Afghanistan Wal*Mart

Hubby decided to go shopping.
Who knew they had a Wal*Mart even in Afghanistan? Hehe

It’s On Your Face

It seems that when my hubby is gone if something can go wrong it will go wrong.  There have been so many stressful things that have happened since he left.  On top of just being without him it has been doubly hard with all of the added stressers.  I am thankful though that I have a Lord and Savior who reminds me that he is here and I am not alone.  It is still hard to deal with the stress though.  There are days when I know I am not dealing very well with it, I pray for strength to go on.  Then there are days that seem to be almost stress free, I praise God for an easier day.  Then there are those days when I think I am fooling everyone (hehe-yeah right).

This past Sunday was one of those days when I thought I had it all together and was fooling everyone.  As I was speaking with a friend and she made the comment that she could see the stress on my face.  What??  I thought I had it all covered up!

Image by angelsk via Flickr

At first, I was not overly happy that it was showing  but then I began to be thankful.  I was thankful that someone noticed!  It is hard when no one seems to notice or even care!  We military wives are expected to just suck it up and get over it!  That is often easier said than done. It is nice to have someone tell you that you don’t have to be tough all the time and that it is okay to struggle. I tell you, if it was not for my amazing church family here (and one neighbor) I would have no support.  I am so thankful for my church family here and how I can always count on them! I am thankful for how they step in and meet our needs.   I am thankful for how they encourage me, how they remind me to point my focus back on the Lord when I begin to focus more on my circumstances. I am so thankful for the friends that I have there!  I am thankful that  they notice and they care when I have had a rough week!  They have truly shown the love of Christ to our family.

Since my hubby left I have spent so much more time in prayer!  That is a good thing!  I have not had my hubby to depend on and it has forced me to rely more and more on my Savior!  Sometimes though it is good to have that physical hug from a friend.  I am glad that I have that with my church family.  I am thankful that the Lord provided me a family here.

So let me challenge you.  If you have military families where you live (well anyone for that matter).  Take time to notice and take time to care.  If you can see stress on their faces be an encouragement don’t just turn and walk away. Make sure to remember them, their situation, and their struggles throughout the separation not just in the first month. Sometimes just noticing and genuinely caring can make all the difference in their day!

Please leave a comment and share some ways that you encourage others or what others have done to encourage you.

Wednesday Hero

This Weeks Post Was Suggested By Greta

This weeks post is a little different from the norm. It’s honoring the 13 Men and Women who were awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal. People like George J. Weiss Jr. A World War II veteran who has made it his mission to provide military honors to deceased veterans at Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis. And Susan Retik who, after she lost her husband on September 11, 2001, started an organization called Beyond the 11th to help women in Afghanistan. And the person Greta wanted to honor. MaryAnn Phillips of Soldiers’ Angels Germany who has made it her mission to help wounded service Men and Woman medevaced to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. You can read about MaryAnn Phillips’s nomination here. These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero. We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your site, you can go here.

Cycles of Sadness

Struggling here a little bit.  This is our longest deployment and I am learning new things.  The Lord can really use a time like this to stretch and grow his children.  With my hubby gone I really have no one to count on, except the Lord.  It makes me realize how much I depend on my hubby and how often I bypass the Lord and trust in my hubby instead.  I am forced now more that ever to trust God and to pray.  That is a good thing.  Though the situations that draw us to our knees are not always comfortable.

I have also noticed something about longer deployments.  There are cycles.  I don’t know if this is true for everyone but it is proving to be so around here.  We will be doing just fine and then wham!  We are hit with another wave of sadness, loneliness, grieving, and heavy concern.  The children will be extra cranky and teary eyed.  I will anxious, easily frustrated, feel a deep sense of loneliness and sadness.  I just want to crawl into bed and stay there.  Thankfully, my life does not afford me that much freedom and I am forced to go on.

I am not like this all the time.  In fact, I am not like this most of the time.  It only lasts for a few days to a week and then I am okay and doing rather well.  Thankfully, the children and I are on different cycles too.  So, I am able to comfort them when I am in a good frame of mind.  These cycles tend to come about every 4-6 weeks.

Why is it that no one told me about this?  That I should expect it?  Maybe it is something that is just unique to us but somehow I cannot imagine that to be the case.

Maybe things differ with the amount of support one receives.  I do have a great church family and a few good friends who check in on me.  I often wonder how families with no support and without the Lord handle things.  I think of way back before technology.  How did the families of WWII handle the lack of communication?!  What I endure cannot even compare to that!  I get to be in contact with my hubby a few times a week.

Now before you start thinking I am having a pity party, I AM NOT!  I am not looking to make my situation seem worst than anyone else, though there are circumstances that are unique to my hubby’s position that do have added concerns.  I am not saying poor me, we DID sign up for this.  Serving our country is an honor!

I am simply saying that sometimes this whole, “Hubby is in the war zone” thing is hard!

I am so very thankful for those who are supportive and caring.  I do however get really tired of the “Suck it up and get over it” attitude that is given off by many, many, many a person though. Sadly, that attitude is given off by those who you would think would be the most supportive.

That is all.  There is my struggle and there is my rant.

I pray that today is a better day than yesterday and that the Lord will guide me and give me wisdom in ministering to my children today.  I am thankful that the Lord is a father to the fatherless.  May my children see that during this time of separation and may I be able to help them to see that.  I pray that the Lord continues to work mightily through the ministry of my hubby in Afghanistan and that He would be his shield and protection.

All Boxed In

Just in case you might be wondering, I thought I would share my hubby’s living situation with you.  Here are some shots of his living quarters in Afghanistan.  Have you ever felt boxed in?  Probably not quite like this…… there is nothing like living in a plywood crate!

The building he is in.

The long hall to his room.

One side of his room.

The other side and his bed.

***I cannot share many photos of where hubby is for security reasons but I received the okay to share these.   ***

Flying Away

Hubby finished his predeployment training and has been living in a hotel room for the last week to ten days.  He has been gone for three weeks already.  He was supposed to leave the country and head for his deployment site this past Wednesday but due to an uprising in one of the countries he was to be traveling through flying out was postponed.

He has gone back and forth from the airport to the hotel and back for the last several days awaiting his flight out of the country.  Yesterday, he was able to at least spend part of his day at an art museum and someone at the restaurant gave him a gift card thanking him for his service.  It is such an encouraging thing to meet other Americans who appreciate the sacrifice.

I had been a bit frustrated that he wasn’t on his way yet.  Because it is just added days to our separation.  His deployment time doesn’t start until he is actually in place.  I would like him to be back in time for the birth of our baby and I tend to go early.  This added time is not what we desire or need.  I am though very thankful that they are keeping him safe and rerouting his travel.

He called me last night saying that things were finally being worked out and that he would indeed be flying out.  He informed me of the new route.  I had a message from him this morning via email letting me know he had made the second stop along the way.

So, I am glad that he is on the move.  I have been anxiously awaiting to get on with it so he can come home.  So, when he told me he was actually flying out that night, I was a bit surprised at the huge, deep sinking feeling in my gut!  My anxiety level rose and a lump developed in my throat.  I was NOT prepared for that physical reaction and I do not like being caught off guard.  And after all, it was what I wanted and had been preparing for for the last several days but often the reality is not what we anticipate.

I am keenly aware of the fact that I am dealing with pregnancy hormones as well.  Lord, help me to keep things in check even amidst runaway hormone levels!

I do think though that I am just finally having to deal with the danger level he is about to face and it frightens and saddens me a bit. It is concerning to me that he cannot carry a weapon.  That is one element most do not have to consider.  I am so very thankful though that the Lord God Almighty is his shield.  I pray each and every day for his protection.  I pray for the Lord to calm fears and anxieties all around.  I trust him.  I am still concerned but concern can be a good thing, it compels us closer to the one and only who is sovereign over all!   That I have such a great God to cling to brings abundant comfort.