Another Ryan We Love Like Family

This is Mom with our next door neighbor Ryan, who was home on a very short leave from Fort Bragg, NC, this week. She's so proud of him for joining the Army and becoming a helicopter mechanic, because he was only 8 years old when she first met him and he already knew he wanted to be a soldier when he grew up. She gave him one of her old Army uniforms and a pair of boots, which fit him perfectly at the time. Now look at him .... all grown up and turned into a lean mean fighting machine. Hooah!


Maurie and Cindy can certainly be proud of their boy, but the other reason Maurie is smiling so broadly is that Ryan is leaving his Harley here at home and taking Cindy's car back to Fort Bragg with him for now.


Goodbyes are always so hard, but his unit is shipping out to Afghanistan - AGAIN - in a few months, so he'll bring the car back and spend a couple weeks at home again before they leave.


Have a safe trip little buddy!