It's been pretty damned depressing out here over the last few weeks. About the only good development is that July has arrived and with it Ami's birthday and the fact that I'll actually be able to attend the party this year. Last year we had some random gatherings back in DC to celebrate his birthday, but his real birthday party took place in St. Louis during a week that found me in a small city in Virginia getting recertified on my firearms for this deployment. So I missed the party complete with his first real cake, the big opening of gifts, etc, etc. This year it appears Napi the party will be more low key. I'll get there only days ahead of his birthday and will have to leave a few days after to travel up and down the DC area trying to square away my next assignment. This will likely be my last R&R, a result of having had to push the first back by over a month due to the timing of my deputy's arrival, and having had to push this trip back, again by over a month, in order to be there for Ami's birthday.
Still haven't figured out what gifts I'm going to get him yet. Napi tells me he's really into cars and trucks right now, so obviously I'll have to load him up on those. No more riding toys though - he's pretty much out of room for stuff that big. I need to look into more learning games and toys, and perhaps some stuff that he can take with him to daycare. Clothing is always in high demand of course, and apparently the boy's feet are eating their own version of spinach; he's outgrowing shoes by leaps and bounds. Actually I do have one gift for him...yet another stuffed animal, this time a bear from Fallujah. You guys thought I was kidding a few posts back when I mentioned my upcoming book titled 3-Days in Fallujah. Look out for it!
