Why Boot Camp?

Why am I calling this blog Domestic Boot Camp? First of all, accidentalhousewife.blogspot.com was already taken. By someone who then calls her blog "Accidental Poet", but oh well.

Well then, on to other reasons for the name. One is that the Army is part of how I got here-- my husband is an Army civilian, which led to our relocation to Memphis, which was a factor in getting to my current housewife status. Also, boot camp is supposed to be a dedicated time when people undergo a transformation from single individual to part of a unit.

This is what I think I missed in the first year of marriage-- we had the wedding and then just went right back to life as it was before. In some ways that was good; neither of us expected the wedding to magically change our lives. But I don't think I took the time to really make the full adjustment. In the first 12 months of our marriage, we spent about 8 of them apart. During that time I mostly focused on me, and getting through that time. And then when we were finally together I was still focusing on me, trying to adjust to a new town and a new job, but completely taking my husband for granted. I was exhausted and unhappy and realized I was being a horrible wife.

So am I going to be yelling at myself and running endless drills? Not remotely. But I want to use the boot camp spirit of transformation and becoming part of something bigger than myself. And I do want to practice the "basics" enough that they become habit, so that when I am under stress I will be able to manage better.

I've known for a long time that I am not cut out for military service... I always said, "The day our country has to rely on me like that is the day we're in big trouble." But I hope I can get to the point where my husband (and later our kids) can rely on me, and I'll be able to be the person they need me to be.