Meet My Traveling Troop

Hi!  My name is Kristina Doss. I am journalist whose work has appeared in such publications as The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones Newswires, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review, Inside U.S. Trade and The Washington Times. I am also married to a wonderful southern gentleman named Clayton, who is in the U.S. Navy and looks darn good in a uniform. Together, we have a beautiful daughter named Bella.

Braving the snow after lunch in Shirlington, Va.

Enjoying the beach in Carmel, Calif.

The idea for this blog came to me about seven months ago when we lived in Alexandria, Va. One day my husband, who was working at the Pentagon, called me and muttered three magic words: "We got orders." The official paperwork, which spells out where military personnel are to live and work next, directed my husband to move across the country to Monterey, Calif., so that he could attend the Naval Postgraduate School.

Upon hearing the news, I was excited about the opportunity to live in Monterey. After all, the city hugs the ocean. And it's beauty has inspired writers such as John Steinbeck. But my excitement quickly turned into a hundred questions. Some were logistical, while others were aimed at helping me get pumped about moving 3,000 miles away. For example, where should we live in Monterey? If I were to continue working, what are the child care and preschool options? Being foodies, I was curious about what the restaurant scene was like. And I wanted to know what fun activities we could do as a family when Clayton wasn't busy with school.

After working and living in Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., for seven years or so, we didn't have to deal with these burning questions. Our daughter was in a wonderful daycare. We knew what restaurants to frequent. And we were familiar with family-friendly spots to spend our free time. But in Monterey, we would have to start over. So, I immediately got to work and started tackling all of my questions. To find answers, I peppered family members, friends and colleagues who had lived in Monterey or the surrounding areas with questions. I devoured the travel sections of various newspapers. And I of course asked Google for help. Did I find the answers I was looking for? Sort of. But it took ALOT of work. So, I thought to myself, "Wouldn't it be great if there was one place where military families could go to learn about their duty stations and the surrounding areas?" And so, I decided to create My Traveling Troop. Here, I will chronicle my own military family's journey moving to different duty stations across the world. And I hope one day this blog could grow into a forum where other military families can share their experiences living and traveling to different places too.

We are now in Monterey, so you can expect a lot of posts about our traveling troop's adventures exploring the city and neighboring towns. And since we just left the Northern Virginia and D.C area, expect posts about our time there too.

Not a military family? Stick around. Military bases are located in beautiful places across the globe. Perhaps we'll inspire you to travel to the host city or country some day.

Cheers,
Kristina
mytravelingtroop@gmail.com