The Military Life Fairy Tale

  Once upon a time (10 years ago) in a faraway land (Florida), lived a beautiful princess (fairly average looking woman in her mid-twenties paying off student loans). One day, at a ball in Tallahassee (ladies’ night at a college bar), the princess encountered a handsome prince (Naval aviator). He courted the princess, they were betrothed, and shortly thereafter they moved to a tiny kingdom in the Pacific (Guam).

The handsome prince left his blushing bride on the island a few weeks after arriving, to go slay dragons (terrorists) and keep all the kingdoms safe from harm.

While the prince was away, the princess longed for him. She stayed in bed for days aching for his return. Her tears flooded the island and she plotted her escape back to civilian life. Unable to afford the $3,000 commercial flight home, and without her prince to do such things as bring food home and take out the trash, the princess withered away and died. End of story. Actually, no. No, she didn’t. That’s not how it ends. That’s not how it ever ends.

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Showing the World our Military Families, One Story at a Time

Note: I’m thrilled that Humans on the Homefront is featured by NextGen MilSpouse today. You can always count on the military community to hold one another up, and support each other where we can. I am so proud to know the brains behind NGMS, and honored they’re putting their incredible spotlight on my baby. 

  
For so many of my friends, we are the only military family they know personally. Some have a distant cousin, or like me, grandparents who served long before we were born, but as far as one degree of separation, we are it. Outside of a few college classmates in ROTC, before I met my husband, I didn’t know anyone in the Armed Forces either.

When I started writing the Deployment Diary for the New York Times a year and a half ago, I was overwhelmed by the number of friends, family members, and even strangers, that reached out expressing their appreciation for insight into a military family.
My goal in writing the diary was to make it just that, a diary. I wanted it to be vulnerable, honest, and above all else, real.

I looked at it as an incredible opportunity to share the ups and downs of this crazy life. While I was honored to write about it, and especially to have such a large platform, I was always aware that mine was just one voice; ours was just one story.

5 Phases of MilSpouse Swimwear

  
Like it or not, it’s officially swimsuit season. Maybe you just finished a marathon and can’t wait to hit the pool. Or, maybe the only marathon you finished this year was a series on Netflix, and you’re dreading the dressing room. Whatever your body type and whatever your confidence level, here are SpouseBuzz’s his and her swimsuit selections for each phase of your life.

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I’m Not Just a Spouse, and You’re Not Either

  
I stood in line at the Pass and ID office, patiently awaiting my turn. Unbeknownst to me, my military dependent ID had conveniently expired a few weeks after my husband deployed, and was confiscated at the front gate en route to the children’s Christmas party. Oops.

Fast forward several months later, and now that homecoming is a few weeks away, I finally got my act together to get my ID replaced. In heels and a business suit, I left work early for my appointment. When I finally made it to the front of the line, I told the the gentleman behind the desk my ID had expired and I needed to replace it. With a smile and no ill-will, he asked, “Are you a contractor ma’am? Or just a spouse?”

The words reverberated through my ears like nails on a chalkboard.

I might not be a contractor, but I’m not “just” a spouse.

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Military Love Letters: 1776 vs. 2016

  
It’s been 240 years since the Revolutionary War ended, and our spouses still need our support on the home front.

If you close your eyes, I bet you can picture the scene in Yorktown in 1776. The sweeping grass and rolling hills of Virginia. The men in their uniforms: the tall boots, fitted pants, the tails of a cropped jacket whose hand-adorned golden buttons mimic soldiers in a straight line. The wigs, the pirate-like hats, the bayonets in hand. Now, add the low rumble of a snare drum, the distant sound of a cannon. Just slightly different than the battlefields of today, right? No wigs, smaller hats, more practical uniforms, not to mention the vastly evolved warfare.
And, yet, some things don’t change: valor, commitment, and the importance of good communication with your spouse.

In honor of the 4th of July, SpouseBuzz presents an actual excerpt from a letter from George Washington to his wife Martha (apparent typos included on purpose) … followed by what it would sound like in an updated version for today’s military couple.

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