Fabulous Army Life

I have a friend who is extraordinary.  She is beautiful and wise and among the strongest women I've ever known.  She is my sweet friend, a trusted confidante, a tried-and-true battle buddy.  Together we have laughed and cried and worried and prayed and then somehow managed to laugh again.  We spent only two years together in the same physical location but some people, and some events, simply bond you for a lifetime. I want to tell you her story. I first met my friend when our husbands were both assigned to the same unit.  The unit trained and deployed together, leaving spouses behind to support and encourage one another through the separation.  And we did.  We planned family nights, hosted fundraisers, sent packages and banners to our Soldiers, watched each other's kids, enjoyed ladies' night dinners, and anxiously awaited the return of our heroes. We welcomed our heroes home and enjoyed the thrill of a unit reunited.  We continued to bond...

  I've found several different references to characteristics of Army wives out there, but found these especially funny.  Please comment below and let me know YOUR favorite!  I think mine must be the one about showing your military ID to the Wal-Mart greeter ... I've almost done that!  You Might Be an Army Wife If ... you can unpack a house and have everything in place in 48 hours you string concertina wire to keep the neighbor's kids out of your flower beds your husband's work and dress clothes cost more than yours do you use a crook-neck flashlight with a red lens during power outages because it's the only one you can ever find in the house your children say "HOOAH" or "Roger That" instead of "OK" your husband does a route recon and takes a GPS for a trip to the mall you only write in pencil because EVERYTHING is subject to change you need a translator to talk to your civilian friends because they have no idea what DFAS, AER, ...

Yesterday I attended a farewell brunch for one of my dearest Army girlfriends. We've been in the same location for the past four years and survived two deployments together. She's been a wonderful listener, our kids enjoy each other, and we have similar views on Army life ... realistic with a large dose of humor. As I was thinking about the move she is about to make (across the ocean with three kids into a foreign land), I was again amazed at the resilience of the Army wife. [Note: For all you PC folks out there, I have a great appreciation for Army husbands, but this one is for the wives ... so I won't always use the more politically correct "spouse."] For most folks, picking up the family and moving into a foreign country would be a long, drawn-out, soul-searching decision-making process utilizing months of research, planning, and analysis. For my friend and her Family, it's a matter of getting orders to go. Almost in auto-pilot, they put their house ...