The Army may have my soldier...but I have his HEART!

So I've been dying to share pictures of John's Christmas Box, but didn't want to ruin the surprise and post them before he received the box. I had such a good time making it for him! He received the box today and called and told me how much he loved it! Definitely made my day =) For those of you sending anything to John, it has been taking about a week for the packages to get there. Mama Webster, I don't know if he told you, but he's gotten your packages and love them too! GOOD NEWS...John says they are much closer to getting internet on their personal laptops...which means more communication and probably more frequently. That is the best Christmas present ever!! It was definitely hard not having John home for Thanksgiving...but was thankful I was able to skype with him for over an hour that morning. He was also able to skype most of his family members, which was such a blessing for them!

John reports that he and his soldiers are doing well and staying busy with missions, briefings, and duties around the FOB. Last time I spoke his John it sounded like he had a cold...so hopefully he's taking the vitamins and Emergen-C I sent him :)

John promises he will let me know of any needed items...and I will post them on here for any of you wanting to know what he might need.

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families.
Enjoy the pics!

The Box! 

(for those wondering, Spooby is John's army nickname from some of the other NCOs)

One of the sides...

Another side...

Letter, Stocking, Healthy gifts...

big bag (6lbs!) of protein is John's christmas present from my parents!

 (John says thanks a bunch Mom & Dad Babcock!)

Junk food and snacks (special ordered Venison Jerky!)

 More snacks.. 

(from what the guys say, you can ever have too many!)

 Homemade Christmas Gifts and more boot socks!

(CD of some of our favorite songs, Christmas wreath, Photo album)

FOB Lagman

Hey Everyone!!

Sorry its once again been a while since an update...

John and his unit left Kandahar a few days ago and are now settling into FOB Lagman. John says the food is much better there - which as everyone knows food is very important to the happiness of men haha! The living quarters are the same as Kandahar and they are in large tents. Unfortunately, right now there is no wireless internet, so that is why you haven't seen John online on FB or skype lately. There is only internet on the computers provided by the Army and the guys have very limited access to them due to the volume of soldiers wanting to contact their families. John says they are trying to get wireless internet so they can all use their personal computers. I really hope this happens soon! Going from hearing from John daily to not knowing when the next email or message will be has been hard this week. I'm quickly learning that the NCOs are staying much busier then the other soldiers right now. And that the higher the rank the less free time to message and talk with family - at least for now. BUT, I am very thankful that John makes every effort to contact me when he can! =) John told me today that they have started going out on missions, and they are enjoying their jobs as of now. I think they are just having fun finally putting to use the months and years of training they have had. I'm finishing up John's Christmas box and will post pictures of some of his surprises once he has received the box. Please feel free to send stuff to him and his soldiers - as they all love receiving things from home. If you have any questions about what or if you can send a certain item please let me know. John doesn't have an specific requests as of the last time I chatted with him. But I will post any requests on here as I get them!

Thank you again for your prayers for John an his unit! They are greatly appreciated.
God Bless!

Kandahar Air Field

Hey everyone... the long awaited update...now where to begin! Well for those of you who don't know, John is currently in Kandahar, Afghanistan at the Kandahar Air Field. This is a very large base with lots of different branches of the military and units coming and going daily. The following is a link that takes you to a newsletter about Kandahar Air Field...its not one from John's unit but gives you some information on the location/weather/facilities/ etc there. John will be stationed at this base for an undisclosed amount of time before heading to his final fob - I won't know that he's moved until he's already there. Right now they are spending their days on the shooting range, training, working out, doing laundry (John says there is dust EVERYWHERE), and in oh so fun briefings (John's favorite...NOT!). They are 8.5 hours ahead of us time zone wise, which has made it a little tricky connecting to chat. I see now that God knew what he was doing when I got a job on nightshift...as John and I end up being awake and asleep around the same time! It has been SUCH a blessing to be able to skype with John and/or facebook message him almost daily! John has warned be that this will change when they move, as they will be a lot busier/more exhausted from missions. I think the guys bodies are slowly adjusting to the jet lag, time zone changes, and as John reports, "odd food"! They had their first sand storm warning the other day, John said they could see it in the horizon but I guess it died out before reaching the base. John seems to be in good spirits (as do the soldier that make funny faces and wave behind him during skype calls) and staying in good health, Praise the Lord!!

The following is John's address for his final destination and where he will be all year (not the location he is currently at). According to the postal service it takes anywhere from 2-3 weeks for a package to get to him. If you have any questions about how/what/or when to send something please don't hesitate to ask! There are also plenty of resources online about what you are and are not allowed to send (nothing that will melt, spoil, break (glass), aerosols, pressurized containers, etc).

SGT Webster, John
883rd Route Clearance Company
FOB Lagman
APO, AE 09383

Here are some pictures of I've found online of Kandahar Air Field...

The base from above

Welcome sign!

Sleeping tents (I think they are or are similar to what John is staying in. Inside there are a bunch of bunk beds)

Now some pictures that John took while in Texas/Meixco! 

Sgt Padgett

Big gun!

One of the vehicles they use during route clearance

The following pictures were taken by the troop greeter at the airport in Maine

My handsome Sgt!

(L toR) SSG Kilby, SSG Cross, SPC Pendland...and not sure of the other guys names!

 Captain McVeigh and SSG Essic