Getting Closer!

I got another phone call from Caleb this week! :) he called the 18th! he needed to talk to me about Graduation plans and make sure i am FOR SURE driving him to AIT after Graduation! He needed to give a final answer to his DS's so they knew whether or not they need to arrange his transportation. I'm starting to get really excited!!! only 2 1/2 more weeks til i get to see him!!!! i got letters from him this last week too and it sounds like he's getting super excited! he said he can't wait for me to see him in uniform! pretty darn sure i'm gonna melt :) i HAVE always had a weakness for a man in uniform!!!

I've been sick the last couple weeks and developed a real nasty cough :( I've already lost my voice multiple times too! I'm going to talk to my doctor at my appointment in the morning and find out what i can do to get better before Grad. i have been so exhausted that I'm concerned about my energy and sleeping and eating. i need to make sure I'm in good enough condition for her to approve me to fly, and i need to be able to be healthy so Connor isn't affected by it! I have a bit or a worry its Bronchitis... but I'm hoping my Doc will tell me its no big deal, and tell me what to do to get better. i was sick when Caleb called, but i told him not to worry. i hope he isn't worrying. I'm going to try to write him really quick before i mail letters out tomorrow so that he knows ASAP that my Doc says I'm fine.

I took my first Childbirth Prep class this week and I've been learning a lot! I'm really glad Caleb convinced me to take it :). i also did an OB Orientation class, and an Epidural Class, and i got a tour of the hospital Maternity Center. i feel like I'm doing pretty good at getting prepared, and i think it will be a lot less scary of an experience for me now! still crossing my fingers Caleb will make it home in time and won't miss it! that decision will be left up to his Commanding Officers at AIT. I'm hoping and praying they are understanding and that it doesn't affect his training too much!

A Day of Shopping and the Perfect Phone Call!

Yesterday Jessica and i decided to spend the whole day shopping and hanging out. i was determined to find the perfect little sun dress for Caleb's graduation. And i DID find it, and a lot more other stuff too ;) lol. But, the most exciting part of the day was that i got a phone call from my hubby!!!!! :) he has the most perfect timing. exactly when he called i was standing in one of the few places in the store that actually had service!!!! i was SOOOO grateful, because i would have been horribly heartbroken if I'd missed it! i had a bit of a crummy week, and definitely needed some cheering up. the first thing he asks me is "so what are you doing?" to which i responded "uh....spending money...????" lol he didn't mind when i told him i was getting something pretty to wear for him. but i still feel horribly guilty about the amount of money i spent! i hope he's excited to see! :) i got the perfect little maternity dress for grad, as well as a new outfit for family day :) and then a few other maternity things i needed. I've finally reached a point in this pregnancy where i just can't squeeze myself into normal things anymore! Kind of pathetic that i had to be 31 wks along before i hit that point lol. but i suppose its better to be little than to be ginormous!

Caleb sounded really good when i talked to him :) that may have just been because he was excited to talk to me, but I'm just telling myself that its because he's happy to be there and enjoying himself. They had a super long week this last week, and next week is supposed to be very busy also. They got fitted for their berets and dress blue's! Caleb seemed a bit disappointed that they are wearing ACU's for grad, but I'm still excited either way to see him in uniform! :) They did a really long march, and got to learn how to infiltrate buildings and other fancy sounding stuff lol. even though he was busy all week, he sent me a letter! Caleb said there should be one on the way, but he didn't know when I'd get it. But he made it sound like he'd mailed it earlier in the week, so I'm hoping it gets here Monday! i would be so happy if it did! <3 i mailed him a letter nearly every day this last week. I had some drama that over-stressed me a ton the beginning of the week, and then the end i managed to wear myself out too a point of complete exhaustion, and a mental breakdown like i haven't had in ages was the result. But Caleb was very sweet and listened to me tell him about it on the phone yesterday, and he didn't lecture me or get annoyed. I'm sure he probably had more exciting things to tell me instead of listening, but that's still what he did. :) i sure love him!!!!!!

Two Calls In Less Than A Week!!!!!

wooo hooo! just got a short call from him :) only 5 minutes this time, but he said he passed his PT test yesterday! he wanted to let me know they are having a busy week this week, so he won't be able to write much, but he put some letters in the mail for me today. he sounded exhausted and homesick, but he said he was doing well. apparently its been raining there all day, so maybe that's a reason he was so down. crossing my fingers that a letter comes soon! <3

Finally a Phone Call!

Caleb got to call me on Thursday! He called at 4:45, and we got to talk for almost ten minutes! He sounded really good and i was so excited! i nearly put myself into labor because i couldn't calm down lol. He said he passed his rifle qualifications, and he was pretty confidant that he would do well on the PT test he had yesterday. I'm waiting anxiously to hear how it went. i don't think i will get to find out until the end of next week though. it usually takes 3 or 4 days to get letters. Thursday i got three :) and the last one was dated the 28th. I'm hopeful for another one tomorrow, but i don't want to be too disappointed if it doesn't happen. When i talked to him on the phone he said i can for sure drive him to AIT after Graduation, and he wants me to bring him his laptop and phone, and his phone charger :). i'm so excited! Less than 5 weeks left! :) i'm working right up until we go. My last day of work is going to be the 1st. i'm already counting down the days!

Letters Galore!

This last week i received 3 letters from Caleb! he has started writing me every day, even though he is incredibly busy with what little time he gets to himself every day. Getting letters more often is definitely helping this be a little easier on me :). The last letter i received was from the 20th, so i'm all caught up with what is happening except for this last week. He said that on the 17th he went to sick call because he has been so sick and it has been affecting training, but luckily its just a cold and they gave him medicine. He has already felt a lot of improvement since then! A young soldier died at Ft Jackson this last week from pneumonia, so i was relieved to hear that his illness was nothing too serious. Apparently his Company finally phased up to White Phase on the 19th! i had heard that they were having a rough time because so many of them were sick, but apparently they all pulled it together and they're now in their rifle phase! Caleb said he has an M16 he has to carry around everywhere and it weighs about 10 lbs. They got some new privileges with White Phase, like getting more time to eat, getting to ride the bus to church, and his favorite, getting to sing Cadence during Marches instead of  the usual left, right, left. Nothing too impressive, but priveldges are privileges, and he enjoys them :). I am hopeful for another letter tomorrow updating me on more! I try not to get too hopeful, but its hard not to some days.

Deanna and i got our reservations made for a hotel for graduation, and got a rental car reserved. We are getting very excited now that all the plans are being made. I'm supposed to be getting the Graduation Packet from Ft Jackson soon, and i'm excited to know all the information! i've been told they usually send them 30 days before graduation, and that last month will be starting in a little over a week! Can't wait for that final count down to start!

I have started buying things for our little Connor. I've only got the big things, because my Visiting Teachers are going to throw me a baby shower this next month, and they want to do it before i buy everything. So far i got his crib and changing table, and his bedding for the crib, and his stroller and car seat. but that's it :) i'm trying to remind myself that i still have two months, but time is going by so fast that i want to get it all ready!!! i suppose i'm starting to get just a little bit excited :). i'm probably going to sign up for a birthing class for this next month, and i'm going to go and tour the hospital i will be giving birth at. It's time for me to start making plans and it makes the end of this pregnancy seem like its flying by a million times faster than the beginning did!

An Update

I received a phone call from Caleb this Tuesday! It was a short call, about 5 minutes, but it was exactly what i needed! He didn't say much because he is sick, but he told me he is starting to recuperate and feel better, and that it won't be keeping him from graduating on time. :) Apparently there is a nasty flu bug going around his plt, and some people have come down with pneumonia. He said not to worry though, and that other than that he is doing well. And he told me he has sent me three letters recently, one of which i got yesterday in the mail! :) He apologized for not writing often enough, and i felt bad because i think i whined too much in my letters and made him feel guilty. i really need to work on that one! He told me that he did the Gas Chamber and that it was horrible, but i didn't get much details from him because he is so worn out from being sick. And i have also heard that they have just began White Phase! i didn't hear that from him, i heard it through the grapevine, but I'm pretty sure it is the truth. He is nearly 1/3 of the way done with BCT! Deanna and i bought our pane tickets for Graduation today! We're planning on making the remainder of the reservations this next week sometime so that we make sure to get what we want at a good rate. I'm very excited about it all. :)

I have been considering putting in my two week notice at work, but i decided last night to ask my Manager if we can cut back on my hours, and make it so that no one can pull me to other areas besides my own instead. I don't really want to stop working, i just can't handle it the way things are going right now. Something has to change, so i might as well try and see if they're willing before i quit. If they are willing to work with my request, then I'll continue to work up until my trip to Caleb's Graduation the beginning of April. If not, I'll be done by March. So, it looks like i will have to see what she says about it tonight at work.  I like having a job to keep my busy. but i also need some time to do the things that i need to do, and its hard not having Caleb here. So, I'm just going to have to see if they're willing to give-a-little to get-a-little.

Enduring On

This isn't fun. And it's not easy. I've gotten two letters... one on my birthday that was two sentences, and the other a few days before that. He sounds happy, but i just wish the mail didn't take so long! i mailed off his third package of letters today. I'm hoping he's recieved the first one by now. Patience is unfortunately not a quality i possess. The days drag by, and I try to remind myself to wait for a phone call or a letter, and not to be upset when they don't come. I know he is busy, and i KNOW that phone calls are a priveledge you have to earn. It's just not easy, and its not fun.

But, on the plus side, my Doctor has said that she will allow me to graduation in april! i'm cutting it really close, so i'm hoping and praying nothing happens to postpone it or i will be to far along in the pregnancy to be allowed to fly. I have started planning with Deanna, so that we can purchase tickets and make arrangements ASAP. i haven't recieved any information about it, everything i know i have found out by being a horrible stalker on the fort jackson page and the 3-34 facebook page! but i'm sure thats exactly what they are there for.

Caleb has been assigned to E Company 1st Platoon of the 3rd Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment, 165th BDE at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. As far as i know he is loving it, and everything he gets to do. I got the chance to see some pictures of his company at Victory Tower were they got to climb on ropes and all sorts of stuff. I have receieved word that they are starting First Aid and Land Navigation, and getting to go to the field now. I'm sure Caleb is doing wonderfully at it all. They call this part of training "Red Phase". It last until week three, and then he moves to White Phase, and three weeks after that is Blue Phase, then after that finally Graduation. It sounds like a long tiring process to me, but i know he is 100% optimistic about it all, he was so excited before he left to start it all! Lets just hope i can stay as optimistic as he is!