Oh let the "fun" begin. When my husband came home for a short four day weekend we figured, "it might be short since you've been gone a month and you're leaving for another 6 weeks, but after that husband will be home." Boy were we WRONG! We found out the morning after he flew in that he would be deploying. After my initial what-the-heck moment we talked schedule and training and all that follows. We decided to enjoy the weekend and worry about it all when he went back to work.
Back at the Battalion he finds out that the person who told him the original details about the deployment was beyond wrong and the deployment date was so much sooner than what we were originally told. Great. I told the husband that I needed to know what his schedule would be with the new changes. A lovely email was sent to my BlackBerry with his whole schedule mapped out for my type-A self. It's LOADED, even when my husband deployed to Fallujah, Iraq during the height of the battle there he didn't have this much pre-deployment training! I'm trying my best not to jump onto the Debbie Downer convoy but seeing that he will only be home a handful of days (and I'm being generous when I say a handful) it's hard not to.
After our last move (Camp Lejeune to Camp Pendleton) I swore that I wouldn't drive a Uhaul cross-country, towing a car behind it solo again. Well at least I was right about some of it! I won't be driving a Uhaul (I'll be driving my car) and our daughter will be keeping me company this trip. We will be moving to Quantico, VA shortly before my husband leaves for deployment. With his rockin' schedule however, our daughter and I will be hoofing it across I-10 (or maybe I-40 for a better view!) alone.
I am looking forward to Homecoming already and can't wait to get this next one behind us! It's amazing how strong you become when you get thrown into these situations. An amazing spouse and fabulous friends will get you through just about anything.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
USMC style Curve Balls
This past Thursday my husband got home from being away for a month in the field. It was so great to see him and have him finally be able to see our baby girl crawl! He was only home for the weekend as he is off on more fun adventures with the Marine Corps for another 6 weeks. While he was home for this short time we had to make a little road trip. By little I mean it took 10 hours! Thank you L.A. traffic for detaining us for 4 hours and waisting gas. About 30 minutes into our road trip my husband got a phone call. You know it's Marine Corps related when every other word is "Sir". I sat there quietly, half trying to hear what was going on and half listening to our daughter babble in the back seat to her stuffed bunny. When my dear husband got off the phone and looked at me I knew I wasn't going to like it, and then came those four little words...."I'm deploying to Afghanistan."
My heart sank. We were NOT expecting this as his company isn't slated to deploy for another two years. He tells me that the Command was so impressed with the job he did in the field over the past month they want him to move to another company and deploy with them. I'm so proud that my husband did such a wonderful job but the little devil on my shoulder makes me think "you couldn't have slacked off just a little?" But then, that wouldn't be my husband. I'm looking forward to the next few days when we'll get more information about this deployment and the pre-deployment schedule. I am not looking forward to having him gone over the next few weeks/months/year and missing so many moments with our daughter and myself, but I'm looking forward to sending him care packages, goodies and letters. Looking forward to the butterflies in my stomach feeling when I see that strange number and it's my husband calling me. Mostly, I'm looking forward to HOMECOMING.
My heart sank. We were NOT expecting this as his company isn't slated to deploy for another two years. He tells me that the Command was so impressed with the job he did in the field over the past month they want him to move to another company and deploy with them. I'm so proud that my husband did such a wonderful job but the little devil on my shoulder makes me think "you couldn't have slacked off just a little?" But then, that wouldn't be my husband. I'm looking forward to the next few days when we'll get more information about this deployment and the pre-deployment schedule. I am not looking forward to having him gone over the next few weeks/months/year and missing so many moments with our daughter and myself, but I'm looking forward to sending him care packages, goodies and letters. Looking forward to the butterflies in my stomach feeling when I see that strange number and it's my husband calling me. Mostly, I'm looking forward to HOMECOMING.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Dear Deployment...
I don't know a single spouse that hasn't been through a deployment right now. While there are so many horrible, terrible, no good things about deployments I'm not going to focus on those. I want to talk about the good things. I know what you're thinking...good things? Is this lady off of her ever lovin' rocker?!? Let me explain.
I loved sending my husband care packages. It was so much fun to get him the things that he would never get for himself. What Marine is going to go buy mini water guns, MadLibs, and a baby pool?! And those are just a very few of the crazy things my husband was sent over all of our deployments. I know that he could get what he NEEDED while he was there from the PX, but I sent him the silly things and homemade stuff he couldn't (or wouldn't) get. It was nice to go out and find things for him and I knew he would like and in some strange way it made me feel like I was sending him a little bit of us in a box.
Phone calls...I don't need to say anything more, but I'll expand anyway. When have you ever looked forward to seeing a strange or unknown number on your called ?! When else is it acceptable for you to take your cell phone with you every where...and I do mean EVERYwhere. My cell phone went with me to the gym, on runs, to France and Belgium, in the shower, while cooking dinner, to the bathroom, the movies, meetings, banquets and doctors appointments. Even when the phone calls were on terrible satellite phones with horrible reception because of sand storms (or just being beat to hell and back and held together with duct tape) it was still the highlight of my day...or sometimes week. Even when they were so short the only thing said was "Just wanted to call and say 'I love you' 'cause I don't have much time to talk now." My heart would skip a beat every time I saw a funny number on the caller ID I didn't know.
During deployment you get control of the television remote. Now granted, you may get it when your husband is home too...but you also get the "seriously, you're watching that??" You have total TV freedom! Chick-flick on, grab your tissues. Romantic comedy, grab the popcorn! Soaps, Project Runway, Top Model, your favorite Disney princess movie or anything on the Food Network is all fair game without someone giving you funny looks or saying that you should watch something less "gay". Enjoy the power ladies!
The last thing I'll leave you with is obvious to all....HOMECOMING!!! How could this not make my "Good things" list? Picking out your homecoming outfit and getting a mani/pedi is like that first day of school all over again. Getting to making welcome home signs and hanging them up for all to see and then finally seeing those buses pull in! There is no way to describe the feeling of seeing your spouse step off the bus after x number of months gone. The first few hours home seem like a dream, but when you wake up he is still there and it isn't a dream.
So if you are in the midst of a deployment or about to set out on this adventure I hope you can dwell on some of these "good things" and enjoy your TV freedom and care package projects until you get to hug and kiss your military man again.
I loved sending my husband care packages. It was so much fun to get him the things that he would never get for himself. What Marine is going to go buy mini water guns, MadLibs, and a baby pool?! And those are just a very few of the crazy things my husband was sent over all of our deployments. I know that he could get what he NEEDED while he was there from the PX, but I sent him the silly things and homemade stuff he couldn't (or wouldn't) get. It was nice to go out and find things for him and I knew he would like and in some strange way it made me feel like I was sending him a little bit of us in a box.
Phone calls...I don't need to say anything more, but I'll expand anyway. When have you ever looked forward to seeing a strange or unknown number on your called ?! When else is it acceptable for you to take your cell phone with you every where...and I do mean EVERYwhere. My cell phone went with me to the gym, on runs, to France and Belgium, in the shower, while cooking dinner, to the bathroom, the movies, meetings, banquets and doctors appointments. Even when the phone calls were on terrible satellite phones with horrible reception because of sand storms (or just being beat to hell and back and held together with duct tape) it was still the highlight of my day...or sometimes week. Even when they were so short the only thing said was "Just wanted to call and say 'I love you' 'cause I don't have much time to talk now." My heart would skip a beat every time I saw a funny number on the caller ID I didn't know.
During deployment you get control of the television remote. Now granted, you may get it when your husband is home too...but you also get the "seriously, you're watching that??" You have total TV freedom! Chick-flick on, grab your tissues. Romantic comedy, grab the popcorn! Soaps, Project Runway, Top Model, your favorite Disney princess movie or anything on the Food Network is all fair game without someone giving you funny looks or saying that you should watch something less "gay". Enjoy the power ladies!
The last thing I'll leave you with is obvious to all....HOMECOMING!!! How could this not make my "Good things" list? Picking out your homecoming outfit and getting a mani/pedi is like that first day of school all over again. Getting to making welcome home signs and hanging them up for all to see and then finally seeing those buses pull in! There is no way to describe the feeling of seeing your spouse step off the bus after x number of months gone. The first few hours home seem like a dream, but when you wake up he is still there and it isn't a dream.
So if you are in the midst of a deployment or about to set out on this adventure I hope you can dwell on some of these "good things" and enjoy your TV freedom and care package projects until you get to hug and kiss your military man again.
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