Back-track story:
In 2009 the Hubster was laid of work for almost 10 months. He struggled to find work and decided to enroll in school online. Finally, in 2010, he found a job at a local factory, but he was miserable. He decided to look into the Military. He did a lot of research on the Army and the Air Force. He spoke with an Army recruiter in late 2010 but decided at the time it wasn't for him when he landed a new job at a company better suited for him.
Fast Forward to October 2012:
He was still at the job he started working at in 2010 and was still going to school for criminal justice (bachelors degree). Although he wasn't done with his degree yet, he had been applying for multiple policing jobs. In our area the policing jobs are very competitive, and with so many officers being laid off, it made it even harder to find a job. He became very discouraged and as his graduation date (Dec. 3, 2012) grew closer, the stress of finding a job grew as student loans were going to need to be repaid.
I don't remember the exact date, but it was about the beginning of October when he got a random phone call from an Army recruiter. They called him while he was at work, so he didn't take the call and didn't get a chance to return it right away. That evening he came home and we casually went about our evening -- me having no idea yet that he even got this phone call-- and after the kids went to bed we curled up on the couch as usual. He randomly brought up that he had gotten a call while at work from an Army recruiter. I thought nothing of it and sort of laughed it off. Then he said enlisting was back on the burner... I was honestly shocked. There had been no word of the enlisting since 2010. We pulled up the computer and started to do some research together. He was really torn, so we made a pros and cons list. I told him his best bet was to talk to the recruiter about any information he can get, but to remember that recruiters are like car-salesmen. He started working with a recruiter and as he became more sure about enlisting, I became more unsure. Our families are having a really hard time with his decision, and although I have my worries and fears, I will support him 100%. We finally explained to both of our families that the more they put us down and discourage Hubster from enlisting, the more appealing it is...
The whole process of enlisting for us has been stressful. The Military doesn't like when you have more than two dependents under the age of 18 and well... we have 3. So we have had to provide all the usual information and get multiple letters from DH's school saying that he will finish school December 3, 2012, and he cannot leave for BCT until he has his diploma in his hands --and well handed to the recruiter-- otherwise he will go in as a lower pay grade and that will do us no good... We also misplaced the oldest ducklings SS card, so I had to go through the process of getting a new one. We then discovered that one of the ducklings used our marriage license as a coloring book, so I had to go get a new copy of that. It was all starting to feel very stressful. So after the Hubster got his final grade on Monday Dec. 10, 2012 we could order his diploma... well something went wrong and it didn't give us the option to rush order it -- otherwise we risk not getting it before he leaves-- and we had to go through three or four phone calls and a few emails just to get the rush put on it, including paying $$ for it...
Oh and for him to go to MEPS was a whole other stressful situation. Hubsters boss was giving him a hard time about taking off of work, so the recruiter sent Mr. Bossman a letter stating that if he penalized the Hubster in anyway he faces a lawsuit from not only us, but the government too. Well that shut him up! Then the Hubster took off two unpaid days of work to only get a call an hour before he was supposed to go to the recruiters office to go to MEPS to find out they bumped him from the list because he wasn't leaving for BCT right away... So he missed one day of work, went in for the second day, but then had to get two more days off for the next week. Then at MEPS, they "ran out" of time and he didn't get to choose a job that day, so they sent him home and told him he'd be going back the next week to sign contracts and be sworn in, and that is was he did yesterday on 12/12/12... Sigh, it's been a long process... and Monday the 17th we go in for orientation.
It's a little sad to think the ducklings and I will be living alone for 7 months (with BCT & AIT), but I am sure we will do just fine. I am actually thinking of getting the Hubster an iPhone after BCT so we can facetime with the kids and each other. I'm excited for this new journey, but scared to death of moving away and being alone. I just hope I can find one other Army wife near me who isn't catty, and is a true friend... and that the Army doesn't make me more bat-shit crazy than I already am ;)
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