(c) Roger Leo

1st Lt. Matthew F. Cohen, 24, of San Francisco talks with his Scout Platoon, Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav before a patrol in Baghdad. From left are, Spc. Vinson, Spc. Melgar, Spc. Perry, Lt. Cohen, Sgt. Culver, Sgt. Wells, Staff Sgt. Maldonado, Pvt. Cobb, Spc. Tinker, Spc. Mendoza and Spc. Griego.

(c) Roger Leo

Spc. Cipriano J. Griego Jr., 20, of Amarillo, Texas, and his wife, Victoria, at Fort Hood in Killeen, just after the Scout Platoon of Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav, returned from a year in Iraq.

(c) Roger Leo

Spc. Corby T. Vinson, 29, of Cape Coral, Fla., and his wife, Kristen, at Fort Hood, Killeen, Texas, just after Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav returned from the Middle East on Wednesday. Spc. Vinson is a member of the Scout Platoon.

(c) Roger Leo

1st Lt. Derek Ping, 25, of Alvin, Texas, and his wife, Jamie, at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas, moments after his return from a year of war in Iraq. Lt. Ping is Mortar Platoon leader with Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav.

(c) Roger Leo

Staff Sgt. Rene M. Maldonado, his wife, Brianna, and their son, Michael, 4 months, at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas, minutes after the 1st Cav trooper returned home from war on Wednesday. Staff Sgt. Maldonado, of San Antonio, served a year in Iraq with the Scout Platoon, Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav.

(c) Roger Leo

Spc. Rodolfo Mendoza Jr., 24, of Del Rio, Texas, and his girlfriend, Sunshine Nieto, 25, of Dallas, kiss moments after his landing at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas, on Wednesday.

(c) Roger Leo

Iraq's economy is recovering ... slowly ... from the war and everywhere shows a Third World blend of old and new.

(c) Roger Leo

Showing the opportunism of wildlife, sparrows perch on concertina wire at Baghdad International Airport.

(c) Roger Leo

Spc. Andre M. Glaze of Sheboygan, Mich., mans the Mark 19 grenade launcher atop his Humvee while on patrol with the Mortar Platoon of Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav. The Mark 19 can fire more than 300 40mm grenades per minute. Spc. Glaze's face shows the effects of riding in his truck's gun hatch while driving along the very dusty roads of rural Baghdad.

(c) Roger Leo

Airman 1st Class James D. Trussell, 21, of Memphis, Tenn., and Airman 1st Class Nidia Trussell, 21, of Laredo, Texas, wait for a flight out of Baghdad International Airport on Friday. The Trussells, who got married a month before deploying to Baghdad last year, finally got out to Kuwait late that night. The C-130 transport plane was delayed ... first by lightning and rainstorms, then by an engine flameout. It was midnight when they landed ... and much later when they reached their hotel. They are with the 67th Security Forces, were stationed in Baghdad's Green Zone, and are based at Laughlin Air Force Base in Texas.

(c) Roger Leo

Spc. Zachary B. Matthew, 23, of Reading, Pa., smiles on his last ... or maybe next-to-last ... patrol in Baghdad. A member of the Mortar Platoon of Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav., Matthew is at the end of his year-long deployment in Iraq.

(c) Roger Leo

Children in a farming community in southeastern Baghdad ... like almost every other kid encountered by the Scout Platoon of Dawg/HHC Co., 1-8 Cav ... love to have their pictures taken.