Quick Updates

Thanks to Alexis for motivating me to finally post this! I have been meaning to do it forever.

JON:

This is a photo of the road leading into Randolph Air Force Base. Jon's training is going well. He is basically in school from 8 AM to 5 PM everyday. He also spends a couple hours each night studying. He feels like he has a sweet job because three days a week he gets time to work out. So far he has been learning about survival in emergency situations, weather and wind patters, how to take off and land at an airport, and how to read charts. On some of their "fun" days he has played in a raft in a pool (for water survival), and went up to 3200 ft in a hyperbaric chamber to see who would pass out first from a lack of oxygen. In two weeks he starts flying and practicing on simulators.

EMILY:
I turned 30 in March. It was weird for about a week, but now I am over it. I don't mind getting older....I am just not sure what it means to be 30. I feel like I should be wiser by now. I still feel like I am in that post-college "figuring life out" phase. On my birthday, Jon surprised me by taking me to Sea World. It was so fun. We had a great time.

I also dyed my hair really dark. It was brown, almost black....for about a week. The color didn't stick real well and within the last month it has faded quiet a bit. It is now a medium brown. It was fun to try something different. New state. New color. I haven't decided if I am going to do it that dark again.

The other major thing in my life--that many of you already know--is that I have lost about 40 pounds. I joined Weight Watchers when Jon went to Officer Training School last September. I lost about 25 of it in the 3 months he was gone. I kept it a secret from him and just surprised him when he got back. I don't think Weight Watchers is for everyone, but it worked really well for me and gave me the education and the tools to figure out what I was doing wrong. This is a little embarrassing admitting to those of you who haven't seen me in the last 7-8 years, because I now look about the same as I did when I graduated from college. I developed some really bad habits being married and living in Doha. It feels really good to be back to my regular size again.

US:
A couple of weeks ago we went camping with some of Jon's friends from school. We went to Sunday Beach on Matagorda Island. One of his friends found a guy with a boat to take us out there and pick us back up. We camped right on the beach. It was so beautiful. Apparently this area is the only place in Texas where you can find sand dollars. We found 30-40, but only brought a couple home. It was fun to get away and see more of Texas. We are loving the beautiful weather and are trying not to rub it in (too much) to those still getting snow in Utah.


We also bought a new car. It is a 2008 Mazda CX9. We love it. I haven't taken a picture of our car yet, but here is what it looks like.


I am sure there are other things from the past few months that I should write about, but I can't think of any right now and for some reason my posting editor is not cooperating. More to come later...

My New Hero--A good lesson in taking risks and not judging a book by its cover

Susan Boyle--Britain's Got Talent

I love this lady. She is my new favorite person. I am probably partially biased because this is one of my favorite songs, but I just love the idea of someone realizing their dreams at any stage of life! Her little jig at the end cracks me up every time.

The embedding feature for this video is disabled, so you will have to go to YouTube. It is worth watching for sure:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

Update

We are doing great here in Texas. We found a great house to rent in Universal City, which is on the north east side of San Antonio. It is a great location. We are just down the street from the base, our church is just over our back fence (so we walk to church), and we are really close to grocery stores and the biggest shopping center in the area.

Jon is loving being in the Air Force. We feel very blessed. There are so many benefits and they have been really good to us. For a lot of the time we have been here, Jon has been on "casual status", which basically means that he is just hanging out until his training starts. He checks in with his group every morning and they tell them if they can go home or if they have stuff for them to do that day. He has done everything from help at a conference to move office furniture. I think it was nice for him to have a break for a little while, but he is getting restless and is anxious to get started on his training again. He starts his Navigator training this Friday. It will last about 10 months.

About a week after we moved into our house, Jon went to Pueblo, Colorado for his Initial Flight Screening (IFS). He was there a month. They taught him how to fly a tiny two person airplane and basic navigation skills. They send all pilots and navigators through this to see their general aptitude before they spend a ton of money training them. For example, if he gets air sick, he probably won't make a very good navigator. It was an intense environment, but Jon really enjoyed it. His favorite part was the navigation training, which is good since that is what he is going to be doing for the next several years at least.

I stayed here for the first two weeks Jon was gone and finished unpacking and getting the house settled. Charly, our dog, also had to have surgery on her foot to remove a cyst. Once everything here was settled enough, I went back to Utah to visit family for a week. Then I flew to Colorado to spend a week with my Great Aunt Jan who lives in Denver (she is one of my favorite people in the whole world.) While I was there, Jon was able to come up for the weekend to spend time with us. It was really great to see him again. When we are apart, I learn to appreciate the "just hanging out" even more. Jon got home about a few days after I did. (I think Jon looks pretty great in his flight suit and you KNOW he loves it!)


This one is of Aunt Jan in her car. She even let me drive it, which was pretty amazing. The pictures are pretty bad because I forgot my camera and had to buy a disposable one.

It is great to be back home together again. I will post some other updates soon.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

2008 has been a random transition year for us while we waited for Jon's Air Force training to start. We have enjoyed being closer to some family and friends and have tried to make the most of this "in between time."

Jon spent the last three months at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama for Officer Training School. I don't think he would ever want to repeat it, but he learned a lot and was grateful for the opportunity. He is now a 2nd Lieutenant and is really excited to be in the Air Force. We will start 2009 in San Antonio, TX for Navigator School. We should be there about 1 - 1 1/2 years. The time there will determine what type of aircraft Jon will be on and where we move next. We are really excited for this new adventure!

We are especially grateful this year for our family and friends. We hope this season finds you happy and well. We wish you all the best in the coming year.

With love,

Jon and Emily

Who Doesn't Love a Man in Uniform?

Jon is at Officer Training School at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama. He has been there for two months....only one more to go!! It has been hard, but we are doing well. We get to talk every night (even if it is for just 5 minutes.) That makes a HUGE difference. I don't know what I would do if we had to go 12 weeks without talking.

Jon is doing really well. They keep him pretty busy. He is an upper classman now, which means he has more freedom and can leave the base on weekends. Most weeks he gets to go to church, so that helps too. I think he is enjoying it and is glad he is there....but he is also excited to be done and home again.

I am doing good too. I am keeping really busy with work, family, friends, and a couple of secret projects (to surprise Jon.) Then, of course, there is getting ready to move. The Air Force will provide for the bulk of the packing and moving, but there is still a lot of sorting and prepping to do. I am a little stressed about how fast time is passing, but I am sure it will all get done.

Our Future Plans: I am not sure about the details yet, but here is what I do know:

We are going to try to go to CA for Christmas
We have to be out of our house in SLC by December 31
We will be moving to San Antonio, TX for more training and Navigator School
Jon has to report no later than January 5 at Randolph AFB

That is about all I know for sure, but if you have other questions, let me know! I will update as we get more information.

They have a contest going right now to see who can get a picture taken with the most important person and their flight coin. Jon paid $10 bucks and stood in line to sit on the lap of his entry