Santa Baby

Well, today was a big day. After church Rob and I took Olivia to visit Santa... the first of many trips. She did wonderful and we got some great photos. We visited the local Santa in Smyrna, and it was in the cutest little house... which typically serves as the welcome center. Families are allowed to take as many pictures as they like with their own cameras, which is why we chose this one. They accept donations for the pictures they take. The one they took actually turned out great also, but we were concerned with her only being 4 1/2 months it might take a few to make a great pic. Here are the favorites from the day. Merry Christmas family and friends!!

Yummy

O has started eating cereal and I thought I would share some great photos with you from that experience. She is doing really great with that... before long... pizza. lol

Sweet Daddy

Here are the pictures I promised. Our internet is finally up and working. Rob has adjusted beautifully and jumped right in wherever he's needed. He's even been changing his share of diapers, although he has alot to catch up : ),

He's back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I will definitely post some beautiful pictures of Rob with Olivia later in the week... assuming my internet at home gets fixed. However, I wanted to let everyone know that Rob has arrived safely in Georgia. He and I got to spend yesterday together. He is extremely exhausted because of the time change and spending so much time in travel, but he is wonderful and safe. He will now be in Augusta, Georgia for some time (don't really know yet). That is only about two hours from Olivia and I, so we should get to spend this weekend together and definitely Christmas. I know that isn't much but for those that check this I thought you all would like to get some good news! Great news!

CRAZY DAYS

Needless to say, this weekend has been a stress filled weekend in which I have anxiously awaited a call from Rob saying he is getting on a plane headed to me an O in Georgia. For many of you that I have your cell, I texted you on Saturday morning bright and early to pray for a safe trip since that is when Rob left Camp Bucca, Iraq. However, it is now Monday morning and I still await my hubby. I have received several calls in the past couple of days saying he would arrive at "this" time and no Rob. Even this morning, I was awoken by a phone call at 1 a.m. still fairly certain that I would get to pick him up later today.... then at 3 a.m. that too was dissolved. So, now ... I even hesitate to let you all know that I may or may not get to pick Rob up sometime early this week. If all goes as planned, he will be allowed to stay with us in Smyrna for the evening of arrival. Then he will return to Augusta, Georgia for his final round of training or de-training.. whatever you want to call it. So if I fail to return calls or texts it is purely out of exhaustion and disappointment with the unknown. I am SO EXCITED to greet my wonderful husband and for Olivia to slobber all over her daddy, but I am also quite the pessimist with the roller coaster I have been on for the past three days. Still continue to pray that his final journey home is that of a safe one and that our day together goes by slowly.

Olivia has definitely found her voice.

Thought I would post a little clip of her talking to us. Of course she isn't screaming nearly as much as she does when the camera is off... but you get the picture. Rob and I were talking on the phone the other day and he couldn't get over how loud she was. She is very vocal, especially when she first wakes up in the morning. It's really exciting to see her becomming such a sweet little girl.

All packed up and Ready for KY

We made the six hour drive and thankfully my little cousin Madyson rode with us. She is 8 and really helped with entertaining Olivia on the ride home. We just took our time.. stopped at Cracker Barrel and ate... then finally arrived home about 11:20 Georgia time. Of course, Olivia woke right up to greet Mom and Jim... then off to bed she went. I really couldn't have asked for a more wonderful little girl.

Rob's New Ride

I meant to post a picture for those of you that want to see Rob's new car, but I keep forgetting.... So better late than never. Here it is. He picked it out online.. basically did all the negotiating online.. all I pretty much had to do was go to the dealership and sign for it. We really love it! It's the perfect combination of truck for Rob, but it has great gas mileage and Olivia fits right in. I can't wait for him to get home to really enjoy it. Sorry it's dark outside, but you get the general idea.

SHE DID IT!!!

For those of you that saw my little video yesterday of O trying so hard to roll over.. SHE DID IT! She fought tonight until she made it from her back to her belly... then actually to her back again. As I write this I am so excited for her, but thinking... wow this is going to make things so much wilder for me once she becomes more mobile. I also watched the video again tonight and thought I should probably note that the nature sounds are from that little playmat for those of you that aren't familiar. I laughed because it sounds like I am having her roll over in the middle of the woods somewhere : ). These pictures are from tonight when she was so proud of herself for being on her belly. She kept tucking her arms back to her side so she totally looked like she was flying. It was really funny to see, but even now when I look at these pictures it still cracks me up.

Getting so close to being a complete family...

November has officially begun and that means that this is the last full month that Rob will be in Iraq. I can't believe this time is almost over... I am feeling so relieved already. Olivia is wonderful... she rarely ever cries or fusses... but I am going to take a serious nap once Rob returns. : ) He is on diaper duty for a few weeks.

He and I were talking tonight on webcam and he got to see her laying on her belly holding her head high. and proud (and wobbly). She so desparetly wants to roll and scoot, but we are not quite there. She has rolled from her belly to her back, just once. But I give her another week or two and she will be flipping from side to side. Just in time to head to KY for Thanksgiving.

She is definitely becomming so aware of everything. She reaches and grabs for all of her toys. She loves her new exersaucer. Lately she has ever been helping during time to dress by holding her legs for mommy.. it's so sweet!

I am attaching pictures. One of her on Halloween. I have no idea why this picture is sideways.. I can't seem to turn it around?? Anyway... we went to trunk or treat and it was super cold... so basically she was dressed as a beautiful cat in a blanket and a hat... but we still had fun serving popcorn to our community. The other pictures were taken this weekend when my mom and sister came to visit. I hope you all enjoy them.

My Family

Hey family and friends, it has been a minute since I last posted on here, for that I am sorry. Are Summer and I blessed or what? Wow I cannot pull myself away from my laptop long enough to accomplish anything over here because all I can do is stare at pics of Summer and Olivia. I am so amazed by all of this. On a different note, I am expecting to see you guys very soon. I say that in a way that compares it to how long I have already been gone. I am not for certain when I am coming home I just know it will be soon. And to be honest I cannot really write it on this blog or I might get in a little bit of hot water. However, I do promise you this we will make a bee line straight to Kentucky when I do. I love you all and I thank you for the awesome support that we have received the last 10 months.

Rob

2 months old today!!!

Olivia is two months old, so I thought I would post some cute new pictures of her in one of her halloween outfits today. She has some especially crazy hair today... she is working a mohawk... but I love it!

Back to School

I have completed my first week back to school. My students were all so great.. I love my job... BUT this past week has been SOOOO hard. I just wish I could take her to work with me. It was hard every morning to leave her with our sitter and yet again I dread tomorrow for that same reason. I always feel relieved in the afternoon to know that everything has gone well and I can only assume that as time passes it will get easier and easier.

Olivia has grown so much. I had to put away some of her newborn clothes this past week also. That was bittersweet. All of her little newborn pants still fit her waist, but they were starting to look like capris. Now the 3 months fit her in length, but she needs them to be drawstring.

We got to talk to Rob for a long time on webcam today and he got to see her smile and laugh alot and he noticed how squirmy she is. When she is awake, she is definitely moving. She has also started to keeps her hands open alot, which is new. It's crazy the things you notice when you have a baby. I have never paid so much attention to such things as her little clinched fists.... or going to the bathroom... or how much weight she is gaining. By the way... she is also blowing little bubbles with her mouth and starting to slobber a little, so I am guessing that sooner than later a tooth may pop out.

So 8 weeks has past and if there is one thing that I can say about the past eight weeks it is that I have developed a whole new respect for single parents. I have been pulled in so many directions and stretched beyond what I thought was possible and yet I can go to sleep (well sometimes) at night knowing that I only have to do this for a short while.... then my husband/daddy will come home to be such a huge help. And there are so many moms out there that do now have that hope for one reason or another... I cannot even imagine. Like I said, a whole new respect.

Love you all.

Her First Professional Pictures

Here are Olivia's first professional pictures. She was two weeks old when we had these made. Rob and I are so proud of them. He says he cannot stop looking at them.. which is just too sweet. Our friend Kelly Kendall, from Kentucky, took them. She is the same friend who did our wedding photography and we were very happy with her then too. For those of you in Kentucky, here is her web address in case you have any need for professional pictures done. She is good at what she does and is very sweet to. http://www.seredipityphotography4t.com/

What An Incredible Month!!!

Today Olivia is one month old and I cannot hardly believe it. It has gone by so fast and it has been amazing. She is such a good little girl and for whatever sleep I have lost.. it is so worth it. Today we went to her 1 month check up. The doctor says that she is growing and healthy. She now weighs 9.6 pounds and is 21 3/4 inches long. She has already outgrown some of her newborn pjs, but in the length. When she stretches, she was about to kick the little feet out. She has also started to coo a little and is so smiley. It just gives me such an overwhelming feeling to hear these sweet little noises.

I am been very blessed to have gotten to spend these past three weeks with my family. It has definitely helped to get adjusted to having a newborn. Rob was very relieved that I had so much help also. The thing that I am the most nervous about is heading back to school at the end of September. For anyone that knows me at all, probably knows that I am not a huge morning person. I have trouble enough getting to work on my own, so this should be interesting trying to get me and her ready for the day. So pray for that transition.

Rob has been getting to see her several times a week through our web cam. I know that is nothing like the real thing, but thank God for technology and what we do have. I CANNOT wait until he is home, but I know that these next couple of months will go back quickly and we are just hoping he is home for Christmas.

This picture was just taken on her one month birthday. I have been trying to upload video to this, but haven't quite figured that out yet... so keep on the lookout. Love you all.

Almost 1 Week

I have finally taken the minute that I wanted to blog a little about this wonderful new experience with our little girl. The one word that keeps popping in my head is ... Unbelieveable. I just feel like I cannot look at her enough, can't kiss her enough, cannot believe that God is so good, and cannot even hardly write this without tears. She is actually laying on the bed in front of me as I type making the sweetest little sleeping noises. Even now, I find it hard to put into words what is going on in my head about this past week.

I will tell you that Rob and I have had some funny times this week also. Diaper changing has been my favorite time of the day. I felt like I had changed my share of diapers before her... at least enough to know what I am doing... but you wouldn't know it. The first diaper was night one hours after she was born. We had already had an exhausting day to say the least. So, exhausted, Rob lays her at the foot of my bed and we began. We both put the new diaper on and after we were complete, I held her up to get ready to feed and just had to laugh at how ridiculous we had done. It was barely on.. sideways.

More diapers... She loves to wait until the diaper is off and that warm wipe hits her toosh to pee. (Thanks April, Olivia loves the wipe warmer.) Which means we have changed her clothes several times along with her diaper. And then yesterday was the best. We have smartened up to the open air peeing, but could never had prepared for what was about to happened. Since we are doing pretty much everything as a team at this point, we both got to experience this. As I was preparing to put the new diaper under her booty, she decides she's not done and shoots out a little mess about a foot away.... over the table and onto the floor. Rob was about to die.. and I could not stop laughing. I know that's alot of info.. but it was priceless.

So there you go. Our first week summed up in diapers. Olivia is now our little miss poopy pants. And we love her more than either of us ever thought possible. I am posting a couple cute pictures from our first week at home. I hope that you enjoy this and thank you for loving us and our new little beauty.

SUPERNATURAL CHILDBIRTH

Supernatural Childbirth.....those are the only words that I can think of to explain the wonderful blessing God has given us. Olivia was born on August 9th 2008 at 8:26 PM. She weighed 7 pounds and 12 ounces and she was 20 and a quarter inches long. What an amazing event Saturday was. Summer was absoulutely amazing during the active labor and delivery. She had Olivia naturally just like she had set out to do. Summer is working on a full recovery and I am floored daily by her strength and determination.

Olivia is doing awesome. She is so beautiful. She just sleeps, eats, goes to the bathroom, and makes the cutest sounds all day. I can hardly give Olivia up to mommy. I just want to hold her all day long. Ohh and she smells so good. I put her down and I can smell Olivia on me. It is so cool. Sleep is getting better. Summer and I are working together so that we can give each other some time to get sleep in when she lets us. I cannot wait to return home from Iraq so I can resume my daddy duties. Keep us in your prayers and love on Olivia as much as you can.

Rob,

The Bags are Packed!

So, I have one week to go. I know that some of you are interested in seeing how big my belly has grown. This picture was just taken today. I have truly been blessed with a wonderful pregnancy. Besides a SUPER active little girl, everything has been perfect.

Rob should be home some time this weekend. I spoke with him (barely) this afternoon and all I really know is that he has left Camp Bucca and is in route to Atlanta..... somewhere. The arrival time is yet to be known. We are praying for a safe smooth flight above all else. I have told Olivia she only has to wait a couple more days and then she is welcome at any time. : )

I will go to the doctor tomorrow and after the examination we will discuss an induction date, just in case she needs a little help. My doctors are all very willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that Rob gets to spend plenty of time with our new little girl.

Hopefully, my next blog will be a picture of our beautiful little girl. We love you all and are thankful for all your prayers.

Getting So Close!!!

So on Thursday, I will only have two more weeks until my delivery date. Obviously, the delivery date is only an estimate but either way we are getting very close. My doctor says everything looks great and she anticipates little Olivia to weigh between 7 and 7 1/2 pounds... which I think would be perfect.

Rob will be leaving Iraq in 10 days, to arrive home a couple of days after that time depending upon the flight schedules and weather. So pray there are no sand storms there so that he has no delays. We are both so exciting to see one another and to meet this little girl. Everything I have read tells me that Olivia should be a little less active at this point due to the lack of space, but I am not sure she got that memo. People (including the midwives) are amazed at how visibly my belly moves from side to side. It's actually pretty crazy! As I have told many of you, she definitely appears hyper like her daddy.


I also completed a series of classes on childbirth this past weekend. I actually found them pretty interesting. It wasn't like I learned much new information, but I did learn it all at a more practical point in my life. I definitely wish that Rob could have been there with me. He has been getting my cliff notes version for the past couple of days. : ) My friend Leslie was my support person for the classes. I think she is also very excited to see Rob come home, so that she can be relieved of such a nerve-wrecking experience.

I am attaching some pictures of her room, just so that you all may see her stuff. I haven't hung the wall art yet, but I will get to that this week..... or at least that is my plan. I have yet to go and pick up the rocker, just because carrying/unloading such things isn't super easy right now. So that may be something Rob and I do together when he arrives home. I also took a picture of her closet, because it is UNREAL how many clothes she has at this point. What you see in the picture are only sizes below 6 months (not including onesies). She has the entire other side of the closet filled with larger sizes!!


I know it's been a while... but that is what has been going on with us. I keep meaning to get someone to take a picture of me and my big belly, but I always forget. So maybe within the next week, I will get some belly pictures posted. I hope all of you are doing great. We love and miss everyone.

Only 7 Weeks Left

Well, I am definitely growing. I feel like every week I can really tell a difference in how big she's growing. Tomorrow I will be 33 weeks. I have had two wonderful showers and have gotten so many great gifts. Olivia has about 50-60 cute little outfits. I am pretty sure I will have to change her at least twice a day in order for her to wear everything.

She is still very active. She gets especially active when I get ready to go to bed. I don't really know if that is a good sign for our future sleep. : ) Rob and I are counting down the days until he comes home. There isn't very much longer now. He should be arriving around the first of August. So please be praying that she isn't too early or too late.

For those of you that have sent packages. Thanks so much! He has really enjoyed recieving those. The address is in a previous blog if you are interested. There is a church here in Atlanta that has kinda adopted his unit and has 30 boxes on their way. He was teasing the guys about how he was getting so much stuff since it is coming in his name, but it's really for everyone.

What's Up

Hey guys...Sorry it's been a while since I last posted a comment, but the internet has a ton of firewall protections here and it took a while to get around them. So I moved out of the tents and into a 3 person pod. They call them pods here..they are metal trailors anywhere else. They are much nicer than the tents that is for sure. It's like staying at the motel six and getting upgraded to the Ritz Carlton. I went from having 65 roommates in the tent to only have 2 roommates now. So life is good. Time is flying by it's hard to believe we have been here for almost 3 months now. It is a topic of conversation almost daily. The heat is getting worse today the thermometer showed 125 and that was as high as the thermometer would go. Dust storms are crazy here also. We have only had one bad one and a few small ones. The entire sky turns a bright orange, it is a real sight. Olivia will be here soon it is hard to believe that in 2 months Summer and I will be holding our little baby. Well I must go I thank you guys for all your thoughts and prayers. Don't forget to call and encourage Summer in these two months of her pregnancy. I love you all.

"Above all others a soldier prays for peace, for it is he that must bear the scars and wounds of war" GEN. MacArthur

Bigger Belly... Less hair

So, it looks at though I am finally growing a belly. I am looking more pregnant instead of just chubby. : ) As you can see, I also cut my hair on Friday. I had decided almost a year ago that I wanted to grow it out and donate it to the American Cancer Society. On Friday, I finally had the 8 inch requirement, so off it came. I am very relieved. My beautician joked about how typically she would never cut a pregnant woman's hair in a drastic way, but she knew my intentions pre-pregnancy. She asked me several times if I was going to freak out or anything. Kinda made me laugh.

Overall, I feel really good. Olivia is VERY active!! She definitely takes after her dad. I had my glucose test a couple of weeks ago and everything was normal from that. I have started having more regular visits. I believe that after this visit next week, I will start going every other week. I will also go on a tour of the hospital this Sunday with one of my close friends here in Atlanta. Thanks Leslie!!

Rob is good. We get to talk almost every day. We even get to see one another on the computer some and that makes this so much easier. He is getting quite a tan and has lost some weight from the heat. He seems in very good spirits and is very anxious to come home for leave in August. As am I ready to see him. Thanks for all your support.

Sooo Hot

Hey friends and family. Sorry about the delay in getting a new post on here. I have been pretty busy as of late and things are starting to heat up here. So about the weather. Hot. Today the heat reached 115 degrees. Pretty much the only way to combat the heat is to sit inside the office all day until around 6:30 or so then venture out of your cubicle and embrace the night. Other than the heat, things here are good. I have a pretty easy job that has a relatively low stress factor. My job is to supply my company with all the equipment necessary to function on a daily basis. It is not the most glamorous job, but it keeps me safe and usually out of the heat. The meteorologist here on post said that last year the high temp was 149. Are you serious? That is crazy to me.
I hope all of you back at home are doing well. The reports coming in are saying that this WILL be a nine month mission and we should return home safely by December or January. For us that is great news. I hope that you are keeping Summer, Olivia and I in your prayers. They have church services here so I have been attending those. They aren't like the ones back home, but the word is still the same wherever you go. I think I am going to start working on a project while I am here. I spoke with a couple of the Chaplains and I am going to make a video on how soldiers worship over here. Hopefully I will have enough footage and pictures to put it together by the end of June. So keep this project in your prayers also. Well anyways I love you all and I can't wait to see you.
Rob

Rob Has Arrived Safely

Hey guys. I wanted to let you all know that Rob has safely arrived in Iraq. When I spoke with him today, he assures me that this next year will be a "piece of cake." That is his way of saying that it is totally safe and he feels confident that all will go smoothly. He was told that the only time they will have to leave the camp is when they are coming home for leave and when they leave for good. Not leaving camp is a positive thing to ensure his safety. Travel is when most soldiers encounter danger.

As of right now, he is living in a huge, air conditioned tent with many soldiers. They will have to stay in those tents until they can make room for his unit to have better facilities, probably at least a month or so. He said that the military is offering many activites for the soldiers to occupy what free time they are given. Tonight, there was a line dancing event. Needless to say, I don't think that Rob was going to that one. : ) He sounded in great spirits and very encouraged to know that in just three short months he would be back in Georgia to hold his new baby girl.

I feel very blessed at this point, the pregnancy has been smooth sailing. At 25 weeks, I am now starting to show a little more. Still not much of a belly, but it's definitely growing. She is kicking up a storm and you can even see my belly bounce with her little movements. It's definitely an unusual experience!

Below is the address if you would like to send Rob mail in Iraq. Thanks for all your continuous thoughts and prayers. We are so grateful for all the support.

Rob Hathcock
278th MP Co.
Camp Bucca, Iraq
APO AE 09375

IRAQ...HERE I COME

Well my time here in the states is over. I have been officially notified that I will be crossing the pond tommorow. I have a little bit of mixed feelings and some anxiety,but it is what it is. My time here at FT.DIX has been a very pressing and somewhat bittersweet. I have met some really awesome people here and as much as I loathe New Jersey I will miss some of it. The 18 hour days I will not, but like I said there are some really good people here. I don't know when I will be able to post another message, it may be a few days or so. The flight will be about 24 hrs or so because of a long layover in Germany. So i plan to occupy my time with sleep and dvd's. Support Summer and Olivia as much as possible while I am gone. I know tommorow will be really rough on her. One last thing.....An old veteran stopped me at the Gas station on post to thank me for what I do. He asked me how i feel about going over there to protect someone else's country. I told him it is my duty to do so. He then told me to trust none of them. I immediately remembered a quote I recently heard, "Your wrong if you think the joy of life comes principally from human relationships. GOD has placed joy all around us. It is in everything and anything GOD has given us. People just need to change the way we look at things." I think this is a very profound statement and it is very applicable to what is going over there. The people of Iraq will let me down I am sure. But the joy GOD is going to give to me while I am in country will never let me down. I love you all.

IRAQ....Not Just Yet

What's up friends and family. So my whole company left on the 25th and myself and one other soldier are staying behind. Not for good, but we loaded about 3 million dollars of cargo and I have been chosen to stay behind until the plane gets here to pick myself and the cargo up. So it will be another 10 days or so...which I have no problem with. So I am doing what every good soldier would do when they have no commander to boss you around..sleeping. I wake up when I am no longer tired and I go to bed when I am tired. Yesterday I was really bored so I played a round of golf. It has been a wonderful blessing. It's two less weeks I will be in Iraq. And that will always is a good thing.
As you can see Summer, Olivia, and I had the most wonderful time in Philadelphia. Wow..What an awesome city. We tried to do everything we possibly could and it still was a long 4 days. Olivia started Kung Fu fighting in Summer's belly and I felt her for the first time. It was such a powerful event in my life as well as Summer's. It was really special. If you guys can think of anything I can do here on Ft.Dix to pass the time I would love some suggestions. I am really that bored. Well any ways I love you all very much and thank you for your support and prayers.
Rob

Our trip to Philadelphia

We loved this city and had a wonderful week! Thankfully it went by very slow and we got to do alot. Our hotel was right in the middle of everything which made it very easy to walk from place to place.

On Monday night, Rob got to feel Olivia move... which was so exciting. She definitely got excited at the sound of his voice. We also bought her some new clothes (our first purchase). Some of the cutest little blue jeans that are so tiny.

As far as Philly goes, we did just about all we could. We saw the tomb of the unknown soldier, which was Rob's favorite. We visited the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. It was really moving to think that our founding fathers walked where we stood. We also visited the Eastern State Penitentiary. That was rather interesting. Apparently it is said to be haunted, but thankfully we saw no evidence. It was a pretty creepy place. We ate at some wonderful places and went to see "The Odd Couple" at what is said to be the oldest theatre in the United States.

Needless to say, it was a great week. So the next four months should be wild. I will growing very large and Rob will get to come back at the end of July/first of August to see this beautiful little girl join our family. We are just trying to stay very positive and take things one day at time. He has about two weeks before he arrives in Iraq and I will post again when that occurs. Until then, words that we have learned to live by... don't sweat those things that we cannot change. God has this under control!

It's a Girl!!!

I went to the doctor yesterday for my half way check up and we found out that we are having a baby girl. Here is her picture. I hope that you all have no trouble identifying her. I know that sometimes these pics are hard to see. It is her little face profile. What you may think is her arm is actually her leg. She had them very drawn to her and crossed at the ankles. One of her arms is to her side and the other is tucked behind her head.

According to the doctors, everything is looking great. She is measuring exactly where she is supposed to be. I believe she is about 6 inches from the tip of her head to the bottom of her booty. Rob and I are both very excited. He has been wanting a little girl from the beginning, so he screamed the announcement out to his entire unit when I called. She is already definitely as active as her dad, that is for sure. My due date is set for August 7. Just in time to not start the regular school year.

As far as changes with Rob, he is moving into the barracks today and out of the tents. That means more room and regular bathrooms. Needless to say, he is very excited. A whole new battalion showed up at Ft. Dix, so I guess they get the wonderful tents now. I will be spending the week with him in Philadelphia soon. His ship out date is set for March 25/26, but who really knows. So much changes with the military on a regular basis. Thanks for all your prayers and support thus far. It is so obvious that God's hand is at work here.

Look at that snow!

I just got this picture from Rob's first sergeant and I thought everyone would like to see what the weather looks like in New Jersey. It snowed four inches last night. Fortunately, they actually had some time to relax today and get laundry done. I believe they were all very thankful they didn't have to work outside in this snow.

Good Morning

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. There hasn't been much change, but I did get some pictures from Rob that can show you just exactly where he has been living since January. From what we have been told his living conditions will be much better in Iraq. In Jersey, Rob is roomed with 12 other men and you can see in very close quarters. I just spoke with him this morning. At this point, we are getting to talk every day. He stays VERY busy, working most days at least 12-15 hours. BUT he says he loves his job! I will get to visit him in mid march. He is actually stationed about 45 minutes from Philadelphia, so I am going there to meet him for a week. Neither of us have ever been so we are looking forward to seeing all the things that Philadelphia has to offer. I am sure Rob will love it, because of all the historical aspects. As far as baby updates, I will go for an ultrasound the first week of March. Hopefully the baby will wiggle around so we can find out if we are having a boy or a girl. That is about all for now. I hope that you all are having a wonderful week and we look forward to hearing from you.

It's Me Again

Hey guys. When I am not playing army or planning the next weeks activities, sometimes I get a little time to myself. So I am going to take this time to tell you how things are here. Things here are starting to fall into place. I have established a daily routine, so that helps a lot to not get frustrated when things aren't going your way. I also went to a gas chamber where our company was gased with CS gas. It's not that bad, it's a strong skin irritant that smells bad and burns your skin when exposed. They told us that the purpose of the training was to instill confidence in our gas mask, but between us, I could think of a hundred of other ways to do that. This week we have been slammed with training events, everything from land navigation to combat life saving skills. So it has been very busy, but great training. Conditions here are still a little rough, an hour in the cold you can't feel anything after that anyways. We are anticipating a month a half more or so. So not to much longer. I really miss getting the oppurtunity to hang out with all you. I hope you guys are keeping Summer and I in your prayers. Well until next time, love you all and have a blessed day.

I'm here....

Hey guys so I am here at Ft. Dix and it is not fun. I surely miss the comforts of home. Things here are a little rough, but I am trying to stay as positive as possible. The showers are so far away from our tent. So when I am done in the shower I have to walk in the freezing cold back to my tent and boy is it cold. Soldiers are only allowed to use porta-johns. So if you have to go to the bathroom at night you have to leave your tent and walk to a porta-potty. Not fun. The internet and the cell phone signals are a little spotty, but it is working. Other than that it's not bad. Did i mention how cold it is in New Jersey? I hope that you guys reading this are calling Summer and encouraging her. This is really rough on the both of us and we need your prayers like the desert needs the rain.( Just a little play on words) Anyways I hope you guys are doing well and I will talk soon. Have a blessed day and I miss all of you.

New Jersey

I wanted to let you all know that I dropped Rob off this morning in Augusta. He called me right before he got on the plane. He will be in Ft. Dix, New Jersey until sometime in March. They have not yet given a specific date for leaving the country. That is just how the military does things. If you would like to send something to him while he is in New Jersey, here are the addresses.

For letters:
SSG Hathcock 7047
MRB/Co. Alpha/ BLDG 5641
278th MP CO.
Ft. Dix, NJ 08640

For Packages: (UPS, Fed Ex, DHL only)
SSG Hathcock 7047
MRB/ Co. Alpha/ BLDG. 6038
278th MP CO
Ft. Dix, NJ 08640

I am not really sure why there are different addresses, but this is what I was given. Remember he still has daily internet access while he is at Ft. Dix, so if you would like to post he is checking this regularly. Thanks for all your prayers. We are very grateful for our wonderful family and friends. You all make this so much easier than it would be without you!!!