Corpus Christi

Howdy Y'all!

We are reporting live from Corpus Christi, TX!  

It's official... The Navy does things just a tad differently than they Air Force... :0)  I am super thankful to be an Air Force wife right now.

Jeff and I pulled in to Corpus Christi on Friday May 1 at about 1300. After two days of driving with two dogs and a car trailer, we were ALL excited to see the on-base 30mph signs... 

We got a house as soon as we got here.  We decided to go ahead and live on base simply for convenience sake...  the house is about 950 sq. ft., two-stories, two bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms.  We are loving the wide open floor plan downstairs.  We even have a fenced backyard already! All of the houses in our neighborhood have fenced in yards.  We are living on the same street as at least 3 other guys/families from Columbus.  :0)

Our neighbors are super friendly.  

Enough chit chat.... Here are some pictures!

So far...

Hola again,

Since the last update, we've packed up the guest room, pulled all of the hangings off of the walls, patched holes and boxed up the garage/storage, linen/hall closet, coat closet, and even some of our clothes... :0) 

We are getting ready to throw a nice coat of primer up on all of the walls that I've splashed with our own personality... It has finally settled in my heart that this is what we're doing.  The most important thing for me to do right now is to trust in God's plan for us and to be supportive of my husband.  My teachers at school are allowing me to take my Finals almost two weeks earlier than the rest of my classmates.  I am SO thankful for that.  It's one less thing I have to concern myself with.  As it is now, Jeff and I have been surfing the web trying to decide whether renting a house off base is a good idea at this assignment.  We're praying about it and hoping to have a blatant sign from God pointing us in the right direction.  Last night, we did a devotional and the topic was stress! WOW! That was exactly what we needed to talk about! God didn't create us to be storage bins of stress and drama.  I am so thankful for that.  He is so good!

We spent Easter with some of our dearest compadres.  It's so awesome to have such fantastic people in our lives.  Megan Riggs and Jason, her hubby, threw together a beautiful meal with Easter Ham and all of the wonderful fixings to go with it! I'm pretty sure I ate enough food to last me the week! :0)

Jeff's not been doing too much as far as work is related.  It's taking absolutely FOREVER to get his orders for the move and Corpus, etc. Hopefully he will have them by Friday so that we can get this ball rolling!  He has offered to take care of everything for us while I'm finishing up school. I am so blessed! He's been having fun reading tons of books and planning our move, cooking dinner and making lists. :0)

Today, to take a break from the house, we drove the dogs out to SAC lake.  It's an area on base here at the end of the runways that has a lake a picnic benches. It's so totally gorgeous out there. It makes you feel like you're at like a nature reserve or something of the sort.  I was worried that the dogs would book it, leaving us scratching our heads wondering what to do next... But they were awesome! They had such a blast!

They even went IN the water!! I was shocked! Here are some pictures from our day... Hope y'all enjoy them.  As usual, we miss all of you not here in the 'sip with us. Please continue to keep the Copelands in your prayers! XOXO

30March2009-4April2009

Jeff turned 26 on Saturday! We started the day with opening presents from his parents and me. It was totally awesome! He doesn't enjoy celebrating his birthday as much as his loved ones do so he was a great sport! After presents and breakfast we jumped in the car and headed to Tuscaloosa for the Air Show. What fun it was! When we got home, Jeff blew out the candles on his Wifey-Made Acoustic Guitar Cake. :0)

This is a picture of the two of us on Track Select night. The news is that Jeff got T-44s to Corpus Christi, TX. This was his first choice! We are very excited and have to be there in three weeks. School is just about finished up for me so I will be taking my finals the week or so before we hit the road. I will keep everyone posted on dates and such.

This is a bittersweet chapter for us.  I am sad that we are leaving Columbus so soon.  We've really made some lasting relationships here and I know that we will do our best to keep in contact with our wonderful friends here in Mississippi.

This is the T-6 Texan II that Jeff just completed training in.

Just about everyone knows that there isn't a whole lot to do around Columbus, MS.  If you're into to big malls and shopping... this is not the place to live... r visit for that matter. :0) SO, for some fantastic entertainment value, I volunteered Jeff's mom, Susan, and I, to dress up for the Annual Columbus Pilgrimage.  We gave tours of certain spots at a certain location. It was quite an experience. :0)

I will start on the note that I am not much of a blogger... I am taking this opportunity to attempt keeping our friends and dear family current on the goings on of Jeff and Caitlin Copeland.  

Jeff started Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training (SUPT)  in September '08. Since then he has completed Phase I which is purely academics and 'physiology'. Phase II began in late October and this was the time that all of the books got to be put to use finally. After a 'dollar-ride' in the T-6 Texan II, the intensity began.  Shortly after, Jeff was flying formation and now he is 'T-6 Complete'. This is a huge milestone! On 01 April, we'll find out what trainer plane Jeff will fly next. The top of this list has a T-44 Pegasus which is a trainer that the Navy uses and we will have to move to Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, TX to complete the rest of SUPT. His next two choices are the T-38 which would continue his training on the fighter plane track, or the T-1, which would send his training in a heavy/cargo plane direction. 

So needless to say, this will be a very big night for us. Thankfully, Jeff's Mom and Dad, Win and Susan, will be able to spend the week with us! We can't wait to have them.  It's been a long time since Christmas and it will be great to have the support of family.

This semester is almost done for me now, at East Mississippi Community College. I feel like my Associates is just around the corner! Spring break just ended and I'm eager to tackle the next and the last five weeks of school. 

Dax and Penny are, as usual, keeping the two of us very entertained. They are absolute nuts!

We've been so blessed to be in Columbus, MS.  God has brought so many wonderful friends into our lives and He always knows just what we need, when we need it. We are so thankful!

As par, we are always ready for visitors! We miss and love everyone!