Our Trip

So, despite leaving a day later than we'd originally thought (due to MJ's work schedule), we had a great time on our mini-vacation.  We arrived at MJ's parents' house on Saturday afternoon, in the midst of a get-together of relatives in town.  They were excited to meet CC for the first time, especially Carol, with whom MJ has always been very close.

The next morning we left for West Point, stopping to pick up friends along the way.  The four of us had a great time walking around campus, revisiting the guys' old stomping grounds and admiring the new library and gym.  Joe and MJ even gave us a demonstration of some of the IOCT obstacles:

In the late afternoon, Joe and MJ were bused out to Buckner, where they spent a sleepless night prior to the marchback.  CC and I spent the night at the Hotel Thayer, which was nice, although a torrential storm dampened our spirits and caused the power to go off and on all evening.

The next morning the guys began the 12-mile ruck march with all the New Cadets back to campus.  MJ reports that it was hillier than he'd expected, although he and Joe are both in great shape, so they didn't have too much of a problem.  They finished with all the other "old grads" around 12:30 that afternoon.  They were definitely the youngest of that group, considering there was a participant from the class of '45 among the other elderly alumni!

After showers and lunch, we said goodbye to Joe and Laurie and headed back to Grandma and Grandpa's house.  We spent some time with Great-Grandma Jean too, and packed for our return home.

All in all, it was a lot of fun, and a good break for MJ from work.  It would have been nicer if we had a few extra days to relax with MJ's parents, but even just a few days was wonderful.