In preschool, Anne McClain wrote and illustrated a book depicting a family of four going to a store, buying rockets and suits, and flying into outer space.

Fast forward about 30 years, one Army career and 18 months of suspense, McClain is about to make her 4-year-old selfs dreams come true.

The 34-year-old Gonzaga Prep graduate has been chosen as one of NASAs eight newest astronaut trainees. The eight names were released publicly last week, although the candidates learned their fate June 6.

I couldnt stand, I couldnt breathe, and then there were tears, McClain said via phone from Washington, D.C., of the moment she learned she would become an astronaut.

She somehow pulled herself together enough to joke with the NASA representative who called her with the good news.

I remember her asking if I was still interested in the position, McClain said. I told her I would have to check my schedule. Then I started laughing and said, Of course.

The eight trainees were chosen from a pool of more than 6,100 applicants. They will be stationed across the globe and will prepare for missions that could include trips to Mars or distant asteroids, NASA said in its announcement.

Joining McClain as new astronaut trainees are Josh A. Cassada, Ph.D., 39, a former naval aviator now working in high-tech; U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Victor J. Glover, 37, a fighter pilot; U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Tyler N. Hague, 37, test pilot; Christina M. Hammock, 34, a scientist and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration station chief in American Samoa; U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Nicole Aunapu Mann, 35, test pilot; Jessica U. Meir, Ph.D., 35, assistant professor of anesthesia at Harvard Medical School; and U.S. Army Maj. Andrew R. Morgan, 37, an emergency physician and flight surgeon.

The four women who make up half the recruiting class mark the highest percentage of women ever in one class.

McClain, an Army major, is a 1997 Gonzaga Prep graduate. She spent a year in the ROTC program at Gonzaga University before attending the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where she studied mechanical engineering. She also has masters degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Bath and in international security from the University of Bristol, both in the United Kingdom.

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NASA selects Spokane native as astronaut trainee