MEPS

So the waiting is finally over for one big step in the process...
TJ and I left our oh so well behaved Rocky at Grandma and Grandpa's and went down to San Diejo last night for MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Center). The Navy paid for us to stay in a hotel and dinner for the night. Then TJ had to wake up at 0400 am to climb on the bus and head to MEPS (I got to sleep in!). TJ had to do a series of tests, which included a hearing test, sight test, making weight, physical, agility, and two Dr. interviews.

He passed the whole ordeal with flying colors, except TJ failed miserably with depth perception in his sight test. Guess we don't have a Navy Pilot on our hands!

All that is left to finish before swearing in and Commissioning as an Intel Officer is his physical with our recuiter, Diamico, and recieving all of his letters of recommendation back so he can board his packet. We're trying to meet the deadline of the first week of August so TJ can fly off to OCS for 12 weeks in Rhode Island in October. Otherwise we are pushed back another month.

Seems like time is slowly dragging by at the moment, but TJ is feeling really confident and excited that it's a little more tangible now.

For the both of us, it is beginning to sink in that this commitment is going to completly change our lives for a very long time. We couldn't be more sure that this is what we want! Cross your fingers and pray the rest of the process comes together fast for us! We're ready to go!

"Hurry Up and Wait!"

Since TJ and I began toying around with Navy life, I decided to join the most known online community for wives in the Military called CinCHouse (Commander and Chief of the House) to better acquaint myself with a realistic view of how life would be if I were to become a military wife myself. One of the biggest themes all wives have in common regardless of Military branch is a quote that comes up on a daily basis among the women and attempts to keep all of the wives sane despite the circumstance...."Hurry up and wait!"
The meaning of this quote has come to make a lot of sense to me lately. It seems that since our nation has an all volunteer military, that it would be a matter of signing a paper, getting your gun, and going off to do whatever it is that you are good at or where you are most needed. My naivete has worn off though. TJ and I were supposed to go to MEPS on the base in San Diego this weekend for his physical, but two things came up: (1)His Navy Doctor had a death in the family, so the whole thing was cancelled, and (2) TJ's past history of Asthma when he was a kid is forcing him to write up a whole history to be signed off by our Ensign Jones and then cleared before he can be put through for a physical.
So...HURRY UP AND WAIT! :0)

Phase 1

TJ and I wanted to share the whole journey with the ones we love most....so we're joining the blog bandwagon. This way you can track the process of TJ Commissioning into the Navy as an Intelligence Officer, our travels to distant lands (or not), the ups and downs of military life, and maybe you'll even learn some military jargon along the way.

Today: TJ has taken the entrance exam and passed with a great competetive score for his field of interest in Intel. We finally met with our Ensign Wayde Jones who will be taking us through until we sign papers. He answered a lot of our questions today (even though it wasn't close to our two pages of questions we brought). We learned that the major hubs for Intel. Officers in the U.S. are in San Diego, Connecticut, and Virginia. Overseas, we could be in either Italy or Japan.

OCS (Officer Canidate School): From this point TJ will be working on his OCS packet which will go before a Board of big shots. It includes his motivational letter and letters of reccommendation. If the Board picks him up with an open slot in Intel., TJ will be off to OCS for 12 weeks in Pensacola, Florida and then we will both be at his Intel. School in Virginia for 5 months before our first PCS (Permanant Change of Station).

Before OCS: TJ is also in the process of getting in shape for his PRT (Physical Readiness Test). So every time you see him, you can say, "Drop and gimme 60!!!!" Two weeks from today, we'll be staying in San Diego for a physical.

Overall, we are more than excited. This has been a long journey and we have mulled and prayed over this direction in our lives for a long time now. It's been clearer and clearer with every door that has been closed to us, that God has continued to open the doors to the Navy. We both are so confident this is the right thing for us to do and a great direction for TJ's career doing what he loves most...serving his country and analyzing the heck out of the bad guys to keep us safe.

Keep us in prayer for these next few weeks...we'll update when something new happens.