First Reaction When Your DS/DD Decided to Apply?

From the time he was about halfway through 7th grade, all he talked about was applying for and going to USNA. I knew very little about USNA, other than it was in Maryland and they have far more applicants every year than they do spots. My over-riding fear for six years was " What will he do if he doesn't get in? He will be absolutely crushed beyond belief." He is starting his firstie year.
 
@Sandydesert - I have a very similar story. Except mine learned about West Point the summer before starting 9th grade. Once he learned about it, he was laser-focused on his goal. I had the same concern - WP has a single digit level of acceptance so the odds just did not look good to me. I pushed hard for a plan B assuming he'd end up there. He is also a firstie this year as in the end, plan B was never needed. :)
 
@Sandydesert - I have a very similar story. Except mine learned about West Point the summer before starting 9th grade. Once he learned about it, he was laser-focused on his goal. I had the same concern - WP has a single digit level of acceptance so the odds just did not look good to me. I pushed hard for a plan B assuming he'd end up there. He is also a firstie this year as in the end, plan B was never needed. :)

I also told my mid that he needed a Plan B. He basically said " No, I don't. I'm going to make sure I am one of the ones who gets in."
 
I knew our son was considering it in 6th grade. He broke his arm badly in 7th grade, 3 surgeries later it was healed. I will never forget when the surgeon told him the hardware could stay in and do no harm. Our son looked at the Dr. and told him "sir, I am going to attend the USNA, and the hardware has to come out". That meant another surgery with all the risks associated with it. We agreed and he still has the plates and screws in a baggie somewhere. I was proud and excited first, he would be continuing in a long family tradition at Annapolis. But of course, nervous. So few do get in. How do I support him without letting him see my fear for how crushing it will be to him if he doesn't get in? It has been tough. But for years now he has been laser focused and driven on this path. Just did his medical exam yesterday, eye exam tomorrow, BGO was last week. Long road for sure, hopeful for an outcome that will help him achieve his goal of leadership and becoming a USNA mid. And yes, this is an underrated post, great stories for sure.
 
@Sandydesert - I did something that I rarely ever do. I pulled the 'mom card' when he only wanted to apply to WP without a plan B. I insisted on a plan B, C and D. We live in a very competitive state and district, so I knew that the was facing long odds. He was very gracious to not say aloud 'I told you so" when the BFE arrived from WP (but I'm sure he was thinking it. lol).
Two years later I was in conversation with our State Field Force rep and I learned that he had an excellent resume and was at the top of his list for acceptances that year. I never would have guessed. My son was homeschooled so I had very few points for comparison.
 
What a roller coaster ride for me as a parent. Broke my heart during that time. Heard it from my friend the kid wasnt going to use the njrotc appointment or apply for the congressional. Sure we had plan A B C D but All the eggs were put in one basket. It turned up alright but there have been seconds guesses if the decision was the right one. I just give them a door to come back through but with a reminder it is always best to finish the game.
 
As a commissioned officer currently in the AFR, extremely proud when my son expressed interest in applying.
 
Honestly - Upset. Terrified. Confused why he would turn his back on so many other amazing opportunities. Consoled by the near impossible odds for the unhooked kid and counting on the weed out process to take care of it. Once he turned 18, he made it clear this would happen one way or another. If not a SA, then ROTC. He asked for us to respect his decision and support him. With each box checked it becomes more of a reality. I'm trying my best to be supportive but not sure I will ever be excited.
 
Impressed with his ambition. Freshman year:"I want to go to a service academy, mom...Do you think I can do it?" It's a reach son, but if you do what it takes either way you'll win." Now we're senior year and he's done it. For the last 3 years, DS has shown his aptitude, made the sacrifices and not wavered in his goal... I just I wish I believed bigger when he was younger. Even if I didn't express it, in my heart I thought it was out of reach.
 
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Trying --
You might read these older threads, and the Washington Post article I've linked below. You are not the first parent to experience this. Thanks for reaching out.

https://www.serviceacademyforums.com/index.php?threads/whip-sawed-parent.41726/

https://www.serviceacademyforums.co...-in-need-help-supporting-sons-decision.42561/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/arch...4d8-81ff-153ce778c24f/?utm_term=.3106ac16587d
Thank you @Falcon A - I just spent most of my morning reading through the threads and articles linked. I found myself liking posts that are 4 years old. I can relate to many of the parents and their feelings. I have read many threads and many articles here over the past few months but these articles were the right direction at the right time. Once it goes from longshot to likely things change. I appreciate your time in posting.
 
My son announced he wanted to be a helicopter pilot in the Coast Guard at the age of 3. He never wavered. We moved to the US 8 years ago and he learned about the Coast Guard Academy about 5 years ago. he received his appointment to CGAS just before Christmas. We couldn't be happier or more proud!
 
When my son was little he was an incredible Wrestler. When he was 6 years old he was struggling with an opponent- something he was not used to. As I watched mat side I could hear his Coach, who is a Desert Storm Combat Vet and was a State Policeman at the time, coaching him up between periods.
Coach says- "What do you want to be when you grow up?" DS says- "I'm going to be in the Coast Guard." The Coach was thrown off by this quick and very specific response but quickly gathered himself and said- "Well, if your going to be in the Coast Guard, you are going to need to be.......*insert Leadership Qualities*." It was the first time I EVER heard this from him and he had never discussed it with me. We are a landlocked state with no interaction with the USCG. I think, MAYBE he saw Coast Guard Alaska on TV and it stuck but I cannot confirm that. Anyway.......from that day on he never waivered. I did a little homework for him when he was in eight grade and told him about CGA and he took it from there. He dipped his toe in the USMA but pulled his app after a CFAD. On the otherside of the coin- sent a pic with the word "Home" from his CGA Overnight. He knows what he wants, has wanted it his whole life and knows what he is getting into. We are beyond proud but are playing catch up learning as much about the Coast Guard as we can and loving every minute of it. We are very happy, very supportive and beyond proud.....and, being a DIII School- FOOTBALL!
 
DD's application/appointment wasn't the culmination of a long term drive toward attending the USNA. She'd made application to the USNA along with a number of other top tier schools that represented competing "plan As". The moment for me was the evening she walked into my office to tell me she had decided to attend Navy. I felt pride.

Not pride related to her willingness to serve her country, pride in her decision to take "a road less traveled by". There were amazing schools on her list and everybody--EVERBODY! teachers, friends, parents of friends, relatives all thought that she'd be nuts not to go Ivy. She was unsure till the end, but she followed her heart to join the Mids that she'd found to be "special" on a recruiting trip out to USNA. It was the biggest decision she'd ever made and she elected to buck the common wisdom to follow her own calling. I am very proud of that.
 
At the beginning of DS's sophmore year in high school, he was fronting a rock band on guitar/keys and had hair down to his shoulders. He was really good, too! He was an A-B student and heavily involved in Scouting. Then his best friend died of cancer - from diagnosis to the end in two months. He and his friend were military history aficionados - very geeky interests for inner city kids. DS talked to him every evening for over an hour on the phone when he was in the hospital. He doesn't speak about it but he very much internalize it. He got a hair cut, began to work out, joined the wrestling team, and never had another B - all within a span of two months. While visiting my mother-in-law in DC the fall of his junior year, my wife took him to Annapolis and he had a candidate tour of the Yard. My wife watched him grow two inches that day. The person doing the admissions brief took my wife aside and said, "This is where he belongs" (not kidding). It is where he belongs. We couldn't imagine him anywhere else. He never said, "That's where I'm going." He didn't have to.
 
Time to refresh this justly-famed thread with new stuff, “Your Son Or Daughter Goes Where?”:

Your son/daughter goes where???
 
Time to refresh this justly-famed thread with new stuff, “Your Son Or Daughter Goes Where?”:

Your son/daughter goes where???

One of my favorite threads.....
 
I won't tell my son's story again but he attended five colleges and finally graduated from a mid-ranked state school. He has several thousand dollars worth of tattoos, has an outward disregard for incompetent senior officers, destroys incompetent junior officers, and loves enlisted men like family. Fortunately he claims the second most influential general in the Marine Corps as his sea daddy. Today he drove three hours back to the badlands of San Mateo to see family as he indeed calls them. He briefly assumed command of his old company to promote two warriors. They also paid respect to fallen Marines.
 

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