They're gone......

Well, my "little boy" and his family are gone. They took off around 1:30 this afternoon from Atlanta on that great, big airplane to go to the other side of the world. Literally -- to the other side of the world! Yep, Darrell, Denise, Nic, Jake, and Ryan left Ft. Leavenworth this morning and headed to Atlanta. Then, they took off for Korea. I spoke to Denise as the plane was getting ready to take off. I even heard the pilot talking in Korean. I'm trying to think happy thoughts right now so I won't worry about the flight.

When I spoke with Darrell last night, he was telling me about what a busy week they've been having. He had to get his truck sold, take Denise's vehicle to St. Louis for shipment to Korea -- which, of course left them without a vehicle. Jake fell and hit his two front teeth and had to go to the dentist -- everything was OK and the dentist said it would be OK for him to pull them if they got any looser. Well, of course, by the time Jake went to bed that night, the teeth were gone. He's such a funny kid! Nic has had an ear infection and Ryan has just been Ryan -- the little stinker! Then, Friday, they had to get the camper packed up and taken to Ft. Leavenworth for storage while they are gone. Then, they had to move into one of the cabins at Basswood for their last couple of nights. They've been so lucky to have found Basswood. It's a fabulous campgroud between Ft. Leavenworth and Kansas City and they've spent a lot of time there during this last year. And they've met some really good people while camping there on the weekends. About six weeks ago, they gave up their post housing and moved out there full time. What a great summer retreat for the kids. Swimming every day, lots of other kids around, cookouts every night -- sounds like a tough life, huh? Well, knowing that Darrell and family didn't have a vehicle to get them to the airport, a really great guy they met at Basswood arranged for a limo to pick them up at 6:00 this morning and get them to the plane. How cool is that! I know the boys were probably tickled about a limo ride. Talk about going out in style!

Well, anyway, as I sit here and type, they are flying over the United States on their way to Korea. Hope the flight is great for them all! This will be an exciting two years for them.