Fore! In SD
Husband and I have lots of big news to share.
No we are not pregnant 🙂 (<– don’t you love how that’s the first thing everyone assumes?)
A few weeks ago while we were moving Husband received a call letting him know that he was selected as the Grand Prize winner for the Knob Creek golf giveaway. Meaning, he won an all expenses paid trip for four to Pebble Beach, CA, eight rounds of golf, Titleist golf clubs, American Express gift cards and awesome Knob Creek gear.
Thus the golf lessons and near-daily need to hit a few balls into the pasture. We are going to California folks! I didn’t know people actually won these sweepstakes!
And neither of us know how to golf.
So we of course need new golfing gear and some kickin’ lessons so that we can look uber chic and somewhat knowledgeable while we’re out there with the celebs 🙂
Our other big news came last Friday. We got our assignment for the Air Force.
Drumroll please…
We are going to Ellsworth, South Dakota.
Ba dum cchhh….
When the call came in we were at the Apple Festival about to partake in some fried apple pies. Husband sat on the phone waving me off as if I was an annoying fly and I bit my nails in anticipation. When he wrote #4 on his piece of paper I nearly jumped out of my sandals knowing that #4 on our list was Cambridge. Tea and crumpets here we come! Finally tired of my nagging and pleading looks Husband walked off by himself to complete the phone call. It wasn’t until a few minutes later that he informed me we did not have two choices as we had been previously told and that our assignment (should we choose to take it) was Ellsworth, South Dakota. The #4 was stating that Ellsworth was the #4 base for litigation which is Husband’s preferred area of law.
I know you are all probably wondering how I really feel about this assignment. Honestly I spent the rest of the afternoon crying. Big elephant tears actually. It just didn’t seem fair to me. We are very truly grateful to even have jobs at the moment and I know that no matter where we are stationed it will be an experience and we will be together and that’s what matters, but in my mind all I could think was that the big “pro” to going with the air force was the opportunity to go to some really cool places and South Dakota did not rank on even my top 50 cool places.. We are giving up being with our families, accepting the possible deployment, I mean we are even letting go of Husband’s beard!!!
So yes, in a nutshell I was slightly devastated.
But then I found this website. And talked to a lady who had lived near there. And I spent the weekend wrapping my head around it. And today I am feeling pretty optimistic about it. It IS a very beautiful part of the country. Full of wildlife and a darling historic downtown. We won’t be enjoying a nice loaf of fresh baked bread with fresh handmade Italian pastrami, but we will enjoy local elk and buffalo grilled to perfection. We won’t be skiing the mountains of Italy but we will be hitting the slopes of the Black Hills. And while I won’t be donning delicate Italian made shoes (that who are we kidding would just hurt my feet anyway) I will wear my pac boots and explore the breathtaking countryside, side by side with Husband and the dogs and we will make the best of what we are being given.
Everything in our lives for the past four years has led us to this exact point. We believe with every inch of our hearts that this is the direction we are meant to take. And while we don’t understand it, and believe me were hoping for something totally different, we have to accept that God has put us here for a reason and if we let it, it can be awesome.
