Military Wives

I can't take credit for writing this, but it's the best one of these "military wife" emails that I've ever read. Very true. Very moving. Hits home...

What is a MILITARY Wife?
They may look different and each is wonderfully unique
But this they have in common.


They have THIS IN COMMON!
lots of moving---
moving
moving
moving far from home
moving two cars, three kids and one dog----all riding with HER of course
moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house
moving curtains that won't fit
moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours
moving away from friends moving toward new friends
moving her most important luggage; her trunk full of memories

often waiting-
waiting, waiting, waiting for housing; waiting for orders; waiting
for deployment; waiting for reunion; waiting
for phones calls;
waiting for the new curtains to arrive; waiting for him to come
home for dinner.


They call her 'military dependent', but she knows better
she can balance a checkbook
handle the yard work
fix a noisy toilet.


She is intimately familiar with drywall, anchors, and toggle bolts.


She can file the taxes, sell a house, buy a car, or set up a move, --
--all with ONE Power of Attorney.


She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.


Reinvents her career with every PCS; locates a house in the desert,
the arctic, or the deep south and learns to call them all 'home'.


She MAKES them all home.


She is fiercely IN-dependent
Military Wives are somewhat hasty
They leap into decorating, leadership, volunteering, career
alternatives, churches and friendships.


They don't have 15
years to get to know people.


Their roots are short but flexible.


They plant annuals for themselves and perennials for those who come after them.


Military Wives quickly learn to value each other.


They connect over coffee, rely on the spouse-network and accept offers of
friendship and favors and record addresses in pencil.


Military Wives have a common bond.


The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands.


His commitment is unique. He doesn't have a job, he has a 'mission' he can't just decide to quit.


He's on-call for his country 24/7 but for you, he's the most...
Unreliable guy in town...
His language is foreign: TDY, PCS, OPR, ACC, BDU
And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.

She is the long-distance link to keep them informed; the glue that
holds them together.


Military Wife has her moments--
She wants to wring his neck, dye his uniform pink, and refuse to move to Siberia .


But she pulls herself together.


Give her a few days, a travel brochure, a long hot bath, a pledge to the flag, and a wedding picture.


And she goes.


She packs.


She moves.


She follows.


Why?
What for?
How come?
You may think it is because she has lost her mind.


But actually it is because she has lost her heart.


It was stolen from her by a man
who puts duty first
who salutes the flag
and whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her Military husband,
She will remain his Military wife.

New Democrat Campaign Slogans...

These are my recommendations... :)

"McCain picked a chick? Wow. Still not voting for him"

"Obama: This time I want a SMART president"

"I'm leaning towards voting for the candidate not endorsed by the worst president in American history"

"McSame: Just like Bush but more feeble"

"Those who ignore history are doomed to vote Republican"

"The real McCain: less jobs, more wars"

"Sarah Palin: A woman who forces every American to ask, "Why am I not running for President?"

Love Makes the Ride Worthwhile

Tomorrow marks my 4 year wedding anniversary. Part of me thinks, "Wow! Four Years!!" and another part of me thinks, "FOUR YEARS?! THAT'S IT?!!" It feels like forever..

But, please don't get me wrong. I don't mean forever in a bad way. I just mean, I feel like we have lived a lifetime in only 4 years.

When I think back now, I am amazed at how much better I know my husband now than I did then. Not that I didn't know him then.. I did. I knew him so well that I didn't think it was possible to know him any more. Let me clarify.. when I say "know" I mean "understand". While I believe that I understood my hubby as well as I possibly COULD have at the time.. in comparison to now.. it's like I barely knew him at all.

Am I making sense?

Let me try to say it this way.

My husband knows me so well, I think he knows me better than I know myself. All of my life I have written people notes and letters to tell them things I had trouble expressing in person. I've never done this with Hubby. At first, I thought maybe there was something missing with him.. and then I realized I had it all wrong.

Before Hubby left for Iraq the 2nd time.. I spent many days and several hours composing a goodbye letter to him in my head. But, I never wrote it. I never wrote it because I realized that Hubby didn't need my letter. Everything I wanted to say in the letter, he already knew. He probably knew it before I knew it. That's just the way it is with him.
.....................................................................................
This is our 4th Wedding Anniversary, and in our 4 years together we have lived in 4 different states, been through 2 deployments (the 2nd has only just begun!), survived almost every natural disaster known to the US, and spent 2 of our 4 anniversaries apart. So, you can see why when I reflect back, I think, "FOUR YEARS, THAT'S ALL?!"

I can only begin to imagine what the NEXT four years will have in store for us.. and the next.. and the next. I can only imagine.. but I'm sure that the reality will be so much crazier and more amazing than anything I could possibly dream up on my own. I mean, four years ago as I met Hubby at the end of that aisle, do you think I had ANY idea what the next four years would have in store for us?

Of course not. I had no idea.

Which is why, I'm sure you can understand, I don't dare to dream or wonder... All I can do is buckle down, hold on tight, and see where the ride takes me.

Afterall, Love makes the ride worthwhile.

Army Wives vs. The Hills

Tonight while getting back to my elliptical routine, I searched through the channels of my tv for something interesting to watch while exercising. I settled on the show Army Wives. I watched the first season last year during Hubby's first deployment, and I was a loyal viewer despite my dashed hopes of it being a show that I could relate to. The second season, I noted this evening as I watched one of its episodes, did a much better job of actually capturing the essence of military wifedom. It did such a good job of hitting home for me that I had a first... crying and exercising at the same time! It was interesting because, last year I had so hoped for some inkling of connection with the show.. and now that I relate (too much) I found myself searching for something else.

What did I settle for? Why, The Hills, of course.

What do I have in common with The Hills? Nothing other than the fact that I, too, live in California.

Hmm. So, I guess it goes to show that though at one point I had hoped to be able to relate to Army Wives, in the end, who wants to spend an hour rehashing REAL LIFE when you can exist in the glamorous world and petty problems of The Hills?

Not me, that's for sure.
:)

1 month down...

As of tomorrow, it will officially be a month since I put Hubby on a bus and sent him off to Iraq. (I like to pretend that it was my choice that he went.. that way I don't feel so powerless living this military centered life)! :) And, believe it or not, the month has gone by pretty quickly and with very little turbulence.

This deployment, so far, has already proven to be MUCH better than the last. There are many factors involved in this..
1) Hubby is Happy!!! This is extremely important during a deployment. If Hubby is miserable that means communication with Hubby is miserable which means I AM MISERABLE too. So, Hubby being happy is an amazing gift.

2) Communication is GREAT! I talk to Hubby every day!! (mostly through email) And thanks to the amazing wonders of technology, today I actually had the (mis)fortune of seeing Hubby and his (terrible) moustache (that he always likes to grow on deployments!) via webcam from the comfort of my very own computer room!!

3) I've had Company!! Two weeks after Hubby left, my parents arrived in town for 10 days of keeping me company and the DAY that my parents left my In-laws arrived (only about 30 minutes after my parents departed). Both my parents and my in-laws kept me busy and on the go, go, go! And, the good thing about it was, the fact that my in-laws were arriving the day my parents left kept me from feeling lonely & by the time the in-laws left I felt more than ready for a little bit of ME time!

4) I'M BUSY!! Not just because I've had so much company.. but because the school year has officially begun, and when I am at school I have no time to think of anything but school.

5) I am keeping in touch with the other spouses from Hubby's Team. Thanks to a brilliant suggestion from my AMAZING SISTER I started a yahoo group so that all the ladies on OPERATION HOMEFRONT can keep in touch while our men are away. And, it has been everything I had hoped AND MORE. You can't even begin to imagine the importance of being in touch with those who truly UNDERSTAND exactly what you are going through during a deployment. It is comforting to feel part of a community that understands AND on top of that, it helps you to really get the big picture of what exactly is going on during the deployment. I've found that each marine always seems to give a different piece of the puzzle when he talks to his spouse.. and when we put all those pieces together.. we are able to really understand the whole picture. It's been very helpful.

I could probably go on and on about why this deployment is better than last, but I am truly a superstitious person at heart and don't want to dwell too much more on this topic for fear that I might curse myself.

So, let's suffice it to say that it's one month in... and I'm holding strong. I can only hope and pray for more of the same throughout the next 6 months.

School :o) :o(

I haven't been writing about it in my blog, but lately, I have been absolutely hating the idea of going back to school. My DREAD for the beginning of the school year got so bad that I actually found myself in search of a way to make this my LAST year as a teacher. My plotting took me down avenues that I am not proud of.. like.. you know.. searching for jobs on jobs.com (and considering the managerial position open at Target) and.. um... well... planning to get pregnant just so I can be a stay at home MOM and OUT of the classroom. Pretty sick, right? yeah.

So, like I said.. it got bad.

My absolute total and complete HATRED of this coming school year might possibly have had a little bit to do with the fact that I'm just UNhappy with life in general right now with Hubby's very recent departure to Iraq. It might ALSO have had to do with the FACT that there have been a thousand and one (not so good) changes at my school this year and I know it will be a year of chaos.

But, whatever the reason was.. after today my feelings have changed for the better. I finally got my classroom together for the most part... and actually started putting some of the ideas that have been circulating in my head into action. And, today for the first time, many of my fellow staff members were at school. It was really great to be around all of them and to REALIZE why it was that I stuck with that school in the first place.. I feel comfortable there. I like my co-workers (for the most part). And, they respect me.

And, of course, there's the kids. I love my students. I just have to remind myself of that every now and then.

However, I really am starting to think about getting out of the BIG classroom atmosphere. I'm thinking I'd like to pursue ESL (English as a Second Language) Education. I've been thinking that more and more lately. Now all I need to do is find the time (I Won't), motivation (hopefully), and Money (the military has awesome scholarships and grants for military wive who want to go back to school) to get my Masters. Oh, and finding a good ESL Education program might be a good idea too.

So. Who knows what the future will hold. All I know is that FOR NOW going back to school on August 27 may not be the absolute WORST thing that could possibly happen to me.

:)

Cleaning :(

When Hubby is home and we are cleaning the house... he drives me crazy. He is constantly getting distracted and seems to always focus on cleaning things that I find to be very unimportant in the cleaning scheme of things.

But, I do have to say, that tonight as I begin to clean my house THOROUGHLY for the first time since he has been gone... I'm realizing that though it may seem like he's easily distracted and cleaning things that I'd rather he didn't focus on... in actuality... cleaning WITH Hubby goes about 20 times faster than cleaning WITHOUT Hubby.

I guess I'll have to remember this and try not to complain so much next time we clean together. :o)