May 2023

Damon got selected for Captain! He has been super stressed since getting passed over last year, but he was able to have a few letters sent to the board to vouch for his character.  Now he gets to go into Dental Corps retirement and just be a clinician.  It will be an adjustment from always wanting to push for more, but I think he will come around to it. We aren't totally sure when he will officially put on, but at the earliest, we think it may be December 2023. May 19th was my last day of instruction.  Several of the students got really emotional.  Even some of my tough boys which was so sweet to see.  I grew to really care for each of them.  A few I wasn't sad to see go, but even they had their positive moments. The last day of school was a student vs. staff game of volleyball and basketball.  I hadn't played volleyball or basketball for many years so it was kinda fun to play with a full court again.  My one volleyball serve was not all that good with me going too far to the right.  But I would have made it over the net if I was aimed properly.  During the basketball game, I ended up slipping over my own shoes and falling down which sucked. It was really fun. The rest of the day my students would come by to see how I was doing.  Even some of the other students from outside my team.  Milton is making great progress in learning how to tie his shoes. The most significant event of May was Category 4 Typhoon Mawar on May 24. Because of the typhoon, the boys' school got canceled for the remainder of the year so they are missing the last two weeks of school. We were able to go over to McCool for one morning to pick up their supplies and say goodbye to the teachers.  Milton was scheduled for his kindergarten graduation so he was really bummed that got canceled.  Fortunately for me, my last day of instruction was right before the typhoon so all I missed was a week of meetings.  I was able to get my grades all finalized before we lost power. A minor excitement for me was finally locating Milton's baby teeth container we had purchased back in Germany when Owen was just a baby.  That amount of forward planning is a bit excessive...but that's how I roll. I also had my 37th birthday.  With no power or cooking supplies and the commissary being closed pulling something together was a bit tricky.  Fortunately, our neighbor across the street had a mug cake mix and made me a lovely cake. Overall, May was a rather exciting month.

Go Kart Racing

Owen and Damon went on a Go Kart race with Guam Adventures. Milton and I opted to stay stationary and just watch.  Owen had a lot of fun.  He likes strong sensory things such as roller coasters and this type of ride.  Milton enjoyed hanging out on the bleachers with a soda.  The same company does off-road rides with side-by-sides which we will do at some point.