Pride

This past weekend, we were able to watch Nick perform his paratrooping skills again. Many of his jumps are at night, and many of them have follow-on missions, so we are not able to see him jump very often.

But when we are able to go… boy do we love it!. And I’m pretty sure Nick loves to jump for us. I don’t think I saw a frowning face from anyone that whole morning. Or if I did, I just chose to ignore them. Wink wink.

It’s hard to describe the feelings I have inside as I watch Nick jump. Fear. Anxiety. Joy. Patriotism. Amazement.

My breath always catches when I see the first paratrooper exit the plane… and I pray until I see the last one jump and all the parachutes open.

And just like the crew on chute detail, I’m thankful to count out the reserve parachutes… and to note that not a single one was needed.

But I think the biggest emotion that fills my heart is pride.

Huge, overwhelming, all-encompassing, pride.

My husband is a paratrooper and fearlessly jumps out of planes; ready and willing to serve our country at a moments notice.

Wow.

Guess I’m not the only one who thinks Daddy is amazing.

Boo

It always seems to be a sign of sickness when I leave teabags dripping on the counter.

Unfortunately, today is no exception. The hoarse throat that I was convinced was from "talking too much" (which a gal with 3 little boys is prone to do when among adults all weekend), materialized into a full blown cold. Boo.

The Cold also snagged my two youngest sons. Double boo.

Kleenex, Mighty Machines DVD's, Ibuprofen, and a hot cup of tea have been my best friends today.



On the upside, I did manage to drag all the kids, stuffy noses and all, down to the County Courthouse to argue our vehicle registration taxes. We were so convincing, they waived the fees without much ado.

I also called Express Toll about a vehicle toll bill we received in the mail, saying that our vehicle went through the CO state toll way without paying the fine. Thankfully they understood that for this military family, Colorado was two moves ago and we sure weren't there on 12/30/10 at 3:46:21.

And, since the cold medicine I thought it a good idea to list random accomplishments, today I also had two Jehovah Witness' try to convince me that I wasn't going to heaven. After we discussed this at some length (while I stood in the doorway and froze), they decided to give me their "what the Bible really teaches" book and come back later to further work on this lost Christian woman (i.e. me). I'll be praying for them too, and look forward to the chance of  speaking with them about the real Way, Truth, and Life.

Anyway... I think it's time for another cup of tea. I'll try not to be so random again.