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Decisions, Decisions

Do you find that when it comes time to PCS, it seems like there are no less than a million decisions to be made? I know I do!

Do you or your husband travel ahead while the other stays behind or do you go together?

Do you take the kids out of school to move or wait until the break?

How much stuff do you take in your personally owned vehicle?

Do It Yourself or Army move?

And my favorite, should we live on post or off post?

Early on in my life as an Army wife, that decision, for us, was purely driven by waitlist time. I remember sweet soldier calling the Ft. Huachuca, AZ housing office as soon as we signed out of Ft. Benning, GA, and I remember them telling him on Friday that if we could be there by Monday morning, we would have a house! You bet we made it!

Now that our children are older, deciding whether to live on post or off is a much more important decision. They are going into the sixth, fourth and second grades. We have all ends of the learning curve in our home. So at this point, school is what drives our decision on where to live.

As parents, we do all of the research that we can. We take to social media, which I think has revolutionized this process, to ask our friends and our friends’ friends and even strangers what they think about the schools in the area of the new duty station.

Sweet boy is going into the sixth grade, and that is such a pivotal time in a child’s life. I had been really stressed out about moving because I wanted him to experience this transition with his friends. That was not to be, and here we are.

My parents always taught me that if I wanted something, to talk about it, to anyone and everyone that would listen. So, I began talking to people, starting with the school Military Family Life Consultant. The MFLC is basically a school counselor who specializes in issues specific to military life. Our MFLC at our last school had friends in the area of the new duty station, and cautioned me about sending sweet boy to middle school there. We found out where the best schools in the area are and we decided to buy a house. On a side note, it is really difficult to find a rental when you have a 75-pound dog.

So the decision is made and the off post home is bought.

I went to register the kids for school and on the spot, the district ushered me into the office of the special education department. One moment, I was sitting in the lobby filling out paperwork in triplicate and the next moment I was sitting across the desk from the head of the special education department in our new county. But honestly, that is why I try my best to stay well versed in little sweet boy’s education plan. I walked away that day with a very good feeling about the SpEd department and our new school district. 

Then, the other day, my phone rang. It was the guidance counselor from the middle school. She had been looking though sweet boy’s cumulative folder and discovered that he needed to be in accelerated math. I didn’t have to call her. She called me! I went to visit with her and discuss the options for sweet boy, and I walked away from that meeting feeling much more comfortable with the transition that is happening.

For the first time, I think, in the six moves we have made, I am convinced that we have unequivocally made the correct decision for our family.

So for all of the disaster that has been this move to Ft. Gordon, GA, the silver lining is the amazing school district! I can’t wait for school to start!

 

May the moving gods smile upon you and may only the things that you don’t like get broken . . . sby

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