This is my first entry for MSM and boy do I feel like it’s the first day of school. You know, when the teacher makes you stand up and tell everyone about yourself and what you did over the summer. Because I was a very shy kid, I hated that yearly ritual. And because I still hate to do an intro, I’m going to use a time honored public speaking technique….

I’m going to imagine that all of you reading this are sitting at your computer, reading my stuff in your underwear (and maybe you really are, who knows???).

Okay, a little about me:

I turn thirty-five in about three weeks, and surprisingly, that doesn’t bother me near as much as I thought it would. I grew up in a small town in southwest Nebraska, my mother is an RN and my father farmed on the family farm with my uncle and grandfather. I’ve been married to my husband, Matthew, for a little over 14 years. We went to high school together (insert sappy exclamation here).

After high school, I went to college for two years, while he shipped off to Army boot camp and then AIT. After two years of that, we thought marriage might be a good idea, so we got married. Marriage is hard work, something everyone forgot to mention in all the pre-wedding crap. Marriage in the military is even harder.

I graduated from the University of Maryland in 1998 with a BS in Criminology and Criminal Justice Administration. In 2000, because I was bored and had nothing better to do with my time or money, I went to graduate school.

Anyways, we toodled along until 1999, being stationed at Ft. Jackson, Ft. Sam Houston, Ft. Carson, Ft. Leonardwood and Wurzburg, Germany. In 1999, my husband decided he had had enough of being enlisted and applied for an Army ROTC Green-To-Gold scholarship to the University of Nebraska (GO HUSKERS!). He got the scholarship and we moved back to Lincoln for three years of impersonating poor college students. We were both 26, and for the first time in our marriage, I was the breadwinner.

I got a job with the state’s Department of Correctional Services and worked my way up the ladder while Matt was going to college full time. In 2001, I was hired by one of the “Alphabet Agencies” of the federal government. I graduated from the Federal Law Enforcement Academy in 2003. I ranked 1/48 in my class and my peers nominated me as class president and liaisson to the academy staff. I’ve been working my way up the GS ladder ever since and am finally in the “mid-double GS-digits.”

Back to the military side of my life:

Matt graduated from the University of Nebraska in 2002 and was accepted into the Army’s Baylor Program, which is an “organic” way the Army grows it’s own Physical Therapists. We moved to San Antonio and Ft. Sam Houston so he could attend the program. I was lucky and got a transfer to the local office of my agency in San Antonio. Matt graduated from the Baylor Program in 2004, with a follow-on assignment to BAMC/Ft. Sam.

He deployed with the 1st Cavalry Division last October (a year ago tomorrow, to be exact); and I don’t know when he will be back because you know the Army won’t tell you until he shows up on the doorstep. He has a little over six years to go until he retires and I am COUNTING DOWN.

Another important thing you need to know is that my husband and I are geographically separated due to work. I chose to take a promotion and relocate back to Nebraska since this is where we want to be after he retires. I’ve been in our new “old” (more later) house since the end of August and have finally got myself back on my feet. Moving an entire household by yourself isn’t a picnic. Fortunately, I have really great friends who helped with the move.

Matt and I have no children by choice, and two dogs: Baylor, a golden retriever, and Angus, the Scottish Terrier. In what little spare time I have, I cross stitch, read, spend lots of time in the gym, play women’s and co-ed league volleyball and waste large amounts of time on the internet.

I am not a writer by either training or profession (unless you count legal reports) and to this day I don’t know how I got here. But I am grateful that Babette found me and has faith in my writing ability. I can’t wait to start a dialogue with MSM readers!