We are thankful for....

Happy Thankgiving to all of our family and friends. We hope you have a wonderful day and have a chance to reflect of how truly amazing life is.

We are first and foremost thankful for our freedom. Without the freedom that most of us take for granted we would not have many other blessings in our lives. We are forever in debt to all the men and women who protect our great nation and wont be able to be home with their families this holiday season. Some will be home to celebrate a little late and some will not come home at all. On this day 2 years ago Kurt lost an amazing friend and fellow pilot in Iraq. His family lost an amazing son, husband, and father. Sadly, the story of Troy "Trojan" Gilbert is one all to familiar for so many military families. Our military members are ordinary people making huge sacrifices and doing things that most of us would not ever have the courage to do. So, as you are sharing the reasons you are grateful this year around your dinner table, dont forget to say a little prayer for all of those in the past, present and future who have given you the ability to have such a wonderful day with family and friends today and every day.

Kurt and I have so much to be thankful for this year. We have each other and two amazing children. While amazingly stressful, watching a baby grow into a child is the most amazing experience in the world when you have the front row seat.

We have the most amazing and supportive family who loves us even more from thousands of miles away than they did when we were all in the same town. I hope you all know what a hard choice it is for us to live the crazy life we do. The AF seems to take us further and further away from home and there isnt a day that goes by that we arent homesick or dont wonder how things would be if we were right next door. Somehow we just know that we're where we are supposed to be in life even though at times it is challenging and might seem crazy to the rest of the world. Knowing that we can come home and pick right back up where we left off and that we are loved so much is wonderful feeling. THANK YOU!!!!

Our friends are phenominal and make our life so much more exciting and fun. We know we dont see all of you as much as we would like due to a silly thing called geography...but we are so fortunate to have such amazing friends who love us no matter how many miles are b/w us. Seriously...you know we value our friends when we cry about leaving Clovis NM just b.c we dont get to see you...and start to plan trips to non exotic locations just to catch up!!! For those of you at Luke with us, we truly couldnt do it without you guys. Whether it is a phone call or sharing a laugh...you are all a constant reminder of why we love life in the Air Force so much. You have gotten us through tough times and even more importantly provide us with life long memories. Now Keegan and Reese are lucky enough to share is such an amazing group of people and begin making lifelong friends that will be all over the world.

Keegan is thankful (and yes, these are his own words!!!!) for turkeys, airplanes, BMW's, Reese, going outside, his Rescue Heros, Buzz Lighyear, ice cream and cupcakes, soy milk, his tricycle and tacos.

Reese (again, in her own words) is thankful for airplanes, doggies, milk, bananas, cookies, shoes, Elmo and babies. She also screamed and threw herself on the floor during this questioning...so you can interepret that however you like:)

We hope you all have a wonderful day full of big and little things to be thankful for. Kurt and I dont put it into words enough...but our life is amazing and we are thankful for each and every day!!!!

Lots of love,

A, K, K, and R

Happy Birthday Emma Bear!!!!

We are a day late...but that is the way life is in the D10 house these days. Just wanted to wish my sweet neice a Happy 12th Birthday. Emily is the sweetest girl and I have never met a girl so full of love before. She is funny, athletic, and has her own style in all she does. It has been an honor to watch her grow into such an amazing and beautiful young woman. I still remember the day she was born and the first time Kurt and I held her (mostly b.c her big bro Logan wouldnt let mommy hold the new baby...but that is an entire different can of worms!!!!). I can not imagine the Rahe family without Em. She adds a unique flair to everything she does and I am not sure I have ever seen someone with so much self confidence before. Keegan adores his cousin and I am pretty sure Reese might just be her clone. How lucky our family is to have such a feisty girl to keep us on our toes, make us laugh and woo us with her athletisicm. I have no doubt in my mind that she will continue to amaze us for the rest of her life!!!! We love you Emma Bear...and wish we could have been there to celebrate your special day.

Lots of love,
Your #1 fans....
Annie, Kurty, Keegan and Reese

Vipers and Cobras and Mustangs....OH MY!!!!!

We had such a great weekend. We woke up Saturday morning and went to retiree appreciation day on base. No, Kurt hasnt retired yet, but a few people from our squadron were taking planes and cars out that day and we thought Keegan and Reese would enjoy it. It was a beautiful day that reminded us of why we love living in AZ. Kurt and the kids were in heaven and we got some cute pics so the day was a success. Of course when we came home Kurt was trying to work out our budget so we could afford a Shelby Cobra, and old Mustang and a P-51. And for those of you who are wondering...no, he was not willing to give up the Beamer!!!! To make the day even better the Buckeyes Beat M@*igan and we had a date night!!!! We went to one of Kurts favorite restaurants with some good friends and then saw the new James Bond movie. Luckily for me there were lots of Ford cars in the movie...so Kurt didnt leave wanting more expensive toys. We dont have many truly relaxing weekends in our house so this was a truly special day.

We hope you had a great weekend too...and if you didnt, schedule some special time for yourself soon. It is amazing how rejuvinated you can feel after one great day!!!!!

In front of Daddys Desk. Well...actually this one isnt Kurts...but his looks just like it:)

My boys!!!!

Shack and his Cobra with the Spike jets in the background

Kurt was drooling over this collection...Cholos Mustang, Shack's Cobra and Nazy's P-51

CHEESE!!!!
Keegan liked running around on the flight line. He and Reese were both EXHAUSTED!!!!
Flying like an airplane
Keegans turn
Anyone have a spare few million dollars lying around??? And $3000 and hour to fly this??? Kurt is accepting donations.

Kurt and Shack go for a spin.
Kurt restraining himself from pushing some buttons and going for a ride:)
I swear...Kurt was close by for this pic!!!! Reese was so excited to see her reflection in the airplane.
My big guy!!!!
Ok..so he doesnt look so big here:)

Nazy and Cholo heading home.

Cheers...

Thought this was a good Thanksgiving Day story:) Some of you have this before, but I seem to forget the lesson of this story more than I would like care to admit so it is always nice to read it again. Kurt and I are so blessed by wonderful children, family and friends...and of course with each other. We hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day...with enough time to enjoy a beer:)

Love

Annie, Kurt, Keegan and Reese

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 Beers !

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles, poured them into the jar and he shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes'.

The professor then produced two beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

Now, said the professor as the laughter subsided, I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your friends, your health and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else---the small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first, he continued, there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18! There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.
The beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, ther is always room for a couple of beers with a friend

Adios...

This past weekend we farewelled our squadron commander and his wife. We have had a wonderful year and a half in the Spikes and I realized how difficult change is even for military families that are VERY accustomed to transition. We were blessed to have such supportive and laid back leadership, and Cholo and Shelly led us through the best and the worst of times. I think I have come to realize that an amazing leader is able to keep everything running the way it should be without anyone feeling like they have someone telling them what to do. We wish them the best as they adventure off into civilian life (still an insane concept to Kurt and I!!!) and are excited to see what the next chapter of the Spike story will be as Battman and Nicole take the reigns. No matter how hard it is to say goodbye to friends, our military family is amazing!!! We are so fortunate to be a part of such an amazing group of people!!!!

Anyway...here are a few pics...and even one of Kurt and I. So, for those of you who harrass me about not having pics of myself on the blog...I dont want to hear from you for a while!!!!

a beautiful day for a picnic....

which in AZ means the temperature was not in the triple digits:)

The first pic is my FAVORITE!!!!

the rest were just too cute not to share!!!!

Love

A, K, K, and R

Mommy and Daddys turn...

So we went to the squadron adult halloween party last night...what a blast. There were some really funny costumes!!!! Here are a few pics....but I will do a slide show once I get pics from a few friends (my camera battery died).

Kurt was "Tequila Poppin Dude" and had liquor bottles in his holsters and shot glasses too. I was a homeade candycorn...inspired by Reeses costume:)

Kurt and Blade. Blades costume looks so tame from this angle.


Saw, Kurt and Heather...I mean..LASER, Kurt, and ZAP!!!!

Annie making new friends from far away places

Renee and Michael Phelps...by far the bravest costume!!!

Our future president and vice president showing a little political tolerance:)

Slammer and Slammer...I just dont even know what 2 day about these two!!!!! Slammer F had 7 cold beers in his "belly"

Smell my Feet!!!!

Trick or Treat pics...

Our little Candy Corn

See my pigtails...thanks for the TINY little rubberbands Jennifer. Still kinda pushing the idea of pigtails I think!!!!

HOORAY....a GIANT Pixie Stick!!!!

The loot

Our babysitter....and our favorite costume of all!!!!!!

Enjoy!!!!