Wednesday, March 30, 2011

VP-26 Dining Out

TJ's squadron had a dining out on March 26.  It was at the Jacksonville Golf & Country Club - it was beautiful!  I felt bad because it was on Tyler's birthday.  But, the event was a mandatory event and we had to attend.  We told Tyler we would really celebrate his birthday the next weekend when he gets baptized and grandma, grandpa, and Aunt Steph are in town. 

 The Dining Out is a very old tradition.  It was fun to get all dressed up - although finding a modest dress was no easy task!  Most the time TJ never wears his dress uniforms, and although I wish it would have been the whites they got to wear, the blues still look nice.
 My handsome hubby!

It was fun to go get my hair done!  I haven't done that since my wedding- 14 years ago!
 It was a delicious dinner!

 The POW/MIA table.  Every thing on this table has a meaning.  It is all in memory of the POW's and MIA. The table is round -- to show our everlasting concern for our missing men. The tablecloth is white -- symbolizing the purity of their motives when answering the call to duty. The single red rose, displayed in a vase, reminds us of the life of each of the missing, and the loved ones and friends of these Americans who keep the faith, awaiting answers. The vase is tied with a red ribbon, symbol of our continued determination to account for our missing. A slice of lemon on the bread plate is to remind us of the bitter fate of those captured and missing in a foreign land. A pinch of salt symbolizes the tears endured by those missing and their families who seek answers. The Bible represents the strength gained through faith to sustain those lost from our country, founded as one nation under God.  The glass is inverted -- to symbolize their inability to share this evening's toast.  The chairs are empty -- they are missing.  More info here:  http://www.powmiaff.org/missing_men_ceremony.html
 The grog - the toliet contains the alcohol, the thing next to the toliet is the non-alcholic grog.  Just another part of the tradition of the night.
 TJ at the grog - the non-alcholic grog that is!  You get sent to the grog for any wrong doings.  TJ got sent there for a video skit some of the guys had done kind of making fun of the squadron life.

 Most - not all - of the wives of VP-26.

3 comments:

Laura said...

Sounds like fun!! In all the time we've been in HSL44, they have had plenty of dining-in's but never a dining-out!!

The McNeil Family said...

Love your hair! You lookk beautiful!!

Jenn said...

How fun to get all dressed up! Love your hair! What a fun night :)