New post from Kelly in Qatar...

Not Much Has Changed

Nothing new to report. I'm getting more familiar with my new job. I'm getting to know all the new people that I'm here with, since we spend most of our time together. I think I'm getting used to the heat and humidity, if that's possible. And I've developed a pretty set routine for my days and weeks. So that's what I'll tell you about today.

A day in the life of me:

2200-alarm goes off to wake me up, sometimes I'm already awake

get up, put on PT uniform and head to Cadillac (bathroom) to shave and brush teeth (this requires walking about 100 yards to a separate building)

2230-back at my room, get dressed in DCU's (desert camo uniform), say prayers, make bed, straighten up a little, make sure I have everything I need to take with me to work

2250-leave my room and head for the the chow hall (cafeteria). Get a bite to eat (breakfast foods like eggs or pancakes or left overs from dinner) and a cup of coffee.

2315-get on the bus and ride about 10 minutes to the other side of the base to work.

2330-get to work, get turn over from the off going shift, start 12 hour shift

Now here's where it can vary quite a bit. I'm not going to lie, it's not all work and no play. Some days are but most days are not. We may be busy or we may have nothing at all to do for 12 hours. In that case we help out the other sections where we can. We play cards or dominoes, watch movies.

We spend a lot of time launching and recovering airplanes. I won't go into too much detail about times or procedures. There is some inspection and preventive maintenance that we do on the engines. And of coarse if one fails to operate as intended or at all, we fix it if we can or replace it with another one.

0500-the chow hall on the other side of the base opens. We try to get a hot meal, but are not always successful, depending on work load. If we do get to eat it's breakfast, so more eggs (I'm so tired of eggs). If not we get box lunches which are sandwiches, chips, snacks. They're OK.

Back to the flight line. Finish up whatever work we are doing or helping with. Maybe wash the truck, fill the coolers with Gatorade, water and ice, clean the building. Depends on the day.

1130-the next shift starts showing up. Time to inventory tools, and get ready to turn over any unfinished work.

1200-get on the bus and go back to my room

1215-change from DCU to PT uniform

1230-work out at the gym. I usually do a little weights and then cardio.

1315-back to the room, grab stuff to take a shower and head for the Cadillac to shower and change clothes (clean PT uniform)

1400-back to the room. Bag up dirty laundry, take it to the laundry drop off. Pick up clean laundry next door to dirty laundry drop off. (The laundry is done by an off base contractor

and they are pretty efficient, no complaints)

1430-maybe go to the chow hall for dinner (depends on if I got to eat lunch and how tired I am and what they are having)

1500-log on to my personal computer in my room, which is finally set up and running thanks to Drew. I use mt camera to make a quick 10-20 second video of myself saying hello and

talking to Candace and the boys, then send it to them in an email.

1530-get ready for bed. Read bible, say prayers, maybe watch a little TV. Before I know it it's time to do it all again.

*The times in this post are in military time so as to confuse civilian readers

**All times and schedules are subject to change without notice or refund

The Flood...

Here's pictures from the flood on Sunday...the water rose and receded pretty quickly...it was exciting, but also scary b/c we had no idea how high the water was going to come up...thank the Lord, it didn't rise nearly as much as they thought it would and we got no water in the house...our street is one of the main drainage streets in Abilene so we got a lot of water...

When you look at the pics, you might be surprised to see my little ones swimming in the water...I know... SOOOO GROSS!!!...but I decided to let them have a little fun and make memories (this was before hearing there were fire ants, chemicals, and snakes floating in the water...oops!)...anywho, no one got hurt, they boys had fun, our house and street survived, we're all good...enjoy the pics!! Candace

Washing Feet from Kelly...

Greetings friends and family

I haven't written in a while, mainly because we've been busy over here, but also because it's become harder to do so. When I first arrived here I could pull up the main page for the service that we use to create our family blog and log on to post, but I could not actually see the blog itself. All blogs are blocked by the base Internet security program. I was really looking forward to keeping up with all of you not only by posting on this blog but also by reading your blogs. That is not possible. It could and has been a lot worse though. The first deployment I did in the Navy, all we had was letter mail. So, I won't complain too much. So from now on I will have to email my posts to Candace, starting with this one, and she will copy and paste them onto the blog for me. Hopefully this plan will work.

So, not much has changed. Long hours hot weather. It feels cooler to me, though I know it's not. I guess that means I'm getting used to it. There is one thing I don't think I can get used to though. Up in the cockpit of the aircraft, when we have to do work up there, is like an oven. The cooling air inside the aircraft doesn't work until the engines are running. Sometimes we have to go up there and do work that does not require the engine to run and sit for long periods of time. During the hot part of the day with the sun beating in the widows and no AC in can get over 200 degrees. Yes, we measured it. Just sitting there, you can be drenched in your own sweat in no time.

On a cleaner note, I made a DVD of myself to send home to Candace and the boys. At the library here, they have a room set aside with a video camera and a recliner and lots of children's books. I recorded myself saying hello and goodnight to the boys and reading them a few books. Candace and I were nervous about how they would react to the video. It turned out to be a good thing, especially for Brendan, Candace tells me. He really enjoyed seeing me. I tried to make it interactive, asking questions and talking to them. I guess I'll have to do that more often.

This last part will be written for those of you who are members of our small group, though it will probably have relevance for most readers. Before I left we had a discussion about washing feet. This is something that has been brought up in bible classes and discussions many times just in my short life as a Christian. I know that many of you have been a part of services or gatherings where this has been done. I never really understood what meaning this could have in our society today. never really saw the relevance. I do now.

I guess I understand a little more why it was done in the time and place that Jesus lived more since I've been here. In our off time we wear our PT uniform, which is a grey T-shirt with an Air Force symbol on it and matching blue shorts. Normally the foot wear for this uniform is white socks and running shoes. An exception has been made at the base I am currently at because of the climate, and we are allowed to walk around the non operations side of the base where we all live and "play", in sandals. There are sidewalks and roads to walk on but all the unpaved ground is rock and sand. The sand is everywhere, including the sidewalks, so no matter how you try you're going to get some on your feet. We don't have to wear sandals, but after having your sweaty feet in combat boots all day, it's nice to be able to let them air out.

So, the point I'm getting at is, I can see how this tradition of washing feet came about, literally see it every time I look down at my feet. People in this part of the world wearing sandals would no doubt have washed their feet as often as possible. And, as a sign of hospitality, offered guests water to wash their feet or washed their guests feet themselves. I'm sure that this was done by servants or slaves of more wealthy people. This is clearly why the apostles in John 13 protested when Jesus washed their feet.

It's hard to accept that God would give his son for us even though we don't deserve it. Just like it was hard for the apostles to let Jesus, who they knew was the son of the living God, wash their feet. But he told them that if they did not let him then he had no place for them in his kingdom. And if we don't accept that the one and only son of God came to give his life for us personally, and for all of us collectively, then I think he has no place for us in his kingdom. To me that means people that we think don't deserve mercy or grace, we should still give it. Pray for those who despise you. They don't deserve it, but neither do we. Pray for your enemies. I do.

Kelly

My confession...

I woke up at like 430am this morning...and at first (ok, let's be truthful), for a half hour or so I protested...I wasn't ready to get up and start the day...but my mind wouldn't shut off... So finally, I gave in and asked God, "What in the world is it that you want me to do at this ungodly hour??...is there something that I need to be doing or something that I need to be hearing from you??"...and He immediately put one word in my head "Bible"...and guess how I responded..."yeah, yeah, but I'm really wanting to get some more rest before the boys wake up"...and over the next 20ish minutes, God gently nudged me--"get up and go read my word...I have something to tell you..."

So, at 520ish I finally got up and went straight for Ezekiel (that just happens to be where I am in my Bible right now...and I started a few days ago reading from the beginning of Ezekiel)...but this morning, as it so happens, God spoke directly to me through Ezekiel 14:1-11...He told me that I needed to repent of my sins...to confess to you that I have false idols and that I have been worshiping those idols instead of Him...so this blog entry will probably be uncomfortable for some, but I feel strongly that it is what He has called me to do...

Before I begin, it will help some if I put the scripture down...so here it is:

Ezekiel 14

Idolaters Condemned

1 Some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me. 2 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 3 "Son of man, these men have set up idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces. Should I let them inquire of me at all? 4 Therefore speak to them and tell them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: When any Israelite sets up idols in his heart and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face and then goes to a prophet, I the LORD will answer him myself in keeping with his great idolatry. 5 I will do this to recapture the hearts of the people of Israel, who have all deserted me for their idols.'

6 "Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!

7 " 'When any Israelite or any alien living in Israel separates himself from me and sets up idols in his heart and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face and then goes to a prophet to inquire of me, I the LORD will answer him myself. 8 I will set my face against that man and make him an example and a byword. I will cut him off from my people. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

9 " 'And if the prophet is enticed to utter a prophecy, I the LORD have enticed that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against him and destroy him from among my people Israel. 1011 Then the people of Israel will no longer stray from me, nor will they defile themselves anymore with all their sins. They will be my people, and I will be their God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' " They will bear their guilt—the prophet will be as guilty as the one who consults him.

So, here we go...

I confess that I am controlling...I like to control everything...and if I can't be in control of myself, another person, a situation, etc, I get anxious and the anxiety overwhelms me...

• I like to control what I eat (which is why I have an eating disorder...and I confess to you that I am a recovering bulimic)...
• I like to control what I wear (and I have gained a lot of weight over the past years which some of it has been in my control (eating right) and some of it has been due to medical conditions)--and not being able to control that I don't look like most of my friends (fit and trim) or even like I "used to look" makes me feel out of control and anxious...
• I like to control our money (and, yes, this is one of my responsibilities, but it's also something that I don't really want to give over to Kelly b/c then I'd have to ask for things--this one screams control)...
• I want to control my husband--his actions, his thoughts, the way he looks (b/c I think he looks better in some clothes than others--I believe this is still control, right?)
• I want to control my emotions, my fears, my doubts, my insecurities...I let these things be moved, shaped and formed by the world's standards, by my standards, and not by the Lord's standards...
• I want to control my body--it seems like there's always something wrong with me...I want to control it--fix it--make it right, be normal...but the Truth is that God made me in His image, I am beautiful and He calls me His own...flaws, disorders, and all...so I need to accept myself and love myself and know that this acceptance and love only comes from Him...
• My biggest control issue is one that causes me the most grief and it is the need/desire to control my children...their behavior specifically...I want them to behave like perfect little angels instead of like children whose only job is to grow up, to have fun, to learn, to experience life, and to frustrate their parents every once in a while (and some days/weeks/months/maybe even years all the time)...I get so anxious when my children start behaving as children (fussing and fighting) that I can barely cope--I panic--I freeze--instead of calling on His name for help, using His Word, that He so graciously gave to us to use as tools as coping mechanisms....
• I confess that I don't call upon His name often enough...I don't read His word and commune with Him as often as I should...I don't lean on Him as much as I should and I use the world's and my standards as guides to my life instead of His to guide me...
  
• I confess that I am a sinner of all shapes and forms...
• I confess that I don't obey the laws of the land (I speed)...and somehow feel like it's something that maybe is owed to me or that maybe I shouldn't feel guilty about
• I confess that I wrestle with my thoughts and feelings instead of giving them to Him and wrestling with Him on them
• I confess that I feel inadequate most of the time...that I am insecure as a person, a woman, a wife, a mother, a daughter, a friend, a child of the King...

Thank you for hearing my confession--I do believe it is what we, as a body of believers, are called to do...and what He called me to do this early morn... Let me further myself by saying I don't believe that I would be condemned to hell had I not listened to His call...for we do not live by the rules of the OT, but rather by the covenant that was made during Jesus' reign when He sacrificed Himself for me and for you...but we are still called to repent of our sins--to confess to others that we have sinned, that we worship false idols (remember that idols come in many shapes and forms), so that we can be renewed and cleansed by confessing....so that, once again, we can be saved by His amazing grace... It's hard, but it is incredible how wonderful we feel after we have that load lifted off our chests and give our burdens to Him. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for hanging on the cross for me...Amen.

P.S....One of the great things about blogging is that you can edit posts ...I just might have to use this tool and update my list...I am just putting this out there just in case you were feeling the need to be freed from the nails that bind you to the cross that you carry, that you will know that confessing isn't a one-time thing...we must do it daily (I have to sometimes do it hourly...confused??...here's an example...I say it out loud: "Lord, I confess to you that I am angry with my children!!! I confess that I feel out of control b/c of their actions...Lord, please forgive me for worshiping the idol of anger and of control. Amen")... I feel that God often uses me to be an example to others and this is a just another one of those times... I hope that you will be as blessed by reading this blog as I am by writing it.

A good start to a bad day...

We start off on our road trip to meet my Mom and kiddos in Goldthwaite...we're all in a good mood...see, even Karter is smiling...


Isn't this a cute little house?

These flowers belong to this house...




Texas Pride...


The Monarch Butterflies were out...I guess it's either mating season or they're on the move!!!


Dead 'Dillo...
(Corbin said "that's a bug!!"...then a few seconds later "that's an alligator!"...bug, alligator, armadillo...take your pic...either way, it's looks like road kill to me...)


I got lots of practice taking pictures of tractors....








And even managed to see a few silos...


Here's a cool 'ole truck...




This little store in Rising Star let me practice with their plants and fruits...


















Wouldn't be west Texas without an oil rig...


Hay!!!
(my friend, Holly Weckwerth would get this one!)


Managed to see a few cows...they participated by pooping, swatting flies and even moo'ing on cue...


This is what I call "Peek-a-Boo Cow"


They were very curious...





White cow: "Hey, mooove out of the way...this is my only shot at being famous..."
Black cow: "Dude, you're so lame...can't you see it's all about me..."


Now he's turned in to "Peek-a-Boo-Through-My-Ear Cow"


This little tank caught my eye...


And when I got closer, I realized there was a little memorial to someone...


I just love windmills...even the big white ones they've put out in West Texas...there's something calming about

So, this was the 1st part of what I thought was going to be an uneventful trip to meet my Mom half way between Round Rock and Abilene so that I could get the boys from her... Shortly after passing Rising Star, my Mom calls and says "the car's broke down...we barely made it to the side of the road...the windows won't even roll down..." For those of you who don't know, my Mother has Muscular Dystrophy and while she is not in a wheelchair, she's definitely not able to chase kiddos on the side of a busy highway (they were on 183), it was very hot, there was no shade in sight, she had to keep the kiddos in the car so that they wouldn't run in the street (and you know how hot it can get inside a car--luckily the windows ended up rolling down after about 10 minutes), the sun was blazing through the windows blanketing one half of the car (so the 3 of them were huddled on the other half), my Dad wouldn't be able to get to them for about 2 hours and at the time I thought I was just about as far away...sooooo...two hours--no big deal, right???....maybe if you're by yourself...but imagine it with a 2 year old and 4 year old...who are crying the whole time b/c they're hot...and you're covered in sweat......... Well, there's hope to the story...a man stopped by to help my Mom, but couldn't help her get the car started so he tried to leave...unfortunately for him, the ground was still pretty wet and he was towing a trailer full of granite (white is VERY heavy stuff)...so he got stuck... In the meantime, my Mom called the police who dispatched a tow truck and I'd called Highland (our church) and they gave me the number to a church in Lampasas (which was close to where my Mom was...oh yeah...I forgot to mention that part of the story...she knew she'd passed Briggs, but had no idea how far out of Lampasas she was...could be one mile, could be twenty...) The church sent their janitor to pick up my mom... So the tow truck shows up 1st...and it gets stuck, too!!!! So they had to send another tow truck...and about the time that that truck shows up, the man from the church shows up...and he's so intrigued about the tow truck getting stuck that he's not even worried about my mom or the kids...according to my Mom, the hot wait in the sun would've been cut down by about 35-40 minutes if the guy from the church would've arrived, loaded them up, and headed back into town...but he didn't...so by the time I arrived in Lampasas at the (about 1.5 hours or so after the call--it should've taken 2...I won't say how fast I was driving but let's just say it's VERY ticketable), my Mom and kiddos still hadn't showed up!!! They did pull in a few minutes later... My Mom and the kiddos faces were beet red--no joke--I'd never seen anyone so red-faced...I felt bad for all three of them. We switched everything over to my van and eventually went home...it was such an exhausting day...I, myself, had been in the car since 930am (and it was almost 8pm when we got home)...I can definitely say that I am sooooooo glad we are through with that day!!!

Oh yeah, before I forget...I had to return my defective camera and got a Canon Rebel XT...and I LOVE IT!!! It is easy to use and takes great pictures!!! I can't wait to take crazy pictures of the boys doing wild things like flips on the trampoline or jumping on the beds, flying off of rocks--you name it, my kiddos are little acrobats (especially B)...so be watching the blog!!!
Candace