Lifestyles of the Armed and Infamous

I've been in Iraq for about a week now preparing for the rest of my Battalion to come up and join me (and the 10 or so other guys that are here with me). Since nothing very exciting is going on I'll just post up some pictures of where I'm living.

This is the front (and only) door to my "CHU" (Combat Housing Unit). It is flanked by my sand bags and my A/C unit. Look, I even have a little porch light. Don't worry, there is a window on the back wall so I can quietly sneak out when my commander comes looking for me ;).


Here is my "Study" with my wing-backed chair, book case, and ottoman (where my computer is resting). You can also see one of my armoires in the left side of the photo. The door is just to the left of that on the adjacent wall. My window is on the wall to the right.


About 3 feet to the right of my study is the Master Suite with its roomy and supportive extra-long twin and and 3-drawer dresser. My second armiore is just out of the frame to the right. Don't be fooled into thinking that I have a really thick mattress. The one you see exposed is the second bed in the room that I stuffed under my bed to make room for the study.

And there you have it. I'm thinking that after they take away the sandbags in the next few week I'll plant a little garden outside. I think that if I put down a Persian rug in the study and maybe tape a poster or two on the wall I can qualify for the Parade of Homes next year.

I'll try to actually get some pictures of myself posted up soon (I know that's what you are REALLY looking for...) and give you a little more detail about where I am exactly once the rest of the Battalion gets here.

-DAVE-

Kuwait is....sandy.

Well, I've been here for a little over a week now and am currently in Iraq. However, I wanted to post some pictures from Kuwait and the journey up to this point. Kuwait was hot! 110-ish during the day and only slightly cooler at night. Then only thing I really saw was a lot of sand and a herd of camels. We did a little bit of training there and went to the pistol/rifle range to make sure we could still hit stuff (that's a good thing to be able to do here). Other than that, there really wasn't much to it. Now I'm in Iraq getting ready to receive the rest of my Battalion (I came a little bit early to get things ready for them). I'll let you all know where I am after the Battalion gets here safely.

I also want to say "thank you" to everyone. I know that you have been praying for my family and me and doing little things to make us (especially Susan and Jack) feel a little better and make our lives a little easier. The little things go a very long way and you'll never really know how deeply appreciative I am, again, thank you.

Also, I want to publicly thank Susan. She is such an anchor in my life. There is no way that I could undertake this endeavor without her strength -- she is the Flying Butress to my Cathedral Wall. ;-) There aren't many women who can let their husbands go for a year and still function with a 3-month old and a crazy, huge dog. I love you!

On to the pictures!


Here we are waiting at McChord Air Force Base (for the second time) before we boarded our plane. We also spent the night in Maine that night because our plane broke down.


Here is a group of my medics standing around joking after the shooting range (all 5 of these guys are part of my platoon). P.S. Medics love cookies!



Here is a picture from the shooting range. This is pretty much what Kuwait looks like. Just over the hill in the distance was a large herd of camels.


These tents are where I lived for my week in Kuwait. The next day we had a very windy sand storm and you couldn't see the tent next to yours during the middle of the day...crazy. The worst part of that storm was when I was about 1 mile from my tent and my eyewear fell into a port-o-john right after I had utilized it. The walk back without eye-protection was not very much fun. It was good for a laugh though.

Here is my mailing address. I should be ready to receive mail by October. Anything is welcome, but if you have a question about something, you can pass it through Susan to me and I'll let you know. From what I've heard it takes about 9-ish days for the mail to get here. Make sure you do not write "Iraq" anywhere on the packaging or it will go through the Iraq national postal service and I'll either get an empty box 2 months after you sent it, or I won't get anything at all.

1LT Shepard, David W
2-23 IN, HHC
APO AE 09378

Love you all!!

Blessings

Over the weekend we were able to go to Utah to have our little son blessed in front of family and friends. Here is Jackson in his blessing suit!

This is Jackson David Shepard and Amelia Mae Lackey in their church clothes. Too cute!

A few pics of guests who came to the blessing are in the following three pictures! It was good to see you all!

We also got to see my little sister Ally's baptism. She just turned 8 and was so excited to be baptized! She was confirmed the same day that we blessed Jack. It was a very special day at church for our family!

Also, on Monday I was able to buy a laptop with a webcam so Dave and I can video-call each other while he is overseas. I am grateful for technology - it will be the way that I can see my husband's face while he is gone.

This is just the latest news. Will post again soon!

5 Weeks Old! And Other Fun Things

On Wednesday Jackson was 5 weeks old. Here is a fun little video of him! Click the link to view. Please ignore my use of "good boy" to both Jack AND the dog. It's a habit from having Sam in the house first! (Believe me, I'm trying to break it). Also, don't be alarmed that his toys are going to hit him...they won't!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9a9tlST9Pk

Here are some other fun pics!

One of Jack's stroller rides

Jack got to meet some of our friends!

When we went to Utah we got to see some of our friends. We miss all of you guys! Here we are at Cold Stone. Amanda is holding Jack for this picture.

Meet Jackson

On Wednesday July 15 at 5:57 p.m., the Shepard flock expanded by 33%. Little Jackson David came into the world on his own schedule (1 1/2 weeks late). He weighed in at 8 lbs., 5 ozs. and measured 20 inches long. After a few nights in the hospital we all came home on Friday afternoon. Both our families were here to help us out and meet the their new grandson/nephew/cousin. It was great having them here. So far Jackson is a bit of a night-owl...yea! The big guy spends most of the day just lounging around, eating, and giving mommy and daddy plenty of practice with diaper-changing. We love him so much and are so happy he is finally with us, so far it looks like his little personality fits in perfectly. Even Sam loves him and likes to give his head a little lick every now and then...oh boy, a new buddy. Enough with the chat, let's see the pictures. (Warning: there are a lot of pictures!)

Jackson David Shepard - just hours old

Jackson strrettccchhhheedd out!

Mom and Baby

Dad and Baby
New Parents! Our Family minus Sam (they don't let dogs in the hospital)
Grandma Char and Grand-dad ShepardGrandma and Grandpa RoyallAuntie Stefanie!

Uncle ZachAunt AllyAunt CandaceCousin CallieCousin Camryn

First Day Home, "Relaxin' Jackson"His "Mr. Serious" Face, "Action Jackson"

The World's Best Vacation Spot...

Well, I just got home from Ft. Polk, Louisiana where my Battalion was on a month-long exercise with the rest of our Brigade. We were there to test and train ourselves and our systems for our upcoming deployment to Iraq. Despite the 105-112 degree ambient temperatures, the training was good and I actually had a little bit of fun. During five of the days we were there we were engaged in a "war" where we went up against an insurgent force. So, it was as realistic as it could have been. By the time the dust had settled, our battalion had done better there than any unit that the Trainers could remember. Not too bad.

This is a picture of my platoon's sleeping area in the Aid Station taken from my cot. We had A/C...can't complain.

This me in the back of one of my MEVs (Medical Evacuation Variant of the STRYKER) calling in a MEDEVAC bird for one of our wounded. On one of the radios I'm talking with the MEDEVAC pilot and on the other I'm talking with our TOC (Tactical Operations Center). Sometimes I was talking with both at the same time.

Here is the incoming MEDEVAC bird.

Overall, despite the fact that it was over 100 by 7am everyday, it wasn't too bad. I don't ever want to go back there though. :)

-DAVE-

For All You Moms or Moms-To-Be

Claudia Cash sent me these links in an email and they were so hilarious I just had to post them so everyone could see. Hillary Weeks, an LDS composer, is extremely talented and wrote these songs. So for all of you moms and moms-to-be out there...enjoy!!

http://deseretbook.com/video/view/209

http://deseretbook.com/video/view/62

http://deseretbook.com/video/view/61

"WE CAN DO IT"