My first press release and news story were both published!
To see the Navy newspaper story, Click here! Then click on either the PDF file in the corner of the page or the sixth story down titled, "IA returns from Iraq: Experience improves leadership."
To see the press release on Navy.mil Click here! or on MarineLink.com Click here!
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
The HO'S went walkin' for preemies!
The HO'S (Hancock, Hill, O'Sullivans), once again, came to the rescue! You may recall the HO'S team showing up to my rescue by saving me from drowning in my moving FIASCO when we bought the condo last Feb while the Old Man was in Iraq. (Whew! Even that sentence took a pretty big breath to read!) All peanuts in comparison to the cause this time!
Well, they were at it again! In honor of my nephew, formerly known as Captain Poopy, Christie rounded up the troops, and they walked in the March of Dimes this past weekend. (The Hancock's were there in spirit!)To read her post, Click here!
I've crossed over ...
I've officially made it into pregnancy-hood. I'm in maternity pants!
My parents sympathized with my open and unbuttoned, redneck pants (see post below) and purchased a few for me. Who would have thought that Target has a great selection!
Now I just have to get a pair or ten more! :)
Oh how I wish everyone could benefit from the joys that pants with an expandable waist brings!
My parents sympathized with my open and unbuttoned, redneck pants (see post below) and purchased a few for me. Who would have thought that Target has a great selection!
Now I just have to get a pair or ten more! :)
Oh how I wish everyone could benefit from the joys that pants with an expandable waist brings!
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Whoa mama-cita!
It's coming up on a year that Old Man Hancock has been home. Can you believe it?? Nearly a year??? Sometimes I look at him in awe; only having a vague idea of what he's been through. Others ... Well, who says your "first" year of marriage is easy? (Why do all the married couples hide that?) :) Just teasing! So in a nutshell, God continued to bless us this year with tons of experiences, life lessons, family visits, pet fiasco's and probably every other thing you can think of. I thought I'd catch you up on a few things before the blog continues (because yes, I've been BUSTING to start blogging again). Consider this a Hancock Year in Review - of sorts …
The Old Man came home on Memorial Day weekend and boy was that one to remember. We vacationed a little on the beaches of North Carolina; came home to our brand new house; had a news story broadcasted on local and national television about us; had an amazing welcome home party complete with a parade, our closest family, and little, cami, party-hats; and an amazing time together in Aruba. It took a while to get adjusted to things, both him and I, and to this day I still cry thinking about the deployment, but we got along OK. The summer passed by with those interesting first marriage gettings used to's (who knew sponges became more gross when left in the sink or that the brand of toothpaste mattered???). We had tons of fun times (we make a mean softball team and really good holiday dinners) and of course, mistakes ... I'm one with new cars, I'm one with new cars, I'm one with new cars.Then I started school again in the fall. I've been going to the best college ever, Liberty University, and I'm pretty much done with my coursework portion towards my master's in teaching now. Old Man Hancock started too. He's working quickly through his degree at Central Texas and is doing really well so far! I started teaching Kindergarten Sunday School at St. Mary's and it's the best thing ever - definite motivation to finish up school!! Plus, they always say really funny things like, "I gave up ham for lent!" and really smart things like "Peter the Apostle was the cornerstone of the church on Earth and the first Pope." They ALWAYS amaze me.
While I'm still finishing my degree, I applied to be a Public Affairs Officer/News Writer for the Navy, doing the second best thing I love and who'd have thought - I got it! (Don't hold me to any of that on here though!) As for the Old Man, he finally settled in his position teaching Lt.'s at The Basic School in Quantico, while finding time in between to hunt, golf and play baseball. Or wait, is it the other way around! ;) Oh yes, somewhere in between we found out we're pregnant! I threw that in to see if you were paying attention! :)
So now onto the good stuff. Baby, baby names, baby cravings, baby news, baby ideas, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby. (This is what it looks like inside the mind of "Pregnant Anna" formerly known as Annaland- read more below.) Only, I don't entirely feel pregnant, which can be good and bad. No morning sickness, no daily vomiting, no extreme fatigue, not too much of anything really. I get the occasional brief burst of nausea, migraine, heartburn, tiredness and my pants feel like they're airbrushed on, but other than that - ship shape! (I'm sure I'm on my way of being as big as a ship!)
I'm so excited about the baby and starting our family that it all seems so surreal. And even though it may not be all that interesting, that's what I'm gonna share with you on here! Especially since I miss all of you so dearly and I just really like to talk unnecessary amounts about anything, but most importantly, at least it'll make me feel like you're with me! (hint, hint - leave me comments! Or better yet, VISIT!)
So, CHEERS! To a new blog and a baby! (Picture me raising my pink water-filled sippie cup that, yes - I actually have and I'm drinking with as we speak!)
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Pregnant Anna
Since I've become pregnant, the Old Man thinks things have shifted from Annaland to "Pregnant Anna". Really, it's just Annaland much more particular and extravagant (who'd have thought).
So far, the Old Man and I have discovered a few things that Pregnant Anna either likes/hates/or is obsessed with that I really just felt the need to write about ... The first being how I think I sound just like Jordin Sparks when I sing along her new super fabulous song "No Air" at the top of my lungs even though I completely don't. OK, really that has nothing to do with pregnancy, but can I blame that on Pregnant Anna?
A few others to date -
I crave milk, Taco Bell, Oreo's, chocolate milk shakes, carrots, garlic everything, and cereal like there is about to be this giant shortage of all of it so if I don't get heapings and heapings RIGHT AWAY I am going to die! That's normal, right?
Actually, any food, every two hours is absolutely necessary or I'm seriously likely to eat my own arm!
I hate chicken. All of it. Funny thing is, my sister did when she was pregnant too.
I find it perfectly OK to bring in a loaf of cinnamon raisin bread and cream cheese to make sandwiches at my desk.
Starburst, marinara sauce and spaghetti equal horrible bloating and heartburn that is unlike any pain I've ever felt in my life. I suppose I won't be able to say that for long.
Yes, I have "pregnant brain."
(This is turning into a Thursday Thirteen list! Oh how I missed blogging!)
I don't fit anything! Most of my pants are on redneck style, unbuttoned and airing me out! I'm going to have to invest in more work pants STAT.
I get frazzled much less easy. In fact, I actually get a little more irritated than I should when others sweat the small stuff knowing I'm about to become a mother - the best, most happy, rewarding, loving and stressful thing in the world!
I don't leave the house without my bright pink, huge sippie cup with a straw. You'd think that working in a military environment would make this unacceptable, but I've been told my cup is quite impressive!
I have been a baking and cooking machine! The coolest thing so far is an amazing Boston Creme Pie. All from scratch!
I hate, hate, hate the word prego and I have nightmares about being one of those half-shirt wearing pregnant women with my hair all frazzled and no shoes. Or wait, am I dreaming that I'm Brittney Spears?
And I look at my husband a little differently now. I LOVE how excited he is and how he has always wanted kids so it's like a new light shines on him!
Yay baby!!!!!
So far, the Old Man and I have discovered a few things that Pregnant Anna either likes/hates/or is obsessed with that I really just felt the need to write about ... The first being how I think I sound just like Jordin Sparks when I sing along her new super fabulous song "No Air" at the top of my lungs even though I completely don't. OK, really that has nothing to do with pregnancy, but can I blame that on Pregnant Anna?
A few others to date -
I crave milk, Taco Bell, Oreo's, chocolate milk shakes, carrots, garlic everything, and cereal like there is about to be this giant shortage of all of it so if I don't get heapings and heapings RIGHT AWAY I am going to die! That's normal, right?
Actually, any food, every two hours is absolutely necessary or I'm seriously likely to eat my own arm!
I hate chicken. All of it. Funny thing is, my sister did when she was pregnant too.
I find it perfectly OK to bring in a loaf of cinnamon raisin bread and cream cheese to make sandwiches at my desk.
Starburst, marinara sauce and spaghetti equal horrible bloating and heartburn that is unlike any pain I've ever felt in my life. I suppose I won't be able to say that for long.
Yes, I have "pregnant brain."
(This is turning into a Thursday Thirteen list! Oh how I missed blogging!)
I don't fit anything! Most of my pants are on redneck style, unbuttoned and airing me out! I'm going to have to invest in more work pants STAT.
I get frazzled much less easy. In fact, I actually get a little more irritated than I should when others sweat the small stuff knowing I'm about to become a mother - the best, most happy, rewarding, loving and stressful thing in the world!
I don't leave the house without my bright pink, huge sippie cup with a straw. You'd think that working in a military environment would make this unacceptable, but I've been told my cup is quite impressive!
I have been a baking and cooking machine! The coolest thing so far is an amazing Boston Creme Pie. All from scratch!
I hate, hate, hate the word prego and I have nightmares about being one of those half-shirt wearing pregnant women with my hair all frazzled and no shoes. Or wait, am I dreaming that I'm Brittney Spears?
And I look at my husband a little differently now. I LOVE how excited he is and how he has always wanted kids so it's like a new light shines on him!
Yay baby!!!!!
An update on the 1/6 Marines with the 24th MEU
Keep these boys in your prayers. The Old Man's old unit, 1/6, went back overseas soon after they returned from Iraq. They are now serving in Afghanistan.
Marines battle insurgents during major operation in Taliban territory in Afghanistan
Fox News
April 29, 2008
Several hundred U.S. Marines engaged in a dramatic firefight Tuesday with an army of rebels in a Taliban stronghold in southern Afghanistan.
The battle against insurgents came during the first large-scale American operation in the area in years.
Hundreds of Marines charged into the Taliban-held town of Garmser before dawn Tuesday, reported FOX News' Dana Lewis — who is embedded with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit that led the mission.
Many of the 2,300-member unit who conducted the operation are Iraq war veterans. Their goal: to drive out militants and expand NATO's reach to cover a region that's been classified as Taliban territory and is blanketed with opium poppy fields.
U.S. commanders said Taliban fighters were expecting an assault and planted homemade bombs in response.
The British have a small base on the town's edge but Garmser's main marketplace is closed because of the Taliban threat.
Marines moved into town by helicopter and Humvee for Tuesday's assault in the southern province of Helmand, the first major task undertaken by the 2,300 Marines in the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
The unit arrived last month from Camp Lejeune, N.C., for a seven-month deployment. Another 1,200 Marines also came to train Afghan police.
Maj. Tom Clinton, the American commander at Forward Operating Base Dwyer, a British outpost 10 miles west of Garmser, said militants and Marines exchanged fire in two parts of Garmser on Tuesday. There was no immediate word on casualties.
"We haven't seen anybody who isn't carrying a gun," Clinton said of the mostly deserted town. "They're trying to figure out what we're doing. They're shooting at us, letting us know they're there."
Clinton, 36, of Swampscott, Mass., said Marines had also found bomb-making material and rockets in town. He said he was worried about the possibility of attacks using homemade bombs.
The Marines' mission is the first carried out by U.S. forces this far south in Helmand province in years. An operation late last year to take back the Taliban-held town of Musa Qala on the north end of Helmand involved U.S., British and Afghan forces.
Helmand province is the world's largest opium poppy growing region and has been a flash point of the increasingly violent insurgency in the last two years. British troops — who are responsible for Helmand — have faced fierce battles on the north end of Helmand.
Most U.S. troops operate in the east, along the border with Pakistan, but Britain, with 7,500 troops, and Canada, with 2,500 troops in neighboring Kandahar province, have not had enough manpower to tame the south.
More than 8,000 people died in insurgency-related violence last year. Militants set off more than 140 homicide bombs. Taliban fighters have been increasingly relying on roadside bombs and homicide attacks after being routed in force-to-force battles in the past.
The Marines had prepared on Monday by cleaning weapons and handing out grenades. The leader of one of the three companies involved — Charlie Company commander Capt. John Moder — said his men were ready.
"The feeling in general is optimistic, excited," said Moder, 34, of North Kingstown, Rhode Island. "They've been training for this deployment the last nine months. We've got veteran leaders."
Many of the men in the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit served in 2006 and 2007 in Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province in western Iraq. The vast region was once the stronghold of Al Qaeda in Iraq before the militants were pushed out in early 2007.
Moder said that experience would affect how his men fight in Afghanistan. "These guys saw a lot of progress in Ramadi, so they understand it's not just kinetic (fighting) but it's reconstruction and economic development."
But on the initial assault, Moder said his men were prepared to face mines and homemade bombs and "anybody that wants to fight us."
One Marine in Charlie Company, Cpl. Matt Gregorio, 26, from Boston, alluded to the fact the Marines had been in Afghanistan for six weeks without carrying out any missions. He said the mood was "anxious, excited."
"We've been waiting a while to get this going," he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
To read this story online, Click here!
Marines battle insurgents during major operation in Taliban territory in Afghanistan
Fox News
April 29, 2008
Several hundred U.S. Marines engaged in a dramatic firefight Tuesday with an army of rebels in a Taliban stronghold in southern Afghanistan.
The battle against insurgents came during the first large-scale American operation in the area in years.
Hundreds of Marines charged into the Taliban-held town of Garmser before dawn Tuesday, reported FOX News' Dana Lewis — who is embedded with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit that led the mission.
Many of the 2,300-member unit who conducted the operation are Iraq war veterans. Their goal: to drive out militants and expand NATO's reach to cover a region that's been classified as Taliban territory and is blanketed with opium poppy fields.
U.S. commanders said Taliban fighters were expecting an assault and planted homemade bombs in response.
The British have a small base on the town's edge but Garmser's main marketplace is closed because of the Taliban threat.
Marines moved into town by helicopter and Humvee for Tuesday's assault in the southern province of Helmand, the first major task undertaken by the 2,300 Marines in the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.
The unit arrived last month from Camp Lejeune, N.C., for a seven-month deployment. Another 1,200 Marines also came to train Afghan police.
Maj. Tom Clinton, the American commander at Forward Operating Base Dwyer, a British outpost 10 miles west of Garmser, said militants and Marines exchanged fire in two parts of Garmser on Tuesday. There was no immediate word on casualties.
"We haven't seen anybody who isn't carrying a gun," Clinton said of the mostly deserted town. "They're trying to figure out what we're doing. They're shooting at us, letting us know they're there."
Clinton, 36, of Swampscott, Mass., said Marines had also found bomb-making material and rockets in town. He said he was worried about the possibility of attacks using homemade bombs.
The Marines' mission is the first carried out by U.S. forces this far south in Helmand province in years. An operation late last year to take back the Taliban-held town of Musa Qala on the north end of Helmand involved U.S., British and Afghan forces.
Helmand province is the world's largest opium poppy growing region and has been a flash point of the increasingly violent insurgency in the last two years. British troops — who are responsible for Helmand — have faced fierce battles on the north end of Helmand.
Most U.S. troops operate in the east, along the border with Pakistan, but Britain, with 7,500 troops, and Canada, with 2,500 troops in neighboring Kandahar province, have not had enough manpower to tame the south.
More than 8,000 people died in insurgency-related violence last year. Militants set off more than 140 homicide bombs. Taliban fighters have been increasingly relying on roadside bombs and homicide attacks after being routed in force-to-force battles in the past.
The Marines had prepared on Monday by cleaning weapons and handing out grenades. The leader of one of the three companies involved — Charlie Company commander Capt. John Moder — said his men were ready.
"The feeling in general is optimistic, excited," said Moder, 34, of North Kingstown, Rhode Island. "They've been training for this deployment the last nine months. We've got veteran leaders."
Many of the men in the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit served in 2006 and 2007 in Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province in western Iraq. The vast region was once the stronghold of Al Qaeda in Iraq before the militants were pushed out in early 2007.
Moder said that experience would affect how his men fight in Afghanistan. "These guys saw a lot of progress in Ramadi, so they understand it's not just kinetic (fighting) but it's reconstruction and economic development."
But on the initial assault, Moder said his men were prepared to face mines and homemade bombs and "anybody that wants to fight us."
One Marine in Charlie Company, Cpl. Matt Gregorio, 26, from Boston, alluded to the fact the Marines had been in Afghanistan for six weeks without carrying out any missions. He said the mood was "anxious, excited."
"We've been waiting a while to get this going," he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
To read this story online, Click here!
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