USS New Mexico on sea trials

I recently read about the USS New Mexico‘s sea trials over on Bubbleheads Blog and gosh how I LOVE seeing that NM flag flying in the sail.  NM just in case you didn’t guess is my home state.

The commissioning date has finally been set and will be March 27, 2010.  I am planning on attending and I’m so very excited!  I have never been to a commissioning before and I can’t wait.

In my research of what to expect, I came across this video of the USS New Hampshire being commissioned.

Even though New Mexico has two other submarines, for some reason I am very excited about this new submarine.  Maybe it is because it is called “New Mexico”, vs Albuquerque or Santa Fe.  I’m seriously considering adopting this boat.  Maybe it has something to do with the galley being called “La Posta”, a local favorite in Las Cruces.

La Posta owner Tom Hutchinson said the naming of the galley after his restaurant has “extra special significance” because he served in the Navy from 1977 to 2002. Nine of those years were in active duty. His service was as an aviator, and he worked with Navy submarines to coordinate the tracking of Soviet Union submarines.

Hutchinson said he plans to name a room in his restaurant after the sub.  read the entire article.

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From navy.mil

Future USS New Mexico Completes Sea Trials

12/3/2009

From Naval Sea Systems Command Public Affairs

WASHINGTON (NNS) — Pre-Commissioning Unit New Mexico (SSN 779), the U.S. Navy’s newest submarine, successfully completed its initial sea trials, or Alpha Trials, Nov. 26.

The submarine departed Newport News, Va., Nov. 24 to evaluate its seaworthiness and operational performance. New Mexico’s Alpha Trials included diving to test depth, executing an emergency surfacing, and testing the ship’s propulsion plant performance.

Successful completion of these sea trials is a significant step towards ensuring that New Mexico meets all specifications and is ready for delivery to the Navy, which is anticipated by the end of 2009, following completion of Bravo Sea Trials and the Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey trials.

“New Mexico’s successful completion of sea trials is a testament to the hard work of the Navy’s shipbuilding team,” said Capt. Michael Jabaley, Virginia Class program manager. “It is this partnership that has helped get New Mexico to where it is today, ahead of original contract schedule.”

New Mexico is the sixth submarine of the Virginia Class and third that Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding will deliver. Delivery of the ship prior to the end of the year would be four months early to its contract delivery date.

When commissioned in early 2010, New Mexico will join the five subs of its class as flexible, multi-mission platforms designed to carry out the seven core competencies of the Submarine Force: anti-submarine warfare; anti-surface warfare; special operations forces; strike; irregular warfare; intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; and mine warfare.

For more news from Naval Sea Systems Command, visit www.navy.mil/local/navsea/.

	Future USS New Mexico Successfully Completes Alpha Trials

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Alecia writes:

About Me:

So, where do I begin. I always find my first blog entry , to be the hardest. You want to put your best foot forward and get down to the root of who you really are. But I must say, I don’t think any of us are really defined by our words — but rather by our actions and the things that we put out into the world.

My name is Alecia. I’ve been married to my husband for seven years, and I am a proud Submariner wife. For the past four years I have been a stay-at-home Mom with our little boy Will. My two boys are the absolute light of my world. If you had told me 10 years ago, that I would be scrubbing toilets, cooking meals, and happily wearing an apron on a daily basis — I probably would have laughed at you. I didn’t think I was exactly the PTA type. But these days, taking care of my family and my boat family is what it’s all about.

On a purely superficial level, I love fashion, handbags, stiletto heels, makeup and hair. I can’t help it, I’m a true Southern girl — who knows better than to step out of the house without her girdle and lipstick. On a deeper level, however, those are the things that make me feel like me. Those are the things that I won’t allow being a mom to take away from me. Quite honestly, I think it’s important for wives and mothers to make the effort to retain their own identity. Call it selfish or call it practical –being a good wife and mother for my family means feeling good about myself and the things that I do.

Like most military families, we find ourselves moving around every few years, and facing many many long deployments. As we rolled to our current sea duty station, I knew that I would be seeing a lot less of my husband, my best friend. As I was thinking of ways to fill my time and keep upbeat — it came to me. I have always wanted to work in or own, a retail boutique. However, for our family, it did not seem practical for me to go back to work yet. That’s when I decided to take a huge leap. I did my homework, talked to my husband and decided to give Internet retailing a try. My online boutique is called The Paisley Palmetto. While I knew the odds were heavily stacked against me, I’m also a believer in not being so afraid of failure, that you don’t put yourself out there for success.

I launched my website www.thePaisleyPalmetto.com in late January of this year. It has become the perfect business solution for me. While I do spend many hours as its sole employee, it has also afforded me tremendous flexibility to take care of my family and volunteer in my Navy community. It goes wherever I go. All I need is my cell phone and my laptop, and I am in business. It has also given me something to do on those late nights. When Chad is deployed and Will is in bed, instead of gorging on ice cream and watching chick flicks, I hop on my computer and began working on the next big idea.

Currently my boutique carries a vast array of guest items and accessories. this month, I am also adding a gift concierge service to the site. I am really excited about this, because there are not a lot of services to match this online. While the average civilian may not have a need for this service, our military families do-particularly our submariner’s. Curious? Come on over and check us out.

So there you have it. I’m just another submariner wife, looking for ways to take care of and support my family, without sacrificing, who I really am. While my husband is absolutely the man of the family, I am the rock. Supporting my husband and raising a good Christian child are my main goals in life. I’d just like to do that with a little bit of flair and a lot of fun.

Thanks for reading- now that I’ve met you- watch out. I’m a no holds bar- tell it like it is kinda girl and I’m not afraid to share my failures and my make up tips with the world! Now my margarita recipe. . . Well- that’s another blog!

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