The Process, Part 2

So, as quickly as everything became a giant headache, it also suddenly fell together over the course of a week.

Last Tuesday, I had my medical screening with EFMP. Before I went to my appointment, I was completely terrified. Everything you read on the internet about EFMP and the overseas medical screening for dependents is completely terrifying. They pretty much make it sound like it will be hours worth of someone combing through your entire medical record and asking in-dept questions in an attempt to enroll you into a program that may prevent you from going overseas with your spouse. Rest assured, it's no where near as horrifying as everything on the internet tells you. My medical screening took about 5 minutes. I requested all of my medical records from the past 5 years which the nurse glanced over, reviewed my EFMP paperwork and my medical records from the military treatment facility and that was essentially it. The doctor signed my paperwork, forwarded it on to the travel office which passed it on to Germany for approval. Within 24 hours, Greg had my passport in hand and an amendment saying that I was approved for concurrent travel.

What does all of that mean? Basically, Greg and I get to fly to Germany together with Augustus in cabin. Flights are booked, movers are coming in a few days and all that's left to do is wait. Moral of the story: Don't listen to what you read online about how horrible the command sponsorship process can be.

About 2 weeks from now, we'll start our adventure towards Europe! Along the way, we have everything in our house to ship, families to visit, a chihuahua to prepare and when we finally get there, housing to select. So much done, but still plenty of work to go!

The Process, Part 1

So, those of you who have noticed that I am particularly negative recently regarding our move to Germany, you're probably thinking, "How on earth could anyone be upset about spending three years with the opportunity of traveling through Europe?"

Because, well, we ARE dealing with the Army here. There is no such thing as "easy" when attempting any PCS, let alone one on the opposite side of the world.

After Greg accepted his orders several months ago, he was told that when he returned from Afghanistan, he would be sent to a LEVY brief where he would get all of the paperwork needed to start the process of PCS'ing overseas. In December, he arrived home and went on post-deployment leave. At the end of January, everyone began returning back to post from leave and preparing for "PCS season", as they call it. Greg asked week after week if his S1 completed the paperwork required to attend the LEVY brief. Week after week, it was still not finished. February came and went. March started with no word on when he would be able to start clearing Ft. Carson. We applied for tourist passports so we could travel when we arrived in Europe. We made sure Augustus had everything needed and was ready to go. We told our apartment complex that we were not renewing our lease because we would be moving to Germany before it ended. We did everything we could possibly do without the paperwork supplied at the LEVY breif. Finally, on March 19, Greg turned 27 years old... and finally got to attend the brief he had been begging to go to since January. What exactly did he learn from his LEVY brief? That he really needed to attend it about 6 months sooner.

Long story as short as possible, we finally had the paperwork needed for me to apply for a no-cost passport needed to obtain SOFA status. For those that do not know, being in Germany under the SOFA agreement allows spouses to live in the country without having to leave every 3 months and to hold jobs. It's kind of like a visa, but covers for however long your husband is stationed in the country. The morning after my husband's brief, I ran down to the passport office with paperwork in hand to apply for my no-fee passport. We were told it could take 6-8 weeks to get it back and it has now been exactly 4 weeks and 2 days. At least that was one step we were able to complete with no major issues.

"Command sponsorship" is what the Army calls it when family members are approved to go with the service member to an overseas duty station. It's not as simple as just jumping on a flight and arriving in Germany with a big freakin' smile on your face and an apartment all ready for you to move in to. Greg's unit in Germany has to agree that he can bring me, the medical offices in the US and Germany have to agree that I'm healthy enough to live in Wiesbaden and the housing office in Germany has to be sure they can accommodate us accordingly. Since Greg's orders to Wiesbaden did say that he could bring family members if they are cleared through EFMP (Exceptional Family Members Program), we assume that his unit did agree that I am allowed to accompany him. The big hurdle right now is the entire EFMP process. My medical screening appointment with EFMP is scheduled for Tuesday. It was the earliest appointment we could get when I scheduled the first week of April. If everything goes well and I am not identified as having issues requiring enrollment in EFMP, we may very well being on our way to completing the most difficult chunk of the command sponsorship process. If not, there is a good chance that my medical clearance will not be complete by Greg's new report date of June 10.

Oh, did I forget to mention? Since Greg was sent so late to his LEVY brief, they allowed him to request a 30 day extension on his report date. Instead of reporting May 10, which was basically impossible when he's only able to start the paperwork to leave 6 weeks before, he has an extra 30 days to throw all of this together. He found out just today that his extension was approved, 3 weeks before he was supposed to report.

Despite the extra 30 days, we still have to move out of our apartment on May 12 as of right now. We've been begging and pleading for them to allow us to stay past our lease date. They've been extremely kind and working with us on this issue, so hopefully we'll be able to strike a deal on staying here later than expected. If not, we'll be packing our belongings into a storage unit and staying in a hotel until we have some idea what is going on.



Greg still has hope that my medical screening will go well and we'll be out of here and on our way to Germany together on time. However, there is still the chance that he may need to go before me and Augustus and I will join him in a few months. There is also a chance that my medical paperwork will not work out to my advantage and I will not be allowed to join Greg in Germany at all. There is also still a slight chance that maybe his orders will be cancelled entirely and we'll end up somewhere completely different. We have absolutely no idea at this point.

And it is very possible that we will not know until a few days before June 10. Welcome to Army life, right?

This is what PCS'ing makes me want to do. But, without the sash.

One Year

A week ago, Greg and I celebrated one year of being happily married. Even though we've only spent a month of that time living together, it was great to get away and reflect on the roller-coaster that was our first year of marriage. With so many military members having these miserable marriages that end so quickly in divorce, I'm happy to say that Greg and I are adjusting very well back into our relationship together since he's been home.
We drove out to Pagosa Springs for a long weekend of snowboarding, hot spring dipping and drinking. As is typical for us, we took more pictures of the stops we took on the way to our vacation than our actual vacation. On the way there, we stopped at the Royal Gorge to walk Augustus and generally terrify myself on the giant bridge to nowhere. Augustus had an intense stand-off with a bighorn ram, but somehow, we all managed to make it out of that park alive.

Imagine a rickety wooden bridge swaying over a million foot drop to jagged rocks.

The scenery everywhere was awesome. I wish we lived farther west in the Rocky Mountains where everything is beautiful all the time and it snows in increments of feet.

Pictures don't even do it justice.

On Sunday, we spent the day at Wolf Creek, where they actually had 4 feet of real snow on the slopes. No need for the fake snow they have to throw down on most ski resorts in Colorado. I took a snowboarding lesson while Greg boarded the most difficult slopes alone. We are at two very different skill levels, obviously.

It was about 5 degrees outside by 3pm

The rest of the time we ate, drank and froze our butts off getting in and out of the hot springs. On New Years, I was so exhausted I passed out around 10 pm. Guess we're getting old? Augustus had to sleep in a cage because the cabin owners were heartless chihuahua haters. He was happy when it was time to head home.

Along the way back, we stopped at the Great Sand Dunes which really just looked like giant snow drifts this time of year. Augustus chased Greg around off leash to get out some of his energy and then passed out the rest of the way home. 

Just a man and his chihuahua

It was a great trip! Next year, I'm thinking Paris for our anniversary and New Years. I mean, we'll only be a short train trip away, right?

The Reunion

I'm home sick from work today. I've been sick since last Tuesday, exactly one day after Greg came home from Afghanistan. And let me tell you, it was a long time coming.

Originally, Greg was scheduled to be home the weekend after Thanksgiving. That didn't happen.
Then, Greg was supposed to be home on November 27.
Then November 28.
Then his flight was cancelled all together.
Then he was told they'd be home December 1.
Then December 2.
This time, they went through customs, boarded the plane and sat on the runway for 2 hours. Oh yeah, then the plane in front of his slid off the icy runway...
So, finally, on December 3 at slightly before noon, I lined up at the Special Events Center to claim my husband.

For anyone who has never experienced the horror of a military homecoming, let me just explain the scene that unfolded. First of all, the SEC gets packed the second the doors open, about 2 hours before the actual ceremony. If you want to show up say, the hour before, you might as well prepare to stand. Babies and small children are abundant and often uncontrolled. The place reeks of cheap perfume like everyone took a Shore Shower the minute before entering the room. The media takes up half of the floor. It's hot. Kids are getting upset. And, in true Army style, the ceremony is never on time.

But, despite all of that, I was excited out of my mind. Nine months of deployment were finally over. 26 long months of living separately were coming to an end. For the first time in our marriage, we would actually get to live like a married couple- in the same home. Words can't even describe how excited we both felt.

It seemed like a century in that gym before they finally started entering.

Greg is in the second line, closest to the front. I didn't notice when I took the picture.

Thankfully, it only took about two minutes for them to get lined up and dismissed to find their families. We seriously lucked out that I showed up so late and was standing about four feet from Greg when he was released. It only took about 30 seconds for me to find and jump on him. I'm almost entirely sure that we were on the local news that night.

This is our obligatory homecoming photo.

Regardless of the delays, the set backs, the awful smell in the SEC and the fact that I've had a horrible sinus infection for almost two weeks, I'm thrilled that our family is finally back together. Onto our next adventure- Europe!

A Little History Lesson

Since so few of our friends and family know much of the story behind our relationship, perhaps it's time to share some of the mushy details.
After the jump is a brief history of our adventure together up until today.