Which way will we go??

From some previous posts (like this one) you may know that we are in limbo at the moment. My husband’s career could go a couple of different ways and this means we are not sure what our plans are for this summer. We could move to another state, stay put one more year or move overseas (new option I learned of this past week! ). With so much up in the air I sometimes wonder how much the boys really need to know at this point. Do they need to be in the loop or should we just fill them in when we have a firm decision?

It was so much easier when they were little. We moved and they could have cared less! By the time Jake was 4 he had already lived in three states and four houses. It made no difference to them where were were or how often we moved. As long as they had mom with them (and dad when he was stateside), things were OK and stable in their eyes. Now it is different. They are school age and no matter where we go, they will make a big transition to a new school next fall. I know how stressed out I am about all of this and I just feel like maybe keeping them in the dark another month or two won’t hurt.

The truth is, they don’t have a say in what happens so I suppose they might as well just be told the final course of action. I am not even sure they could wrap their heads around all of our options and choices at this point. My biggest concern is that I keep my cool and don’t become too stressed around them at this point. They know daddy has an interview this week and that is about it. I think I’ll keep it that way for now.

Did you ever keep things like this from your kids to lessen their stress?

I have posted earlier about my husband and his quest to join the FBI. I have talked about how it has been 10 months since phase I and just now he is on to phase II. It is all a very complicated and time consuming mess to me, but I know he wants it badly so we are working through it. The problem is, with all of this waiting, comes uncertainty and we don’t know where we will be living next fall.

Mind you, if we were young and/or childless it would not be a big deal. We could go with the flow and pick up and move anytime. Of course, that is not our situation. Jake and Sam are transitioning to public school next year. Wherever they start school is where we want them to stay for the year. What worries us is that the way things have gone so far with this process, we may have to be apart for all or part of the year to make this happen. The worst part is we have no way of knowing when we’ll be able to make any kind of decision. Can someone say STRESS?

All of this limbo has also meant I needed to tell my boss that she can’t count on me to return to St Annes as a teacher next year. I can’t tell her yes and they leave her hanging in August if something should happen and we had to move suddenly. Thankfully Jake and Sam are too young to care too much about the details of all of this, but I know they are counting on us to make sure they have stability next school year. That is out #1 goal…..I just hope we can make it happen.

Is anyone else in limbo right now? It is PCS season soon…..are you worried about a possible move and how it will affect your kids?

Here we go again….limbo one more time. As you may know from previous posts, my husband’s career was up in the air for sometime last year. We thought we had things settled…two year orders to keep us here in Jacksonville. Our house went up for sale and we contracted to buy a larger place once this one sold. Our plan was to transition the boys from St Annes to public school next year and we are all content with our decisions. Well…….time to scratch all that and back to square one.

Part of my husband’s career search involved the FBI. He completed phase I and passed. We were told to sit tight so we did….for 8 months. We finally had to move on so we could have some stability and a certain paycheck. Of course, as soon as we had done this the FBI called late in January to ask him to come in for phase II. Luckily for him, he will be able to continue to work where hes is on orders, go interview and then keep working until he hears about the next step. Our issue is that this whole process from phase I to academy can take 2-3 years. We are right in the middle of it now with a house for sale and two school age kids. With no clear direction in site about where we will be next fall…that poses a real problem.

The boys will be making a big change next year from a small, private school (where mom works) to a public school. That will be enough stress…we really don’t need to throw in not knowing where that will be or whether or not we will face a move halfway through the school year. For now, we are just telling the boys things are a bit up in the air but they will be settled soon. I wish I had that confidence deep down. Sadly, for the FBI, I think soon will be months from now.

What would you do in this situation? Would you move the kids halfway through the school year if need be?

Around our home, Christmas magic is in full swing!  Life was busy last week wrapping school up and having all sorts of Christmas parties.  It was a very fun week for my tween.

Now, my tween is home from school and we are filling our days with friends, family and lots of Christmas memories.  My kids are excited and enjoying the anticipation of Christmas day.

Today we are getting our Christmas baking done.  I had the kids make their list of the people they want to deliver treats to.  We enjoyed a nice fire this morning, Josh Groban floating through the air and a new Christmas movie.

Christmas is such a magical time of year.  It can also be very stressful for MOM!  I spent the entire evening last night doing the grocery shopping for this week.  The list was carefully and thoughtfully constructed and planned, the grocery store run was long and tiring and then….the groceries were put away!  That is just a small part of all the work that goes into making Christmas special for children.  It is so much work!!

Then, the true magic of Christmas comes alive!!  I walk in on moments like this.  My sweet children who love each other, but often argue, snuggled up in the chair in our room in Santa hats….”with visions of sugar plums dancing through their heads”.

That my friends makes it all worth it.  All the hours of wrapping, cooking, cleaning, preparing crafts and activities for them to enjoy…..that is the true magic of Christmas!!

What are some of your favorite Christmas moments this year?

Well, my husband has finally mad a job choice and it will keep us here in Jacksonville (and on active duty) for the next three years . It has been a long six months to get to this point, and while neither of us are thrilled with the choices that had to be made…they are made and we are ready to move on…..or…stay put as one might say

Home For Three More Years

As a military family we have never been in one place for more than three years. This latest turn of events will have us here for over six! It really feels strange to say that but it is how things have worked out. I am not sure how I will feel about being in one place that long, but we are about to give it a try. While we will be here in town, we still plan to sell our house and make a move so maybe that will make it feel more “normal” for us.

Whether we are staying here or not, we need to get some extra space so while we will be settled here in Jacksonville for while, we need to spend the second half in a home with a little more square footage. Once we make that move I think I will feel like we can really look forward to the next three years and the boys spending most of their elementary years here in eastern NC. We are all relieved a decision has been made and now we want to move forward while staying a slightly larger place down the road

Are you a military family? How long has Onslow county been “home?”