Military Snapshots

When I first married my airman and had the opportunity to visit the homes of other military members, I saw that many had kept a record of each base they'd been stationed at in some sort of decorative display. To this day, I enjoy seeing the military history of each family. I decided I'd pull together some photos representing each of our assignments with the United States Air Force as I link up with Kelly.

Mr. Yellow Hat began his journey in the military in ROTC while we were at Cedarville University outside of Dayton, Ohio. This was a dining out event we attended in 1992.



We dated on and off in college and then went our separate ways. We reconnected and married in October of 2000. {For the life of me, I can not get this photo to turn. Regardless, here we are in the Prince William Sound in front of a glacier.}

{C-130 pilot}

Elmendorf Air Force Base

Anchorage, Alaska

1998-2002

Mr. YH was picked up as an Olmsted Scholar to Ukraine in 2002. We left Alaska in July expecting our first baby, and began our Ukrainian language training in Washington D.C. upon arrival. We studied together with Tamara (middle) and after the baby was born, Mr. YH continued alone with her while Galina (next to Mr. YH) met with me on a part-time basis.

Defense Language Institute- East

Washington D.C.

July 2002 - July 2003

We flew out of D.C., in-processed at Aviano AB in Italy, and then made the leap to Kyiv, Ukraine. Under the Olmsted program, Mr. YH studied as a graduate student at the National Aviation University and we travelled to twenty countries (baby in tow)...it was a wonderful assignment full of adventures!

Olmsted Scholar Program

Kyiv, Ukraine

July 2003 - July 2005

{Yalta, Crimea}

{on one of our trips - Greece}

Mr.YH returned to operational duties after we left Ukraine and deployed twice before becoming the wing executive officer which we joked was a deployment 15 minutes down the road. We added two more babies.

Pope Air Force Base

North Carolina

July 2005 - August 2008

{Reunited on Green Ramp after a deployment to Iraq.}

God restored the year the AF ate, and Mr. YH was picked up for a graduate program in Homeland Security at NPS in California. We packed up our family and drove across the country; we had a {nursing} 2 month old baby when we left. The 15 months we spent in the Monterey Bay area were a much needed respite for our marriage and family. {For you military peeps- Marine's Memorial Hotel in downtown San Fransisco has free active-duty membership, prices are amazing, and the breakfast buffet is awesome!}

Naval Postgraduate School

Monterey, California

September 2008 - January 2010

{We dearly miss having the ocean so close!}

We filled out our "dream sheet" with our top three choices being Little Rock, Arkansas. We were handed orders to Stuttgart, Germany. Through a twist of events, we were diverted to Kyiv, Ukraine three days before packing up for Germany. Once they cleared us again medically and we had our official passports in hand with everyone on the orders (finally!), we flew back into Kyiv in the middle of a snowstorm! We extended our tour 6 months here to get back on the summer cycle of moving.

Office of Defense Cooperation

U.S. Embassy

Kyiv, Ukraine

February 2010 - June/July 2012

{We hit 10 years of marriage here, and we're still crazy about each other!}

{Mr. YH pinned on Lt. Col. last spring. Our oldest

daughter, Ambassador Tefft, and I pinned on the new rank.}

{We all piled in the van and trekked across Europe to Garmisch, Germany where Mr. YH had a conference. We had a beautiful day to see the Alps from the highest peak before we left. Military peeps- fantastic MWR here!!}

And now, that internal clock is telling me it's time to gear up for another move! We're ready and excited. We have no idea where we're headed, but Mr. YH needs to return to the cockpit. We are hoping to find out in the next month or so where the next adventure begins! We'll have about 3 1/2 years left until we hit 20 and retire, so this could be the last move! {And I have mixed emotions about that- wisdom from anyone who has been there?!}