Fingers Crossed For a Peaceful and Timely Death

When we got married, one of the first things I wanted to do was set up an aquarium.  I love having fish.  We got started and bought a few fish...and then realized we were PCSing to Germany in about six months.  Luckily, we didn't live too far from my parents, so when it came time to move, we transported the fish to their house and they lived out the rest of their lives there after we moved.

When we arrived at this duty station, I dragged out the aquarium again and set it up.  I bought five lovely black skirt tetras and a plecostomus and got started.

That was nearly four years ago.  None of the fish have died of old age.  In fact, the plecostomus has tripled in size and looks about ready to evolve legs and crawl out.

So now what?

I have loved having the fish tank, and it's even more fun now that our baby can watch the fish and try to grab at them through the glass.  But if these fish don't die of old age sometime in the next six months, I don't know what I'm going to do.  I am absolutely morally against flushing them, and they sure can't handle a 16-hour car ride back to my parents' house this time!

I find myself hoping for a timely demise.  The average lifespan for these fish is about 5 years, so I keep hoping mine were teenagers when I got them.  But I'm out of luck with the plecostomus; they can live up to 15 years!

I would love to start another aquarium when we move so that our daughter can enjoy the fish, but I hate to go through this all over again.  I still don't know what I'm going to do when it's time to move.  Ideas?  I would give all of them away for free if someone would just love them until they die.  How have you dealt with non-dog or cat pets when PCSing?

I have a book problem...

I am an avid reader and have read hundreds of books in my life.  I love to read all sorts of different books - mostly fiction, but a lot of non-fiction as well.  My two favorite authors are James Patterson and Janet Evanovich.  LOVE their books!  I also have a soft spot for John Grisham, Richard North Patterson, John Sanford, and a new one for me is Robin Cook.

I grew up reading Judy Blume and Nancy Drew.  My dad would read the Chronicles of Narnia to us at night before bed.  I have always had a love for books and I thank my parents for that.  But now I have a problem.

How many times have you moved?

Today I went to a store and when I went to make my purchase the cashier asked me if I had one of the store's "reward" cards.  I told her yes, but I had no idea where the card was located.  She asked for the phone number I used when I applied for the card... this can be a difficult question for a military spouse.  I told her I was military and had to think about where I applied for the card because we move a lot.  Then the conversation went like this:

We are Never, Ever Moving All This Stuff Again

Ah, the joys of PCS.  Today was the highly anticipated, and also highly dreaded, delivery of household goods.  First the good news:  almost no damage, and it all will fit in our house!  Let the rejoicing begin!

Before you get too excited, however, consider how much of this stuff came off the truck and my first thought was a sarcastic, "Great."  "What are we going to do with that?"  "Really, that came?"  "Didn't we get rid of that before we moved?"  and my most personally discouraging, "How many moving stickers are on that unopened box?"

The fact it, when taken as a whole, we have too much stuff.  I swear it is sucking the life out of me and preventing me from being all the great things I can be.  The problem enters when you stop looking at it as a whole and start looking at it as individual things.  Things that are useful, or loved, or bring back memories, or represent hope for the future.  Multiply all those values times six people and the result is a remarkable number of objects that have value to someone in my family.

I'm curious - do you find that you have a lot of stuff?  Is that a good thing or a bad thing?  How do you help everyone keep the stuff that is really, truly important while shedding the things that aren't adding to your lives?

I've only got three years, folks, 'cuz it's not all going next time. 

Building a Forever Home

We've lived in so many homes throughout the years. Each more different than the one before. Whether we were renting or bought a home, we've always lived in homes and apartments where someone else had designed the home. I used to joke to my husband that house-hopping has given me a great foundation for putting our "forever" home together. I imagined our forever home would be one which we constructed from the ground up. One where we would make all the color, flooring, fixture, layout choices. Looks like it's not going to work out that way, but that's another story for another day...

Living in so many places has taught me what I want, and what I don't want. For instance, I know I don't want white tiled bathrooms with white grout. Yes, they look fresh and crisp, at least for a while, but eventually the grout turns grungy and though I've tried every grout cleaner on the market, I just can't get the grout back to its once-gleaming condition. I also don't want black granite. Oh, it looks beautiful and smells of class, but I noted that the dust is more visible on the dark granite than with the lighter shades. I don't want to dust my granite every single day. And I don't want to look at dust either. Oh, it can be there, I just don't want it staring me in the face, taunting me. 

Another no-go is poor placement of the laundry room. 

Oh, to be a kid again!

As an Army brat, I grew up with the idea that moving was a great thing.  There were new adventures to be had.  Items that had gone missing (possibly under or behind large pieces of furniture) were rediscovered.  New friends were waiting to be made.  Moving was a wonderful thing!  As a result, I was profoundly disappointed when we reached a point where we stopped moving as a family.  It took me quite some time to realize this had happened, though, as I kept expecting to move for years.

Then, I married a Marine and I thought, "Oh, I can handle this, especially the moving part!"  And to be honest, the first few moves really weren't too bad.  I couldn't complain when it only took half a day to pack us and half a day to load us onto the truck! 

PCS Envy? You Bet....

Several of my friends are in the middle of a PCS right now. I, thankfully, am not. But oddly, there is a small part of me which is envious of them.

Now, I know what you're thinking. And the answer is yes. I am a little nuts....

Going "Home"

As you may know, my family embarked upon an overseas PCS around seven weeks ago.  We're still living in the Navy Lodge, and I am having a harder time with this move than with any move I've ever done.  I've never been homesick before, but I have had many moments of homesickness in the last few weeks.

I had an opportunity to come back to the States to visit the USAA mothership (see Andi's post) and it has been a bittersweet journey.  I was so glad to be in the US, and a little worried that this transition has been so hard for me.  Thankfully, something happened yesterday that helped me see that I might be doing better than I think.

I was in an amazing mid-Texas rest stop/convenience store and I was looking in the soda cases for a drink.  None of the options were appealing to me and I thought to myself, "If I were in Italy, I could find something that I wanted to drink."  After the thought sunk in, I was really excited.  I was actually looking forward to going back for a reason other than my family.  What a breakthrough!

I'm sure similar things have happened to each of you.  How did you know that you had become comfortable with your new home?  What was your moment?

Pet Peeve #795476

It drives me nuts when we PCS and I don't know anyone local to put in the "Emergency Contact" section of paperwork.

"Time To Move On"

It's time to move on, time to get going
What lies ahead, I have no way of knowing
But under my feet, baby, grass is growing
It's time to move on, it's time to get going

When my husband and I packed up and left for our first duty station, we were leaving the town we'd lived in for six years.  The town where we met.  The town where we dated.  The town where we got our first apartment as a married couple and began our life together.

The town that was our home.

As we pulled out of town, my husband said he had something for me.  He put in a CD and queued up Tom Petty's "Time To Move On."  I brushed tears out of my eyes and he smiled at me and said it was time to get going...

Now every time we PCS, this CD is one of the things I make sure to take out of the household goods before the packers come.  And we play it each time we get going.  Each time we have no way of knowing what lies ahead.

When I heard the song today, I realized that next year when we PCS, our new daughter will be with us as we play that song leaving town.  She will join in on our family PCS tradition.  I like that.

Do you have any PCS traditions?

Purchases Incompatible With the Military Lifestyle

A while back I was talking with some friends about all the moving we've done since marrying soldiers. After going through our best and worst duty stations, we started talking about the various apartments and houses we've lived in. Then, the conversation turned to the furnishings, etc. we've gone through over the years. 

One spouse laughed as she recalled buying a super-sized shrunk ensemble at their first duty station only to move to teeny-tiny base housing two years later. The shrunk had to be placed on the wall where the windows were so there was no natural light in the living room. Once she had the shrunk, sofa and love seat in the house, there was barely any room to walk around. And it was dark. She recalled being slightly over their weight limit twice. Her husband argued it was the shrunk. She argued it was his "professional" books.... Regardless, she said she never would have purchased that shrunk early on in their military career as it's been a nuisance to them with each move. Currently, it's sitting in a storage unit where it's been for years. So not only are they not using it, but they're paying to store it. 

One of my worst purchases was a huge weight-lifting station. 

The never-ending PCS

It's funny that Guard Wife just wrote about a virtual road trip.  Because I've been on the never-ending road trip...and it's anything but virtual. 

We are in the midst of a PCS.  So I've been on the road and/or homeless for the past month.  And it's making me fat, people.  First, it was the stress of the anticipation of the move.  Then, it was life on the road and eating out for every meal.  

There is a plus side.  The kids have spent lots of time with one set of grandparents and cousins from both sides.  Stretch and I have gotten to spend some time catching up with friends and he's been introduced to some of my "imaginary" friends from SpouseBuzz. 

But I'm starting to get a bit tired of life on the road and am starting to look forward to having our own place and getting my belongings back.  And it will be nice to get back into a routine again.  PCSing Vacations can be nice but they have to end some time!

*PCS means Permanent Change of Station which leads to the question of why it's called that.  For us, there is nothing permanent about our lives, least of all where we live.

It's Like Living in A Foreign Country

As you may remember, we have recently PCSed.  Technically I don't think the PCS is over because we are still living in the Navy Lodge and we don't have our stuff.  Anyway, we've moved overseas, which is very exciting and also frustrating.  SpouseBUZZ authors have lived overseas before, but I'm the only author who is currently out of the US and my husband informs me that it is my responsibility to represent all us OCONUS spouses.

We have only been in Italy about three weeks, so my culture shock with the Italians hasn't really set in yet.  I'm still dealing with the culture shock of being on a US base overseas.  Our last tour overseas, we were on our own with no military facilities, so this is different.  Quite different.

The Green and Blue Dress

(Details have been changed to protect the innocent.  And because I can't remember details well anymore.)

Well, we are now 12 days into our three year, government paid European vacation and it has been fun interesting so far.  At this base, there is a six day orientation course that everyone attends when they arrive.  While not the point of the orientation (and heck, not even encouraged in any way), you do get to know some other new people as you sit through various briefs and slog your way through paperwork together.  As happens when you get a bunch of military people together, the stories come out pretty quickly.

How do you handle "Good Bye?"

I hate to say "Good Bye."  Whether I am moving, my friends are moving, or my husband is deploying, I do NOT like it!

"Every coin has two sides, kiddo."

That is what my dad said to me earlier this morning.  And it pretty much captures where my mind is at right now.

The Navy threw us a curve ball.  Orders were in for an unaccompanied tour.  Granted the two year old waited until his dad was completely inside the terminal, but our goodbyes were said and Seadaddy was dropped off at the airport.  Turns out we have new orders. 

With two small kids at home this is great news.  More time with dad means getting thrown up in the air while mom gets queasy, having a parent around who can give their child a proper haircut, bedtime stories will be told with great and ridiculous voices and accents mom just can't manage.  All kinds of things.  Rather than miss his third summer in five years with my stepdaughter, she will get to come stay with us for our time and that is fantastic news.  Being the noncustodial parent is hard enough, pcs-ing further away is even worse but extended paid government vacations can really hurt the hearts of both parent and child. 

We are grateful.

But there is the flip side.  The new command is pretty close to the old command, but with traffic in the area there will be a maddening commute most days if we decided to stay put where we are now.  The command is small and does not have base housing or a commissary or an MTF.  So we need to weigh all these things and decide if we move to their off base housing, rent in civilian land or stay put.  Although staying put just means staying on post, we will hopefully take advantage of the pcs and move into a house with one more bedroom, something we decided against after our youngest was born. 

So we have suddenly been thrust into pcs mode.  Which, quite frankly, is not enjoyable.  And all those pcs related posts Joan D'Arc and She of the Sea have been making (and the comments they received!) need to be re-read with more attention.  Because I need all the help I can get. 

There is one thing I am currently mourning, the thing that made my dad laugh at me and elicited the comment above.  As a one car household, I was *really* looking forward to more than 365 days of driving without regard to coordinating schedules. 

And when you roll around in this bad mamajama, it takes a few days to get over your loss:

The Challenge: "Kick its Scrawny Little Tail"

I've sat through many promotion ceremonies, and on more than one occasion listened as a husband thanked a wife for managing to turn multiple houses into homes. I have a friend who painted her house on post from top to bottom even though she had to turn around and paint it white again when they moved. Now that's dedication.

We've occupied 11 residences so far. No two were alike, and some were frightening at first glance. Wherever we've lived, I've been determined to put our own stamp on the place. If we were there for one year or three, I wanted our home to be a reflection of us. And I wanted it to be a sanctuary from work for my husband. Some places were much more challenging than others....

This past weekend, I did something I haven't done in ages - I turned my cell phone off and didn't answer email for two days. I did this because I can't resist "The Challenge." 

Well, that, and because I'm a cheap, do-it-yourself kind of gal!

Oh My Gosh! We're Moving!

I don't know if the title sounds silly to you, but I'm sure it sounds silly to the people who know me.  Uh, duh.  We've had a good idea that we were moving for over a year, and we've had verbal orders for a long time, and we've had physical orders since January.  We've made all sorts of big decisions based upon this move - renting out our house, buying a new-to-us car, etc.  I have been eating, breathing and sleeping PCS for the last three months.

Then, yesterday, we shipped our car.  It was so, well, REAL.  We are moving.  In about six weeks.  For REAL.

I'm sure that everyone has a moment that it hits them...when did it occur to you that a move was "for real?"

The Army has done it again...

Last night DH and I had the pleasure of meeting some of the command team from 25th ID in Hawaii (our next duty station).  We also had a VTC with the rest of the command team.  My husband's orders had that he would be going to a brigade.  When we walked in to the meeting last night, we found out he was being assigned to division staff.  WHAT!?

If you have ever lived OCONUS (outside the continental US), I could use your input...

For the first time in my almost 13 years of military spouse-dom, we are PCSing OCONUS.  Hawaii, to be exact!  We are all very excited and looking forward to not having to shovel snow or wear snow boots or have a whole "winter" and "summer" wardrobe.

But, I am internally freaking out about how and what to get rid of, store, pack in whole/unaccompanied baggage, and what to send as household goods.  Plus getting our animals (1 dog and 2 old cats) to Hawaii in the summer when airlines have so many travel restrictions for pets.

So, if you have ever lived OCONUS, please help me!

Boxes and Tubs

Okay, so we're less than two months out from our next PCS, and I'm up to my ears.  I'm sure many of you understand my feeling that we have too much stuff, and I am determined to go through every last thing in this house before we leave.  That isn't intended to be sarcastic, though it certainly sounds that way when I say it out loud.  I am definitely a "make a mess first" sort of organizer, and my ADD is in high gear, so I've got half-sorted piles everywhere, and unsorted piles everywhere else.  I've been pulling boxes out left and right, trying to get rid of stuff.  It is enough to make a person crazy.

Crazier yet is that our house is on the market.  I've watched enough HGTV to know that houses don't sell (or rent) when they look cluttered, but I don't see a solution to this problem.  There are six people in this house, and at least five of them are pack rats.  (Including me.)  Every time someone comes to see the house, my family throws my sorting into boxes and tubs to make it look less disorganized.  I tell you, it may look less disorganized, but it is making me go in the opposite direction. 

We've had five people look at the house, and no has signed a lease yet.  Since they already knew the price, and the general specifications (and frankly, there's not a lot of competition here), my guess is the problem is the stuff.  I'm going to keep plugging away, but in the meantime, if you know where to find some magic disappearing boxes and tubs, please let me know.

In This Case, I Think the Bad Outweighs the Good....

Moving, under any circumstance, is no fun, but I've found there are elements of good and bad in a DITY move. Which, by the way, I do not recommend.... Packing and moving myself meant that I saw more of my stuff than I normally would see. And more than I ever wanted to. I'd like to say the good outweighed the bad, but the evidence is clear:  

Good - I found over $300 in gift cards we've never used. This will come in handy.

Bad - I found a wedding gift I never mailed to a military spouse.

Very Bad - I found the sweatshirt that airforcekid left in my hotel room months and months ago. Washed and put up in my husband's closet.

Horribly, Humiliatingly Bad - I found thank you notes I wrote after SpouseBUZZ LIVE Camp Pendleton that were addressed and never mailed.

Maybe I should mail the gift cards I've found to everyone I stiffed over the past few months.

Oye! I've been a bad, bad girl......

PCS? What PCS?

This summer will be my 10^thmove and 7th PCS in 12 years of marriage to my Marine.  So, you would think that I would have this whole moving thing down to a science, or at least an art.  Not so much.  For one thing, my middle name might as well be Procrastination.  And for another, life just manages to keep getting in the way. 

The Big Bad Wolf

Lately I have felt like one of the Three Little Pigs whose house got blown in by The Big Bad Wolf.  We had to buy a house at our last duty station and we put it on the market when we moved last summer (but couldn't sell it, thanks to the economy).  We now have tenants who are renting the house and the house seems to keep falling apart.

I'm Starting To Understand

I've always been frustrated by my friends and acquaintances who profess their hatred of this military lifestyle.  You know the people - always complaining about everything.  First, I don't think it is that bad, and second, (don't throw food) it is a choice that each family makes.  Sure, you've heard me complain about waiting for 45 minutes to get a doctor's appointment, or the lines at the commissary are sometimes really long.  In general, however, I enjoy this nutty life.  I like meeting new people every few years.  I like derive some sort of satisfaction from putting on the cape of responsibility when my husband is gone.

And then we move.

Seriously, the physical act of preparing to move is going to be the reason I throw in the towel.  I am over it.  This will be our third move in three calendar years (no record, for sure) and it isn't getting any easier.  I swear, this stuff just brings itself into our house when I'm not looking.  On Monday, we got rid of a couch, a refrigerator, and a piano.  You can't even tell!  There is not one room that I can go, and sit, and not look at piles:  this stuff to go to the consignment shop, this stuff to go to the thrift store, ...  I've already given in, and hired a handyman and a painter.  (I'm no AWTM, that is for sure.)  I need to clone myself if there is any chance that this stuff is going to get done.  For me, moving is the breaking point.

Upon reflection, other peoples gripes make a little bit more sense.  Moving is my breaking point, theirs is something else.  There are probably even people who enjoy this pre-move stage.  They can have it.  I'll be in the corner, going through piles and complaining to anyone who will listen.

So we are not accompanying, now what?

As it happens, the needs of the Navy do not include a sea tour this time around.  I won't lie. I am relieved. I have a bit more time to acclimate myself to the idea now. 

For a few reasons, Seadaddy's best move was an overseas tour.  We were lucky enough the location has recently been reclassified so we did have the option to go accompanied for two years or unaccompanied for one.  While we did weigh this decision heavily and I imagine we will both feel some regret about our choice along the way, the boys and I are staying stateside.

Seadaddy  and I have done pretty well through our deployments and we are hoping his internet connection will be even better in a non war zone.  So long as the boys get to see and hear their dad on a regular basis, I  think we will do alright.

But it is the pre-game strategizing that has me flustered.

The Box I Never Unpack

Most families I've talked to that move frequently have a box or two that never gets unpacked no matter how often or where they move.  We all have a vague idea of what is in that box, but there's no sense of urgency.  We probably won't need it, but we can't get rid of it.  There's a feeling that the box we never unpack is important somehow.

A few days ago I was packing my basement up for remodeling project number 68,742 and I came across that box.  It's pretty beat up by now.  It's falling apart, to be honest.  And since I only had a vague idea of what was in it, I figured I'd go through the never-unpacked box and sort through things.

Guess what I found...

When DH retires

Do you ever daydream about what your house will look like when your spouse finally retires/separates from the military and you stop moving?  I read magazines with lots of great decorating and organizational ideas (and I NEED organization in my house!) and there's lots of great stuff out there.  Then I realize I don't have a house to call my own.  I do my best to make whatever house I live in cozy and comfortable, but I don't buy curtains or anything "super-special" because I know I have to leave it all behind. 

Switching branches . . .

But first!  Remember the Red, White & You USO Sweethearts?  They made it to Iraq unmelted and intact.  When I asked Seadaddy to check their status for me, Skype showed that there was eye rolling and possibly huffing and puffing at having to get up and get them (*all the way* across (his half of) the chu :-P ). 

"Jeez Jenn, what did you think was gonna happen to them?!" 

Apparently nothing will happen to them.  Just take my easily exasperated husband's word for it :-)

**   The candy was actually sent in the heat of the summer, so I'll just admit it takes me entirely too many months to get my act together and follow up.  Not the best trait, to be sure.  But maybe someone will be able to confidently send them next summer?  I'm going with that. 

Between now and then quite a few things have happened.  The most exciting-ish thing military wise is that we are approaching a pcs!

And that brings me to switching branches.  My sailor husband is due to pcs soon.  Our window is open as it seems to be called and this is my first time dealing with this "open window" as a military spouse.  We married in the middle of his training on the way to our current duty station and I wasn't really involved in the particulars of Seadaddy's last orders "negotiation". 

Seadaddy's current shore duty is not even a solely Navy command.  Our neighborhood on post has all branches present.  We live on post and not on base!  Seadaddy deployed to Iraq twice and didn't go out on any dirsup trips above or under water while we have been stationed here.  And I say all this because I am getting nervous that I am not cut out to be a Navy wife.  What if I can't hack it?  I just am unsure how I will deal with a sea tour, with the deployment(s) and port calls and all of the training exercises and qualification underways that would keep him coming in and out.  I feel like we would be switching branches.

I am wondering if I am alone in this line of thinking.  Have you ever rotated from shore commands Navy spouses or in a more purple vein - moved into recruiting billets or some joint services command and just felt like you were not really sure what your service member's branch had in store for you when it came time to move on?   

I am excited about moving on to something new, even as I battle my nervousness and resistance to change...

Me, Me, Me, Me

That's it.  I can't go out until my husband gets home.  Or I need to learn better social skills.  Because lately, everywhere I go, all we ever talk about is me.  How long has he been gone?  When is he coming back?  How do you do it?  When are you moving?  What do the kids think?  I appreciate everyone's interest, and I understand that it sounds odd and different to y'all civilian folks, but aren't you sick of talking about me?  It is sort of like this, but different.

I've tried changing the subject, and that often works for a bit, but then a new person enters the conversation and then we're back to me.  I feel like I'm trying to hog all the attention which is very much not true.  (Not that I don't enjoy being funny, but all the time?  I'm certainly not THAT funny.  It's not like I'm Guard Wife.)  I feel like I'm preventing other people from being the subject of attention, and it seems so rude.  I actually left a party early last night because I was hoping that they'd be able to talk about something else if I left.

I'm wondering if anyone else experiences this, or if you have any suggestions.  I don't want to hide in a box for the next few months but this is ridiculous!

Decorating Envy

My name is She of the Sea, and I have decorating envy.

This is a problem that attacks me every once in a while.  Yesterday, I was at the house of a civilian friend.  They have lived in this house for more than 5 years and intend to be there for a long time.  And it is decorated beautifully.  Not fancy schmancy decorated, but it is obvious that effort has been put into making this a warm and comfortable home.  All the rooms are painted a color that makes sense.  All the windows have proper window treatments.  There is no extraneous furniture, or empty spaces calling out for something to fill them.  It is a home of someone who doesn't move all the time.

I know there are military spouses who pull into a new home, paint, sew and do their magic instantaneously.  I'm not one of them.  We've been here for 18 months and I still have those disposable paper blinds on most of my windows.  (Courtesy of the previous occupants, even.)  And with orders expected soon, I'm poorly motivated to start sewing now.  There are rooms that need painting.  There is senseless furniture stuck in odd places.

I long to live in a home that looks nice.  I'm sure I could do it, but it seems a poor use of both time and money to knock myself out making this house just so when next year is going to bring another house, and a few years later, who knows?  I don't know if it is realism or a defeatist attitude, but I know I'm not alone.

(And if any of you are studying interior design and/or curtain making, I live in Maryland.  And I cook.)

I love my husband, but sometimes...

Sometimes I want to smack him!  I wrote a post a while ago about my struggle regarding whether I should get a job after our PCS in July.  I struggle with this as a wife, mother, and professional.  About a week after I wrote that post I decided NOT to get a job.  I quickly became involved in multiple volunteer activities and have enjoyed each and every one of them.  Plus, I get to go to the gym a few times a week while the kids are in school.

So last night I was balancing the checkbook and paying bills and when I looked at my husband's LES I was very surprised.  Since we now live on post we don't get BAH, which is a nominal amount of money that is no longer in our pocket.  Plus we haven't sold our house in PA, so that's another chunk of money we are "missing."  I told my husband what his take-home pay was now and his response was:  "You need to get a job."

Horror of Horrors

Well, first I disgrace the milspouse community with this little incident. Didn't think I could top that one, but imagine my horror when I took this PCS quiz and found out I'm "mostly" ready for a PCS move, not "totally" ready. I've been at this for quite some time now. I have many moves under my belt. Should be able to do this in my sleep by now. Ugh!

Lowers her head, turns off the light, slinks out of the room and goes back to bed.

Crossroad...

We are pretty well settled in to our new duty station.  Our PCS went rather smoothly, surprisingly enough, with a few hiccups along the way.  We were able to visit family and take our time getting here.  We have wonderful neighbors and there are lots of kids for our kids to play with.

My husband starts his military school tomorrow and the kids start school on Tuesday.  And I, well... I'm at a crossroad and can't decide what I want to do with my life while we are here for 10 months.

Movers Beware

We are currently in the midst of another PCS move and we thought things were going really well.  We were pretty satisfied with our packers and the driver seemed to be a nice guy, too.

Then we arrived at our new duty station and received a call from the Transportation Office.  The caller (a female named Fred!) wanted to know if we had a partial DITY in addition to the moving truck.  JD told her we that we did and she informed him that we were already just 220 lbs. under our weight limit.  That didn't sound right seeing as how we'd just moved last year and our weight was about 3,000 lbs. less than that.  We were a little worried considering we'd just hauled about 2500 lbs. ourselves, but figured it had to be a mistake.

Anything but Boring

While everyday life can often be mundane, the military lifestyle offers quite a bit of adventure, too.  Early in my marriage, I met another spouse who had lived in Africa and spent time with gorillas.   I never thought I'd have stories to live up to that.  But now, I can say that I've had my fair share of adventures.

Less than a year into our marriage, we packed up and moved all the way across the country. A few months after settling in to our new home in the Mojave Desert, a 7.1 earthquake woke us up in the middle of the night.  Once, we opened our front door to find a juvenile rattlesnake coiled near the door at the same duty station.  In Korea, I thought monsoon season would never end and started to empathize with Noah a little too much.  Then there was the time my oldest child almost fell into the bear pit when our friends took us to the Singapore Zoo.

Just last week, from a dock I watched a huge alligator in the wild that was only a couple of yards away from me.  Then this past weekend, I came within a foot of a stingray while at the beach with my family and my oldest almost came face to face with a barracuda while snorkeling. My husband, who was right behind her, said she suddenly did a one-eighty in the water and started stroking for shore without ever lifting her head out of the water (or telling her dad he might want to go to shore, too).

Come to think of it, I could use a little less adventure in my life.

I Love It!

What an awesome idea for military families. Great photos, too....

Army Lodging Overhaul Coming Soon

Army moves to privatize on-post lodging

 

"Pathetic" and "Sad"

Remember when I cracked up after reading Coping Army Wife's "pathetic" comment?  The visual just struck me as funny. And yes, pathetic. It's always the little things that get to us..... Today, I read about one Army wife's first PCS move. Strange new town, strange new people. And one "sad" planner. I can relate so strongly to this. Most of us have been there and have the collection of t-shirts to prove it. The silver lining is that the planner will probably fill up fast...... 

A little bit of history

On Sunday we had an open house because we are desperately trying to sell our house before we PCS later this month.  We had to be out of the house so a bunch of strangers could walk through our house and invade my personal space (yes, I have issues with this, but I know it must be done).

We decided to drive 3 hours away to take our kids to Antietam National Battlefield.  There are two pieces of history that have become important in our home regarding Antietam.

Time to get off the pot

We have almost been in our home for a year now. 

There are are a couple of problems, and I will take responsibility for them.

I Am a PCS Worrier

I have PCS on the brain, and we're not moving any time soon.  But those 36 hours back in April set my mindframe and started the worrying process.  We will probably be moving a year from now, and the crazy is already setting in.

It all started with detergent...

Salt 'N Vinegar, Please....

Before we left our last duty station, I went grocery shopping one day when I was starving. Always a bad idea.... I picked up several items that I normally don't buy. I think I was hoping the photos on the products would settle in my stomach by osmosis or something. One of those items was Salt and Vinegar almonds. I never opened the can. I ate the chocolate cake and whip cream parfait I bought at the bakery. In the parking lot. 

Last week, I was going through the cupboard (hungry again), and I ran across that can of almonds. Although I was skeptical, I opened the can. To my surprise, I found that I loved them, and I consumed the entire can in only two days. 

Today, I went to the grocery store and yep, you guessed it, Salt and Vinegar almonds were nowhere to be found. I had a rather unpleasant flashback. 

Moving really sucks when you have the munchies.....

HAP for Military

Are you still wondering about the details regarding the Homeowner Assistance Program for Military Homeowners?

Living in Purge-atory

I have been wanting to write about this for some time, but as you can tell from the title, I have been purging all that is called my home for some time. 

Yes, it is that time of year for us, as it may be with many of you.  We have been purging our house for weeks in preparation for our PCS NEXT MONTH!!!

DH and I "talked" about all that needed to be done around the house for many months.  Then reality hit (i.e. time ran away from us and we realized we had to actually DO all the things we talked about needing done).

PCS Checklist

The Displaced Dutchican made a checklist for all the things that need an address change when you PCS.  She made a printable file for other milspouses to enjoy.  This may be a good thing to bookmark or print out for future moves...

Military Youth

A new website replaces Military Teens on the Move. 

Military Youth on the Move!

Better Understanding 'Full Replacement Value'

Things change within the military on a regular basis.  This we do know.  When it comes to moving, we all need to be on our toes and up to date.  We must know how change will impact us.

A Lot Can Change In 36 Hours

For 36 hours, we were PCSing unexpectedly this summer.

Tips Here and There

There are a few things that I wish people had told me before each PCS we've made.  Things like:  rain is not a seasonal event confined to the months between December and March in most places, so plan outdoor events accordingly.  Or things like:  salad bars as a one course restaurant do not exist in great quantity outside California.

I can't tell you how long I've been craving Fresh Choice or Sweet Tomatoes here, people.  It's becoming an obsession.

I'd love to see the collective power of SpouseBUZZ at work on this.  In the comments section, let us know what lessons you've learned about new places in the course of your PCSing.  It's all good -  you never know who is getting ready to move where you already know the scoop.  You may be able to answer the question someone else doesn't even know they need to ask!

I'll get this started:

FACT:  In Texas, all soft drinks are referred to generically as "coke".  If someone asks, "Would you like a coke?"  they are not referring to only one product.  Your "yes" answer will most likely be followed up with, "What kind?"

FACT:  If you go searching for Carl's Jr and can't find one, it's probably because in the new place Carl's Jr is  Hardees.