Posted by That Hooah Wife on Nov 18, 2009 in
OEF 2009 I received a letter from the Hubby on Monday. In it he casually mentions he was awarded a medal. I dragged the story out of him today, but I’m not sharing it. He wouldn’t want me to, that’s just how he is. As far as he’s concerned, he has a job to do, and he’s doing it. And really, it’s his story to tell not mine. I’m pretty sure it bothers him when I gush too. So I try not to. But it’s hard.
To other people, he’d be considered a hero just because of his job alone. Because he volunteered to wear the uniform. And he is to me too. But he was my hero long before he ever raised his right hand.
He was my hero when…
- A mean boy at the mall broke the balloon he had gotten for me, and Hubby (then boyfriend) walked over to him, and quietly convinced him it was in his best interest to go get me another one.
- A guy insulted me, and he walked over and punched him in the face.
- He worked any crappy job he could get his hands on to keep us taken care of.
- When I told him I was pregnant and he stayed completely calm and said "ok"
- He said "I do"
- He held my hand as I delivered both of our daughters.
- He drove me to Maryland for my Dad’s funeral and sat and listened while I tried to figure out the confusion in my head of trying to understand why it hurt so much to lose someone that was never there.
- He did all of the work with our first daughter, because I had no idea what to do with a baby, having never been around one, and being too self conscious to try.
- He showed me how to change a diaper, give her a bath, and dress her, without once mocking me.
- He took the position of standing between me, and a charging moose.
- He puts up with all my craziness.
- He’s just being himself
- He makes me laugh in the middle of being mad at him
I can’t give him a medal for all of that, and more. But I wish I could. And I wish he wasn’t so humble, and would realize that in his job or at home, He really is a hero. And I’ve always been and always will be so proud to be called his wife. So if I gush when the Army recognizes his valor, his honor, and his work ethic, it’s not because I am bragging on him. It’s because it makes me damned happy to see someone else recognize what a good man he is. If I try to tell him he just rolls his eyes. But if THEY do, he has to wear it. And though it drives me nuts that he doesn’t like the praise, that he actually said "I was just doing my job, I didn’t ask for a damned medal" That makes me proud too.
Is it any wonder I feel like half of me is gone? And clearly, it’s the better half.
Tags: OEF 2009
Posted by That Hooah Wife on Aug 1, 2009 in
OEF 2009 Well there’s a light at the end of the tunnel now. Hopefully it’s not the train! I made some phone calls today. Let me just say if you are military, USAA Auto Insurance is the BEST damned thing since sliced bread. We’ve had them since he got this truck in Alaska, 6 years ago. We had to get full coverage because we financed it, and even though I could have dropped that when it was paid off, at $54/month why not keep it? And it goes down annually.
I called them today, to see if the towing and rental reimbursement on my policy was acident related only. Turns out, we have roadside assistance! Not only that, but I don’t need to do anything to arrange the towing. I just call about an hour before I need it towed and they send someone. even if it’s in my driveway!
Then, My youngest reminded me there was a Firestone shop pretty close to the house. So I called them, to see if they were a full service shop, or tires only. FULL SERVICE BABY! I can have it towed there, and it’ in walking distance. And they work with AER.
All that leaves is getting the AER loan. For those that don’t know, AER is Army Emergency Relief. They will loan you the amount of car repairs for your main vehicle, interest free. A very handy thing since cars refuse to break when you have money in the bank…lol! Hopefully they don’t require more than one estimate, because I’m not getting this sucker towed to 3 places. Plus my only transportation is by foot, and this shop is walkable. So is AER. Bonus there too.
Fingers crossed! Now I can just relax through the weekend.
Tags: OEF 2009, vehicles
Posted by That Hooah Wife on Jul 31, 2009 in
OEF 2009 I met Gretchen Wilson this morning! Huge WOOT!! I just happened to walk into the PX and see a table set up for a CD signing. Then I saw it was her. The creator and singer of the music that has gotten me through so many hard times and rough patches I can’t even count. If I’m feeling bad about myself because I’m not like other wives… Redneck Woman and The Girl I Am snap me out of it. If I forget for a moment how to hold myself together, Holding You gets me through it. The list goes on. So, to finally get the chance to thank her for that…made my day. And…she thanked me…”he couldn’t do what he does if you didn’t do what you do”. Well I couldn’t do What I do, if she didn’t do what she was. In a time when I was having trouble relating to ANY country music (female) artists…she took us all by storm. I even had my pic taken with her. My stupid phone ATE it. *cry*
And from the majorly UP moment, to the WAY down. I ran back out to grab groceries and such. I stopped at the food court for our dinner, the sandwich shop didn’t have enough meat for mine and A’s sandwhiches, and the Taco shop B likes is gone. So I go back to the truck, with my Chocolate Mocha Chillata from Cinnabon (omg yum). It won’t turn over. So, I flag down a couple guys in a truck. They try using my cables, but they’re dead too. Great. So this guy goes the extra mile, LITERALLY, and goes home to get his cables. The truck started YAY!! I got home, let it run another 10 minutes or so. Then I turned it off. It’s dead again.
I can’t get ahold of the auto crafts center to ask about anything, none of the numbers work. I already paid all my bills, bought my groceries, and am broke until payday. Deployment pay hasn’t even started yet, I have to mail boxes. At least the post office is in walking distance. It’s a long walk, but it’s doable. I don’t mind the ups and downs, but c’mon…in ONE day??? Looks like I’ll be doing some mechanic work again this deployment. Oh joy.
Tags: OEF 2009, vehicles
Posted by That Hooah Wife on Jul 23, 2009 in
OEF 2009 I finally got my first call. Midnight last night my cell phone finally rang. The poor guy is super busy, but they finally had some time. His words were they “hit the ground running”. They aren’t really “there” yet, they are in their “limbo” location to acclimate and train for a while. It’s hot of course, but he’s ok with that. We talked for a while, I caught him up on the shooting we had at the px yesterday. Oh…guess I should talk about that huh?
Around 11:10am yesterday, I thought I’d run to the PX and get the dogs their food. But, because I’m a little obsessive about hearing from Hubby, I opted to not go anywhere until I did. At 11:20pm a man walked into our PX, shot one of the kiosk vendors, and turned the gun on himself. Both victims died. It was a really frightening thing to hear, a block from your house no less. I feel so bad for her family, and his. You just don’t expect this kind of thing behind these gates.
Anyhow, we chatted for a bit when the phone warned him his time was up, he said I’d hear from him in another week. Unfortunately, the phone cut us off before we got to say “I Love You”. My heart broke a little, but I was happy to at least have had my first call. I comforted myself with the fact that he knows I love him, and I know he loves me. Suddenly, my cell phone rings again. He found a call center with no lines. So he called back.
Me: I was just sitting here doing my “I didn’t get my I Love You freakout”
Him: I figured:P
The man called me back, to say I Love You. I have the bestest husband ever. EVER!!
Tags: OEF 2009
Posted by That Hooah Wife on Jul 22, 2009 in
OEF 2009 The first week is the hardest. The first week is the hardest. I just keep telling myself that. We are now into day 4, and still no word. We all know, my everyday patience threshold is almost nil. So the fact that I’ve gone this long without screaming in a mad fit, is proof that I’m a different woman when he deploys. Though I’m getting a bit…ok ALOT antsy. At least I have coffee today. That’s some comfort. Logically I know I can’t expect what we had last deployment. The most I went was 3 days, and that was during the dreaded communication blackouts. The strangest thing is…I’m always tempted to send him a text. But his cell phone is sitting here with me. And I know this! But the temptation is still there. Logic took a vacation.
The poor dogs. Noone talks about how family pets deal with deployment. Our big white Malamutt, hasn’t figured it out yet. He’s really confused. every day, between 5 and 7pm, when he hears a car, he runs to the door and waits, our German Shepherd follows suit. When the door doesn’t open, he goes to the sink, stands on his back legs and looks out the window. He can see the truck in the driveway. So he goes back to the door…then back to the sink, until I go get him and bring him back to the living room. He’s so bonded to Hubby it’s unbelievable. He made me cry the first time he did it. This isn’t something he’s done when Hubby was gone for short times like schools and training. That tells me, he knows this is different. He’ll get it figured out eventually, but it’s really sad watching him right now. He’s also acting out a bit. Just like a young child would. Pushing to see how much he can get away with. The challenge there is simply using the “nothing in life is free” approach. If he wants attention, he has to sit calmly, same goes for feeding, and going out. You do not want a 100 pound dog being pushy and obnoxious.
They should totally include pets in briefings, they’re family too!
Tags: OEF 2009
