WARNING:
Brandi is tipsy, so this blog may be incoherant, poorly worded, or even blurry (that part could just be me!)
I've been meeting a lot of other military wives lately, and it's really made me think about my own journey over the past 10 years. I realize that I have been in each of these positions, at least once!
The Young Military Wife: Having to move away from everyone and everything you've ever called home. Being introduced into a world that is filled with acronyms for everything. Learning the "ins and outs" of the military life. Thinking a two week field problem is the end of the world.
The first move: Going through the transportation hell and back, deciding on if you want to do a DITY move or let the army break half of your belongings, trying to clean the house to the army standards (which I don't get....Have you seen how worn down most barracks are?) or paying through the nose to have someone clean it for you, making sure that you don't pack the children.
The 1st (or 2nd, 3rd, 4th) Deployment: Learning that the FRG is a necessary evil, getting the POA's (both general and specialized!), having to go over the will and life insurance, staying busy while they are gone, having the kids' realize Dad is gone and decide to challenge every rule you have ever made, dreading knocks at the door, the phone calls that cut out every 3-4 minutes. And for the select few unlucky enough, having a child while your husband is in a war zone.
The Seasoned Military Wife: You have most of the army facilities phone numbers on your cell, you can estimate waiting times at all offices on post, you know how to find AR's, BAH rates, and Housing waiting lists, you laugh at a 6 month deployment, you have friends at least 5 different military posts, your husband has talked about getting out of the army (or becoming a recruiter, warrant officer, drill instructor) but you know not to believe it until you see orders.
The one thing all of these categories share:
1. No matter how many times they leave, it never gets any easier
&
2. Army wives are some of the strongest women on the planet
TV plans for tonight: SNL in the 80's and Rock of Love (my first episode...need to see what I've been missing)