Bring Your Wife To Work and Wear Matching Flight Suits? Yes Please.

If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen a picture of Parker and me in matching flight suits. Last Friday, Parker's squadron had a spouse day. We had both been looking forward to it for weeks! The wives and significant others got to come to base with our husbands, fly in the simulator, try on their gear, and tour the tower. Oh, and we also got to wear flight suits the entire time. There isn't much more exciting than getting to wear your husband's flight suit around all day! Parker and I both absolutely loved it.

The first thing I did was receive my call sign- Parker had already revealed the name he had chosen, but I still giggled when I saw it written. He gave me the call sign "Moose", and here is the story behind it. When he first heard about spouse day, he called my twin sister to brainstorm potential call signs for my patch. Let me preface this by saying things typically do not go in my favor when those two get together. Danielle suggested Moose because it's a long-running family joke. When I was younger, my mom took us to one of those shops where you get to stuff your own stuffed animal. I saw a moose, and my mom said "Chelsea, that's perfect because you look like a moose!" She swears it was a compliment, but to this day I really don't see how. Nevertheless, Moose it was.

They have this tradition where the wives/significant others bring a pair of heels to wear with the flight suit. I have to be honest, I thought we all looked ridiculous. Thankfully it was just for the picture, and those heels were quickly replaced with comfy shoes. I'm all about the comfy shoes!

Those flight suits are super comfortable! I wouldn't complain too much if I had to wear one of those every day, but after seeing what Parker does on a daily basis, I think I'll leave it to the professionals. I tried my hand at the simulator, and it was not easy! I got to take off from the runway and fly over Kingsville. With extreme guidance from Parker, I managed to do those things semi-okay. He wanted me to practice landing on the boat, which obviously I knew I would not be able to do. I told him to tell me what to do every step of the way and really help me. Two seconds in, I crashed in the ocean. When I asked where my help was, he shook his head and said "There was just nothing I could do for you there". Helpful, but it was neat getting to fly the T-45 in the simulator.

I tried on his G-suit and all of his flight gear next, and they aren't messing around with that stuff! It's pretty heavy duty, but I guess that's a good thing!

This day was just a really neat opportunity to see what Parker does. I have toured the bases we have been on before, but I think the biggest thing this experience gave me was a deeper appreciation for how difficult his profession is. I'm constantly in awe of the things he is able to do...it really is an honor to just get to stand on the sidelines and watch it all happen. This squadron has been great about involving me, and I am so thankful for that. It isn't always that way at all, but getting to see Parker fly last week to experiencing a day in the life this week has been a gift. Hanging with my best friend in matching flight suits was a blast for both of us!