Officially Legal
I know I haven’t talked much about the wedding, but that’s because I’m waiting for all of our professional photos to come in, so I can do a proper recap. Thankfully, Kim sent me those teasers to keep my curiosity tamed in the interim.
I’m so happy she included the following photo, because even though you can’t see it, the picture on the right was the only time I got choked up the entire day.
The only time I felt tears of joy well up inside was when we passed through the saber arch and the last gentleman said to me, “Welcome to the United States Air Force, Ma’am.” If it wasn’t because I was so gosh-darn, overwhelmingly happy and excited, I would’ve broke down and cried right then and there. I think that was the moment when I realized that it actually happened and I was no longer his girlfriend or fiance, but his wife.
To make things more official, last week I played the waiting game at the Social Security office and again on base while trying to get everything switched over to my new name and to make me officially and legally an Air Force wife. If you have to go through this, I suggest taking a book or something to entertain you at both places. Social Security doesn’t allow your phone to be out and cameras aren’t allowed at either place. So sorry, no photos to share with you this time.
Here are the documents I needed. I took everything with me just in case:
- Two forms of ID (I used my passport and driver’s license)
- Marriage certificate
- Social Security card (to get my new card they have to destroy the old card)
- A notarized copy of our application for marriage (they gave us several copies when we turned in our marriage certificate after the wedding)
Except for the long waits, both processes turned out to be relatively smooth. I have to wait another week before my SS card comes in, but that’s about it. My next challenge is to start changing my name and address for my bank accounts, magazines, and other things here and there.
We also signed me up for TriCare for our health care. I’ve heard so many mixed reviews about it, but the woman we talked to was extremely nice and said she’d answer any and all of my questions, so at least my first experience with it wasn’t terrible.
Thank you for all the comments you left on my post about being a new military wife; I’m read all of them and appreciate your thoughts! And if you haven’t already, take the poll on the right š I love seeing who reads this blog!
Congrats again! I finally have almost everything switched over to my new married name except my passport and 1 credit card. Everything else is now switched, isn't it exciting?! Now if I can only remember, I have to SIGN my new name, lol! I keep forgetting!
Woohoo! That's exciting. From my perspective, btw, Tricare's not that bad. I've had good and bad experiences with it, but I think a lot of that might come from not being on a large army installation we don't have access to base medical help. Overall, the hardest part for me was finding a doctor – other than that, it's been relatively painless. I'm sure you'll be fine. š
Just popped over to say don't forget to update that passport. š
That's great that the name change went over pretty easily!
Yeah!! Feel free to send me an e-mail if you ever have any questions about "Air Force wife Life!" I've been one for quite sometime, and I also am a key spouse here at our base, so I can always answer questions š
Congrats on getting into Tricare, getting your ID card, and SS- that is always a HUGE pain in the rear!
I absolutely LOVE the pic on the left! The formality of the guys in their uniforms but the emotion of the kiss between you two – breathtaking! Can't wait to see all your pro pics š
Congratulations again–I love seeing the military wedding photos! I married my husband before he was in the military but he was part of the honor guard at a fellow officers wedding and it made me want to marry him all over again!
TriCare can be a bureaucratic nightmare but it can also be amazing…start memorizing his SSN now!
I'd love you to come by and share this post on the Military Mondays Carnival (March 15 edition) on ArmyWivesLives.com — I think everyone else will enjoy it as well!
Gorgeous photos!!
Looks like you had a beautiful wedding…Awesome photos!
Congrats!