26 Oct 2012
Let's face it. Military life can be hard, especially when you PCS every 1-2-3 years or so.
I was a "military-brat" throughout my life, although neither parent was "in" the service. My father was a defense contractor and he worked on bases all around the U.S. Let's just say I went to 3 high schools and don't remember some of my elementary school names.
So it's kind of no surprise that I really "married the military" when I met my husband in 2007. Before we met, however, I had lived in the Seattle area for 10 years (we moved right after I graduated high school in Virginia Beach), so it felt like a "real home" finally. I had an awesome job at a credit union, great friends, and stability.
I didn't oppose to dating a guy in the military - I mean, I knew what it entailed. Deployments, TDY's, grueling hours ... and the possibility of moving (if things got serious enough). And sure enough, they did, and after two months of dating, we got married at the courthouse (cliche, right?) and PCS'd 3000 miles away.
I absolutely hated it. Hated the area, didn't want to come out of my shell, and was also pregnant and miserable in the 100 degree heat with our first child. I had no interest in making friends and being social.
Until our second PCS.
That's when I realized how crucial it was to have a social life again. I needed to have that "connection" again with someone other than my husband. So I figured I would joined online forums to meet up with other moms and set up playdates.
I ended up meeting some really great people, once I tore off the turtle shell. While I didn't completely become involved in FRG's or become besties with the next door neighbors, I learned to let my guard down and "accept" my new lifestyle. One that I had known long, long ago, but got harder as I got older.
So we want to know, how do YOU make friends when you PCS to a new post? Are you shy? Scared? Intimidated? Or are you a social butterfly, making friends at the grocery store?
I was a "military-brat" throughout my life, although neither parent was "in" the service. My father was a defense contractor and he worked on bases all around the U.S. Let's just say I went to 3 high schools and don't remember some of my elementary school names.
So it's kind of no surprise that I really "married the military" when I met my husband in 2007. Before we met, however, I had lived in the Seattle area for 10 years (we moved right after I graduated high school in Virginia Beach), so it felt like a "real home" finally. I had an awesome job at a credit union, great friends, and stability.
I didn't oppose to dating a guy in the military - I mean, I knew what it entailed. Deployments, TDY's, grueling hours ... and the possibility of moving (if things got serious enough). And sure enough, they did, and after two months of dating, we got married at the courthouse (cliche, right?) and PCS'd 3000 miles away.
I absolutely hated it. Hated the area, didn't want to come out of my shell, and was also pregnant and miserable in the 100 degree heat with our first child. I had no interest in making friends and being social.
Until our second PCS.
That's when I realized how crucial it was to have a social life again. I needed to have that "connection" again with someone other than my husband. So I figured I would joined online forums to meet up with other moms and set up playdates.
I ended up meeting some really great people, once I tore off the turtle shell. While I didn't completely become involved in FRG's or become besties with the next door neighbors, I learned to let my guard down and "accept" my new lifestyle. One that I had known long, long ago, but got harder as I got older.
So we want to know, how do YOU make friends when you PCS to a new post? Are you shy? Scared? Intimidated? Or are you a social butterfly, making friends at the grocery store?
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