The only constant is change...

When I last wrote, the ships' schedule had just changed and I was of the belief that I wouldn't see my love until the spring. Shortly after that blog the schedule changed yet again - I do believe we saw 3 changes in 7 days - and Don came home last Tuesday! It seems as if they'll be here for a period of approximately three weeks, but there is some speculation that he may be around for a week or two longer. Speculation is everywhere though, so I have to take everything with a grain of salt and enjoy the time we have, however long or short it may prove to be. He had the day off yesterday, and it was wonderful. We did some running around, got him some new shoes for the gym, and had a great evening with the kids. They do love their daddy!

For those of you that are not aware, Don was selected for Senior Chief this year! I'm so proud of him, and so happy to see that his hard work and dedication to the navy is paying off. He broke the news to me though yesterday that his advancement may come at a bit of a price where our next transfer is concerned. At the same time though it also may benefit us. Sometimes the navy can be so fickle. To explain: because he is a now a Senior Chief, he cannot simply go to Goose Creek (Naval Nuclear Power Training Command, or NNPTC) as a general instructor. He would need to fill a more supervisory billet (job spot), of which there are fewer to be had. Our plans to transfer in March 2011 may not come to fruition. We could be bumped back a matter of months into later next year. On the flip side, given that there are now 3 newly advanced Electrician's Mate Chief selectees in Reactor department (Don's rate) - they may be willing to let him go before the end of deployment and we could find ourselves traveling back to South Carolina much earlier than anticipated. It will all depend on when a billet becomes available at NNPTC. He'll be calling his detailer (the man who assigns the sailors to their billets) before the end of the month and we should know more then.

It's so bittersweet, the thought of leaving Washington again. We love the pacific northwest. We know that when our time in South Carolina is done and his retirement is complete, we'll be done with the navy and will likely settle in Oregon, closer to my parents. We've talked a lot about it and it's something we both very much want. Of course it will all be up to God and the job market, and what kind of job is available and where. Lucky for me my job is 100% mobile, I can take it anywhere. I support Don in doing a job that he WANTS to do, after giving 20+ years of his life to our Navy. I want him to look forward to going to work every day, and knowing that when the day is over he'll come home to us. We've never been afforded that lifestyle, and I very much look forward to it...we both do. The kids don't know that our life is different from most, as it's all they've ever known - but I've explained to Paige that even on shore duty, daddy will never have to go out to sea and he'll be able to come home almost every night, duty nights being the exception. She's excited for that. South Carolina is not my favorite place in this nation of ours. There's not much to do as a family. That is one thing that we love about Washington - if given an opportunity, there's always somewhere to go together, something fun to do. Rarely however does an opportunity seem to arise. It will be nice though in South Carolina, to have our house back. To live in a place that is truly ours, that we can do whatever we want to. Don has projects for the house he'd like to fulfill - he wants to tile the kitchen floor...and I'm sure after 3 years with renters we'll need new carpet. I miss my storm door that slides from solid glass to a screen. I miss my ceiling fan with the remote control. I miss my little garden out back, and canning jalepeno's on the turkey fryer element, on the back patio with a heat index of 115! I miss riding horses. My God do I miss riding horses. All these things will be wonderful to get back to. It will be difficult to be so far again from family, but we are secure in the knowledge that it won't be forever, and when all is said and done we'll return to the Pacific Northwest...where we can buy our "forever house", and install a sliding screen storm door, a ceiling fan with a remote, and buy a couple of horses for the pasture. It will all come true one day, what feels like a lifetime of bending and turning at the whim of the navy will pay off.

I'm convinced of it.