to visit people. He had a couple rough weeks with the concussion he had (see previous update), and then he was sick for a while from some food he ate. He is over both of those ailments, though. Now he is dealing with his knee hurting him. Thus far during his deployment he has been unable to pass at PT test (pushups, situps, and a 2 mile run in a certain time period) because his knee has been hurting him so badly. He is able to run on the eliptical runner but not on the concrete. Currently, he is on what's called a profile -- he is restricted from running until after he is back in Iraq after R&R. Once he returns to Iraq after R&R, he will take another PT test. If he does not pass that one again, then he will be put on profile again. Then, they will let him replace to 2 mile run with a longer walk (2.5 miles, I think) and probably run some tests on his knee to find out what is wrong. Please pray that he is able to pass the PT test (whichever one he has to take -- running or walking) so he can move forward with his paperwork to switch to Active Duty. We really really really need him to come home as Active Duty rather than Reserves. Pray that his knee feels better -- or that they are able to figure out what's wrong and fix it easily -- and that his Active Duty paperwork goes through smoothly. I probably won't update again for a while since he should be home by April. We will call family once he is home and try to set up some times where we can get together for visits. Hopefully he makes it home before the baby is born.

Waiting for him,
Ariel

Short Update

Hey, y'all. Josh is doing well. He had a concussion a few days ago but is doing much better now. Apparently he hit his head extremely hard while getting into one of the vehicles and the doctor put him on bedrest for a couple days. He's much better now -- I could see in his face and eyes (over the webcam) that he was feeling a lot better today. We're still not sure of the exact dates for R&R, and honestly I won't know anything definite until I get a phone call saying he's home. We've been talking a lot about visiting with family and everything during R&R. I proimse that we will get around to see everyone, but please remember that this is going to be an extremely chaotic time for us with Josh only being home for a short time and also with the baby coming. We are going to try really hard to see everyone before the baby comes, so expect some short notice planning toward the end of March/ beginning of April. After the baby is here, visitors will be welcome at the house for short intervals at a time. Please don't just show up without calling (or even without giving much notice), and please don't expect to hang around all day. We will not have visitors at our house every day from when the baby arrives until when Josh leaves. If this starts to happen, then I will put my foot down and everyone will see one very cranky new mama. Josh and I need time alone with our son, too, before Josh heads back overseas. I'm sorry if anyone feels I am being rude, but that is just how it's going to be. Josh and I will have a few days of family time to spend with our son, and we will not hesitate to tell anyone if they are intruding. Once he gets home and the baby is here, we will decide what days we're going to set aside for us, and we'll let y'all know. Please respect that.
Keep Josh in your prayers as the heat overseas is going to be getting pretty intense again. Lack of showers makes this pretty miserable for the soldiers over there. Also pray that he is able to get enough sleep since he hasn't been able to lately.

Waiting for him,
Ariel

Hello Again

Josh and I have been able to communicate a little bit more lately through instant messenger. The weather over there must be getting better since it doesn't seem to be not knocking out the phone/internet lines as much. Temperatures are going to be getting extremely hot for him again here soon -- up to 130 and 140 degrees, I think is what he told me the other day. He's doing well but not looking forward to the intense heat again. They're busy with missions again now, which doesn't leave him too terribly much time to be bored anymore. Every time I talk to him, he talks about being excited to come home for a little bit. Hopefully everything goes smoothly. Pray for him to get enough rest while he's over there. He said he is having trouble sleeping lately. Also, please keep praying that he can get the Active Duty stuff all set up very soon. He hasn't been back at his main base long enough to do that. Overall, he's doing well but is busy and tired. He's proud of himself because he's been losing a lot of weight, though. All the exercise and carrying his gear, the hot temperatures, and trying to eat better is helping him shed the pounds. I'll try to post some pictures later for y'all to see. Keep praying for his safety and that things go smoothly for when he comes home for a couple weeks. Also, please pray that the baby doesn't come early. If the baby comes early, then Josh will miss the birth of his first child. Neither of us want that at all.

Waiting for him,
Ariel

Josh Called

Hey, everyone. Josh called me this morning at about 2am. He's doing well. They weren't as busy this past week, so he's been kind of bored compared to normal. He said that they only went out on two missions, one of which he was the only CA (civil affairs) person on the mission ... that means he basically was in charge of the mission, from what I understand
He's making new friends with the Infantry soldiers there. Most of the guys in Infantry he's getting to know are stationed in Alaska currently, but he said there's one guy that's from Indiana. They get along well, and he's enjoying getting to know them and spending time with them.
They've all taken up hunting. Apparently there is an abundance of wild cats, dogs, and foxes around the bases that get into their rooms and tear things apart. I told him to leave our cat alone when he gets home, and he said not to worry about that. :)
His team has a new team member, and they all get along with this new guy much better than with the guy that used to be on the team. The stress level is down by far, and everyone feels more relaxed and works better together, which is good. When the team leaders were switching members around, Josh said that there were two other team leaders that wanted Josh on their team, but his team leader said no and kept Josh where he was. When Josh asked why he was told that the other team leaders can see that he gets his jobs done and doesn't cause trouble, that he's the only one there that has no bad reports against him. He still seems kind of surprised, but I am extremely proud of him. He's doing so well over there.
They haven't had any more attacks on them, which is very good. Hopefully, they won't have to face anymore, either.
Josh said that at one of the bases he stays at, they have a "pet" eagle. The eagle was shot with a shotgun, and they've adopted it. He said it's very skittish still, but I think that's understandable. He also said that there are some really big, really ugly spiders over there. To his disappointment, he hasn't seen any camel spiders yet, though; and he has yet to see any scorpions.
Overall, he is doing quite well. He's getting very excited to come home for R&R for a little while. In fact, he talks frequently of getting to see everyone again. Please keep him and the people around him in your prayers. He's having a hard time sleeping at night, so prayer for that to be resolved quickly. He has not been able to get things straightened out for Active Duty yet, but he will soon hopefully. Please also keep that situation in your prayers. We need him to get it all figured out soon; otherwise, he will have nothing to do when he comes home (no job, no insurance, etc.).
As I hear from him again, I will update y'all more as to how he's doing.


Waiting for him,
Ariel