Proud Wife Moment(s)

I left off my last post with the intention of continuing with an update on the last half a year; however, I wanted to quickly interject with a current event, RIMPAC! Every two years, a multinational exercise takes place here in Hawaii. If you recall, Jordan first participated in RIMPAC soon after we arrived in Hawaii, during the summer of 2014 (Ongoings in our Small Piece of the Pacific and The Boys are Back in Town). The last time Jordan participated, he was gone for 3 weeks on the USS Peleliu. It was the longest time we had spent apart since he entered active duty service in 2011, crazily enough. However, since Jordan spent nearly 3 years in flight training, which required no more than a week away on occasion,  we have been so lucky to have gone so long without any long periods of time apart, and that that first summer here was the first real separation during his professional career in the military. However, having just arrived at our duty station, still living month-to-month in our miserable hotbox apartment while waiting for our housing offer, and not having any friends or family nearby (like I did during the two , 6-week summers that Jordan attended Officer Candidate School training back in 2006 and 2008), I remember those 3 weeks seemingly like an eternity, and missing Jordan so intensely it brought me to tears.


I know, I know, it was only 3 weeks!  And while I can laugh at myself now, it was so very intense back then. I was especially overwhelmed when I thought of Jordan's upcoming Japan detachment soon to follow his return from RIMPAC and then the 3 weeks of legal school in San Diego directly following that. When I read back through those old blog posts, even though it wasn't explicitly stated because I don't like to advertise when Jordan is gone for safety reasons, the memories of sadness and longing wash over me so vividly it feels as if it were yesterday. Instantly, I'm transported back to that sauna of an apartment, laying on the thin sheet covering the pull-out sofabed in the middle of the living room(because it was too hot to sleep in our bedroom), the obnoxious beast of an airconditioning unit continually humming as it unsuccessfully attempted to bring the room temperature down below 80 degrees, and poor Gunnar panting and shifting positions all night attempting to find a cool spot to sleep.  And despite feeling so lucky to be stationed in paradise, I remember laying there, staring through the curtain-framed sliding glass doors, the full moon set against the night sky, illuminating the silhouette of the plumeria branches outside the balcony, feeling "homeless" and very very "alone" in this new place. It's funny to think back on now and so amazing to see how far we've come today, now settled into our beautiful house, in a wonderful and safe neighborhood, amongst the most supportive community of friends. Three weeks now would seem like nothing! Heck, absence makes the heart grow fonder right? Just kidding...

Although, speaking of absences making the heart grow fonder... or at least finding the positive in less than ideal situations, back when we lived in Virginia and Jordan was attending TBS, I went to a class that they held on base for new spouses; one of the pieces of advice they gave to us was to turn lemons into lemonade during these times apart. So, in anticipation of every absence, I start to look forward to certain things, like less dishes and laundry to do, a house that stays   a lot   a bit cleaner than normal, and less meals to prepare. And I may possibly be getting too good at making lemonade with all this practice, as this second round of RIMPAC seemed to fly by and I found myself thinking you're back already?  you're back already! Although to be fair, this second RIMPAC was much shorter than the first time Jordan went, as he had to stay back to finish EWS and joined his squadron late; additionally, the exercise ended a week early for Jordan's squadron as they evacuated their camp on the Big Island due to Tropical Storm Darby!

However, although Jordan was only part of RIMPAC for a short time this year, he was able to participate in two very cool events. First, Jordan was flying one of the two helicopters, the Cobra,  to have ever landed on an Australian Navy ship. It was even documented in the Australian Navy news! You can read about it here:  US Cobra and Venom Helicopters Land on HMAS Canberra . I have also included the pictures from the article here as well. Jordan is in the front seat of the Cobra (the skinny one), and you can see him well in the close up picture of the helicopter.

And here are some pictures Jordan took. Isn't it interesting how the Australian ship has a curved deck? 

Secondly, Jordan was part of the amphibious assault exercise that was held at the very end of RIMPAC this year. In the exercise, partner nations teamed up for an amphibious beach landing, including close air support from FA-18 Hornets and two AH-1W Cobras (one of which Jordan piloted), followed by three waves of assault amphibious vehicles. Forces from Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Korea, Tonga and the Untied States were involved. At the General's residence, situated on a bluff overlooking the beach, distinguished guests were hosted at a private party to watch the exercise, including dignitaries from the various countries participating in RIMPAC. According to RIMPAC's website, "the U.S. Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Ray Descheneaux, the commanding general for Fleet Marine Forces during RIMPAC 16 called the amphibious assualt a success and attributed it to a collective effort to overcome communication barriers and variation in tactics among participating forces." 

Unfortunately the pilot's wife doesn't get invited to the General's lawn with the rest of the distinguished guests haha; however, I did get up early that morning and walked as far down the beach as I could to take pictures. Unfortunately, the pictures don't do the experience justice! It was so AWESOME to see! I may be partial, but I would have to argue that it was the best darn airshow I have ever seen, and the Cobras, dive-bombing down over the beach and flying so low and fast over the crashing waves, were obviously the best part of the whole thing!  The video I found online only shows a brief portion of it, so you will just have to take my word on it. Here is a link to a video of Jordan flying:

Air support while the AAVs come ashore. #cobra #AAV ##rimpac2016 #hawaii #usmc #marines #yutyas #combatcamera

A video posted by Christopher Giannetti (@k9giannetti) on Jul 30, 2016 at 4:30pm PDT

And some professional pictures from the exercise:

AAVs were launched from the USS San Diego and rolled onto Pyramid Rock beach 

Jordan, in the front seat of the Cobra, circled overhead providing close air support for the machine-gun teams, mortarmen, and rifleman assaulting through the objective, toward the [simulated] enemy-airfield. 

And my personal pictures from that morning. I really was wishing I had a better camera than just my iPhone that day! Oh well...

It was definitely a proud wife moment, as I so often take for granted what Jordan does when he leaves the house for "work" each day. I'm so happy to have this talented pilot home with me, even if it does mean a little bit more housework *wink* !