Captain!

Matt pinned on Captain yesterday! I couldn't be more proud of him and everything that he's accomplished during his four (!) years of active duty service in the Air Force. Here's to many more!

He had a very nice promotion ceremony which included a nice speech by Matt's commander, the publishing of his promotion orders, me pinning his new rank onto his uniform, and his commander reissuing the oath of office. Then Matt gave a wonderful thank you speech in which he also shared some feelings about being part of the United States military. Matt considers it a great privilege to serve our country, and I'm so proud to have a husband who does not take that calling lightly. We are so grateful to be Americans and to be an Air Force family.

Fancy

A couple Tuesdays ago, Matt was voluntold to be the MC for his wing's annual awards banquet. The banquet was that Friday, so with three day's advance notice, let's just say I was grateful I already had a fancy formal gown hanging in my closet! Friday came and the babysitter took over and we fancied up and headed to the banquet. I've felt a little less connected to our military lives lately since we live off base in a very "civilian" setting, so it felt so nice and at home to be back in the military culture surrounded by uniforms and traditions and the patriotism that we hold so dear. Matt did a fantastic job, the food was delicious, and the speaker was both impressive and inspiring. It was a wonderful evening.

My mom originally made this dress for the Air Force Ball in 2010 and I also wore it to the 2012 Critics' Choice Awards. I'm normally not a big fan of rewearing formals, but I'm so in love with this dress that I love any chance to dress up and put it on. (The fact that it just happens to be the color of the year for 2013 is an added bonus, right? Emerald is the best kind of color.)

I snuck this phone picture super quick. He's so good in front of an audience.

Falcons, friends and family

Jake braved the freezing cold at his first football game this weekend!

We were super excited to go to the Air Force vs. Navy game back at Matt's old stomping grounds in Colorado Springs. Not only was this Jake's first football game altogether, but it was mine and Matt's first time together in Falcon Stadium -- Matt was always on the field while I was in the stands. And did I mention it was the Navy game? So yes, very excited. What made the weekend even better was the fact that my sister's family just moved to the Springs, so we'd get to spend some quality time with them as well. And then we found out that some of our favorite friends, the O'Bryants, were flying into town for the game as well so we'd get to watch it with them. We were pumped!

The only thing that dampened the enthusiasm a bit was the forecast. It was 81 degrees at the Academy on Wednesday and 74 the next Monday. But that Saturday? The high was 34. On October 6th, mind you. It was in the 20's when we got to the stadium! Luckily, I've learned the magic of layering in recent years and we were all bundled up nice and toasty. (PS- I totally recommend this baby snowsuit, which I bought last year on clearance in Santa Monica for a whopping $10.)

It was a really great game, which Air Force dominated right up until the final three minutes. If not for the multiple fumbles in the red zone and the two missed field goals and the questionable clock management in the end, they wouldn't have lost in overtime. So sad. But the thing that I love so much about Falcon football is that it's about so much more than football. We were reminded of that yet again after the game, when both academies took turns standing respectfully behind the other as they sang their alma maters. USAFA's alma mater reverently honors those who gave their lives in the service of the Air Force and our country. As you hear those words and see those future Air Force and Navy officers standing together, you picture them and their alumni, standing together to fight a different battle. And suddenly, the football game with the intense rivalry seems a little less consequential. And you get over the loss a little.... at least until you get to your car :)

Jaker's first hot chocolate. He loved it!

Shaun, Amber and beautiful little Corianne!

We then spent the rest of the weekend watching all of conference and hanging out with April, Alex and Tasha. Jakey and Tasha played and played, Alex and April cooked up some amazingness, and Tasha was enthralled with "Uncle Map." (Which is only fair, I suppose, since she preferred Aunt Ashley during our trip to Virginia last year.) It was a lovely little getaway.

Goodbye to Edwards AFB

Once upon a time, when Matt was beginning his senior year at the Air Force Academy, he had just received his AFSC (job assignment) and it was time to submit his dream sheet for bases. I was visiting for the weekend and sat with him in his dorm room to fill out the list together. After all, it was a decision that would affect both of our lives rather drastically. We already knew what our top choices would be -- Hanscom (Boston), Los Angeles, and Vandenberg (California). Now it was just time to fill in the blanks next to numbers 4-8. As Matt scrolled down the potential list, a familiar name jumped out at me. "Matt, if you go to Edwards," I said, only half joking, "I'm not coming."

Growing up in Northern California, I'd passed by Edwards Air Force Base a few times on our way to visit my grandparents in Southern Utah. It was situated between Bakersfield and Barstow in the middle of the desert and every time we drove by, I thought, "Oh, those poor people who live there." Of course, 100's night came and Matt received his base assignment and we found out that we would be moving to Edwards. (Oh, the irony!) Immediately afterward, we went to the Hendricks' and walked into a kitchen full of Colonels who sang Edwards' praises. Talk about a blessing. They said it was the coolest place for an engineer and talked about how wonderful it would be for Matt to start his career there. So I switched gears and started making a list of all the wonderful things within just a couple hours of our new base. Suddenly, we were actually excited for our lives in the middle of nowhere.

Now, three years after we arrived on base, I can't even begin to tell you how lucky we feel that we were one of those "poor people" who lived at Edwards Air Force Base. Sure, living in the desert hurt my career and was sometimes inconvenient and cost us a lot in gas. But the positives far, far outweighed the negatives and we absolutely loved our time at Edwards. It was the best three years!

Here are a few things we'll miss the most:

The Simple Life
Sometimes it was inconvenient living so far away from "conveniences." (You know, like when I was in labor in the middle of the night and wanted toast, but we were out of bread and Matt had to drive 45-minutes roundtrip to get it.) Sometimes it was a bummer when we had to devote an entire Saturday to Sam's Club and simple errands. But actually, it was kind of nice to not be so inundated with the busyness of the civilized world. There was no rushing around on a weekday to run this little errand or that. Quick Walmart runs late at night were a foreign concept. Instead, if we needed something quick, I put Jake in the stroller and we walked a few blocks to the BX or commissary. And if those were closed, we did the good old fashioned thing and knocked on our neighbor's door to borrow an egg. Our weekday life was beautifully simple.

The Proximity to Awesomeness
As simple as our weekdays were, our weekends were a party! We may have lived in the middle of nowhere, but we could get to the tip of LA in an hour and fifteen minutes. Within one-to-two hours, we had beaches, mountains, Disneyland, shopping, museums, and entertainment to our heart's content. Oh, we're going to miss it all!

The Patriotism
Edwards comes to a full and complete stop three times a day: for reveille at 7:30 a.m., for retreat at 4:30 p.m., and again for taps at 9:00 p.m. On a superficial note, the time reminders were excellent. Reveille was awesome because it worked as a fail-safe alarm just in case the night before was a little too late. Retreat was a signal that Daddy would be home soon and we should probably start on dinner. And that 9 o'clock taps reminded us that bedtime was near.

On a deeper note, the patriotism is beautiful. Hearing the national anthem every afternoon never gets old. And though I'd be lying if I didn't admit to sometimes breathing a sigh of relief if I made it inside by 4:29 on a hot day, I love that the entire base stops to pay tribute to our anthem and our country. When I was working as a sports reporter and would cover an event on base, I loved that the ball dropped and the game paused whenever 4:30 hit. Both teams and stands, just like everyone else outside at Edwards, stopped what they were doing and turned to face the music with their hands over their hearts. A brief reminder of our great country, and then the music ends and everyone resumes doing whatever it is that America gives them the freedom to do. Four-thirty is a wonderful time of day.


The Mary Poppins Effect
You know in Mary Poppins, how the neighbors blast off the cannons and everyone has to man their stations to keep things in the house from falling over? Well. As the Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards has more cool flight tests going on than any other base. This translates into a ton of sonic booms -- up to ten a day. And they are close to home, which means that sometimes, they rock the home. And often, that leaves a mark in the form of crooked picture frames on the wall. I laughed a little every time I'd straighten the frames, since I knew it was only a matter of hours before they were crooked again. It was a little quirk that we came to love.

The Quirks
Speaking of those little quirks... Edwards is full of them. Seeing a coyote as you drive through the gate or walk home at night (or, um, round the corner on the running track) isn't uncommon. You hardly bat an eye when the "big voice" (base-wide loudspeaker) announces a code black, meaning it's too hot for working outside. And -- my favorite -- you develop a ridiculous eye for excellently-raked dirt. On more than one occasion, we lusted over a neighbor's perfectly combed sand or took pride in our own crisp xeriscaping. It's quite the experience having one giant Japanese rock garden for a front yard!

The Desert Sky
Edwards has the most beautiful, unique, interesting sky. I so regret not whipping out my camera for its most breathtaking sunsets.

The Lunches
With the exception of the occasional flight or work event, Matt was able to come home for lunch every single day for three years. It seems like such a little thing, but it made a world of difference. I just kinda like him and loved having that extra hour with him in the middle of every day.

The Work
Those Colonels in the Hendricks' kitchen were right-- Edwards was the absolute best place for Matt to start his engineering career. He had the most amazing opportunities and rocked all of them. Matt started by working at NASA Dryden on a super-cool project for the F-16. He then transitioned that over to the Air Force side and was then picked up to work special projects for the base commander. At Matt's farewell, Edwards' base commander and chief of staff both had so many wonderful things to say about Matt and all that he's accomplished in his first three years. I was definitely a proud wife as General Bunch complimented Matt and presented him with a commendation medal.

The People
What really makes a place is the people. Matt's job was made that much more enjoyable by having amazing leaders and coworkers. Our neighborhood was that much more fun because of the block parties we threw every month. We love that our church is welcoming no matter where you go. And what would we ever do without such great friends? Our friends are what made Edwards so wonderful. We miss you all!

USAFA Grad Week, Round Two: Jordan's Graduation

*Click here to read about Matt's USAFA Class of 2009 Graduation Week.*

There is honestly nothing quite like an Air Force Academy graduation, especially when you know everything that went into the four years leading up to that one incredible day. Matt's graduation will forever be one of my favorite, proudest, and happiest memories. I blogged about it -- and explained the whole process -- here, in one of my favorite posts. To appreciate this post, go read that one first!

Jordan was ranked 19th academically of all the graduating seniors and was also one of only 18 to make the Superintendent's List -- meaning he was in the top 10% academically, athletically and militarily. (Yes, they are graded and ranked in all three areas!) Basically, he rocks. And so does my USAFA graduate! Matt threw up for the last time at 5 a.m. and left for Jordan's graduation an hour later, achy flu and sleepless night and all. He said he wouldn't have missed it for the world.

One of the unplanned perks of our Colorado trip was running into so many of Matt's old buddies. The most fun one was seeing Matt's freshman roommate when we walked into the stadium for graduation. Forrest is stationed in Germany right now, so that was definitely a surprise!

 At 10 a.m., the seniors began to march onto the field.

Photo by the Associated Press.

Every four years, the president speaks at USAFA's graduation and then personally congratulates each graduate. I'm far from being a fan of Barack Obama, but I have so much respect for the office that he holds. It was really neat to be in the presence of the man who leads our beautiful country.

Picture on the right by the Associated Press.

The seniors who are ranked in the top 100 academically receive their diplomas first, in order of rank. Then, Squadron 1 goes in alphabetically order, then Squadron 2, and so forth, all the way until Squadron 40. And oh, you should hear the cheers when Squadron 40 is announced. All that name reading can get a little... long. Just ask Jakey.

After the last graduate walks across the stage, the seniors can hardly contain their excitement. They know it's any minute now! The entire graduating class stands and repeats the Oath of Office and then claps along anxiously as the Air Force fight song is played. Then come the signal and the words, "Class of 2012, Dismissed!" In that perfectly-orchestrated instant, the graduates toss their hats into the air as the Thunderbirds roar overhead.

It's an iconic moment that always yields an iconic picture. This year's picture landed on the front page of the New York Times. And check out the star! We were pretty stoked.

Photo by the New York Times.

While Jordan was celebrating on the field, Nicole was rushing down the stadium steps to find her fiance. He was finally hers! I'll let her be the one to share those pictures and that part of the story.

They basked in the moment for awhile and then made their way back up the stands to celebrate with the families. It was the sweetest thing when Melissa congratulated Jordan. She was one proud mama.

Normally the Thunderbirds show commences with the hat toss and continues for nearly an hour. This time, though, the air space had to be clear for about 20 minutes while President Obama took off. Christian kept us entertained while we waited. You wouldn't believe the number of compliments he got on that shirt.

At last, the show began! The video screen featured a live feed of the cockpits as the Thunderbirds performed their stunts. It was awesome, and the little boys were in heaven.

We let the stands clear a bit and then took our pictures. My family is BFFs with Jordan's (they're the ones Matt and I stay with like every other weekend), so it was extra special to support Jordan all together. We're all so proud of him!

Sisters and our former cadets:

Plus a future cadet:

And then it was all over -- again. Seeing the Air Force Academy in the rear view mirror is always bittersweet.

But there was really no time to think about that with a wedding in just three days! The party continues next!