Creative wishes!!

Merry Christmas is spelled out in dog and cat food,
then the next picture the dog was tired of taking pictures
and got hungry! Thanks Joe, Erin, Clover and Debo!


Love, Mike, Lee, Tyler and Jessica Wynn




This picture was made by Erin's brother, sister-in-law
and the kid's diapers. Merry Stink'n Christmas :)




If you can't read the small sign it says, "Look an Afghan"
referring to the blanket Grandma Reed is covered up
with. Very clever guys!

Merry Christmas from Afghanistan!

Well, it has been 9 weeks in country so far! The time has actually flown by, thankfully! Andrew's military orders are for a total of 400 days and we are currently on day 108, so that means we are a quarter of the way through this deployment! Andrew's R&R is attentively scheduled for April 19th-May 3rd, so we are really looking forward to that!

Andrew sent the pictures this week, the Christmas tree picture is "Afghanistan style" because they hadn't received any real decorations yet. It is decorated with PT belts, homemade snow flake, badges of "guys who have been fired from their job" and a cardboard replica of the badge they carry on a daily basis. The tree is know decorated "American style" but I haven't gotten any pictures yet.

Andrew and I have been able to talk almost everyday by SKYPE. We love it and it is free! We usually talk when it is early morning for him and night time for me (9 1/2hr. time difference). It really makes a difference and things easier (emotionally) when we actually get to see each other's face. Some days the Internet connection is better than others depending on how busy the connection is on base. So, if you download SKYPE, then maybe you can see and talk with Andrew. His beard is quite impressive as you can see in the picture.

I want to thank everyone who emailed Christmas pictures to me for Andrew's photo album. He received them last week and loved them! He said it really makes a difference know people haven't forgotten about him :) Of coarse we wouldn't but being that far away he said it can be lonely. Andrew picked out his favorites which have been posted below as well. Thanks everyone!!

It's seems that care packages are taking about 7-10 days, which is great. He has received so many. He said the unit chaplain's office is stuffed full of care packages sent by churches, schools and many other organizations. He said everyone is so appreciative all the support. Keep the packages coming because it helps with the moral.

Andrew and I are so appreciative of all the support from family and friends. Thank you so much. Enjoy the pictures and Merry Christmas from Afghanistan and Indianapolis!

Love,
Erin

It's been awhile....

Sorry for the delay in postings, but it's been a long week for Andrew. I spoke with him last night and he has been feeling a little under the weather and is getting over a cold. He has been working with a lot of the local people and therefore being exposed to the ever so wonderful gross and grimy germs of the Afghanistan people. But he is starting to feel much better.

Andrew finally got the two care packages from me and one from my sister. My first package took 2 1/2 wks to get there and the second package was better, only taking 8 days. My sister's package only took one week. He was so excited! From this point on, the mail should be pretty regular and only take 5-7 days to arrive from the states. Please note the address change on the blog. We have been advised to not put his rank on the packages for security reasons. His company has also changed from C,co. to HHC.

Andrew's unit did experience a loss with one of their unit soldiers last week. An evil roadside bomb killed a soldier from Maryland and two other Marines were injured. Andrew did not know the soldier very well, but he was a fellow soldier which means a brother lost. The news was a lot harder for me to cope with than it was for Andrew. I was a mess and could not stop thinking about how real this deployment is starting to feel. Andrew on the other hand, is in a state of mind to continue working and get the job done, which is what we want rather than being distracted. He said he does not have time to think about the loss. The unit is holding a memorial service for the fallen soldier which Andrew will attend on Wed., so please keep the fallen soldiers' family in your thoughts as well as the unit to stay focused on their mission and to stay safe.

Andrew is hopefully getting a computer this week so he can get caught up on this blog and hopefully write some comments to everyone. And with a computer he will be able to post some pictures of where he is at. I know I am looking forward to that as well.

As always, thank you to everyone for your support, encouraging words and prayers. Until next time.......Count your blessings and hug your loved ones tightly.

Promotion!

I heard from Andrew yesterday on a cell phone he was issued, rather than the hassle of being connected thru the Pentagon. He called at an unsual time with the good news of being promoted to a Staff Sergeant (E-6)!! He is very excited and looking forward to the perks, what those may be I am not sure besides a pay increase :)

He was in good spirits and has a countdown of 335 days until he is finished with this deployment. The 335 days includes his 2wks. of R&R home and also the 2wks. of debriefing when they return to the states. So, we figured roughly about 300 more days of playing in the sandbox and then it's back to playing with bad guys on the street with IMPD! We can't wait!

Andrew is going to buy his own laptop in a couple of weeks and then he will be able to post some pictures of where he is, sleeps, eats, etc. He will also be able to post his own posting rather than me, his wife posting for him. I am looking forward to the pictures as I know most of you will find them interesting as well.

Andrew and I ask that you please keep the Ft. Hood soldiers and families in your thoughts and prayers, what a horrible tragedy. It is sad to know that a fellow soldier you are supposed to trust, loses his mind on a shooting spree! Please pray for the hard work and sacrifices of our soldiers and the toll it takes on their mental health. It is important to have family and friends show there support. Thank to this blog and the comments, we know we are loved and supported.

Until next time........

Settling In At Bagram, AF

I have heard from Andrew two times since landing in Bragram, AF. He said the base is huge and has a lot of resources. He said the "chow hall" has great food and he is going to have to limit himself to the pecan pie to once per week or only before going out on missions. There are numerous fast food restaurants in a "food-court-like building" which includes Burger King, Subway, Popeye's Chicken, Pizza Hut, and some others I can't remember. He was also impressed with a store that you can custom order cars and motorcycles to be made and ready to pick up the minute you get back into the USA. He mentioned a Harley Davidson and of coarse my response was a big LAUGH!

The weather there is similar to Indiana right now. It is the mid-60's during the day and 40's at night. He said he hasn't been out in the weather much yet because they are stuck inside with trainings to get familiar with the location, job, fellow soldiers, etc...in Andrew words "doing stupid useless waste of time stuff." He has been training the last year for this job and is ready to do the "real" work.

Well that is all for this update. I am waiting for Andrew to send some pictures so we can see his living arrangements, work space, etc.

Until next time......

It's ALWAYS "See you later" NEVER say "Good bye!"

As many of you know, Andrew has begun his 2nd deployment to Afghanistan. He left the state of Washington on 10/25 and flew 6hrs. to Maine. Then from Maine they flew to Germany and Germany to Kyrgyzstan. He was able to call me from Kyrgyzstan on 10/27 around 7am which was 4:30pm for him. We talked on a satellite phone which was a little tricky because there is such a long delay. We will get the hang of it in no time I am sure. He was unable to tell me when he would be leaving Kyrgyzstan and arriving in Afghanistan but will call ASAP when he arrives and gets settled. He will be stationed at a large base in Bagram Afghanistan. I was able to get his mailing address already and have posted on the right hand side of the blog. Feel free to start sending care packages with lots of goodies, movies, books, etc. It is hard to tell how long packages will take to get there, from the last deployment experience it took anywhere from 2wks - 6wks.

Andrew has a camera with him and will hopefully be able to send pictures to me that I can share on the blog. Although, with his job somethings have to be vague and cannot have a lot of detail of people, places and times. Feel free to respond on the blog and send Andrew messages.

I will post again when I hear from Andrew in Afghanistan. For now, hug your loved ones tight every time you see them!