ranger.

61 days of hell for eternal glory. that is the only way to describe ranger school. since the day i met austin, young ROTC cadet, all he could talk about was his dreams of going to ranger school. for those unfamiliar with ranger school, if you watch the show surviving the cut, that is what ranger school is- pretty much no sleep, no food, and surviving in the georgia woods, appalachian mountains, and florida swamps for 2 months- sometimes longer if they do not pass the first time through, the longest i've heard was 180 days. the training is testing soldiers to their mental and physical limits and making sure they do not break under pressure. the coveted ranger tab is highly aspired for in the army, and only about 50% of those who go eventually make it through. training and missions are run around the clock and there is no communication home allowed during the school, only occasion letter writing on re-supply day. so 3 november i dropped austin off at ranger school and told him not to come out without that tab.

Day 0: November 3

after 42 days, i got to pick austin up for a 2 week christmas break, the only time during the year ranger school shuts down. at this point he had completed the first 2 phases in the georgia woods and appalachian mountains. he experienced freezing temperatures, rucked around with 100 lbs+ on his back, and averaged 2-3 hours of sleep a night with 2 MREs to eat a day; he lost approximately 20 lbs (i could see fully see his rib cage), got frost bite on his toes, and was very happy to eat 5 guys hamburger as soon as he could.

Day 42: December 16

after christmas with lots of sleeping and food, he headed back in for the final phase in flordia.

two and a half weeks later he *ran* out of the school gates a ranger. 

and two days later i got to pin the coveted ranger tab on his uniform

my awesome aunt and uncle drove all the way down from washington d.c. for the graduation too!

my favorite part of the whole experience was being able to put a care package together for him before he returned home from florida, loaded up with all his favorite goodies:

blackberry pie-in-a-jar

proud does not even begin to describe my feelings for this guy. way to go aust! i love all 140lbs of you!