>>Update's From Brian and Lynda Sue<<

January 8, 2005 Hello and Greetings,

We hope this letter finds you and yours well
while enjoying the holiday season. The past 14 months
were tough for all of us, but we are together again at
our “Blue House” in Brainerd and doing well. Lynda
and the kids spent part of the time in Texas, then
moved back so Morgyn would not have to change schools.
As most of you know, I spent my time in New Jersey,
Kuwait and Iraq and I am very thankful to be home. I
will return to work at Mills Truck Shop and still have
some time to serve in the National Guard. Lynda is
doing well, staying very busy with the kids and our
home.

Morgyn is five years old now and in Mrs.
Owens’ Kindergarten class. She is doing very well and
really enjoying it, as well as drawing and reading
books. Brenna is four years old now and is Mommys’
helper, she enjoys doing puzzles and reading books.
Both girl’s are in dance and practice once a week.
Samuel is 18 months and a wild little boy that loves
anything with wheels or that makes noise.

We would like to thank everyone for the help
and support that helped all of us make it through the
deployment. We are having a Welcome Home/Birthday
party for Brian, information below, Hope to see you
there.

Happy Holidays with love,
The Reiten’s


Party @ Gary and Lynn Reiten’s in Walker
on January 22, 2006 1:00 PM. Food and drinks will be provided, call or e-mail Lynda if you have any questions.

218-829-4715/ blmbs@sbcglobal.net
November 2, 2005
Hey everyone.  Well it is Nov. 2nd.  I had a great birthday, the kids are so cute and made it very special.  We also had a great Halloween.  Lots of candy that we are now stuck with and being forced to eat.  We hope that everyone had a great Halloween day also.  Yesterday the kids and I started a count down for "Daddy Home".  The girls were very excited when I told them the news.  It is a 40 day count down till Dec. 10th.  As of now the date that Brian will be back in Brainerd is still Dec 10th but if that changes we will let everyone know as soon as I find out.  We are planning for everyone to meet the buses when they arrive and then visit at the welcome home ceremony.  Then we are planning a "Welcome Home/Birthday Party" for Brian on Jan 22 in Walker.  Again I will let everyone know the date of the bus arrival as soon as I find out but the 22 of Jan will not change and we look forward to seeing everyone soon.  Thanks for all the support. The Reiten's.
September 30,2005 Hello everyone,
Sorry it has been a while since the last update or e-mail but we have been really busy. So, if you have e-mailed or something and I have not got back to you, sorry lots of things going on. The kids and I are back in Minnesota at our house. We left Texas in mid July, my parents made the long trip with us. Which we miss everyone LOTS. We then went to Duluth for about six weeks with lots of trips from there, We stayed a week in Brainerd, week in the cities with our old neighbors from Colorado who now live in Germany, and some time at Grandpa and Grandma's. And lots of time moving our stuff into our house with lots of help. Morgyn is a Kindergartener at Garfield (so loves the name after the cat). Her teacher is Mrs. Owens and she really enjoys school, she goes 5 days a week from 8:20 to 2:40. The school is about 4 blocks so we walk to and from everyday not ready for the cold to hit yet but it is on its way. Brenna Sue turned 4 on Monday and I will send pictures after this e-mail and have some new ones on the web site also in a few days . Brenna Sue and Morgyn along with Kyan are in dance class on wed afternoons and are working on a Christmas program. they are very adorable and excited about it. They are also doing a four week course of gymnastics. Samuel is growing faster than ever and loves helping and getting into everything. He is a real "turkey" and never stops. He talks to Papa on the phone many times a day. I stay really, really busy still have some things to work on for the house but I am in no hurry. The kids are adjusting well and getting ready for Halloween, Morgyn is going to be a butterfly, Brenna Sue a peacock and Samuel a bee. As for Brian, he is doing good and ready to be home with us. There is talk of a December return but we are going to wait till after Halloween to tell the kids since things change quickly and it is still 2 1/2 months. We are all hoping that it does not change. In the planning of this we ask that if you plan to send anything to Brian please send it before October 15 to make sure he gets it. Click here to view some recent pictures of Brian. I better get going and below is all our information again since we change it so often. Talk to everyone soon......

House information:
1407 11th Ave NE
Brainerd MN 56401
218-829-4715
281-732-7523 Cell and yes it is 281 and house 218

Web site: www.reitenfamily.com

E-mails:
blmbs@sbcglobal.net
thereiten5@msn.com
brian.o.reiten@us.army.mil
We do not have any other e-mails so if you still have breiten @charter or lsreiten @yahoo. Only these will work. We will NOT get it at all. So please check so we can get them. Thanks!
August 17, 2005 Hello everyone, I am doing alright and hope all of you are too.  Thanks to all who have sent cards, letters and care packages.  Time is going by quickly and soon it will start to cool off here.  It has been 120 daily with some days between 130 and 140.  The good news is I should, emphasis on should, be home for Christmas.  We are all very excited for that.  Lynda and the kids are working on moving back into our house in Brainerd, with help from friends and family.  Morgyn starts school this fall and is very anxious.  I am able to keep in touch with them on the phone and computer fairly often which is great.  I look forward to seeing all of you soon and thanks again to all who have helped in any way.  Brian       
June 28, 2005 Morgyn turned the big 5 on Saturday.  She had a great day.  She was awaken by a phone call from her Daddy, she missed him lots and was very excited that she talked to him early.  She mentioned him a lot all day. Then by 8:00am she was on her 5th phone call.  He favorite thing was for everyone to sing to her the  birthday song.  She got flowers and balloon sent to the house, which she will tell you made her very special.  She wore her Sleeping Beauty dress, crown and shoes all day!  She was a really PRINCESS. She had a great few hours at Chuck E.Cheese.  Papa surprised her and the other kids with a visit, which made the day for them all.   Well I need to go, we are going to my parents house tomorrow for a week before we head up north and I still have lots of stuff to do.  Hope everyone has a great week.
June 13, 2005 Hello everyone, well Samuel turned the big 1. He made a very big mess with his chocolate cake with chocolate icing. Brenna Sue, Morgyn, Dakota and Caylie were very excited for him, I think they sang Happy Birthday song 45 times. Samuel loved every minute of it. We also spent the weekend at the beach with Granny and Papa.  We all had a wonderful time.  We also are moving back to MN. We are leaving TX mid July and will go and stay in Duluth for a few weeks and then get back to Brainerd for Morgyn to start kindergarten. Well better go, be back in a few days with Morgyn's 5th birthday information.
June 6, 2005 Hello everyone! Well it is June 6th and Samuel will be one in a few days.  He is taking about 5 steps all by himself and knows he is a big boy.  We had a great visit with Brian in May.  We were very busy with the kids.  Amanda was gone to MN for her work and we had all the kids which worked out great cause Brian was here to help.  The kids did not know that Daddy was coming till they saw him, which was priceless.  We even got to see Aunt Sarah for a few days.  I got a little sick but Brian did a great job with taking care of me and the kids.  The visit was two weeks and he is now back at his camp in Iraq and working.  Well I have to go but will write in  a few days about Samuels birthday.
April 25, 2005 We have some good news.  Brian is coming for his 14 day visit in mid-may.  We were planning  for mid-June but got a surprise note from him last week stating that it would be sooner.  We are not telling the kids as we are going to let it be a great surprise.  We are very excited and will let you know more as we can.
April 22, 2005
Hi hope everyone is enjoying nice weather where ever you are.  We had a great week last week.  Our friends from MN, Rani, Kade and Kyan, came down for a visit.  Jason had to work but we missed him.  We met them in San Antonio and had a very fun full week. We were very busy and did a lot of exciting things.  We enjoyed the River-walk, Alamo, zoo and Sea World.  We had dinner with Shamu, rode a trolly, boat, train and taxi.  We also walk a lot but the kids were real troopers.  The kids are the same age, just months apart, so we basically had 4 and 3 year old twins and a 10 month baby.  Rani and I got lots of looks but we really had a wonderful time and enjoyed every minute of their company and miss them lots now that they are back up north.
April , 2005
Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.  The kids had a great time.  The Easter Bunny had lots of surprises.  The girls got lots of eggs, both baskets were really full. Brenna Sue's basket even broke it was so full.  Samuel even picked up his own eggs.  He is getting new teeth in all the time and is just about walking everywhere.  Morgyn is doing good in school, she likes going but also misses me, Samuel and Brenna Sue lots.  Brian also got promoted in March.  He is now an E6.  Which means he went from Sergent to Staff Sergent.  We are all very happy about it. The only thing it changes on his address is where  it was SGT to SSG.  Well better go, hope everyone is doing well and thanks for everything.  Brian, Lynda Sue and Kids
April 4, 2005 Brian's Update:
Hello everyone, I am doing alright, staying very busy working twelve hour shifts 7 days a week.  The weather is starting to really warm up, it doesn't help that we wear forty pound vests all of the time.  Thanks to all who have sent packages and letters, and kept us in your prayers.  As most of you know, I can't say where I am or how long I will be here, it is getting better in many ways though.  We spend alot of time in the sun on the roads patrolling and the Iraqi's are terrible drivers, but they move out of our way so that helps.  I hope all is well where you are.  Looking forward to seeing you soon. 
With Love, Brian  
March 16, 2005
Hi everyone we are still busy working with moving and everything that goes with it.  All 5 kids are doing great with the adjusting, we have moments but it is still fun for them all.  Morgyn started pre-k about 2 weeks ago, she is doing good but misses us at home. It will get better in time.  Brenna Sue is now the biggest sister during the day, she loves the job and misses Morgyn a lot.  Samuel is growing like crazy, crawling everywhere and pushing the walking toy.  He thinks he is ready to walk so he can keep up with the other kids. Brian and I are doing the best that we can.  He has been gone 6 months and we still have a long way to go.  Well better go it is spring break week and lots to do.    
February 16, 2005 Hey everyone. Just wanted to send everyone a note to let them know how things are going. We had a great trip to Minnesota. We are now in Killeen (Fort Hood) which is 2 hours from my parents. My sister Amanda moved back and the kids and I are moving there to stay with her. The girls are very excited that they will have Caylie and Dakota to play with. We will have 5 kids with the ages being 7,5,4,3, & 8 months old. So Amanda and I will have no problem staying busy...not that we had one to begin with. The post is a few minutes away so it will make it easy for me to use the post for doctor appt.'s and more. My parents are ok with us moving cause this will work out and help everyone in a different way. They are not sure about the house being so quiet, but we will fix that on the weekends. I will still have the cell phone with the same number 281-732-7523. The house number is 254-690-6123 so call when ever you like.
New Address is:
1413 Fox Creek Drive
Killeen TX 76543
We would like to thank everyone for everything. Everyone keeps asking if I need anything. We are doing all right the only thing that I can think of for the kids and I are stamps, stationary, tickers and greeting cards (not signed-to mail to Brian). Those are the things we use the most. Brian is doing well. They continue to stay really really busy. We would like to thank everyone for the calls, letters, packages, e-mails and the notes on the guest book on the web site. We are trying to stay on top of sending notes back. After the trip to MN and now the move we are working on getting settled and things should get better. Again thanks for everything and hope to hear from you soon. Lynda Sue, Morgyn, Brenna, Samuel and Brian.
February 3, 2005
Hi everyone, We had a great time in MN.  We all got a little sick but still had a wonderful time.  We would like to thank everyone for everything while we were on the visit.  Also, we have someone to rent our house. We are very excited because it is a friend.  Thanks for helping use look for someone. Brian is doing good, he is staying very busy still. Hope everyone has a great Valentine Day.
January 11, 2005
Hi from MN.  The airplane ride was good but not on time. We are having a great time visiting everyone and have a lot more to do.  We are trying hard to see everybody.  Brian is in Iraq now. He got there Sunday,  he is doing good. Will have more news soon...
January 1, 2005 Happy New Year everyone. Hope that everyone had a great time. The kids loved the fireworks we had here at the house. We are packing for our trip and getting very excited. I will have my cell phone in MN so you can call me on that number any time, if I do not answer leave a message and I will get to you as soon as I can. I have an address for Brian in Iraq, you can start to mail him at this address as of today (Jan 1).

Address has been updated to:
SSG Reiten, Brian O.-4467
 793rd MP BN / A CO, 1-194 AR
APO AE 09391
December 29, 2004 Merry Christmas. Hope that everyone had a wonderful time. The trip to Philli was great, Brian and I are very thankful for the time. He is now is Kuwait, he left on Tuesday the 21st early in the morning. No address for Kuwait but I will have one around the 1st for Iraq. Christmas was good here, we spent lots of time enjoying the family that was here. We miss Daddy a lot but we did get a phone call from him on Christmas Eve which was the best present. We will be leaving for MN on the 3rd. The girls are ready to fly, it will be the 1st time they remember doing it, they were too little all the other times. Everyone in MN is very excited and everyone here is not sure how they will deal with a quiet house. Our house is empty and we are looking for someone to rent it, if you know of anyone that might be interested have them contact me. Happy Holidays and thanks for all the thoughts, gifts and prayers.
December 13, 2004
We will get to see Brian this weekend (17,18 & 19) in New Jersey.  I will be the only one going and we will spend the time in Philli. He will leave shortly after that.  Not sure what day. The girls kinda understand that they can not go but it is still really hard for them to understand it all.  They are trying and doing the best that they can.  We will be going to MN for the month of Jan.  We leave on the 3rd and return on the 30th.  We will spend the first week in St. Cloud, the next in Brainerd, then Walker and the last one will be in Duluth.  The girls are very excited about flying. Hope everyone has a great week.  Thanks for everything.
December 5, 2004
We hope that everyone had a great weekend.  Samuel has learned to roll over and his favorite word is still DADDDDDD DADDYYYYYYYYYY.  Brian has heard him say it on the phone.  Brian will probably be leaving Fort Dix in the next 2 weeks, if you are sending him mail please try to send it in the next few days or wait till I get his new address,  We don't want it to be lost in the mail.  Sorry for the short notice but it is all we have. 
November 24, 2004
Happy Thanksgiving!!  We hope that everyone has a great one.  We had a visit from Aunt Sarah this weekend.  It rained a lot but we still had a wonderful time. The kids were just as excited to see her as she was to see them. The girls loved staying in the hotel.  We are working on a visit to MN in January.   Nothing for sure yet but checking out to find good airline tickets.  We are planning to stay a month if we can, we will give more details when we find tickets.  Brian is still in the field.  We only got to talk to him a few times in the past few weeks, he should be back Wed.  They are training them pretty hard and working them a lot.  We will let ya'll know more when we know more.  Have a great weekend.
November 1, 2004
The kids had a wonderful Halloween. Saturday we went to a Fall Festival at a local school.  Samuel slept a lot but the girls had a blast.  They won 4 gold fish playing games. After that we went to town and in a parking lot they were giving away a puppy, so now we have one. Thanks to Papa. 

It's name is Treat cause we got him for Halloween.  Then Sunday night  we went to another festival at a church and then trick and treating.  The girls loved it, Samuel liked it a little and Papa, Granny and Mommy got a work out. Daddy had a Halloween filled with training but was very excited to hear about it from the kids.
October 17, 2004 Brian made it to New Jersey Sunday morning. If you would like to send him a letter his address is:

Sgt. Reiten-4467
A Co. 1-194 AR
6038 Doughboy Loop
Fort Dix NJ 08640-9001

Also, Samuel had his 4-month check-up on wed (10-13). He is growing like crazy, he is already 16 lbs. He received 4 shots and did not cry till the last one and still it was a short cry. He did such a good job because his big sisters were singing to him. He is so lucky.
October 12, 2004 We made it to Texas. The trip was long but we still had a great time. We had a great visit in Council Bluffs and in Kansas. The girls loved playing at Uncle Walter's and Aunt Amanda's. Aunt Katie drove down as a surprise wed. and stayed a week. We are working on unpacking and adjusting. Brian flew back to MN on Saturday and reported to work Monday. He will be leaving in about a week to go to New Jersey.
September 22, 2004
The moving is going all right, we will be leaving MN on the morning of October 1 and will be in TX on the evening of the 3rd.  Brian will fly from Houston on October 9th and report to his guard unit on Monday.  Our computer will be turned off this Friday (Sept. 23) but please feel free to e-mail us and we will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks.