Time is FLYING! We are now 12 days out from my marathon and 13 days out from J's report date!! Luckily for us, we got SO MUCH done this weekend! It actually started on Friday. We were both GLUED to the CHP Academy's Facebook page where they shared some special moments of CTC II-16's graduating class! (CONGRATS ON GRADUATION OFFICERS). Watching those videos made me tear up and become super excited to hopefully one day be standing where those families are standing, witnessing J receive his badge. All I can do now is support J and make sure he is doing everything he needs to be doing!
Saturday was a looooonnnggg and emotional day for us as coaches. We had to be at our CIF (County Championship) race by 5:30am to help set up the course then get in coaching mode to get our athlete's ready for their biggest race of the season. Our kids poured everything they had out on the course that day, and as a coach, that is all we ever ask for. Unfortunately, none of our boys qualified for state, but we are still so proud of them and EVERYTHING they've accomplished this season. Our girls team, on the other hand, performed so well! As a team, they finished 5th, and we had our 1st ever girl qualify for state! Luckily for us, our coaching career got extended another week 😉. After attending awards ceremonies and cleaning up the course, we had to rush home and get cleaned up and prepare for our team banquet. This was by far the most emotional banquet I have ever been to. We were so overwhelmed by the amount of love and support we were receiving from our athletes and families. Some of our athletes know about this journey J and I are going on and they all wished us nothing but luck. It was a tear filled night, but we are so grateful knowing that we have that many supporters in our corner 💚
Sunday was our "Academy preparation day" haha. It started with the one thing I was dreading the most... buzzing J's head. Now don't get me wrong, J's had his head buzzed before, I've just been used to the hair style he has, well had, now. We went out to his backyard, and he handed me the clippers. He said "You should do it. Might as well practice since I'll need your help doing this every weekend". I must admit, it was pretty fun. Here are some before & after pictures so you can see what I'm talking about. 😝
After the dramatic make-over, we went to target to pick up a few more supplies. Shirts, socks, tide pens, a sewing kit, a duster and more shoe polish. There are a few more things J has to get, but I'm pretty sure we've gotten the main things. Now, we're just focusing on packing up everything we need for our respective moves and spending as much time as we can together.
13 days to go!!!
💚AJ
Holy cow... time flies; I swear it was just yesterday that J got his invitation! We officially have 20 days until my marathon in Sacramento and 21 days until J has to report to the academy- and we still have SO much to do. Our last cross country season is slowly coming to a close, however we still have some kids competing. Not to mention setting up their banquet, collecting uniforms, etc. In addition to that J and I still have to pack up what we're taking with us and whats going to go in storage and purchase whatever else he'll need at the academy. Luckily for the both of us, we only have a couple days of work left so I'm sure we can get everything done in time!
I can't express into words just how proud of J I am and how excited I am to go on this new life changing journey with him. He really has worked his butt off and I KNOW that same attitude and determination will continue once he's there. Yesterday we practically spent the whole day together running errands, watching football, and hanging out. Towards the end of the night, he started to sort through his things and separate what he was taking and what he was leaving behind. He found his file of CHP paperwork and found his very first "acceptance letter"- the one he received after passing his Physical Abilities Test and granting him entrance into the Written Exam. It was pretty cool to see it and think of how far he's come from that. In that same pile, he found a planner that I bought for him- originally it was supposed to be used as his running journal but I think we decided it will be more useful to J if he could write down test dates, PT days, etc ;). As we were looking through the dates, I just laid my head on his shoulder, gave him a hug and started tearing up. I think it was FINALLY setting in that all of this is really happening (or maybe it was the Luke Bryan song we were listening to, who knows). After almost a year and half of "I hope I get accepted", "What do we do if you don't", etc. it is such a relief to know that now we are moving in the right direction!
21 DAYS EVERYONE!
♥AJ
On November 2, 2016, right around noon, J received his invitation to the CHP Academy! We were confident/ hopeful that he would get in, but getting that email was just icing on the cake! While at work, I just kept looking at the date on the calendar thinking to myself "God I hope he hears from them soon". During our lunch, he came to say hi and we chatted for a couple minutes. Before he left to go grab some food, he said "Oh yeah, look at this email a parent sent me" and handed me his phone. I started to read it, thinking it would be an email from a parent complaining about something, and then realized it said:
CONGRATULATIONS!
You have been selected to report to the California Highway Patrol (CHP) Academy for Cadet, CHP, training.
I looked at him, and then out came the water works! I was just so happy, excited and proud of him! He has worked so hard this past year and half and it felt great to see all his work paying off! I cried, hugged him, and cried some more when some co-workers/ friends came in and started yelling and cheering (J couldn't hold it in, so he told them on his way to see me). After wiping my eyes, we started face-timing my family, calling and texting our friends and loved ones, sharing the amazing news with them. It was so heart warming to see/hear them all talking about how deserving J was for this opportunity and how happy they are for him and us. Later that night, we went out to celebrate with some much deserving pizza & beer with his family and my uncle (the CHP officer who recruited him ;) ). We wanted to pick his and his wife's brains about what to expect and how to cope with the stresses we know will be taking place. We're so fortunate to have such an amazing support system behind us that I know we will do just fine and can handle whatever gets thrown at us.
So for now, until J's report date, we plan on spending as much time as possible together, getting everything he needs, and packing up what I need so I can move closer to the academy to support him on his liberty days :)
I decided to include J's timeline so you can see just how strenuous and intense the application process is just for an opportunity to get accepted into the academy. Enjoy!
June 2015 - Attended Informational Seminar
July 6th, 2015 - Submitted Online Application
Aug. 17th, 2015 - Mock Physical Abilities Test & Written Test Workshop
Sept. 26th, 2015 - Physical Abilities Test
Sept. 27th, 2015 - Written Test
Oct. 13th, 2015 - Received Test Results
Dec. 9th, 2015 - Contacted by Backgrounds Unit to complete Personal History Statement (PHS)
Dec. 21st, 2015 - Submitted PHS & several other documents
Feb. 10th, 2016 - Background Investigation Orientation
Feb. 23rd - Initial Background Interview
Mar. 8th - Academy Preparation Workshop
May 26th - Computer Voice Stress Analysis
Aug. 15th - Final Interview & Written Psych Test
Aug. 20th - Ride Along with CHP Officer
Aug. 29th - Medical Exam
Sept. 24th- J PROPOSED
Oct. 19th- Oral Psych Test
Nov. 2nd- ACADEMY INVITATION
Hi all!!! You can call me AJ and this winter my fiance and I will be embarking on a new and exciting adventure! I originally wanted to start this blog as a way to help me keep my sanity but decided it can also be used to keep friends and loved ones in the loop. My fiance, "J", just received his invitation to the California Highway Patrol Academy in Sacramento, CA. It's a 29 week live-in academy where they will be tested mentally and physically practically every single day. J has been working his butt off to get this invitation, so now that he finally received it, I know the fun is just about to begin :)
J:
So a little bit about J: he's 27 years old and the middle of three brothers. We both coached high school cross country and track teams for many years- in fact we actually met when we were both on the cross country team in high school. J never really considered a career in law enforcement until we were at my aunt & uncle's baby shower where another uncle talked to him about his job as a CHP Officer. He started doing his research and attending seminars and really liked what the CHP had to offer. Fast forward about a year and here we are today! Getting ready for the Academy!!!
AJ:
I am also 27 years old and am an avid runner. I am actually running a marathon in Sacramento the day before J's report date, so needless to say that weekend is going to be an emotional roller coaster! J and I have been together for 12 years now (high school sweethearts) and throughout those years he has been my rock. Now, as we decide to travel through this adventure together, I hope I can be his rock and support him during this crazy time!
