Euro Trip

I'm back! The trip was amazing, and seeing Mike was a positive boost that we both needed. I've got tons of pictures and stories from the trip, but I'll do my best to keep it blog-sized. First off, the plane ride wasn't half as bad as I thought. And how about the food? Lufthansa isn't just about a bag of pretzels:

The next picture is from a town in Germany called Heidelberg. It's about an hour away from base, and has tons of shopping and sight-seeing. Pretty much every city in Germany has a castle, and this is one that we actually hiked to the top of:

One of the many pictures I took from the top. Gorgeous!

We took the train into Paris- this is one of us goofing off, waiting:

One of my favorite pictures from Paris- love it!

Me, posing in front of the tower. As you can see, we had wonderful weather throughout the trip:

I also got to go where Mike works, and check out an outbound mission. "Outbound" means that injured troops are going to Walter Reed Hospital in Washington D.C., and ultimately, home. I saw a variety of injuries, from the minor to the catastrophic. Out of respect for anyone reading this who knows someone in harm's way, I will not discuss the injuries in detail.

All I will say is that I have even more respect for Mike and his fellow soldiers. I truly don't know how they do what they do. One of them pulled me off to the side, after the last critical soldier had been put on the plane, and said this: "we love our job, but it's emotionally draining. Sometimes the only thing that keeps us going is support from home."

It was an extremely humbling experience. I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to visit Mike, see parts of Europe, and get a first-hand look at why exactly he is deployed.

Oh, and no proposal, for any that were curious! He said he has a date in mind when he wants to ask me to marry him.

So, for now, I will keep on keepin' on. I love him more than ever, and I'm ready to finish up this deployment strong and with a positive attitude!