Elijah's 12! and Bryce's JPAC in Laos

Christina gave Elijah a great card for his birthday... cracked us all up. The front says "I Got You a CARD for your Birthday!" Inside it says: "This is the INSIDE!" That is SO Christina, who then writes, "You're 12, and finally getting closer to being as old as you look!" Too true, too true.

So, it's been Birthday weekend for Elijah, like it was for Bianca last weekend. Friday night he had his Madden Tournament Party & had a few of his buds over. They played so much their fingers shoulda fallen off. Saturday, Veronica made his birthday cake, to put into practice some of what she learned in her cake making class. The plan was to have the cake today, after Super Bowl. We went to church this morning, and came home to a half-eaten birthday cake. The pup, Tigris, had helped herself. NOT cool. He was NOT happy. Fortunately, I had brought home a package of double stuffed oreos just for him. He laughed. It's so easy to cheer him up! If only all kids were so easy!

We had a two-hour phone call from Bryce this morning, from Laos. He feels so honored to be there, part of an archeological expedition recovering remains of two FAC pilots who were shot down by a AAA battery of anti-aircraft guns. The men whose remains they are searching for are Capt. John Michel "Mike" Nash and Major Glenn David McElroy, shot down on the Ides of March, 1966, the same time my father, "The Duke" Captain Joseph Santi Granducci II was also flying as a FAC during his Vietnam tour. The archeologist heading the dig has been doing this for 33 years, and said that Bryce is the first person in all that time to come on a dig to have a direct family "link" to any former FAC.

This has been huge for Bryce... he has had his grampa on his mind a great deal during all of this... missing him terribly... wishing he were there to share their war stories with. War bringing a bond unknowable to anyone who hasn't been there too. He knows his grampa Joe would be very proud of what he's doing.

To "the Duke".