He's a Black Hawk Pilot & I'm an Army Wife

Last week I mentioned Josh's selection so I figured I should share the results (and sorry for the delay): Josh will be flying Black Hawks (UH-60s) for the Army.

First and foremost, I would just like to say I am immensely proud of my husband, and I know that God has great plans for him as a Black Hawk pilot.

Anyway, thankfully, most people are familiar with Black Hawks so I don't have to do a lot of explaining. Think the movie Black Hawk Down ... not the 'happiest' reference to his airframe I know, but you get the picture. And just in case you don't, here is a picture of a Black Hawk:

Josh will start his advanced training (training in the Black Hawk) in a couple of weeks, and, tentatively, he will graduate from flight school in December, at which point we will PCS (move) to a new duty station. On his selection day the Army allowed him to list 3 duty stations he/we would like to move to next, and we selected Ft. Campbell (Kentucky), Ft. Bragg (North Carolina), and Schofield Barracks (Hawaii). But really we are up for going pretty much anywhere the Army (or God really) takes us. We should be at our next duty station for maybe 3-4 years, and, hopefully, Josh will deploy (which will probably be for about 12 months) shortly after arriving at our next place.

I will admit that being an Army wife is not easy. There are many 'perks' to being in the Army, but many sacrifices that are required as well. All I know is that I completely support my husband, his career, and everything that comes along with it. I doubt that most people from where I'm from, some family included, can even fathom what this all truly means, but I hope through our lives I can give them a little glimpse. I hope they can see a side to the military that often goes ignored, and I hope they can appreciate people like my husband who are serving this country, their families, like me, and all of the sacrifices we're making.

I thought I'd wrap up my post with this cute little piece that got sent to me on Facebook awhile back. You may be familiar with it, or this may be the first time you're reading it... but this does paint a pretty good, general, picture of what life is like for me, an Army wife.

Lots of moving... Moving... Moving... Moving far from home... Moving two cars, three kids and one dog...all riding with HER of course. Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house. Moving curtains that won't fit. Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours. Moving away from friends. Moving toward new friends. Moving her most important luggage: her trunk full of memories. Often waiting... Waiting... Waiting... Waiting for housing. Waiting for orders. Waiting for deployments. Waiting for phone calls. Waiting for reunions. Waiting for the new curtains to arrive. Waiting for him to come home, For dinner...AGAIN!

They call her 'Military Dependent,',but she knows better: She is fiercely In-Dependent. She can balance a check book, handle the yard work, fix a noisy toilet, bury the family pet... She is intimately familiar with drywall anchors and toggle bolts. She can file the taxes, sell a house, buy a car, or set up a move... all with ONE Power of Attorney. She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her. She reinvents her career with every PCS, locates a house in the desert, the Arctic, or the deep south. And learns to call them all 'home.' She MAKES them all home.

They leap into: Decorating, leadership, volunteering, career alternatives, churches, and friendships. They don't have 15 years to get to know people. Their roots are short but flexible. They plant annuals for themselves and perennials for those who come after them. Military Wives quickly learn to value each other. They connect over coffee, rely on the spouse network, accept offers of friendship and favors, record addresses in pencil... Military Wives have a common bond: The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands; his commitment is unique. He doesn't have a 'JOB' He has a 'MISSION' that he can't just decide to quit... He's on-call for his country 24/7. But for her, he's the most unreliable guy in town! His language is foreign TDY PCS OPR SOS ACC BDU ACU BAR CIB TAD

And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his. She is the long- distance link to keep them informed; the glue that holds them together. A Military Wife has her moments: She wants to wring his neck, dye his uniform pink, refuse to move to Siberia, but she pulls herself together. Give her a few days, a travel brochure, a long hot bath, a pledge to the flag, a wedding picture, and she goes. She packs. She moves. She follows.

Why? What for? How come? You may think it is because she has lost her mind. But actually it is because she has lost her heart. It was stolen from her by a man, who puts duty first, who longs to deploy, who salutes the flag, and whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her Military Husband, She will remain his Military Wife. And would have it no other way.