Plans Shmans

So now that we have less than a year to go before we leave Virginia, the time has come to figure out exactly what our plans are. I've had many people asking where we are going, but I haven't been able to answer as yet. Clark's three year commitment to the Navy ends in June, and although they tried to get Clark to stay in by promising him that they'd assign him to the dental clinic in Clark's hometown of Fallon, Nevada, we decided that our time in the Navy will not continue past June. If Clark decided to stay in he'd have to take a two year assignment to Fallon, and although it would be nice in many ways, the military is pretty famous for making promises to get you to stay in and then doing whatever they want with you (as in, "Oh, it's very unlikely you'll ever be assigned to a ship. Only the guys who really want to be on ships do that. Bwaa ha ha ha!")

So with that decision behind us, we now just need to decide where we are going and what we are doing. No biggie, right? The main thing that is making this very difficult is that Clark's ship is deploying mid-February for a 6-7 month deployment. For him it will be a four month deployment since they will need to fly him home early so that he can separate in June. The lease on our house is also up in June. So we need to have all our job and housing arrangements squared away by February when Clark will become reachable only by email. We have some possibilities--and Clark has started looking at all of his options. Opening up his own practice or buying into one wouldn't really be an option at this point. He's started looking in the Boise area a bit and also in Reno. We're hoping to find someplace that will be willing to sign him up before he leaves so we aren't scrambling once he gets home in June!

So that was kind of long! I guess that's why it's so hard for me to answer the, "Do you know where you are going?" question. The short answer is, "Nope, not yet." I'm excited that the whole Navy experience will be coming to a close. There have been some great perks, but all in all, it's been pretty tough on Clark and the family. We've been blessed with a really great, supportive church ward and some really good friends that I'm sure we'll keep forever! Thanks to all of you long-distance friends and family who have thought of us and kept us in your prayers! We really have been blessed. And if you know of any really great dental opportunities out West that you think would be worth looking into shoot Clark or me and email!