Military Husbands

Or, Learning to Love SMARTWebMove

(This is part of an ongoing series on Permanent Change of Station moves. To read the rest of the posts, click here.)

We've got a PCS (Permanent Change of Station) coming up hot on the heels of the holidays, and, while I'm still filled with anxiety over everything that has to be done between then and now, it all feels like it's coming together a little bit more easily this time.

Part of that comes from experience. This will be our fourth move with the Navy, and we've largely got the situation figured out. Herewith, some pointers:

2. SMARTWebMove This should have been number 1. SMARTWebMove is the online utility that you use to apply for your moving dates (N.B. this is a Navy utility, but I assume the other services have something similar). You select every detail from whether or not to do a Personally Procured Move (see #1, above) to whether or not you need to place your household goods in storage.

The SMARTWebMove interface is sort of clumsy and overwhelming the first time you look at it, but you'll get the hang of it as you read. And there's a lot to read. Unfortunately, it's all written in bureaucratese, so the service member in the household may have to be consulted.

The nice thing about it is that all the information you need (and more!) is right there on the web page. And it's convenient. Once you've selected your preferred packing and moving dates, the service member will have to submit her orders to the folks at PSD (Personnel Support Detachment - again, this is a Navy thing). After that, you'll get your packing and moving dates and be on your way.