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They Just Joined For The Education

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One of my biggest pet peeves is to listen to someone go on and on about someone who really didn’t want to go to Iraq, Afghanistan or anywhere else that the military sent them but instead they joined the military for the education benefits. After ten years of marriage to a soldier, I have stood there as he has taken the oath that every member of the military [takes up enlistment and re-enlistment]: “I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I … Continue reading →

Becoming The Best I Have Ever Been

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I used to be one of those women that I envy today: I ate what I wanted, didn’t exercise much and never had a weight problem. That was until I hit my mid-thirties and I became a stay at home wife and then all the years caught up with me without warning. At 5’1″ any extra weight shows and for me; most my my weight decided to take residence from the top of my stomach to the bottom of my thighs. Granted to many my weight of 135 lbs is not so bad but I know what I look like … Continue reading →

Meet My Soldier

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It’s been a rough week on our military and their families. We have dealt with an anti-war protest that included the police being told to stand down during an incident with spray paint and then we discovered that William Arkin considers our troops “mercenaries”. For that reason, I would like to introduce you to one of those so called mercenaries: my husband. My husband Carl grew up in a very small town in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Carl joined the Army at the age of eighteen for two reasons: First, to get some kind of training that would give … Continue reading →

It’s Time To Take A Stand

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In my last blog I responded to a small part of a blog from The Washington Post by William Arkin and I promised to share my ideas about supporting our troops and taking a stand against these kindS of attacks on our troops. Military members and their families have always been more or less encouraged to just let it all go; don’t engage in the discourse when it comes to remarks such as those made by William Arkin. I do my best to be a good military wife and I hope that when all is said and done that my … Continue reading →

My Response To William Arkin Of The Washington Post

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I have pretty thick skin when it comes to those who protest the war and even those who bad mouth the troops. I spent a year writing a column in Greenville, Michigan, during my husband’s deployment to Iraq. I refused to write under any name but my own, though I was encouraged to do so for my own protection. I don’t like being bullied and I refused to hide or be ashamed of my husband’s service. This week, even my thick skin was penetrated to the core of my being as I found the same link in my email three … Continue reading →

Understanding Your Deployed Soldier

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While my husband was in Iraq, I discovered a brand new side to his personality. My husband is generally pretty laid back and it takes a great deal for him to really get upset in the everyday world. To say the very least, this was not the case while he was deployed. I was lucky enough that my husband had internet access in his tent so we were able to talk everyday online and without a doubt this was a blessing; it could also be a huge stress factor as well. I arranged my life around the computer as my … Continue reading →

Deployment And Children From A Previous Relationship

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As the wife of a National Guardsman my life is usually lived in the civilian world; my husband has a civilian job as a union carpenter, we don’t live on post, I was one of the few that had any real contact with other family members of my husband’s unit due to the fact that I had been involved with the FRG for several years and the nearest commissary is over two hours away. As one can imagine I was less than prepared to have my life turned inside out when my husband was deployed to Iraq in October of … Continue reading →

Kids, Deployment And Depression

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Deployment is hard on everyone involved and often we try to put on a brave face in order to prevent those we love from worrying about us. Unfortunately that same brave face we put on often spills over to our children and they also make an attempt to keep it together and keep their fears and worries to themselves in order to keep from worrying their parents. As deployments increase so does childhood depression among military children. Children face the same concerns and fears as their parents but often depression in children is overlooked as a “stage” they are going … Continue reading →

Can Military Family Members Suffer From PTSD

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I am one of those people that can handle any crisis that comes along. I am the person calling 911 while delegating everyone around me to ensure that the situation is under control. I do this without thinking and I do it well but once the crisis is over I am the first person to crumble. My husband’s deployment was no different. I helped start a non-profit group that assisted the troops and their families, I was involved in every possible fundraiser out there, I was the person that others called when they were scared; all the while holding it … Continue reading →

Personalizing Your Care Packages

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Recently, I found myself going through my husband’s footlocker and I discovered something that surprised me about my husband: He is really a sentimental sap. While he was in Iraq, I tried to do something outside of the box when it came to care packages. He had a PX, he had a Burger King, Pizza Hut and Subway available to him so food was not an issue but homesickness was a huge issue for him and I spent much of the time trying to find a way to make him feel a bit closer to home. Early in his deployment … Continue reading →