Thank you military wives!

#1

I don’t know if there are any here…I am just really appreciating them lately.

A friend of mine told me the youth pastor at her church is getting ready to be deployed to Iraq on Dec 30. His dd is 18 months old, and he won’t be home for 18 months. I can’t even imagine.

I started thinking about how I would feel in same situation, and I just cannot believe how strong military wives have to be!!! They become single moms while their dh’s are deployed (and it’s hard enough being mom to one dd with a dh home to help me!), they say goodbye to their dh’s, not sure they are coming back, and they somehow manage to do the above without falling apart.

So, if you are a military wife out there - THANK YOU. YOU are my hero.

#2

I will give a big AMEN to your statement.:hug: :cheering: :yay: :woot: They are wonderful people and their dh’s are too.

#3

You’re right on in your statement and that’s awesome that you appreciate them. Growing up my father was in the Navy and deployed for Grenada and Lebanon in the 80’s. There was one year he was supposed to be home in July (my birthday) and he didn’t make it home until the following Easter. At that time there was no e-mail, web cams or cell phones so the only way we heard his voice was he would make cassette tapes and talk to us every night before he went to bed and he would mail them to us when they were in port.
To this day I remember my mother jumping everytime she didn’t recognize the voice on the other end of the phone or when a car she didn’t recognize showed up in the driveway. My mother was a strong women and for that very reason they both walked me down the aisle at my wedding to “give me away.” We held our breath through Desert Storm as those around my father (inc my uncle) were deployed and he was retired by the time deployment to Iraq started. Unfortunately, my uncle was recalled to duty and is away from his wife and 2 children this Christmas.
That was a long winded reply to say that no matter what your opinion is on the war in Iraq, the soldiers and their families need our support.

#4

Vanknitter - your response made me tear up.

I keep thinking about this young man who is leaving - he’s the same age as my dh, same profession, one little girl, just like us.

I think sometimes, we forget how much is sacrificed by those in the military.

#5

Yes, a big THANK YOU to all the military wives, husbands, and other loved ones, and to the military men and women!!

#6

Absolutely! Thank you for starting this thread. I don’t have any family members who are military, but so appreciate those who are, and their families. It’s a sacrifice that I don’t have to make because they do. THANK YOU!

#7

Thanksgiving day a close friend left for his 3rd tour in Iraq. During our last conversation I told him how much I admire what he does. He repeated to me something he has told me often throughout our friendship.
"We are the dogs of war. We go where we are told, do what we are told to do. We don’t question. We do our duty. You are a soldier whether you are on the warfront or the homefront."
Of course this is the speech every time he tells me over the phone that he is going TDY and hears my voice crack as I ask him if its safe. He and I both know that if it was safe, then he wouldn’t need to go. Thats his job, the dangerous stuff. We have been friends for a long time, even though we are on separate continents 99.9% of the time.
It takes a strong dedicated person to handle the duties of being a military spouse, or child or even just a loved one. Its is a beautiful bravery to face that fear each time the phone rings, or the doorbell chimes and still answer.
I am always humbled and honored by people who fulfill this great duty for people they have never met, in the face of controversy and a nation that sometimes is not capable of grasping the scope of all the things they sacrifice in the name of freedom and honor.

#8

Wow, Chel - well said!

#9

I am a Navy WIFE and very proud of my DH. That being said, there is a rule when he is deployed. Under no circumstances is anyone to come to the house without calling and letting me know first.

His last deployment someone showed up to tell me that a Peterson was gone, but they had our address mixed up with someone else. Besides our last name is Patterson. I got real leery about opening the door after that. My DH has another 13 years in, so there will be many more deployments to go.

#10

:muah:
Many many many Thank You’s to the wives, family and friends of soliders and to the soliders themselves.

Michelle

#11

Getting ready for deployment #2. All you lovely people helped me through my last one (even if you didn’t know it) and will again this time. It’s the people that help hold us up that keep us going. So thank [I]you[/I], too.

#12

Have been a military girlfriend for two years and have known him through four deployments.
I will become a military wife next year and he’s got 11 years to go, so I’ll be needing the help of this site to keep me going!!

I’m proud of my military man!! <3

#13

I truly appreciate the accolades you are giving to these ladies. Let me tell you a couple things you may not know about military wives. My husband is retired Navy and I married him when he was in the military, had both my children in the military and moved, moved, moved every three years. I cannot comment except generally on military wives, but first off, the pay is still ridiculously low. When my husband retired after 20 years, he was only making about $20,000 a year and he was senior enlisted. Their children suffer from lack of a father being there, they get shuffled from school to school, home to home, away from grandmas and grandpas, aunts and uncles. They have to suffer through broken appliances, cars, etc. They learn to fix things they never thought they could because they can’t afford to send them to be repaired. Unless they work a lot of times, military wives struggle to keep up the bills, feed the kids, and give them a decent life. My children had to use the free lunch program and actually qualified because our monetary status was so low. Our children were highly embarrassed doing this and having to wear Kmart instead of mall clothes. Army wives now have long absences with their husbands, but when Jack was in, it was mainly Navy wives who had spouses gone a lot. One year Jack was home 90 days total in the whole year and it wasn’t even a cruise. He happened to be ship’s company, which meant whenever the ship left the dock for whatever reason he had to go with. We had Christmas without him just one year out of the 20, unlike so many others, but it was awful. We were also snail mailers. There were no cell phones, internet, computers or the like. We had to write letters and he would call from a pay phone collect when they got into port. We would sit around the phone on the day he was to call, many times, in the middle of the night our time and look forward to hearing his voice.

So, if you know of a lady whose husband is in the military, take her a plate of cookies, invite her dinner at your house, whatever. They would appreciate it more than you know. They are a true rare breed and I don’t know of a more courageous bunch of women than the wives of the military!

#14

I take my hat off to you wonderfully strong military wives. I have see my fair share of sadness in my life but it doesn’t compare to what you have to deal with on a daily basis.

I want to thank you and your wonderful husbands for risking their lives everyday out there for my freedom. Which I [I]never [/I]take for granted, ever. Everytime I see an officer in uniform I just want to go up to him and throw my arms around him and thank him/her for their sacrifices they are making for me, but I realize that might freak them out a bit, :teehee: so I just smile and nod and mouth my thanks when I see the opportunity to do so.

Whenever I hear of a military loss I shed a few tears as I always take the time to say a prayer for the ones they have left behind.

Again, I thank you for your strength and courage to face each day with your loved one on the battlefield, always know that you are in my thoughts and prayers each and every day. You are NEVER forgotten.

#15

Awww, how nice! My husband is in the Navy and just got back on Nov. 19th after being gone for 7 1/2 months. He gets to be home for the holidays, which is really nice. At this point, he’s been in for over 13 years, so we’re starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

#16

:hug: Thank you to all the heroes…I was at my son’s Christmas party today…and the mom who was with me for craft station told me her sister has been in Kuwait since last year…she will get to come home on Christmas day…she was so proud and about to cry…her kids were counting down the days to see her instead of Santa…:hug: