Finally after a LONG 6 1/2 months.....

MARK IS HOME:) Mark came home a few weeks ago from deployment. This was one of the most stressful deployments we have endured. Let me begin...

Mark left in April on his ship. The ship was changing Homeports from Norfolk, VA to Yokosuka Japan. They had some nice port visits...Rio de Janiero and Chile to name a few. After they left Chile...something very wrong happened. Fire broke out. Not good when you are in the middle of the ocean! Back here in the USA, my parents were visitng and I was out getting an errand done. I had no idea what was going on. When I got home, there was a message on the voice mail. It was our friend Dave...he is retired from the Navy, but works for the Navy and has all the clearances. He sounded very anxious to talk to me and asked me if I knew about the fire on board. UM.....NO?!?!? I totally started freaking out....thinking of all the worse case scenarios....the fact is, Mark was on an Aircraft Carrrier--its big and holds lots of jet fuel. Thank goodness my parents were here...they kept me focused. Later that night I got a call from another spouse that Mark worked with her husband. She told me that she got a text message from her husband and he was ok, and he told her to call me to let me know Mark was ok. It was wonderful news....but I just wanted to hear it from Mark that he was ok...KWIM? Then my phone started ringing...it was a text from Mark. All communications were shut down...but some had some internet connections. Mark's friend went to the T-Mobile website and sent a text message via the website....pretty resourceful, huh?

Mark spent over 2 months in San Diego while the ship was being repaired...and the investigations started. It was very stressful for the whole crew. The CO & the Xo were fired and there were rumors that more people were going to get fired. Mark came home once for a few days. I had wanted to go visit him in San Diego, but the air fare was insane and so was the hotel rates. It was an OK visit, but he was beyond stressed out. He told me some stuff about the fire. Its all public knowledge now, but at the time I was sworn to secrecy since there was an ongoing investigation. If you could believe it...it looks like smoking was the start of the snowball that rolled down the hill. There was some illegal smoking and somehow it connected with lube oil and that started the fire. He told me that there were sailors that were trapped for a few hours....THANK GOODNESS they were saved. No one was killed, but a few were hurt fighting the fire. Mark returned to the ship after his short visit. The ship finished the repairs and then ventured off to Japan. There were a few more folks that got fired...but Mark was fine and finished his tour.

It may sound strange, but up until now, I never thought of the ship catching fire. But I have such an imagination...that I am constantly (even now) thinking of all the what ifs and what if he was killed. Scares the crap out of me.

He was home for 2 1/2 weeks on much needed leave. It was a wonderful leave period. The kids were just all over him. :) We did not go anywhere, just hung out at home....just doing day to day stuff (taking Meg to school, errands, taking Tyler to Gymboree).

Mark now has started his courses for his next job. He is up in Newport, RI until next week. I would have loved to go back up there...we lived there when we were first married. Its a great little town...and only an hour away from my family!