Kyle's christmas tree

UPDATED ADDRESS- Kyle's address has changed!!

UGHHHHHHHHHHHH! Kyle has a new address......why? I don't know! Not very happy about it but what can I do, its the marine corp for ya!

Sgt, Ketner Kyle D.

Task Force Military Police

India Company, 3D Battalion, 24th Marines

II Marine Expeditionary Force (FWD)

Unit 43525

FPO AP 96426-3525

Merry Christmas!

Update

Gage and I celebrated 5 Thanksgivings in all! Each one was harder and harder due to Kyles' absence. At the same time it was comforting to be around family. Many rumors have been going around about the marines homecoming but nothing has been officially said. I have chosen to count down to the first week in April, which is 18 weeks away. We sent Kyle a mini Christmas tree and lights to put up. Kyle sent me my Christmas gift early, a camera!! Ours broke and I haven't been able to take pictures to send him so he wanted to make sure I had one for the holidays. Here is an email I received and thought I would share:



Update letter from SgtMaj Peck

This week has been filled with travel for both the Commanding Officer and me. We had the opportunity to fly out west for a couple of days this week in order to spend some time with our Marines and Sailors at the three Ports of Entry (POEs) and after a day back here at Al Asad, I flew down south for a few more days to meet our Marines in Umm Qasr. The mission our Marines and Sailors are performing on the Jordanian and Syrian boarders is important work. They provide security at the ports themselves and at the same time provide security for the other Marines that are specifically tasked to teach the Iraqis how to securely run their own ports. Every time I talk to the Marines that we are supporting out in these distant places, I can't help but feel this tremendous sense of pride as they tell me how professional our Marines are conducting themselves. Our Marines are providing outstanding security because of their steadfast, disciplined
and attentive approach they take every day. Our Marines down south near
Kuwait at the Umm Qasr port are performing an altogether different task;
another first. Iraq is starting its very own Marine Corps. The only
problem with this, as if there could only be one problem, is that they're
not quite sure what they want it to look like. They just know they like
ours and they want one too.
It didn't take long to ring in the Christmas spirit around here after
Thanksgiving. Since I have returned from being away this week, we have had
trees popping up, fully decorated with lights and the whole nine yards. One of the sections is even doing a Secret Santa gift exchange.
You should see the VERY creative ornaments on the tree and the hideously
wrapped gifts under it. You would think a bunch of five year olds had done
the wrapping. It is fun to see the stockings being hung around the work
spaces; some are the traditional decorated Christmas stockings while others
are just hanging a dirty old boot sock. Another thing that is not in short
supply are all the Christmas goodies. We have cookies, brownies, fudge and
candy everywhere. Unlike Halloween, this is all the good stuff, homemade.
Not much news to share with you all this week with regards to retrograde.
Aren't you glad you didn't hold your breath from last week?
The Commanding Officer is planning another "town hall" this week with all of our officers and SNCOs to let us all know the latest possibilities. The CO is passing this information regularly with his officers and senior enlisted in order to calm the rumors and help pass good information to all the Marines. Once he briefs the staff this week, we both look forward to
sharing with you all the news and hopefully bring a bit of light to our
final destiny. Until then, we remain focused on the front sight tip. Bless you all as you begin your holiday preparations.
Semper Fidelis,
SgtMaj Peck



Thanks again for all the support!!

We are surviving!

Well now the deployment is in full swing. And we are surviving! Not that I thought we wouldn't but God has provided us with people, places and things to help make this a good time. We are very blessed by prayers and support. Kyle is doing well. We are able to make contact with him almost everyday. We have been using skype so we have even been able to see him. It helps out a lot with the distance to be able to see him. He has been receiving boxes from family and great friends and wants everyone to know how much he appreciates the love. Getting a box from home can change his entire day!! With that being said I need to update his requests. He has gotten an over abundance of toothbrushes :) and has asked us to hold off on those for now. What ever he gets and doesn't need he does hand out to the marines that do need it.
Water flavors, gum, dental floss, microwavable popcorn, magazines (fitness, hunting, guns etc.), protein bars, granola bars and anything that you might think is fun or that you like!
I am on the family readiness team for the unit, which is a support team that helps the families connect while the marines are deployed. We are having a get together for Thanksgiving and will be making cards to send to the marines. We don't have a budget, so supplies for the cards have to be donated. If you want to donate supplies for the cards this is what we will be needing...
crayons, markers, pens, construction paper, glue sticks, glitter, big rolls of paper for signs, temper paint, paint brushes, poster board and permanent markers for poster board. Anything that is left over will be used for making Christmas cards and for decorations for the marines homecoming. All supplies for card making will need to be given to me by Monday November 7th.

Thank you for all your support and love!!

October 2009

Kyle has made it to his overseas destination and has begun to settle in. I was blessed to be able to go see him just before he left the states. He is doing well. We are able comunicate through internet and have a few times since he has been there. Here is his address if you would like to write or send him anything.

Sgt Kyle D. Ketner
3/24 India Co. 2nd plt
Unit 43530
FPO AP 96426-3530

He has asked for things such as toothbrushes, crystal light individual water flavors, he loves orange tic tacs, gum, schick titanium refill razors, disposable razors, shaving cream, Gillette clinical strength deodorant, gillette body wash/shampoo, almonds, protein bars, magazines......I will update often. Most of all a hand written letter can mean more than anything else.

Thank you for all of your prayers, we have definantly felt Gods presence during this stage in our life.

September

Well the moment I so dreaded happened yesterday at 6:30pm. I had to say goodbye to the love of my life and give him over to the marine corp for a while. He came home for 10 days and our visit with him was precious. He is now back in California and will be there until he deploys. They will not find out their time of deployment until 48hrs before they go. Gage and I are very sad, and look forward to his homecoming. We trust in God for his safety, and pray that angels are always surrounding him and his marines. Thank you for your continued prayers and support. We need it now more than ever.

4th of July

Kyle got to come home for the 4th. He leaves to go back on Monday. We have enjoyed our time together with our family and look forward to when he comes home next summer for good. Here is a letter that we received as an update as to what the marines have been doing for the the last month. I will continue to post these as they come, which should be once a month. Thank you for all of your support and prayers!

(Sorry but I cant get the pictures to show up from the letter)

INDIA COMPANY 3RD BATTALION, 24th MARINES

Dear India Family,
June has been incredibly busy, with some of the most intensive training a company can go through in the span of one month. Since our last newsletter, the Marines and Sailors have conducted live fire platoon attacks, Arabic language training, operations in urban terrain, vehicle mounted training, and a full scale company attack with battalion mortars and machine guns in support. They have fought through disorientation by escaping from a mock Humvee after it has been flipped over, filled with smoke to simulate a fire, and had all but one of its doors locked from the outside. Additionally, the last week of the month was completely in the field at K2. Here is what "K2" means to the Marines:
Staff Sergeant Doak of 1st Platoon radios instructions to his squad leaders during a firefight in Kilo-2,while an Iraqi police officer and interpreter look on.
A complete mock Iraqi village has been constructed at Camp Pendleton and filled with role-players. These actors are Iraqi citizens who have come to our country to assist with our training. A cadre of Iraqi Army soldier role-players attach to our Marine patrols as they jointly patrol the populated village. There is a Sheik, mayor, a cell of insurgents, local police, and all of the complicated tribal connections we would see in a comparably sized Iraqi town. India Company has spent the last week as if we were in Iraq, interacting with the "locals" while on patrol, and being subject to attacks of every kind with full Hollywood special effects in support. Some of the training involves simunition rounds, which are high velocity paint pellets that create the closest thing possible to live-fire training with a live opposing force. The Marine Corps has done everything it can to equip and prepare us for any foreseeable circumstance.
Throughout all of this, the Marines and Sailors have performed not only well but with great endurance. As always, you all should be very proud of what they have accomplished so far, and the spirit in which they have done it. I thank you for your continued support, because you help to provide the strength that I witness in the men each day.
May God bless you, and have a wonderful and safe Independence Day celebration.


Major Doug Woodhams
Commanding Officer, India Co. 3/24

Update

Ok, so an update is way over due!!! Kyle is still in California. I took a road trip to visit him over memorial day weekend with 2 other marine wives. Long but beautiful drive! And definitely worth it! It was great to see Camp Pendleton and to understand the training that he is getting out there. Kyle is coming home for 3 days over the 4th of July holiday. We look forward to this visit.

Address for Kyle

I have an address for Kyle. This will be his address until they go overseas.

Sgt Ketner K.D.
India Co.
3rd Battalion 24th Marines
Box 555594
Camp Pendleton, CA 92055-5594

He will be home from April 24th until May 9th. Any letters you can send will be a great form of encouragement to him. We still dont have a computer yet, so this may be the best way to communicate since he wont be able to check email as frequent. Thanks for all your support and prayers!

I am such a slacker....

I have been so busy lately that I havent been able to sit down and update our blog! Kyle was home for 2 weeks after his squad leaders course. We didnt get to see as much of him as we would have choosen to but every little bit is welcome! He left again last Saturday and will be back on the 24th for 2 more weeks. We will take a little vacation down to Orange beach, AL while he is home. But he will be at the drill center for most of that time. He is back at Camp Pendelton and doing well. Please keep him and his unit in your prayers.

Last week of Squad Leaders Course and my reality check

Well we have made it almost through 10 weeks of Kyle being gone for training. He will be coming home this weekend for a little bit, and then back to training. As it gets closer to his coming home it only gets closer to his deployment. I have tried to prepare myself as best I can for it but receiving our tri-care insurance in the mail the other day is when it hit me, this is real and it has only just begun. These 10 weeks have been hard but we still have the 8 month deployment ahead. Emotions have been running strong and will probably only continue to do so until the deployment is over. But God is going to see us through this and I know He has amazing things to show us about ourselves and our relationship with Him. How families do this without God is beyond my imagination. Just remembering that all I have to do is to trust in Him, and the rest He will do is so comforting. Jesus your all I need!

With the deployment slowly approaching, we are trying to get certain things together for Kyle to take with him. One of which is a lap top. He will be able to keep in touch with us (through web cam!), watch DVDs and store pictures, movies etc. As you may know our income is not as healthy as it used to be, so any donations toward this would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

1 week and 5 days..

We are anticipating Kyle's return from squad leaders school. It will be bitter sweet because he will be home for about a week and then return to his unit. His unit will be activated and begin training in the next few weeks for deployment. When they deploy and where is still unknown.
But we are very excited to see him and spend as much time with him as possible. Kyle is glad to have the course almost behind him, he is doing very well. He has received some of the highest scores in the class on tests, and achieved some personal goals as well. We are very proud! This week they spend the week in the field training so we won't hear from him until Friday.

24 more days to go...

Kyle has been in the field training and wont be back until Friday so I dont have any updates on him as of now. Gage and I are doing well. Whenever my phone rings he gets excited and says "Daddy!" thinking that it is Kyle calling. I thought I would be able to trick him and when my sister called I gave him the phone. After about 10 seconds he handed it back to me and said "No daddy momma". Guess he is smarter than I thought! He is begining to test his boundaries which has been very frustrating being the only parent at home right now. But it too shall pass, right?!

Daddy is home

Having this time with Kyle is priceless. It is amazing how soon you forget someones presence when they are gone. We are gonna get more time with him than we thought. His flight will leave at 3 in the afternoon on Monday rather than 9 in the morning. Money was given to us from a marines family in California to do so. God is good! Gage has welcomed daddy with giggles and love. It is like Kyle was never gone. Kyles' looks have changed some. I had to familiarize myself with his skinny face. His clothes hang off of his body more so than they did before. But that is all thats different! And we are so glad to be able to see him! It will be hard to see him go again but only 4 weeks and 6 days until we will see him again. Thank you for all of the prayers for him!!

Valentines Day

Not too much has gone on with us over the last week. We do have good news though. We are able to bring Kyle home for the weekend!! He will be here for less than 48 hrs but we will take what we can get! He is our Valentines present! He is in the field all week so it will be a nice break for Kyle. I am trying to teach Gage to say Daddy's coming home, but all he says is "Daddy gone." Its cute cause his "gone" is very drawn out and southern. We plan on getting to the airport early so we can talk about daddy and hopefully Gage will welcome him with open arms. It is hard to say how he will react. I know he knows him, but still fear hurt for Kyle if he doesnt want him.

Prayer Request..

Kyle has his first big test tomorrow. It covers alot of materials. He has been studying all weekend and will continue tonight missing the super bowl!! What a Marine!! Please keep him in your prayers. I have been praying for peace. He has alot on his plate and I want him to be at peace knowing that God is in control.

7 weeks and 2 days to go....

I spoke with Kyle briefly last night. They have been very busy with assignments and training. He got his boots in the mail and was excited about getting to wear them. I pray that they are just what his feet need! He has been getting very little sleep so I also pray that he is able to be alert and focused. We thought he was gonna be able to come home for a 3 day weekend they have in February, but its not gonna work out. The distance is begining to wear on Kyle. He misses us as much as we miss him. I pray that God can comfort him, and that the rest of his time there goes by quickly.

Good news!

We finalized the sell of the truck today!!! BIG prayer answered!!! AMEN!! This is going to help simplify things while Kyle is away.

Week 2

It's Thursday of week 2 and Gage is still looking for Kyle. I try to explain that Daddy is working and will be back later but I know that he just doesnt get it. I am ok that he doesnt understand cause when Kyle calls Gage will sit and listen to his voice rather than fight off the phone. Kyle misses him and talking to him on the phone helps. I talked with Kyle early Tuesday morning and they were headed to the field and should be back sometime on Friday. He is still getting adjusted to the class but he is doing well. His grandparents ordered him new boots, hoping that they will help with his sore feet. I believe they will and am very thankful that Grandma and Grandpa helped us out with that. Everyday God shows me his love. Sometimes it is the most random act from a stranger but I have no doubt that God loves me and my family!! Our God is an awesome GOD!!!

What a week!

We have just about made it through our first week! And it has been a doozie! With financial disasters here, and training surprises there we have made it to Thursday only by the grace of God! I have been able to talk to Kyle everyday and he seems to be surviving. He has asked for prayer for his legs and feet. They are doing alot of PT (physical training) and the heat has been hard for him to get used to. We pray for peace and strength for our family as we continue this journey!!

69 more days!!

We took Kyle to the airport this morning, flight left at 9:45. Gage and I both gave him lots of love. It was hard to watch him go, but at the same time I was excited for him. He truely loves the Marine Corp and enjoys the fact that this is now his fulltime job. We pray that he can focus and is able to absorb the new knowledge. This training is very important for the upcoming deployment. Thank you Jesus for our daddy!

Our daddy, our hero

Kyles marine unit is preparing for activation. He will be leaving on January 10th and return on March 21st for the first of many trainings before actually being sent overseas. As of now we don't know his final destination but we trust in God 100%!! Please keep him in your prayers. I will try to keep this updated throughout training and deployment so that everyone knows what is going on. We love you!