I Am So Not Cut Out For Adventure

Kevin officially graduated from Phase Two of Marine training last Tuesday...Marine Combat Training. It was my duty as the faithful wife to be there for the graduation. So I booked my hotel, packed my bags, and settled in the car for the adventure. Little did I realize, I was completely unprepared.

The ride up there actually wasn't so bad. It took about eight and a half hours. And that includes stopping every hour and a half, doctor's orders. It was a little annoying, but at least I didn't get sleepy. I got there about 6:30 on Sunday night, checked into my hotel, and settled in for a good night's rest.

I went to bed early enough that when 8:45am rolled around, I was wide awake. So I rolled out of bed, threw some clothes on, and went on a little adventure. Of course, I did have to stop at Dunkin Donuts for breakfast first :) I drove about 30 minutes to get to the closest public beach, in Surf City. I'll be honest, it was overcast, windy and cold. I was wearing jeans, sneakers, and my good coat. But I am just a sucker for the beach. So I sat there, enjoyed the scenery, which was mostly old people walking dogs, and read Eclipse for nearly two hours. I had great timing too, because the rain started as I was walking to my car.
I still had a few hours to kill, so I drove around looking for Chick-fil-a for entirely too long. Fail. I grabbed something else, sped back to the hotel, and got ready to see my husband for the first time in a month. I was running late by this time. Only I could have an entire day to do nothing, and still end up running late. Speaking of things that could only happen to me...

I got to the base and went to go get a parking pass, which requires your driver's license, insurance and car registration...only to discover that my registration was definitely not in my car. What kind of moron doesn't keep that one valuable little piece of information in their car at all times? Apparently this kind. Great. Cue meltdown. Not only had I driven all this way, but I had brought a ton of stuff (food, civilian clothes, etc) to give to my husband. At this point, my only option was to call a cab. So I went across the street, parked at a grocery store, and proceeded to pay $6 for a cab ride for all of a mile and a half. Did I mention I was still crying at this point...that poor cab driver. She did her best to calm me down...didn't want me going into labor in her car.

By the time I finally reached my husband, I looked like a drowned rat. Not only had I cried off all of my make-up, but it was raining cats and dogs...and our only option was to walk around base. Within minutes, my socks and shoes were soaked through. I promptly informed my husband that this was the closest I ever wanted to get to being a contestant on Survivor. And that I wanted a new pair of shoes.

After all of the day's ordeals, however, it was amazing getting to finally spend a few hours with my husband. It didn't take long to discover that the guys' morale was at an all-time low. So it was great to know just how much he geniunely appreciated my visit. After five wonderful hours together, he had to report back to barracks. So I called my cab (oh, joy!).

While I was waiting, I met another wife...named Brittany...who was also staying at my hotel. So we ended up sharing the rest of our travel time/expenses. She was really sweet (a 19-year-old newlywed) and it was fun to share the experience with someone else. Especially the sucky part where we have to say goodbye again.

When we left base at 8:00, my feet were still soaked through. So after dropping Brittany back at the hotel, I used my new friend GPS to find Target...and Chick-fil-a was there too...bonus! I was very excited to find these in my size:
The next day was graduation. And it was much better than the Parris Island experience. I got to see Kevin before the ceremony, and they even let us wait with them until their buses arrived to take them away again. It was cold, but we weren't giving up one minute together.The ride home was definitely rockier than the ride there. Traveling pregnant is getting much more difficult...painful, even. It ended up taking almost an hour longer. I did stumble across this little beauty in Elizabethtown, NC:I tried to get a picture, even had my camera out the window, but then I noticed a cop sitting right across the street and decided not to chance it. In case you can't see it, that sign says Smellie Bloomers. Seriously, people are weird.