Military Police Ball 2016

Last Friday, John’s brigade celebrated the Military Police birthday, with a ball. John has been to a handful of balls already this year without me, but the MP Ball is one that I never miss. It’s a fantastic opportunity to socialize with the Soldiers and civilians that work closest to him.

At the ball this year, approximately 100 Soldiers and spouses from John’s company were able to make it, thanks to fundraisers throughout the year that lowered the cost of the tickets. Once a month, the unit would do a car wash near the gas station on base. As a result, ticket prices went down to $16 per Soldier from the original and outrageous price of $95.

As I’ve mentioned a couple of times, I ordered my dress from lightinthebox.com. It was $79 plus shipping, which wasn’t too expensive, and it only took 4 days to get here. I was nervous about ordering a blue dress and having it blend into John’s uniform, but I’m so glad I went with blue! It actually looks pretty awesome next to his navy-colored jacket.

For hair and makeup, a friend suggested two of her friends. I had contemplated having my makeup done at the mall, but I wasn’t confident there would be enough time to get it done, then battle traffic to the hotel. I was a little bummed that the girl couldn’t do my eyeliner, but I guess with the fake lashes I put on, it didn’t really matter. Hair was simple, but I’m pretty sure it was just a couple of braids twisted into a bun. It did manage to stay for the duration of the evening though, so I’ll take it.

The friends that we party with all PCS’d over the summer, so without a tribute to serve as DD, we made the choice to stay at the hotel. Our babysitter lives over in that area anyway, which I knew would make it easier on her as far as traffic.

When the lady working at the desk of the hotel saw us walk up with out traveling circus, she kindly upgraded our room to a bigger one! It was freaking fantastic. There was plenty of room for running around and getting ready.

Our babysitter showed up about half an hour late, which meant that we headed down stairs to the social hour as soon as she got there. She ordered room service for dinner, then took the girls downstairs to the pool and to watch fireworks. It was a great night for everyone!

The formal portion of the ball seemed nice and quick, which means we got to dancing faster. The brigade commander spoke briefly, but there was no guest speaker this year. Dinner was your typical hotel food. Nothing special. The gifts on the tables were mason jars with the unit patch etched into them. Since we stayed to the end, we took a few extras that had been left behind on the tables.

That night, I slept rather uncomfortably next to Juli, and was awakened way too early on a Saturday by Adri. After breakfast and a morning nap, we made our way down to the pool. We spent a couple of hours pool-side, before calling it a day and packing up to head home.

Overall, it was a great experience, with a few bumps in the road, but we had a great time!