Las Vegas, Here We Come!

We finally have "official" PCS orders as of late last week, hooray!!! The next stop on our military journey will be a four-year stint at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nevada!

If you would have asked us a year ago if we wanted to go to Nellis, Derek & I both would have said "no" without hesitation. Vegas doesn't exactly scream "family-friendly," and it just seemed so far away from home. But back around Christmas time, it became pretty clear that we would most likely be headed back to the DC area (Andrews AFB) or Vegas. While we loved our time in Northern Virginia as newlyweds, we weren't itching to go back...but we also weren't really excited about the prospect of Vegas. But as time went on, we slowly but surely came around to the idea of Vegas. Being a mere four hours from Disney Land didn't seem so bad, and it sounded pretty exciting to be within a short drive of both mountains/snow and the beach! And since Derek nor I have really spent much (if any) time out west, we started looking forward to the opportunity to see all of the national parks in that part of the country.

Over the past few months, we have slowly prepared the girls' hearts for the upcoming move with lots of little conversations here & there. Every time we've talked about moving, it's always been in reference to what fun things we might get to do or see when we move. Thankfully, both of them are very eager for the move!

I can remember early on in our military journey talking to a seasoned Air Force spouse with teenage kids. She told me that no matter how much she hated a new base assignment, her kids would never hear one ounce of negativity come from her mouth about it. That conversation has stuck with me over the years. For now, our girls are just "along for the ride" with us so to speak, but I know as they get older this whole military moving thing will probably get harder & harder. But I think Derek & I have the power set the tone & attitude for our family. I think the moves are easier on the girls b/c we're genuinely excited about it, so we just think of it as a new family adventure for us!

Growing up, I never would have thought I would be the girl to get married and move far away from my family--never. But as it turns out, I love this little Air Force life of ours. Sure, the moving around & being away from family is hard...but the experiences & friendships we've gained along the way have made us who we are. And I really & truly can't picture a life in which we never ventured away from Georgia!

As of now, we are anticipating an early June move. So we have about 6-7 weeks left here before we have to say our goodbyes to San Antonio. Between the end of the school year for Miss Shelby, prepping for the move & baby, and Derek's birthday and graduation..I know these next few weeks are going to fly by at lightning speed! We're going to do our best to soak up what's left of our time here!