Did you know… Mission: Milspouse published its 3000th blog post in 2023 and is still growing!
The Days Are Long as a Milspouse
If you’ve read any of my blog submissions on Mission Milspouse lately, you’ll likely see a pattern where I have been mostly writing about what I’ve learned being a military spouse for the past twenty years but in presented in slightly different ways. In addition to...
Life Hacks: Speech Pathology 101
But, here you are post-corona outbreak starting to navigate the world of as speech-language pathologist (SLP) or even a speech-language pathologist assistant (SLPA).
If you are now your child’s SLP, we’ve got this!
If your child is connecting via tele-therapy and you are the SLPA, we’ve got this.
Let’s start with great tools and resources for parents who are implementing speech and language therapy from home.
The Best Medicine
I thought March was supposed to go out like a lamb.
Baaa.
No lambs here; we’re all still dealing with those March lions running around crazy trying to eat everyone.
That’s how this month has been. I’m stuck right now deciding between telling you a few things…
Like how I got arrested last week. Yeah, I—the person voted “least likely to break the law” in high school—got arrested. It was crazy how it happened. I mean, my next-door neighbor is a police officer and even he didn’t have my back despite it being his fence I was crawling over…
Or, have you heard of that weight-reducing cauliflower milk called “Caulk?”
And last, but not least, I would love your thoughts on the New York City Police Department’s announcement of a “Feline Unit” to supplement their Canine Unit.
Isn’t life crazy?
Finding Purpose in the Pause
A couple of years ago, I took a trip home to Virginia to spend some time with my parents. We were stationed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina at the time, so the short four-hour drive to extended family was a welcomed retreat.
While I was visiting, they took me to one of the Civil War battlefields to walk along the paved paths and soak in some beauty and fresh air. On this scenic route, I was accompanied by my furry walking partner, Bailey. Now, Bailey is a sweet, black Labrador Retriever, but she has awful leash manners. She will pull and tug the first 15 minutes of any walk—guaranteed. She is on a mission to find things to sniff and locate other dogs. As she nearly pulled my shoulder out of socket during this particular stroll, I started to get increasingly frustrated with her lack of chill. Didn’t she realize there was no hurry? There was so much to see and look at and soak in right where we were. Why was she in such a rush? Her hurry was making me miss some really beautiful things.
In that moment, I realized that I can often be the same way—always looking ahead to the next thing, running on the hamster wheel of life, missing what’s right in front of me.
Spring Break Spirit Week: Enjoying Life in the Midst of Uncertainty
I live with my family in Northern Italy, essentially ground zero for the Coronavirus. I’m not going to lie—some days are hard—but we are adamant about finding the joys and the silver linings all around us. We are going into our fifth week of schooling from home and each week, while the “schooling” portion of it gets progressively easier to navigate, the restrictions and mandates by the Italian government get harder and harder. We are quarantined, and if I am honest, this is not how I planned to spend our final months in Europe.
DoDEA Europe hasn’t even gotten to Spring Break yet—we have two more weeks before we dive headfirst into staring at each other without the distraction, continuity, and structure of school. As I laid in bed last night after Italy imposed more necessary and important restrictions, I tossed and turned worrying about all the things I know I can’t control. I started fretting about how we are going to amuse two children for 10 days of Spring Break. I mean, there are only so many movies, Netflix, board games, and books that we can tolerate before we pull our hair out. But then suddenly, I was inspired!
Ready? Over Spring Break we are going to have Spirit Week!
A Military Spouse of a Different Flavor
While standing with my wife in a social military setting the question is inevitably asked: “So how long have you served?” When my response is, “she has served since 2016,” with the emphasis on “she,” you can see the confusion on their face as they try to process what I have just stated.
It doesn’t help that I cut my own hair using the No. 2 attachment, generally keep my face clean shaven, and run marathons often enough that my 48-year-old body is still in decent shape. I look Army.
But I’m not the active duty spouse in our relationship, nor have I ever served in any branch of the armed services.
News 6 Mashup: March 30, 2020
Here are the top stories for the week of March 30, 2020, straight from AWN News 6 Correspondent, Jolene McNutt:
• Military OneSource Ready to Assist Military Families with COVID-19
* Seven PCS Changes to Watch
* Oklahoma National Guardsman Saves Woman from Fire
* United States, Taliban Sign Peace Agreement
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