Lima company is home! It was so awesome seeing my friend James home safe. I couldn't imagine all that he has seen and felt. I was thinking how differently people will look at him. We went out to lunch Sunday and a women left a card on the table labled only "To a Marine". It was a gift certificate and it said "from a grateful citizen" I think. How cool is that! His eyes have seen war firsthand. That is something not very many of us can say. Even as a veteran of a foreign war, I feel almost ashamed to have the ribbon that I wore to show that. I never saw battle...not even close. I was just enlisted during the Gulf War. My friend has been there, lived it and came back with a different outlook on life. I have so much respect and appreciation for what he has done.

My daughter Eve was blown away with him when she saw him in uniform Sunday morning. She kept hiding behind Jen and commenting on him when he would walk by. She would say "Mommy, there goes the man in the suit again." She was also commenting on how shiny his shoes were. When Jennifer asked Evie if she would like him to come over, she just giggled and got this big smile on her face. I have never seen her react to an adult like that before. She was really taken by him in uniform. It was so cute!

Words cannot express how proud I am of James and what he has done for our country.