LOA

Our DS received his LOA letter last week and our Senator called him at school to congratulate him on his nomination. It’s been a happy few days in our house, but our DS knows that the true celebration doesn’t start until he receives a BFE!

So there’s a lot of “celebrations” but it’s really never ending in terms of the unknown.

We celebrated DD’s LOA to USMA briefly. We then celebrated her appointments first to USAFA in early Dec then followed by USNA (mid-Jan) and USMA (a day or so later).

You’ll celebrate the BFE but then you’ll always wonder if something will happen between then and R-day to cause a medical DQ. You’ll want to bubble wrap the kiddo but then you’ll think the kiddo deserves to live a normal HS senior life.

You’ll celebrate R-day but that’s an emotionally roller coaster day. You’ll celebrate getting thru those first couple of days but then you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru Beast.

You’ll celebrate the kiddo getting thru the 1/2 way point of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru ok during the Camp Buckner phase.

You’ll celebrate the end of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll do ok with the 19 credit hours the kiddo will be taking when a normal college load is 15 credits. I guess there’s no doubt they’ll do ok BUT the difference is will the kiddo be ok not being the rock star anymore while being surrounded by equally (if not more) motivated kids - hundreds of them.

My point is congrats on the first of many celebrations. You’ll experience much more but that also comes with unknowns about the next milestone.
 
So there’s a lot of “celebrations” but it’s really never ending in terms of the unknown.

We celebrated DD’s LOA to USMA briefly. We then celebrated her appointments first to USAFA in early Dec then followed by USNA (mid-Jan) and USMA (a day or so later).

You’ll celebrate the BFE but then you’ll always wonder if something will happen between then and R-day to cause a medical DQ. You’ll want to bubble wrap the kiddo but then you’ll think the kiddo deserves to live a normal HS senior life.

You’ll celebrate R-day but that’s an emotionally roller coaster day. You’ll celebrate getting thru those first couple of days but then you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru Beast.

You’ll celebrate the kiddo getting thru the 1/2 way point of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru ok during the Camp Buckner phase.

You’ll celebrate the end of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll do ok with the 19 credit hours the kiddo will be taking when a normal college load is 15 credits. I guess there’s no doubt they’ll do ok BUT the difference is will the kiddo be ok not being the rock star anymore while being surrounded by equally (if not more) motivated kids - hundreds of them.

My point is congrats on the first of many celebrations. You’ll experience much more but that also comes with unknowns about the next milestone.

This reminds me of "If you Give a Mouse a Cookie" if anyone wants to add some wistful nostalgia.

Also reminds me of "I'll be so glad when the waiting for SLE is over... I'll be so glad once injury is healed... I'll be so glad once the portal opens... I'll be so glad once essays are done... I'll be so glad once nomination packets are finished... I'll be so glad when interviews are over..." That's where we are now. Good perspective above that it's never really over no matter what the outcome!
 
This is certainly a wild ride that I never expected to be on with my DS. He is applying for the class of 2024. But this is his dream, so we support him in the ways we can. I am thankful for the people who provide wisdom on this forum. Thank you for taking the time out of your lives to support future military men and women.
 
So there’s a lot of “celebrations” but it’s really never ending in terms of the unknown.

We celebrated DD’s LOA to USMA briefly. We then celebrated her appointments first to USAFA in early Dec then followed by USNA (mid-Jan) and USMA (a day or so later).

You’ll celebrate the BFE but then you’ll always wonder if something will happen between then and R-day to cause a medical DQ. You’ll want to bubble wrap the kiddo but then you’ll think the kiddo deserves to live a normal HS senior life.

You’ll celebrate R-day but that’s an emotionally roller coaster day. You’ll celebrate getting thru those first couple of days but then you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru Beast.

You’ll celebrate the kiddo getting thru the 1/2 way point of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru ok during the Camp Buckner phase.

You’ll celebrate the end of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll do ok with the 19 credit hours the kiddo will be taking when a normal college load is 15 credits. I guess there’s no doubt they’ll do ok BUT the difference is will the kiddo be ok not being the rock star anymore while being surrounded by equally (if not more) motivated kids - hundreds of them.

My point is congrats on the first of many celebrations. You’ll experience much more but that also comes with unknowns about the next milestone.

...and then the “yes, they CAN do it “ that comes the second year. At least for me. It’s a whole different feeling the second from the first year!! Maybe it’s because stuff isn’t ‘new’ or unknown anymore. For the most part.
 
Our DS just called from school beyond excited!! He sent us a screen shot of his portal...

CONGRATULATIONS!
You have been offered
Admission to West Point!

The link to your acceptance form
can be found on the left side
of your Overview page.

Looking for some advise, as this is all new to us. Is this the same as the BFE?
 
Our DS just called from school beyond excited!! He sent us a screen shot of his portal...

CONGRATULATIONS!
You have been offered
Admission to West Point!

The link to your acceptance form
can be found on the left side
of your Overview page.

Looking for some advise, as this is all new to us. Is this the same as the BFE?
Congratulations! So great to get this news (and confirmation) early! I think the BFE won't come until they are sent out in bulk/waves (first wave in January) if what I remember reading is correct.
 
Our DS just called from school beyond excited!! He sent us a screen shot of his portal...

CONGRATULATIONS!
You have been offered
Admission to West Point!

The link to your acceptance form
can be found on the left side
of your Overview page.

Looking for some advice, as this is all new to us. Is this the same as the BFE?

Yes. This means that you can make plans to be there for R-Day. That's a long time to wait, but plenty of time to prepare.
I don't see that they have set the date as yet, but R-Day this past Summer was July 1st (a Monday). That same Monday in 2020 would be June 29th.
230 days. :)
 
Wow...congratulations! Now you get to relax a bit and enjoy the season. Keep in mind though, there is still additional paperworks after accepting the offer of appointment.
 
So there’s a lot of “celebrations” but it’s really never ending in terms of the unknown.

We celebrated DD’s LOA to USMA briefly. We then celebrated her appointments first to USAFA in early Dec then followed by USNA (mid-Jan) and USMA (a day or so later).

You’ll celebrate the BFE but then you’ll always wonder if something will happen between then and R-day to cause a medical DQ. You’ll want to bubble wrap the kiddo but then you’ll think the kiddo deserves to live a normal HS senior life.

You’ll celebrate R-day but that’s an emotionally roller coaster day. You’ll celebrate getting thru those first couple of days but then you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru Beast.

You’ll celebrate the kiddo getting thru the 1/2 way point of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll get thru ok during the Camp Buckner phase.

You’ll celebrate the end of Beast but you’ll wonder if they’ll do ok with the 19 credit hours the kiddo will be taking when a normal college load is 15 credits. I guess there’s no doubt they’ll do ok BUT the difference is will the kiddo be ok not being the rock star anymore while being surrounded by equally (if not more) motivated kids - hundreds of them.

My point is congrats on the first of many celebrations. You’ll experience much more but that also comes with unknowns about the next milestone.
So much truth in this! Each and every move forward is reason to celebrate!
 
Our DS just called from school beyond excited!! He sent us a screen shot of his portal...

CONGRATULATIONS!
You have been offered
Admission to West Point!

The link to your acceptance form
can be found on the left side
of your Overview page.

Looking for some advise, as this is all new to us. Is this the same as the BFE?

Call to action - the USMA Class of 2024 Appointment thread was just started today here in the USMA forum. Jump on over there and post! Co granulation.
 
Here's a question for parents on this thread and the never-ending cycle of angst / celebration. DS is my second. I have a DD who's a soph at a civilian school, good, well-respected public university.
If DS goes to USMA or AROTC, I'll worry about which branch and where he would be stationed and obviously safety. He'll be in the Army for a minimum of 5 years. So that's 9 years from now at the least when he's out of the Army.
With DD, an Econ major, when she graduates in 2 years, no idea what her career will be. I've taken the last 5 months off from worrying about her to worry about DS's USMA process, but starting to get back to that splinter in my brain.
So for those with kids going the civilian route AND the military route, whom do you worry about more?
Studies have shown that when adjusting for factors such as health, income, job satisfaction, friends...biggest contributor to someone's stress is whether they have kids. I'm sure many of you can relate lol.
 
Here's a question for parents on this thread and the never-ending cycle of angst / celebration. DS is my second. I have a DD who's a soph at a civilian school, good, well-respected public university.
If DS goes to USMA or AROTC, I'll worry about which branch and where he would be stationed and obviously safety. He'll be in the Army for a minimum of 5 years. So that's 9 years from now at the least when he's out of the Army.
With DD, an Econ major, when she graduates in 2 years, no idea what her career will be. I've taken the last 5 months off from worrying about her to worry about DS's USMA process, but starting to get back to that splinter in my brain.
So for those with kids going the civilian route AND the military route, whom do you worry about more?
Studies have shown that when adjusting for factors such as health, income, job satisfaction, friends...biggest contributor to someone's stress is whether they have kids. I'm sure many of you can relate lol.
My advice...keep the worrying to a minimum if possible. You know you've bought them up right. It follows that they will make good career decisions!
 
My DD is graduating this year in psychology on deans list, is seriously dating a fantastic boyfriend, works full time, and is preparing for graduate school.

My DS loves USNA and is doing very well academically his plebe year.

I worry about them the same (nothing more than any parent worries)... I am very proud of both of them equally and will support both of them any way I can in the future.
Very fortunate how they both turned out.
 
We have regular college kids and SA kid(s) in our family...Furthermore, I can tell you that I could qualify for professional status as a worrier (and not in a good way).

Here's the way I see it.

You're likely going to worry more about your military kid no matter what. It's just a different world in the military. But as I've tried to explain to my wife (I'm a veteran and she's not), the military (and the academy's) take care of their own, so you probably don't need to be worried about the stuff you think you do. Obviously, if your DS gets commissioned and serves on active duty (and especially if he's branched combat arms), then there are obvious inherent dangers associated with that. But really, take a look at some of the recent tragedies with college students at regular civilian colleges and decide which you could handle better as a parent? Your kid being in danger serving his country or hanging out in a frat house?
 
@TexasAggie204 I've had the same thoughts about civilian colleges vs. military.
I'm talking less about accidents vs. just navigating life these days. There's a 9 year path for a plebe, even if it has its own twists and turns. Walking around her campus I was thinking wow, she needs to start making some serious decisions! But agreed, you raise them best you can and hope they make the right ones.
 
IMHO - "navigating" might actually be easier for the SA kids than the civilian college kids. From our experience, sometimes finding that first job out of a good school may not be as easy as you might think. At least the SA kids know where they are going post-college. From my personal experience, there's less anxiety just knowing your going to serve and that most of your decisions (where your living, what job will you do, etc.), will be made for you - like it or not.
 
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