TGFMS

(Touring Guam)

Thank God for Military Spouses! Sometimes it is really hard to be a military spouse. While certain areas of this lifestyle are inevitable and expected, somehow that does not make them easier. Deployments and separation are one of those areas that are expected when you are married to someone in the military but they are difficult for even the strongest of spouses. It is really comforting to have the love and support of family and friends during these times of separations as well as during the "everyday" life which can be quite hectic and unplanned most of the time. But there's this special bond that military spouses have and I'm so glad to have this wonderful group of women in my life.

There are of course those "rules" of deployment that civilian spouses may not know about, and here's where I'll share my wisdom....

1. As soon as the husband walks out the door for a TDY or Deployment, anything and everything will break. You can't be prepared becasue you don't know what it will be, but something will break. In our case, our downstairs toilet has a small leak which has been "fixed" a few times, but of course started acting up once Mason left.

2. We are allowed to cry anytime without judgement. This might be becasue you catch a glimpse of the dirty laundry they've left behind, or becasue you stub your toe and apparently it's worse when there's no one else to complain to, or just simply because...

3. The first few days are the hardest, then it gets better, some days suck, and at the halfway point you're just about THROUGH with the whole thing, but then it gets better again, becasue they will be home (hopefully) soon.

4. There is no such thing as an exact departure or arrival date. It's the military; things change. Which means, don't book a vacation for when they return until they get home and while there may be ideas of departure and arrival dates, they often change. Imagine gearing up for a long separation, saying goodbye, and guess who walks in the door a few hours later to say...well, today wasn't the day. Mason and I generally have the policy of, we'll believe it when the rubber hits the runway.

5. Expect to see baby booms in military communities before deployments and 9 months after deployments...

6. Don't judge what you see us eating for dinner. My single life diet consists of Popcorn, pasta, ice-cream, and apples with peanut butter...why make a big dinner for just 1? And there is never too much ice-cream or chocolate (and for some, wine) to get through a time of separation.

7. We may make utterances about the negativeness of military life, but it's just a phase...we really do love it, or we wouldn't be here.

8. I swear...the doors lock themselves. Why is it that once they leave the keys end up on the inside of the car or house, and I'm on the outside. This connects to the military ID making escapes into bottom of purse ville...

I'm sure there are plenty more...but this is just a little glimpse. I'm really grateful for all the military friends I have made here and in our different military moves because they always understand and are there when you need them to be. I spoke with a friend (non-military) recently who asked how things were going, and I said that everything was going pretty well, and that some days are hard. She pointed out that it's a good thing some days are hard, because that means we're loving and missing each other. Good point. I see lots of people who don't necessarily feel the same way when the spouses leave (they are really excited and the homecoming isn't a thing to look forward too) which makes me sad for them. I'm lucky to have such an awesome hubby I guess!

Well, I'm off to run some errands at the BX and Commissary in my mismatched Yoga Pants and T-shirt...glad to know there's no one there judging, because we've all been there. (I didn't have any great pictures of me and my friends-probably because we're so busy gabbing all the time, so I posted pics of the guy who makes me a military spouse).

(What a hottie!)