Disney and my Deployment Gift

In early November we took a family trip down to Alabama and Florida. We drove down to Enterprise, AL to close on a home we decided to buy at the end of Matt's deployment. We bought the house without seeing it in person, so it was comforting to finally see the house and realize we love it! We then went down to Disney World to meet up with Matt's parents. Matt grew up in Kissimmee, FL which is right by Disney World, so I finally got to see his old stomping grounds. Roger LOVED meeting princesses, riding on rides, and spending time with Nana and Papa. He left with two lipstick kisses on each cheek, one from Cinderella and one from Rapunzel. It was so much fun.



We were also able to meet up with Roger's big Papa (the other Roger Stockton) and our Aunt Rhonda. Papa and Rhonda helped Matt and me through the past deployment SO much with gifts, emails, and phone calls. Their support was very much appreciated and it was wonderful to thank them in person. Roger got to practice the organ with Papa and proudly received one of his paintings (snow leopard, but Roger called it baby Jaguar due to Diego's influence).





When an army brigade comes home from a deployment (at least at Ft Drum) you see a TON of new vehicles driving around. I remember when a brigade got home while Matt was gone I think I saw at least 3 new Range Rovers in one drive from post to home. One perk of deployment is the pay, so it's always interesting to me to see what people buy as their "deployment gift." I have one friend who once got a Lexus while another one got a BMW. Well, our "deployment gift" was to invest in a home at Ft. Rucker, where we will be stationed next. It is Matt's dream home on a golf course. I love it too. It certainly gives us something to look forward to when we head back down south!