I got the phone call at 0450 that said, “Mrs. Rud, your husband is on his way home from Iraq.” Even though I had been expecting the phone call, it was a very crazy thing to hear. I asked where I needed to be and when and he said they would do a 2nd phone call once they had landed in Ramstein (30 mins from Baumholder) to tell when and where to be. Once they got to Ramstein the troops still had to drop off their weapon so it was still 2-3 hours from their landing time till they were at the Welcome Home ceremony. I got out of bed and didn’t really know what to do with myself after the phone call. I tried cleaning, but quickly found I really had nothing left to clean. So at 0515 decided to get the guacamole ready for Josh (that and whiskey were his two requests upon his return). After the guacamole I decided it was best to go into work for a couple hours .I knew that I needed to stay occupied otherwise the next few hours were going to go by very slowly. I got into work and after talking to a few people found out they had landed…very shortly after I got the call to be at the main gym at 11 am. I grabbed Jean (she wanted to come and see all the troops….she knew some of them pretty well since Lorintz was their Platoon Leader for the main part of the deployment) and we were off. Jean kept telling me that she was getting nervous for me. I surprisingly stayed very calm until they began clearing the children off the gym floor. “American Soldier” by Toby Keith started blasting and the 400 soldiers came marching into the gym. I spotted him and thought to myself that I had completely forgot how handsome he was. It was a pretty crazy moment….pretty sure it was the longest time my skin held goosebumps for. Afterwards, they played the German anthem followed by the American anthem. They said a pray, told the troops to be safe and released them. There were about 6 other people there to wish him a welcome back. A couple of my friends from work and a few of the other LT’s that he came in with. After we said hello, I introduced him to a lot of people (they had came from work to welcome them back and some other guys had friends coming in on the flight).
Once we got home, we sat on the couch and talked. It was pretty awesome because for the first time I could actually hear what he did everyday. While he was downrange he could not share very much with me….it drove me crazy. But hearing stories yesterday made it worth the wait. I will have to make him write a blog just so he can give you a little insight. Once we were done talking we went and made a drink, grabbed my tub of guacamole and went outside to a picnic table and played cribbage. He won both games…..and I was not a happy camper. Afterwards we came back here for a little bit, took a nap, snuggled a lot :) and talked some more. Later I walked him over to the neighbors to introduce him and then I took us on a drive. Germany is absolutely gorgeous right now.
I will admit that I didn’t think it would feel this great to have him back. I really did forget how in love with the bouy I was. I became pretty independent in these past 4 months but if that bouy were to leave me again tomorrow I would be right back at the 1st day of his deployment and feel like a lost little puppy. He makes me very happy and this whole crazy adventure of taking me to Germany had it’s highest point yesterday when I got to give him a hug….distance can do crazy things to one’s life! :)
So I had to let you all know that Joshua is home! I think I am the happiest I have been since being here....and for a while I didn't think life could get much better....yesterday, it did.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Only 1 more hour to live
Shawna left this last Saturday morning. We had a great night on Friday and the dancing shoes were on in full swing. We ended up grilling out at one of our friend's house and stayed out till about midnight. We were going to go out downtown but decided that since Shawna had to wake up at 4 am to drive her interns to the airport that we should call it a night. The goodbye did not get hard until she gave me a goodbye hug....then I kinda lost it and ran away from her really fast. I knew I would see her again in the morning but decided that I had to get my tears out before the next day came. I walked home (it was only a block away) and recovered myself. For some reason, I decided than that it was a good idea to go on facebook in order to occupy myself. I clicked on her wall and saw a message that Josh had posted on her wall. He thanked her for posting soo many pictures and if it wasn't for her he would have forgotten what I looked at, he than had to add that she would be missed. So thanks to Josh I completely lost it and decided after 5 mins of being pathetic in front of my computer that I was going to take a shower and go to bed. The next morning I woke up and called Shawna at 7 Am...she was bound to leave at 9. She didn't answer so I walked over to her place. We got to hang out for a couple hours before she left and then I decided to have everyone come to my house so that a lot of peops would be around. I let Collins walk her downstairs and I said my goodbye from the apartment. No tears were shed but the Shawna withdrawls kicked in before 24 hours. I will even confess that my gym workouts in the morning have definately became less productive. I got soo mad this morning at the gym because there were way too many soldiers there and all I wanted was Shawna to be running on the treadmill next to me. Needless to say I only did 15 mins on the treadmill before I said screw it and decided to walk home.....Shawna's officially in trouble for leaving Germany.
On a much brighter side, we are reintegrating over 1,000 soldiers this weekend. Josh included! This friday over 700 soldiers are coming into Baumholder, so Day 1 for them starts on Saturday. If Josh does not come in by Saturday than I will be working from 0800-1930. That means tons of comp time so an extra day to hang out with Josh when he gets home. :)
So I have this rule that no one in Germany can read my blog...I tell people that after they are gone I will give them access to it. So Shawna Paul, I hope you enjoy your reading time...and I hope no parts of it make you too sad...perhaps it will make you want to come back to Germany! :)
Hope you all are having a great week and if Josh get's home this weekend we will skype at some point!
Love,
Gretchen
Pss. We have a lot of new providers here and I helped one of the Docs do a mole removal yesterday. My friend in central appointments called me today informing me that she was having a couple of her moles removed today by the same doctor. I then got myself in trouble because I told her I had one I had been thinking about removing for a very long time....before I knew it I had an appointment right after hers to remove it. So basically I wanted to let you all know that I am going to die in an hour and I hope you all miss me very much. And don't worry I tend to never exaggerate....Josh that one was for you.
On a much brighter side, we are reintegrating over 1,000 soldiers this weekend. Josh included! This friday over 700 soldiers are coming into Baumholder, so Day 1 for them starts on Saturday. If Josh does not come in by Saturday than I will be working from 0800-1930. That means tons of comp time so an extra day to hang out with Josh when he gets home. :)
So I have this rule that no one in Germany can read my blog...I tell people that after they are gone I will give them access to it. So Shawna Paul, I hope you enjoy your reading time...and I hope no parts of it make you too sad...perhaps it will make you want to come back to Germany! :)
Hope you all are having a great week and if Josh get's home this weekend we will skype at some point!
Love,
Gretchen
Pss. We have a lot of new providers here and I helped one of the Docs do a mole removal yesterday. My friend in central appointments called me today informing me that she was having a couple of her moles removed today by the same doctor. I then got myself in trouble because I told her I had one I had been thinking about removing for a very long time....before I knew it I had an appointment right after hers to remove it. So basically I wanted to let you all know that I am going to die in an hour and I hope you all miss me very much. And don't worry I tend to never exaggerate....Josh that one was for you.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Next week!!!!???? :)
Next week towards the end...but not really the end...perhaps the day of the week starts with a "F" Josh should be arriving in Baumholder. The army loves to change things at the last minute so I am not swearing by that date but either way I am looking very forward to that day.
Just today another large flight got moved back a couple days so I will not be working at reintegration on Sunday...instead it will be on Monday. So that just shows how often all of these flights change.
Josh's mother was convinced that Josh would be home today, so on Tuesday I called Sargent Collin's (the head trainer here at the clinic) and asked if I could see the list. The list gets posted a few days before they come in. He called back and said he had it and I asked for 3 names...one being Josh's. None were on the list, so I knew in advance that Josh's mothers instincts were wrong...however, I will admit that this is one of the first times she has predicted something that has not turned out. Next time Mary :)
It's Jeans b-day today so a bunch of us are walking across the street after work here very shortly for dinner. Then it's one of Shawna's last nights so I will probably meet up with her later. I know I have said it before but she leaves this Saturday and I am very positive that some tears will be shed. If you guys are sitting around on Sunday you should all call me to cheer me up :).
We went to dinner with all the nurses last night and Col Scherr (the big boss) told us that after reintegration tomorrow we could have the afternoon off. So I decided to do Shawna's goodbye and Jean's b-day present all in one...so I scheduled 1 hour long massages for all three of us. I am soo super duper excited. Afterwards, hopefully we will do something fun for Shawna's last night.
Well I hope you all are having a great week!
Love you all millions trillions,
Gretchen
Just today another large flight got moved back a couple days so I will not be working at reintegration on Sunday...instead it will be on Monday. So that just shows how often all of these flights change.
Josh's mother was convinced that Josh would be home today, so on Tuesday I called Sargent Collin's (the head trainer here at the clinic) and asked if I could see the list. The list gets posted a few days before they come in. He called back and said he had it and I asked for 3 names...one being Josh's. None were on the list, so I knew in advance that Josh's mothers instincts were wrong...however, I will admit that this is one of the first times she has predicted something that has not turned out. Next time Mary :)
It's Jeans b-day today so a bunch of us are walking across the street after work here very shortly for dinner. Then it's one of Shawna's last nights so I will probably meet up with her later. I know I have said it before but she leaves this Saturday and I am very positive that some tears will be shed. If you guys are sitting around on Sunday you should all call me to cheer me up :).
We went to dinner with all the nurses last night and Col Scherr (the big boss) told us that after reintegration tomorrow we could have the afternoon off. So I decided to do Shawna's goodbye and Jean's b-day present all in one...so I scheduled 1 hour long massages for all three of us. I am soo super duper excited. Afterwards, hopefully we will do something fun for Shawna's last night.
Well I hope you all are having a great week!
Love you all millions trillions,
Gretchen
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Short Post
I just wanted to tell you all that yesterday was one of the cooler days of work I have had thus far in Germany.
We had our first day of reintegration for the soldiers and I have to admit I felt like a nurse during Pearl Harbor (well at least how the movie portrayed it). There was a lot a LOT of planning that went into this mission and I really can say that my heart is starting to grow for soldiers and what they do for our country....it was kinda a moment for me when I came to the realization that I love being on the nursing side of the military.
I went to work at 6:45 yesterday where myself, the headnurse and the immunization nurse where the ones sent to the reintegration site to do blood draws. The first group didn't come in till 0900 but we went over to the site to set up and make sure as many hiccups were out of the way before they arrived. Walking into the building was pretty neat. They set up this entire warehouse with different stations and things for these guys to do their medical portion. Roughly about a group of 300 soldier came in two days ago so the medical portion is Day 1 of reintegration for them. They have a total of 7 days of reintegration.
Once the guys arrived on bus, they marched into the warehouse where they were given a brief. Then the fun began. I did about 40 blood draws and there was only one that I could not get....opps. A lot of the guys were very dehydrated (from the jolly juice). It was a very busy and fun day.
Josh isn't expected back until the end of May. Although I talk to him almost every day via phone or email. He is all done and basically trying his best to keep his soldiers motivated (and to not get lazy) with PT.
I am very very excited for his return. I told him I am not drawing his blood when he gets back because I know he will be a punk. He said he would wait in line as long as he had....little does he know I'm the commander. :)
Well I had to tell you all about my day yesterday. The next reintegration day is this Sunday so I will be getting some comp time.
Love you all,
Gretchen
We had our first day of reintegration for the soldiers and I have to admit I felt like a nurse during Pearl Harbor (well at least how the movie portrayed it). There was a lot a LOT of planning that went into this mission and I really can say that my heart is starting to grow for soldiers and what they do for our country....it was kinda a moment for me when I came to the realization that I love being on the nursing side of the military.
I went to work at 6:45 yesterday where myself, the headnurse and the immunization nurse where the ones sent to the reintegration site to do blood draws. The first group didn't come in till 0900 but we went over to the site to set up and make sure as many hiccups were out of the way before they arrived. Walking into the building was pretty neat. They set up this entire warehouse with different stations and things for these guys to do their medical portion. Roughly about a group of 300 soldier came in two days ago so the medical portion is Day 1 of reintegration for them. They have a total of 7 days of reintegration.
Once the guys arrived on bus, they marched into the warehouse where they were given a brief. Then the fun began. I did about 40 blood draws and there was only one that I could not get....opps. A lot of the guys were very dehydrated (from the jolly juice). It was a very busy and fun day.
Josh isn't expected back until the end of May. Although I talk to him almost every day via phone or email. He is all done and basically trying his best to keep his soldiers motivated (and to not get lazy) with PT.
I am very very excited for his return. I told him I am not drawing his blood when he gets back because I know he will be a punk. He said he would wait in line as long as he had....little does he know I'm the commander. :)
Well I had to tell you all about my day yesterday. The next reintegration day is this Sunday so I will be getting some comp time.
Love you all,
Gretchen
Monday, May 4, 2009
Monkeys
Shawna leaves in less than two weeks....pretty sure that is not okay and should not be allowed. Luckily I will have Josh home soon after so he can try to console me....and the rest is left to Jean to handle. Okay, maybe I should man up too.
I went back to the flee market in Homberg this weekend. It was Shawna, myself, the Ota's (a doc from the clinic and her husband) and Collins (a medic at the clinic). We had an absolute blast and even stopped at a field of flowers on the way home to take pictures....then we went to a local tavern for one drink. Later that night we went to Jeans and for some reason I had an extra pair of dancing shoes on....all I wanted to do was dance so a lot of people sat around and watched while I tried to get them up to dance. Pretty sure that word around the clinic today is that I am a really good dancer...okay maybe more that I get an "E" for effort....not sure what it is about wine and my feet....but some nights they love love each other.
I told everyone at the party on Saturday night that I was the better looking of the two...(between Josh and I)....someone asked on a scale what he was...coolness factor and looking wise compared to Lorintz (Jean's husband). I told the group that he was really not that cool or good looking and that I married him to make myself feel better about myself. One of the medics there was the guy who gave Josh his predeployment shots called me out on the spot. He stated that he disagreed and questioned if I hands down won the good looking contest. Not only did I question is masculinity but told him that his wife was the better looking of his family. :). K, so maybe I got a little fiesty but it was all in good fun after the subject was laid to rest.
Redeployment starts this wednesday. The head nurse and myself are heading down there for day 1. I actually can't wait...I even got to go to the lab for part of the morning to practice drawing blood. It's going to be a mad house and maybe I won't be excited for too long but the anticipation of what it will be like is really getting me. :)
I'm trying to think about what other cool things I can tell you all....but I should probably get back to work. Josh will be home in a couple weeks here...Jean and I even made signs yesterday for their return. He might not like them as much as I do bc the word "Monkey" may have made an appearance at least once.....:) (he pretends that he hates monkeys because I love them so much...he has even made it a point in each letter I have received from him to state in the ps. "die monkeys die")....oophta...still manage to love the bouy.
Oh yes, I know what other thing I need to tell everyone is that I got an email from Joelle this morning stating that she was now an auntie! Dane's sister had a baby boy two nights ago and they named it Reece clayton....I thought that was pretty cute. She said that Dane looked pretty precious holding a little babe. I tried to tell Joelle to pass the word onto Dane that it was not possible until I got to the same state as them. :)
K, I'm off now! Hope everyone had a great weekend!!
Truly,
Gretchen
I went back to the flee market in Homberg this weekend. It was Shawna, myself, the Ota's (a doc from the clinic and her husband) and Collins (a medic at the clinic). We had an absolute blast and even stopped at a field of flowers on the way home to take pictures....then we went to a local tavern for one drink. Later that night we went to Jeans and for some reason I had an extra pair of dancing shoes on....all I wanted to do was dance so a lot of people sat around and watched while I tried to get them up to dance. Pretty sure that word around the clinic today is that I am a really good dancer...okay maybe more that I get an "E" for effort....not sure what it is about wine and my feet....but some nights they love love each other.
I told everyone at the party on Saturday night that I was the better looking of the two...(between Josh and I)....someone asked on a scale what he was...coolness factor and looking wise compared to Lorintz (Jean's husband). I told the group that he was really not that cool or good looking and that I married him to make myself feel better about myself. One of the medics there was the guy who gave Josh his predeployment shots called me out on the spot. He stated that he disagreed and questioned if I hands down won the good looking contest. Not only did I question is masculinity but told him that his wife was the better looking of his family. :). K, so maybe I got a little fiesty but it was all in good fun after the subject was laid to rest.
Redeployment starts this wednesday. The head nurse and myself are heading down there for day 1. I actually can't wait...I even got to go to the lab for part of the morning to practice drawing blood. It's going to be a mad house and maybe I won't be excited for too long but the anticipation of what it will be like is really getting me. :)
I'm trying to think about what other cool things I can tell you all....but I should probably get back to work. Josh will be home in a couple weeks here...Jean and I even made signs yesterday for their return. He might not like them as much as I do bc the word "Monkey" may have made an appearance at least once.....:) (he pretends that he hates monkeys because I love them so much...he has even made it a point in each letter I have received from him to state in the ps. "die monkeys die")....oophta...still manage to love the bouy.
Oh yes, I know what other thing I need to tell everyone is that I got an email from Joelle this morning stating that she was now an auntie! Dane's sister had a baby boy two nights ago and they named it Reece clayton....I thought that was pretty cute. She said that Dane looked pretty precious holding a little babe. I tried to tell Joelle to pass the word onto Dane that it was not possible until I got to the same state as them. :)
K, I'm off now! Hope everyone had a great weekend!!
Truly,
Gretchen
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