News From the Academy

My husband is in the last weeks of the academy and we have officially given ourselves permission to be excited that it is almost over. We have been holding our excitement at bay so as not to make the last weeks drag on and on (you know how that works). So, he will be home for good in 2 1/2 weeks, but it sounds better when we say that after this weekend he only leaves one more time!!! We have two different counts going - my count is 2 1/2 weeks, but Brian isn't counting the last week because the only thing they will be doing down there is practicing for graduation. He says that because that week will be exciting, he's not counting it. He is not home that week, so I am counting it. Whatever, no matter how you look at it, the light at the end of the tunnel is nearing - THANK YOU JESUS!!!

Last week and thus far this week, my husband has been allowed to call me every night. They have moved into stage 4 which means that they have earned all their priveleges (coffee, soda, juice, unstructured workouts, tobacco use, and phone calls every night - there are more, but I don't know them). He only really benefits from a few of the priveleges, though, because he doesn't use tobacco, drink soda, drink caffiene, and doesn't mind working out. We both, however, are VERY thankful for the phone calls.

When I talked to him last night, he asked me to guess why yesterday was the best day of the entire academy. Erik Estrada from CHIPS spent the day at the academy! He said that he got to spend the day with the "policeman" he watched growing up. It sounded like it was a nice break from the monotony that is the academy.

He spent the day with his old friend Ponch!