MILITARY LIFE is tricky sometimes. There are a lot of moving parts, especially when it comes to demanding work schedules, kids’ activities, TDY, homecoming and deployment. My husband and I had a heck of a time staying on the same page when we were first getting serious and then again after we were first married. It seemed there was a communication breakdown somewhere in the mix every day of the week. I had an appointment and would forget to tell him. Or I had an appointment, told him, and he forgot to remember.
Ahem. You know how it goes. There were just too many little fights over insignificant everyday life stuff that we had to start streamlining our household with the help of technology. So if you find yourself in a similar miscommunication situation, I encourage you to give these tech tips a try. They’ve made our everyday life run smoothly, eliminated fights over little things, and helped make military life a little bit easier.
Tech tips for military spouses
Invest in reliable technology
The first thing you need to hit the ground running is a great computer. Personally, we always have two computers in the house; one for my husband and one for myself. We love DELL COMPUTERS because they have a Member Purchase Program, which includes up to 30% off Dell PCs, electronics and accessories. Members also enjoy access to exclusive offers and presale events. Dell honors members of the military community with an additional 10% savings on PCs and tablets and global APO/FPO shipping.
Get a shared calendar
Use Google calendar (it’s free) to help share all your appointments and work schedules with each other in one convenient spot. You can even set your notifications to alert you when your spouse has an upcoming event or appointment.
Streamline your monthly budget
It’s no secret around here that creating a monthly budget that works for military families is not only possible, but it’s really easy to implement. We keep a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet on our computer to keep track of every penny that goes in and out. Less fights over money means way more time for fun stuff. Related: See my step-by-step for SETTING UP A BUDGET IN EXCEL and grab my custom spreadsheet, which is free to download.
Secure your family photos
Use Microsoft Photo Gallery for free to help keep all your photos organized and ready to share. This makes sharing memories with your service member during deployment so much easier. Plus with the holidays right around the corner, it’s great to have all your pictures nicely organized to make a photo book for the grandparents or other faraway friends and family.
Simplify family meals
If you appreciate simple and easy when it comes to family meals, then hopping on PINTEREST FOR MEAL IDEAS and putting them on your shared calendar will make for easy family meal planning. I don’t plan meals for every night of the week, but a few nights a week this is a major time saver.
Store important docs
You know how your service member deploys and everything goes wrong and you cannot find a single one of the important documents you need? Keep all your important docs stored on your OneDrive in Windows 10. Makes things super simple. You can save a doc to the drive and both you and your service member will have instant access so long as you share the log in credentials.
Stay connected with walkie-talkie messaging
OOur latest tech discovery is downloading the Voxer app (and yes, you can get it on a DELL LAPTOP WITH WINDOWS 10). Using the app, you can send voice messages to each other walkie-talkie style. It’s so perfect because time differences make communication challenging. Your service member can leave short voice messages on the VOXER APP, allowing you to listen and play back at any time. Same goes for spouses. And this is even more perfect if you have kids and want to re-play a message from mom or dad right before bed or school or any special event. It’s so easy. Your service member could hop on the internet, leave a message like “I hope you do great at the science fair today. I’ll be thinking of you.” And then you could re-play the message for your kids at the right moment.
One tip for getting started.
We are always looking to keep our technology updated and current in our home. This is especially true when we are in the midst of a deployment or TDY or PCS. We want technology to work easily and never be a source of stress. We are currently looking to upgrade everything and get a New Dell Computer with Windows 10. This NEW INSPIRON 15 7000 SERIES 2-IN-1 PC is my favorite so far. I’m thinking this will make a great early Christmas gift for my husband and me. Plus, we can kick back and relax come December since our shopping will be done!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of MSB New Media & Military.com on behalf of Dell. The opinions and text are all mine.
Want more on military life?
- Best Toys and Resources for Military Kids During Deployment
- The Deployment Diet No One Talks About
- What You Really Miss Most During Deployment
- 6 Military Homecoming Outfits That Will Make Him Swoon
What’s your best tech tip for military spouses? Let’s chat in the comments!
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