the beginning.....

We waited about a year before my then fiance decided that he wanted to start the AF journey. We had discussed it and I was ok with him joining enlisted....I gave him a breakdown on which branch I was ok with him going into... the Air Force was the top of the list. We had our ups and downs through out the year but we made it through them all. It did not really hit close to home until 3 weeks before he left. He would be gone for the next 8.5 weeks for BMT (basic military training) at Lackland AFB, then 4 months at Keesler AFB for tech training, and then PCSing to his duty station for the next 3 years or so. So August 23rd came and he would be gone. The day before he left he has to go to his recruiter and they get driving to MEPS for processing and have to stay in a hotel, and then be transported back to MEPS at the crack of dawn the next morning to be taken to the airport to be flown down to San Antonio, TX. On the day that he went to the recruiters ofc I pretty much was a wreck throughout the whole day. I lost an earring...which my husband gave me on our first valentines day and I did not realize I had lost it until we got to the recruiter...here me and my husband are looking all over for this little diamond stud earring bc he gave it to me and I needed it we gave up the search in the parking lot and went  back into the recruiters ofc. The recruiter then asked me how I was holding up....here I am all blochy from crying all day and someone asked me how I was holding up...I looked away and said fine in a very short manner. I am not the best at holding in my emotions. I suffer from depression and anxiety and it makes it very difficult for me to cope with my feelings. Anyways though, shortly after our quest for looking for my missing earring the car was at the ofc ready to drive my fiance and another recruit to MEPS. We said our goodbyes and he got in the SUV. The driver said don't worry he'll be back...not what I wanted to hear, I wanted to hear that he wasn't leaving there was a mistake, or that I was able to go with him. None of that happened though. So I went home for a few hours and turned our home upside down to continue the search for my lost earring. I looked all over on my hands and knees to no avail. So here I am so sad that my fiance left and my earring was gone still. I just sat on the ground bawling my eyes out again. Once I regained my composure I decided I would go and do some laundry at the laundry mat. I just don't think I was able to be in our home alone...we have two animals but it isn't the same. I went in our bedroom to start separating the laundry. for some reason I pulled back our blankets on our bed. Why im really not sure but I am grateful that I did because my lost earring was laying under my pillow. So one issue was resolved. So I went and did our laundry made sure our cat had enough food and water for the night, took our 4lbs pomchi Taco to my fathers house to stay the night and left for Cleveland. The night before they leave for basic they are allowed to go out to dinner with family or friends as long as they were back by curfew. I waited for hours until my fiance was finally at the hotel and then checked in to the hotel. which right from the get go get used to hurry up and wait. It is something that I myself am not good with. So he came out of the hotel and we went to go find something for dinner. Now Cleveland has alot of places to eat at but not alot of parking....it also didn't help that they were filming the avengers right in the same area as where we were trying to find a parking spot. So we ending up parking close to the hotel again after driving around searching for a spot and just walking to the restaurant. After dinner we walked back to the car and then I drove him back to the hotel. I decided to get a room at a hotel not to far from MEPS so that way I could get up early and spend as long as I could with him at MEPS. I watched him take his oath with many other soldiers, airman, coasties, and sailors and was the most proud of him that I could ever be. I held in most of my tears throughout that morning (with only a few breakdowns). When he was told that it was time to go to the airport, I lost it. I literally cried the whoooole way to the airport. I walked in with another airmans family and my fiance asked me if I had been crying...I tried to pull it off and was like umm no....yea apparently the family driving in the car in front of me had already told him that I was bawling the whole way...busted! When we got into the terminal we were notified that we were able to go back with our service member and watch them leave. I was a mess. I pretty much cried the whole time there too. Thank goodness for Schmidt's mom because without her it would have been even more awful. I watched his plane take off and took as many pictures as I could and knew this was the last time I would see him again until BMT graduation in 8.5 weeks.