O.C. Jones

Charlie's training started this week. He sounds worn out again. They did their water survival test yesterday and he received 50/50 possible points. To complete the test, you had to put on all your gear, jump from the high diving board into the pool, and take off all of your gear before reaching the surface (actually, you had to remove your gear or else you would sink). Another portion of the test was to then swim the length of the pool (I am uncertain what that distance is) with their weapons above their heads and out of the water. Charlie said is was exhausting, but he made it! They have also completed a few obstacle courses and some early morning 5 mile runs. Talk about whipping them into shape!

Because all of the candidate's are competing at about the same level of training, this is a whole new ball game. More competitive, a little tougher and absolutely more is expected out of them all.  Last night when we spoke, he was finishing writing his 1st essay. His composition was about choosing the Hard Truth over the Easy Wrong as it pertains to the Army, and more specifically, Officer Training. He will also be expected to write a book report, more essays and some written tests as his training progresses (on top of all the physical training exams). 

He definitely misses his family and friends so much! Right now he is tentatively scheduled to graduate and be commissioned the week of May 14th. At that point, he will probably be about half way through all of his training. I keep telling him to accept any offer for more specialized training so that he wont be deployed! Selfish, I know, but I am so anxious and scared of that day getting here. Maybe by the time his training is complete our new President might have successfully brought all of our troops home and the war will be over. Wishful thinking on my part? More than likely, but I am always searching for that silver lining. 

On a side note: Jackson starts Tee ball in a few weeks. We went to pick out his cleats and gear last night so we are all set! Of course this is another piece of the puzzle Charlie doesn't like to think about missing, but as life goes, we sometimes have to make choices that keep us from home for an extended period of time. Thus, we miss out on some of the fun stuff.....but I keep telling Charlie at least he will be able to see Jackson on TV one day when he makes it to the Majors! haha!! You just never know.......

Hope this finds you all doing well....until next time....everyone be safe and take care of yourselves.

CC&J

BCT Complete!

Charlie has completed Basic Combat Training and has officially been promoted to Sgt. Charles W. Jones. We dropped him off at Fort Benning, GA for O.C.S. (Officer Candidate School) which will not officially begin until Feb 23, 2009.

Kelley (his mother), myself and Jackson had the most enjoyable time on our road trip! I would say we deserve an award for being the champion road warriors!

Charlie was honored at the graduation ceremony for being the Soldier Leader of the cycle. The highest honor a soldier in BCT can recieve. This means he displayed all the qualities and characteristics of a leader and also scored highly on all PT tests and knowledge of the Army insignia, Creed, core values, etc... After the ceremony, the family of the honored soldiers were invited to a private tent where General Dempsey (four star), Brigadier General May, and Command Sergeant Major Stall addressed the soldiers and family members. At this time, Charlie was "coined" by each and had the opportunity to share a little bit about what he plans to do as an Officer of the U.S. Army.

The entire day was fabulous for us all. We were able to spend a great deal of time with Charlie which was a plus!

I am so proud of his success so far, and I just know he will continue to shine throughout his training. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers, and continue to check back on the blog as I will continue to post updates.

Hope this finds everyone well!

Unitl next time.....

CC&J

Graduation

Not much has changed since the last post....I have only heard from Charlie 1 time since he returned to basic and that was via snail mail. Their phone privileges are a little more restricted now in the last few weeks.
In the letter he said that they would be tested on their marksmanship this week so he was looking forward to that and feeling pretty confident (charlie? confident? I know its hard to imagine! ha!)
He graduates from basic training on February 6, 2009 and almost immediately will be shipped off to Fort Benning for OCS.
Jackson and I are looking forward to making the trip....we are so proud of him! (Kelley, we need to discuss your plans!!!)
He is very homesick and can only receive mail up until two weeks prior to graduation, so if you are planning on writing, you will need to mail it in the next two weeks or he may never get it! Hope this finds you all well....we are doing good, just missing Charlie! Until the next update, you all take care!

CC&J

The "Civillian" Life

Well, Charlie made it back.....Jackson would not (and has not) let go of him since he came through the gate at the airport.

I didn't think I would be quite as emotional as I was, and granted, if anyone could have seen jackson standing in anticipation...watching as each group pf people unloaded the tram, hoping the next person was daddy, you would have all been crying like babies too!! He made Charlie a sign...too cute. The two of them have this "thing" they do together and Charlie always asks Jackson, "Who's the man?" To which, of course, Jackson's response is "you and me dad." So that was included in the script....

We will be headed to ole' Pensacola on Dec. 26th and not sure yet when we will return to Tampa. Charlie has to be here to catch his flight on the 2nd, but we may come backdown the 30th. Yet to be determined.
This will most likely be the last post until after the holiday, so again, we wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I will have more pictures by then!

OH YEAH....GO GATORS!!!! =)

Charlie survived the gas chamber....

...thank the Lord! The last letter I recv'd from him he was to be sent there the following day. I did not hear anything from him until Sunday a.m. and only had 3 minutes to chat. Needless to say, my nerves are shot! Although, logically I know if anything "bad" were to happen I would be contacted...it makes for long, sleepless nights of worry anyway! I can't EVEN imagine what hell it is when family/friends are deployed!

His letters are wonderful to recieve and I just hang on to every word. It has been a really neat experience to actually have to communicate this way....now I know what it was really like in the "Stone Age" (well, at least prior to email and texting)! But it really is the simple things in life that amount to priceless memories! Charlie's mom and I have talked quite often (which I LOVE) since his departure, and shared his letters with each other....they make for wonderful conversation!


I cannot stress how much he loves to hear from family and friends, so if you have a spare minute (yeah right) right him a quick note. (His address is posted below) All the encouragement these guys can get, the better they feel!

He will be home in about 2.5 days! I know the two weeks are going to fly by, but at least he will get that time with jackson and his family! Thanks to all for your love and support, and for following the blog. He has asked me in his letters if I really made one, so I am sure he will want to log on and see what I've done....

Hope this finds you all happy and well. I will try to squeeze in at least one more post before Christams, but just in case....Merry Christmas to everyone and best wishes for a safe and happy new year! God Bless!


CC&J

Bravo Company Pugal Stick Champion!!!

Is Spc. Charles W. Jones. HORAY! His unit (I don't know if this is the proper terminology, but I am trying) is called "Hellhounds" and Charlie is their Champion of Pugal Stick Competition. He made deadly contact with the other three Platoon Champs to win it all. You will have to ask him for more details...all I know is I am proud and he seems proud of this too!

I got a (very long) letter from him last night and he seems to be enjoying BCT. That sounds funny to say, and of course there are parts that aren't fun (at all) but all in all he is learning a lot and enjoying the training. He has an advantage in that he has always taken care of himself physically and came in more fit than most people there. He does have to hike with 50lbs of "battle rattle" strapped to his back (and carry his weapon; an M-16) so I am sure he will be lean and mean by the time he has completed.

As usual, I hope this finds everyone well! Take care and hopefully we will see some familiar faces before the New Year while we are home in Pcola!!

CC&J

"Christmas is a-coming..."

and Charlie gets a break from basic!! hooray! He will be flying into Tampa Dec. 18th (late evening) and does not have to report back until Jan 2nd. Jackson CAN NOT wait! He asks me everyday how much longer until he sees his daddy...to the point where I had to finally get him a calendar to mark off the days. He is too much!! I have only talked to Charlie a couple times, but I did get to talk for about 20 minutes on Thanksgiving which was a blessing. His spirits seem to be good but he cannot wait to see everyone. He has been a little homesick, I think, although he may not admit that!

We are planning a trip home to Pensacola at some point during his break, but we are not sure yet of the dates. I will keep everyone posted and do better about updating everyone on the blog. As you all know the holidays are very busy!!

Hoipe this finds you all well. His address is listed below if anyone wants to write him a letter. Mail is exciting to him now!! Put a giant number 4 on the back of your letter and envelope. It will help to speed up the processing and he might get it quicker that way.

Spc. Charles Jones
B Company 3-34 IN
4 Platoon
Fort Jackson, S.C. 29207

-CC&J