BIG things for the Thompson's

As some of you may have already heard that our family is about to undergo a BIG change!

No, we're not having another baby ;)

We have gone back and forth on this issue for several years now and have prayed a lot this past year about the next step for our family. One of the things that has been a major driving force in our desire to fix our financial situation is being able to provide a stable life for our kids. We have had quite a year for both spiritual and financial changes. We've learned a lot and we've come a long way. Which brings us to our big announcement!

We wanted to wait to make our final decision until Eric's brother could come to a recruiting meeting with us to help translate the facts and help us decide if this was a good fit for our family. After two recruit meetings and hours of Q & A's with Jordan, we feel that this is the best fit and the right thing for our family. Soo... drum roll...Eric will be joining the National Guard this year! While we are uncertain as to when exactly these big changes will happen, we are pushing for them to happen sometime this Spring. However, if need be, it may happen sooner. What this means for our family, both the pros and cons:

- 6+ months of training for Eric where he will be away from the family. There are rumors that they are now allowed cell phones in basic training so it's a good thing Mr. Thompson got that new phone from Santa that has video chat on it! First, Mr. Thompson will be shipped to Arkansas for a 5 week GED training. This is HUGE for us, since this will open up lots of doors for our family. (They pay him/ ME while he's gone too, btw) Then he will go to 9/10 weeks of Basic Training and then AIT Training. The locations of these are unknown. As far as I know, the information I'm giving right now is probably the most that any of you and possibly even myself will get. Any other important news such as any deployments or anything like that will likely not be reported or will only be reported to family via telephone and maybe email. I'll get more details on what I can and cannot release later.

While Mr. Thompson is away, our family will recieve payment as well as 100% medical/dental/vision coverage. This is also HUGE for us since both of us are in desperate need to get our wisdom teeth out. Mr. Thompson will get this done after basic training as well as any vision or other medical needs. I know this is lame, but we are SO EXCITED about this benefit. I can't wait to get my widsom teeth out! While I was pregnant with Ryan, we had a small scare of having to get this done without pain meds and having to fork over the additional cost that we were unready for. My tooth got infected but luckily the antibiodics did the trick and everything is fine for now. The other MAJOR health benefit is that I am literally out of contacts for my left eye (random, I know.. I don't know how I ended up with an uneven amount of contacts) and we have no vision insurance as of right now.

There are some other really great benefits that we will qualify for once Mr. Thompson has been in the Army for a certain amount of time, such as (My personal favorite) the VA Home loan, the GI Bill, the MyCAA program (tuition repayment type program for spouses), etc.

The great thing about the National Guard is that they are all State side, so they take care of any major disasters that occur within Washington. Once Eric returns from training, he resumes his "Civilian job" aka regular job that he hates and reports to Drill one weekend a month, where he also recieves pay. Our goal in doing this is to help Mr. Thompson get a "Civilian job" that he doesn't hate and to be able to provide a good life for our family.

Of course, there is the down side of being away for 6+ months which is currently stressing me out a tiny bit seeing as I will be potty training Tristan, while Ryan is cruisin/walking and taking care of the dogs on my own...oh yeah, AND going to school! It will be busy but I'm hoping that will help time fly so I don't miss Mr. Thompson too much. I think he will enjoy his vacation...but, like my brother so kindly pointed out-- from one Drill Seargent to another :)

So, there you have it! The details as I know it right now.. we are very excited, a little nervous, and slightly anxious for this major change! Feel free to ask any questions!