What a great week!

I have a teaching job for next year and we have a house to move into (1 month sooner than expected)! :-) WHOOP!

We move into our base house next Tuesday, July 28!

Pictures and more info to come!

Jacksonville, NC

Well, we are here!

It has been quite an emotional roller coaster for the past week, but things are starting to become a little less crazy! :-)

We checked out of our base house in Florida a day early, Thursday, and got on the road with Nolan behind the wheel of our 26 ft UHAUL of stuff! We arrived in Jacksonville on Friday about 1pm and were originally hoping that Nolan would be able to check into his new squadron and get the stamped paperwork over to the housing office, so as to get on the housing list, but there just wasn't going to be enough time, so we unloaded our UHAUL - with Josh's help - into 2 storage units...

Why storage?
Well, the housing office had us convinced that we would be able to move into a base house on 23 July... just 13 days after our arrival, but of course someone else checked in on Friday morning, so they got the house! So, as of Monday morning, we became number 1 on the housing list and were assigned a house that will be ready on 25 August... 46 days after arriving in Jacksonville....

About the storage...
One is climate controlled that Josh still had, since putting all of his stuff in storage last year, right before he deployed, so we filled that one up and also rented a non-climate controlled one across town for the rest of our stuff! I'm sure Nolan would agree; I was a mess! There is something insanely crazy about putting ALL of your worldly possessions into a storage unit, lowering the door, placing a padlock on it and driving away...
Up until yesterday, it was nearly impossible to find anything in the storage units... We went through the climate controlled one yesterday, so I am feeling a bit better about it all...
We are praying it will only be another 3 weeks! (A couple we knew in P-cola, came to Jacksonville in April and they were told 6 weeks, although it was only a 4 week wait.. so we can only hope we have the same experience.

Where are we staying for our (up to) 46 day wait?
Well, first of all, we are hoping the house will be ready a week or two early, but for the next 3 - 5 weeks, we are staying with Nicole, a friend that I made while we were in Quantico, VA, when Nolan was at TBS (The Basic School). Her husband is deployed and she has a dog, Diego, a Boxer, so all in all it is working for us.

How is Paige's job search going?
I had an elementary special education teaching position interview on the 30th of June and was told today that I was not chosen for the position. There seem to be so many people applying for a single position... the unemployment rate here was 8.5% in May.... The principal, was very interested, so he said he will pass my name onto the middle school behind his campus... so maybe I will hear something from them...
Wednesday, I had an interview for a middle school math position, although it turned out to be a 3 math and 1 science 7th grade teaching position... BUT realistically it felt like the principal was looking for a coach, not a teacher.. so I do not feel like it went well AT all! Yesterday's interview... was for a 6th /7th grade inclusion teacher position... The principal basically told me he need someone with lots of prior experience as his test scores for his special education students are low and he needs someone to come in and bring them up! Not that I can't try my darnedest to do just that, but he told me there are many other candidates who have lots of prior experience, so I am pretty much out of the running...
I did however drop in on a school that had called me about teaching 8th grade math, when we were still living in Florida, and my visit resulted in an interview on Monday for an Exceptional Children teaching position! YAY! I am hoping this one will be THE one! :)

Regardless, I will be dropping in on the last handful of schools that still have EC jobs posted online and see about getting interviews!

Random info...
Nolan was to be headed to SERE school (part of the reason we decided to make the blog private) in New Brunswick, Maine, but we found out today, that he isn't going just yet!

Josh, Nolan's best man in our wedding and friend since 4th grade, is stationed here with his wife, Jill, so it is really great for them to be back in the same place! It has been close to 3 yrs (when they were going to TBS in 2006)!

Until we have more news....

On the move...

We will be on our way to Jacksonville, NC on Friday morning after we check out with base housing!

Please pray that there will be a base house for us in J-ville! We should know for sure on Friday afternoon! ;-)


AND

I have 2 job interviews next week, Wednesday and Thursday, so I'll be sure to let ya know how those go! :-)

Winging!

The reader board as you came on base!

Painted concrete...

Winging Banner!

Many thanks to my mom for helping me get going on this project and Nolan for helping me measure and make sure that the letters were straight!

First attempt at hanging it!

Displayed on our garage!

Nolan and George with their winging banners!
(Nolan and George were co-pilots during C-12 training in Corpus... George also lived across the street from us in Corpus - many great memories!)

Us with the winging banner in its second hanging spot after the winging!

Wednesday

Soft Patch Ceremony

Case with all of the soft patches Nolan's!
Nolan and Capt. Duesing

Ordinarily, the soft patch ceremony is done with one's on-wing (Nolan's was Lt. Buell - see below) but Nolan chose Capt. Duesing to do his, as it was Capt. Duesing (who used to work in the Marine office that Nolan was stashed in while waiting to start flight school, but is now in Nolan's squadron - HT - 18) who helped Nolan change from NFO (Naval Flight Officer - a back seater) to a SNA (Student Naval Aviator - a front seater/pilot)

While at TBS (in Virginia) Nolan earned a NFO spot, but when we arrived in Pensacola in March of 2007 for NFO school, the Marines had filled the number of NFO spots they needed for that fiscal year, so Nolan was given the option to fill one of the pilot spots that Capt Duesing still had open!
After much thought and seeking wise counsel Nolan decided to go for it! Whoop!


Capt. Duesing winding up for a 'punch' to make sure the Velcro-ed patch doesn't come off!

Scotch = 'beverage of choice' thank you gift

Lt. Buell and Nolan
Lt. Buell was Nolan's on-wing for helo training..
meaning he completed his first 10 flights with Lt. Buell.. a fellow Aggie!

Ryan and Kevin getting their soft patches (Also Osprey guys - like Nolan)
George and Chapman getting their soft patches (also Osprey guys)

Nolan's winging gift from Mom, Tim, Grandfather Hanna and Dorothy! A framed lithograph of each of the aircraft Nolan has learned to fly so far, (T-34, C-12, TH-57) as well a large Osprey (MV-22), which he will learn to fly next!

Soft patches in the case, in the student ready room (where we waited for Nolan the night of his last flight) I think the reflection of the room itself (squadron seals painted on the walls and the whiteboard) is cool!

Thursday

TH-57C Simulator
720 - 740 am




Nolan's mom and I both got about 10 minutes of flight time and we only crashed a handful of times! haha It was very cool!
As Nolan and I studied EPs (emergency procedures) almost nightly (as we walked Sandi around our base housing neighborhood) throughout his training, it was really cool to match up many of the items in the EPs with the handles and gauges in the cockpit!

Blessing of the Wings

Winging Ceremony

(will get a few pictures of the actual pinning of the wings from my friend Laura and add them here)



Nolan's cover and soft patch in the entry way of the auditorium where the ceremony took place...


Nolan in the class picture!

All of the Marine Aviators!

Chris and Laura Driscoll with us..
They are fellow Aggies we met up with while in Corpus Christi, Texas;
Chris is completing helo training and will wing in about a month!

Nolan and his Osprey mug with his aviator number!
30,045


Group photo!
Tim, Mom, Me, Nolan, Caroline, Dorothy, Grandfather


Gift from Nolan's mom
Grandpa Fewing's retirement clock!

Count down Nolan had going on the huge white board in our office!
March 19th - June 26th
Total time in Helo training
(shortened from the usual helo syllabus, as Nolan is an Osprey guy)


Grandfather and me with my FSU Master of Science diploma!
(unlike Texas A&M, I did not leave the stage with my diploma in hand... it took well over 6 weeks for it to arrive, but I am glad it came before we moved!)
Notice the boxes.. are move is in full swing!


And because when it rains it pours...

Since we aren't in Jacksonville, NC yet... I was lucky to have been able to do a phone interview for an elementary exceptional children teaching position the Tuesday before the winging extravaganza began! I think it went well, considering I was just walking in the door when the principal called. I will learn more after the 15th of July, as the principal was going on vacation until then...
I have had a few other schools that are interested in me for middle school math teaching positions, however the fact that I am still in Florida seems to be a bit of a stumbling block!
All in time! :-)

We hope to be departing from Milton, Florida for Jacksonville, North Carolina by Friday, July 10th!

We should get a better idea on Monday/Tuesday, July 6th/7th, about when we will have orders and such.. we will keep you posted!