The Hills' Adventures: Where the Wild Things are

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Where the Wild Things are

This is Katie's soul mate, Faith. They play together nearly everyday. And for anyone who knows Katie...Can you imagine having two of her around?
Faith decided to decorate Katie's face to go along with our Wild Alabama adventure.

So far we have seen an armadillo, poisonous snakes, wild pigs, a baby fox, the regular squirrel, Mike saw a deer, snapping turtles (many of which have been brought home for mom), a tortoise (also brought home for mom), dead possum, lots of frogs (also brought home) and to our delight a forest of fireflies. They are like twinkling Christmas lights throughout the forest. Right out our back door.
Mike caught a baby hammerhead shark. Jake stepped on a catfish head. The spike went through his foot about a half inch. OUCH! And we spent the night at the beach catching sand crabs.

We put up this HUGE snapping turtle as a house guest for a few days. We had it in the biggest, deepest bin we had. One night Mike and I heard something in the garage. We were a little nervous to open the garage door. When we did this is what we saw. It used it's tail to stand up and climb out!

Dream world for little boys and our little girls. Heaven for my husband. I'm not into the outdoor creatures as much, that is why I hold the camera:)

1 comment:

Heather and Don said...: Love this entry! You are such a good sport - wild things scare me too! I can't imagine how "heavenly" this must be for your boys (including Mike) and the girls! Yikes! What a great adventure!; May 27, 2010 at 4:32 PM

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FROM THE MOUTHS OF BABES

"Work is no fun." Jake 9 years

"Candy." Natalie 22 months

"Oh mom, could you change her diaper somewhere else, it's making this taste disgusting." Dallas 7 years

"I know the answers to everything!" Katie 5 years

"The prophet says if you don't spend time with your kids, you'll regret it." Jake 8 years

"Mom, I wished you lived on Jupiter."
"Dad made me change my mind."
"What do you want to do before you die?"
"Mom, I dropped my hot wheels in the toilet." Dallas 6 years

"Come on husband, you need to read our daughter a story...I'll do it myself."
"When will you be able to go? I'm exhausted with you."Katie 4 years

"Dad, Mom lets us get one choice. You just get us what we need." Katie (4) and Dallas (6)to dad at the store

"No", "Toe", "Nose", "Hi mom" "Hi Dad" "a-da-no?" Natalie 19 months

DREAMS DO COME TRUE--Mike's New Job

Mike was recently selected to fly AH-64 Apache attack helicopters for the Idaho National Guard! We'll be in Alabama for flight school for two years, then back to Idaho where he'll be a part-time Apache pilot(this video is from the Utah Guard, but you get the idea).

[Mike] I recently embarked on a great adventure. My whole life I’ve been fascinated with military aviation. As a kid I could name any jet or chopper flying. I studied them, built models of them, drew them. But I never pursued my dream of flying because I didn’t think life in the military would suit me and my future family, and I thought that passion was something I'd grow out of. So I chose a career I considered more practical. In my 20s, though, I began regretting not taking that path. That regret grew worse and worse.

Long story short, in the fall of 2008 I put it all on the line and finally went for it. I joined the Army National Guard here in my home town, with the long-shot hope of flying the AH-64 Apache helicopter (the best attack helicopter in the world). The training just to be considered was tough and required quite a commitment: nine weeks of Basic Training, 8 weeks of Officer Candidate School, academic and physical tests, a 6-year commitment regardless of the outcome, plus the preparation on my own time. All that, just to qualify to go before a "flight board" that selects future pilots. The field is very competitive, but failure was not an option—given the wars we’re fighting, I didn’t want to be in the Army, stuck on the ground. I had to succeed.

By some miracle, everything lined up perfectly and I was selected for flight school, despite my lack of experience and prior service, and despite being 3 years over the age limit (I got an age waiver).

In the spring of '10 my family and I moved to Fort Rucker, Alabama for two years of flight training, after which I’ll come back home to Idaho and be a part-time pilot. I’m so excited I can hardly stand it. Getting selected to serve my country, flying the world's best attack helicopter, based right in my home town, is incredible. It still blows me away.

I have the best wife in the world for supporting me in this adventure. She initially told me to do something about this ache in late summer of '08. She encouraged me every step of the way, even while I was gone for months on end, leaving her to manage the home, business, and take care of our babies. And Army pay is not good, especially considering my life may someday be on the line in Afghanistan, Iraq or who-knows-where-else. Thank you, thank you, Cass, for all you are to me.

We may not have it all together...But together we have it all.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Where the Wild Things are

1 comment:

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DREAMS DO COME TRUE--Mike's New Job