HHG

HHG - What is it you might ask?  If your military you know it stands for House Hold Goods, and you go there when it is time to PCS to another place.  Well, it was time to visit there today since we are off to Japan in just a couple very short months and orders have been processed through. 

So today I set my sights on getting a start on the taxing process of scheduling shipping and storing all of our household goods.  I knew that this one would be tough because Japan is a weight restricted shipment of goods meaning that we are allotted so many pounds for every move and on this one we are only able to take a portion of them.  So what does that look like?  We are allotted 14,500 pounds on any given move, and to Japan . . . ????? We are allotted only 25% of that!!! That's right folks that equates to 3,600 pounds and that's it.  I knew it was going to be low, but good gracious when she gave me the paperwork with the estimates (one room is on average 1000-1500 lbs.) and I started walking around my house I became a bit overwhelmed with the idea of what the heck am I supposed to bring and what do I store? 

As I walked around the house randomly picking up items wondering how much each of them weighed and wondering to myself do I really want to use up one of my precious pounds shipping the wok I have never used, I realized that most of the stuff in my house I will put away for 3 years not to be seen or accessed.  I then had a horrible thought, what if things get mixed up?  What if all the stuff I want to go to storage ends up on my doorstep and all the stuff I want to bring goes to storage? I had a visual of me sitting in Japan with 20 Disney dress up costumes strewn about, knick knacks, an old tv, and no clothes, beds, or linens! 

In all reality I don't think that will happen, but really what do you bring and what do you leave behind, how do you decide? The items we ship will take 2 1/2 months to arrive, I mean if I can live that long without it do I really need it?

So if you see me around fervently writing out lists and asking random people how much they think a twin bed weighs or if you could only bring three things from your house what would it be?  Know that I am not completely off my rocker, just dealing with HHG.

Lists

Things I didn't expect:

1. Before we joined the Army I never expected Peter to be able to assemble and disassemble an M-16 in 3 minutes.

2. I did not realized that there could be so many acronyms for things that you would need a 100 page dictionary just to figure out what people are saying.

3. I did not expect so many people to ask the question, "What made you join the Army?"

4. I did not expect that the traditions of the military would mean so much so quickly as a new Army wife.

5. I did not realize that I could fit everyone's clothes into two small closets.

6. That it could be crazy windy today with temps of 30 and dry and 70 degrees the next day. How do you dress for weather like that?

7. That speed limits of 25 could be so prevalent (like every street I drive on it feels like. (Speed limits on post are strictly enforced and you do not want to get a ticket from an MP - Very Bad.)

8. That my car can actually go 5 miles an hour when that is the posted limit and that I can actually walk faster than that (probably).

9. I did not realize I would ever love to wear jeans (and I do now seeing that it is cold here). Hoping that I can love closed toed shoes, I am a die hard flip flop fan currently even at 30 degrees.

10. I did not realize what a blessing the Army life would be to me and my family. It is an experience that has changed the Dell family for the better the experience thus far has been priceless for us.

We are Army Strong

So . . . what does the army have to do with my blog might you ask? Peter is taking a job with the army, he is swearing in as an active duty soldier on Monday. Shocked? Most people have been when we have told them. So here are the details and answers to the most commonly asked questions. 1. We don't know where we are going yet it will take 30 to 90 days to get orders to where we will be stationed. 2. No, he does not have to go to basic training. He is not enlisting in the army, but is being commissioned as an officer. Which actually takes approval through the Senate. 3. He will be going in at the rank of captain. 4. Yes, we are super excited to start this new adventure in our life!

So if you know anyone who would love to purchase our beautiful home in a great neighborhood with a great yard, it is officially for sale because we are moving!