Tuesday Dec. 21, 1943

Dearest Kitten:

Xmas is getting nearer and nearer, the closer it comes the more lonesome I get. It will be a rather sad day for me, and no better for you, I know. How I wish that it were otherwise. Let us both hope and pray, that a year from now, it will be entirely different.

As I sit and write my chest is bursting from love of you. There is a lump in my throat that is not caused from eating. In my own way I am trying to tell you how much I love you, and how much that I miss you. Without you, my life would be a tiresome thing. Just knowing that you love me and are waiting for my return is sufficient to keep my going, and to keep me from getting to disgusted. I do not know what I would do if it were not for the love that we share.

I received your letters of Friday and Saturday. Was very sorry to hear that the babies were sick. You sure are having your hands full with them lately.

In your letter of Saturday, you were worried about me being sick. I am fine so stop worrying. The reason for your not receiving mail is due to the fact that I started sending them "free". Once they get started you will receive them regularly.

I wished that I could be home to see how the babies will act when they see the tree. Last year we sure did have fun putting up the tree. There are other years coming Darling, and we will be able to appreciate them more.

It will be nice for Andrew and Estelle to be together over Xmas. I only wish that you could do the same thing. Never mind Sweetheart, our day will come and everything will be perfect for us.

This afternoon we had to have our Service Records checked. They just made sure that the records are for the right man.

There are big doings going on around here. Just what seems to be a secret. I think that there are a couple more Cadries leaving.

My friend St Jean left Monday. He moved to the main Post and is a First Sergeant now. I hated to see him leave as we used to get along very well together.

I expect to be sent out on Cadry. Just when and to where I do not have the faintest idea. As soon as I find out anything definite, I will let you know. Of course there are rumors and opinions flying around. One thing is sure, that is, that something is going on.

I am enjoying myself in the navigation school. The Lt. I have is a poor speaker but he knows his onions. He lets me do the lecturing and handle most of the training. Whenever I get stuck, he straightens me out on it. I am learning a lot as well as teaching it. In that way I should be able to remember it.

Poor Bobby, when he pee's it sure must hurt. I know what it must feel like.

The officers have something in mind for me. Our Executive Officer wanted to know how much education that I had, how long I had been in the Army, and a lot of stuff like that. I sure wouldlike to know what is in store for me.

Well, Beautiful, all I can say now is that "I love you". It comes from the bottom of my heart. I was never so sincere in all my life as when I say "I love you".

Good night Sweetheart. Take care of yourself.

 Regards to everyone & kiss the babies for me.

Your Loving, Devoted, and Faithful Husband

Bob

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(xx)

Sunday Dec. 19, 1943

Dearest Kitten:

I love you with all my heart. The emptiness in my heart can only be filled by your presence. How I wish that it were possible for me to tease you until you got mad and then I would take you in my arms and all that you would feel is your great love for me. All your madness would melt like ice in a warm spring day.

I have just returned from breakfast. We are not having to stand Reveille on Sunday anymore. About this time, if I were home, I would be teasing you as we got ready to go to church. It may not be too long now before I will be able to do just that. We hope & pray.

Now for some news. A cadry is leaving tomorrow morning without me. My friend Sgt. St. Jean is leaving on it but they are not going far. There are some more Cadries to be sent out and I will probably be on one. There is one that is being sent out to form a new outfit, and I hope that I will be on that one. The Cadry that is going tomorrow is forming a company of all old men that are ready for overseas duty. By old, I mean men who have been in the army a long time.

For the next three weeks I am going to be an assistant instructor in navigation. There are nine officers and thirty men who are to do the instructing. Each week for three weeks we take sixty men from a company and put them through the course.

For the past two days it has been so cold that it has frozen ice down here. There is a small pond across the street from us and it has been frozen across the past two days. We feel the cold more down here than if it was zero and we were north. Maybe in a month or two I will be north, let's hope.

You will have to watch Bobby to keep him from putting stuff into the stove. It could cause a lot of trouble if you are not careful.

Do not let your family get you down. The main trouble is that you see them too much. When I return for good, we are going to move to where you will not be able to see them very often. In that way you will not be hurt by them and when they visit us or we visit them, it will be an occasion and not the regular thing to do.

Of course you can not help thinking of me. I am your husband who loves you with all the affection in his body. Sweetheart, it makes me proud to even write that, I am the father of your two beautiful children.

Just keep praying that the telephone call that you are hoping for will soon come through. It will not be for at least a month, and then again you never can tell.

I would have liked to see Barby standing by her bed. She is getting to be quite a girl now. It will be a tough job for you to watch the both of them. They will both be getting into trouble now.

Do you mean to tell me that you are going to start rationing your pieces to me, when I get home? I am only kidding, Sweetheart. It will be a good idea.

As far as I know, I do not have any black mark against me. Please stop worrying about me. I am sure that I am old enough to take care of myself by now.

Sgt. St Jean told me that I may be given a platoon and it would mean another stripe. I am not planning on it though. If I am sent out on Cadry it would probably mean another stripe.

I was glad to hear that Bobby has been taken care of. It is a job that should have been done a long time ago. And thank goodness Barby is all set now.

Last night I received your letter of Wednesday and I knew then that Bobby was OK. Your new pen sure writes lousy.

I can go into town anytime now as the men do not care to go out. There is nothing to do when they do get to town and a lot of men are saving their money for furloughs. Some of the men will not get their furloughs due to the cadries that are going out. If they are on cadry they lose their furlough. I was very fortunate to get mine.

By the time that you receive this letter you will know what I bought. Xmas cards. How did you like yours?

You must have been ambitious to wash and wax the floor. I only wish that I could have been home to help you out.

I am going to go into the main camp to cash the two money orders that I received from your mother and Eva. $2.00 each. I wish they had not done it.

Please send me Pat's and Andrew's address. I can not find Pat's. I thought that I had it entered in my address book but it is not there.

Well, Beautiful, I have to close now. I love you with all my heart. Regards to everyone & kiss the babies for me.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband

Bob

(xx)

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Thursday Dec. 16, 1943

Dearest Kitten:

Did I ever tell you how much that [you are] really loved? I did? Well never the less I am going to tell you again, and again.

I love you so much that at times it is hard for me to breathe. My love for you fills me up so much that there is not enough room left in my chest to take a breath. It is a wonderful feeling, to love a person as much as I love you, and to know that my love for you is returned by you.

There should be a letter or two waiting for me tonight.

This morning I had to go to the dental clinic. They cleaned my teeth and filled one. My teeth are in perfect order now. The dental clinic is in the main camp and I had to dress in O.D.'s. They got through with me at 10:30 so I decided to gold-brick for the rest of the day. That is the reason that I am at the Service club. About the middle of this afternoon I will start back for my company area.

This was a good day to take off because there were two hikes scheduled for today.

There is something in the wind down here. Last night the furloughs were cancelled. About forty men were all set to leave and then to have that pulled on them is rather rough. They were very disgusted to say the least.

The rumors are flying thick and fast. When something happens, I will let you know. There are always rumors in the Army and I have reached the point where I listen to them and then just wait to see what will happen.

You have noticed by this time that I am all out of airmail stamps. Do not bother to send me any more as it costs too much over the period of a month and you have to be careful of your money.

We signed the payroll yesterday, rather last night. Another partial payment. $50.00 again.

The men and myself are having quite a bitching session. We are talking shop and giving everything a going over.

Day before yesterday the men had a chance to go to the inspector general. Some of his staff were in the area to listen to any bitches that the men might have. There were sixty two men from our company that went over. We are all hoping that it will do some good.

Well, Sweetheart, the men want to go over to the P.X. for something to eat.

Give my regards to everyone and kiss the babies for me.

I love you, my Beautiful Wife, and am always praying that the day is not too far distant when we will be together again for good.

Your Loving, Devoted, Faithful, & Affectionate Husband

Bob

Wednesday Dec. 15, 1943

Dearest Kitten:

I am in love with you and am so lonesome for you right now. How I wish that I were home so that I could help you put the babies to bed and then we could go into the setting room and snuggle up in the arm chair. While listening to the radio we could pitch a little woo. Wouldn't that be nice.

It has been two days since I have heard from you last, except for your beautiful Xmas card. I received one from my aunt and from Ray and Cle(?) yesterday. Today I received one from Estelle with two dollars in it.

Last night I sent all the cards that I had. By the time I got finished it was too late to write. Tonight we are restricted for some reason and I will have to rush this letter.

For the past two days it has been raining. It makes it rather miserable down here when it rains. There is a group of men going out tonight for their furloughs. How I wish that I was leaving with them. They will be home for Xmas and how I wish that I were one of the lucky ones.

We were just told to stand by so I had better close.

Sunday out on the golf course we took some pictures and as soon as the film is finished and developed, I will send you some prints.

Give my regards to everyone & kiss the babies for me.

I love you with every breath that I take and with each passing minute.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband

Bob

Monday Dec. 13, 1943

Dearest Kitten:

I have just gotten through washing the floor and before doing anything more, I am going to write to you. Today I hit the jackpot, three letters from the one person who I want to hear from and who I would love to be able to love.

You are my very life and I love you so. The day will come when I will have the pleasure of taking you in my arms forever. Pray hard that the day is not too far distant. How happy we will be when that day arrives.

Bobby

Your long letter came this noon and your letters of Wednesday & Thursday came tonight. At noon I started reading your letter and I almost made myself sick from laughing over Bobby trying to hit the pot. I was laughing so hard that the fellows wanted to know what was so funny. When I told them, did they get a kick out of it.

Do not bother sending me a thing. There is nothing that I need and it would only be a waste of money to send me anything. I can always get whatever I need down here. All that I want from you is a letter with all of your love sealed inside. Is that asking for too much?

It is about time that Rita got wise to herself. She has wasted a lot of time on Hank and he was never worth it. Do not tell her that, because, if he ever came back to her, it would be bad for us. Just keep your mouth shut about the whole affair.

You sure have been on the go lately. Even to dancing with a man. You sure are going to the dogs fast. What would your husband say if he knew?

I realize that there was nothing to it. Just so long as you do not get into the habit of going to night clubs and such. I know that your love for me would never let you do anything that would disgrace you.

When I get home you will have to introduce me to Helen's husband. We could have a good time "shooting the breeze" while you women folk could be gossiping. Let us hope that I will be lucky enough to get shipped back north so that I may be able to get home once in awhile.

Do you mean to tell me that Barby has enough hair to tie a bow in it. I bet she looks cute with it.

I wish it were possible for you to give me a big kiss and sit in my lap. To H-- with the paper. The way I feel now I could do a real good job of loving you.

Yes Barby is your girl. I love her very dearly but Bobby has a little niche in my heart simply because he is a boy and I understand boys better than girls. It is the same way with you.

Of course Barby is going to be a beauty. She is going to take after her mother so how can she help being a beauty.

Barby

I see that you are beginning to realize why I wanted you to stay home with the babies. It is your place and you should be able to get along O.K. financially. I will send all that I can each month as I realize that you will need it.

The training of your own children gives more pleasure than anything else in the world. It is beginning to show results.

Your unemployment insurance money will sure come in handy. Let us hope that by the time you have collected all your money, this mess will be nearly over. We hope!

A tree will cost quite a bit this year. It is up to you, but I think that it is foolish to buy one.

Well Beautiful, I have got to close.

I love you with all my heart and soul.

Give my regards to everyone and kiss the babies for me.

Your Loving, Devoted, & Faithful Husband

Bob

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