My name is Kristen; I am married to my wonderful husband, Tommy. We have three “teens” Elizabeth, Victoria and Nathaniel. Even though I am still a bit new at being married to an Active Duty Air Force member, I wouldn’t change it for anything.
The kids and I started this “Air Force” journey in 2006, when Tommy swept me off my feet and proposed to the kids and I up in Alaska (Tommy has been in the Air Force for almost sixteen years). We packed up and headed to Eglin AFB in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida. Talk about drastic weather changes, and we couldn’t wait! I must say, Eglin was pretty uneventful; the base was very large and I wasn’t exactly sure how to go about getting involved. The kids weren’t exactly transitioning well in school either. Being in Alaska for nine years, I assumed all schools were on the same learning curve. So, after many years of working full time, Tommy and I decided it would be best if I stayed home and focused on the kids.
After being at Eglin for almost sixteen months Tommy received orders for a year remote in Korea. So, the big decision was made to move the kids and me ahead to our follow on base before he left for Korea. Moody AFB, here we come! We had six months to research Valdosta and look for housing. I was excited, my first PCS! Loved it when the movers came and did everything for me, and yes everything arrived the way it should have. The kids and I arrived in Valdosta at the end of 2008; Tommy finished his assignment at Eglin and left for Korea at the beginning of 2009.
If I could give any advice to someone who has just married into the Air Force, it would be this: find your Airman and Family Readiness Center! Ask when the next Heart Link session is and go to it! Ask when the next Newcomers tour is and go on it! I wasn’t fortunate enough to learn this until after being in Valdosta for almost a year. It was then that I went to my first Moody Spouses’ Club Social, and what a blast that was! All I wanted to know was “how do I get to be an AGOW girl? And how do I join this club?” By the way, AGOW is an actual squadron and has NO other meaning.
It has been almost a year since I found my way here at Moody. I love volunteering at the Thrift Shop, being a part of the Moody Spouses’ Club and a new hat I have just put on, being an EMS Key Spouse (since the kids don’t think it’s cool for mom to be in their schools anymore, MAFB gets the majority of me).
Well, that is enough about me. If you are reading this blog and we haven’t met, I look forward to meeting you!
