He is home :)

Sorry, I have been MIA for the last few days.  Bad news is, the husband didn't get selected for Special Forces.  The good news is, he is home and will be home for the next few years.  Usually, he would have a chance to go back and try again.  In his case, though, he was chosen for recruiting duty.  He is slated to go to recruiting school in March, which is why this was his only shot at Special Forces (for now at least).  Recruiting duty is not what he was hoping to be doing for the next few years, but it will mean that he will be home...and that maybe we will have a chance to go back home to California for a few years if he gets his first choice for recruiting station.

So that is why I have been gone for a few days.  My very understanding boss let me have the day off when he came home so that we could spend some time together.  One of the benefits of the Army life: being able to experience newlywed bliss for many years past being a newlywed.  That's what happens when you spend so much time apart I guess.  We spent the last few days getting our Christmas tree, decorating the house, eating good food, and just being together.  Perfection.

On another note, I also decided to have a sit-down with my boss and tell her the real reason behind all of my doctor's appointments.  I usually keep these things to myself at work since it's personal and, well, since fertility treatments usually lead to pregnancy, which means having to take time off for maternity leave at the very least.  She was incredibly understanding, which I expected.  What I didn't expect was for her to say how much she didn't want to lose me and the options she proposed in order to keep me around.  I let her know that I didn't expect special treatment, and that I understood if having to take time off put my job at risk.  She said that she would speak to the powers that be and see if there is an option for me to go part-time or do some sort of job-sharing to keep me around while still giving me the flexibility needed for doctor's appointments.  This made me feel so much better, especially since I originally was looking for a part-time job for this very reason.  People don't realize how many appointments are needed when you are going through fertility treatments...and that you usually don't have time in advance to request the time off since you never know when you are going to start a cycle or when you're going to ovulate.  I have put off my treatments for too long because of work, and I realized that I need to focus on what is more important to me.  I don't want to lose my job though, because it would be much harder to pay for the treatments without the extra income!

On yet another note, I am struggling because the husband and I have been discussing Christmas gifts for our family and friends.  The truth is, we need to save money right now because the road we are heading down is very expensive.  Also, we are going to have to PCS again once he gets his recruiting orders, which means yet another expensive move.  We have a lot of nieces and nephews, which can get expensive for gifts since you have to be fair with each of them.  This probably means that there will be no gifts for anyone this year, and I hope that our family is understanding of this...I know that I would be if I was on the other side of the situation.  For once, though, I can't worry about what everyone else thinks of me.  Instead, I will be focusing on my little family and the little one(s) we hope to add to it!  Some may say this is selfish, but what is wrong with being a little selfish once in awhile?  We give up a lot being a military family, and we deserve a little something for ourselves.