use to be called the Nimitz Museum but has been enlarged and added on to include not just Admiral Nimitz but to honor the action of the Pacific Fleets during WWII. They have a memorial walk where plaques that honor different Naval ships are installed. This is something I wanted to share with my Dear Hubby. He is former Navy and quite proud of serving his country. He also followed in his father and mother's footsteps when he joined the Navy.
This particular plaque honored on of the ships that DH served on. The walk looking down this
long wall of plaque after plaque had quite an effect on DH. Before he realized it his "allergies" were working and he was tearing up. I am not sure he expected this but was really quite moved to see so many men and women honored for the service they gave to this country. It is not lost on him or me how many men and women passed on during this war or any other war.
Here DH is in a reflective moment. There is a Japanese garden located here also. It was given to us by the country of Japan to honor Admiral Nimitz. They sent craftsmen from Japan here to construct the garden. It is quite peaceful and wonderful to sit and reflect on the people and things we have in our lives.
Ok, DH again. You can tell I had the camera right. Here is a small section of memorial plaques
that he is gazing at. There was a quite and still over this memorial walk that really was quite palpable. It reminded me of the way I felt when I saw the Vietnam Memorial in Washington DC.
This small cemetery represents all of the lives lost by our country in the Pacific battles. It is constructed to look like a battle zone cemetery. All branches of the armed forces are represented here.
Well my daughter was to ship out on the 18th. And today the 19th she is sitting here on our courch. What a short time it was. No she did not drop out of the Navy. She arrived in Dallas for MEPS after great torrents of tears here. And before she was to "ship" to Great Lakes IL she had to redo her medical exam. Lo and behold there were some places on her feet that they want to check out. (Personally they look like her shoes were too tight to me!) So they have to reschedule everything now. So tomorrow (the 20th) she will go back to Dallas to stay the night in a wonderful hotel so she can see a dermotologist on Friday the 21st. Then they will send her back home. If all goes well her new ship out date is November the 22nd now. So all the tears and heatbreak was for nought. We shall keep you up to date on her upcoming return to the Navy. LOL
I know yall are tired of hearing about my daughter leaving. But it is what is taking up all my energy. I know I prepared for this for 18 yrs but that does not make leaving any easier. Also worried due to the fact that when her recruiter picks her up next Monday (yes less than a week away) it will only be her and I here. Oh the tears! We had a party for her two weekends ago. Was a nice turn out. And this last weekend we attended a family reunion on my husband's side (her step father). Yesterday we started packing her room up. And getting it ready for her step brother to move into. Oh my. Giving away my baby's space. I guess the hard part is we are preparing not to see her for almost 2 yrs. I know people get leave from the service but it does not look like it will be in her best interest before that time. Maybe next summer if we are real real lucky. When she finishes with boot camp they will ship her on to school in CA. She will arrive there just a day or two before Christmas. There really will not be time or money for her to grab a flight home for just a day or two. So best she stays there and takes that time to get acquainted with campus and her duties. She will be in CA for about 1 1/2 yrs with language school. Then she will come back to Texas (YEAH!) for about 6 mths to finish off. We will see here every chance we get then. So since she has never left home longer than church camps this is a hard thing for her and I. We are close and know that this is that step that breaks the bond of a mommy and her baby to become more and more woman to woman. I am so proud of her! I know she is doing the right thing and she will succeed. She is strong minded and steady as a rock. Just continue to keep her in you thoughts and prayers for me please. As you have heard over and over, she is my one and only baby girl.
Again not posting blogs lately. I feel like a hamster on a wheel. Running and getting nowhere. Have had good and bad lately but mostly we are making do. And who can ask for more? My step son who is 19 moved in with us right as we were moving. Well I have enjoyed having him around. He is a dear boy! He is happy that he has finally found a job at our local grocery store. So things are looking up for him. My daughter is still waiting for her ship out date in October. Nervous but knowing that this is what is in store for her next. Sadly we had to make the decision for her not to come home for Christmas. She will have time available but it will take all she has earned at that time to fly here and back. I dont think she should drain her finances that way. Give herself time to earn a little more and we will snail mail and email her in the mean time. Oh our car also gave up the ghost so we had to find another one through a tote the note place. It is an 2000 Ford Contour 4-door with auto and a/c. Also it is a burgandy/maroon color. I am thankful we could get it now we just have to see where we are going to draw the car payments from. Well God provides so we will just trust there.
I hope that at least. Actually not expecting miracles but happy at the effort. What am I talking about you wonder. Well my sweet hubby is an alcholic. I knew this before we married and accept that it is his choice not mine. Lately with all the strain here finacially he has really be dosing himself with the hops. Again I am not shocked as that is his normal way of dealing with stress. But also it gets way over his head too. So he has noticed that he has lost all his family time due to drinking. That he spends more time of the porch with a beer and cigarette (must go hand in hand) that he has not seen me in over a month. See I wont sit with him when he is on a binge. I find other things to occupy myself with. I still let him know I love him and miss him. Also I always assure him that I will also be here no matter what. And I will. But I will not accompany him down that road of oblivion. Well as I was saying he is missing me, the family and just day to day continuity. So he is trying hard not to drink after his hard days working. They are hard days as he is working his regular 8 hour job and then another 3 or 4 hours after that at a side job. So he gets up in the morning takes his lunch and coffee that I made and leaves her around 7:30 am. He does well to be home by 9pm so he can have dinner and a shower before falling into bed. This is a man who in the last 4 yrs has had a double heart value replacement and a pacemaker put in. He has a hard time working so much and also an 8 hour day on Saturdays. But we need the money and he is trying so hard. So I am applauding his efforts to not drink and to provide so for us. Do I hear you clapping too