Severomorsk, Russia

Hello all,

We arrived in “Mother Russia” yesterday morning to a Navy band and great fanfare. I believe we’re the first US Navy ship ever to visit this city in Russia. Severomorsk is home to Russia’s Northern Fleet. There are many warships here…not quiet at big as Norfolk, maybe half the size. It is still a closed city, which means, noone leaves or enters Severomorsk w/o express consent from the government. I suppose it’s for military secrecy, but it was just plain weird to me. Last night the Officers and Chiefs of ELROD attended a party on the Norwegian Coast Guard vessel SENYA. The Norwegians were very gracious hosts and had great beer, liquor (hadn’t seen rum in a couple months ;) and beautifully interesting appetizers. I took a picture of the appetizers…my favorite was the marinated “reindeer” meat w/ blueberry cream sauce on top of a small piece of bread. Very tasty!!! We ended the night by heading back to the British ship EXETER’s wardroom for a “night-cap”. All in all, it was a fun night and good to get to hang out w/ others that spoke English.

We were here in Severomorsk for their Russian Navy Days celebration. The weather’s been rotten since arriving, around 40 degrees, very windy, and overcast, with rain off and on. I had to conduct tours all day today. It was quite chaotic really, imagine having 1000 people on your ship that don’t speak English and because of that, decide to act foolish and ignore your pleas for them to move along! I was exhausted by the end of the day…but decided to head out in town at least for a few minutes to see what it was like. I went out w/ our Disbursing Officer (Carl), who hails from Jamaica. Evidently there are very few Black people in Russia, so as we walked through the crowds, we were accosted by crazed fans asking to have pictures taken w/ them and the children wanted our autographs, very odd all around. To make matters even more bizarre, everyone around us seemed to be BLITZED. So add to the novelty of a black man, the fact that we are also Americans, their former enemies, and it made us very popular. We didn’t make it more than 30 minutes from the ship and we’d already been in around 500 photographs.

My impressions of the city were that it seemed like a depressing place to live. It was dungy and dirty and very plain. Overall, the city was very dull. I didn’t see any stores or restaurants open for business, only vodka stores and local street venders… There was a big statue of a Russian Soldier at the entrance to the harbor. I was told it represented the soldiers that fought to liberate the city from the Nazi’s at the end of WWII. It looked very Russian…I’ve attached a bunch of pictures so that you can form your own opinions…

Well, that’s all for my Russian travels, I can honestly say, I have no desire to return to this place…

- J.R

Still Here

Well it's been three weeks and I'm still here. Not that motherhood was going to do me in, but as all first time moms know, it is an adjustment! Adding to this adjustment is being pseudo-single mom while the hubby is away. Luckily I have a great support system around. Besides how can one complain when they are so in love with their baby boy! The little peanut is also working with mom on maintaining a good schedule. We're doing 3 hr feeds until 8pm-ish. Then it is 2 hr feeds until 12ish. After that he sleeps for 4-5 hrs... Never would I have thought that a 4-5 hrs stretch of sleep would be a blessing, but a blessing it is!

So after two doctor's appts (week 1 & 2) his weight is ahead of what is expected of a nursing baby. Although, we have diverted a little from the nursing plan. My son is a lazy latcher. He wants to eat when he wants to eat, but work hard for it... He'd rather have the bottle. I tried everything to wake him up including a wet cloth to the skin. All attempts were made with little itty-bitty baby snores. After 1 week of snack feeding every hour and a melt down on mommy's part I decided to pump. As Liz said, it is about the breast milk not the nursing... Well this week, week 3, was met made another compromise... The little piggy wants more than mommy makes. So we are now supplementing a couple of bottles of soy formula. Luckily he takes whatever whenever, as long as it comes in a bottle...

This makes life a little easier though. I even left the house without him on Friday. My sister had bought tickets to Les Miserables, which is my favorite. I did go just to the show & then home. No dinner, no drinks... I missed my baby. We've also been getting out more. And just as my husband predicted, I have been driving his older SUV vs. nifty car because I feel safer with that extra metal. We'll see how long this lasts at over $80 a tank... No need to waste Connor's college fund on gas...

Well the boss is calling for another feeding. Hope all are well.

Haakonsvern, Norway

Well, here we are in Haakonsvern, Norway…beginning a tri-lateral operation w/ the Russians and Norwegians. Tonight, we had a welcoming reception for our Russian counterparts. We are currently moored outboard the Udaloy Class Destroyer, RFS SEVEROMORSK. It was a function (w/ alcohol) for us to get to know our Officer counterparts. We had a wonderful evening of festive conversations (mostly translated by a young “journalism” officer (read POLITICAL officer). I spent the night talking w/ their Chief “journalism” officer and didn’t give any national secrets away. Mostly we talked about family and travel and life in our respective Navy’s. The Russians were very gracious, yet guarded…at least until we had a few drinks and they noticed that we were good family men, then the stories started. What an interesting evening.

I’ve already began trading badges for a Russian “momuska” (their furry hats). So far I’ve managed to get a hat, but am working on the shiny device that pinned on it…a unique treasure. Tomorrow evening is a reception on the Russian ship, so it should be interesting. Our Captain had dinner their last night, and let me tell you, the vodka was flowing ;) Wish me luck!!

I’ve attached some pics from the harbor we’re in and the reception we had tonight. Talk soon!

Lesson Learned

I have learned when putting on a baby boy's diaper, ensure his dinky is pointed in the down direction. If this is not done, you may be sitting on the couch feeding your son when you feel a warm, wet sensation on your lap. Yet the baby is dry, at least up front. Some how these little magicians can pee up over their hip and have it come out of the back of the diaper... So remember, point it down!

He's Here!!!

Brand new here!!!


1st week home!!!


1st doctor's appt



On July 7th we welcomed our little guy Connor into the world. Labor & delivery went much better than I had ever imagined. Connor weighed in at 7lbs4oz and measured 20.5in. We are now home adjusting. There will be more to come when I can catch up on sleep and stop running around like a crazy person... I do love being a mom though. This little guy is just my heart, well he & his daddy are my heart!

More to come later, it is now time for the little man to eat...

-One very tired mama!

Denhelder, Netherlands: July 10-14

As they say in the Netherlands…HALLO!!

We arrived in Den Helder (Netherlands’ main Naval base) for the Dutch “Navy Days” on 09JUL. We’re here participating in their Navy “open house” along w/ ships from UK, Belgium, Netherlands and many other Northern European countries. Since arriving we’ve been rolling out the hole “dog and pony” show for the people of Netherlands. So far we’ve had close to 5000 people onboard to tour the ship and engage w/ the 200 sailors (diplomats) of USS ELROD. It seems that our tours are a big success. Since we have to be wary of Force Protection issues that other countries don’t worry about, we have been running “guided” tours. We have around 10 static displays set up around the ship to show our guests the various mission USS ELROD performs for the US. From Damage Control (firefighting) demos, to the Gun Mounts, to the torpedo tubes, we have enthralled the public w/ our Subject Matter Experts (SME’s), showcasing the pride and expertise the US Navy brings to the table. I’ve had tours 2 of the 3 days we’ve been here, so I’ve only been out one evening for dinner and drinks in town. Below is a description of what I’ve seen so far though.

On Wed night (the day we arrived), I went out w/ my trusty liberty partner Joe, our Operations Officer. Joe and I headed out to take in the sights, get a good meal off ship and have a few “beirtje’s” (beer in Dutch). We went to a nice restaurant/hotel called Weinerhas Hotel. I had a hefty meal of flank steak w/ a mushroom gravy, salad, French fries (a popular side in Europe), and fresh baked bread (w/ warm garlic butter). Joe and I had a pint of Grolsh (Belgian beer) and talked w/ some of the locals. After that, we wandered back up the street and met up w/ some of the Officers of ELROD at a swank bar… There we met some Sailors from the British ship “LYME BAY”. They were here for the Navy Days as well, and we had some lively conversations about American politics. These were average “blue colar” deck hands onboard a big replenishment ship, and it amazed me that the British Sailors seemed to know more about the state of American politics than the average US Citizen! I suppose it shouldn’t have surprised me since I already have a keen understanding of America’s passing interest in the democratic process. At any rate we had a good evening of comradery and I celebrated the birth of CONNOR JAMES EWING in grand fashion!!

I had duty today and am pretty exhausted from the long tour hours, since we’re in our Summer Whites (yeah, you try and keep a white uniform clean walking around a dusty old ship all day!) and up on our feet entertaining guests throughout most of the day. Tomorrow, I’ll work till lunch, then I plan to hop a train back down to Amsterdam (about 1 hour south of Den Helder) for a days worth of tours w/ Brian (Azzy’s Cousin’s husband). Hopefully, I’ll end the day w/ a SKYPE call home to Azzy so I can see my beautiful wife and handsome SON!!

Hope all is well back home and I miss you all!

-J.R.

Amsterdam Day Trip, July 12

On Saturday, I hopped a train south to Amsterdam for the day (1 hr 15 min ride). I met up w/ Courtnay and Brian at the train station and we went about exploring the city. It was so nice having local tour guides…not only did they show me around, but they booked the tickets to the Anne Frank house online at a discount, so all I had to do was show up!! What a deal!! Thanks Courtnay and Brian! Azzy, Connor and I look forward to coming to visit next year!!

We took a canal ride around the city. We saw most of the city by boat and I got a glimpse of the history and beauty that Amsterdam had to offer. Later in the day I got to go to the Anne Frank house where I got to tour the actual house where Anne Frank and 7 others hid from Jewish persecution by the Nazi’s during WWII. It was restored to it’s 1940’s condition. During a two year period of the war, the Frank family (4 people) and 4 others, hid in a small attic for over 2 years trying to avoid being caught by the Nazi’s. Unfortunately, there were turned in after two years of being couped up under incredibly difficult conditions. All perished in Nazi concentration camps except for the father, Otto Frank who went to publish his daughter, Anne’s journal. It was a haunting tour to say the least…

Attached in this and the following emails are the pics I’m forwarding on. I took over 100 pics, but here are the highlights…

-JR

Amsterdam, July 3-7

Hey all,

Pulled into Amsterdam, Netherlands on Weds eve. Joe (OPS) and I went out Weds night to have dinner w/ Aislinn’s first cousin, Courtnay and her husband Brian. They live and work in Amsterdam and were wonderful hosts. We went out a nice dinner at a local restaurant, GREETJE. I had a great meal of Dutch beef, mashed potatoes (w/ spinach and onions mixed in). For desert I had a raspberry tart and icecream. And also had a couple Beerja’s (beers). After dinner Joe and I went back to Courtnay and Brian’s apt and I got to make a video conference call home to Azzy. It was wonderful talking w/ Azzy and I got to see my nephew and my beautiful pregnant wife! What a treat. It was so neat seeing little Landon, he’s 5 mos old now (the same age that Connor will be when I return).

Today we hosted a 4th of July party on the flight deck for 200 guests. The party was sponsored by the American Consolate General. They have a bunch of sponsor cater the event, w/ hours de’voures, haagen daas/ben and jerry’s icecream, and a nice treat (beer and wine). The Captain and Consolate General made nice speeches about America and our independence and the rest of the night was filled rubbing elbows w/ the big wigs.

Tonight I’m just relaxing and catching up on some sleep. Tomorrow I have duty and will be giving a few tours to some VIP and their families. I’m also looking forward to having Courtnay and Brian onboard for a special tour.

Of course I’ve been making a cajillion calls home to check on Azzy and the status of the pregnancy. I can’t wait for little Connor to arrive into our world. Of course I’m sad I won’t be home for the baby to arrive, but it’s nice that Mom and Dad will be there to support Azzy and her family.