Celebrating the U.S. Marine Corp’s 246th birthday

 This year Nathan and I attended the 246th Marine Ball, at the JW Marriott in Ankara. We have only attended one other Marine Ball since being overseas the past 8 years, when we were living in Kuwait. We were supposed to go to the ball our last year in Jordan, but I ended up having foot surgery a couple days before and was in bed recovering. Anyway, we went and had fun! Here are some pictures from our night. Before leaving for the ball....

At the ball. Before the ceremony they had a cocktail hour.

Our co-worker Jim and his wife Sheila.

About half of our co-workers.

Jim has been on a plank kick, so this seemed appropriate. Earlier that day he planked for 26 minutes in honor of the Marines!

It was a very nicely done event and beautifully decorated. We were originally supposed to sit with people from our office, but our table seating got moved. We ended up sitting at a table with the Military Base Commanders, who Nathan knew, and a couple from the Netherlands. It was a good group and we had fun meeting some new people.

The Marine Detachment Commander, Ambassador Satterfield, and our friend Kip, who is a former Marine gave speeches during the ceremony, then they had dinner and dancing for the rest of the night.

We ended up staying out until 11:30, which is way past our bedtime, but we had a fun time celebrating the U.S. Marines and all they do to protect our country.

The kiddos were sound asleep when we got home, and they even let us sleep in until 8:30am the next morning. It was a fun night and a welcomed bonus to not be too tired the next day! And you may be wondering why we are in a hotel....stay tuned for the next blog!