Standing Up For Himself...

Standing Up
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

... Just not by himself.
It's good to be home with my family. After some shuffling around of flights, I made it home safely this afternoon. Some cool news: Hunter is now able to lock his knees and support his own weight. Mommy needs to take care of the balancing part for now, but he's getting better. He's even able to hold his head up for quite a while.

Heading Home

I'm at the airport, getting ready to fly home to see Sarema and Hunter for 2 weeks. Look out Morro Bay, here I come!

Christmas in July

Let it Snow
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Well, not really Christmas.
I'll bet you that I'll be wishing for some snow to come cool down Kuwait when I get there in about three weeks. Tomorrow, the low in Kuwait will be 95 degrees with a high of 120. Whew!
This picture of me, one of my best buds, Randy, and his wife, Cyndi, was taken in January, 2005. I went out to Virgina for Randy's graduation from the DEA academy and we took this picture in a snowstorm on the national mall. It was on this trip to the east coast that I was notified I would spend 18 of the first 19 months of my son's life away from home.

WhatchooTalkinBout Willis?

WhatchooTalkinBout
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Here's a(nother) picture of Hunter looking surprised. He's pretty cute, though, so I posted it for the grandparents.

Promotions

Promotions
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

In this picture, I'm holding the collars of my two newly-promoted NCOs... MSG Nash (on the right) and SFC McElroy (on the left). They both finally got their well-deserved promotions this morning and I got to pin each of them.
(btw, that's Cheyenne Mountain and NORAD in the background)
Today also marks one week until Block Leave. It'll be nice for me and my soldiers to spend two weeks with our families before we head off to the middle east.
Congrats again to MSG Nash and SFC McElroy.

Dad

Thanks for being my dad
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Dad's fine.
Today, my dad went into the hospital for a scheduled angiogram (cardiac catherization) to see why he was having intermittent chest pains.  I got a call from my sister, Kim, letting me know he was OK after the operation. Here's a picture of my Dad teaching me how to walk. I never realized how much I owe to my dad until I had a son of my own. Thanks for being my dad, Dad.

CLS

CLS
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Here's a picture from yesterday's I.V. training. In this pic, I'm just about to put a needle in SSG Macias's arm. SSG Macias, who is one of my NCOs, turned around and stuck me afterwards.
Each of us missed the vein on the first time and had to go for a second try.
We finished up class today and now I get to carry around a 10 lb. bag of bandages, splints, and IV kits just in case someone gets hurt. 6 of the 12 people on my team have this training now, more than any other section in the company.
you know the deal by now... "I hope this is training I never have to put to use."

Caption Contest

Caption Contest
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Post your caption for this picture of Hunter in the comments section. I'll start you off with the first one.

Combat Lifesaver

I just finished my third of four days in Combat Lifesaver class. This army class on advanced first aid includes treating head wounds, abdominal wounds, fractures, burns, hot/cold weather injuries. The combat lifesaver's job is to stabilize a casualty long enough for transport to a real medical facility. We also got training on how to administer intravenous (I.V.) fluids to soldiers who are suffering dehydration or loss of blood.
I resolved to go to this class during a training exercise a couple weeks ago where I had to stand over one of my soldiers and watch him (simulated) bleed to death because there weren't enough medical-trained personnel around to help. I resolved right then and there that I was going to get the Combat Lifesaver training because I wasn't going to stand idly by and watch one of my soldiers die.

Garden of the Gods

garden of the gods 06
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Garden of the Gods is a state park here in Colorado Springs. The unique rock formations are worth checking out if you ever happen to be in the area. Sarema, Hunter, and I paid the Garden a visit over 4th of July.

Flex

Flex
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

It's been a couple days since I put up a picture of Hunter just by himself. Here he is showing off his big muscles during his visit over the 4th of July weekend.

Combatives

Combatives
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

We've been training in unarmed combat off and on this week. The Army teaches a modified version of Brazilian Jujitsu (or so i was told) and the techniques they teach mostly deal with ground fighting. We paired up with each other in one-on-one wrestling matches. In this picture, I'm wrestling with SPC Mercado from another section. This is more training I hope to never have to use for real.

Hunter and Dad

Hunter and Dad
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Sarema took this picture during her visit to Fort Carson around the 4th of July weekend.
John Stuart Mill wrote "War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."
My family and our way of life is what I fight for. I hope to get back to them soon... after I've done my part.

Arabic

We've been taking some Arabic classes from a Kurdish woman who emigrated to the states from Iraq. We've been learning the standard phrases like "my name is," "how are you," and also some military phrases like "stop or I'll shoot."
the coolest thing I've learned is how to say my name... phonetically, it's "Is-me-A-boo-Sigh-yad" or literally translated: "I am called Hunter's father." Arabs place a huge value on the family and fathers are often called "father of {eldest son or daughter}" rather than by their own name.

Strength

I have a friend back at the USPFO (where I used to work before I was mobilized) who recently gave birth prematurely. She was put on bed rest six months into her pregnancy, but the baby came early anyhow. After only a month or so, they discovered that the baby is blind and has a 50% chance of going deaf and/or having developmental problems.
My friend is upbeat and trying to look at the bright side of things, but I don't know how she does it. I remember being so scared while Sarema was pregnant. I was afraid that something would happen and that Hunter would be born without everything he needs to have a normal life. I will love him no matter what happens, even if he had been born blind and deaf. I would still be angry at the world, though. I would find it hard to accept that my son did not get a fair shake in life.
I'm just heartbroken about my friend's child. I only found out about this today through another person who used to work at the USPFO before we were deployed. I'm trying to find out a way that I can help her. And I thank God for not challenging me the same way that He has challenged my friend and her family. What a terrible thing to have to go through.

Sarema Head Down

Sarema Head Down
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

I took this picture of Sarema while flying (my dad insists it's "falling," not "flying") head down with her over Colorado Sky Sports during the 4th of July weekend.

Packing Weight

packing_weight
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

When packing our parachutes, skydivers often use various kinds of weights to allow us to stretch out our lines while keeping the parachute rig in place. We finally found a use for Hunter at the drop zone: he makes a great packing weight.

Happy Birthday, Rick

SLO Brew
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Today is Rick's Birthday...
This picture of the two of us was taken at one of my favorite brewpubs, SLO Brew, just before I left for Colorado.

Smiley Hunter

Smiley Hunter
Originally uploaded by Rob Wooldridge.

Sarema and Hunter are here with me for the long weekend. Today we went to the zoo, but Hunter mostly slept through it. Here's a picture we took yesterday on his 3-month birthday.