On Monday, October 27 Nicole called to check in with her recruiter. She was told she had 2 1/2 hours to say her goodbye's and report to the recruiting office, she was leaving for basic training. That is just like the military, little to no warning. So, she said good bye to Dad, Grandma and Grandpa Schmidt and went to Rachel, Ally, and Jordan's schools to say good bye. (all three of them are in different schools) She then traveled approx. 45 miles to find me at work. Needless to say, I thought she was joking, but quickly realized she was really leaving. At this point I was in shock. I went to the recruiters office with her, then I followed her to the Milwaukee MEPS. (The MEPS is where they process new recruits) On Monday afternoon, we walked around downtown Milwaukee trying to find a store that sold cheap clothes, since all I had with me were the clothes I wore to work. I needed cheap because I had very little cash on hand and I didn't have my ATM card with me. (the one day I forget to make sure I have it) We went to bed pretty early, since her wake up call was for 4:00 a.m. I don't miss those days. We woke up at 4:00 a.m. got cleaned up, and headed to the hotel lobby to await the bus that would take the recruits to the MEPS. I followed the bus to the MEPS building. I did a lot of sitting and waiting (again, the military way---hurry up and wait) At 11:30 Nicole was sworn in. After that she had a travel briefing. She was given her orders and off to the airport. She was the only recruit going to Parris Island South Carolina from the Milwaukee MEPS. We had about 2 hours before her plan took off. She spent most of that time getting in some last minute phone time and texting. She will not be allowed to text message anyone for a minimum of 13 weeks. Her phone calls will be very few and far between. We were told not to expect a phone call for at least 3 weeks. As I am writing this I still do not have her mailing address. Please keep Nicole in your thoughts.
