mississippi family moving to fort lewis, wa (Tacoma, Lakewood: day care, transfer)

[audrianna]

hi. my daughter and i currently reside in mississippi. my husband has been in south korea for about 10 months and has just informed me that we will be stationed in fort lewis, wa. i am freaking out because i am not sure how well i will adjust, being that i have lived in mississippi all my life and i am without a doubt, a southern belle! any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! my daughter is 2 years old. are there any playgrounds of some sort on base? a daycare? a school? any fun activities? a gym! is the housing nice? im sure it's safe, but i'll ask anyway. safety? i am only 20 years old so i am very new to this army life and this will be my first time living on any base... so please help. Audrey

[marita]

To give you an idea.Fort Lewis has about half as many people living there as the population of hattiesburg,mississippi and a whole lot more people working,shopping and going to the hospital there.It is a clean beautiful and all year round green place.There is everything you,your daughter and husband need.
You will meet plenty of people from your area when you live on fort Lewis and people from many other places.It will be a great experience to see how different other places are.
No worry about sticky humidity,bugs or fire ants.no poisonous snakes.No tornadoes or hurricanes.
You might want to check what answers others got in this forum when they asked about fort lewis.
Joint Base Lewis-McChord
Lewis-McChord: Welcome to Lewis-McChord (http://www.fortlewiscommunities.com/contents/village_rank.asp - broken link)
Ft. Lewis/ WA area? - Proud Army Wives! - BabyCenter
Military Wife Confessions - Search Results (http://www.militarywifeconfessions.com/apps/forums/posts/search?forum_id=1400991-army&query=fort+lewis - broken link)

[Sandy Nelson]

Audrianna,

Fort Lewis has plenty of nice housing, several day care facilities and playgrounds, gyms, shopping and all the amenities you would need. Within 20 minutes from Fort Lewis you have several towns, small and large (Lacey, Olympia, Dupont, Lakewood, Tacoma) that offer all the amenities like shopping, restaurants, movie theaters, galleries, markets, bars, parks, and more.
Your daughter will love the Hands ON Childrens Museum in Olympia, or Chucky Cheese, or Charlies Safari. If you like swimming, boating, or fishing, there is an abundance of lakes, as well as Puget Sound. Mount Rainier is only an hour away and the Olympic Mountains are an hour and a half drive.
I'm sure this relocation will be a major change for you, but you have much to look forward to and you'll meet many Army spouses, who, like you, come from all kinds of other places.
Good luck with your move.

[audrianna]

Thanks so much.. I can't wait!! Big help ladies

[CarlB328]

It will probably be somewhat of a culture shock to you to be in Washington, but America today is so corporatized that many things are the same or almost the same wherever you go. You probably will get a lot of strange looks though when people hear your accent. Southerners are not a normal occurence in most of Washington.

[EmpressMone]

It is extremely boring here. There is no sun n nothing to do . N I don't live on base .

[Wolf14016]

Fort Lewis is - last I checked, it's been a few years - the most requested post in CONUS. It's got just about everything you could want. I grew up in Washington, so I was extra excited to get posted here. It should meet all your requirements.

I'd guess the biggest shock from someone who's from Mississippi will be the weather. Its one of the rare cases where the stereotypes are true; it's cool, wet, and dark here for a good chunk of the year.

A guy got transferred here last year who had grown up in the backwoods of Vermont. He scoffed when I asked if he could live with the weather; he talked about walking to school in three feet of snow and all that jazz. By March, he was bleary eyed and pale, and would do little dances at an altar to have the sun peek out for just five minutes.

Not trying to scare you off or anything; most people think the weather is worth bearing for all the stuff to do here. But you might want to keep it in mind.

[snuggler]

We were stationed at Lewis twice. We have decided that is the area that we would like to retire. I think it is funny that someone would say that there is nothing to do in the area. There are three cities, the Puget Sound, and Mt. Rainer all within easy driving distance. The area has cultural events, professional sports teams, zoos, museums, restaurants, shopping, water park, and trails/parks/beaches. If someone can't find something to do then they just aren't looking (or they're stone cold broke - I have been there and I understand, but that is a "self" issue, not a location issue).
A move from Mississippi to the Pacific North West will be a big change, but you can do it!!
ETA: Wow - I just saw how old this post is! OP - you should be there by now. I hope you like it!

[Awilliams88]

My husband is pcsing in Aug. and I'll be joining him in Dec. once I obtain my degree. I think I'm just as excited as you are about leaving the south!

[Deneen Homer]

Its all in what you make of anything in life, if you have a positive attitude about it or at least give it a chance-you will do well. There are numerous young families on post, and all around, and you will find plenty to do Dont let the rain hold you back, will just make you miserable, being from snow belt area, I find this true for us as well, you either make the most of things or be unhappy I choose the latter. There are so many programs geared for young kids, you will be amazed, and there are lots of things to do and see Check out the Fort Lewis Youth Programs as well.