Things I wish I knew when...
Mon, 10/26/2009 - 23:22 | 
proud_navy_spouse
Now that I can look back on almost 4 months as a military spouse, there are a lot of things I wish I knew about the military when I got married. The thing that would have helped the most was a list of things I should do, now that I am a military spouse. My husband was not much help, because it’s a little different being a spouse than a sailor, and, you know, he does work all day. So I was on my own. I wanted to share some resources that were very valuable to me in my quest to figure out what being a military spouse is all about:
- COMPASS. This is an introductory class for Navy Spouses (I know they have a similar one for Marines and imagine the other branches have one too), but you don’t have to be brand new to take it. In fact, the spouses in my class ranged from one month of marriage (me) to 28 years. It was amazing! Experienced, enthusiastic spouses teaching other spouses the ins and outs of military life. It was a lot of information to absorb, but you come away with a ton of resources and websites, phone numbers, etc. I highly recommend it, and you can check out the website here.
- FFSC. The Fleet and Family Support Center is really your go-to place for questions and help. I would not hesitate to visit or call! They also offer a lot of classes ranging from childcare to car buying to job searching, and the employees are helpful and friendly. One great example of what they do: when my husband (then fiancee) was first activated from the Reserves, a FFSC representative called me each month to check in and see if I needed anything- now that's service!
Tags: Mentoring the Masses
Fri, 10/02/2009 - 18:01 | pamela@pamelamc...
Stepping into military life was completely new to me. It definitely took some getting used to. I had a college degree in one hand and my military man’s hand in the other. I was eager to start my professional career and my married-to-the-military life simultaneously--- but it was an era when many women made the choice not to work outside the home, putting their own potential career greatness on the back-burner in the name of supporting their Soldiers.
Instead of working for monetary pay every day, they spent countless hours attending military-related events, volunteering, and supporting fundraiser after fundraiser after fundraiser. How was I going to support my soldier and still work full-time? Thankfully, I had been given a heads-up about navigating military life from a military wife of my then boyfriend’s professor in ROTC. She shared with me the real deal about ‘the life’: the good, the bad, and the ugly---about what to expect and how to manage those expectations.
