Once an Army Wife Forever an Army Wife

We went to the C Co 2/130 IL Army National Guard unit's welcome home ceremony on Monday night. That's Chad's unit. The guys were coming back from Afghanistan. It was really important to us that we take Hannah and that we support these men. Yes, I know Hannah won't remember it, but still it was one of those things that we wanted to do as a family. It was in the gym of the school across from the armory in Litchfield. We barely got there in time and walked in during the opening prayer. The guys were all on the gym floor surrounded by the Patriot Guard Riders. All the family, friends, and supporters were up in the bleachers. And as soon as I get to where I can see the soldiers, wouldn't you know...I immediately burst into tears. It was one of those moments in life where you're so flooded with emotion that you just don't know what you're even thinking or feeling and really the only response is to cry. Mostly I was so grateful for these men that sacrificed so much. And also more grateful than I care to admit that it wasn't my soldier who was down on that floor.

Chad and I both agree that his deployment to Iraq is something that we would never take back. It was a once in a lifetime experience. However, it's also something that we don't want to do again. It has forever changed us and has made us who we are. And, I guess, as with everything in life, it made us stronger and we are better for having gone through it. It also gave us more issues than we care to admit and things that we still are trying to deal with and overcome, even today...3 1/2 years later.

Last night Chad got out "the stick". I'm going to call it the stick because I think that sounds a little more socially acceptable than "the shovel handle". It represents so much. One lovely (and by lovely, I really mean monumental and horrendously hot) day in Iraq as he was out on patrol he happened to be gunner in the humvee (that's the guy who's head is sticking out the top of the humvee). As they rounded a corner an IED went off. Well, for some odd reason, only the detonator part of the IED went off and not the entire explosive. (To the best of my female comprehension there has to be some sort of ignition/detonation explosive to ignite "the really big"explosive...I'm pretty sure that's the explanation the army would give too.)

By the grace of God, literally, all the humvee got hit with was some dust and rocks since the real explosive failed. Let's be honest here, the terrorists are really good at blowing things up...they do it for a living and they don't like to fail. They pretty much have it down to an exact science and for an IED to fail is a big deal. Our army boys are super smart and good at what they do and they knew the terrorists would be back to figure out why their stupid bomb didn't blow up my husband and his humvee. So they set up some "ops" (which I think translates into operations) to watch the area to see if the terrorists came back to fix their failed bomb. Sure enough they came back. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that I now have part of a shovel handle, "the stick", in my living room that was from the shovel that the terrorist used to plant the bomb that should have killed my husband.

There are few things in life that make me more grateful for my God and my husband than the sight of that stick in my living room. It is a reminder to me that God is a powerful protector and that He must have a plan for Chad & I. He chose to intervene that day and save my husband and those soldier's lives. I'll never be the same. (And if you ever wonder why I have issues it's because 16 months of days and incidents like these took their toll.)