News from Pete

Peter reports that he has officially caught his first cold. The weather is beginning to change so, the nights are getting cold. Thankfully he already received the electric blanket from us. We have figured out that it only takes one week for a card to reach him and about two weeks for a package to get to him. That is FABULOUS!!!
This week he should be finding out if he will be transfered to a new base. There is some shifting of personnel going on and it is very likely that he will be moved to another base in Afghanistan. I'll be sure to let you know when he does move.
On Monday morning we were able to have our first web cam call. It was so wonderful to see his smiling face!!! The boys were excited to see daddy. He even played peek-a-boo with them and we blew many kisses back and forth. It was so nice not to have a time limit. We talked about silly things. We laughed and we cried. Hopefully we'll do it again tomorrow.
As far as what things Pete could use, the list may change once he gets transfered. We'll see. However, he did send me a wish list of DVDs. In case you didn't know, Pete is a movie buff. He loves old movies. So, just in case you have any of these movies hanging around your home that you would like to send to Pete, here is the list he sent:

Hey folks,

The following is a list of DVD's that I would to watch.

1. Cat On a Hot Tin Roof (Paul Neuman)

2. Khartoum (Charlton Heston)

3. The Long Hot Summer (Paul Neuman)

4. Touch of Evil (Charlton Heston)

5. Who Frame Roger Rabbit

6. Dr. Zhviago

7. Harper (Paul Neuman)

8. Fifty-five Days at Peking (Charlton Heston)

9. Sixteen Candles

10. 2001: A Space Odyssey

11. The Rack (Paul Neuman)

12. The Naked Jungle (Charlton Heston)

13. The Sandpebbles

14. Lawrence of Arabia

15. The World's Greatest Athlete (Disney)

16. The Compter Wore Tennis Shoes (Disney)

Thanks,

Peter

**Pete also enjoys listening to books on CD.***
I also wanted to add that Pete loves celebrating Halloween in a fun, festive way. We decorate the house and go trick-or-treating every year. I know he would love to receive fun cards or maybe small decorations (ones that he wouldn't feel bad about throwing away or giving away). Also, his favorite comic strip is the Peanuts. His favorite candy is Doves Milk Chocolate. Maybe now that the cold is settling in we can send him chocolate.

Thank you for reaching out to him and helping make his days there bearable.

Love to all,
Cristina

The WE in ME

In a recent conversation with my dear friend Sonia I was telling her all about the many people that help me out on a daily basis. Not a day has gone by without a friend or family member calling me, stopping by to visit or dropping off food. On one particular day mom was here at home with me spending time with the boys and helping me out with household chores. She stopped what she was doing and she said, "O.K. so what do WE have tomorrow?" I turned around to look at her and I just began crying. I thanked her for saying "WE." It is so nice to have someone with me who considers themselves a part of me-- together we make a WE. I knew that I wold not have to face the next day alone.

I never realized how much I enjoyed being a WE with Pete until I didn't have him around to help me with day to day stuff. Thankfully I can still rely on him to help me with decisions and advice. However, the day to day stuff is often difficult without a WE.

So, as I told Sonia about this realization and conversation with my mom I began to realize how many people are a part of my WE. All of you reading this are a part of my WE and many more who can't read this. Any one who has prayed for us is a part of my WE.

Thank you! Thank you for being a part of my WE. May God bless each of you abundantly for your prayers and sacrifices. May your families be blessed with much peace and love! Know that I am praying for each of you as well.

Love,
Cristina

Pete's Address and Wish List

Peter is finally settling in at Camp Phoenix in Kabul, Afghanistan.

He would love to receive cards from people. His address is:
Peter Zakis
HHC 218th BCT
Camp Phoenix
Afghanistan
APO AE 09320

You can also reach him through e-mail at peterzakis@yahoo.com.
You can reach me at cristinazakis@yahoo.com

By the way, if you think you will be sending a package to Pete you can call the USPS at 800-610-8734 and request the "Military Kit." They will send you boxes, tape, address labels and the customs forms you will need.
He says Uncle Sam is taking good care of him so there is not much that he really needs. I will tell you that he does enjoy nuts like peanuts, cashews, almonds and walnuts. He also enjoys reading magazines about politics, the Catholic Religion, and fitness. He says he could use baby wipes to help keep things clean. Also, if you have any old movies on DVD that you can send him, he has his lap top and would love to have some movies to watch.

Right now Pete is working the night shift doing intelligence work. He says he is slowly getting into a routine. He has been able to call us each morning. He uses the international calling cards some times and then other times he uses a number the Army gave him which connects him to us for free for 15 minutes. We are all adjusting to this way of communicating and relating to one another. We save "technical talk" for e-mail and use phone time for personal/fun stuff. The boys enjoy listening to daddy on the phone. We hope to use the web cam soon.

Pete does have internet service in his room so he his able to check e-mail regularly. I have enjoyed sending him pictures and short videos of the boys. Thank God for our modern technology!

So many of you have written words of encouragement and offered to help out in so many ways. We truly appreciate your generosity and your prayers!
Love,
Peter, Cristina, Ricky and Paul

Peter is in Afghanistan

Hello to all! Well, Pete is now in Kabul, Afghanistan. We just found out that he will be staying on the main camp, Camp Phoenix. That is a relief! He has been assigned a very small room all to himself. He is in the process of settling in. By the way, you can google "Camp Phoenix" and check out some neat web sites with great pictures of what Pete will be seeing.

Today, he began his job. He has the 4am-12pm shift which he is happy about since he is a morning person. He has been trying to reach us today but kept missing us at home. So, I hope to have more details for all of you soon. He will give me his address tomorrow and I will pass along a list of things he could use.

We are thankful that he will be able to have his own internet connection for a small fee. It also looks like he will buy an internet phone to be able to more effectively communicate with all of us and to be able to receive calls as well. I'm not sure how much calls would cost then. I'll let you know.

Here on the home front all is well. Ricky will begin his preschool this week. I can't believe he is turning 4 in a month. Paul continues to copy everything Ricky does and constantly makes us smile. Ricky assures me that while Daddy is gone he will take care of me when I am sad. He is so sweet! He has been praying for a little sister and the other day he announced to me that he now knew how I could have a baby girl. He said, "You and daddy just need to get married again." He comes up with amazing explanations and even more amazing questions. What a fun age!

Please keep up the prayers! They are being heard!!!!!! and they are being felt!!!!!!!! Thank you!
With much love,
Cristina

P.S. On a sad note, Peter's family dog died last week. He was very sick with cancer. Please keep his family in your prayers.