one down, 399 to go!!!

Today Liz and I got up at Hotel Monaco in downtown Salt Lake City and drove the short trip to the airport where my deployment officially began. To say this experience was tough would be an understatement but it was sure nice to see my mother, brother Eric and sister Anna and her family one more time before leaving. It's touching to see the Olsens drive the three hours to be at the airport by 7:00 AM. Saying goodbye to Jacob was excruciating as he lay there smiling, not having a clue what was happening. I guess its better that way. I'd rather him not have any memory of this horrible time. I'm proud of what I do but the sacrifice seems unimaginable some times. The only way this seems possible is through the support of close family members and friends who step up when we need them the most. I remember sitting in my hotel room in Denver in April of 2004 getting ready to go to Iraq for the first time and remember seeing the death toll in Iraq was 760. It's sobering for me to see the headline in most newspapers reporting this morning that the number of brave U.S soldiers killed in this conflict to over 4000. Once I arrived, I rented my car and was surprised to see that CPT Shea and I were upgraded to a big black Lincoln Town Car at no additional cost to us. Once we arrived at the unit, I found out where I'll be stationed in Iraq and a little about what I'll be doing. Nothing to report now due to operational security but I'll let everyone know after it has happened. That's all for now.