Duane, Danni and Kiddos: January 2005

Saying our Goodbyes

Tonite we said our last goodbyes to Duane, they pulled the Ship into port for 24 hours on Sunday and we were sooo excited and happy to see him. It had only been 12 days but we missed him alot and were looking forward to this short visit. Try as we may not think about him having to leave within 24hours it still was looming in the back of our minds as we spent the day together as a family at making trips to and from the ship with Duanes stuff. It was Trei's first time seeing an Aircraft carrier, and he was in awe, all those of you who have seen one up close, they are HUGE TO US but imagine to a 1 year old..he was so excited and looking around and babbling at everything he saw. We went up to the flight deck and all the Jets were up there which you normally don't see, we let Trei walk around a bit and he was fascinated with all the Jets, (he LOVES PLANES) they had everything from Super Hornets, to S-3's (Duanes Plane), it was a sight to see even for me, We took some pictures which I will post here for you to check out!

Duane had to be back on the ship tonite at midnite, driving up to the "Carl Vinson" gave me the chills and made me sick to my stomach, I have known for awhile now that Duane would be going on deployment to the Gulf and thot I was prepared, but I don't think its something you ever get used to. Saying our goodbyes was difficult tonite, the instability in the gulf and the uncertainty of when we will see Duane again made it tough, they are scheduled to be back at the end of July but in light of all that is going on there they could get extended. Please do keep Duane in your prayers for his safety and protection as well as for stability in the gulf so he can come home soon. This is a tough time for us as a family but we know that God will get us through it. Thanks for all your support and prayers!!!

Daddy mommy and Me on the flight deck of the CARL VINSON.

Mommy and Me!

Trei and Daddy standing in front of Duane's jet the S-3, Yup he has his name and call sign on it.
LT. C.D. Close.

Daddy and Trei in front of the S-3. Go Screwbirds!!!

Trei in front of a helicopter.

Trei on the Flight deck, watch out Guys...

Duane's Plane, the S-3.

PLAY DATE

Today we went over to the Skippers House for a Play Date with all the Kiddos, it was alot of fun, He has Twin boys that are 16 months old and a 2 1/2 year old daughter named Sara, who just LOVED Trei and was feeding him Crackers and playing with him. Of course he loved the attention from everyone and his friend Ashlee was there too, so he barely noticed Mommy, he would every so often look around to see if I was there, but other then that he was having a ball.
Here are some pictures.

Whats up Guys??? Me, Ashlee, Peter and Michael in the back yard!

Playing in the wagon with Michael and Peter.

Surrounded by girls, Ashlee and Sara.

Surrounded with Crayons and toys.

Go Screwbirds...

Duane just sent me the picture below of him flying today. He is due back for 12-15 hours on the 30th before he takes off to the Gulf, we are excited about seeing him even though it will be a short visit!Thanks everyone for your prayers, we both appreciate it!

Duane flying.

Playing in the sand...

Today I took Trei to the park and for the first time he discovered the Sand Box, normally he will walk right past it but today he went running to it and was fascinated with the texture and the fun of Sand Play...he kept picking up the sand and letting it run thru his fingers and laughing, it was so cute, I think I will have to go get him some sand toys. One other thing Trei is fascinated by is planes, hmmm I wonder where he gets that from? We live nearby a small airport so there are dozens of small planes that go flying by throughout the day, every time he hears one he looks up in the sky to find it then once he spots it he opens his arms wide and smiles and runs towards it. I know Daddy will be happy to hear about that...
I took a few pictures of his adventures at the park which I will post here.

what is this stuff...

sand is so much fun!!!

I love being outside at the Park

look at me

Taking a break to get some much needed water.

climbing up the steps to the slide.

Hide and seek

Tonite Trei and I played Hide-and-seek for over an hour, he would laugh so hard when I would hide behind the couch and jump out right as he was headed towards me...He thot it was the funniest thing, of course being the true Mom that I am I had to capture it on camera so here are some pictures of him running thru the house in his PJ's laughing.

running away from Mommy

Bye Duane...

Today was a sad day for us, Duane left for deployment to the Gulf for 6 months. It was very hard to say good bye and while Trei didn't fully understand that Daddy was going for awhile it was tough on Duane and I and I know that when Trei wakes up tomorrow morning he will run thru the house looking for "Dada". We put up pictures of Trei and Duane by his bed and I am going to show him pictures and videos of him everyday so he remembers him. Please do Pray for us at this time and for Duane, for his safety and protection and for all the other Men and Women who are over there. Thanks for your support and prayers, they mean alot!
If you would like to e-mail him while he is away you can at:clifford.close@cvw9.navy.mil
I am sure it would mean alot to him.

Usin' my new teeth

Today was the first time Trei was able to bite into an apple and actually eat the WHOLE THING, I was pretty impressed so I took some pictures of it, he seemed pretty happy too that he could eat all on his own and use his new choppers...