Ft. Knox Family Night

Lydia and I left for Ft. Knox around 2pm.
She had a great time playing with Everett and had a little lunch with Aunt Jean before heading out.
Everett has a new play set in the backyard, it was a present for his 2nd birthday.
Lydia was very brave, climbing the ladder, going up and down the "rock climbing" rope wall and did the very fast slide all by herself. She was really scared and having fun all at once. It was quite a mix of emotions and expression, but definitely hilarious.
She also was the first to go in the little blue bucket swing, which you know she loves. She didn't want to swing for long because she was having so much fun on the slide with EJ.
Jean was really kind and careful to help Lydia.

Once we were in the car Lydia was happy and fell asleep by the time we got to Bedford. She slept a little over one hour and awoke pretty unhappy shortly after the turn in Palmyra. We got stuck behind school buses making many stops, and even these huge crazy tree trimming trucks. We made two stops but otherwised charged onwards to Daddy! She was a toughy and we were both very happy when we got to Ft. Knox. She liked going over the big bridge in to KY, forgot to mention that!

I'm also glad we were not late to pick you up. Since you didn't have your car with you and had spent all morning waiting around for a ride and to move your stuff to the hangar, I was worried you would feel stuck and waiting around again. I'm glad you were able to finish up your workday and feel so calm and ready for the big flight to Texas in the morning. Thank you for showing us around, introducing us, and taking us out on the airfield. It was really fun and really special to be there with you, see you in your element and watch Lydia be so amazed by everything.
We both loved hearing her say SUN SUN SUN and point to the sky. The pictures we have of you two together walking around and with the Apache are going to always be so special.

I was also thankful for this low pressure chance to think about you flying, your work, your unit, and all of the responsibility, duties, and traditions. I am very proud of you and think your work matter and feel proud of you for how smart and talented you are as an aviator. It was both a sober but also happy mix of emotions being of proud of you and also feeling anxious that you will be gone so soon.

We drove from the hangar to your barracks to get the last of your things. It was so funny how I had no idea you were expecting me to bring you a change of civilian clothes and I could tell you were annoyed that I had misunderstood/forgotten but we just laughed about it and I'm glad I had randomly packed that black tshirt! We did a diaper change for Lydia and she had fun jumping on the bunk beds and sitting up high. It was so weird being in that empty and sad little barracks room. I don't know what kind of room I think you should have instead of that, but I just can't get over the fact that is where you had to stay and live the past several weeks. You are a very humble and dedicated soldier to put up with that. You never complained.

We drove to our hotel in Elizabethtown. Since it was close to 5 there was a lot of traffic. Lydia was not happy to be in the car again. We worked together and got through it. After several attempts at reading, singing, looking out the windows and playing music, we were all very happy to get to our hotel. Thanks to Dad for helping us get the room so we could all be together.
We were definitely feeling a little isolated and not sure what to do with our evening. It was nice though the way we so quickly agreed to enjoy our time together even if we didn't have a million fun things planned. Lydia was happy exploring the room and playing with the digital camera.

I had definitely over packed for her hoping to be able to keep her busy and have many options for playing. We had a little room and our hotel was only close to other hotels and few restaurants. We decided to get take out from RUBY TUESDAY (after much debate and online searching!). We called it in and had a family "hike" across the parking lots to get the food. Lydia carried her baby doll with her. She enjoyed looking for the moon, which we could find...and there was an old lady walking her dog, a train going by blowing its horn, and many neat flowers and plants to look at. While Joe paid for food Lydia had fun running on the sidewalk, saying cheese for pictures and waving to the people inside the restaurant.
Many jokes were made about my slow walking and inability to safely cross streets. Lydia again loved running around, following Daddy and listening to the train and making the CHOO CHOO sound. She also did a great job of saying moon and tree.

We ate our dinner in the lobby of the hotel which was a bit stressful and damage control based as usual. Lydia rejected her "kids meal" of turkey burgers and apples. She just wanted to snack on crackers and then run around the lobby saying hi to everyone. Even this while rushed and kind of crazy was nice to be together. Several people thanked Joe for his service. Several people commented on how cute Lydia was. We teased the men in a conference break out session for anxiously discussing why McDonald's was the ultimate brand and business while drinking out of a pot of coffee and various energy drinks. Dorks.

Lydia was scared of her bath so I got in with her. We caught a bit of 30Rock at the new and ridiculous 830pm time. Lydia was sweet with her stories and getting dressed. She fell asleep sweetly and was a very good girl. Of course she didn't want to sleep on her pack and play so we all snuggled down for the night in the big king bed. We agreed that we need to get a king size bed at home someday.

After scurrying around in the dark and taking several things to the car, since we knew we were going to have a very busy and very early morning we were able to get in some great whispering, snuggling and giggling before bed. We both agreed that we have missed out on good time together and been caught up in the everyday grind and worries. It was so nice to reconnect and feel like everything is going to be ok. We talked about how we knew this time was going to happen and how it still somehow managed to sneak up on us. We both said so many nice things I wish we had the time and energy to say to each other everyday. It was a great reminder of how lucky we are to have each other and that our love is strong. I love you!