How Important Are All Those Milestones, Really?

Posted on March 21, 2007 by Kori Rodley Irons

I remember carefully noting when each of my children rolled over, sat up, walked and ran. I wrote down what their first words were and I’ve even saved the sheets of paper where I recorded each solid food as it was introduced to see if there were any allergic reactions or what the likes and dislikes were. It seemed very important for me to keep track of where they were in terms of developmental steps and what “percentile” they were in for various milestones. Now that they are nearly grown, I can’t quite remember why it all seemed so very … Continue reading →

When Is He Ready for a Sippy Cup?

Posted on February 14, 2007 by Valorie Delp

Note: Someone recently PM’d me to ask why I almost always refer to infants as males. The reader wants to know if I am aware that babies come in both genders. I am certainly aware that babies come in two wonderful genders. However, mommies do not! Since moms are always female I always refer to babies as males to avoid confusion while writing. In parenting, many paths lead to the right end. There is no right answer to when you should give your child a sippy cup or if you even have to. One good indication of readiness is when … Continue reading →

Meet My Soldier

Posted on February 3, 2007 by

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 →

My Response To William Arkin Of The Washington Post

Posted on February 2, 2007 by

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 →

Letters of Love: To My Husband in the Military

Posted on February 1, 2007 by Heather Long

A friend of mine is married to a man in the army. Originally stationed here in Texas, he’s been serving overseas. Due to security, she doesn’t know exactly where he is, though she is able to send him messages through the military. He has been overseas for almost a year; their last time together was actually spent for Valentine’s Day in 2006. When I told her about my idea for publishing letters of love to loved ones for Valentine’s, she asked to write one. Here is our first Letter of Love, from Cindy to Brent, no last names required. Dear … Continue reading →

Understanding Your Deployed Soldier

Posted on January 31, 2007 by

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

Posted on January 31, 2007 by

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

Posted on January 30, 2007 by

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 →