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AECF Wives Club for our ET and FC wives
Thought I would start this thread so you can at least connect and share stories together. Seems like there is a fair amount of you in Great Lakes and just as many more trying to decide if you can more to Great Lakes.
Views: 5361
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Eddie's Momma on
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I'm not a Wife of an ET..But a Mother..My son is in Great Lakes at "A" School now and is said to Graduate "A" School around the 23 of July..then off to "C" School. Not sure what or where is orders will be. All I know is I'm so very proud of him.
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Permalink Reply by knwisconsin on
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Hello! My name is Kara. My husband started bootcamp on March 22nd. We have two kids, a son who is 6 (nearly 7) and a daughter who is 2 1/2 years old. I am 31 and he is 32. I am wondering how often they get Liberty on the weekends during "A" School. We actually live in Racine, WI which is only 51 mins (37 miles away) from Great Lakes. It isn't that long of a drive for me to visit and he could also take the train up to see us on the weekend. Do you think it is better for us to stay put in Racine? I have a full-time job here in Racine and my son really likes his school here. And of course all of our family and friends are here too. The cost of living is cheaper here, but if we wouldn't be able to see him often, I would rather move there. Considering that schooling is long and that there are alot of holds. I know that the schooling for AECF in difficult and that he wouldn't be able to visit every weekend due to studying. Just wondering what to expect. Just looking for a little advice! Thanks!
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Permalink Reply by Mistycb on
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Hi Kara, My husband is 30 so He absolutely knows what your husband is going through, he graduated Boot Camp in March so he has been there since January. Once he graduates Bootcamp, he will have to "phase up" which usually takes about two weeks. He will have liberty on the weekends immediately but he will have to be back on base every night by 8:45pm usually. Once he phases up he will have all weekend liberty immediately and will be able to leave friday when liberty is called and won't have to be back until 8:45pm Sunday. He will however have duty andit is usually every 4 days so on the weekends he has duty he will have to be there for that. Saturday duty days mean he will probably not come home for that weekend. If you are only an hour away, I would not move and uproot your family. especially if you have a job. We live in Virginia and we are looking to move up (we also have 2 kids, 4 and 1yr) and it is going to be a huge undertaking. however, My husband is on hold for ATT (the first 9 weeks of school for all AECF's) then when ATT is done his A School is on hold for 3-4 months so he will be there for a LONG time -he is ET. If I were you, being in such close proximity I would take advantage of the support system you have where you are because once he graduates A School, he will have to go to C School - usually in San Diego or Norfolk Virginia- then he will get orders from there and it will probably not be close to home. You also need to know that there school schedules can be strange and he will have no control over it. they go to school either from 7am -5pm, 9am-7pm, or 5pm to 1 am, so moving up there you might not be able to see him any more often than if you stayed where you are. This is of course my opinion and you need to do what will be right for you and your family. I am just too far away (15 hours and 917 miles to be exact) so if his live ashore chit is approved, we will be moving up there... Hope this helps, I was pretty uneducated about what to expect and have met many surprises and disappointments along the way. I have found the more questions i ask, the fewer surprises i get. Good Luck....
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Permalink Reply by Mary, Proud Mom of Nick on
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Based on what you have shared Kara, I would agree with Misty and think about staying in Racine. The holds are getting much better in GL so he could be out of GL within a year timeframe and having the ability to take the train over on the weekends is such a great option. He can have a car while at A school as well - you are just in a better situation than most wives that have a hubby in A school.
Good luck with your decision. -
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Thanks for the advice. I really think it is the best option to stay where we are. He told me on the phone on Sat that he wants us to move down there. I think it is just because he is missing us. i told him that once he is done w/ boot camp he will be able to call us more frequently and he may feel different about it. We aren't going to make any decisions until after graduation. I will be able to move with him to "C" school, right?
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as far as i know... I do know that from what i was told C school is not usually as long as A school, but i am a newbie like you.... the first half of bootcamp is the hardest on them-especially men like ours that are a bit more mature and have kids at home, although it is hard on all of them i know my husband REALLY missed his girls.... and i also think it is a knee jerk reaction for them to want you as close to them as possible. especially so they can feel some sort of normal in the suddent upheaval they have had to adjust to. He will have more fun and be much busier the last few weeks of boot camp and it won't be as tough on him - if that is any consolation : )
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Well thats good. I really think the worst part for him is not having contact with us. I think the phone call on Sat helped. And he should be getting my letters this week. He told me that physically it isn't that bad, it's more the mental part of it and the fact that he has a whole family depending on him. It's a lot on his shoulders.
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I really do completely understand.... My husband has/had the same issues... He gets really frustrated but he's made some good friends and he is doing better now that he's in school. It will help when he has contact with you... Make sure you have a cell phone ready and waiting for him when he gets to school. He can't have it until he checks in - can't bring it back to boot camp after graduation but as soon as he gets to school he will be able to have a phone and call when he's got free time....
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You will get to move with him to C school, I don't remember if your hubby is an FC or an ET and that will have alot to do with where he goes for C school but it definitely won't be in the GL area.
He will be able to have his cell and laptop at A school and you should be able to talk daily and then if he can come home on the weekends...most weeks, you will both find that A school is so much better than boot camp. -
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Permalink Reply by Anti M on
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ETs tend to have shorter C schools than FCs. Sometimes the school, or schools, are "en route" to the first duty station. These are schools which are shorter than six months (I think 20 weeks is the magic number). For married sailors, this means they go to the school and leave their dependents in place until it is time to report to the new command. Then they join the family to get them there (usually, unless they're needed somewhere ASAP). For C schools longer than six months, that's a PCS move and they Navy will authorize the dependent move.
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I am so very proud of my husband. He has finished his A school! Now he will be on hold waiting for orders. The ATT night school was tuff on the whole family. Glad it's over. I am looking forward to seeing him a little more now.
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Yay! Congrats to your hubby Mary! Keep us posted on his orders, where is he hoping to go?
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