Firsts...

I don't think I would have ever pictured myself having to travel 175 miles to a beach. Wow has life changed! When a few of the girls suggested going to the beach this week while the guys were out on yet another FEX, I thought it would be a great way to spend the day. Us wives are always looking for fun ways to help pass the days until our husbands come home from the field. The girl who suggested the drive, said it wasn't very far ... only about 2 hours. Okay, that's far in my book....but for most of the girls here, that's the closest they have ever lived to the beach. I decided to go anyway. Jordan and I are in the mindset that wherever we live during this military adventure, we are going to embrace the opportunities fully to see and do as much as possible. SO....even though the beach was 2 hours away, Virginia Beach was a box that needed to be checked off!

Not only have I never traveled 175 miles for a day at the beach, I have also never had to set my alarm clock for 545 to get up, to get ready for the beach! We didn't leave until 8am, but I had to make sure I ran the dog since I would be leaving him all day, and get some groceries for our cooler. Yes, I think packing a cooler for the beach is a new one for me too.  I know most people do, but with the beach so close at home, we'd rarely stay for long enough to require packing a cooler. Well anyway, come to find out the beach was not "about 2 hours" away (which I had optimistically hoped would mean only 1.5-2 hrs), but a full 3 hours! We were all so excited to get out of that cramped car when we finally arrived, and make the most of our destination.

Virginia Beach turned out to be a nice, flat beach with decent waves for frolicking. My favorite part about the beach was laying in the sand and watching the F-18s fly over us all day from the nearby air station. (At least I THINK they were F-18s. I am sure Jordan's adorable little relative Breton could actually be able to tell me for certain, and he is only, I believe, 3.5!) I couldn't help but smile and think, that will be Jordan before we know it! I am such an emotional person, that my eyes get teared up with pride, picturing him up there.

I spent the good part of my time at the beach trying desperately to take a picture to send to him. I knew it would be so motivating for Jordan, and help him see past the misery of TBS and onto flight school! I wanted so badly to capture the moment and the experience for him, with a great, artistic shot of the F18 soaring towards us over the ocean. However, my picture taking skills failed my artistic vision miserably at capturing what a motivating image I had in my head. Who knew it would be so dang difficult and frustrating! Every picture I took, I either missed the planes completely or they looked like small black specs. Before I knew it, it had become a challenge. All of the girls were trying to capture a picture for me to send Jordan! Couldn't the pilots just slow down for one second!!!! Sheesh. I think this is the best one among the efforts of 5 of us, and unfortunately there is no sand or ocean to be found:

After about 3 hours in the sun, one of the girls suggested we leave to miss rush hour traffic. What? Seriously? It's only been 3 hours! The drive here was longer than we spent at the beach. I had pictured going to the beach, doing some shopping and exploring, and then maybe stopping in at a restaurant, and they were ready to leave???  A few of us secretly texted our disappointment back and forth, as we smiled and agreeably said "okay....whatever works!" Oh well. I guess I had to find perspective on the situation again, and realize for most of the girls, driving 3 hours to the beach was again, not very far relative to their own experiences.

Well leaving at 2pm did not spare us from hitting rush hour traffic. It took us 4 long hours to get home! We were all exhausted, feeling sticky and grimy from the salt-water, cramped, and so hungry that we started becoming deliriously giddy. I remember experiencing that same sensation when I would  be studying for hours and hours with friends....you actually do begin to lose your mind, and everything becomes hysterically funny! Well needless to say, the 4 hours were definitely filled with a ton of laughs! And of course when driving through Virginia, there are always, shall we say, interesting sights along the way.... Here is just one that kept us laughing along the drive:

No this is not how we carpooled to Virginia Beach, this is actually a focus towing another focus. Definitely another first for me! I think I may actually have to devote a  future post to pictures of  interesting, red-neck Virginia. I tend to find myself taking lots of pictures of strange things here.

In the end, although I was disappointed that we did not experience more of the area, at least I got to put my check in that box next to Virginia Beach. Thank goodness for good company and fun girls! Who would have thought sitting in the middle of a small back seat, in bumper to bumper traffic could be so much fun?

Oh, what a beautiful mornin', Oh, what a beautiful day.

As I took Gunnar for his morning walk today, I couldn't help but notice what a beautiful day it was turning out to be! All of the sudden I had that song from Oklahoma going through my head:

              Oh what a beautiful mornin', 

              Oh what a beautiful day.

              I got a beautiful feelin'

              Ev'rything's goin' my way.

The weather felt amazing, and "normal" for a change. Therefore I thought to myself, I must take advantage of it! Perhaps I will work in the yard, or take a nice jog outside. Just out of curiosity, I checked the weather when I got back from our walk:

86 degrees with 58% humidity, is a cool day for me now. It's amusing how perception of weather is a relative thing. Apparently, Gunnar is not so amused....

He ran straight inside, laid on the a/c vent, and gave me that "are you trying to kill me mom" look. It appears Gunnar is still 100% a California boy, and obviously did not experience the same appreciation for the beautiful weather today as I did. However, I am sure Jordan and the rest of the boys are praising the Lord for this "cold-spell" as they spend another long day in the field.

Snakes, and Spiders, and Bears…OH MY!

I don’t think I will ever be able to fall sleep again when Jordan is gone out in the field. Not only because of my creepy squash neighbor, but also out of worry for Jordan’s safety. Ignorance WAS bliss. However, over a lovely dinner conversation, I discovered there are real dangers out there in the Quantico woods.  The  Marines are not just simulating battle against one another, they are fighting against Mother Nature’s most ruthless warriors.  Lyme Disease and heat stroke are amongst the most common of injuries out there. Jordan currently has a running total of 28 ticks that he has pulled out of him.  He even found one in his belly button a few days after returning from training in the field! Heat cases are the most terrifying to me. Most days in Virginia, the weather report puts out heat warnings suggesting a dangerous heat index and warns to stay indoors...but the Marines push on with whatever activities are on the schedule for the day, regardless of weather. However, recently an event had to be shut down due to the heat. Heat cases from Jordan's training company had filled up both the on-base medical center AND the local town hospital.  It was actually a very dangerous and scary situation, and I am glad I didn't know about this (or any of the other crazy stories that would become dinner conversation) until after Jordan was safely back at home….

Jordan left for work that morning at 0430. He knew he was going to be in for one miserable day when he saw the car's temperature gauge already showing 84 degrees. The humidity was so thick that there was an eerie steam rising from the road in the pitch black morning.  By 0530, the morning had grown even warmer, and the Marines were on the field ready for their first task of the day, the Endurance Course. 

The Endurance Course consists of running the obstacle course, followed by a 5.5 mile run, dressed in full combat gear (an additional 60lbs) through more obstacles. These obstacles include scaling walls, cargo nets, rope climbs, the bear trap, and low crawling under barbed wire. The terrain is rough, and footing is often an issue. Jordan is in first platoon of Charlie Company (there are a total of 6 platoons, with approximately 50 officers in each platoon).  First platoon led off the E-course at 0530 with the temperature reaching 87 degrees and the humidity now at 100%. Corpsman were strategically placed along the trail in the case of injury or heat exhaustion. 

Jordan had previously run the E-course and had "maxed out" at 60 minutes (perfect score), but upon running it the second time he felt as though he were completely out of shape, and like something out of a bad dream-no matter how quickly he tried to run, he wasn't able to move any faster. It didn't take him long to realize that it wasn't just him having a hard time this second go-around on the course. People were quickly becoming over-heated. Marines were becoming dizzy, and falling off obstacles. One Lieutenant broke his collar bone, and another fell on his head and had to be taken off in a stretcher. Further on down the course, the Marines were becoming more and more delirious. All the corpsman quickly became overwhelmed with injuries and heat cases, resulting in a shortage along the trail. The Lieutenants themselves were stopping to help their fellow Marines in serious conditions. One Marine was found running the wrong way on the trail. When a fellow Lieutenant stopped to help him, the Marine wasn't able to tell him what his name was or where he was. The Lieutenant quickly realized this Marine was in serious condition. While they yelled for a Corpsman, they stripped this Marine down and soaked him in water. When the Corpsman arrived, the Marine had a body temperature of 106 degrees. He was airlifted to the nearest hospital, where he still was unable to tell anyone who the President of the United States was. With only two platoons out on the course, the local on-base medical center and the local town hospital were at capacity with heat cases. When word of this trickled back to the field, they immediately shut down the event.

Jordan was able to finish the course before it was shut down. Coming across the finish line, Jordan himself was delirious and disoriented, more physically and mentally exhausted than he'd ever experienced in his life. He lay in the grass trying to recover for nearly 30 minutes, unable to speak or put a sentence together. It was obvious as the Marines one-by-one collapsed across the finish line, that even those who were able to push past their physical and mental limits and finish the course, were in serious condition, suffering some form of heat stroke. SEMPER FI, do or die-that's the mindset of a Marine for ya! Although most of the Marines that finished were happy they would not have to re-do the course on another day, their final scores (which are a percentage of their overall grade) would be slower than the first time they had attempted the course.

And all the while, here us wives are out to lunch, without a worry in the world, joking that our husbands are just out in the woods "on a nature walk." Although we appreciate that our husbands' training is something more physically demanding than any of us will ever experience in our life, most of us previously did not understand the real-life dangers that accompany their training. In addition to the heat cases, the boys routinely encounter poisonous snakes, and deadly spiders. A Marine once had a spider crawl into his ear and start biting him from inside his ear canal. Apparently the Marine was in such excruciating pain, that he could be heard screaming from miles away. A few Marines have even reported being chased through the woods by bears! After this lovely dinner conversation, not only did we run out the next morning to purchase a few crates of electrolyte-rich drinks, but Jordan also purchased a knife, to defend himself against snakes and bears in the field. Let's all pray he doesn't have to use it!

Jordan in his Combat Gear....they even must carry their rifle during the E-Course!

The Things We Do When the Boys are Humping in the Field....

Definitions from the "USMC spouse dictionary" that will aid in  the reading of this post:
(hump): Marine Corps Dictionary: A field march or extended hike.
FEX, abbreviation for : Field Exercise, usually 1 or more weeks in duration

Believe me, when Jordan first told me he wouldn't be coming home for a week because he had to go HUMP with the boys, I about passed out. Thank goodness the only thing that I was able to utter through my shock was "HUH!" Which allowed him the time to explain yet another Marine Corps term (see above). Since this mis-communication, I have picked up an amazing book, Confessions of a Military Wife, written by a Marine officer's wife, which has helped me through this crazy new adjustment to military life. It has been so entertaining to laugh through a fellow wife's experiences as she too transitioned into this new crazy world and her similar confusion of all the military base rules, acronyms etc.

Anyway, although Jordan is only training here, he is still gone 2 weeks out of every month out on FEXs and HUMPs. This involves a week or more of being out in the field 24/7, where the guys sleep in the woods and do not have contact with home.

You can always tell when that dreaded FEX time rolls around again, because all of us wives begin swapping netflix recommendations. On the first day of the every FEX, without fail, the weather is miserable. There is usually a heat warning suggesting limiting outdoor exposure (like that's going to stop the Marines), followed by terrible thunderstorms. And as soon as us wives begin to feel sorry for ourselves because we are home alone and the storm has knocked out the power, we think of the boys sleeping outside amongst the ticks, snakes, and all kinds of other creepy crawlers, being thundered and lightninged on.

It also gives us time to bond with eachother, and form tight connections as Marine wives. I have always heard that the friendships you form through the military become stronger, faster, than your civilian friendships, and I am starting to understand that. There are certain commonalities built in to all of us in the Marine Corps family, which allow us to instantly connect. The extra time together, without our husbands, allows us to build upon these friendships. Those of us without children bond over our 4-legged babies. I am sure the mothers in the group roll their eyes as we show pictures on our phones of our puppies and the cute things they did that day. We have doggy play-dates regularly! It's amazing. The dogs usually wear themselves out, and sleep for the entire next day!

I feel like, as with most things in life, these weeks are only as bad or as good as you make them! So instead of sitting home and feeling lonely, FEX weeks are usually full of social activity! We fill these weeks with lunches,  dinners, shopping, and wine tasting! All of the sudden, these FEX weeks aren't something to dread, but something to look forward too, we look for the positive in having time alone. Whether that be having less laundry for the week, or not having to make dinner every night, or just having time to do girlie things like shopping and watching chic flicks; we make the best of it! Undoubtedly Jordan, and a few of the other wives' husbands, come home to some new home decor or piece of furniture that we have refurbished to keep ourselves occupied....

Marine wives are also the best bodyguards! Story: I had a few girls (and their dogs) over this last FEX for a doggy play date :) . We were sitting out on the front porch chit-chatting, when I explained my neighborhood schematics to them.... Across the street-Marine Captain. Next door-Reserve Marine Major/current FBI agent. Diagonal across the street- CREEPER! Literally... 20 minutes after explaining the street dynamics....2 of the 4 girls that were still out on the porch saw the Creeper coming down his driveway and towards the house. All the sudden he is scaling up our steep driveway and approaching my friends on my front porch. Apparently at 10:30 at night, he wanted to share 2 yellow squash...?  Maybe sharing vegetables at 10:30 at night is the norm here on the east coast, but it definitely creeped all 4 of us out! All I know is I am thankful for my girlfriends that kept me company that night, as well as my alarm system that will allow me to sleep safely while Jordan is gone! I am also grateful for all my friends that offered to have me and Gunnar stay over with them until Jordan came home, and those that offered their guns as protection (seriously haha). Oh the joys of meeting people from the midwest!

P.S. thought it might be good to mention for anyone concerned for my safety.... one of my girlfriends took home one yellow squash that night...not to cook...but to hold as DNA evidence in case I go missing ;)

Marine Wives at Buffalo Wild Wings during a FEX week