navy wife
What to Wear - Navy Ceremonies
Monday, September 25 • attire, fashion, girly, milso, quick guide, san diego blogger
Its that time of year again.... Ball Season!! I am a total sucker for a reason to get dressed up (sometimes I dress up just to go out to dinner with my hubby) so when ball season comes around I get really excited!
I remember Roxy (from Army Wives) being worried about the "dress code" she would have to abide by after Trevor went to OCS. I found this part of the show funny because there isn't really a dress code for spouses on a normal day. I have definitely shown up to spouse meetings in my Navy sweatshirt and leggings but have also show up in a preppy Lilly dress so I personally think anything goes. However, when it comes to events and balls, there is definitely an unspoken dress code. From what I've experienced, it is best to wear modest clothes but still show off you sense of style - you can do this by wearing a chunky necklace or some adorable peep-toe heels!
I wanted to share some of the outfits I have worn to Navy ceremonies since Daniel has been in. Also, I am the kind of person who doesn't want to spend a ton on formal clothes since I don't really get a chance to wear them that often. So, all of the dresses I listed below are $80 and under!
OCS Dinner - The OCS dinner was more on the formal side so I opted to wear this red dress that I picked up from H&M almost a year prior. I didn't have a good sweater to wear so I paired it with my professional blazer to give the dress a professional/formal look.
OCS Graduation - OCS graduation was a little on the less formal side. It was in an auditorium and was a short ceremony so I didn't dress up too much. I ordered this dress from Red Dress Boutique about a month before heading to Rhode Island. I knew it was going to be chilly there so I made sure to pick up a cute oversized scarf to wear with it. If I could change one thing about this outfit, I would ditch the heels. We did a lot of walking and heels weren't really the best choice for shoes.
Merlot Dress (linked similar) // Heels
Navy Ball - This was my first ball so I had no idea what to wear! I went shopping with my gal-pal who had been to a Marine Ball before and she helped me pick out this dress. I originally found a dress similar to it at the mall but didn't want to pay over $200 for a dress I would wear once. So I headed over to Lulu's online and found this perfect dress for the perfect price! A simple yet elegant dress is always a good option for the ball. However, I did see some cinderella style dresses that had sequins and I also saw 3-5 ladies wearing short dresses. So I guess it is whatever you feel most comfortable in!
Wining Ceremony - Again, I had no idea what to wear for the winging ceremony! A couple senior spouses had told me to wear nice Sunday church attire so I tried to match that. Keep in mind that you will be going on stage (above the crowd) to pin on wings; so, when finding an outfit, think about how it will look from the audiences' point of view (aka not too short). In the end, I think my simple black long sleeve dress was perfect. It wasn't too dressy but it didn't look casual either. I would recommend either a simple dress or a cute summer dress for an event like this!
I hope you all have a wonderful ball/ceremony with your military member!
Shop more ball dress styles here:
5 Steps to Land Your Dream Job
Monday, June 19 • advice, college, how to, milso, quick guide, student, tips
1.
Be prepared: Before you even apply for your next
job, you need to be prepared. A lot of professionals have given me advice to
dress for my next job in my current position. This may sound silly but it can
put you in the mindset of your next position. If you are looking to become a
manager then dress like one!
Also, be strategic in your job hunt. Search
through Linked In and connect with professionals who are currently working for
the company you want to work for or have the title you are striving to get. Some
companies even let you job shadow (if you’re applying within the company) so
you can get a feel for what your workload would be. It is really important that
you take these opportunities and ask as many questions as you can.
Once you find your dream job, then it is
time to apply, apply, apply! I had to apply a few times to get into the
position I am now, and I’m beyond grateful that I kept reaching for my goals. It
is easy to get discouraged when you get turned down, but just remember what
motivated you to apply in the first place and keep pushing forward!
2.
Job description: A job description is the
position roadmap. It will outline what you will be doing and the
minimum requirements to be considered for the position. One technique that I
have been taught is to print out the job description before you create your
resume. Once you print it, highlight everything you do in your current position
under responsibilities and everything you can do under the qualifications. You
can also underline key words such as “analyze, assist, research, provide, etc.”
The job description is the best way to know what the hiring manager is looking
for so make sure you know it very well.
3. Resume: Resumes are a tricky art so I’m going to
try and keep this section to a few key points.
First off, you will want to create a master
resume. This is a document where you will be able to maintain your skills,
qualifications, accomplishments and everything you have done; but never
actually submit to any managers. You want to make sure and update this
periodically so it current.
Once you find the job you’re wanting to
apply for, and have highlighted all the important info, you’re ready to start
creating your specific resume. It is important to have a specific resume for each job you are applying for instead of a general one that you submit to multiple jobs. Your specific resume is going to be portions of
your master resume that are specific to the job you are applying for. To tailor
your resume, it is good to include a key qualification section that will hook
the hiring manager and spotlight what makes you the best fit. Also, tie in some
keywords from the job description if you can.
Finally, format and design play a large role
in building a great resume. A few tips I have learned while talking to hiring
managers are: do not exceed two pages, balance the white space vs text, don’t
have a fancy template that is hard to follow, and use a basic font around 12pt.
Also, your resume must be consistent. Don’t use a period after a sentence on
one bullet point and no period on the next bullet point. Make sure you are
bolding and italicizing consistently throughout; instead of having random bold
words. And finally, remove clutter from your resume. Don’t write “references on
request” because if a manager wants references, they will automatically request
it. Don’t put irrelevant hobbies or clubs that you participated in and do try
to convey your thoughts in the shortest way possible.
4. The interview: Woo, you made it to the interview!
This part can be extremely nerve racking but the biggest tip I can give you is
be confident. A manager’s goal is to get to know who you are, not who your
nervous self is.
The best way to gain confidence is to be
prepared. Ask your friends or family to do mock interviews with you and become
familiar with articulating your answers. Get a good night’s sleep the night
before your interview and set out your professional outfit before you go to
bed. When it comes to interview attire, it is always better to be overdressed
than underdressed. Your attire should be all business, even down to the
notebook and pen you bring with you to the interview (yes, you should bring a
notebook and take notes).
When you get into the interview room, shake
hands and make eye contact with each person. Make sure you engage each
individual in the room if you have a panel interview.
To conclude the interview, the hiring
manager will probably ask you “do you have any questions for me.” You
absolutely have to have questions to ask them! It is a good idea to come up
with three to five questions to have ready for the interviewer before
you even step foot in the room.
There are a lot of do’s and don’ts to
interviewing but the best thing to do is be authentic and show the interviewer
why you deserve to be in the position.
5.
Follow up: After the interview, follow up by
sending the manager a thank you note (handwritten is best but an email works
too) no more than 24 hrs after the interview. If you get the job, congrats! If
you don’t, get feedback on how you can improve your next interview and keep
pushing forward.
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Finding a job and developing your career are very
challenging. However, if you put your heart into it and are motivated to reach
your goals then it is 100% possible! Good luck to everyone out there!
SeaWorld San Diego
Sunday, June 4 • about me, adventure, milso, photography, quick guide, round up
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| Flamingos are my spirit animal |
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| Riding the Manta ride |
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| Taking a ride in the Observatory Tower - also rocking the shark tooth necklace |
Last weekend, we went to explore SeaWorld in San Diego. We had so much fun! Most of our time was spent looking at all of the animal exhibits but we also got to watch the Dolphin Show, Pets Show and ride their two roller coasters. We both loved the Manta roller coaster that makes you feel like you're a manta ray. The observatory tower was also pretty neat because you could see all of San Diego from the top of the tower! To end the day, and celebrate Daniel's birthday, we had dinner with Shamu! The food was absolutely delicious and it was cool to get to experience SeaWorld training hands on. We got to see the trainers do a few exercises with the orcas and interact with the beautiful animals. It was cute how happy the orcas were when their trainer was petting them or feeding them treats. Overall, it was a great day! If you ever get the chance, I would recommend making a day trip.
I also wanted to share some info on the "Waves of Honor" program that allows active duty military members, and up to 3 dependents, free admission to the park once a year (click here for more information). This is the program we used for our special day in the park!
Below are a few photos from our favorite exhibits! Enjoy!
Coffee Date
Wednesday, April 5 • about me, coffee date, milso, round up
Hey friends! Please forgive my long absence and join me, at your leisure, on my “coffee date” blog post. I hope you can take a break, sit down with a cup of coffee or your favorite beverage and catch up with me...
First of all, a month ago, my husband, Daniel, earned and received his Wings of Gold. After almost two years of training, Daniel is officially a Naval Aviator. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the aviation community, earning one’s “Wings” is a milestone accomplishment (I have a timeline posted in my earlier blog post). During this same timeframe, our wonderful parents came down to visit us and celebrate the occasion. It was so much fun because we got to venture around Pensacola and play “tourist” with them for a week! It was a great time showing them around our “home town” before we moved. Also, they were very helpful with everything around the house, which made the stress of moving much easier! That same weekend was also Mardi Gras so we all celebrated that as well. If you want to experience Mardi Gras, without the New Orleans craziness, I’d recommend Pensacola. There were three different parades with massive floats, lots of awesome live music, and a multitude of bright and colorful beads. Additionally, in Pensacola, these celebrations were all family friendly.
Next up, we received orders to move to San Diego, California. Daniel’s orders gave us two weeks to move. We were fortunate in that the movers were able to help us pack everything and then transport almost all of our belongings across the country. At the same time, Daniel and I drove our cars, Jack (our dog) and Nala (our cat) from Florida to California. Along the way, we saw some fun towns and landmarks which made the drive more fun and interesting. As for Jack and Nala, they were out of their crates and comfortably slept in the back seat of Daniel’s truck most of the way. Jack was a little restless at times but for a six-month old puppy, he was great. We were very proud of our furry babies!
When we arrived in San Diego, we had a hotel room but no house. Finding housing here is very difficult because the average home is only on the rental market for about five days. Nevertheless, upon arriving in San Diego, we scheduled five home viewing appointments. After just viewing the first home on our list, we learned that we qualified (early) for coveted base housing! We also had the pleasure of having my brother, Ryan, and his girlfriend, Hannah, come to visit us during our first week. In between house hunting, we got to explore San Diego with them and go to Disneyland, which made our first week in the area that much better!
Fast forward to now. Our movers delivered our furniture and boxes, the furniture has been set up, the boxes unpacked and now we just have to organize things. So far, we are loving our new home and are very grateful! Daniel is beginning his next phase of the Navy flight program and I’m enjoying being a stay-at-home wife while looking for jobs. I would like to get back into blogging since there are so many things I’d love to share. I’d love to know what y’all would like to see on the blog in the future so if you have any input, please email me or comment below.
Thanks for joining me on this crazy “coffee date!” I hope you have a good week ahead and I'll do my best to write more soon.
Fall Fun in Florida
Sunday, October 23 • adventure, attire, fashion, florida, milso, photography, southern belle
This weekend, I went with a group of ladies to the pumpkin patch! I met all of these ladies through a group called SOSA (Spouses of Student Aviators) and am so thankful to have met them. All of us have a significant other who is going through flight school so we can help each other with different things the military throws at us. Sometimes it is hard living in Florida because all of my family and friends live in Washington. So when I'm feeling a little down about missing everyone in Washington, I remember all the new friends I have made here through SOSA; and the memories we already have!
One of those memories includes the pumpkin patch! While it was still 80 degrees here in Florida, we enjoyed our favorite fall festivities. We went on a hayride, got lost in a corn maze and took photos with pumpkins (unfortunately we didn't get pumpkin spice lattes so our fall trip wasn't quite complete - haha). Here are just a few photos from Sweet Season Farms... (Photography by my friend Sara!)
Happy Fall y'all! Who else can't wait for Halloween next weekend?!
Flight School Timeline - Student Aviator
Wednesday, October 19 • adventure, aviator, florida, milso, quick guide
Hey everyone! I wanted to write this post about the flight school timeline because when my man first started, I googled everything but couldn't seem to find a good timeline. All of the following info is my personal experience and you must know that everyone has a different experience! Also, each person's timeline is different. They may tell you 6 months and it takes 10 months; so don't expect your timeline to look exactly like this!
When the aviator graduates from Officer Candidate School, they are usually given a couple weeks to get their things together before reporting to NAS Pensacola. My aviator was given 4 weeks to come home and pack his life up then drive down to Florida.
After they check in in Pensacola, they wait to start IFS (this process can be anywhere from a week to 4 months).
IFS - Introductory Flight Screening: This portion of training takes place in Pensacola, Florida and is where the pilot learns to fly a Cesna or Piper Warrior airframe. Some aviators get to skip this portion if they have already obtained their private pilots license. During IFS, the aviator has a series of flights and tests to become FAA certified.
API - Aviation Preflight Indoctrination: This is the "fun and easiest" part of flight school according to my hubby. They spend four weeks learning about weather, aerodynamics, aircraft engines, systems and other things needed to fly the T-6. After the classroom work, they learn basic survival skills. This includes the infamous helo-dunker where they are tipped upside-down in a cockpit, submerged underwater and told to get out. Overall, this process takes about 6-8 weeks.
Primary: Primary is held in either NAS Whiting Field or NAS Corpus Christi (I highly recommend staying in Pensacola - especially if the aviator wants to go Helos!) Primary took about 9 months to complete. Primary is by far the most challenging part of flight school. Its here that aviators learn to fly the T-6 Texan. They have multiple tests, simulations and flights to go through before they are done. I wasn't with my aviator as he was going through this (I was finishing up college) but he seemed to be stressed out to the max! This is a time to really support your aviator and do what you can to help them because its a crazy amount of work. If you aviator makes it through then they will select their airframe. This is an exciting time yet still stressful because you have to pick the airframe you want to fly in the future.
Advanced: Once the aviator is selected for an airframe you will have to move to where that airframe's location is. (If anyone has any questions about where advanced is held, send me an email and I'll tell you - I don't want to put all the training bases on the internet.) Advanced has been pretty busy and stressful this far. Not quite like primary but still challenging. My aviator selected Helos so he is having to re-learn how to fly a rotary aircraft. We were told that advanced takes about 6 months but its looking more like 8 months before we get sent to the fleet readiness squadron (FRS). After that, we don't know whats going to happen but thats part of the Navy life! Adventure is out there!
If anyone has any questions, please send me an email. I know what it it like to be a confused student aviator significant other so I'm happy to help anyone else out.
When the aviator graduates from Officer Candidate School, they are usually given a couple weeks to get their things together before reporting to NAS Pensacola. My aviator was given 4 weeks to come home and pack his life up then drive down to Florida.
After they check in in Pensacola, they wait to start IFS (this process can be anywhere from a week to 4 months).
IFS - Introductory Flight Screening: This portion of training takes place in Pensacola, Florida and is where the pilot learns to fly a Cesna or Piper Warrior airframe. Some aviators get to skip this portion if they have already obtained their private pilots license. During IFS, the aviator has a series of flights and tests to become FAA certified.
API - Aviation Preflight Indoctrination: This is the "fun and easiest" part of flight school according to my hubby. They spend four weeks learning about weather, aerodynamics, aircraft engines, systems and other things needed to fly the T-6. After the classroom work, they learn basic survival skills. This includes the infamous helo-dunker where they are tipped upside-down in a cockpit, submerged underwater and told to get out. Overall, this process takes about 6-8 weeks.
Primary: Primary is held in either NAS Whiting Field or NAS Corpus Christi (I highly recommend staying in Pensacola - especially if the aviator wants to go Helos!) Primary took about 9 months to complete. Primary is by far the most challenging part of flight school. Its here that aviators learn to fly the T-6 Texan. They have multiple tests, simulations and flights to go through before they are done. I wasn't with my aviator as he was going through this (I was finishing up college) but he seemed to be stressed out to the max! This is a time to really support your aviator and do what you can to help them because its a crazy amount of work. If you aviator makes it through then they will select their airframe. This is an exciting time yet still stressful because you have to pick the airframe you want to fly in the future.
Advanced: Once the aviator is selected for an airframe you will have to move to where that airframe's location is. (If anyone has any questions about where advanced is held, send me an email and I'll tell you - I don't want to put all the training bases on the internet.) Advanced has been pretty busy and stressful this far. Not quite like primary but still challenging. My aviator selected Helos so he is having to re-learn how to fly a rotary aircraft. We were told that advanced takes about 6 months but its looking more like 8 months before we get sent to the fleet readiness squadron (FRS). After that, we don't know whats going to happen but thats part of the Navy life! Adventure is out there!
If anyone has any questions, please send me an email. I know what it it like to be a confused student aviator significant other so I'm happy to help anyone else out.
Name Change After the Wedding
Sunday, October 2 • advice, engaged, how to, milso, photography, quick guide, review, round up, wedding
Social security: Do this first thing because it will take awhile. Bring marriage license, old social security card and birth certificate or passport.
DMV: Be sure to update your license and voter registration. Bring your marriage license and old drivers license.
*Military only* Dependent ID Card: This is huge! Make sure you go into the base ID office and get your ID card as soon as possible. This will get you enrolled in DEERS. Bring your marriage license, birth certificate and drivers license or passport.
Auto Licensing: Update both your registration and title. If a bank owns your title make sure you contact them to get it updated. You will need your original registration, marriage license and drivers license.
IRS: Make sure you update all of your information at work to match your new name. Update the pay system and your tax exemption status to make sure you have no issues when tax season comes. Your company will notify the IRS of the change. Supply them with your new social security card.
Passport: This will need to be done at your local post office or through the mail. You need a photo, birth certificate, marriage license and either a license or current passport.
Loans - student, car, mortgage: I'm not totally sure how to change your car loan or mortgage name but I know for student loans you need to mail in a copy of your marriage license and new social security card.
Bank Accounts: It is much easier to do this in a branch. Just take your marriage license in, show your new ID and get a new debit card.
Other: These are other things you need to change your name on but I'm still in the process so I don't know exactly what is needed. For insurance we ended up changing companies so I just needed my new license number. Bills, subscriptions, airline frequent flier miles, reward cards and social media should just need your license and possibly marriage license.
Well, if you are reading this because you just got married then congratulations!! If you're reading this for fun, I hope you enjoyed it. If anyone has any questions, shoot me an email and I'll try to help you to the best of my ability. Thanks for reading y'all!
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