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Army to Drawdown by 50,000 – The head “Scout” of the Army’s Enlisted Force Talks with MilitaryAvenue
SMA Chandler with 170th IBCT (see below for photo credit)Sergeant Major of the Army (SMA), Raymond F. Chandler took some of his critical time to speak with the Bloggers Roundtable on Wednesday. He said felt like the lead Scout of the Army’s enlisted force and wanted to give us a feel of what the enlisted soldiers where concerned about and how the Army was dealing with their issues. The SMA was lively, interested in our questions and provided some great responses as he described an “amazing Army”. He told us we were at a crossroads in the Army with reduced budgets and a drawdown of forces that will impact everyone.…
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“Tell A Friend” About Stop Loss Payments $$$$ – DoD Roundtable
Are you a veteran that has served since 9/11? Were you involuntarily extended beyond a separation or retirement date between 9/11/2001 and 09/30/2008? Do you know someone in these circumstances? Or even think they might have been? Be sure to tell them that they are eligible for $500 per month or partial month from the Department of Defense! Please go to www.defense.gov/stoploss to fill out the application! It takes 30 minutes! Average payment has been $3700! The end date for application is October 21st! Less than 3 months! Do not put it off! Tell them today! If you are eligible, file today! The DoDLive Bloggers Roundtable with Lernes “Bear” Hebert,…
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Training the Afghan Army – DoD Roundtable with Maj Gen Hogg
Maj. Gen. David Hogg, deputy commander-Army, NATO Training Mission – Afghanistan provided some great insight into the current NATO efforts with the Afghan Army training, including their current status, plans for future builds, and the many challenges they face. His responses to the Roundtable questions were especially informative and helpful in understanding the current situation within the Afghan Army. If we are to win the hearts and minds of the Afghan people their Army must be well trained and support the government security programs. This will be necessary before we can disengage and allow the Afghans to maintain their own security programs and provide opportunities for their people to become…
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A Review of the Holiday Traditions of the K Family
We were blessed with many traditions that we brought into our family from our parents! But then we added traditions that we enjoyed too and included some uniquely military ones as well! What fun they were and even though we could be thousands of miles from our parents, siblings, nieces and nephews, cousins, etc we always tried to expand “our family” to include others. When the kids approached junior high and high school we were overseas and it was a great time to enjoy new traditions from our host country! The location also supported a number of TDY/TAD crews on alert and they became part of our traditions. We invited…
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What Fun!
As a military family we found ourselves in many different parts of the world! Adapting to the environment we were in was always a challenge we took on with an almost eager glee! What can we do here that we couldn’t in the last place? We went “spranging” in Iceland, rode the transcontinental railroad in Panama and went to a secluded beach after a walk through the jungle, snow skied in New Mexico, hiked Mt Rainier in Washington, rode the surf in Florida, built an igloo in Illinois during a major blizzard and a host of other family events that were just fun and helped us enjoy the transitions in…
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Off We Go…
The boys’ suitcases are packed.The very last load of laundry is in the dryer.‘Carry On’ backpacks are loaded with treats, books, army men, cars and games (& empty cups to fill up with water after we are past security).The route to our local ‘Park ‘N Fly’ is entered in the GPS. Destination … Hubby! This year’s family vacation is a trip out to see my husband. He has been training with his brigade for roughly two-months and has a break between training and boarding the giant C-130 headed to a foreign land. He could have taken the bus home with other soldiers for the few days he has off… but…
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Spring is Here and What are those Trees?
We moved so many times and to so many different climates from tropical; to near Arctic; to desert SW; coastal Carolina and Pacific NW. We appreciated learning new plants and trees and really enjoyed relaxing in our new garden once we got into the house. I think one of our best stress relievers was walking outside during the moving in process and taking a look around and dreaming/planning what we could do with our yard and the landscaping. Fast forward to our retirement home and walking around deciding what trees and plants can go where! So much fun and maybe we could see them in 5 years! Then we pulled…
