The Countdown Has Begun

Well it is March 1st and the count down has begun. Movers arrive 15 March so I have been pretty busy lately deciding on what goes in HHG and what comes with us that we absolutely cannot live without for the next few months. We have sent a few boxes home already - sorry Mom & Dad, I know you are counting the days until you can get your dining room back in order :) Luckily I think I will be able to come back with one suitcase and a box. Jenna and I will be leaving at the end of the month and Ken will join us sometime in April.

We have certainly enjoyed our adventure here - living in a different culture, learning a new language, having a baby and surviving a coup has made a lot of memories for us. We certainly look forward to the next adventure. With Ken's retirement (yes, sadly after 30 years it will be time to say good-bye) I know there will be good things in store for us. Ken is interested in becoming a JR ROTC instructor - he will be terrific at it. So he interviewed and scored very high. We have already applied to a high school back home in Northwest Florida so we are keeping our fingers crossed. We should hear something this week.

We certainly plan to take some time over the summer and do some traveling. Unfortunately that is my one regret that we did not get to travel more in Central/Latin America. Being pregnant the first six months, Ken's job and then the coup it just was not feasible. However, we are very fortunate for the traveling we did get to do and especially visiting many parts of our host country. We have made some life long friends and we have already made plans to visit them in Croatia in 2012 - it will be a great way to visit Eastern Europe.

As for Ken, he stays extremely busy and I am keeping my fingers crossed that the US military will be able to re-engage with the Honduran military for the duration of Ken's time here. I know he would love to get back to how things were before the coup.

As for Jenna, our little girl is 15 months old today. I took her into the embassy this morning for her 2nd H1N1 shot and next week she goes in for the last of her shots. Thankfully no more needles til she is 4 years old. She is doing so well developmentally. Her hand/eye coordination is just amazing. Any day now she will be walking unassisted - although I do try to walk with her but she finds that she can get to where she wants to go faster by crawling so I am letting her take it at her own pace - trust me I am not rushing it. Jenna is also in the famous "test" phase now. Ken and I are getting awfully tired of telling her "NO" when it comes to pushing buttons on the tv and having to re-direct her.

She is a terrific eater. About a month ago it was difficult to get her to eat anything that was not milk, cheese or grapes. Now, she is into pasta again, chicken, veggies and loves Bananas, Grapes, Papaya and Cantaloupe. She is so much fun and is really trying to communicate. I hear more and more words and imitating animals everyday and she knows her facial features. It is so funny when we ask "Jenna, where is your nose?" She points to it and then claps. Ken taught her where her ears are and now we are working on eyes and mouth. Also this kid knows how to throw a ball - it is pretty fascinating!!

As for me, I will maintain my position with the embassy as the newsletter editor until the end of April. I have certainly enjoyed it and has kept my mind sharp - at least with all the software training I had at the Sheriff's Office I have been able to put it to use here and not forget :) The next few weeks will be a little stressful but I know it will all get done and will look forward to being back in the good ole USA.

Above are some photos from our trip to Colorado for Christmas (it was great seeing most of Ken's family and mine too), Our surprise trip to Florida in January for my birthday and visiting The LAMB Institute Children's home in Tegus

Much Love,
Ken, Catherine and Jenna

Children's Holiday Party

After a scary week of being ill with a high fever, Jenna is back to her active, happy self. She had a low fever and minor cough but when her temp spiked to 104.4 last Saturday, we immediately called the health unit at the Embassy and got her checked out. Thankfully the amoxicillin and baby Tylenol (every 4 hours) kicked whatever she had.
Today, we attended the Children's Holiday Party at the Ambassadors residence and the kids had a great time. There was a train ride, bouncy castle, pizza, ice cream and the best part - Santa and Mrs. Claus. Jenna was not exactly happy sitting on Santa's lap and did not want to have anything to do with Mrs. Claus either. However, Santa overlooked all that and gave her a little stuffed animal wearing a santa hat :) She also got to sit in Amb Llorens lap too!

We are packing today and heading to Colorado tomorrow. We so look forward to spending time with Ken's family in Colorado Springs and my family in Denver. I actually can't wait to get Jenna out in the snow and hopefully on a sled!!!!!!!!!

Merry Christmas!

Our little Mobile Unit

Well, Jenna officially did what all kids do when they start moving around - break stuff. Yesterday, I was trying to get the laundry folded and as soon as I finished, Jenna comes over and starts taking stuff and throwing it out of the basket. I redirected her to play with this new musical book she got but that did not work. She crawled over the step into the dining area and crawled near our shelving unit that displays our china and crystal. Before I could get half around the table, Jenna pulled a crystal platter off the shelf and when it hit the tile floor, chards of glass went everywhere. I was so afraid she was cut, thankfully she did not have a scratch on her. She is in to everything! We had to rearrange our living room to block her from crawling up the steps. It is not the best set-up but we think it will work for the time being.

Despite some broken crystal we had a great weekend. We went back to the cabins an hour away from Tegus. On Saturday we hiked 4 hours at La Tigra National Park and got to see the waterfall everyone spoke about it. It was great! And, so nice to be out in the fresh air. Jenna was the perfect little hiker and did so well in her pack.

Jenna's First Year

In honor of our little girl's first birthday, we wanted to share Jenna's "first" year with our family and friends. Thank you to everyone for making our little girl's first birthday so special.

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One week to go..........

Well, it has been a year filled with so much joy and excitement for Ken and I. Next Sunday our little girl turns one year old. Everyone told us "savor every moment because it goes by fast." Well, that could not be a more true statement. Despite the distance b/w us and family/friends, we have been so fortunate for all the love and support we have received being in Honduras. We were also fortunate to come home 3 times so everyone could meet Jenna.

Speaking of trips, Jenna and I arrived back in Honduras a week ago. We spent about two months in Destin and Ken was with us for about 4 weeks during that time. Our two months was filled with seeing family and friends. The main reason I stayed so long was to be with my best friend, Lauren, who went through an extremely difficult pregnancy. I thank God for the 40 minutes Lauren and her sweet husband, Greg had with their son, Jonathan who died of Trisomy 13. And, I am also thankful I could be there for her. Greg and Lauren amaze us with their strong faith which is what got them through this and God could not have given Jonathan more perfect parents. For those of you reading this and do not know about Jonathan's story please visit: www.Jonathansbabyjournal.blogspot.com.

We attended two retirement ceremonies (one at Hurlburt, the other at Moody), attended the SouthCom Commander's Conference in Miami. After the conference, Ken and I were also able to getaway for 3 days to go to Disney - we had a blast! Thanks mom and dad for watching Jenna so we could have some time to our selves. Also, my brother in law and his family came down for a weekend to visit us. And, most importantly, Ken and I decided to celebrate Jenna's 1st birthday early so our family and friends could be a part of it.

As for Jenna she is crawling!!!!!! She started back in Fl while staying with my parents. Ken and I were in Miami at the time and we were sad that we did not get to see it first, but I am glad my parents got to share that with Jenna. Just recently, Jenna has learned to crawl over one step that goes from the tv area up to the dining area - SCARY!!!!!! Our house in Honduras is not child proof at all and the whole house has tile. So we have to watch Jenna like a hawk. Needless to say falling and hitting the head on the floor has already begun.

As far as words go, Jenna says ma ma and da da frequently. Knows how to wave hi and bye bye. Some words she has picked up - doggie, duck and water. Jenna absolutely loves books. Throughout the day and especially at bedtime we read and Jenna really enjoys it. Her favorite toy is a Fisher Price doll house she received from Grandma and Grandpa. It makes a lot of noise so that is probably why.

Jenna continues to travel well and is very easy going. However, she is not without her moments. For instance, there are times she absolutely does not want to be strapped down in her car seat and will arch her body and keep it completely straight. It is funny what you have to do as a parent to coax her to seat down :)

We absolutely adore Jenna and she truly is life's greatest gift. She amazes us everyday by all that she is learning. We are looking forward to our daughter turning the big #1 in one week. Here are some photos of us during our time home.

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Jenna - 10 month update

Hello Everyone! I know it has been nearly a month since our last post, but a lot of things have happened. On 20 August, we received sad news that Ken's mom passed away (unexpectedly). We flew to Colorado Springs and spent two weeks. Times were very tough, but the family was together to support each other. Ken gave a beautiful eulogy during the service. Both the rosary and service was heavily attended by friends and family. I learned so much about mother-in-law and all that she has accomplished in her 77 years on earth. She is amazing. There are not many women who could sell a house, a car, keep track of 5 kids (especially if one of those kids happens to be Ken (just kidding honey)) and then travel overseas to Thailand to meet her husband. I guess the silver lining in all of this is Jenna got to meet her Aunt Carolyn and Aunt Valerie, uncles and tons of cousins. She had a great time with Uncle David and loved playing with her cousins - Julia, Rachel and Joey. I am thankful she got to spend a lot of time with Ken's dad. Ken and I purchased a hiking pack for Jenna and she loves it. Luckily we were able to use it while in Colorado and I think it will be a great investment for some of our future trips we hope to take before our tour is up in May. 9 months is right around the corner.

We came back to Honduras for a week and then we were back on a plane to Florida. Ken spoke to the Special Tactics Graduating Class and was able to make some jumps to keep his status up. Unfortunately the day he arrived back in Honduras, good ole Mel Zelaya decided to surprise us all that he was back in Honduras. As you can imagine, Ken has been full throttle ever since and I will truly look forward to his return mid-Oct.

As for me, I started working at the embassy mid-August. I was hired as the Newsletter Editor and really enjoy it. The best part is, it is part time (10 hrs) a week so I have plenty of time with Jenna and I can work remote. I am currently working on my 4th issue and constantly coming up with new ideas.

Jenna is growing!!!!!! She turned 10 months yesterday and already I am planning her birthday party for next month so we can celebrate while we are still in the states with family and friends. She weighs 18 lbs and 29 in long. She is enjoys table food and is great at feeding herself. She is talking a lot. She even said something along the lines of "Elmo" which was pretty cool. We are getting out walking everyday which is so nice since we can't do it a whole lot in Honduras and taking every opportunity to get in the pool. She LOVES the water! No doubt she will be a good swimmer. She continues to sleep well through the night and is such a happy baby. She smiles at just about everyone and is becoming quite the charmer. Oh, and she has 5 teeth and two more coming in. Most of all she is getting a lot of time with my parents.

In the video are photos taken in Colorado and towards the end are photos of Ken's Mom, Alice.

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Ken's Birthday Weekend

Ken turned 51 on Sunday - hard to believe, isn't? We took a 1 hour road trip to San Juancito (1st photo in video), where we met some of the nicest Hondurans and then on to a Bed n' Breakfast high up on a mountain in an area called El Rosario. In 1880, the US came to Honduras and developed a mining company called "El Rosario." The US along with Hondurans mined for silver, gold, copper, ore and a few other things. Some of the buildings still exist, along with a hospital, parts of a school and a cemetery. The mining closed in 1954 where the remainder of the workers went to Cuba and Nicaragua. In 1970, there were efforts to reactivate operations at El Rosario and call it the Rosario Resources Company, but on the 29th of Sept 1970, there was a landslide in the mountain and trapped 4 miners. so they closed the mines indefinitely. So now the area is part of La Tigra National Park. Ken, Jenna and I have yet to go there, but we hear it is pretty incredible. It has a ton of trails and a beautiful waterfall.

So for the bed n' breakfast............it is run by a German couple who have been in Honduras 11 years. They were really nice! We had very nice accommodations and a spectacular view (as you can see in the photos with the rainbow). We had a great dinner and breakfast was not to bad either. We did a lot of exploring and being so high up in the mountains, the air was great and we were able to drink the water out of the tap. It is the little things we appreciate :) We will definitely go there again - it is a nice getaway in the wilderness and not to far of a drive.

Jenna did great, she even has a third tooth coming in on the bottom. We hope to head to Antigua, Guatemala next month.

Our view from the cabin which was built right on the edge of a mountain......

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El Salvador Trip

Ken, Jenna and I returned last night from an incredible mini vacation. We, along with two other families, drove 3 1/2 hours to El Cuco, which means "crazy town." We were lucky to go. Since the "coup" there have been multiple travel restrictions, especially on the weekends. This past weekend was the first weekend the travel restriction (to drive) was lifted so we were thrilled. El Salvador certainly is a beautiful country and the beach was awesome!!!!!!. It is very clean, which was a nice change of scenery from the trash you usually see on the sides of the roads in Honduras. We stayed in a 4 bedroom house with a private pool/hot tub on the beach. It was very relaxing for all of us. As some of you may know, the country uses US dollars as it's currency. Ken and I have decided that we will most certainly make another trip before out tour is over. BTW, the first photo you see is of the river that splits Honduras and El Salvador so you have to cross a bridge to enter.

Jenna had a great time with her buddies and still proves to be an excellent traveler. She loved the water!!!!!!! Ken also learned how to surf -he did real well and picked it up very fast - which is no surprise to me. I guess I will be buying him a surf board in the future:) Here are some photos from our trip. Ken will be traveling to Puerto Rico for work sometime this month. When he returns we plan to go to Copan to see the Mayan Ruins or Antigua, Guatemala. We only have 10 more months before we leave so we want to take full advantage of our time here to do some adventures :)

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Jenna and Hondo Update

After a week of being sick, Jenna was back to her happy and playful self. She is learning very fast and is picking things up quickly. She loves her jumperoo - thank you Grandma & Grandpa!!!!!! There are a couple of animals hanging above her and when I say "Where is the bird?" Jenna immediately looks up at the bird. I have been repeating animals and animal sounds to her everyday so I guess it is working. She has yet to master crawling, but we are certainly in no rush :) When she stands assisted, she puts her full weight on her feet. Speaking of feet, she has learned to use hers quite well. For instance, when she is laying on her back and wants a toy, she will pick it up with her feet, bring it over her stomach and grab the toy with her hands.

On Wednesday, I left Jenna with our housekeeper for the first time so I could attend an Embassy event where Ken spoke. She did real well with Karla and I feel comfortable leaving Jenna with her in the future. Since we returned from the states I have watched Jenna's interaction with Karla and she is always happy and smiling at her so it gave me more confidence.

Last week, I started taking yoga with a few friends once a week (which has been wonderful for my sanity). I bring the housekeeper with us and she watches Jenna. The great part is my friend, Pilar, brings her son and nanny so Jenna get's a play day with her buddy Joaquin. So it is a win-win situation :)

As for Honduras, we are still limited to travel within the city. Ken continues to stay very busy. Despite the late nights, Ken manages to spend time with Jenna and I. It is our hope that our travel plans to El Salvador next month will not be cancelled. It will be a nice little break and change of scenery. However, as I write this, Zelaya has just crossed the Nicaraguan border into Honduras so there will be more info to come............

First Illness

After several months of saying "Jenna is so healthy and we are so lucky she has not gotten sick." I guess I finally jinxed it. Last Sunday, Jenna was having some stomach issues and threw up a little, but no fever. I brought her to the Embassy nurse on Tuesday and Jenna received a good report. Apparently there is a stomach virus going around. The last few days Jenna seemed to be okay. Last night I heard Jenna crying in her crib and found her throwing up. It continued while I held her and Ken and I immediately got her in the tub. Ken went to the store and picked up some pedialyte. It was a struggle to get her to drink something and then she fell asleep. So far today she has been drinking a lot of fluids and seems to be doing much better. She is sleeping quite a bit so I know she is still not feeling well. At least her symptoms have subsided. We hope she gets better soon!!!

Happy 4th of July!!!!!!

Here are some photos of Jenna. No fireworks, but at least a group of us got together for a bar b que to celebrate this very important holiday!!!!!
Also, Jenna has made a new friend. His name is Joaquin and he is actually two days older than Jenna. His parents, Eric and Pilar are wonderful and their former post was in China. Some of the ladies, including myself are hosting play dates at our homes for children ages 0 to 2. It has been awesome to get out of the house for a change of scenery, have some "girlfriend" time and let our children play together!!!!!!!

Honduras Excitement!!!!!!!

Hi Everyone,

We have received tons of e-mails from family and friends and we really appreciate everyone thinking about us. We are doing okay. We got our generator installed while we were in the states so it has come in handy when the power has gone out. Also we have the fridge stocked with food and plenty of water. Our house is within one mile of the presidential palace so it is a little unnerving since that is were most of the activity is taking place. When all this came down Sunday, the cops and military were out there with riot shields and there were some tanks rolling around.

Military planes and helicopters have been flying over the city the last few days. If Zelaya decides to come back on 4 July things could get real interesting. We are not affected too much and the Embassy has asked all families and mission personnel not to make unnecessary trips. Ken is obviously working like a maniac and I am more worried about him traveling back and forth due to the protests and demonstrations. If for some reason things get real bad, Jenna and I will come home. It is funny watching the inaccuracies on the news. On Fox, they stated the Hondurans were not taking any calls from US Diplomats.....totally wrong. Ken has received phone calls since Saturday evening (the day we returned to Honduras). At the direction of the State Dept. we are not to engage the Hondurans since the US does not recognize the new regime. It really is a shame because a lot of progress has been made, especially on the military side. I feel for Ken because a lot of programs, training, etc has stopped until further notice. Hopefully things will pick back up when the elections take place in November.

We had two Embassy events planned for the 4th and now they are cancelled for safety reasons. Also, Ken's brother, David and his kids were to arrive today for a week and a half. They cancelled their trip and thankfully David was able to receive full reimbursement for the tickets. We hope things settle down soon. Meanwhile I have Jenna to entertain me so staying at the house is not as bad as one would think.

Jenna turned 7 months on Monday. She is such a little sweetie and is doing real well with all the new foods Ken and I are introducing to her. She absolutely loves applesauce and sweet potatoes. When she wakes she has cereal or oatmeal with a bottle, a veggie at lunch with a bottle, veggie and some fruit at dinner and a bottle before she goes to bed. She still sleeps through the night and can sit up by herself unattended for small periods of time. The last few days Jenna has been teething a lot so I know she is uncomfortable. Since the bottle water we buy here does not contain flouride, we are giving her 0.5ml everyday. Jenna also has her first tooth!!!!!!!! It came in on her bottom left. Here are some photos from our trip back home, San Antonio / Chief Humphrey's Retirement and Ken's 1st Father's Day!!!!!!!!!!

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Eating Solids

At 6 months, I started Jenna on solids. So far she has had pears, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes and apple sauce with oatmeal. I would say pears and sweet potatoes are her favorite. I gave some apple juice and so far she is not a fan. She is rolling over non-stop and loves being in the water. We have spent quite a bit of time in the pool and she loves kicking her feet and slapping the water with her hands. I think when it comes to swimming, she is going to be a natural just like her daddy :)

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Jenna's Video Rolling Over

I know it has been a while since our last post. I have just been busy traveling to Birmingham to visit family, San Antonio to meet Ken for Chief Ralph Humphrey's retirement and my mom's internet has been super slow at her house.........so finally here is video of Jenna rolling over. More photos and video to come.

We are super excited, Ken is flying in tonight. YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!

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Another Mile Stone

As of yesterday, Jenna started rolling over!!!!!!!!! She is figuring out how to pull her arm out from underneath her, but she is getting the hang of it. I plan to get some video of her and post it soon. Once, she starts crawling I know Ken and I will have to watch her like a hawk.

We are enjoying our time in Florida, but certainly miss Ken!!!!!!! He is doing well, but staying very busy. I look forward to meeting him in San Antonio on 3 June for Chief Humphrey's retirement. I am staying busy here, catching up with friends and my sheriff's office family. As of late, I am running around getting paint quotes, etc for our town home in Destin. Our tenants are leaving the end of June and the place needs some paint from the normal wear and tear before we rent it out again or put it on the market. I have someone who is possibly interested in renting so we are keeping our fingers crossed.

More to come soon.......

Let The Messy Face Begin.............

Jenna turned 5 months old yesterday and began eating rice cereal today. The pediatrican feels Jenna is right on track and weighed 14 lbs 9 ozs and is 26.2 inches long. Jenna has been real picky this month eating. I was lucky to get anywhere from 3 to 6 ozs in her each feeding. The pediatrican gave us the green light to start Jenna on rice cereal twice a day. Then baby food at six months. I gave Jenna rice cereal this afternoon and she loved it!!!!!!!! She actually had 10 spoonfuls. I think we are going to have to invest in more bibs :) Ken and I are pretty excited for her although she is growing to fast. I documented the moment with some photos. Also, Ken was changing Jenna's diaper this morning and she found her toes.......in her mouth. It was pretty funny watching Ken trying to pull her feet out of her mouth to get her dressed.

Next Thursday Jenna and I will leave to head back to Florida. Next Friday is the Law Enforcement Memorial Luncheon and I am going to show my support and honor our fallen officers from the Sheriff's Office and throughout the State of Florida. I will hate being away from Ken for four weeks but I hope to meet him in San Antonio the first week of June and then Ken will meet us in Florida mid-June.

In Loving Memory

Yesterday, two former co-workers of mine with the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office were killed in the line of duty. Both were attempting to arrest a suspect who was involved in a domestic disturbance earlier in the day. The suspect shot Deputies Lopez (top photo) and York (middle photo), fled the scene and was shot and killed by Walton County Sheriff's Office after shooting at them in a pursuit. Both of these deputies served their community as well as their country in the USAF.

Within a year, 3 deputies with the OCSO have been killed. Please keep these deputies and their families in your thoughts and prayers.

Deputy Forgione was killed in July, 2008 (bottom photo)

Jenna's First Easter

HAPPY EASTER to our FAMILY & FRIENDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We love you,
Ken, Cathy & Jenna

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CV-22's From Hurlburt Transport Humanitarian Aide in Honduras

Hello All-

On Wednesday,8 April, members of the 8th SOS from Hurlburt Field flew CV-22's to Honduras in support of humanitarian assistance for Puerto Limpera, which is the northeastern state of Gracias A Dios. The CV-22's carried hospital beds, non-perishable food and school supplies. The effort was coordinated between Ken's office and Hurlburt's deployed SOS. Members of the Honduran Air Force assisted in loading the items. The beds were donated by a private company in the US and the non-perishable food was bought by the Italian Government.

The photo of Ken also includes Lt. Col Darryl Sheets / 8th SOS, Bill Brands / USAID Directot and Simon Henshaw / Deputy Chief of Mission, US Embassy

Also, in the montage you will see a building with the USMILGP logo on it which happened to be Col Oliver North's diggs when he was here during Iran Contra......pretty cool, huh?

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Laughing with Daddy

I was in the office and heard Jenna and Ken laughing. Needless to say, I had to get video of these two. Ken is a wonderful dad to Jenna and a lot of fun too!

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