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Many things about milspouse life are AWNsome… but we admit, deployments usually aren’t one of them. Your AWN Command Team members have been there, done that (and might even be doing the deployment thing as we speak), so we want to make sure you have all the resources you need to thrive during what can be a challenging season of milspouse life. Click images below or keep reading for more from our blog.
Some people say, “live each day as if he deploys tomorrow.” In a way, it sounds great, but then life happens when deployment isn’t on the brain. Your kids need help when they get home from school. Your baby or toddler requires your attention more often than not. You might have a job that exhausts your brain and tires your body. You might have volunteer positions or children’s activities in the evenings. Before you know it, there’s no time left to live like he deploys tomorrow. There’s barely enough time to wash your hair or find a moment of peace.
I heard about all of these things and more. But there is one thing that I didn’t hear enough about: hitting that deployment wall.
What’s the deployment wall?
It’s when you are drained from all the things—the responsibilities, missing your loved one, the emotional roller coaster. When you are just over. it. already.
The holidays can be a magical time as the world around us seems to feel wrapped in joy and wonder. For many, though, there will be an undeniable void in their homes and hearts this holiday season as military loved ones are fulfilling deployment orders around the world.
At any given time, there are more than 150,000 troops deployed in territories outside of the U.S. Family members left behind struggle to manage the home, finances, and children. Many military families live away from their hometowns or where family may reside, making travel the only option to spend time with family and friends during the holiday season.
This year will be the 16th Thanksgiving my husband and I have been married and the eighth one we’ve had to celebrate separately because of geographic separation. While our sons and I look forward to spending Thanksgiving in Dallas with dear friends while my husband is deployed, it reminds me of how our military lifestyle has shaped and molded us into what spending the holidays together looks like for military families. You make the most of whatever situation you’re in at the moment!
Every year, Oct. 26 is celebrated as the National Day of the Deployed, a day where we honor all of those who have deployed in service to the nation, as well as the sacrifices military families must make while their loved one is overseas. Since 2012, every state in the U.S. observes the day.
And they should.
When I learned that my husband was going to deploy this year, their relationship left me nervous. It would be our first longer separation and the first my son would remember. I couldn’t help but worry, not only for them, but also for me. How would I connect with my son the way he connects with his dad?
My 3 1/2 year old son is a daddy’s boy, through and through.
He loves playing cars and dinos with Dad, matching clothes with Dad, and helping Dad with all the household tasks and projects.
Have you heard the song, “Watching You” by Rodney Atkins? (If not, you can listen here.) That’s them, in a nutshell.
During deployments and other separations, the spouse or significant other holds down the fort at home.
All the resources and blogs say that you don’t have to do the fort-holding alone.
You can and should ask for help when you need it, they say.
For more than 60 years, legendary comedian Bob Hope traveled around the world supporting our nation’s service members and their families. Inspired by his dedication to the troops and their families, the USO founded the Bob Hope Legacy Reading Program in 2017. This program is largely driven by virtual, on-demand story time offerings, helping military families stay connected no matter where their service takes them.
One thing about my husband that surprised me was that he told me he enjoys listening to sad music. As he put it, he wants to “feel all the feelings that life has to offer.”