Bose is 9-months-old TODAY!!!

This little booger is always smiling... I love it. Believe me, he can wail, too but those smiles just melt a mother's heart.

Here's a picture taken by one of Mac's friends... pretty good except for the top of his head is cut off.

Our little fire chiefs

No doubt that Bose is gonna love cars, tractors and trucks like his big brother Mac. Lately he has been preferring Mac's toys over his own... especially all of the fire trucks that Mac possesses. I must admit, I kind of dig the fire trucks, too. :-)

Yet another Easter Egg Hunt

Today is beautiful... the only reason I'm inside right now is because the boys are napping. Once they're up, we'll head back outside to enjoy this wonderful Vandenberg weather. Earlier today, we went to another egg hunt on base ( I believe our last one unless we decide to do the one after church tomorrow ). Love to you all... and Happy Easter!!!

14th AF Ball 2008

Jimmy & I attended the annual 14th AF Ball last night. It was a lot of fun as always. General Shelton was there without the Mrs. but Linda is visiting their daughter out of state because she is due to have their first grandchild any moment now. We had fun at our table with Jodi, Carey, Howard, Cheryl and a few others. We'll probably go again next year because by then we will be very close to PCSing out of here.

Fire Dept. visits Mac's school

I didn't know that the Santa Barbara County FD visited Mac's school until I picked him up yesterday... he mentioned firemen, fire trucks and spraying the fire hose but I didn't think anything of it because he's obsessed with that anyway. I checked out his school's website later that evening and low and behold, there's ol' Mac-a-Doodle holding the fire hose. I know he was probably on Cloud 9... he loves firemen and thinks they are THE GREATEST!!!

Where's Rob???

My 1st cousin, Major Rob Stilwell, US National Guard, has been serving a tour in Afghanistan for quite some time now. His civilian job is a lawyer but his passion is being a soldier. We're all very proud of him. According to my Aunt Robin, Rob's unit, the 218th, is in an isolated area of Zabol province known as Mizan and it has nothing. There are only two National Guardsmen there--Rob and a young man from Brooklyn, a Puerto Rican, who is teaching him Spanish. Rob may be fluent in Spanish as well as Pashtun, an Afghanistan dialect, by the time he returns home. He is about 10 years older than anyone else around him and hot water is scarce so he lets his beard grow for about a week at a time. Since it is salt and pepper the Afghans give him a lot of respect because being in your 40's is considered old since life expectancy is so short (Rob is 41 and the children call him "BaBa" which means grandfather). There is no mess hall where Rob is so food is basically MREs or instant oatmeal/grits. Rob believes he will be helicoptered back to Qalat in about 2-3 weeks and hopes to be leaving around the first week of May. I know his family (wife Charlotte, his children Eli, Dee, Joseph and the rest of the Stilwell clan) will be so overjoyed to have him safely back home. God Bless You, Rob, for defending our freedoms and sacrificing the luxuries of western civilization to support what you believe in. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Easter Egg Hunts on base

What a wonderful base we live on... there are so many organizations that cater to the families with children. Two of the organizations we're a part of have hosted egg hunts and potlucks. And there's one last Easter Egg Hunt this Saturday on base hosted by GMH (the civilian housing contractor) with 2600 eggs to be found. Now that's quite a few eggs. Hope all of you are enjoying this Easter season as we are. :-)

Liz & her boys

I kid you not when I say this is the first time I've seen pictures of Liz, Luke & Rob since we've been home (that was in early December). I couldn't believe it when I opened up the email from Mom... Rob looks like a little boy now. It's amazing how much change happens in just a few months. Can you imagine if I didn't send out current pics of Mac & Bose? Family would be shocked.

Vandenberg Days

Just a few pics over the last few days. I got a brief moment to sit down and load the pics off of my camera. We're looking forward to Easter... Mac has about 3 Easter Egg Hunts over the next week around base. A little boy can't have enough egg hunts. And next Friday, Jimmy & I are going to the 14th AF ball again. Should be fun and this year I get to enjoy the local wine... yay! :-)

Jesus Loves Me Preschool

Notice Mac painting with his left hand? Yep, I believe he is going to be left-handed like his grandma Bubbie & his Aunt Libby.

BOBS is the greatest!!!

Mac got a huge surprise in the mail tonight (as I did, too). Bobs sent him the fire ladder they made together when we were home in November. Mac really thinks he's a fireman now... just got to get a "fire hose" and he'll be all set. He still uses the water hose outside to pretend he's putting out a fire, but I think he needs a portable one. There might be a trip to a hardware store for that.

Gosh, Dad, you certainly know how to brighten the Liddle household over here. Thank you so much... we all love the fire ladder, especially our little Fire Chief.

- Katie

Thanks for the new outfits, Trish!!!

Thanks for the matching PJs, Trish!!!

Let me tell you about this good friend of mine who I think is such a wonderful and special person that if you've ever met her and called yourself her friend then you're pretty darn lucky... well, I'm one of those lucky ones. Trish became one of my really close friends here at Vandenberg... she lived just around the block and we became close in no time. Mac and her eldest daughter, Jolie, were close buds, too. I'm sad that she no longer lives here but now that she's in TN, that's fairly close to SC. I know we'll be life-long friends. Love you, Trish, and thanks for the package we got in the mail. You're too good for words!!!

Sign our Guestbook... it's quick and easy!!!

Steve Roos Portrait 12/07

One of my favorite pics. Liz & I got this portrait done while I was home last. I will always treasure this one.

Oh, what a beautiful day!

Today was another beautiful day so we went to the parks on base as we so often do. That's what is so great about Vandenberg... you can enjoy the outside weather pretty much 365 days out of the year. Anyway, it's pretty crazy how many modes of transportation I have to choose from when the boys and I go strolling. Today Mac wanted to take the wagon since we haven't used it since Bose's birth. So I figured a way Bose could ride in it without tipping over and out... the Bumbo in the back worked beautifully (thanks Heather for letting me borrow it). So I guess we'll be using the wagon a lot more now.

Life is Good!

I am reminded every single day how lucky I am to have 2 beautiful little boys in my life. They put a smile on my face and joy in my heart. I'll often catch Mac and Bose giggling uncontrollably over "who knows what" and I can't help but laugh along with them. They certainly enjoy each other. Bose will be in his walker straining his neck trying to find his big brother who he hears but can't see. That Mac certainly puts a smile on his little brother's face. Jimmy and I often say how we wish we could "bottle them up" because before we know it our little boys will have grown into young men. But all I can say right now about the present is... Life is Good!