Officially a USMC Wife

Today, at precisely 8:00 am, my recruit became as US Marine. He recieved his Eagle, Globe, and Anchor after completing the crucible and was treated to a Warriors Breakfast; all you can eat, which I am sure my husband MORE than indulged in. For a guy his size, he sure can pack it in!

The rest of his time at MCRD will be spent as a Marine; he will get to address his DI's by their rank, get an extra hour of free time at the end of the night, and know that he has earned a title that will follow him for the rest of his life. Not everyone can be a Marine; you have to be pretty darn awesome.

I wish I could be there with him, or even get a phonecall. It really sucks that I cant share one of the most important days of his life with him. Oh well; his mom is taking his cell phone with her to San Diego, so I will get to talk to him for as long as I want on the 26th. Thank God for Family Day.

Gas Chamber and The Crucible

This coming week is my husbands last as a "recruit". On thursday, he will have completed the Crucible and recieved his EGA and the title, US Marine. But he has a bit of hell to go through before that happens.

Tomorrow, he will enter the gas chamber, one of the most horrible sounding experiences that the recruiter described to us. They will be forced to endure time in a sealed room filled with tear gas. I will never go through it, but I understand that it is a test of endurance that is a rite of passage for the recruits.

Then, on tuesday, they start the Crucible. I think. I am not sure about the start time, but I know that it is supposed to last for over two days and that when they are done, they will be Marines (or at the ceremony on thursday; not sure).

"The Crucible is the final test in recruit training, and represents the culmination of all of the skills and knowledge a Marine should possess. Designed in 1996^[14] to emphasize the importance of teamwork in overcoming adversity, the Crucible is a rigorous 54-hour field training^[1] exercise demanding the application of everything a recruit has learned until that point in recruit training, and includes a total of 48 miles of marching.^[15] It simulates typical combat situations with strenuous testing, hardship, and the deprivation of food and sleep. A recruit is given three MREs (= Meal Ready-to-Eat, a self-contained, individual field ration, previously two and half) and four to eight hours of sleep through the entire 54-hour event." (Wikipedia)

So you can see that it is no walk in the park, but I know my Danny is ready for it. He is strong and stubborn and he will do fine. Its me who is stuck here at home, worrying about how he is feeling and doing.

I am grappling with the knowledge that I can not help him. In all of our hardships in the the last three years, we have done it together, but now it all falls on him. I can only support him from a distance. No hugs or kisses. Just letters promising that I will be praying for him.

However, this week signals that he will be home soon. In my arms and possibly holding our son in his.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

Just wanted to wish everyone a happy 4th of July! An important day in American History, heck in WORLD history even.

I hope everyone gets to go see the fireworks and eat hamburgers in the backyard. Today is a day to celebrate all of the freedoms that we enjoy and so often take for granted.

As for my husband, I just hope the Recruit Depot gives them some sort of treat for the holiday. A little extra personal time or maybe extra food at the meals. Cross your fingers!

That Power of Attorney sure was useful!

Before my husband left for bootcamp, we decided it would be a good idea to purchase a new vehicle when he got back because our 1994 Honda Accord wasn't really suitable for a newborn. We decided that we wanted to stick with Honda, but upgrade to a CRV. But we were going to wait until he got home so that we would have enough money to make a good down payment.

Well I have found the car a month early. Its a wonderful deal and its everything that I want. The biggest perk is that its RIGHT at our ideal price.

So of course I am trying to get it, but the dealership can only do so much when its me promising to have the money soon. Basically they are willing to give me the car if I can write a check for $3000 and let them cash it within 30 days.

But I dont have a check and I am not even sure that Danny will have that much money in his Marine Federal Credit Union account. So I am using my nifty Power of Attorney to add myself to my husbands account so that I can transfer money from his account to my account after seeing if there was enough to buy the car AND leave him spending money.

So I wanted to share that if you have a power of attorney for your recruit, you can contact MFCU and add yourself to their account. They will ask for your original PoA (they will return it), a copy of your ID and SSN card, as well as your recruits SSN. They don't need your recruits SSN card or a copy of it, just the number so they can look the account up and add you. Also, your address and phone number.

I suggest making a copy of your PoA before you send your original, just in case. I dont know if a copy will work for anything, but it cant hurt to have for your records.

The End of Phase One

The husband is now officially no longer in the first phase of bootcamp. He has started phase II and is at Camp Pendleton for rifle training. Sounds like fun!

If he hadn't been dropped for pneumonia, he would actually be a month from coming home at this point. He was originally supposed to graduate on July 6th, but has been bumped back to July 27th.

So, I want to remind anyone who has a recruit that you should look at my link to what OPSEC is and remember to not post specific dates of troop movement. Yes, that includes the dates on which your recruit went to or returned from Camp Pendleton. Learn the OPSEC guidlines now, so you don't get chewed out later on when your recruit is a marine and he is leaving for or returning from a deployment. Facebook and Twitter is the enemy of OPSEC.

Back Home!

Well, after a long weekend in my hometown, visiting the in-laws, I am finally home and ready to take a nose dive into my bed.

I went to two Memorial Day BBQ's and had homemade ice cream, which was delicious. Very vanilla-y! Baby sure did like it, thats for sure.

Speaking of baby, he spent the entire weekend with his foot jammed up into my ribs, making it almost impossible to breathe, which is hard enough with a ton of pollen floating in the air. Thank you my slightly sadistic son...

Excellent news though; Dannys new platoon won the drill competition (the marching stuff) and managed to earn himself a two minute phonecall home. I had resigned myself to not hearing from him till the end of bootcamp, so it was very surprising to answer my phone and hear "hey honey!"

And of course, the first question he asked was "How is the baby?"

I love that man. He loves his son so much even though he has never been the sort of guy that was excited about kids. This kid is already his entire world.

So, ladies, it is possible for your recruit to earn himself a call home. It wont be long but it is absolutly worth being attached to a phone. It is very comforting to hear his (or her) voice after weeks of separation.

So hold onto that phone! You never know when you could get that call!

Husbands first day back in a training company

Yesterday was my husbands first day back in a training company after three weeks in MRP. It was so nice to hear his voice on the phone two days ago; he finally sounded healthy.

I didn't realize until today, but I was a nervous wreck yesterday. I was twitchy all day. Looking back, I am pretty sure It was because I was worried that his first day wasn't going to go well. Like any wife, I was worried about my husband. But unlike a normal wife, my husband didn't come home at the end of the night, ready to tell me all about it. I have to wait a week or more before he can find time to write me a letter to tell me how he is feeling.

Not knowing is the worst.

Post Doctors Visit

I wasn't planning on writing more today, but I really wanted to share how my first use of Tricare went. I was expecting a lot of extra paperwork and haivng to call some 1-800 number, but It was very easy.

I got the office a little early and checked in and filled out all the new patient paperwork. Then the receptionist asked me what insurance I had. Upon hearing "tricare" she asked for my military ID, which I guess is the only proof they need. Somehow, they magically knew my "sponsors" name. The only thing she needed to know was if my husband was active duty.

Well, I assume he is active duty since he isn't home with me, so I said that yes he was. Apparently, if your sponsor is active duty, there isn't even a copay (if your visiting your PCM).

After that point, it was all pretty routine. Just your average doctors appointment.

A cool feature of my doctors clinic is that it is pretty inclusive. I got to meet a pediatrician today who is going to come to the hospital after the baby is born. He was very nice and was in the airforce for a very long time. It will be kind of cool to have a veteran take care of my son!

Major plus to have my doctor and babies doctor in the same building.

A Poem Written to a Marine Wife

Marine Wife

© Danny Blackburn

When we married who would have thought of the changes in our lives
We were married one year, one month to the day when I made you a Marine Wife

Things were tough, we had only been married a year
I remember we talked of our future, our love and never fear

I remember leaving you on that hot summer day
I remember thinking this was what’s best as I went away

I was not fearful as I left your mom’s drive
I was not fearful on that my first plane ride

I was not fearful of the DI’s at all
They pushed and shoved us and made us stand tall

The DI’s told the married Marines of Jody at home with our wives
What they were teaching us was to control our tempers, one day it may save our lives

What they did to us, it surely did changed your life
13 weeks away from you my beautiful wife

I will tell the truth and will not cover with a lie
There was nights thinking of you where all I did was cry

Then that day came, we were given the title of a United States Marine
I was on the bus, on the plane home to you which seemed like a dream

I stepped off the plane looking for you I did not have to do
I seen a beautiful smile and glow, I seen nothing else but you

Into your arms I ran, we kissed like never before
I could not let you go again, I could not take any more

We had a saying in the Corps that is a fact of life
“The Toughest Job in the Corps, is that of a Marine wife”

Source: Marine Wife, Wife Poem http://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/marine-wife#ixzz1ubskPreB
**NOTE**

"Jody" is an old reference. It was a males name back in the day, so for it to make sense, replace JOdy with Johnny.

Little Things That Make Me Miss My Husband

Today, after finally recieving three letters from my dear dear husband, I was just sitting and thinking about all of the little things that I miss. So I decided to share some of them for funsies. Maybe they will make someone laugh.

1. Certified Spider Killer- I realllly dont like spiders. My father made me watch Arachnaphobia when I was a little girl, so you can guess how traumatized I was by that. So it has been nice for the last three years to have a man that didn't mind taking his big shoe and smashing those creepy bastards.
2. Foot Warmer- Does anyone else use their husbands as foot warmers? When it gets so cold at night that the blankets are enough and your husbands inner thighs are the only solution to frosty toes. No? Well I did. He generally let me, as long as it wasn't to close to his stomach.
3. Calendar- My husband is the best at reminding me of things I need to do on any given day. My memory is comparable to a fly so it is really nice to have him there to remind me to take my vitamins, pay that bill, etc. Not that I didn't do the same for him. "Use the floss" is one of my favorites. Without the husband here, I keep forgetting the little stuff! I have gotten used to the crutch of his wonderful memory.
4. Advocate- Anyone else have a family that is hyper critical and doesn't really care if they hurt your feelings? Well I have one of those. I love them regardless, but it is really nice when you have someone who is always willing to stand up for you. My husband is always willing to go to bat for me regardless of how it will make him look. Thats a man right there.
5. Back Scratcher- I have an itchy back; dry skin probably. Danny is SUCH a good scratcher. He chews his nails, so he has really sharp nails that are wonderful at getting the itch beneath the skin. Hoorah for terrible habits!
6. Tech Support- So my Danny is a nerd. Think collectible Halo paraphenilia. So you can imagine that we have plenty of electronics that tend to have issues that he doesn't bother to replace because he knows how to fix it. Like the xbox disc tray. He knows how to make it eject right. I can't do that without making the situation worse. He is my own personal geek squad.

MRP vs. Light Duty

I spoke to the husband very briefly today and he is being released back to the Recruiting Depot. When I spoke to him, he was already dressed in his cammies and had just been delivered his "chow." I guess chow is Marine for food.

So we spoke only briefly because he said he had to eat before he was discharged. So I told him I loved him, etc. Normal mushy stuff.

But later, I got an email from my husbands aunt, who is a chaplain down in San Diego area. She has the strings to pull that she was allowed to go into his hospital room to visit him. So she went and visited him and has reported back to me that he is being released back, on light duty. We had previously thought he was going to be sent into the Medical Rehabilitation Platoon, which he still might be, but all we know for sure at this point is that he is definetly getting a week of not having to do PT. So at least he will have an opportunity to get better before going back to regular training.

So what I cant seem to find on any internet forum is the difference between MRP and Light Duty? How will his graduation date be affected?

***UPDATE***

I just got a call, with very bad reception, from my husband telling me that he has been dropped into MRP. However, he must have been on a time limit because he didnt tell me when he was going to be moved back into a regular company. Then the call dropped.

Yeah, it dropped before he could relay any real information.

So you know what I did? I called back. And I got an answer. And this person said they were my husband. But It did NOT sound like him, and I know his voice. But when I asked "my husband" what had happened, I got a very garbled response ending with, "I will call you tomorrow."

I dont like this. I feel like someone was posing as him, because when I said "I love you" this strange voice hesitated.  My mother-in-law says its just because PDA is not allowed, but I hardly thing a hearty "I love you" is PDA...Maybe I just havent adjusted yet. In my defense, I have only gotten one letter, so any contact with him is like a blessing from God.