Southern Hospitality

So, I've been keeping a list of some funny things that have happened to us while living in the south. Coming from rather small towns in Kansas, Jason and I are used to strangers being friendly. But some of the following stories we think could only happen in the south.

IN TROUBLE WITH THE LAW SINCE THE DAY THEY WERE BORN:
We decided to take a day trip to Tupelo, MS last weekend. After some shopping and dinner we headed home about 7:00. This is usually when Jax starts his bedtime routine and begins settling down for the night. He was not happy about being in the car, and decided to scream at the top of his lungs for the last 45 minutes of the drive home. To keep a long story from taking up the entire page, I'll condense to just the details. I ended up getting pulled over just 10 minutes from base for going 76 in a 65 (sorry Jenn). After checking out Jaxon real good, the officer asked for my information and told Jason to take Jaxon out of the car while he took care of me. After he looked at my info, he asked if I was speeding because Jax was screaming. I told him, "Yes, it's very stressful to listen to that for 45 minutes straight." He asked if we were heading to the base? I said yes. He said, "I think I'll just let you get out of here. Tell your husband to get that baby out of the mosquito air and back into the car." As Jason got Jax back in the car, the officer proceeded to tell me all about his daughter and how she only likes to fall asleep on his shoulder and how she's such a daddy's girl. Then he told me all about his wife's baby boy, who just happens to be 5 ft 9 and 200lbs. I heard all about his life story and we talked awhile about how wonderful children are and how we love to be parents. This entire conversation mind you took place as the officer is standing in the middle of the highway. He wished us luck, thanked Jason for serving our country, and sent us on our way. Only in the south....


NANA IN MISSISSIPPI
Our first weekend here, we decided to head downtown to the historic area to do some shopping. We ventured upon a shop that carries all kinds of foreign and local cheeses (Jason was in heaven). The owner of the shop introduced herself and gave us a lowdown of her shop and what she offered. Then she walked right over to the stroller and told me to get him (Jax) out so she could entertain him while we shop. She kept telling Jax that she would be his Nana in Mississippi. I believe she said she had 4-5 grandkids that all live in town, so she just loves little ones. When we finally left, she gave me her business card. On the back, she wrote her cell phone number and told me to call her if I ever get into trouble, have questions about the area, or just get bored.
Only in the south....


OUR IRRESISTIBLE KID
Last Monday, Jason's class had dinner at a local restaurant sponsored by their Pilot Partners. The Partners bought us dinner, introduced us to people in the community, and talked to the wives about great ways to get involved and volunteer. After the dinner, there was a lot of socializing, and many of the community members came to see cute little Jax. One of the men walked over and said, "let me hold him." Now, let me just tell you how bad I've always wanted to say that to a stranger with a cute kid. Anyway, he held Jax while we stood there and talked for awhile. He told us all about his grandkids and just loved on Jax for quite awhile.
Only in the south....







Here's Jaxon at the Pilot Partners' dinner. He finally fits into this cute airplane outfit from Ouma. The wives on base get a kick out of all of Jaxon's airplane outfits. They can't believe how many he owns!




Here's Jax getting attention from the guy at the Pilot Partners' dinner. We were close to bedtime here, so Jax was a little lethargic, just staring.





Jaxon and I enjoying the Partners' dinner. Look at the little stud in the ball cap!




Jason's classmates socializing at the Partners' dinner.





Sweet Cooper loving on Jason.

Just one of the guys

J and Jaxon enjoying an afternoon of football. Start 'em early!



Jax hanging with buddy Chris at a squadron party Friday evening. Jax is networking with pilots for future job opportunities.



Here's Jax, Chris and one of the international students in Jason's class. There are 6 international students in Jason's class; two from Japan, two from Singapore, one Iraqi, and one from Uganda. Sitting next to Chris is the student from Uganda. He, along with the Iraqi student, are the firsts from their countries to attend pilot training in the US. They speak very highly of the American students and feel very honored to have been chosen to come here. The language barrier is their hardest obstacle, then the toughness of pilot training on top of that. The guy from Uganda LOVES Jaxon. He is always smiling at him and wanting to hold him. He has told me over and over how smart the US pilots are and how proud he is to train with them. I know the other international students have said similar things here and there about their experiences so far.



Fellow Kansan! This guy is from Shawnee Mission! He, along with a K-State grad are the other two Kansans in Jason's class. He walked in with a KU shirt on and I said, "You're from Kansas!!" Not sure who the girl is. I know her husband is an air-traffic controller on base and she just enlisted. She'll be leaving in Dec for basic training.



Best Friends!! Yes - big boy Jax is holding his own bottle these days. He's Mr. Independent when you let him. Cooper likes to snuggle up close and be part of the action (that is until he gets his tail or ears pulled on). I believe Jax was watching some Star Wars while enjoying this meal - Dad's choice of TV.

Early Morning Training

They were taught how to use the flares to signal and how to shoot the flare gun. This is part of the Search and Rescue Training that would be used should they have to eject from the aircraft and need to alert the rescue team of their position. This particular morning started at 0530 to ensure that it was dark enough. Of course it was worth it to get up that early to get to play with fire.




These two pictures they are in the Altitude Chamber. They experienced their symptoms of hypoxia - which is a lack of oxygen. Hypoxia would happen if they ever were flying in an unpressurized aircraft or if their aircraft lost cabin pressurization. Being in the Altitude Chamber helps them realize what hypoxia feels like, how long it takes them to get to it (each body is different) and how to recognize its symptoms. They also learned how to properly use the Oxygen System equipment.




The guys wait and watch while someone is in the Altitude Chamber. Only one guy in Jason's class got decompression sickness. He had to go to Birmingham, AL and stay the night and do decompression sickness therapy.




This lucky lady is finishing her tour at this Air Force base. She worked in the physiology shop and is now headed to California. As a tradition with this group, all incoming Airmen and outgoing Airmen get initiated into their squadron. She did her last chamber flight as an instructor and then was pulled from the chamber and tied to a gurney. She was carried outside where she was lathered with some unknown substances that resembled throw-up (it wasn't). Sure makes Jason look forward to his first solo flight!

Silly Kansans

Jaxon's new K-State gear is from Memaw and Cousin Pay Pay (Page) - thanks guys! He wore this all day Wednesday and never once spit up on it - I think he felt like it was sacred and should be respected!!!



Daddy finally let him sport a mohawk - for 15 seconds. But that was plenty of time for me to grab my camera and snap this picture. He just loves bathtime!



Die Hard K-State fans ready for the game. Unfortunately the Cats would go on to lose to Louisville, but we enjoyed getting to watch them on TV. We are stuck in SEC country down here in the south, so we're missing Big 12 football big time.



Even our Cooper is a K-State fan. He's such a trooper. I think he misses Kansas the most, but he's really adjusting well and starting to accept the fact that he is no longer allowed outside without a leash on (very strict rules on base). I think he would love to just run the fields if we'd let him.



Such a happy boy!

Lunch time

Jason has been able to come home and have lunch with us every day since classes have started. We look forward to seeing him and hearing about how classes have been each day. He's not always given a lot of time, but if he has more than an hour, he loves to hang out with Jax and feed him lunch.







I think this was Chicken with Rice. He LOVED it!! We haven't seen his mouth open that wide.


Jax and Daddy time! These two just love to be silly together. Jason tries to give him at least a million kisses a day - and yes many of those kisses are from everyone back home, Jason just gets the privilege of delivering them.


Jax is fascinated with all of the patches and zippers on Jason's flight suit. J was trying to put Jax down for a nap this afternoon and Jax wouldn't stop playing with his flight suit. J finally had to go change clothes so Jax wasn't distracted!

Good to Have/Hope to Never Use

Jason had parachute landing training on Monday. The class was trained on how to properly and safely land, if God-forbid they have to eject from the aircraft. They learned how to release the harness from the chute while being drug on the ground (simulating an inflated canopy being drug by the wind). Then they did Parachute Landing Falls (PLF's ~ just one of one million acronyms we have learned since he stared this). They started on the ground, then moved up to a two foot platform, then a four foot platform. Finally, they progressed to a tower, which simulates being under a parachute.





Here they are practicing normal and emergency parachute procedures.


Our friend, Maegan, thinks she has discovered where Jaxon gets his sense of humor for the camera! Jason says, "I can't believe I'm getting paid to do this - what fun!"


Waiting his turn to jump off the tower!


They are doing a side PLF. The canopy is swinging side to side while Jason controls his landing onto the ground.

Teeth, Teeth and More Teeth

We woke up this morning and noticed Jaxon cut two more teeth! He got the next top two teeth! He now has a total of 6 teeth. He didn't fuss too much with these, but he did get up several times in the night last night. Perhaps he was uncomfortable with pain. He's such a trooper. I've been trying all day to get a picture of his new smile, but he won't let me. I'll keep trying and maybe get one up by the end of the week.

Jason's squadron had parachute landing training today. He said it was really cool, but he hopes he never has to use it (for obvious reasons). They invited wives to come watch and take pictures, but the training was at 7:00AM and everyone who knows me well knows that I don't do mornings! Actually they planned to call wives and give them a time to come up there and watch, but they started as soon as they reported this morning, so none of the wives made it up there. Tomorrow they'll be in an altitude chamber. It's a sealed chamber that they can simulate up to 35,000 feet. I'm sure he'll have some interesting stories to tell after wards.

It has been a beautiful day here in Columbus. It was hot and muggy when we went to bed last night. Then this morning we woke up to a crisp, beautiful fall day. It felt like fall back home.




Happy Boy "playing" on our un-made bed! He's starting to grunt and growl at us to get our attention. If we're looking in another direction, he'll growl until we look at him. He also does this to try and get Cooper's attention. Jax and Cooper are still buddies, but I'm trying to give them their space too. Jax just laughs and smiles at Cooper and then gets carried away pulling his hair and tugging his ears. Since Cooper is unpredictable and we don't know if he'd retaliate, we keep a really close eye on them when they are together.

Rain Rain Go Away

Many Kansans have been asking us if we're getting a lot of rain down here. We hear there have been many rainstorms and even tornadoes back home in Kansas City. We've somehow managed to dodge the rain and tornadoes from the two major hurricanes, until today. It's been cloudy and rainy off and on all day. The rain down here is so much different than back home. It comes with very little warning and stays for only a few minutes. Then it ends as quickly as it came - with no warning. Sometimes it seems to come in sideways - it's crazy.

We've had a nice weekend so far. Jason worked an assignment night Friday afternoon for a UPT class set to graduate in two weeks. Assignment night is when the active duty guys find out what aircraft they'll be flying for the Air Force. There's an assignment night every three weeks down here, so Jax and I will probably join him for some of them just to see the presentation. After that, we went to dinner with our friends Chris and Maegen, then one of the guys in Jason's class had people over. We stopped in briefly to say hello at the party and I was able to make a connection with another Christian wife. I was so excited to connect with her and asked her a million questions. Her husband is a class ahead of Jason, so they will be down here the whole year we're here. Saturday we slept in (what little Jax will let us) and then started painting the living room. It feels much more welcoming with some color on the walls. Sunday we went back to the First Baptist Church of Starkville (about 35 min from here). Jax did good in the nursery for both services (I only had to be pulled out once) and Jason and I enjoyed a Sunday School class of young married adults. We are just settling down to watch some football and enjoy our afternoon together! We wish everyone a great week!



Our friends from Maine, Chris and Maegan. Chris and Jason were in the same squadron at AMS so they knew each other before we moved down here. Maegan and I have enjoyed having each other's company during the day. They love playing with Jax and Cooper.




Our daily walk through our neighborhood. We try to take a walk every night after supper. There's always a lot of families out walking thier kids or dogs or just enjoying a walk as a couple. It's a nice way to see people and Cooper and Jax love to be outside.



This is Jax's first trip to the commissary for groceries. I decided to put him in the front carrying pack because we were still living in temporary housing and I didn't have many other options for him. As I was checking out, I felt him go limp. Sure enough - he conked out while I was walking around the store. It was too cute not to snap a picture!

Flight Suit for Dad ~ Fussy Baby for Mom

As you can see in the pictures, Jason's class got to wear their flight suits today! They were so excited to be out of dress blues and into their "comfy" flight suits. He looks sharp (of course). Today was their first day of Physiology. So far Jason has been able to come home for lunch every day this week. We've enjoyed having those few extra minutes each day to be together.


Jaxon had a fussy day today. His cheeks are a little chapped right now. We're not sure if he's broken out from something or if it's dry from us constantly cleaning him after eating baby food. We think he's teething - AGAIN! He is jamming everything into his mouth that he can and wants a frozen teething ring at all times. Hopefully Jax will take better naps tomorrow and be a little happier!






He looks like such a stud in hats! I couldn't pass on putting the K-State hat on backwards. I think he's ready for game day!



First day of classes! Jason is ready for the next 54 weeks!

Classes have begun

UPT started yesterday for Jason. Most of the day was filled with briefings and meeting some of the instructors and commanders. He did have a test yesterday. If the whole class passed, they were told they would be out of their dress uniforms and already into flight suits. Three people busted; thank goodness Jason wasn't one of them. It wasn't too big of a deal and after the whole class took the test again, they will be in flight suits tomorrow - two days in the dress blues isn't that bad. The guys are very excited about getting to wear flight suits (as they should be). He starts his first class tomorrow: Physiology. They will learn a lot about their bodies and how they'll react when pulling 4-5 G's. Tuesday night, after a day of briefings and officially meeting his classmates, he came home grinning from ear to ear. He said, "this is going to be a really hard, but fun year". I know it feels so good for him to have found his passion and to be living it out. What a dream!


Jaxon and I have spent the past few days cleaning the house and getting it looking like a home. We get out a little here and there for errands or to visit friends, but we're always working around naps and feeding schedules so it can be a little tricky (as all you moms know). Things are still great in Mississippi and we're all just anxious for Jason to get in the swing of things with classes.


After Jax was done eating, Jason tried to burp him. As you can see, he fell asleep mid-burp. It was too precious for us to pass up a moment to take a picture.



He is such a happy boy! Here he's just chilling on the couch while Jason and I try to rearrange the furniture to fit in our new living room. It seems that our furniture is much larger than our new house!


We got out the shower extension that goes with the bathtub Jaxon got from my co-workers. He loved feeling the water come out of the little shower head. Bath time is a family favorite. Jaxon just loves to splash and play in the water.

Getting Settled

The movers arrived on Tuesday around 10:30 and it's been non-stop work ever since. Jason and I work to unpack boxes and organize our home every spare minute we have during the day and after Jaxon goes to bed until we can't keep our eyes open any more. It's amazing how much "junk" we've acquired after 5 years. Jason is set to begin classes on Tues, so we're trying to get the house done and spend as much time together as possible before the studying and stress begins. Jason, Jaxon and I attended a newcomers briefing this morning and learned a lot about what the base has to offer and some benefits of being active duty these next 54 weeks. Jason got to meet his classmates today and they're trying to plan a get-together for this weekend. I've made a few connections with some wives - one whose husband is in Jason's class and graduated AMS with. Another wife I'm getting to know is 8 months pregnant and due the day before her husband hits the flight line. I feel especially called to be there for her as the emotions of being a first time mom are still very fresh to me. Jason is beginning to feel a few nerves about all he has to accomplish in the next few days, but each time a T-6 flies (very low this week) over our house, he looks at me and I see in his face that he knows he belongs here and is doing exactly what God has called him to do. We miss Kansas City, but we are quickly getting familiar with Columbus and finding fun restaurants and shops to frequent.





We were waiting at the medical clinic on base to finalize paperwork for our medical insurance. Jason decided to see what Jax looked like as a 2nd Lt. Jax is really starting to notice the camera and becoming very cheesy as he grins for pictures.




We tried a new restaurant just outside the base gates - Little Kitchen. It specializes in greasy spoon food and Chinese. Yeh good times! Anyone who visits Columbus will most likely have to try it - it's very yummy. This is the first time we've put Jax in a big-boy high chair at a restaurant. He loved sitting big-boy style next to Daddy.




Here's one of our roommates. Jason found him crawling up the pantry wall as he was unloading a moving box. We get lots of visitors down here; including salamanders in the living room, cockroaches in the kitchen, and big spiders in the bathroom. Don't be alarmed - it's just part of living in the humid south in 1950's base housing. Surprisingly, none of our "visitors" have bothered me too much. Just knowing that everyone has these little friends in their homes helps.

My Two Front Teeth

Jaxon's two front teeth have finally cut through! He cut the left one last week without any complaints. We knew the right tooth was ready to break through any day. Yesterday, Jason and I worked feverishly to unpack some more moving boxes, but Jaxon didn't let us get much done. He was real fussy most of the day and I finally gave him a teether to chew on. Well...that did the trick! He chewed like crazy for a few hours and finally I felt the tooth pop through! We are so amazed at how fast he is growing.