flying solo.

literally. my husband flew solo for the first time the other day and a partner of his caught it all on camera for me. i’m beyond proud. my heart is bursting with so much excitement and joy. my husband is living out his dream each and every single day. it’s moments like this that are hard to explain.

show off.

my husband is a pilot. a helicopter pilot. and part of his job is doing pcr’s (public appearances in local communities). so this past thursday he and his partner were flying in and landing at the taste of the hill. since it’s so close to where we live i decided parker and i would go see daddy and his helicopter.

funny story about when doug got this job. transfers came out on august 7th 2008. that’s when doug found out that he had just landed his dream job. 2 days later we found out we were expecting parker. i find life to be so interesting. so unpredictable. that is a weekend i will never ever forget.

and of course what kind of mom would i be if i didn’t post pictures of my junior pilot?

up close and personal.

over the weekend my husband got the call. the call to do something that not everyone gets the opportunity to do. now if you know my husband you know that since he was small he has been infatuated with planes. with jets. with helicopters. with flight.

the blue angels were coming to re-fuel. at his airport. and we, we were going to watch. my husband was so excited. like a kid in a candy store excited. we pulled up to his hanger. punched in the password. the gate slowly rolled open as the anticipation quickly built. in we drove. we didn’t see anything at first, but then, like out of movie we came around the corner slowly. there they sat. all seven of them spaced perfectly apart. the sun dancing on the prestige paint that drenched each jet. a chill went down my spine and thousands of goosebumps made their home on my arms. it was an amazing and beautiful sight. a sight that not too many people can say they have ever seen.

we just stood there in awe. watching. watching them do absolutely nothing. but yet we could not take our eyes off of them. the sun was setting. the pilots were making their way across the tarmac. as they walked i watched. i don’t remember exactly what i was thinking. i just know i was amazed. when the pilots approached their jet i watched them walk around each and every single one of them. checking. checking. checking. they checked their jet as though they were checking on their child. they finished. they climbed in. they strapped in. they put their helmet on. they closed their canopy. and then with the flip of a switch the engines roared. the ground shook. the temperature rose. two by two they rolled slowly in perfect formation as they made their way to the runway. they sat. they waited. once cleared for take off the smoke rose. it billowed high. it billowed thick. and all i could do was watch. wait. and then it happened. in the blink of an eye they passed right before me and were gone. just that fast.

incredible.