Finally

So it looks like we are finally getting out of the military. It's not happening as fast as I would like, but it's finally happening. For those who don't know, we've been waiting about 3 years for the Navy to let James out of the military. I say "let", and not kick out because he should have been kicked out 3 years ago, but because my husband is so very good at his job, they have been passing whatever waiver they could come up with to keep him in. He's getting out because he's out of weight standards. The military is the only job you can have where you can lose that job because you are overweight. Anyway, when he was on his last ship he struggled with his weight too, but was able to get it down to move to shore duty, where he lost all of the weight, but then was put back on sea duty, and gained it all back. So anyway, they've run out of ways to keep him in. I honestly feel though that it wasn't just the Navy who had reasons for keeping him in the military. I think the Lord had a bit to do with it too. Alot of things happened since the first time my husband had failed the PRT. We have had all of our children, so I family is complete, and the big one for our family is that Monique was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. I wouldn't even have been able to fathom the cost of our medical bills if we weren't in the military during that time. Maybe one day I'll share that experience on the blog of when Monique was diagnosed and how the Lord helped us through and continues to help us. For those who read this and are in the military. I am grateful for things about the military. I mean hey who wouldn't want to not have to pay for anything related to medical. Yes we know this means we'll have to start paying for all of Monique's diabetic supplies, but we are prepared for that. I honestly was beginning to worry more about my husbands health. This last year he was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea. Yes, that's an automatic 50% disability in the military. Guess why, because they realize that the lifestyle they expect their sailors to endure can cause this to happen. We realized many times that the Navy has not been good for his health when he would take two weeks of leave, and actually lose weight because of the better food, lack of stress, and actual sleep time. So I'm sure the question on most minds, especially those in my ward is, are we staying or moving. This answer is not 100% sure yet, but we are leaning more towards staying. It would be easier to just stay here, but we need to go where the job is. The good news is that there are a lot of civilian people in this area who have worked with my husband and offered him a job when he got out. He has contacted one of those, and is getting the application process started. He's also looked at the degree programs to get his bachelors degree. He's already got his associates, so we're hoping that he'll be able to get both his bachelors and masters degree with the GI bill. It looks like Engineering is the winner. It'll be an interesting next four years with him working and going to school. The best part though is that he will be home, and not out to sea all the time.