Friday - April 29, 2011
Where are we moving to next?
Please remember that I am explaining this from the wife's perspective....
Many of our family and friends have been inquiring about where we will move to next. I thought I could answer to all of you here, hoping to cover all of the questions we have received about this.
First, this assignment is a 4 year controlled assignment. When we took this assignment Nate did not have enough time left in his enlistment to accept it so we were given two options...get out or re-enlist. This was easy because we are in it for the long haul. What a 4 year controlled assignment means is that we won't get orders to another station during that time. In my words, he can't be touched for four years. Now, having said that we have known a few here and there that have gotten pulled but that seems pretty rare.
When do we find out where we will go next?
The military allows you to request what they term a B.O.P (Base of Preference) after you have been at one station for a certain period of time...approximately 36 months. This is a very small window that you are allowed to request the B.O.P. Our window will come this year around the end of November. They give you an answer within days typically. We should know, for sure, by the end of January 2012.
How will we decide what base to ask for?
Since we knew when we moved here that there was a time certain to move again, we have tried to do a little research to determine our next home. There were two main factors in our search and a third important factor. 1.) Will the next base/town offer a high standard of health care to be able to take care of me? Since having melanoma in 2006 I have to be seen by specialists for the rest of my life. Therefore, any base that we choose or the air force chooses for us has to be able to offer the levels of care that I require. 2.) What do the school systems look like? This is a very important feature for our family and the success of our children. 3.) Does the town offer some type of cultural aspects and modern conveniences. Remember, we have already lived in a town that we drove 1 hour to a Target. I would say we have done our time...for 6 years!
What places are we looking at?
As of right now our first selection is located near Destin, FL. We have visited this town on 2-3 occasions and like it's proximity to my family and the above mentioned 2 and 3. We are pretty sure given the size of the town, #1 above will not be a problem.
If they should turn that down we will go back to them immediately with either one more base or a list of several. This is how it works. You can keep asking for one or you can give them a list. Supposedly they try to give you what you want. If we have to go back to them, we feel at this time, our next selection would be a base near Virginia Beach, VA. We are hoping for the best in getting one of the two bases but do have a few others in mind that we are mulling over.
Advice I can give.
Unless you are carefree and have the most adaptable personality in the world, which we may have to have anyway, then take some control of your future when you can. Try to do the research and try to have a hand in what is best for your family and the enlisted person's military career. This is very hard. I don't want to make it seem light. The moves we make can have major impacts on Nate's career. For example, we would like to stay in Wichita Falls but after meeting with his Chief (this guy has been around a LONG time) he told Nate in so many words that that would be career suicide. So, we realized we better take our B.O.P opportunity very seriously.
Also, ask as many people as you can about where they have been and what they liked and didn't like. That is really your best source of information. You may be able to live with something they couldn't or something they thought was great would be awful for you. Like...Nate would love it if I would agree to move to Alaska for 3 years. I love him so I did some research and he loves me so we won't be asking for that base because I found out they don't know the word Target in the northern most base that could be our home. Ok, they might know the name but you see what I mean. And as Nate says, "Happy Momma, Happy Family." To defend myself, I am pretty adaptable once I get over the shock of moving and wherever it is. I actually enjoy the adventure...just not so sure about one in Alaska.
Don't underestimate visiting a base. For example, we have always tried to be in the vicinity of some of our family. While visiting my parents last summer, my stepdad drove myself and our girls down to a base in NC, within an hour or so of the coast. We didn't even make it into the town and looked at each other and said, "No way!" Now, having said that I could probably order my address labels now...that will probably be my next home. So, taking that detour on our way to the beach was worth the effort. We would have probably put that on our list otherwise, just for the proximity to family.
This July Nate will have served our country for 12 years. We are excited about the new adventure that awaits us in 2012 and doing it with 3 children. There will be tears and heartache to leave this wonderful town but there is comfort in knowing that some of those friendships will last a lifetime. So for now we continue our research and hope that we are ready for whatever God has in-store for us.
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Tuesday - January 25, 2011
Where are we moving to next?
Please remember that I am explaining this from the wife's perspective....
Many of our family and friends have been inquiring about where we will move to next. I thought I could answer to all of you here, hoping to cover all of the questions we have received about this.
First, this assignment is a 4 year controlled assignment. When we took this assignment Nate did not have enough time left in his enlistment to accept it so we were given two options...get out or re-enlist. This was easy because we are in it for the long haul. What a 4 year controlled assignment means is that we won't get orders to another station during that time. In my words, he can't be touched for four years. Now, having said that we have known a few here and there that have gotten pulled but that seems pretty rare.
When do we find out where we will go next?
The military allows you to request what they term a B.O.P (Base of Preference) after you have been at one station for a certain period of time...approximately 36 months. This is a very small window that you are allowed to request the B.O.P. Our window will come this year around the end of November. They give you an answer within days typically. We should know, for sure, by the end of January 2012.
How will we decide what base to ask for?
Since we knew when we moved here that there was a time certain to move again, we have tried to do a little research to determine our next home. There were two main factors in our search and a third important factor. 1.) Will the next base/town offer a high standard of health care to be able to take care of me? Since having melanoma in 2006 I have to be seen by specialists for the rest of my life. Therefore, any base that we choose or the air force chooses for us has to be able to offer the levels of care that I require. 2.) What do the school systems look like? This is a very important feature for our family and the success of our children. 3.) Does the town offer some type of cultural aspects and modern conveniences. Remember, we have already lived in a town that we drove 1 hour to a Target. I would say we have done our time...for 6 years!
What places are we looking at?
As of right now our first selection is located near Destin, FL. We have visited this town on 2-3 occasions and like it's proximity to my family and the above mentioned 2 and 3. We are pretty sure given the size of the town, #1 above will not be a problem.
If they should turn that down we will go back to them immediately with either one more base or a list of several. This is how it works. You can keep asking for one or you can give them a list. Supposedly they try to give you what you want. If we have to go back to them, we feel at this time, our next selection would be a base near Virginia Beach, VA. We are hoping for the best in getting one of the two bases but do have a few others in mind that we are mulling over.
Advice I can give.
Unless you are carefree and have the most adaptable personality in the world, which we may have to have anyway, then take some control of your future when you can. Try to do the research and try to have a hand in what is best for your family and the enlisted person's military career. This is very hard. I don't want to make it seem light. The moves we make can have major impacts on Nate's career. For example, we would like to stay in Wichita Falls but after meeting with his Chief (this guy has been around a LONG time) he told Nate in so many words that that would be career suicide. So, we realized we better take our B.O.P opportunity very seriously.
Also, ask as many people as you can about where they have been and what they liked and didn't like. That is really your best source of information. You may be able to live with something they couldn't or something they thought was great would be awful for you. Like...Nate would love it if I would agree to move to Alaska for 3 years. I love him so I did some research and he loves me so we won't be asking for that base because I found out they don't know the word Target in the northern most base that could be our home. Ok, they might know the name but you see what I mean. And as Nate says, "Happy Momma, Happy Family." To defend myself, I am pretty adaptable once I get over the shock of moving and wherever it is. I actually enjoy the adventure...just not so sure about one in Alaska.
Don't underestimate visiting a base. For example, we have always tried to be in the vicinity of some of our family. While visiting my parents last summer, my stepdad drove myself and our girls down to a base in NC, within an hour or so of the coast. We didn't even make it into the town and looked at each other and said, "No way!" Now, having said that I could probably order my address labels now...that will probably be my next home. So, taking that detour on our way to the beach was worth the effort. We would have probably put that on our list otherwise, just for the proximity to family.
This July Nate will have served our country for 12 years. We are excited about the new adventure that awaits us in 2012 and doing it with 3 children. There will be tears and heartache to leave this wonderful town but there is comfort in knowing that some of those friendships will last a lifetime. So for now we continue our research and hope that we are ready for whatever God has in-store for us.
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Tuesday - January 25, 2011
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There is nothing like a little…or a LOT of procrastination in life. For our family, the time is now. In order for Nate to be promoted to E-7, a Master Sergeant in the Air Force, he has to take a written test this year. Why is this so important to the wife you might wonder? Well, let’s just say that the men take pride in the stripes that are outwardly displayed for their rank, while the wives have the pay grade chart Bookmarked as a favorite site on the Internet! These poor guys work so hard to make rank and I swear the day they find out they made it, we are looking at the pay grade for the next rank…that’s because we have already memorized the one he just found out about two years ago when he made his last rank. And, that was only if he made this rank the first time. Otherwise, we have looked at that pay for much longer! Is this shallow? No, this is reality in our world!
With Nate currently pursuing his Master’s degree, he has been preoccupied studying for school, thus the current procrastination. Every testing year we eagerly anticipate the test date that will come out in January because you know that your life is about to center around one thing…studying. So while we waited to confirm any vacation dates it really wasn’t necessary as he was given the first day of February, which just happens to be the first testing day for anyone. For him this is a nightmare, but for me this is great! Why? This is now out of the way and I can schedule our family vacation for Spring Break, I don’t have to be the nagging wife pushing him to study, and I can schedule or family vacation for Spring Break ;) . I’m a planner, FYI. Well, he did not escape my nagging when he informed me of his great hunting plans for one of his days off during his two week study break. Let’s just say, he went hunting...
Well, for now we study and then we wait…until July…for the results that move his rank up or send us into the testing frenzy next January. Whatever happens, we love our airman and the most important tests he has already passed….devoted husband and loving father. Nate, I love you and GOOD LUCK…and you can go hunting after February first, without the nagging!
We'll keep our fingers crossed that you get the exactly perfect assignment of your choice.
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