Today is Friday and I’m off- woo! I’m looking forward to spending the day with Tyler. I’m in charge of planning what we’re doing this morning and he’s in charge of the afternoon, so we shall see how this turns out đ I have to admit- I got a bit nervous about him coming home and thinking about if things changed between us, if he changed, etc. The whole period of being reunited and getting settled back into everyday life is called reintegration, and I read blogs and articles about how it can be a struggle. I may write more about this at a later time, but things have actually been the same around here, if not better đ
Anyways, today I’m linking up with Jen in honor or Military Spouse Appreciation Day (yes, this is a real thing, haha). I don’t even remember how I stumbled upon Jen’s blog (http://kyleandjensmith.blogspot.com/), but she writes about everyday life, running, and everything in between. The following questions were asked to be answered, so here we go
//Tell us about yourself and your blog.
My husband, Tyler, and I moved to El Paso (Fort Bliss) in June of 2012. I was a full time student at the time, trying to figure out this wife thing and finding my place in the world. I honestly don’t know how I got started reading blogs, but I think it was through finding healthy recipes to make for us online, haha. After a while, I realized that I don’t need a place in the world- I needed an outlet. After much encouragement from Tyler, I started Living in Bliss. At first it was to just document our time living in El Paso together… but then we got pregnant and endured a missed miscarriage at 14 weeks and I knew that this would be a great way to help me recover mentally and hopefully reach out to other women who are feeling alone and helpless. Now, I basically talk about our fertility issues and trying to conceive again, military life and deployment, crafts and DIY projects, and whatever the hell else I feel like đ
June 2012. We spent a few nights on a blow up mattress while we waited for our furniture to be delivered đ
//What branch of military are you affiliated with?
My husband is a First Lieutenant in the Army. We’ve been together over five years, but married just under three. After attending Officer Candidate School (OCS) at Fort Benning, TJ went on to BOLC at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and he proposed in Oklahoma City in April 2012. We married in El Paso that June- no messing around đ Long story short- Tyler enlisted in 2001, the year he graduated high school (he was actually in boot camp when 9/11 occurred). He signed up for six years, went through two tours in Iraq, lived in Italy and at Fort Campbell, and got out as a Staff Sergeant in 2007. He moved back to our hometown and we met in Februaury of 2010 (though we’re from the same town, we didn’t know each other despite having some “acquaintances” in common. T went to a different high school and is three years older than me…cradle robber!). Shortly before graduating college, he decided to go back in the army as an officer.
//What is one thing you enjoy about the military lifestyle?
This may sound odd, but I actually like the fact that we have moved away from our hometown and established a life for ourselves. Of course I miss our family and friends and it saddens me not seeing them often, but we’re always just a plane ride or phone call away. Although this is our first duty station together, I’m excited to move every few years and experience different places- not to mention all the traveling and visiting awesome places that we otherwise wouldn’t have experienced. My husband already has almost 10 years of service under his belt, so we won’t be living this life forever. I’m eager to see where we settle after he retires!
Military Ball. December 2013. Found my dress for 10 bucks at Plato’s closet and did my own make up, nails, and hair đ
//What advice would you give other spouses who are new?
I have a few words of advice. First of all, do not listen to the generalizations of enlisted vs. officer wives. There are amazing spouses and those that are assholes on both sides of the fence. Also, not every duty station is gonna be a picnic. I never in a million years thought I’d be living in El Paso, and I heard lots of bad things about it. Yes, I miss the seasons, greenery, beaches, and knowing what everyone is saying out in public (my Espanola is not perfecto, haha), but it’s not forever. Go in with an open mind wherever you go and find the good in the area. I’ll admit that I never got involved with the FRG, but I know that’s helped a lot of spouses. There are other ways to get involved though and there are services on post that help with job searching (ACS). I feel as though many spouses use frequent moves (or in my current situation, because El Paso is primarily a Spanish speaking community) as a crutch to not be able to further their education or land a job. Annoying. đ Keep a positive mind set and don’t bitch at your husband about where you’re stationed. Go on day trips and invest time into hobbies you enjoy.
One of our many day trips. This was at White Sands in New Mexico đ
Also, deployment isn’t a matter of if, it’s a matter of when. Tyler’s last deployment was sprung upon us- he literally left within two weeks of being notified. That rocked my world as he was in a non-deployable unit, haha. My biggest piece of advice is to stay busy. We obviously don’t have children and if we did, it would have been different. Seriously- get a job, volunteer, learn something new- do whatever you can to stay busy as it’ll make time go by faster.
Lounging around watching movies in late 2012.
If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask! I hope to connect with some awesome ladies đ If you’re affiliated with the military, what is one thing you enjoy/despise about the lifestyle and what advice would you give fellow spouses or significant others?
Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend! I’ll be back next week to talk about some DIY projects, healthy recipes, and fertility stuff đ
