Card-Carrying Army Kid!

Trey receives his first military ID card!

One unique rite of passage in the military community is the bestowing of the military ID. For those of us who are spouses, the ID card gets us onto military installations, into commissaries and PX facilities, and proves that we are a 'dependent' of the servicemember. (Side note: I've never been crazy about the term 'dependent' but it is what it is, I suppose.)

Children of Army Soldiers are eligible to receive their military ID on their 10th birthday. Why our oldest is just getting his at the age of 11 & 1/2 is really not a story at all. I didn't think about it, Nate apparently didn't either, Trey didn't know, and no one has questioned us thus far. However, in the way that deployments do, all kinds of 'what-will-I-have-to-do-without-you-for-the-next-year' discussions have been generated, and it was decided that getting the ID with dad present was preferred.

For me, locating the information over lunch on my iPhone was not an easy task. So, like any social-media-savvy girl of today, I asked my Facebook friends. At 12:07, I posted this message:

I'm betting my Facebook friends can help me before I get off of 'hold' at the Copeland Center. What do I need in order to get Trey his first military ID?

At 12:12, I had my first answer and soon had all the details about office hours, documents to take, and times to avoid. Isn't Facebook great? And, yes, I got all of this from Facebook before my call was answered from 'hold' at Copeland.

The ID office is only open until 3:00 on weekdays so Trey was thrilled to miss some school to get his ID card. Nate met us at the Copeland Center on Fort Hood and we proceeded through the line with ease. He answered all of the questions, smiled for the camera, and was duly presented his very first military identification card.

We celebrated with a brunch at IHOP (Trey's request) with dad then a quick trip to Barnes and Noble when Nate had to go back to work. Trey picked out a book for Nate to read on the plane and one little book for himself, then it was back to school. A day of checking things off the 'to-do' list is always a good day.

Comments

TORCH and ADVON

Photo: ADVON returning from a year-long deployment. Okay, I have to admit that after 15+ years as an Army wife, I don’t know what ‘TORCH’ and ‘ADVON’ stand for. Something about advanced party … but there’s no ‘p’ for ‘party’ … so I just don’t know. I do, however, know what it means. It means your Soldier comes home FIRST!! We’ve never had the honor of either of those designations. My husband somehow manages to get himself into the ‘stay-behind-and-make-sure-all is-well-out-here’ job and comes home late or last. Not that I’m complaining, though, as I am happy these TORCH and ADVON folks get here and get the place ready for everyone else to come home. In a way, it’s reassuring to me. The wheels are turning, the process has begun … our unit actually is coming home and coming home soon! Homecoming becomes reality, not just a long-sought-after dream. It’s good to see our unit patch and our unit Soldiers back at home, on U.S. soil and on our Army installation. It’s heartening to w

The Change of Command Ceremony

Last Friday, my Family and I participated in the 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division change of command on Fort Hood, Texas. Hubby became the battalion commander of the 3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment and joined a wonderful group of "Red Dragon" Soldiers and Families. It's a dream come true for us ... one of those things you hope in the back of your mind you'll get to do one day, but know realistically that the chances are slim you'll get to do it. When I first saw his name on 'the list' that the Army publishes, I was elated for him. No one knows more than I do his passion for the Army and for the Soldiers in it. He is a wonderful leader and cares so much. We both knew that this would be the adventure of a lifetime. We explained this new job to our two boys (ages ten and six) as best we could and they kept saying, "We'll have 500 new friends on Friday!" as their summary of the discussion. =) The ceremony was amazing, a st

A Letter to My Cousin and Friend

As I was cleaning out our home office today, I came across an old college notebook from a writing course I had taken at Baylor. Our assignment was to write a letter to someone filled with memories of time spent together. I had chosen to write to my cousin Lori and, although it was a rough draft, I just had to post it. I finished out the last part and laughed out loud at some of the superfun memories with Lori, my cousin and friend. Dear Lori, As I reflect on the time we have spent together, I remember so many wonderful memories with you. Laughter always comes first to mind because we have shared so much of it. We start out giggling over some trivial nothing and soon are rolling in teary-eyed, side-splitting, I-can’t-catch-my-breath laughter. Days later, we will laugh again when one thought triggers another and we think of the same funny thing. After all, we are ‘more funny repeated.’ Our memories together are vast and varied for they have been collecting since, well, basically fr

Fabulous Army Life

Search This Blog