top ten tuesday {learned as a military wife}

I recently found OhAmanda, and she makes me smile. Every Tuesday, you're supposed to make a list of 10 things. They can be serious or fun or a mix of both. Go here to check out this week's list.

Ten Things I've Learned as a Military Wife
1. Plans change. Accept it.

2. Hubby is gone a lot more than the 6 month deployments. You have underways (which range from a week to 3 or 4 months). Even when the boat is in, he has to spend the night on the boat every 3rd night.

3. Some days just stink. My worst days tend to be on Saturdays. It's important to remember not all days are bad and even the worst days end.

4. Holidays are flexible. With them gone so much, we tend to have floating holidays. Christmas in February sounds just fine. A birthday dinner of Taco Bell on the pier because Hubby has duty works for me.

5. While it's hard up here on land, it's just as hard under the sea.

6. Sending little gifts with Hubby helps pass the time for both of us. It gives me something productive to do while he's working crazy hours and reminds him that he's loved after they leave.

7. E-mail will test your patience. Back in the day (like when Hubby first joined the Navy), the boats didn't have email. They had family grams or something of that sort. You were limited to like 40 words every month. I don't know the details, but I know it was one way communication that couldn't really say much. We have email now. There are still crazy regulations, but I get to sent it myself daily. However, they don't actually get to the boat every day. There is also a crazy lag time between asking a question and waiting to get the reply. Because there is always the potential of getting an email, you because obsessive with checking it. I never know what time emails will be sent for that day (if at all). The possibility of it all plays with my emotions.

8. You will learn all the acronyms. I was totally overwhelmed when we first started dating that Hubby never actually used words. Now, I can talk in letters with the best of them.

9. You will forget your social security number. Everything is done with Hubby's SSN. We just decided to switch The Bear to a civilian pediatrician. When I was registering him there, they asked for mine. It was the first time in 3 years anyone has asked. And, I couldn't remember.

10. Divorce rates are higher in the military than for the general population. It shocked me when I was filling out a form, and I had to circle what number spouse I was. It went up to 7. No joke. That's in Elizabeth Taylor territory. You will also find the strongest partnerships and bonds in military families. The lifestyle breaks the weak ones, but it makes the strong ones that much stronger.