If our ship has gone off course, then it's time to correct it. It's important to note that the longer we have been off course, the harder it will be to get back on track. And even just a few seconds going the wrong way can dramatically change our path. I don't say that to discourage anyone. I say that to make sure we enter these seasons with grace for ourselves.

I hope you got an excellent grade on your report card regarding your dreams. That means that you are on the right track, and if you maintain this, you will soon see your dreams come true. However, if you were more like me and didn't see the grades you wanted, it is time to make the adjustments. It is never too late for a fresh start.

We officially have one week left in June, which means we have one week left until we are halfway through the year. This year has gone shockingly fast for me. Maybe it's because I'm getting older or have a toddler who changes dramatically every day. I also think it can be attributed to the fact that we have a pretty hard deadline for when we will have to PCS again (we are hopeful of extending, but that is definitely something we won't know for at least another year). Hitting the six-month mark in Georgia means we will be 1⁄6 of the way through our time here with only 2.5 years left.

My dad always says, "You can do anything for 90 days; you can even stand on your head for that long." I proved that I could do anything for 75 days; if the challenge had been longer, I would have done it for longer. As military spouses, we prove that we can do anything for 90, 180, 365, or however many days a deployment lasts. The problem, at least for me, is maintaining that level of activity and accountability when the challenge is over. The problem is transitioning from activity to habit.

A little over two years ago, my family got on the 75 Hard kick. It started with my sister and dad doing it, quickly convincing everyone else in the family to join in. My husband and I completed the challenge during the winter of 2021. It was a great achievement and something we never really considered doing again.

We have to be all in on whatever we are doing. It's often relatively easy to answer when people ask us what our job is. We are quick to say doctor, stay-at-home parent, accountant, or whatever else. That should not be the only label we use to identify ourselves, but it is undoubtedly an important one that takes up a decent chunk of our time.

We are visiting family near D.C. this week, so we took the opportunity to go to the National Children's Museum. Our 18-month-old was limited on what he could take advantage of, but it is a massive facility with lots of learning-based toys and games to play with. It isn't free like the Smithsonian's, but I think it was worth the price we paid, especially to escape the brutal heat.

Today, I got to bear witness to one of my best friends getting married. While the ceremony may have been nothing like what she pictured or planned for, it was perfect for what they needed today to celebrate their love and commitment to one another. This is definitely going to be a sappier post because of how essential Taylor is to me and for the many things she's taught me about military life while bearing no connection to the community.

I apologize for the delay in getting this post back up. It was a long week, and I've been processing some stuff that will definitely be discussed later this week. I had a friend reach out to me on Thursday after I ran the post on military bereavement policies. She wanted to clarify that there are guidelines in place for bereavement in the case of miscarriages and stillbirths. She had personally experienced the care provided during one of those times and wanted to share that women were being cared for in these circumstances.

Unfortunately, I have been researching the military's bereavement policy this week. We had a loss in the family and were lucky enough to be able to travel (which meant booking last-minute flights, hotels, and rental cars) to be there for the wake and funeral. Quite frankly, it's because we are in Georgia now that we had the ability to do that relatively easily.

One of the biggest keys to our success in military life, dream chasing, relationships, etc., is knowing where our breaking points are. We need to know where they are, see them coming, and then know how to course correct before or after they hit. We live in a hectic and overstimulating world, and at one point or another, it will get all of us.

I picked up the keys to my very own office last night! It was a considerable step to sign that lease agreement. For the next year, I will be the owner of an office space in Georgia. I hit a point where my dream required me to go to the next level. My goals were converging in a way that I needed an office space, and I needed to make a more significant commitment.

One of my biggest gripes with the PCS system is how much out-of-pocket costs families face. In theory, the military pays for everything, and they do cover a decent chunk of it. However, there are so many minor start-up and change costs associated with a move that are not covered.

Happy Memorial Day to everyone! That really feels like an oxymoron to me, given that the reason we have Memorial Day is to honor those who died while serving in the military. For most people in the U.S., it represents a three-day weekend, but for those of us in military families, we almost always know someone who was there one day and gone the next.

I know that the past couple of posts have been a little ranty. I want to be clear that there are two sides to that coin. On the one hand, I am incredibly vocal and upset about the unacceptable issues affecting our military community. There are issues worldwide, but this is the lane I've picked to fight in. On the other hand, though, it's all just, eh, whatever to me. I can't get so heated that I let it overtake my life because then I wouldn't get anything done.

There's an account on Instagram that I follow that primarily covers relationships with in-laws called millennialmatleave. Janelle is great and mainly discusses things like communication and boundaries. As a boy mom whose greatest fear is becoming a toxic boy mom, it's an excellent account to help me plan for the things I definitely shouldn't do. Plus, as a friend to some people with these women as mothers-in-law, it's definitely nice for them to know they aren't alone. She has one segment on her account where she shares out-of-pocket things that people have shared with her that their in-laws have done, which is a great place to see some of the craziness out there in the world.

As if trying to perfectly prove my point that we need tangible changes for military families, the READINESS Act came up for a vote in Congress and met some (not so) shocking opposition. The bill passed with a vote of 30-13 and now heads to the full House for approval, or it may be folded into the National Defense Authorization Act. Overall, this should be a win for military families. However, the comments made in dissension still further prove the point that what we need is not a holiday celebrating spouses but a fundamental perspective shift on what it means to serve.

In honor of Military Spouse Appreciation Day, let's talk about what the spouses in your life actually need. We appreciate the candle set and Starbucks gift cards. Still, if we could have tangible changes to the most pressing issues in military families today, we would see lasting gratitude. Let's try to solve the issues facing our community because we know these problems will have long-term effects on the viability of our all-volunteer force.

Over the weekend, our country celebrated both Military Spouse Appreciation Day and Mother's Day. My heart goes out to everyone who spent those days without their partners since Murphy seems to ensure they miss every holiday celebrating us. I think these two holidays have a lot of similarities. That is not to say that the term military spouse only applies to women. I just mean that the things people look for in celebration of the day often don't compare to that individual's needs on a day-in, day-out basis.

The conference I attended a few weeks ago was called A View From The Edge. While it was sponsored by my insurance company, this event was primarily run by a guest speaker. Marc Accetta is a world-renowned network marketing expert who has spent his career helping teams grow. One of his niche training styles is a series of characters that he has designed to further illustrate his message. A View From The Edge is a weekend event packed with a bunch of these characters.