Fort Hood, Texas...here we come!

Well, it has only been a couple of weeks since Rob was accessioned as an Army Chaplain. We found out he will be going to Chaplain school at Fort Jackson in South Carolina and may end up ther for an extra month starting August. Good news! No gap in service. Still waiting for the confirmation on that status.

Rob's last duty day at WRTC was today and only a few hours later he received a call from Washington, D.C. with the information on where we will be stationed after school. We thought we wouldn't know this information for at least another few weeks, and the info was a stunner...we are going to be moving to Ft. Hood in Texas! Sometime in the middle of December we will pack up the swamp and head to the dust bowl, tornado alley, North Mexico...take your pick.

While we were really praying that we would be assigned to Ft. Benning in Georgia, God's call is a big one as they are in dire need of filling Chaplain slots at Ft. Hood, and Rob did get confirmation that he will indeed be a Battalion Chaplain. We don't know which unit he will be assigned to, but we do know that Fort Hood is the home of the Cavalry. Lots of history and we are anxious to learn as much as we can about our new home in a very short period of time. Thankfully, Margot Dudewicz has very dear friends who are now located at Ft. Hood as is already on the job to get introductions underway.

Tomorrow morning we start an almost month-long road trip to visit friends and family in Georgia, Tennessee, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri and now we are adding a day or two in Ft. Hood to try to get a feel for the joint. A friend on facebook said it sounded like a covered wagon experience and I'm inclined to agree. Rob has already spent a few hours on the internet trying to learn as much as he can about the base (he learned it has a Baskin Robbins, so he is good to go). I'll have to learn some new lingo so I can blend in. After being Air Force, located with Navy it will be a little confusing to get the 'base', 'post', 'nex' and all that straight.

When we get to Minnesota, Rob will have the opportunity to meet some of his fellow military chaplains who have been ordained by the International Ministerial Fellowship. We are really looking forward to those few days with new friends.

Thanks again for all of the support and encouragement as we have started this new and exciting chapter in our lives. Ever since Rob and I met it has been one adventure after another. God has seen fit to continue this tradition and we are thrilled! Today has been a big day. We went out to dinner with Margot to celebrate and now we are so emotionally exhausted it is time to hit the hay before we hit the road.

We'll keep everyone update on our journey and our ministry. Like I tell my family, as soon as we know what's going on, you'll know what's going on.

Much love from the Swamp! Muff