He's home!!

Okay, I am sure that you will understand the lateness of this, but just wanted to let you know that Dave came home Monday night.  It was great to see him again! One of our neighbors put yellow ribbons on all of the trees in our neighborhood by the street so Dave could see them once he got home, it was a cool sight to see!  He has been busy taking Jack to football, Katie to Karate, and me to the gym (his idea!)  He has a month of leave before he goes back to work, so hopefully, you will hear from him soon!


Thanks for following my weak blog, hope it helped you out!  This will most likely be my last post, unless Dave wants to share some cool stories!!

Love to you all!  :O)

More New News!

Hello!!  We finally heard from Dave today!!!  He was exhausted!  Sounded like he was going to fall asleep while we talked!  He was in Wisconsin, and said he should be home some time next week.  I asked him were he was going to be released from, DesMoines, or Sioux City, he said he wasn't sure, but he hoped it would be DesMoines.  He was so tired, it got to where I couldn't understand me!!  He said that he would call us tomorrow. (Wednesday, the 20th) I asked him if they were having a homecoming ceremony, and he said there would be one in  Sioux City, DesMoines and maybe Boone (?) I can't remember the third one.  I then asked if we should go, and he asked why??  He just doesn't get it!!!  He said it wouldn't be many people, around 50 or so.  I then checked my email, and saw this..  I will let you know what else I learn!

IOWA NATIONAL GUARD
Mission Focused – Warrior Ready

Troop A, 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry (unit is based at Camp Dodge) and selected members of other Iowa National Guard units (approximately 45 Soldiers) Homecoming ceremony starts at 1:30 p.m. at the Freedom Center, Camp Dodge Joint Maneuver Training Center, 7105 NW 70th Ave., Johnston. This homecoming will include selected members of Troop A, 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry (Johnston); Co. D, 334th Brigade Support Battalion (Sioux City); Co. C, 1st Battalion,168th Infantry (Johnston); Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team (Cedar Rapids); Battery A, 1st Battalion, 194th Field Artillery (Estherville); and Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 194th Field Artillery (Fort Dodge). Buses will enter Iowa via Interstate 35 South, exit onto Interstate 80 West, then take Exit 131 for Merle Hay Road in Johnston to NW 70th Ave., then left onto NW 70th Ave. to Camp Dodge.

New News

Hi all!  Just wanted to let you know that last we heard, Dave was about to board a plane on his way out of Afghanistan!  He has about four stops before getting to Iowa, so I don't really have a date of his arrival yet.  He told us that he would call us when he hit the states, so, once I hear anything, I will pass it on!

In the News second try....

Hi all, well, I have not made the best use of this blog as I could have, but sometimes information from Dave is sparse, and a lot of what he knows can't be shared with me, so I can't share with you.  The last time we talked with Dave, he told us that his days in Afghanistan were coming to an end, and that he (and his unit) would most likely be home at the end of July.  Now, I always take the dates given to me with a grain of salt. Since Dave has been in the military, I have learned that nothing is set in stone, and anything can change at a moments notice.  I have also learned to keep things very opened ended with Katie and Jack, so if things do in fact change, I am not having to disappoint them...maybe even more than one time!!  When I say "maybe" to my kids, they some times, some how, hear "I promise".....this leads to a lot of problems!  I think that Dave has learned to do the same with me, he has heard "but you said.." many times from me!  So, we are both learning!!  Anyhow, all I can say for now is, they are in the home stretch, and watching this interview with Dave on a Des Moines tv station helps make it even more "possible".  I didn't even know that Dave had an interview with this station until someone living in the Des Moines area mentioned that they had seen it.  Like I said, we haven't heard much from him! I have also learned that being the commander's wife has not privileges!!  This is the link to go to, to see the interview.               http://www.dvidshub.net/units/HQISAF
Some of the reason we haven't talked with Dave is that we (Katie, Jack, and I) just got back from a long trip to Cedar Rapids, and Spencer, Iowa.  We put a lot of miles on the ole van, but also spent a lot of great time with the cousins!!  Trevor and Morgan even made the trip to Spencer with us, so they got to see everyone too!  We all had a great time!  But, we really didn't have the opportunity to get online to try to Skype with Dave, or even send or receive emails. I just got an email today saying that he no longer has internet, so I am not sure if we will hear from him again until he gets back into the states.  You all know that Dave doesn't like all of the weepy home coming things that are always planned, so I think that he may keep some of that information from me so we can't surprise him and be there!!  I think it would be good for the kids to see the enormity of it all though, as I have said before, so if YOU hear anything, especially you Iowans, pass it on to me!!!
Well, time to go, I promise, I will post things as soon as I hear them, whether it be from an interview, or straight from the horses mouth!  Hope all of you out there are doing well!  Hugs and kisses from all of us!

PS...if that link doesn't work, just put Des Moines, Iowa, Lt. Colonel Dave Updegraff in as a search, and you will find it!

In the News

News From the FRG (Family Readiness Group) 6.11 about arrival home

Hi guys, it's been a long time since I've posted anything, sorry.  It has been crazy in our house the past few months!  Katie had her week long 8th grade class trip to DC, then was home for two days, had her eight grade graduation.....yes, they have 8th grade grad. here, they make a big deal of it...a bit silly, we think...and then had the much waited for 8th grade dance!  The dance was a big hit, all the kids loved it, and the parents all helped out a lot with planning and decorating, etc.  They decorated the gym and cafeteria of the middle school to look like a cruise ship!  Very cool.  The 8th grade parents were not permitted to chaperone, they ask the 7th grade parents to do it!  So, we had a reception before the dance and they let the parents go in, see the decorations, take pictures, then kicked us out!  Katie had a great time, and we finally came to an agreement on the dress with a lot of help from her Aunts Christie and Terry in Iowa!  She is still taking riding lessons during the summer and will start swing choir practice soon.  She auditioned a while ago for the high school group, and was happy to get a spot! I've heard from other parents that I better take a deep breath before it starts, because the "parents" aka...moms...have to be very involved!  I'll be sure to rest up all summer!  She is also still doing karate once a week and will go back to twice a week once Dave gets back and they start going together again.  I am so proud that she has stuck with it for so long...it has been about 9 years since she started!  Amazing!  Ok, so her big crush on one of the boys in her class has kept her wanting to go for the last two years...!  Holding out for him this long paid off as they are now a "couple" as you may already know if you are a FB follower!!  He is two and a half years older, and I have a LOT more grey hairs, but he is a good kid, Dave and I have known him for years, and he has seen what Dave can do on the karate floor, so he has a very healthy fear of him!!!  We'll see how it goes once Dave gets back!!  ;O)
Jack finished his 4th grade year just this last week.  He is happy to have summer start, as usual, and is looking forward to a summer filled with fishing, swimming, baseball, football etc.  He is also winding up his baseball season.  The team isn't doing too well, they are 2 and 9.  All of the boys are good players, but they just can't seem to get it together when they have a game!  Jack has been catching a lot, and pitching too.  At the start of the season, he was having trouble hitting the ball, cause this is the first year having his peers pitch to him, but he is coming around and starting to hit well, once he gets a good hold of the ball, he hits doubles and triples!  I have had fun watching and yelling for the team!  Dave is glad, I am sure, that he is not having to sit next to me and listen to me scream!  Hey, it is a mom's prerogative!! Football season starts up the last week of July, when Dave is due back.
 SPEAKING OF DAVE COMING BACK--I will answer the burning question that everyone has been asking lately..when is Dave coming home!  Well, I don't know!!!  I have always felt safe with the thought that another team would go to Afghanistan and take their place, just like they did to the team before them.  I figured that with that, it would be all planned and regimented, without much room for changes.  WELL, then I get this email from the FRG, and have to say "what a surprise!" I didn't hear about this from Dave first, just got the email today, so I don't know anymore than what is in this email.  I actually though that since we hadn't been hearing a lot from Dave lately that is was because they were all busy wrapping things up, but I guess they have more than that to do!  Read for yourself-

>
> Please distribute to families.

> Subject: Message from SCO to SQDN Families (UNCLASSIFIED)
>  Family and Friends of the REDHORSERs:

> As many of you may have heard, the unit originally ordered to
> replace TF REDHORSE is not coming to Afghanistan. TF REDBULL and my staff
> are currently planning, developing options for many possible outcomes. I
> would like to inform you that we are currently not planning on any
> significant, if any, extension here. In fact the current plan is still to
> RIP under the original timeline.
> Thanks to all of you for your support.
>
> LTC David A. Updegraff
> TF REDHORSE
> Commanding
>

My final words...aaarrrrgggg!!!

Correction

An email from Dave today said:

Cindy:
    Your BLOG says that we had an accident ... it was not an accident, please change that.
    We air assaulted into a hot LZ and immediately were in a firefight ... the enemy had the high ground and it was a bad situation.
    SSG Justice lost his life when a bullet went through his chest and abdomen.
    SPC Durham was WIA with a bullet through the chest that came out and then through his arm.

    To say there was an accident does not pay honor to these warriors.

A note from Dave

Hi all, the kids and I just returned from a wonderful trip for Easter to Cedar Rapids..great weekend with family!  We were busy unloading and unwinding when I got a call from the FRG (Family Readiness Group) phone tree.  I tell you, unless you have been on the receiving end of a phone tree call about your soldier, you will never understand the flip that your stomach gets once you hear that you are getting a call from the phone tree!!  I was informed that there was an accident and injuries in Afghanistan, but  "if my soldier was involved, I would have already heard about it".  Just in case they were wrong about my being notified about "my" solider, I went to my email in search of an email from Dave!  This is what I found-

All:
    Just wanted to let you know that I am fine.
    If you are following REDHORSE or REDBULLS, this week has been
tough. We have had a number of engagements with the enemy and taken 7
WIA and 1 KIA.
    Although I was in the field with one of the actions I was not
wounded - I am fine.
   
 LTC David A. Updegraff
TF REDHORSE
Commanding

Love to you all, hope you had a great Easter!!

More pictures from "Bullets and Dust"

Hi all, Dave sent me a link that has some pictures on it that are interesting.  He said that was a "great day for the 1-113th!"

http://odc.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=5002&p=2454

Bullets and Dust an article Dave sent me...I know that he wishes HE was one of the men in the ravine!!!

Staff Sgt. Michael Davis of Altoona takes a breather with his helmet off shortly after Bravo Company of the Iowa National Guard's 1-113th Cavalry Squadron engaged in an intense firefight with insurgents in Afghanistan.

ALYSSA SCHUKAR/THE WORLD-HERALD

Published Friday April 8, 2011

Chaos of war: All bullets and dust

By Joseph Morton
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

ONLY IN THE WORLD-HERALD
BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan — The bad guys had escaped once again.
At least, that's the way it looked Thursday afternoon to the Iowa Guardsmen scouring a series of ravines for more than an hour without finding two suspected insurgents they had seen earlier toting AK-47s.
Then, suddenly, Spc. Mark Otte of Atlantic, Iowa, saw them, about 40 feet below him on the floor of a ravine.
Otte stared into one man's face and pointed his gun at him, waiting to see whether he would surrender.
Instead, the man opened fire with his assault rifle, forcing Otte back from the edge of the ravine.
About the same time, other soldiers from Bravo Troop who were searching the ravine floor came upon the men.
The man shooting at Otte quickly redirected his fire at the soldiers in the ravine. Staff Sgt. Michael Davis of Altoona, Iowa, was the closest — less than 10 feet away.
Davis stumbled backwards from the oncoming bullets and got tangled with Spc. Jeremy Henrich of Hinton, Iowa. They fell over, returning fire as they went down. They rolled over and kept firing.
Henrich positioned his rifle on top of Davis' helmet to make sure he didn't accidentally shoot his buddy in the tight space.
Atop the ravine, on the opposite side from Otte, Sgt. Cody Johnson of Ankeny tried firing down at the pair of fighters with a squad automatic weapon, but the gun jammed.
Other Iowa soldiers on top of the ravine unloaded their M-4 rifles and tossed three grenades, one by one, at the enemy.
By now, Otte was firing on the pair, too, but he soon stopped — as the bullets slammed into the dry ravine walls, they stirred up a cloud of dust, making it difficult to see who was where.
Down below, the gunfire was thick, the ravine narrow.
As the enemy's bullets tore past him, Henrich just kept shooting into the dust. He moved his rifle high, low, left and right as he shot.
He just hoped he was hitting something.
***
It had been a relatively quiet deployment for Bravo Troop of the Iowa Army National Guard's 1-113th Cavalry Squadron since arriving in Afghanistan in November, with the rest of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division.
The troop's main task — providing security in the areas just south of the sprawling Bagram Air Field, a major base and a nexus of coalition activity in eastern Afghanistan— has produced little enemy engagement.
But the troop is also responsible for a remote section of Parwan province, which lies just north of the capital city of Kabul and includes the village of Pacha Khak. When they visited the area in December, they noticed several men watching from afar, hidden under a blanket and possibly holding a weapon.
The troop hadn't had the opportunity to detain the watchers then but resolved that things would be different this time around.
The plan: Have 1st Platoon enter the village from the west, 2nd Platoon from the east. The two groups would meet in the middle, look around and discuss a few matters with the village elder.
Anyone spying on them would be captured. Anyone attacking them would be annihilated.
“We are out there looking for a fight today,” 1st Lt. Andy Zaidi of Oakland, Calif., told 2nd Platoon during his pre-mission briefing.
He cautioned the soldiers to show “tactical restraint” and wait for targets to demonstrate “hostile intent,” per their rules of engagement.
His platoon's eight-vehicle convoy soon left Bagram behind and began the slow climb through the treacherous mountain switchbacks leading to Pacha Khak.
The difficult terrain has made the village and the area beyond it a safe haven for insurgents. Beyond this point, U.S. forces must leave their heavily armored trucks, traveling instead in pickup trucks or helicopters.
***
Shortly after 8:30 a.m., Spc. Cody Bunkers of Ankeny nosed the lead MATV around a large boulder, trying not to rub against the rock and topple the truck down the side of the mountain.
Boom.
At first Bunkers thought he'd hit the rock after all and blown a tire, but the billowing black smoke told him otherwise. The radios went crazy.
“Contact: IED.”
“We've got a trigger man running towards the valley.”
“You want me to drop this (guy) if I see him?” one gunner asked.
“Only if he has hostile intent.”
The truck's front half was blown to pieces, with parts strewn across the landscape. But everyone inside was safe.
After securing the area, the soldiers headed out on foot, more determined than ever to find the enemy. They walked nearly a mile over the rocky ground, picking their way among the prickly scrub brush.
When 2nd Platoon arrived, 1st Platoon had already found some rusty old firearms and a few land mines in a couple of caves. The soldiers decided to search a nearby building and found a new RPG — a rocket-propelled grenade launcher — and rounds.
Excited by the find, a team of soldiers headed north to search among dozens of small caves littering the hillside among the village's mud dwellings. They questioned villagers about the weapons they had found and about specific insurgents they were seeking.
They used a device to check villagers' hands for explosives residue.
The conversations tended to go in circles, with the villagers professing confusion and no knowledge of any weapons, explosives, Taliban fighters or even the identity of their neighbors.
The Iowa soldiers muttered profanity-laced skepticism but shook hands politely and moved on.
***
About midday, Henrich and Bravo's commander, Capt. Randall Stanford of Clive, Iowa, were searching a large cave when one of the unit's snipers alerted them to the two men with AK-47s, moving toward the soldiers along a creek bed.
When they realized they had been seen, the two took off running.
The call went out. Other Bravo troop soldiers abandoned their search for weapon stashes and took up the hunt.
About 2 p.m., after more than an hour spent examining the creek bed, they reached the last dead end in the ravine — and saw the two men.
Trapped, the pair decided to fight it out.
And everything turned into bullets and dust.
The firefight lasted only a few minutes. Then the Iowans pulled their soldiers back, dropped smoke to mark the enemy's location and called in two Kiowa OH-58D helicopters that had been circling overhead. The Kiowas roared in, blasting the ravine with a series of rockets.
The Bravo soldiers returned to the ravine. One enemy fighter was dead, the other still moving. The soldiers said he appeared to be wounded but going for his pistol.
A single shot rang out, and the all-clear was called.
The only injury to the U.S. soldiers was a small scratch to Henrich. His uniform was torn on the shoulder. A red mark showed where a bullet had grazed his skin.
He didn't even notice it until someone else pointed it out.
The soldiers' mood was a mixture of exultation and relief that none of them had been hurt.
“I don't know how they didn't get shot,” Stanford said of the soldiers on the ravine floor.
Henrich seemed baffled by it, as well.
“As many … rounds as were going off…” he said, his voice still a bit shaky.
Many in the unit have served in combat zones before, but this was the first time they had seen an eyeball-to-eyeball shootout.
“That was as close as it gets,” said Sgt. Josh Davenport of Ames, Iowa, who was behind Henrich on the ravine floor.
Said Davis: “We're lucky to be alive.”

FYI

Hi all, just letting you know that I got an email from Dave, he got back to Afghanistan last night and is back into the swing of things.

Our surprise visitor

Hi all-- most of you probably don't know that on Thursday night, March 3rd Dave showed up at our front door!  YUP! Totally unknown to all of us!  It was funny, cause Jack was standing in our kitchen and yelled "Dad"?....Katie and I were in the living room and just looked at Jack, then each other like he was crazy.  One more time Jack yells..."Daddy!"  Katie and I do the same thing...finally, on the last scream, Jack goes running to the front door!  Katie and I got up in time to see Jack jump into Dave's arms!  What a great surprise that was for all of us, especially Jack!  Now all of you who know Dave well, are most likely surprised that Dave actually took leave and came home!  Sure enough, he had two weeks of leave.  Mind you, it was just because of some mix up about some signature that was needed from someone or the other, so Dave "had" to take leave!  Taking leave is usually a great thing to do, but when you have 800 guys under your command who are counting on you, it is hard to just up and fly out of the country!  ALSO, he would hate to miss any "good" action!! 
So, he spent two weeks fixing the toilet, garage door, and his car battery, doing taxes, straightening out a few messes I had gotten our bills into, (nothing major, I just don't do them the way he does!) telling Katie she has too much make up on, or that her clothes are too tight, watching Katie at karate and jumping horses, watching Jack's basketball practices and even a game, telling Katie she has too much make up on, and that her clothes are too tight, playing tons of Madden Football with Jack, debating with Katie as to why kids can't swear on the school bus since they do have the "right to free speech", a quick trip into the city to see a few friends, a great visit from his mom, lunch with the guys from Motorola, and many trips to the Y to kick my butt doing ab work, lifting weights, and teasing me while running on the treadmill next to me!!!  Oh, and one more thing....telling Katie that .....ok, you get my drift!  So, he needed to go back to the war in order to get some rest!!  Please don't be offended if he didn't call or visit you while here, as you can see, he was pretty busy!  He brought back many pictures, I will post them now and then, and try to remember what and where they were!  He is doing fine over there, and thanks everyone for the wonderful care packages and letters that have been sent to him.  He wants me to tell you that he really does have everything that he needs over there, and there isn't anything that he could ask be sent to him!  He has many stories, some I get to hear, some the kids get to hear, and some that are saved for his closest buddies.  My stories are all I need to hear, as I have heard a bit of the buddy ones, and would like to wait til he is home safely to hear all of those!  The tentative date for leaving Afghanistan is July 3rd.  Then he will have the mandatory two week debriefing someplace, I am not sure, then back home.  I will wait until July 1st to write this date on my calendar, because I know the military well, things change over and over again!  I will keep you up on the date as it gets nearer.  We haven't heard from him yet, so we don't know for sure if he is back in Afghanistan or not.  It took him an entire week to get here, with a two day luxurious stay in Kuwait, so who knows what the trip back has in store for him!
So for us, Jack walks around sad, missing Dave even more, Katie walks around in tight clothes and lots of make up, and I just go back to my usual routine, and get to take it easy at the gym! :O)  Today Jack and I started out the day with an early morning baseball meeting.  This is a new league for us this year because Jack is too old for the place he had been playing before.  The season starts April 5th, but not soon enough for Jack!  After the meeting we went on to register for football!  Jack decided to try it again this year, after taking last year off.  Then, it was back home to pick Katie up so we could go to Jack's last basketball game.  Katie has really enjoyed watching the basketball games this year since the referees are young and cute.  "Go team!"  Jack's team had a great season this year and ended 5-2.  He had a great time.  Next week Katie starts track at the middle school and is going to have an eye opening season this year since they actually have coaches who know what they are doing this year as apposed to the pregnant teacher, science teacher, and I am not sure who else last year!  I hope that she learns what it is all about....last year, the sprinters wouldn't warm up with a two mile run because they "were sprinters, duh!" I can't wait!!  :O)  Katie is also getting ready to graduate from 8th grade, and head on over to the high school next year.  I do not know where the 8th grade graduation hoopla started, I think that it is silly to have these big celebrations, dances, and even grad. pictures...come on people, is it that uncommon to graduate from 8th grade???  I will be glad to have Dave here with me for the high school fun, although I am not sure if he will survive it! 

Well, got to go for now, enjoy the photos I am posting. If they don't have a title to them, I don't know what the heck they are!

Much love to all!