Great news! Ed is finally home from the hospital, as of this afternoon. He had a bit of a small setback a few days ago, but is doing wonderfully now. His heart wasn't catching a normal rhythm and the external pacemaker he had (standard after heart surgery) was doing more work than they were hoping, so he had to have an internal pacemaker put in. This wasn't something that they were planning on doing, but it's something that the doctors felt was necessary.
The important thing is that he is home now! Please continue to keep him (and my mom) in your thoughts as he continues to heal and rely on my mom for support.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Update from Shanonn-
Hello loved ones!! Now that we've managed to miss all the major holidays, it's probably time for an update on us. We've definitely been very busy, but most of that has been due to travel, rather than changes in our schedules and lives.
November- The beginning of November, for the most part, was pretty calm for us. Tyler's schedule started to change more frequently, but he was still doing the same things, just at different hours. He is in the simulators right now, learning how to fly by his instruments (for flying in clouds, at night, etc.) instead of being able to simply see. For Thanksgiving, Lyle, Ethelyn (Tyler's parents), Mary K. (Tyler's sister), Josh (Mary K.'s boyfriend) and Brady (the nephew!) all came to stay with us for 5 days. We ended up going to Cracker Barrel for Thanksgiving day lunch, saw The Muppets' movie (so cute!) and ate out again that night. We ate out a lot... haha. The next day (Friday), everyone except Ethelyn and Brady went deep sea fishing. Mary K. and myself didn't have the best time, but the boys loved it and we did come home with some fish! The rest of the month rushed by, and I started to work full-time in the 2 year-old room, plus working after-care 3 times a week. Thank goodness that Christmas break has taken 2 weeks out of that schedule- haha! I actually like the new schedule better than my regular 12:30-5:30 shift because time seems to go by more quickly and I feel like I get more done.
December- This was one of the hardest times in my life. On December 5, 2011, I lost one of the greatest influences and important people in my life: my grandpa Johnie. He had been sick for a while and in pain, so this was a good thing, yet my heart is still broken thinking about what a wonderful father, grandfather and husband he was. He taught 3 daughters, 8 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren how to love with all of their hearts, laugh at the funny things and to not take anything too seriously. He will, truly, be missed. I got to go home to see my family for several days, so that was wonderful since this was Tyler's family's year to have us, but it was definitely bitter-sweet because of the occasion.
The rest of the month (at least the 18-Jan.1) was spent at the Sharpes' in Wyoming. Merry Christmas! We had a great time being with his family and taking some time off from work and school, while also having an amazing Christmas. We are spoiled for sure!
January- Happy New Year! The beginning to 2012 was a bit of a rough start for us. Our flight from Denver to Charlotte was delayed by 2 hours. Not only was it delayed, but we were sitting on the plane, at the gate, with the cabin door shut, for two hours. After we finally took off, we discovered that we missed our connection to Atlanta, but luckily they had placed us on a new flight, a little later, so we had time to eat dinner. The flight to Atlanta was nice, we had to wait a bit on our bags to arrive, but we walked away with all our luggage! There was also a man being arrested and escorted out by 3 security/police officers, so that added to our happiness. We made it to the hotel just fine, thanks for our shuttle, but the joy of finally ending our travel for the day ended when we talked to the desk clerk. She told us that some kids had tried to steal our truck while we were gone. Luckily they were scared off before they could finish the job and do too much damage. They did manage to pry part of the steering column off and detach our key cylinder, so we were stuck at the hotel until a locksmith could come out the next morning. Several hours (and some money) later, about noon, we were able to leave to drive back to For Rucker. We made it safely, picked up the dog, unpacked, then it was time to rest and get to bed for work and class the next day. Work and class have gone well for us this week, Tyler starts a new schedule tomorrow and will be back to flying a real helicopter again. (Finally!) I go back to my old schedule starting Monday, so it will be back to the late nights once again.
That's all our news for now- hope everyone is doing well and had a great start to their new year!
We love you all!
P.S.- Please keep my dad, Ed Elsass, in your thoughts. He had minor surgery done on his heart (Jan. 3), but has had a few, minor, complications along the way. Though it was a fairly simply procedure, it was still heart surgery and he has a long recovery ahead of him. He's doing very well, but is still under close supervision to ensure a proper recovery. Everything is looking good so far, so keep up the wishful thinking. Thank you!
November- The beginning of November, for the most part, was pretty calm for us. Tyler's schedule started to change more frequently, but he was still doing the same things, just at different hours. He is in the simulators right now, learning how to fly by his instruments (for flying in clouds, at night, etc.) instead of being able to simply see. For Thanksgiving, Lyle, Ethelyn (Tyler's parents), Mary K. (Tyler's sister), Josh (Mary K.'s boyfriend) and Brady (the nephew!) all came to stay with us for 5 days. We ended up going to Cracker Barrel for Thanksgiving day lunch, saw The Muppets' movie (so cute!) and ate out again that night. We ate out a lot... haha. The next day (Friday), everyone except Ethelyn and Brady went deep sea fishing. Mary K. and myself didn't have the best time, but the boys loved it and we did come home with some fish! The rest of the month rushed by, and I started to work full-time in the 2 year-old room, plus working after-care 3 times a week. Thank goodness that Christmas break has taken 2 weeks out of that schedule- haha! I actually like the new schedule better than my regular 12:30-5:30 shift because time seems to go by more quickly and I feel like I get more done.
December- This was one of the hardest times in my life. On December 5, 2011, I lost one of the greatest influences and important people in my life: my grandpa Johnie. He had been sick for a while and in pain, so this was a good thing, yet my heart is still broken thinking about what a wonderful father, grandfather and husband he was. He taught 3 daughters, 8 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren how to love with all of their hearts, laugh at the funny things and to not take anything too seriously. He will, truly, be missed. I got to go home to see my family for several days, so that was wonderful since this was Tyler's family's year to have us, but it was definitely bitter-sweet because of the occasion.
The rest of the month (at least the 18-Jan.1) was spent at the Sharpes' in Wyoming. Merry Christmas! We had a great time being with his family and taking some time off from work and school, while also having an amazing Christmas. We are spoiled for sure!
January- Happy New Year! The beginning to 2012 was a bit of a rough start for us. Our flight from Denver to Charlotte was delayed by 2 hours. Not only was it delayed, but we were sitting on the plane, at the gate, with the cabin door shut, for two hours. After we finally took off, we discovered that we missed our connection to Atlanta, but luckily they had placed us on a new flight, a little later, so we had time to eat dinner. The flight to Atlanta was nice, we had to wait a bit on our bags to arrive, but we walked away with all our luggage! There was also a man being arrested and escorted out by 3 security/police officers, so that added to our happiness. We made it to the hotel just fine, thanks for our shuttle, but the joy of finally ending our travel for the day ended when we talked to the desk clerk. She told us that some kids had tried to steal our truck while we were gone. Luckily they were scared off before they could finish the job and do too much damage. They did manage to pry part of the steering column off and detach our key cylinder, so we were stuck at the hotel until a locksmith could come out the next morning. Several hours (and some money) later, about noon, we were able to leave to drive back to For Rucker. We made it safely, picked up the dog, unpacked, then it was time to rest and get to bed for work and class the next day. Work and class have gone well for us this week, Tyler starts a new schedule tomorrow and will be back to flying a real helicopter again. (Finally!) I go back to my old schedule starting Monday, so it will be back to the late nights once again.
That's all our news for now- hope everyone is doing well and had a great start to their new year!
We love you all!
P.S.- Please keep my dad, Ed Elsass, in your thoughts. He had minor surgery done on his heart (Jan. 3), but has had a few, minor, complications along the way. Though it was a fairly simply procedure, it was still heart surgery and he has a long recovery ahead of him. He's doing very well, but is still under close supervision to ensure a proper recovery. Everything is looking good so far, so keep up the wishful thinking. Thank you!
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Sorry Friends...
We're still here!
Sorry that we haven't updated for quite some time. It seems like not enough happens to update every week, but then a lot of small things add up and we're behind! We'll start a few weeks back, then work toward today.
Shanonn went home the week of the 10-15 and spent some time with family and had a relaxing week off from work. That Friday, she ventured down to OKC to visit Vanessa and finally meet baby Denver and also to see Erin. She had a really great time getting to catch up with them and see them after several months. Sometime during the week that Shanonn was gone, Tyler took his first check-flight and did really well! His second one should be happening in the near-future.
The next Friday (the 21st) Tyler had his Family Day, so Shanonn got to see him fly his training helicopter. It was a fun day, but it wasn't without it's problems. Tyler was supposed to be out at the stage field about 1 o'clock, but didn't end up getting there until almost 3 because his first helicopter had a maintenance issue and they ended up having to get an entirely new aircraft. Shanonn had waited for Tyler to show up to eat lunch, so she was very hungry by the time he got there! It was a good day and we both got to meet and talk to flight students and their wives that we hadn't met before. Just when the day was scheduled to be over, Tyler landed the helicopter in a smaller landing area and shut it down, so that his stick-buddy and his wife could take pictures with it and meet the IP that flies with them everyday. It was simply an interesting moment.
The weather here is still very nice, a little cool this weekend, but nothing compared to what the rest of you have been experiencing, it seems! Tyler is still doing really well in school and has found some good friends to study with, while Shanonn is still working and will start subbing full-time in just a few weeks. On Monday, Tyler should be completing his first cross-country flight to Albany, Georgia, then back. Hopefully, that's all the exciting news we have for now! We will try to be better about updating.
Hope everyone is doing well! Thanks for checking in on us and feel free to call or e-mail us!
Sorry that we haven't updated for quite some time. It seems like not enough happens to update every week, but then a lot of small things add up and we're behind! We'll start a few weeks back, then work toward today.
Shanonn went home the week of the 10-15 and spent some time with family and had a relaxing week off from work. That Friday, she ventured down to OKC to visit Vanessa and finally meet baby Denver and also to see Erin. She had a really great time getting to catch up with them and see them after several months. Sometime during the week that Shanonn was gone, Tyler took his first check-flight and did really well! His second one should be happening in the near-future.
The next Friday (the 21st) Tyler had his Family Day, so Shanonn got to see him fly his training helicopter. It was a fun day, but it wasn't without it's problems. Tyler was supposed to be out at the stage field about 1 o'clock, but didn't end up getting there until almost 3 because his first helicopter had a maintenance issue and they ended up having to get an entirely new aircraft. Shanonn had waited for Tyler to show up to eat lunch, so she was very hungry by the time he got there! It was a good day and we both got to meet and talk to flight students and their wives that we hadn't met before. Just when the day was scheduled to be over, Tyler landed the helicopter in a smaller landing area and shut it down, so that his stick-buddy and his wife could take pictures with it and meet the IP that flies with them everyday. It was simply an interesting moment.
The weather here is still very nice, a little cool this weekend, but nothing compared to what the rest of you have been experiencing, it seems! Tyler is still doing really well in school and has found some good friends to study with, while Shanonn is still working and will start subbing full-time in just a few weeks. On Monday, Tyler should be completing his first cross-country flight to Albany, Georgia, then back. Hopefully, that's all the exciting news we have for now! We will try to be better about updating.
Hope everyone is doing well! Thanks for checking in on us and feel free to call or e-mail us!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Long Overdue Update
Hello to everyone!
It's been awhile since we've updated our blog and lots has happened since! Tyler graduated from SERE school and came back hungry and 10 lbs lighter. After a few days off he was back into class. He started Aeromedical training (medical factors affecting aviation) and then started his helicopter systems classes, learning all about the training helicopter's various systems and how they work. He had his first flight on Friday and had a blast, but realizes that flying helicopters is extremely tough. Tyler was on morning flight line last week so he had to be at the bus stop at about 4:15 AM to catch the bus to the airfield and got out of his academic classes at about 4:00 P.M. This week he will be on afternoons so will go to academics in the morning, then to the flightline in the afternoon, and get home at about 6:00 P.M. He has been studying lots and has done well on his tests so far. Shanonn has been staying busy working and taking care of the house. We took a trip to Atlanta for Labor day and got to see the World of Coke and went on the Inside the Studios Tour at the CNN studio. We also got to make a trip to Ikea and purchased a new bed frame. This past weekend we had dinner with a fellow flight student who is in Tyler's Guard unit and lives right down the street. Saturday we spent most of the day putting in a fence for Kahlua, so now she has room to roam and we can leave her outside for the day when we travel. The weather has been cooling off and we are looking forward to the fall weather fully setting in. We have stayed busy with all the new friends we have made here but miss all of our friends back in Oklahoma. Well, this was kind of a brief update but hopefully a longer one will soon follow!
It's been awhile since we've updated our blog and lots has happened since! Tyler graduated from SERE school and came back hungry and 10 lbs lighter. After a few days off he was back into class. He started Aeromedical training (medical factors affecting aviation) and then started his helicopter systems classes, learning all about the training helicopter's various systems and how they work. He had his first flight on Friday and had a blast, but realizes that flying helicopters is extremely tough. Tyler was on morning flight line last week so he had to be at the bus stop at about 4:15 AM to catch the bus to the airfield and got out of his academic classes at about 4:00 P.M. This week he will be on afternoons so will go to academics in the morning, then to the flightline in the afternoon, and get home at about 6:00 P.M. He has been studying lots and has done well on his tests so far. Shanonn has been staying busy working and taking care of the house. We took a trip to Atlanta for Labor day and got to see the World of Coke and went on the Inside the Studios Tour at the CNN studio. We also got to make a trip to Ikea and purchased a new bed frame. This past weekend we had dinner with a fellow flight student who is in Tyler's Guard unit and lives right down the street. Saturday we spent most of the day putting in a fence for Kahlua, so now she has room to roam and we can leave her outside for the day when we travel. The weather has been cooling off and we are looking forward to the fall weather fully setting in. We have stayed busy with all the new friends we have made here but miss all of our friends back in Oklahoma. Well, this was kind of a brief update but hopefully a longer one will soon follow!
Friday, July 29, 2011
Big News!
It Finally Happened!
Shanonn has found a job! It is though our church and will be mostly part-time, with the possibility of becoming full-time temporarily. One of the teachers (2 year old) is having a baby in November, so Shanonn will take over her shift for the 6+ weeks the teacher will be gone. Also, she will be working as a substitute whenever a teacher needs to take off work. So that is exciting for us!
Also, Tyler (finally) has a SERE date... for Monday! We got the good news yesterday, so he will at least have a few days to make sure he has everything purchased, packed, and ready to go. He will be gone for 3 weeks without any contact with anyone other than his classmates and and instructors, so it will be a challenge for both of us.
Other than those two major things, life has been pretty laid back and uneventful. We hope all of you have been doing well and we appreciate all of your love and support as we go through this phase in our lives!
Shanonn has found a job! It is though our church and will be mostly part-time, with the possibility of becoming full-time temporarily. One of the teachers (2 year old) is having a baby in November, so Shanonn will take over her shift for the 6+ weeks the teacher will be gone. Also, she will be working as a substitute whenever a teacher needs to take off work. So that is exciting for us!
Also, Tyler (finally) has a SERE date... for Monday! We got the good news yesterday, so he will at least have a few days to make sure he has everything purchased, packed, and ready to go. He will be gone for 3 weeks without any contact with anyone other than his classmates and and instructors, so it will be a challenge for both of us.
Other than those two major things, life has been pretty laid back and uneventful. We hope all of you have been doing well and we appreciate all of your love and support as we go through this phase in our lives!
Monday, July 18, 2011
Rolling With The Punches
Hello to All!
Well it has been an action packed few weeks since we have updated everyone. Tyler was supposed to go to survival school last week but had a hang up with his flight physical and they wouldn't let him go until it is sorted out. Turns out that he is a little too tall according to the Army's requirements and requires a special waiver to fly. He had to be measured in a helicopter to make sure he would fit (he does) and so now we are just waiting for the doctor to sign off on it and he will be back in training. The next class will start either August 1st or August 8th so he should be able to get into one of those. In the meantime he hasn't been doing much other than going to physical training, meeting for a couple of required "check ins" and studying. This week and next week he is helping out at a course for senior Army leaders and gets to sit in on some of the classes, an opportunity that he is excited about. Today a few officers from the Pentagon spoke, as well as the top general in Army Aviation, so he enjoyed that. This past weekend it rained almost the entire time, so we just ended up going to nearby Dothan, AL and shopping, as well as playing some card games with friends Saturday night. Tyler has been working on building a small apron hanger for Shanonn as well as a pen/pencil holder for his desk in his free time. Kahlua has been good but has been sad she hasn't been able to go to the Bark Park and has been going a little stir crazy. Tyler takes full-advantage of antagonizing her at every opportunity, which actually is funny. We're both doing well! Thanks for the recent phone calls to check on us- we miss you all!
Well it has been an action packed few weeks since we have updated everyone. Tyler was supposed to go to survival school last week but had a hang up with his flight physical and they wouldn't let him go until it is sorted out. Turns out that he is a little too tall according to the Army's requirements and requires a special waiver to fly. He had to be measured in a helicopter to make sure he would fit (he does) and so now we are just waiting for the doctor to sign off on it and he will be back in training. The next class will start either August 1st or August 8th so he should be able to get into one of those. In the meantime he hasn't been doing much other than going to physical training, meeting for a couple of required "check ins" and studying. This week and next week he is helping out at a course for senior Army leaders and gets to sit in on some of the classes, an opportunity that he is excited about. Today a few officers from the Pentagon spoke, as well as the top general in Army Aviation, so he enjoyed that. This past weekend it rained almost the entire time, so we just ended up going to nearby Dothan, AL and shopping, as well as playing some card games with friends Saturday night. Tyler has been working on building a small apron hanger for Shanonn as well as a pen/pencil holder for his desk in his free time. Kahlua has been good but has been sad she hasn't been able to go to the Bark Park and has been going a little stir crazy. Tyler takes full-advantage of antagonizing her at every opportunity, which actually is funny. We're both doing well! Thanks for the recent phone calls to check on us- we miss you all!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
We May Not Have Had Fireworks But We Still Had Fun
Hello Everyone
It's been a few weeks since our last posting and a lot has happened! Tyler finished up Basic Officer Leader Course just in time for the 4th of July weekend. He has been trying to build a bookshelf but progress has been slow since he hasn't had much time to work on it. We have hung out with our neighbors (Ben and Stacey) a few times and stayed up late playing cards and watching the dogs play. They have a 9 month old Weimeraner named Chloe that Kahlua has become friends with. They have gone to the Bark Park together a few times as well as hanging out around our house and our neighbors house. Tyler got to go to the flight-line and see all the helicopters up close. It's a good thing he will be flying Blackhawks since he is far too big for Kiowas and Apaches. Today he completed the Helicopter Overwater Survival Training course, where he learned how to escape a helicopter if it crashes into the water. It involved lots of getting flipped over in a cockpit simulator underwater and learning to breathe with a small air tank.
We got a four day weekend for the fourth of July and went to New Orleans. We got to see the French Quarter, Ninth Ward, Bourbon Street, Canal Street, the national WWII museum, and eat some beignets at Cafe Du Monde. Even though it was hot and packed everywhere we had a good time. On the way home we stopped in Mobile at the USS Alabama memorial and toured a WWII battleship, a submarine and lots of aircraft. Unfortunately we didn't see any fireworks for the 4th. Fort Rucker had theirs on Saturday and New Orleans were on Monday, so we just missed both. This week should be an easy one. Tyler is supposed to pretty much have the week off to prepare for his next training event SERE (survive evade, resist and escape) where he will learn to survive and avoid capture. He begins that on Monday and will have no contact with the outside world (including Shanonn) for 21 days so feel free to give Shanonn lot's of phone calls to keep her occupied. That is about all we have for now, we hope everyone had a good 4th of July weekend and we miss you all!
It's been a few weeks since our last posting and a lot has happened! Tyler finished up Basic Officer Leader Course just in time for the 4th of July weekend. He has been trying to build a bookshelf but progress has been slow since he hasn't had much time to work on it. We have hung out with our neighbors (Ben and Stacey) a few times and stayed up late playing cards and watching the dogs play. They have a 9 month old Weimeraner named Chloe that Kahlua has become friends with. They have gone to the Bark Park together a few times as well as hanging out around our house and our neighbors house. Tyler got to go to the flight-line and see all the helicopters up close. It's a good thing he will be flying Blackhawks since he is far too big for Kiowas and Apaches. Today he completed the Helicopter Overwater Survival Training course, where he learned how to escape a helicopter if it crashes into the water. It involved lots of getting flipped over in a cockpit simulator underwater and learning to breathe with a small air tank.We got a four day weekend for the fourth of July and went to New Orleans. We got to see the French Quarter, Ninth Ward, Bourbon Street, Canal Street, the national WWII museum, and eat some beignets at Cafe Du Monde. Even though it was hot and packed everywhere we had a good time. On the way home we stopped in Mobile at the USS Alabama memorial and toured a WWII battleship, a submarine and lots of aircraft. Unfortunately we didn't see any fireworks for the 4th. Fort Rucker had theirs on Saturday and New Orleans were on Monday, so we just missed both. This week should be an easy one. Tyler is supposed to pretty much have the week off to prepare for his next training event SERE (survive evade, resist and escape) where he will learn to survive and avoid capture. He begins that on Monday and will have no contact with the outside world (including Shanonn) for 21 days so feel free to give Shanonn lot's of phone calls to keep her occupied. That is about all we have for now, we hope everyone had a good 4th of July weekend and we miss you all!
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