Sooo Close!!!

So as everyone knows, Eric completed his Carrier Qualifications this past weekend in Key West onboard the George H.W. Bush carrier. He went to the boat on Friday and had 4 traps that day and completed on Saturday morning with 6 more traps (the 10 traps needed). The first day he was told by his LSO that he seemed nervous but he came back the next day and knocked them dead! He did take several pictures and he's posted those to his facebook account but I'll get with him to see about adding them to our shutterfly account as well.
So, now that the Carrier Quals are taken care of and out of the way it's time to plan for the winging!!!! Sorry for waiting so long for this post but we're actually going through this winging with Alison and Ben VanWingerden and wanted to know a little more about the process prior to posting. Ben and three other Marines had their selection yesterday and all 4 of them got Hornets! That's awesome because apparently that never happens but that could be good or bad for Eric. Supposedly the gouge is (from a friend who's flying Harriers) that the Harrier spots are full up for this fiscal year. Not sure how much truth that holds or for how long but that may be why they're giving away Hornet slots! Lets just hope there's plenty more to go around between this winging class, the winging class in Kingsville, TX, and then Eric's winging class on March 30th. The good thing is that they try and make sure that everyone knows what they'll be flying prior to the actual winging ceremony so everyone should know prior to their trip down here.
As far as the trip down here:
We went by and set up reservations at the hotel on base (The Gateway). We've set up 5 two-bedroom suites (for Eric's crew) and 2 1-bedroom suites (for my crew).

Now that we've told you were you'll be staying I guess I should address the length of time. So the news now is that we WILL NOT be going to New Orleans afterwards. Two reasons that brought about that decision is the first is that a lot of people wouldn't be joining us in New Orleans and our main point is we want to spend as much time with family as possible. Also we've learned that there is typically a meeting with the wingee's on the first weekday after the ceremony to discuss start dates and orders. Obviously that means that Eric needs to be available if that's the case with Eric's crew.
The new plan now is that everyone will be travelling in on Thursday night and meet up at our house. We'll have already checked everyone into the hotel and have keys and room numbers available with us. We figured it would be easier to have everyone meet here and then travel up to base as opposed to sending family up and going through the gate/security in smaller groups. Depending on the arrival time we can decide on dinner or just rest and relax in the rooms for the night.
Friday will be a busy and long day. Family day typically starts around 10 or 11 AM and allows everyone to head to the flight line and get a tour of the hanger and see some jets land and take off. I'll be bringing a picnic lunch for everyone and we can enjoy our lunch on the flight line in all the action. After lunch we'll head back to the Gateway Inn and everyone can get freshened up for the actual Winging Ceremony.
The Winging Ceremony will be held at the Chapel on base (less than 1/2 a mile from the hotel) at about 1 or 2 PM. The Ceremony itself only lasts about 30 minutes to an hour and we'll be doing pictures afterwards. I've already warned Eric that he'll be in TONS of pictures so put in your request now and we'll make sure everyone gets their photos they want!!!! After the Ceremony we can head back to the hotel and relax a bit because it'll be a long night at the winging party.
As of now they're discussing doing the winging party at Dalewood Lake (which is about 12 miles from base). The winging party should start around dinner time and they're talking about having a good selection of food. There will also be designated duty drivers there as well so feel free to enjoy yourself and you can be driven back to base FREE at any time.
Since we've decided that we're not headed out to New Orleans on Saturday that will be our day that we can relax, enjoy, and recover. The daytime activities haven't been planned yet and we're up for suggestions because well....there's not much to choose from. That night we're planning on doing a Bar-B-Que style dinner at the house. We were talking about burgers and brats but Captain Dylan may be treating us with a Texas style Brisket. We planned on relaxing around our little fire pit in our backyard and cooking up some s'mores. We figured everyone would be heading back home on Sunday and we'll most likely start packing for our move. Not sure where we'll be moving but we will be out of Meridian soon!
So a quick recap, we have hotels saved for Thursday night, Friday night, Saturday night, and check out on Sunday. If anyone needs any modifications to that (whether longer/shorter or additional rooms) let me know.
So.....there are the main plans for the upcoming winging and I'm getting so excited that it's getting closer!!!!
We love you all and can not wait to see you in about a month!!!!!!