Schedule / Routine
Back in the day when I was in college, I was in love with routines. Each time there was a big exam, I would head straight to the library, lay out all my pens and notepaper, do exactly three neck stretches, and set my coffee within arm’s reach but far enough to keep it from killing my textbook should a spill occur. Because…yeah…laptops [...]
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DeploymentThe Surprising Thing You’ll Miss Most During Deployment
It’s 2:37 am. My husband’s awake. I’m trying to fall back asleep and forget about what is about to happen, but my heart won’t allow my mind to shut off. I walk into the living room and there he sits, eating his breakfast in the middle of the night. It smells like eggs and toast and coffee. I can’t help but think this is the last time he [...]
Raising Kids2-Year-Old Not Listening? Try This Remarkable Tip
I’m not going to sugar coat this for you. I struggled horribly with my 2-year-old not listening. As a mom who researches things like how to make kids listen and how to be a positive parent to a strong willed child, the twos about did me in. Yes, really. (That's why I started researching why parents yell...) But here’s the real [...]
MilSpouse Life10 Things Military Spouses Don’t Need to Do Anymore
I've been a military spouse for fifteen years. I enjoy it for the most part. I've gone through multiple deployments. TDYs. Daddy dolls (using this daddy doll tutorial). PCS moves. Having a baby with a service member. But I notice I'm different in what I choose to do. Maybe it's because I'm an introvert. Possibly it's because I'm rather [...]
9 Reasons Why It’s Okay When He Deploys
It's always a shock when my husband tells me he has to deploy. I go through various emotions coping with deployment separation: I cry and ask if the military can send someone else. (No.) I panic and think I can't do it all on my own. photo credit: Kristen Wong After that comes acceptance, but it's generally a nervous acceptance. I [...]
10 Things Military Spouses Won’t Tell You About Deployment
I remember the first time my husband called me after returning from Iraq. I was a military girlfriend and living long-distance at the time. Hence the phone call. So…We were chatting away, and I was feeling all sorts of happy butterflies because he was finally home. And we were—finally—going to see each other and spend time together! [...]
What Kids Secretly Want to Tell You About Roughhousing – Girls Included!
As I child, I remember roughhousing with my dad in the living room, playing Buck the Bronco. I would jump all over him, giggling incessantly. Then we would play Wake the Sleeping Bear, where he would pretend to be a sleeping bear and I would sit on his head, stand on his back and tickle his feet until he "woke up" and scared the [...]
21 Long Distance Friendship Truths Only a Military Spouse Will Understand
I stood in my living room looking out the window when I saw her. She was walking her golden retriever around the neighborhood, and I vividly remember—as if it happened this morning—seeing her bubbly brown-haired self and the dog walk past the front of my house in slow motion. I was dealing with some major PCS anxiety because all I kept [...]
Military ResourcesMilitary Base Gate Etiquette: 10 Small Ways to Avoid a Giant SNAFU
Ah, the military police at the gates. They’re the ones who stand in the intense heat, bitter cold and torrential downpours as they check ID cards. They stand for hours and skip meals. If they have a moment, it’s a quick one to swallow a few bites. My husband was military police—or rather, since he is in the Air Force, he’s known as [...]
10 Things Strong Military Spouses Do Differently
It wasn’t good news. “My husband’s leaving tomorrow,” she said. She just got word from her husband that he would be deploying within the next 24 hours. There was no notice. There was no quality family time with the kids at the park. It was simply pack your bags and leave. Gulp. [...]
