Heros

Sorry I've not been on here folks. I've been down for 6 days with pneumonia. I go to the hospital tomorrow to be poked and prodded. I did want to share with you something from a blog I follow. The link to her blog is above the blog entry I cut and pasted from her blog. She is the wife of Sgt. Best who is written about. I pray that SPC Zimmerman will heal quickly from his injuries and hats of to Sgt Best , Pvt. Wilson , Sgt Kerksick and to all of our heros who put their lives on the line everyday for our freedom.

http://mytwoarmybrats.blogspot.com/
22 MARCH 2009

Words of a Hero
I hadn't mentioned it before but since it's all over the newspapers apparently it's ok for me to post. Kirke's platoon was hit a month ago. We got the call at 7pm Feb. 19th and were told it was our platoon but the only wounded soldier was SPC Zimmerman. At that time I didn't know where Kirke was at in all of the mess and how it had affected him emotionally. I didn't hear from him for nearly 24 hours from when I got the call. He told me what little bit he could share at that time. He was in the vehicle behind the one that got hit and he, along with two other soldiers were instrumental in saving this young soldier.


WORDS OF A HERO

What Happened to Me in Iraq
by Daniel Zimmerman

I’ve read the newspapers and I just wanted to clear up some of the stuff, but here it is:

Feb. 19, 2009, my maintenance/recovery team and I were out in support of a 3 week long mission. Which means we were off of our normal FOB and traveling to other FOBs when needed. One of the engineer groups we were supporting had a mine detonation trailer that was blown up, so we went to another FOB to pick up and new set for them to continue their mission.

On our way back to deliver the equipment, we had to stop at a check point to let our other platoon go through (Iraqi roads are small). So once they had passed, we proceeded through and I was the second vehicle in the convoy.I just happened to look out my window while I was driving and at that moment was when I got hit.I watched the explosion, and the shock from it shook my truck and opened my door at the same time. I saw my weapon, an M249, jump about a foot from where I had it positioned.Without even thinking, I slammed my door shut, but at that time it was too late.There was silence in my truck except for the air pressure alarm buzzing. I knew I had been hit, but I didn’t know how bad it was. All I could do was hold my leg as tight as I could, until my fellow soldiers cleared the area so it would be safe for me to get out.I had one other person in my truck (he is also from Missouri), and he called up on the radio that we had been hit and that we were all good, but he didn’t realize that I had been hit.When I told him that I wasn’t good, he asked how I knew. I said, “Can’t you see the blood pouring out of my boots?”So he called back up and gave the report. At that time it was clear they needed to get me out of the truck safely, so he and Pvt. Wilson helped me out the passenger side and performed our combat life saver (CLS) techniques. They had placed the tourniquet above my knee. If it would have been placed below my knee, I would have bled out and probably wouldn’t be here today. So I owe my life to Pvt. Wilson, Spc. Kerksick and Sgt. Best.

About 20 minutes later I was on a chopper on my way back to Balad, Iraq (also where I was stationed). That is where there was a vascular surgeon who saved my leg. Without him it would have been amputated.They also replaced 6 units of blood when I got there, and another two units after surgery because I was still bleeding a little.

After they got me stable, I had many people from my unit and brigade there to support me.I got a purple heart and three other coins. The purple heart meant the most to me. I will have it with me at all times, and I will never forget what happened and all my soldiers/friends who were there to support me. Soon after that they sent me to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany on Feb. 22. That was more of a pit stop to make sure that I was stable enough to fly back to the States.On Feb. 22, I was flown from Germany to where I am currently, at Walter Reed in Washington D.C.

I have had 7 surgeries as of now, and I have one more left and that will be on Sunday or Monday. Sunday or Monday I will have a skin graph done to close up the two remaining holes in my left leg. After that I hope to be out of here and back home within two weeks or so.I will still have to do some therapy to get walking again. I had to use crutches for the first time today, March 13, that’s better than what I was doing a week ago. I do have nerve damage to my left foot to where I can’t feel the bottom of my foot or my big toe. I can barely move my ankle and can put little to no weight on it when I walk.It takes time and, but I’m stubborn so I’ll be walking with in no time.

One more thing—my truck took a lot of damage but didn’t flip over. It had blown all 10 of the tires on the truck, messed up the air system, had at least three or four holes in the gas tank and had hit the trailer I was hauling. That’s all I could see while I was getting fixed up.At no time did I loose consciousness. I was alert the whole time, but the pain never really set in. I was calm to the best of my abilities and helped the best I could to speed up the process of getting me out of there and to a hospital.Well I hope this clears the story up a little bit more.

Zimmerman is a former student from Licking High School.

If you would like to write Zimmerman, send correspondence to Spc. Daniel Zimmerman, 11192 Little Oaks Road, Rolla, MO 65401

I also wanted to add that this incident was the first for our platoon and I'm proud beyond words of how quickly they were able to act. The confidence I heard in my soldiers voice after they knew Zimmerman was going to be okay was incredible. It sucks that it happened and we pray for SPC Zimmerman and his family. I'll be so glad when he's done with surgeries and back here at the Fort. Our platoon now knows we can take a hit and are able to get it together and get through it.

Quick Call Home

Brendan called home yesterday afternoon. He's sounding good but is ready to do sometimg other than hanging around pulling guard duty. Once he sees some real excitement that guard duty is going to be looking real good.
One thing that irritates the shit out of me: When a fellow soldier is on the cell phone do you think maybe he just might be talking to someone he doesn't see 24/7? Our call was inturupted 3 times with the last one being the end of our conversation. Men in groups have an interesting way of seeing the world. Manners seem to get tossed aside. Happens again big momma is going to start a shit list to check off on the day of the companies return.
I've been horridly sick for a couple of days now. I feel ALMOST as bad as the house looks. I love how they all save the work for me. Can't you feel the love? OK , I'm now taking my grouchy butt back to lah lah land. I do actually have a positive story to share but I'm typing this in bed from my iPhone. Not easy to share from other sites on here so I'll leave you in suspense.

Just My Two Cents

I've been catching up on some of my newspaper reading here lately. I've run into a number of articles concerning war protesters , mainly the week-end after the 6th anniversary of the US's involvement in Iraq. Now , I love a good protest just as much as the next guy but tell me a time when protesting a war has had any affect. Do you think Obama is going to look out the window and see 1,400 protesters and say "Oh my gosh they are SO right! Get the General on the phone and tell them I want our boys home TODAY!" You know when they'll be home from Iraq? In 2011 , that is if we can believe our government.
So while the focus seems to be on our withdrawal from Iraq the coverage of our involvement in Afghanistan and the fact that we are sending in something like 17,000 more troops seems a bit light. Let's take thousands of our troops , many already worn from too many tours in Iraq and send them into Afghanistan to do what a huge Russian army wasn't even able to do. We're sending boys back now who have artificial limbs and enough medical problems they shouldn't be allowed to deploy.
You'll never see a group of protesters with signs saying " Enough of the peace we want war!". No one likes war. ( normal people anyway) But what we need to look into as a country is the idea of a draft. If we are going to continue supporting politicians who send us to this country and that rather than focusing on the needs of our own people then make sure everyone gets a shot at having their loved one coming home in a box. And college isn't going to get you out of the running. The Army will let you go to college while you serve. It used to be the elite having a General in their family was the same as an Irish Catholic family having a priest in the family , it was mandatory.
Sure there are plenty of men and women who joined our armed services for no other reason but that they want to serve our country. But, there are many more kids who are poor and a recruiter dangles the promise of a $10,000 sign on bonus in their face ( any how many got screwed out of it?). And with the economy going the way it is we're going to see more and more people signing up for the money or promise of it. Soldiers who have left the service and joined the work force only to be laid off are having to rejoin to support their families. Single mothers leaving babies at home to join in hopes of building a better life for their families. Do we really want a nation whose poor feel that joining the military is the only way out of the hole they're in?
Take the billions of dollars we are sinking into these god forsaken countries and dump the money into our schools. Give our kids the best educations possible so that they will have better lives and grow into tomorrow's leaders , leaders who will help lead this nation in prosperity and not war.
And for those who love chanting 9-11 take the time to look at this website: www.sweetalicia.org Not all families of the victims of 9-11 saw war as the only option. Alicia Titus's family are honoring her memory by exploring " responses to violence that go beyond retribution and to learn about ways of understanding and resolving conflict that could break the cycle of violence."
War should always be a last option.

As always I don't support war but I support our soldiers.

*********

And now on to life for Brendan. I sent him a long email the other day. Haven't heard back from him but word from Rachel who he obviously loves more than his own mother , the woman who carried him for 9 months and labored for 12 hours ( I was born to be a Jewish mother! lol) is that they set out on patrol but had to turn around for some reason. I'm sure they could tell us why but then they'ld have to kill us. They'll be setting back out sometime this week , I suppose. I have a feeling Brendan will be packing many more wet wipes this time out. Wet wipes are as close as he's going to get to a shower for a couple of weeks. Can't we pump water out of the Euphrates River and haul it to the boys in tankers. Just give them a good spray down at least!
I love my son to death but 2 weeks in the desert with no shower and he's not getting within 100 yards of me without showering first!
It's a beautiful , sunny Monday here in the sticks of Ohio. Hope you all have a great week!

Family Resemblance

With The Hat On He Certainly Looks Like A McLaughlin. I think he's channeling my Poppy. Although with the stripped shirt he looks like a 1920's gangster. Baby Face Smitke.

Short Update

I tried to clean our keyboard on the Mac and managed to fry it. Apparently you're not suppose to spray Windex directly on the keyboard. Long story short I'm typing this with one finger on my I-phone. ( as you may have guessed Tom is a big Apple fan.
Brendan is back and enjoyed a shower for the first time in two weeks. He was with a small group that went out to clean and clear their new home away from home. Still things to do before they leave base camp again.
He got the 2 boxes I sent him. One box was Easter candy and I couldn't resist buying a camp basket and camo plastic eggs. The other box was filled with everyday goodies and a few odds and ends like wetwipes and Monkey Butt. Also threw in my old People magazines. We may be at war but you still want to know what star is doing what star. LOL
I'll add more once the keyboard is replaced.

*****************
OK , so the keyboard is now spotless. It's also dead as a doornail. Tom dug out this one which is only half fried thanks to Mike Craft spilling beer on it. Now I feel bad giving him a hard time about it.
Brendan called home the other day. The connection is better the closer you get to Baghdad that's for sure. As is always my luck though Tom had a nice conversation with him and then I got the phone and got 5 minutes in before we got disconnected. He seems to be in pretty good spirits. Just finally going out and doing something has to help out quite a bit. He also came back to find lots of emails and boxes of goodies. Peeps are his favorite so I sent boxes in every color. I personally can't stand them but he can wipe out a box in 2 minutes flat!
Apparently they don't have any McDonald's or Fricker's to go at night when they are out on missions. After 2 weeks of MREs he hit the chow hall and ate everything in sight. The stomach ache he got may be a lesson to pace himself next time. I don't care what Tom or anyone says MRE's aren't good. They may be ok to sustain yourself but it isn't even close to being good. Momma sent plenty of Jerky to stuff his pockets with for the next patrol.
Caiden and I had a good visit last Sunday. We went to visit Josh and went to Walmart. The boy takes after his Mom , he seems happiest when he's shopping. I picked him up some baby food to eat when we got back home. This boy is MAD about sweet potatoes. It looked like he was having a seizure trying to get more in his mouth. Sweet Potatoes were Brendan's favorite food , he could have eaten them every meal. When Caiden's sweet potatoes ran out and I switched to pears it was not a good moment. He gave me a look that put the fear of God into me.

2nd Annual Patriots' Day Walk

Tom has made final plans on this year's event. You can check out the blog for more info at http://patriotsdaywalk.blogspot.com/
This year's walk will be a little different from last but it was important to add long guns to the march with Obama heading towards banning them.

A Call Home

Brendan called home this morning and we were able to talk for quite some time. As most calls home it is difficult to understand or hear what he's saying the majority of the time and we got disconnected at least 6 times. He's not at the main base so he has to rely on his cell phone. For whatever reason calls to our home phone never go through but the calls to the i-phone works just fine. Maybe our small town phone company just can't handle overseas calls or something although that seems odd because our phone company is pretty darn impressive.
Brendan is out with a small group of guys mainly doing clean-ups right now. This first patrol is the first real look he's gotten of Iraq outside of military bases and it was a real culture shock to him. He says he can't imagine people living any worse than the folks he's seen so far. The area he's at is full of trash and raw sewage in the streets and no running water. He hasn't had a shower in over a week. ICK!
He said the boxes I mailed him arrived at the main base this week. That was much faster than I had expected. Not sure when he'll get the boxes. I don't know if they bring mail and things to them when they are out on patrol or he has to wait until he gets back to the main camp. I have a feeling it's the later. He doesn't have access to a PX or anything where he's at so it would be nice if they could get some care packages out there though. If that is the case I may send one food package and one hygiene package each time.
Now the real bummer. His leave has gone from one extreme to the other. He went from being here next month to now getting here in November.( And men say women can't make up their minds! PLEEEEEASE! Army has us beat by miles.) He is really saddened by the amount of time before he can see Caiden again. He is 5 months old now so he'll be walking by the time Brendan gets to see him again. All we can do is reassure him that at Caiden's age he'll adjust to seeing Daddy just fine. We are the ones who are saddened by all the milestones that Brendan will miss. We need to get our camcorder fixed so we can start making movies each time he comes over to visit so he can watch them and see how well he's doing.
I went down to Yellow Springs with my friend Wendy yesterday. For those of you who aren't from around here Yellow Springs , Ohio is a small town that is stuck in the 60's. I absolutely love seeing all the wonderful shops down there and trying out new and interesting foods. If you don't like the smell of incense you'll not want to enter any stores down there. They also have a state park down there with some really sweet trails to hike. I take the kids alot down there to hike and Brendan now drags Rachel down there as well. Last year folks in town decided to crochet a sweater for a tree in the downtown area. It was so pretty but you can't leave them on long or the tree will die. Now they have taken that artistic talent and made sweaters for every street sign and light pole in town. This first picture was taken yesterday the rest were last summer. This new one is covered with little signs that show you how to say peace in all the languages of the world. So I went on a bit of a tangent but wanted to give readers an idea of where I was at. At any rate I had to buy a hacky sack for Brendan while I was there. Most that the lady had this time were a yellow or light brown background color which doesn't work well in a desert setting. Kick it over someone and they'll never see the darn thing! I dug around and finally found one that was a black background which will be much easier to spot. When I go down there I always wear my tie dye (which I wear most days anyway) but I went rebel and wore camo pants and a "Army Mom" t-shirt. REALLY had to resist buying some hippy 'make love not war" and "Peace" patches to sew onto the camo though. And don't even get me on bumper stickers! But I'm a good Army Mom , all bumper stickers on the family van are Army related and only in a positive way. However , if I hit the lotto before it sells there's a 75 VW van in bright yellow for sale down there that is going to be all mine and will be open to anything I want to put on it! lol






Well , time to shower up and clean up , Caiden is coming for his Sunday visit. You all have a great week.

First Patrol

Last word from Rachel is that Brendan is out on his first patrol. We likely won't hear anything from him for a minimum of 2 weeks. We may have a plan to pull out of Iraq but there are still plenty of hostiles to deal with. I gave him my form of motherly advise , "When in doubt , shoot".
The amount of info families are getting from their support team is already getting overwhelming. I've got a file of emails and it's just too much. I'm going to have to buy a notebook and condense information to make it easier to look over. Don't get me wrong , the emails have been helpful and have made me aware of things I haven't considered. For instance if I leave home for more than 24 hours I need to let my support person know so that they can contact me if needed. Maybe it's just something I didn't want to think about at all.
Leaves begin 2 months after deployment and continue until 2 months before they are to return. That means leaves begin in a couple of weeks. Looks like Brendan will be at the front of the line. Yes , we'll be glad to see him obviously but not happy about that. If he comes home now it makes it that much longer before we see him again. We'll have 15 days with him though and hoping to make the best of all of it.
His brother Bryan is doing well and is expected to be back in June. ( He joined a company that was already over there) He'll be stationed in Fort Knox , KY when he gets back. Tom goes to Knob Creek machine gun shoot now and again. It's held twice a year and is adjacent to Fort Knox. It's only a couple of hours from here so Rachel and Caiden visiting will be much easier.
One last note: I've been reading "A journal for Jordan" and it's a must read! I bought it at the airport in Dayton on my trip to see Brendan off. I tried reading it when I got back but I was too hormonal and cried too much so I put it aside for awhile. I picked it up again the other night and had to struggle to put it down. It is so well written , so heartfelt , you can't help falling in love with this soldier. This is the link to the book's website.

http://www.ajournalforjordan.com/

Operation Kid Comfort

I just found out about this program from a military wife blog and this is so fantastic I had to pass it along. She just had a blanket made for her two sons and was so impressed with it. This is from the heading on their page:

COMFORT. CREATE. UNITE. OPERATION KID COMFORT CREATES COMFORT QUILTS AND PILLOWS FOR CHILDREN OF DEPLOYED SERVICE MEN AND WOMEN, AND OFFERS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR AMERICA TO UNITE IN SUPPORT OF MILITARY FAMILIES. PLEASE TAKE A FEW MOMENTS TO SCROLL ON DOWN, LOOK AT OUR PICTURES, AND READ ABOUT OUR SUCCESS.
This is their link:
http://www.operationkidcomfort.blogspot.com/

Whether you have a loved one overseas or have the talent to volunteer your time to the cause , this is a fantastic cause. Imagine what comfort these quilts give to the sad children who miss their parent. They can cuddle up and stay warm with a blanket that has pictures of their parent on them.

Just A Couple Of Things

Well by now I know you're thinking I'm the Link Queen but I've found so many interesting things and it's easier to give the links for you to look at then me typing all the stuff up. I've also figured out how to get links to work on here so no more cut and pasting. Wasn't that hard , just lazy! lol (hmmm...ok posted and it doesn't show up. I bragged too soon. Cut and paste away folks! lol)
First link is Kevin Baker's website. Kevin is disabled Gulf War Veteran who is riding his bike across country promoting the "Honor and Remember" flag. His journey begins this week-end. Good luck Kevin! There is also a petition to sign if you're interested. Please take the time to check this site out.
http://www.honorandremember.org/kevin.html


I update links on the side from time to time but I wanted to make a special note of this blog. This is a well written blog with some fantastic links on it. Well worth checking out. It's written by an Airforce Mom who I was lucky enough to have come visit my site. Her blog is: http://airmanmom.blogspot.com Of special note is Wednesday Hero.

Sierra Club is hosting summer camps for military kids , families and vets. From their website is this description:
The Sierra Club's Military Families Outdoors program supports organizations that provide military Veterans, Service Members and their families with the mental and physical benefits of outdoor experiences. By sending the child of a deployed parent to summer camp, providing a much-needed weekend getaway for a military family to reconnect, or creating challenging wilderness adventure courses for Combat Theatre Veterans and Active Duty Service Members, together we are working to ensure that those protecting our country get to enjoy its natural wonders.
The link to this page is: http://www.sierraclub.org/military

I got Brendan's boxes mailed out today. Postage was almost $12.00 which is a few bucks higher than I was told but still worth it if you pack them well. Custom paperwork is a bit time consuming but you do what you have to do. Just expect to have to individually list everything by name , weight and value. You can't just put "Easter Candy" or "Toiletries". I have a feeling Brendan is going to get slammed all at once with a ton of boxes. It'll be like a very early Christmas! Just hope he gets it sooner than later. I know to expect at least 2 weeks but if they head out on missions he won't be back to get them for 3-4- weeks. If you send food be sure it's in a container that will help keep them fresh.

I've got a ton of updates to do on this blog. I'll try to get to those the first of the week. I'm taking advantage of the great weather to open the doors in the house to get fresh air and clean the carpets while the fresh air can help dry them. Garden and yard work season is just around the corner folks. With the economy the way it is I'll be adjusting my veggy garden this year. More beans and less salsa goodies. If you've got the space why not considering a garden of your own? Canning is much easier than you think and there is great security in knowing you've got a basement full of food.

Have a wonderful week-end everyone. Brendan , if you're reading this I love you and we miss you like crazy. Jesse is done fixing up his room. I patched the MANY holes in the walls from when you had the room and he and Teresa painted. We've got curtains up since the pic was taken and only have the closet to contend with. Even more impressive? He's kept it PERFECTLY clean for over a week!! I know!!!!!!!!!






Teresa had a solo in her school musical held at the hospital. She sings WAY better than I do thankfully. She did really well.




A moment doesn't go by when you're not in my thoughts. I pray for you constantly and can't wait to give you a huge hug. I love you!

Finally An Address

We were finally given a mailing address for Brendan. Good timing on that as the post office just delivered the free mailing boxes today. I knew there had to be a catch on the flat rate boxes. These boxes aren't very big. I had to divide things into 2 boxes. And the packing tape? It is the WORST!! It rips like rice paper. I was getting so aggravated trying to pull off just one strip without it shredding. Guess you get what you pay for.
If anyone is not on Rachel's mailing list and you want Brendan's address you can email me a message at Pettyhead8@yahoo.com and I'll give that address to you.
I've started getting emails from the companies FRG (Family Readiness Group) Leader. She does the work voluntarily and keeps everyone up to date with what's going on with our boys. She also sends out lots of resource info for soldiers' family. One thing I can say about the Army , they work hard to keep families together and in touch.
We';re now 30 days down. ONLY 11 months or so to go.

Yellow Ribbon

Here's our yellow ribbon. I went to Ethel's flower and they donated the ribbon to us. So wonderful! Figured it was better to tie it to the house than on the tree in the backyard which is the only tree we have left. Now to get a flagpole hooked up somewhere in the same area and that project will be done.
Was able to talk to Brendan for quite awhile ,this afternoon. He's sounding good , just anxious to get things underway. He bought a cell phone over there. What would cost $15 here cost 3 times that there and the connections are horrible. The day before we got about 3 sentences in between 2 calls. Better luck today , only one disconnection. Still trying to get used to the huge delay. No new updates , just the usual Army hurry up and wait routine.
On a lighter side, Matthew is learning to read............

Quick Update

Brendan will now be wearing an Infantry patch again soon. He is with the 1st cav unit but they are going to be merging with an infantry division. The unit is called The Big Red One. Big red what I'm sure I don't want to know. As some of you know I've been ordering patterns to cross-stitch pictures of the badges he's worn soooo this means yet another pattern to order.
According to Rachel an IED hit close to where he is at. You can imagine what that means. I think the reality of war has really hit now. How folks go through that and come home unchanged is beyond me.
ok , the big red one was bothering me so I had to google it. It's the 1st Infantry division which is where he was suppose to be to begin with. It's also the group that his buddy Sandusky is in. ( http://www.1id.army.mil/ ) Thank goodness it's a simple patch. It's just a big red number 1. I feel a bit disappointed now.
These pics were forwarded to me from Rachel from Brendan.

FREE Military Packing Supplies

Thanks to Rachel for this info:

United State Postal Service has created a "Military Care Package
Kit" items contain most frequently requested by the military. This
service is FREE.
The kit contains:

Three (3) each of flat rate boxes ($8.10 per box up to 70 lbs.)
O-FRB1- and O-FRB2
Two each of Cube boxes OBOX4 and OBOX7 (price based on weight of
package)
Address labels-Label #228 10 each
One roll of Priority Mail tape
15 customs forms with envelopes.

The kit may be requested by calling 1-800-610-8734 (Packing
Supply) and:
1. Choose you language (1 is English, 2 is Spanish).
2. Choose option 1 (it states it is for Express Mail, Priority
Mail or Global Guaranteed products).
3. When you reach a live agent, request CAREKIT04.
4. Please allow 7-10 days for delivery.

Note: These are free supplies, postage must be affixed.
You may request a maximum of 4 kits per phone call. I have
ordered 4 kits, they should be here in 7-10 if anyone is
interested in viewing them.

Have a pencil ready , they'll give you your account number for reordering. Now all we need is an address to mail stuff!