"Live Fire Down Range"

I have been glad to see updates from Garret's platoon on Facebook and the occasional picture of his face.


He sure does look happy talking to Kayla. Super sweet. This was taken from FaceTime.

Until today. The are completing basic training by having live rounds fired down-range over their heads, five-day field training exercise that includes a 16K road march into the Night Infiltration course, crawling 500 meters while live rounds and flares and grenades are shot over head to simulate combat. What the What? These are not things a mom wants to hear. Garret has been on my mind more than usual this week and I think now I know why.
Life in our house is a bit like live fire down range right now. Chad is about to go to Pro Day at UConn to show his stuff to NFL scouts to see if there is any chance of moving forward with his dream of kicking in the NFL. I can tell he is focused and determined. He is very serious right now. It is something none of us have any control over. It's such a long shot and so unlikely but he has defied so many odds with football that I would never put it past him to accomplish this goal. He is wearing full Army gear for his Pro Day debut in honor of Garret. That is kind of awesome.
This is a time in our lives that we aren't sure what the next chapter will hold. Questions with our jobs, our kids and their career and path, and health all make for a time of uncertainty and even stress. But just as Garret has a "Battle Buddy" that is there for him in basic training, God is always there to be our Battle Buddy. I need to rely on that during these times.