Volume Three, (Home Edition)

Ok, so I am working without a net tonight, no spell check, and tonights post is brought to you by... Guinness. It's whats for dinner.

R&R, a wonderful thing.
I am back in the land of AH's, and have been for about two weeks now. It's been fun adjusting, and my kids have adjusted to me as well. Wife had a church meeting tonight, so I got to be Mr. Mom for a couple hours, and I gotta tell you, I do miss that part of life. No one has called me SGT for about a week or so now, and that name has been replaced with Daddy. I snuck up on the wife, as was intended, flying out of Baghdad on the 5th and arriving here on the evening of the 6th. I got to the house here in Junction City at around 2000 or so, bedtime for the kids. I tried to keep the surprise to a maximum, even sneaking in the garage door and getting into the house that way, but my son was in the kitchen in the dark, and he jumped out and actually kinda scared me. He looked up at me and said "oh, hi dad." Like I had just left this morning and come home from a long days work. He's four now, had a B-day while I was gone. Then I crept in towards my daughters (as in two of them) bedroom, and there was my wife reading them bedtime stories. I came around the corner and said hello, and there were screams and hugs and kisses... good to be home.

Since then, I've been out to Dodge, saw the newly re-paved Wyatt Earp, and the wind turbine farm out by Spearville, even stopped into Greensburg and viewed the F5 damage. But the highlight of my trip was seeing the 4th Grade class at Lynn Elementry, and answering their questions in person. They asked me everything from the usual what do you eat and where do you sleep, to the very unusual question; how long do you have to be a Soldier before you become a Marine? I think that was my personal favorite. I really enjoyed seeing them all, and I can't wait to get the next batch of letters from them.

Other than that, I am just trying to hang out and lay low. I don't really want to do anything all crazy, just want to be a regular civilian for a while, before I have to head back in about a week. In the mean time, its beer when the kids are in bed, and rollin on the floor with them when they're not in school.

I missed my kids a ton, but I now find myself missing my team. (Can't believe I am going to say this...) As much fun as I am having here, I kinda feel guilty about being here when others are still there. I know we all get to have our 18 days or so of R&R, but I wake up every day hoping they are ok, and wishing I was there to back them up. Silly I know, but thats how it is. That and the ones I knew that left Iraq under the flag... I know I shouldn't feel guilty about having a good time, being alive, but so many good guys that I knew just didn't make it, I can't help but think about them from time to time. Ah well, best not to dwell on it, don't think they'd want that. Time to have another beer and get ready to call it a night.