As all married couples know, the key to relationship harmony is each spouse making a sacrifice at one time or another - and sometimes daily - for their partner or for the good of the family.

McChord Field spouse Jennifer Bargiel knows this all too well.

Bargiel, also a Reservist with the 446th Airlift Wing at McChord Field, is married to Capt. Michael Bargiel, a C-17 Globemaster III pilot in the active-duty 8th Airlift Squadron.

The couple met in technical school while Jennifer was training to be an F-16 crew chief and Michael was working on becoming an F-15 crew chief.

"When we weren't going to class, we were learning about each other," Jennifer recalled with a laugh.

After the couple got married and Jennifer was pregnant with their first child, they started discussing their family plan and talking about the fact that life could get very complicated if both were to remain on active-duty.

"We had to make a decision," said Jennifer, an Army brat who was born in Germany and lived all over the world during her childhood. "I really didn't want to quit my military career. I really wanted to serve my country."

Michael felt equally strong about his commitment to serve. He was also in the early stages of transitioning from the enlisted ranks to becoming an officer and a pilot. Jennifer knew how much the dream of becoming a pilot meant to her husband.

"I didn't have a (career) plan," she said. "It was easier for me to ‘sacrifice' in a sense. It made the decision a lot easier for us."

Jennifer decided to join the Air Force Reserve to continue to serve, while still being able to care for the couple's children, now 5 and 7.

"I'm able to take care of them and be a big part of their lives," she said.

While overall the career change has worked well for both husband and wife, it hasn't come without its share of challenges.

Jennifer has had to work hard to find a position with a Reserve unit at the duty station wherever her husband gets transferred. The couple, who live in Spanaway, has been at McChord for a little more than two years, coming to the base from Columbus Air Force Base, Miss.

"It hasn't always been easy getting a job," said Jennifer, a technical sergeant who works in the 446th AW command section. "It's been a struggle but God has always been there to pull us through."

And the commitment each made to serve also sometimes throws a monkey wrench into daily life when duty calls. Michael deployed last year and is set to go again in a few months. He's also routinely gone for several days at a time (he's currently at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, en route to McChord) flying other missions. Jennifer sometimes has to depend on the Air Force's in-home day care provider program to fill the gaps when she has to fulfill her Reserve weekend commitment.

"Our provider is amazing," she said.

But the new setup has also given her a chance to take on her own business venture as a Pampered Chef consultant.

"It's great because (Michael) really supports what I do," Jennifer said.