Big Life Change!

Well I actually did it! I joined the army. I know that most all of you will be shocked by this news. It's been something that Matt and I have discussed many times, but just never really thought we would do. Matt has been very unhappy at his job for quite a while now so he decided he was going to go ahead and join the army. When he made this decision I was fully behind it. After a few days we talked about it more and I decided that I would like to join as well. I could easily get a government job, but that really didn't interest me. So about a week after I decided Matt and I went to MEPS to enlist!

 What is MEPS you ask? MEPS stands for Military Entrance Processing Station. The night beforehand Matt and I checked into a motel. We were told to get to bed early because our wake up call would be at 04:00. So that night we ate the free meal provided, then hung out watching tv on the big screen in the military check in area for a while, after that we headed on up to our room. We actually turned out the lights at about 21:30 (9:30pm). Unfortunately there was a bus full of teenage basketball players that had pulled in and they were outside yelling and running around until about midnight. So we didn't fall asleep until about 01:00.  Matt got out of bed to shower at 03:45 and I got up a little after that. We then headed down to eat breakfast with all the other applicants.

 LOL everyone was so quiet. I don't think anyone was really awake yet.  We then loaded the buses at 04:45 to drive over. Once there we went through security and initial check-in with what ever branch you were entering. We were given our packets that we would carry around with us for the rest of the day. Each person's packet let them know what areas we needed to check in with. All I have to say is that they are very thorough with our paperwork! We filled out the same forms several times it seemed. They also asked us the same questions over and over. :p We had a medical briefing from 07:00 until about 10:00. As soon as that was over about 10 of us had to go take the ASVAB.  The rest of the applicants went to start their physicals.

The ASVAB is the aptitude test that everyone must take to enter the military, no matter what branch. I finished with the exam at about 11:30. The administrator then gave me my folder and my results in a sealed envelop which I then took to the army office. Once there they opened it and showed me my results. I had scored a 99!! I couldn't believe it. That is the highest score possible.  Which meant that I could pick any MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) that I wanted!

 By this point a lot of the people at MEPS had come to realize that Matt and I were both joining the army as active duty. So we were becoming quite the celebrities. Everywhere I went people would ask me: Are you that married girl? You and your husband are both enlisting together?

After the ASVAB I headed over to the medical area to begin my physical. This involved a urine sample (yes they did watch us pee into the cup), blood work, eye check, hearing test, mobility check (wearing nothing but our bra and undies, men and women were separate for this part) and consult with the doctor. Several times during our physicals Matt and I would end up next to each other such as during our hearing tests, blood pressure check and then we would sit together while we waited to move on. At one point we were sitting together to have our BP checked and a couple of officers stopped to talk to us. They were really excited about us enlisting as a married couple. They wanted to know if it would be ok for them to write an article about us in the MEPS newsletter and get it put into the paper as well. They also wanted to take a picture of us swearing in together. We told them that we didn't mind at all.

While we were waiting to for our physicals to be all written up they finally let us go to lunch. It was around 14:30 (2:30pm) so we hadn't eaten in about 10 hours. Once we were through with lunch they had my medical info completed so I took that all back to the Army office. They then told me to go and wait in the waiting room. I waited for about an hour before they called me in to talk to the counselor about what MOS I wanted. Because Matt and I are married and want to be posted together I needed an MOS that would be available at any post. Fortunately the MOS I wanted the most is located at every post. So I will be in Satellite Communications!  I am very excited about it. 

By the time that we got that approved we were running out of time. There were a lot more applicants than normal so they had a heavier workload. They usually shut down at 15:30, but they pushed it back to 16:00. I then had to run over to have my fingerprints taken for the background check. Once that was finished I signed the rest of my forms and then they rushed me off to get sworn in. They were actually holding up the ceremony for me. On my way over to be sworn in I saw Matt. He was not going to get to be sworn in that day. There was an error on one of his tests so they needed to get it corrected. Unfortunately because it was so late in the day they didn't have time to fix it before closing down. So he swore in on Monday afternoon.

Once all was said and done it was 17:00 and I was exhausted. Our recruiter arrived at MEPS to take Matt and I and one other applicant back to the hotel to get our car. He was very pleased with Matt and I's scores. I also think he was really excited about the publicity Matt and I were getting as well. To celebrate he drove us to Starbucks and bought us all coffee.

Because it was rush hour it ended up taking Matt and I over an hour to get home. We ate dinner and watched a bit of Firefly and then I decided to get ready for bed. I was so tired even though it was only 21:30 (9:30pm).

Whew. Now this is a long blog! I'm done for now. I'll write more about when we leave and all of that tomorrow. :D