Is Life Really THAT Hard?

Tonight I was going through old photos, looking for an old back-to-school picture of the kids, and I found this picture. This was the last time I talked to my husband when he was in Afghanistan, before he came home from deployment. I miss military life. He misses military life. We really thought THIS was what hard life was. Countless trainings away from home, deployments, late nights, and early mornings. There wasn't much else that could be tougher. Boy, were we wrong. 

When you think life is hard, and you're questioning "why me?", remember that it's only a season. And, one day that seemingly hard season may end, and you'll miss it like crazy!

Never Forget.

photo credit

I still remember where I was on September 11, 2001. 

I was about 3 months pregnant with my oldest son, asleep in bed. My mom called me and told me to get up and go turn on the TV. I was so very confused as to what I was seeing. And then the second plane hit. Fear set in. My husband, then fiancé, was at work. I called his dad and asked him what this meant for Jake. After all, he was fresh out of MOS training in the U.S. Army. He was in the reserves, but I knew they'd be calling first responders in. In my 20 year old mind, he was leaving any minute and I was scared. 

He didn't leave right away, but he did deploy in 2003. Eighteen long months without him. And again in 2010. Another twelve months without him. 

My family didn't lose a loved one ON September 11, but we still feel the pain of the tragedy. We've lost time together, we've faced fear and uncertainty, and my husband lost army buddies. So many military families share our story. 

We will NEVER forget. 

To my NY friends, when I was in your amazing city a couple of months ago, I couldn't help but get choked up a time or two while walking around, trying to envision the chaos and fear that was on that day. In my mind, I was trying to see what we all saw in those pictures that I'm sure you can never forget. Even 14 years later, my heart is so heavy for this piece of history. Hugs.

Preparing for Deployment

From time to time I get emails asking for advice from an army wife's perspective. It flatters me that I'm asked. I love being an army wife. I'm daily proud to be married to my American soldier.

A few months ago I was asked, by a new army wife, about deployments. This was my response to her...

Yes, my husband has deployed. Twice. The first time was in 2003. He was gone for 16 months. That was before the 12 month "boots on ground" rule. The second time was in 2010. He was gone for 12 months.

{He's also left us for months at a time for schools and training. These can be equally as hard.}

Preparing for a deployment is never easy. Emotionally, it's tough. Physically, it's tough. {because you are now mom and dad and everything in between} Financially, it can be tough, if you don't prepare for all the stuff he'll need and want to take with him so he'll have some comforts from home.

Deployments are hard. For you and your soldier.

My biggest piece of advice would be to be patient. With your soldier and yourself. {especially if this is your first deployment} He has so much going through his mind as far as leaving his home and you and family and you and the house responsibilities and you. He's going to miss you. And if there are children involved he'll miss them too.

Have I said deployments are hard?

Be patient with yourself. You are trying wrap your mind around being without the man you love and can't live without for at least the next nine months. It's going to be hard. The first few weeks you may walk around in a cloud of sadness.

It gets better.

You'll get calls from him and emails and letters. You'll hear his voice and know that he's ok. Every day is one day down. One day closer to having him back in your arms.

Start thinking now on who you can go to for support. Who can you call when you're sad? Or, you may not want to talk to anyone at all. I didn't want to for the first few days. I just wanted to be alone. Watch a movie alone. Read a book. Go to bed early.

But, there are times when you want to talk to someone. Need to talk to someone. Who is that someone for you? Do you live on post? The army has moved you far away from close friends and family? Are you friends with another wife whos husband is deployed? If you don't know her well, get to know her. One of my very best friends now is someone I could call at any time, day or night, and she was there. Her husband was also deployed.

You don't live on post? That's okay, too. Are you close to your sister? Have a best friend you can talk to? They may not completely understand what you're going through but they can help pass the time.

A tip: Use the deployment as a time to do things you may not have been able to do while your soldier is home. Like, stay up late, go to a chick flick at the movie theater, craft all night, leave your crafty mess all over the dining room table, watch soap operas, eat junk food for dinner...ha! These are a few things that just wouldn't fly with my hubby.

Of course, these aren't all of the answers to preparing for a deployment. But, it's a good start.


Do you have questions? Suggestions? Leave me a comment. I'd love to add to this. Let's make prepping for a deployment as easy as possible for our fellow military spouses.








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if only for a season.

a few times over the last couple of weeks i've missed my friends in fort campbell.
like, missed them bad.
like, totally miss the daily connections we all shared.

we all had iphones so we had a big group text set up.
we would tell each other good morning {sometimes WAY too early}, we would send out requests to borrow team jerseys during spirit week, we would ask if the kids are riding bikes or walking today, "is today the deadline for fundraiser money?"...

that group text was also handy for dinner time when you head to the pantry for a can of chicken broth only to realize you were out.
send out a text and someone would almost always respond that they had a can you could have.
"send a kid" is what we would say. {you would then send a kid to get the can of said chicken broth}

those friends were there for early evening sitting-in-the-driveway-while-the-kids-play days, "who's coming to my thirty-one party?" parties, halloween chili and trick-or-treating nights, and SO MUCH MORE!!!

we did secret santa at christmastime and we "boo'ed" each other at halloween.

{between us we had more than 25 kids.
of the 25 more than half were at the ages to play well together...
and play well they did!
our kiddos were as close as all of us moms were.}

don't even get me started on what a supportive bunch they were during deployment.
when hubs was deployed for one year during our time in fort campbell those girls were my rock!
there were meals shared, shoulders to cry on, countless sleepovers for the kids, and late nights around the fire pit.

i miss those girls so SO much.
i long for a group of friends that special again.

oh, they're all still there for me.
i'm still on that group text.
now, i get a kick out of them asking if anyone has a cup of milk and me responding "me!"
{i live much too far away for them to have my cup of milk. LOL}
when they ask who's coming to the next thirty-one party i respond "i can't this time."

when i'm feeling sad, like today, i let them know.

jamie, christy, hollie, laura, sandy, jen, and gina, i miss you girls terribly.
you all are more than friends...you're family.
thank you for being so great for the short time we were together!

one day soon we will make it back up there to visit. pinky promise.
if you're ever in florida you better stop in and say hello!



linking up at {in}courage where we're discussing community for the next five weeks.

11.11.11

my week has been a bit emotional...

monday morning hubs woke up early to head to the airport.
he was on his way to visit a now new forever friend and her daughter, heather and allyssa.

i think because i am so proud to be his wife that i must have cried everyday this week.
for reals.

a little background...
heather is the widow of one of jake's buds from afghanistan, andrew hutchins, also simply known as "hutch".
allyssa is the precious baby girl hutch was never able to meet.

jake was there from monday to wednesday.
tuesday was the one-year anniversary of hutch's death.
{only three days before veteran's day}
he wanted to be there for so many reasons.
to finally meet heather and allyssa.
to meet hutch's parents.
heather's parents.
to visit hutch's grave.
some reasons i may never know and even more so will never understand.

there is a significant age difference between jake and hutch.
jake thought of him as a little brother.
and now...heather is a little sister.
and allyssa a niece.
to us both.

thank you, heather.
veteran's day has been dear to me for the last ten years of being an army wife, but it now takes on a whole new meaning.
my husband lost a brother in afghanistan.
my heart hurts for him.
you lost your husband, your best friend.
my heart hurts for you.
for allyssa.
she lost her daddy.

i will NEVER take for granted my freedom.
because of my husband and because of hutch.
because of all the brave men and women who served before them.
and who are serving now.

{these are a few few amazing pictures from jake's trip}

is she not the cutest?!?!


this is my favorite.
he loves her so much.






allyssa giving her daddy some lovin'.









one final picture...
this is sunset on fort campbell.
just before the lowering of the colors.


r.i.p. cpl andrew l. hutchins
04.30.90-11.08.10

you will never be forgotten.

no words.

no words can express the excitement that is running through me at this very moment.
i can't tell you when or where or how but, hubs is gonna be home so soon.

this is pretty much how my face has been stuck for the last few days...

yep, that pretty much sums it up.

my {heart} belongs to a soldier.

and my big'ol cup'o coffee!

the end.

quiet your mind...

the zac brown band says i should quiet my mind.
how can i quiet my mind with four children running in every direction?

yesterday i cleaned up more messes than i think i've cleaned up this whole deployment combined.

there was spilled milk,
spilled crystal light, both dry and liquid, on two very seperate occassions,
an entire box of spilled shell noodles,
pee on the floor (potty training at it's finest),
a bag or two of instant oatmeal scattered through the whole house,
spilled carnation instant breakfast, which is, again, a seperate occassion than the spilled milk,
monopoly pieces all. over. the. downstairs.

don't forget about the mess from breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
and dirty diapers.
and laundry...that is now a perfect mountain atop my couch.
and dishes. i never have a sink without dishes. never.

overwhelmed by His blessings.
that's me.
when i start to grumble tell my hubs all the wonderful happenings that occur here at home he reminds me that we are, indeed, blessed.

today as i was am still washing dishes, i'm listening to my most favorite recent purchase.
the zac brown band CD.
this band takes me back to the days when my dad used to take me with him to his friends house and they'd listen to the albums of lynyrd skynyrd, the alman brothers, and jimmy buffet.
the sound and style of this music will always be in my heart.
part of who i am.
the way i was raised.
it makes me think of my dad everytime i hear it.

ok, so i'm getting sappy and off point.
back on track now.

good 'ol zac says that we need to quiet our minds, soak it all in, it's a game you can't win, enjoy the ride.

next time i start to clean my 1,937th mess of the day, i will soak it all in (pun not intended), and enjoy my babies.
they won't make messes forever.
they will soon be all grown up.
my hubs will not be gone forever.
this deployment will soon end.
he will be home to help.

now, i have to get back to those dishes.
oh, and, the laundry that we are digging through for clean undies....

a poem for us army wives.

one year ago i doubted why God would take me away from the comfort of home, jacksonville, fl, and put me in a place where i knew no one and no one seemed my kind of kind.
the short story?
people around here were down right MEAN!
i would have never said i wanted to go home.
this (active duty army life) is indeed what we signed up for.
if living on post around a bunch of ugliness were part of the package then i'd have to make do.

after a few weeks of living on post and sticking close to the few girls i knew i could count on i was beginning to think i could handle this whole army life.
and i've done great.
of course, there have been low points...we'll leave that to another post.
or a personal conversation.

fast forward to a few days after i arrived home from my florida vacay.
my immediate neighbor friend had told me that we had a new neighbor that had kiddos about all of our kiddos ages.
that makes her an instant 'must get to know' gal.
you moms with kiddos so know what i'm talking about!
there are play dates to plan, picnics to go on, festivals to attend...and all with instant kiddo friends in tow. because they are all the same age.
perfection!

i introduced myself...
probably while chasing one of my rugrats back inside after an escape from the front door...
while she was walking back to her house from somewhere.
i didn't ask details.
i do remember that my pasta was on the stove boiling and our conversation was long enough for me to come back inside to very sticky pasta.
good friends are worth sticky pasta.

laura and i have been good friends since.
i think so anyway.
laura, julie, and myself.
we sit outside with the kiddos,
we take them to the butterfly festival (a post for another day),
we do jillian michaels' 30-day shred (julie will so be there next time!),
we eat each other's dinner...
stuff friends do.

ok, so you're caught up.

laura is an aspiring author.
she did not ask me to say all these kind things about her.
i asked her first, of course. i didn't want to show you all her fabulous work without first asking.
she's a writer.
a poet.
she uses her words so well.

i've read two of her childrens books and one poem (that i'm about to share with you) and i've been so touched by all of them.

this next poem brought tears to my eyes.
really.
i'm getting teary eyed thinking of it.

please read it and take in every word.
if you're an army wife, or any military spouse, it will stir emotions within you.
grab a kleenex.

Missing Him
I'm sitting at home with so much to do,
My cell phone not ringing with a call from you.
Wish you were here to ease my mind,
But these old college pictures are all I can find.
The kids are growing fast, growing up every day,
They're sweet and funny as ever with the things that they say.
"Is Daddy coming home? Will he be here soon?"
But all I can tell them is to send a message with the moon.
"Maybe he's looking and he'll hear you speak.
Just look at the moon if it's Daddy you seek.
He'll look too and he'll send his love,
The moon is our messenger from up above."
We keep ourselves busy as the year goes by,
We make lives for ourselves and try not to cry,
But there's a sadness deep down that only you can replace,
And I cannot wait till you get home and put a smile on my face.
I'm amazed at the strength that the kids truly show,
Knowing you're gone for so long, wondering where you did go.
They are the ones who hold it together for me,
They bring laughter and hope and joy and glee.
I miss you so much but I'm so proud of you,
This is just life in the Army and what soldiers' wives do.

laura just started her new blog at www.squigglydoodles.blogspot.com.
she's not new to blogging, just blogger.
if you love what you've just read please follow her.
i'm sure there will be many more inspiring, tear-jerking, captivating words to follow!

where were you?

where was i?
i can't remember where i was on november 14th, 2004.
nor can i remember where i was on september 1, 2010.
but, i do remember where i was on september 11, 2001.

i was pregnant with my first son, jake.
i was living on the west side of jacksonville, fl with four of my girlfriends.
when the first plane hit i was still in my warm bed.
the first person to call that horrific morning was my mom.
"are you watching tv?"
no, i'm in bed. where else would i be on a tuesday morning at 9 o'clock in the MORNING??
"go turn on the tv."
ugh...ok, fine.
i dragged my feet and probably grumbled all the way into the living room.
i am not a morning person.

once i plopped my very tired, very pregnant bum onto the couch and flipped on the tv i saw it.
i questioned what i was even seeing.
how could this happen?
was it an accident?
who would do this sort of thing?

then it became real for me.
for my unborn son.
for my fiance.

hubs (then fiance) was in the army reserves in 2001.
i was crying and worried and sick to my stomach.
would he have to leave us to go fight these mean people that have nothing better to do with their time than to attack the most amazing country in the whole world???
would he be by my side as i delivered our baby?
would he help me raise him and any other blessings we received?
would he come home?

my question on september 11, 2001 was answered in february of 2003.
hubs was called to iraq. for a twelve month tour that turned into a sixteen month tour.
then, he came home.

we are in the middle of another deployment now.
still for the same reason he, and thousands and thousands of other brave men and women, were called in 2003.
prayerfully hubs' twelve month tour will only be twelve months this time.
until he comes home...we are proud. so very proud of him.
and love him more than words can say.

while we had many years in between deployments.
and many babies.
and houses.
and memories.
there are so many families in america that were stripped of those dreams in just seconds.

i didn't understand what it meant to be proud of your country until that day.
it didn't matter to me if i had an american flag flying outside my house.
i half heartedly said the pledge of allegiance.
the national anthem had little meaning to me.

today, i'm proud.
i have a flag flying outside of my home everyday.
i stand tall with my hand planted firmly over my heart.
tears fall down my face every time i hear the national anthem.

we will never forget september 11, 2001.
it has forever changed our lives.

are you a proud american?
will you say a prayer for those who lost a loved one as a result of september 11?
will you fly your flag today? and everyday?
will you thank a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine?
this army wife thanks you!

may God continue to bless AMERICA!

pray for our soldiers.

{hubs, Sept 1, 2003, operation iraqi freedom/operation enduring freedom, iraq}

MilSpouse Friday Fill-in #3

i love reading other MilSpouse blogs.
reading the way they handle deployments.
seeing activities they do while their hubs' are away.
learning of their next duty station.
laughing with them.
crying with them.
praying for them.
reading other MilSpouse blogs makes me feel connected to a larger group of women who are in the same season of life as myself.

wifeofasailor had a brilliant idea for all of us to get to know each other a little bit more.

each week, she’ll post a list of questions on thursday (so you can have your blog ready on Friday).
go to her blog on friday and enter your blog post into Mr. Linky so others know who else participated and we can all visit other blogs.

here are this weeks questions.


1. What is your favorite household chore? Seriously? I loathe chores! But, if I must choose one I'll go with vacuuming or mowing the grass. I can actually hear myself think over the roar of the motor...you'd be surprised how far the kiddos will run when one of those two machines gets started!

2. What is your favorite childhood memory? hmmmm...summers spent with grandma. I spent every summer with one grandma or the other. Each of them had their own daytime TV routine. I was able to sneak in a few cartoons here and there...and then sit with them and watch soap operas or game shows or the news. I remember being bored to death at the time. Now, I wish I could watch with them again!

3. What is your most embarrassing moment? ok. So, this is kind of recent. Like, since I've been married, recent. Hubs was watching some movie called the Alamo. Or maybe it was just about the Alamo. Either way I thought it was fiction. Not true. It's become a family joke now...Melissa didn't know the Alamo was real. Whatev! I must have missed that day at school. Or, it's quite possible that my small christian school just decided that wasn't an important enough part of history. I don't know. But, believe you me, I know it exsists now!!!

4. What uniform of your spouse’s is your favorite? I love all of my Hubs' BDU's (no longer), DCU's (no longer), and ACU's...YUM! He's hot in them all!

5. What canceled TV show do you miss the most? Golden Girls!!! It goes right along with my fondest childhood memory. My Grandma Pittman watched it every night. She laughed and laughed. I didn't understand the humor then. Now, I laugh and laugh. That Rose and Sophia are HILARIOUS!!!!


goodness, this picture was so long ago.
i still had braces.
i was pregnant with jett.
Hubs had not yet been commissioned.
we still lived in jacksonville.
2006, maybe.
an oldie, but a goodie!

MilSpouse friday fill-in #1

i love reading other MilSpouse blogs.
reading the way they handle deployments.
seeing activities they do while their hubs' are away.
learning of their next duty station.
laughing with them.
crying with them.
praying for them.
reading other MilSpouse blogs makes me feel connected to a larger group of women who are in the same season of life as myself.

wifeofasailor had a brilliant idea for all of us to get to know each other a little bit more.

each week, she’ll post a list of questions on thursday (so you can have your blog ready on Friday).
go to her blog on friday and enter your blog post into Mr. Linky so others know who else participated and we can all visit other blogs.

here are this weeks questions.

how did you and your spouse meet?
i was working at jax navy, a credit union in our hometown, jacksonville.
he walked in wearing an army PT shirt, sweat pants, brown leather sketchers without the shoestrings, and a set of raccoon eyes from the goggles he wore in the tanning bed in the few minutes before he came in.
can you see him??
he was so cute!!
he was there to refinance his truck.
he sat down and i started the loan process like i would have with anyone else.
only difference is, what should have taken thirty minutes took two hours.
we talked and talked.
we was so cute.
oh, i forgot to mention the grocery bag FULL of rolled coins he had to deposit into his account.
i admit to have let out a small chuckle when he entered the building.
he was quite the sight!
ok, back to the story...
when he was approved for the loan i didn't have anything else to do for him.
except for deposit his bunches of coins.
after i finished he asked for my phone number.
of course, i gave it to him.
he will tell the story a tad different, saying that i was the one who called him first.
i will set the record straight right now.
i called him because in our two hour conversation of nothing important, (other than not wanting the time together to ever end) i forgot to get a copy of his drivers license.
so, i got to see him again!!!
two times in one day!
he was so cute!!!
he says that when he went home that day he told his mom that he had just met the girl he was going to marry...
we were so young then.
only 19 and 20.
he was 19.
now, he's almost 29 and i'm almost 30.
i can't imagine my life without him!

what is the best thing about being a MilSpouse?
to me, pride in my soldier.
i am more proud that he is my hubs than i can ever express in words!

what is the hardest thing about being a MilSpouse?
right now, the time apart.
deployments.
a time or two in the past and in the future, PSC'ing.
leaving friends and watching them leave will never get easier.

what is your favorite dish?
i haven't had it in a while.
i could make a meal of my grandma's potato salad, macaroni and cheese, and baked beans.
all on one plate.
a little of each side dish on my fork.
yum!

if you could change one thing in this world, what would it be?
is it just me or is there an increasing lack of faith, knowledge, and understanding in Jesus Christ these days??
i would change this first.
more of the world needs to know Him.
really KNOW Him.
trust in Him.
believe in Him.
have faith in Him.
the world would be a better place with more Christ-like humans.
just sayin'.

it's all in a days work.

before:


after:

yay me!

gotta love army post living...
everyone's house looks the same.
and how about those chain link fences??
they're all rusted and pokey...
i can just hear the tetnus shot calling our names.
but, praise the Lord we have a place to call home!

a question.

i got a convo on etsy the other day.
i always get super excited when i get these...
it usually means an eager buyer needs a quick question answered before they hit commit to buy.
well, this time was a little different.
it was from a sweet momma who has a son who is considering joining the army.
HOOAH!!
ok, only soldiers say that.
it's not pretty coming outta my mouth.
let's just say i was SO excited to hear that her son was thinking of the army!!
but, then i realized she was wanting to know an army wife perspective on the army.
what should she expect.
any words that she may not have already been told.
from me?
huh?
i was flattered!
and then scared to answer cause what if i said something that turned her and her son away from choosing the army.
well, i'll let you read what i said.
these are my honest to goodness thoughts.
i think if you've been reading this blog for any length of time,
or even if only for the last three months,
then you'll guess what i told her.

Hi {future army momma}! (this isn't really how i began...i just didn't want to share her name)

Well, being an Army wife is a challenge. It's also a blessing.

Gosh, I'm searching for words...I think the one thing about being an Army wife that stands out the most to me is a great sense of pride in America. I don't think even the most proud American can truly feel the sense of pride an Army spouse/family member can feel. We stand apart from the rest of the country. We know the sacrifices made to make this country great. We understand the heartache of hearing our loved one say "I've got orders." We know more than ANYONE what it feels like to miss our soldier/spouse/family member for ONE WHOLE YEAR...and sometimes longer!

We, as Army spouses/family members, also see what the Army does for our loved one! I'm pretty sure my husband was a proud American before he joined the Army. (He comes from a long line of police officers) But, I think that being an American soldier has given him a deeper sense of pride. There's a glimmer of something special, sometimes even a tear, in his eyes when he hears The National Anthem. He enjoys the 4th of July more than anyone I've ever known. The Declaration of Independance has taken on a whole new meaning. These emotions are ones I, as an Army wife, will NEVER understand. It is only truly understood by the soldier, the one who stands on the "front line" for our freedoms.

Yes, some of all of this pride and understanding comes with age and a smidge of wisdom. However, it is my opinion that the Army has played a part. Even if only a small part.

I'm not sure I answered your question or even helped you in feeling better about your son's decision. I hope I did a little.

Will you tell your son that my husband and I are very proud of him thinking of becoming an American Soldier? I think he'll be glad he did!

Blessings,
Melissa


I love you, Hubs!
Thank you for all you do for our family AND this country!!!!!

i am an army wife.

it's been 49 days since the Hubs left for deployment.
49 looooonggg days!

i get up alone.
i get the kiddos ready for school alone.
i serve the babies breakfast alone.
i clean the house alone.
i put them down for naps alone.
i get the big boys off of the school bus alone.
i do homework with them alone.
i make dinner alone.
i eat dinner alone.
i get them ready for bed alone.
i kiss them goodnight and say bedtime prayers alone.
i go to bed alone.

yes, i share these days with our four beautiful children...how could i possibly feel alone?
one truly wouldn't understand until becoming an army wife.
it's lonely.

the life of an army wife is so much more than sending your hero off to war.
we pray.
we hold tight to our faith.
we pray.
we cry.
we pray.
we reach out to other army wives.
we pray.
we become mother and father all-in-one.
we pray.
we take on the household tasks of our husbands.
we pray.
we lean on our friends who may not fully understand but know us inside and out...and still love us.
we pray.
we look forward to the day we can hold the love of our life in our arms again.
we never stop praying.

despite the obvious *downs* to being an army wife i wouldn't trade this life for another.
there are a few *ups*.

we'll travel the country...if we're lucky, we'll travel the world!
we'll make friends from all over the world.
our children will experience more in their little lives than most adults have ever known.
and, it doesn't hurt that i get to see my Hubs in his uniform....oooh-la-la!!

being an army wife gives me a great sense of pride!
i'm proud of my husband.
i'm proud of his fellow soldiers.
i'm proud to call myself an american.
i get a lump in my throat when i hear the national anthem.
i want to photograph EVERY american flag...red, white, and blue have become my favorite colors.

i know this post was kinda all over the place.
these last couple of days have been a roller coaster of emotion...
for so many reasons.
too many really to list.
but, they all make me realize that there is a great need for army wives to stand up and be heard.
or, at least write about it for a sec.

next time you see a soldier, thank him!
next time you hear a wife say that her husband is deployed, thank her!
next time you hear of a soldier that needs prayer, pray.
or, how about you add those hard working soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines to your daily prayer?
pray for our men and women EVERYDAY!
they will feel it.
their families back home will feel it.
AMERICA will feel it!

the view from here...

the drive to target the other night was beautiful.
i couldn't help but look at those clouds and feel God with me.

i know this post is short and sweet...
again, bare with me.
please.
i'm getting used to my new normal.

Colts vs. Saints

do you care who wins?
i don't.
do i care that there is a function for this event that allows me to get out of the house for a few hours and fellowship with other adults?
heck yeah!
i am SO there!
and, best part?
i have a great friend who is watching ALL of my kiddos so i can go.
that thoughtfulness and generosity warms my heart.
thank you aleshia!

may i mention that she is also an army wife?
a strong army wife.
who's hubs is also deployed with mine.
i'm not sure what my expectations were for this deployment.
did i expect to have a church family that has literally wrapped their arms around us to let us know they will be there?
did i expect to make some surely lasting friendships with a bunch of amazing women?
did i expect that, even though this is a tough, tough season of my life that i would be chugging along like the little engine that could?
i keep telling myself, "i think i can, i think i can."
none of the above.
but, it's all happening.
did *I* EXPECT?
no.
but, *God* KNEW.
He knew that i would be ok.
and {right now} i am.

are you having a happy sunday?
well, then, go!
go have a happy sunday!
this is the day that the Lord has made.
be glad in it!

{i love you Hubs!!! be safe!}

bare with me...

or is it "bear with me"?
either way...
please don't give up on me and the 'ol blog.
i WILL be back.
i WILL not be gone for long.
i'm just going to need a little bit of time to get used to my new *normal*.
you understand.
or maybe you don't.
it's ok.
i've got a bunch of time to tell you ALL about how i'm gonna survive the coming months.

Happy Veteran's Day!

Today is a day to thank those who serve our country.

(photo from kellyclarkson-fan.info)

Today is a day to remember those who served our country and gave the ultimate sacrifice.

(photo from mediabistro.com)

Today is a day to hug my soldier extra tight!


Thank you Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors and Marines for all you do for our country!!!