Updates and Thankful

Yesterday I kept thinking I should sit down and update everyone on Clayton.

You know I love to snap a pic of good stuff like this

Today I do so with a thankful heart.

He finally arrived to his destination and is settling in to do the tasks at hand. I pray he finds rest during his deployment. After all, there are few days off in war.

With him arriving to his destination I have a mailing address for him. If you would like it, please contact me.

This morning we awoke to the news his FOB was attacked. Thank goodness for time differences and communication that he was safe.

Even though I entered this second deployment with a sense of peace doesn't mean there are no worries. The reality of war rattled us today.

And, to Clayton. We are grateful for communication, especially on days like these. There are so many people praying for you on a daily basis. Today, I'm sure God heard your name many more times as our church family offered prayers and thanks. We love you beyond words.

Flag Tie

I'm a little late posting this on the blog. I shared it on my Facebook page a couple of weeks ago. On Clay's last deployment Barry wore this Flag tie every Sunday. You can click on the post label "flag tie" and read the old posts on it.

And so, this is his attire, at least tie wise, until Clay returns home.

I am thankful for my sweet friend, Terrie and this gift. A "Wall of Truth" filled with scripture to turn to during this deployment. Thank you, Terrie and my friends from Sunday School that shared your favorite scriptures.

Faith, family and friends. What a wonderful combination!

And the updates begin

On this Veterans Day, we say THANK YOU, son, for your courage, service and sacrifice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As with the last deployment I will post updates here. We will have more email updates this time since his access to the internet will be a different set-up and he has a family at home to communicate with as well.

While I can't post details he hasn't arrived to his final location yet. That all takes time.

I am thankful to have talked to him last weekend and also received several emails since he left. I also take comfort when I see my daughter-in-law post her contact with him as those are real time updates.

I have prepared a new prayer card for this deployment. Feel free to download and share. Thank you for your prayers and support of our troops.

Download a PDF version.

Army strong...family

Please pray for the TN/KY and KS Wall families during this time of separation.

We are very proud of you, Clayton!

Sharing some smiles

Photo 1: Clay's shack mate....SGT

Photo 2: Um...yeah!

Photo 3: If you look closely you will see another ribbon on the tree in the background. We have another family member deployed as well. Our nephew's wife. Please also pray for the Miller family.

Prayer card & mail

I hope to have a new prayer card available for download soon. And, at this time I do not have a mailing address for Clayton. I will post a note when we have that information. You will need to contact me privately for it as it will not be posted on the blog.

Family time before goodbye

Photo 1: Games and family time the week before deployment. Clay's grandma Wall went to Ft. Campbell with us to say goodbye.

Photo 2: A Thanksgiving Christmas feast for Clayton prepared by his wife, Tiffany, her Mom and Grandmother. Clayton and their dog Enya.

Photo 3: Saying goodbye.

Rendezvous with destiny

The 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, Bastogne Advance Party Deploys to Afghanistan. The Bastogne's ADVON leads the brigade in its next rendezvous with destiny.

If you are on Facebook you can see some photos they posted. I tagged Clayton in a few of them.

My heart is heavy with this repeat journey.

This time Clayton leaves his own family behind. So much has changed.

Thank you for your prayers!

Deployment: Round 2

So we begin another journey... of faith, hope & prayer for our soldier.

Please join us in prayer for his health, safety & well-being.

Preparing the home front

We are preparing home for another deployment. When Clay came home from the first deployment he removed his yellow ribbon. We have our new ribbon ready to go up when he leaves again. We have a little while before he leaves but my mind is already there.

We have another family member deployed at this time too. Our nephews wife left earlier this year. We have a ribbon on the other tree for her. Clay's tree has a red, white & blue ribbon on it right now.

Called up

Clayton will be deploying to Afghanistan again. He called to ask for these.

Awards

Clayton received these two awards for his deployment. He has since received others that I will share later.

Welcome Home, Note and Patches

Thank you note in our church bulletin

Map to ceremony and my patriotic necklaces

Patches from uniform used during deployment

Mail while deployed

Some of the mail Clay saved from his deployment:

Boot Camp

This blog was started when Clay deployed in 2010. While looking through the items being saved in his Army memory box I came across a few things from his boot camp days and thought I'd share those with you.

Mail from Clay and his graduation program

I love how Clay addressed this 

We wrote to him almost every day in boot camp

Misc. Pics

These are some pics I don't think I ever posted on the blog. I didn't want to delete them...

Screen shot of the penguin in Afghanistan with Clay

Tree marked by the yellow ribbon that was replaced with the red,  white and blue ribbon when Clay came home.

We played Phase 10 with the Fillenworth's while Clay was
on R&R and saved the score sheet to finish the game when
he returned home.

Military Ball 2011

Military Ball 2011

Clay's wedding day April 1, 2012