Yes, you read that title correctly. Thankful Through Deployments. Seriously? What, in all of the deployment training, preparation and packing, family separation for six, nine, maybe twelve or more months of tour, and the reintegration back, is there to be thankful for?!
deployment
Hurricane Ian: Army Vet Committed to Helping His Community
Since Hurricane Ian slammed into Florida, we’ve all watched the news reports with a sinking feeling. With so much destruction, so many of our hearts are broken for our friends, family and communities across the state. One thing is clear — there’s a lot of pain but there are also a lot of great people doing their part.
AWTR Show #929: Operation Gratitude
After 9-11, Operation Gratitude founder Carolyn Blashek began volunteering at the Los Angeles airport military lounge. In March 2003, a soldier came into the office and broke down at her desk. He was on leave from a war zone for his mother’s funeral, his wife had left him, and his only child had died as an infant—he had no one else in his life. It was then he told her,
“I’m going back over there. I know I won’t make it back this time, but it really doesn’t matter because no one would even care.” Right then, Blashek realized that when bullets are flying, troops must believe that someone at home cares about them as an individual. That’s when operation gratitude was born.
New Milspouse Facing a Deployment? Don’t Worry, We’ve Got Your Six!
Greetings to all the new military spouses (and all the seasoned ones) out there. Military life may seem overwhelming and when you are facing a deployment, it may seem impossible.
But Guess what? You got this and we are here to help you. Below are some resources for those of you who ar experiencing deployment for the first time and also for those of you who just need a refresh.
Why Not?
As I mentioned in my last post, The Vow Not Taken, my life is indeed a hot mess. In this post, I will let you see more of the “hot mess express” as I explain the consquences of saying two small words (why and not) in the same sentence!
You Sacrifice Too
I remember the first time a kind woman came up to my husband in uniform and thanked him for his service and sacrifice, and then turned to thank me too. We were in our second year of marriage, and I hadn’t yet heard that from a stranger. I was caught off guard – – taken aback that someone would turn to recognize me, just a normal woman standing by her serviceman’s side. I felt very undeserving.
I wasn’t the one in uniform.
I wasn’t the one sacrificing.
I wasn’t the one serving.
AWTR Show #898: Deployment Prep in 5 Steps
Deployment prep, is there such a thing? There are certainly things that you can do to be more prepared for your spouse to deploy and that is what Annie covers in this week’s MEM. Annie provides 5 steps to help you be better prepared. She also warns that things probably won’t go according to plan – so just expect that.
3 Challenges of Reintegration (And 3 Possible Solutions)
I’ve been writing about deployment and reintegration a lot. It’s my life right now, and it’s harder than I anticipated. I thought it would be magically easy, since my husband and I had some key conversations to prepare us for the changes that occurred for all of us while he was gone.
Coping Through Deployment
Sometimes life can be overwhelming. The constant demands of day to day living make it hard to catch our breath. Work, family, sports practices, being at home with small children, sick children and the list goes on and on. This can be especially exhausting when one partner is away training or deployed and “regular stuff” is left to be taken care of day in and day out. The days feel long and, at times, even like there is no end in sight.
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