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2014 Military Spouse-SpaFinder Winner Announced

06/03/2014 By Michelle Volkmann

MilitaryShoppers congratulates Heather Covington, an Army spouse stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., on winning the $100 SpaFinder.com gift card.

Heather’s name was selected at random among hundreds of military spouses who registered to win. MilitaryShoppers sponsored the contest to say thank you to military spouses during Military Appreciation Month. Military spouses are selfless, independent and strong. They deserve massages every month.

Congratulations to Heather Covington!

You have more chances to win with MilitaryShoppers this month. Submit a photo for the monthly photo contest today. The winner of $50 prize will be selected on June 30.

Good luck!

Why You Should Make a Duty Station Bucket List

05/28/2014 By Julie Provost

Why Military Spouses Should Make a Bucket List

Military spouses should make duty station bucket lists.

It is time to PCS. You just found out where you will be stationed next. How exciting!

You tell your family and friends. You make plans to start packing. You research schools and housing options. What else should you do to get ready for the big change?

Why not make a duty station bucket list?

As a military spouse, you have a whole new area to explore. Every duty station has something to offer. Find out what there is to do in your new area and what you and your family must see during your time there. It will be a fun activity and you can even involve your kids with it.

Before we went to Germany I knew I had to visit Salzburg. I am a huge Sound of Music fan. Once we were settled, that was the first trip we planned. I am so glad I put that tour on my list and made it important.

It seems like 3 or 4 years somewhere is a long time, but sometimes life gets in the way. This is why it is such a good idea to make your bucket list before you move or right after. Then you will be able to plan where you want to go and not miss anything.

From fairs to museums, every military installation is an opportunity for new experiences.

The best way to find things to do or places to visit is to search online. You can also ask your friends who have lived where you are moving for their recommendations. Try new and exciting things you might not have heard of before.

Looking at your next duty station as a place to explore will make your experience there much more enjoyable. From museums to fairs to natural landmarks, every duty station is worth exploring.

What’s on your duty station bucket list?

Don’t Forget Military Moms

05/09/2014 By Julie Provost

Military moms are amazing women. They stand by their sons and daughters as they volunteer for the military and then eventually head off to war.

We need to celebrate military moms and recognize their role in the military this month.

Military moms are not often thanked for their service and sacrifice.

My mother-in-law is one of those amazing military moms. She has always stood by her son. She has always been there to pray for my husband and I and to help us when we needed it. Even though she lives far away from us, I know she is always there if we need to talk or need extra encouragement.

As a mom of three children, I often wonder if one of my sons will join the military. Thinking about that right now is hard. I can only imagine the emotions moms feel when they have to say goodbye to a child knowing that they were headed to a war zone. In her mind, her son will always be her baby. But seeing him in uniform shows her that he has become a young man. I worry when my son walks alone to the bus stop. For military mothers, they watch as their children go so much farther than that.

When you are the military mom, you usually don’t get as much interaction with your service member as the spouse does. If they can only call home sporadically, they will call their husband or wife. It makes sense. Military moms understand that this is the way it is. In a lot of cases the service member has already moved away from home. So while the mom is still missing them and feeling the distance, it is slightly different than what the spouse feels as she is missing his day-to-day presence.

Moms are the backbone of our military.

So while May is the month of the military spouse, we need to remember military moms. They are the ones who pray hard, who stay up late with worry, and who still see a 5-year-old walk away in their ACUs. These women are the backbone of our service members. They are the ones that raised these men and women to decide to fight for their country. We owe them so very much.

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Take time this month to thank your own mom or mother-in-law for their service. What they go through is not easy and being recognized for it will warm their hearts. Let them know you are thinking of them. Tell them they are loved and appreciated. It is a small way of supporting those who have always supported our military.

Take time to thank a military mom this month.

How can you thank a military mom this month?

10 Reasons Military Spouses Deserve Massages

05/08/2014 By Michelle Volkmann

Military spouses never raise their right hand and take an oath. Instead they slip on a wedding band and dream about living happily ever after. That fairy tale of military life usually comes to a crashing halt when the couple faces their first separation. Yet the military spouse endures, experiences, and learns to love the military lifestyle.

Here are the top 10 reasons military spouses should indulge in a well-deserved massage this month.

Unpacking hundreds of moving boxes
Remaining calm when the Skype connection is terrible and the sound routinely cuts out
Quietly smiling and nodding when a grumpy old man jokes “if the Army wanted him to have a wife, they would have issued him one.”
Sitting at FRG meetings that last more than 3 hours
Flying Space A from Guam with 3 children
Waking up in the middle of the night to answer a phone call from their deployed spouse
Reciting a Social Security number that isn’t your own
Shopping at the military commissary on payday
Creative and thoughtful care packages
They never expect someone to tell them “thank you for your service.”

MilitaryShoppers.com wants to honor military spouses this May by giving away a $100 gift card to SpaFinder.com. The entry process will take less than 3 minutes. Simply send your name, contact email, military installation, and branch of service to bschmalz@militarymedia.com before May 31, 2014. A winner – 1 lucky military spouse– will be selected at random on June 2.

Rules:
Email must be submitted to bschmalz@militarymedia.com by May 31, 2014.
Email address submitted will be added to MilitaryShoppers.com registration email list and receive coupons and special offers exclusively for military families via email.
Winner will be selected at random on June 2, 2014. Winner will be posted to MilitaryShoppers Facebook page, MilitaryShoppers Blog and MilitaryShoppers.com.
Multiple entrants will not be accepted.
Email must be submitted by entrant who possesses a valid military ID card (Active Duty, Veteran, Retiree, Reserve, Guard or family member of the aforementioned categories).
Entrant must be 18 years of age or older.
Winner will be notified by e-mail.
No purchase necessary to win.

Why do you think military spouses deserve a massage?

Flowers from Iraq: Celebrating Mother’s Day During Deployments

05/05/2014 By Julie Provost

My husband, like many military service members, always seems to be either deployed or away at training in May.

Julie planned a relaxing day for herself when her husband was deployed on Mother’s Day.

Being gone in May means missing Mother’s Day. Repeatedly. Three years in a row, my husband wasn’t home for Mother’s Day.

I am the first to tell you it can be really difficult to enjoy Mother’s Day with your three children when your husband is far from home.

Mother’s Day is not a day of pampering when your husband is deployed.

For my first Mother’s Day during a deployment, I created a fun and relaxing day for myself. No, I don’t eat breakfast in bed or lounge on the couch with my favorite book. But we ate my favorite meal. We watched a fun movie and I tucked the kids in bed early that night. Obviously it wasn’t the same as having my husband home but it made for an easier and more relaxing day for me.

That’s a realistic goal for Mother’s Day during a deployment: an enjoyable and relaxing day.

How do you do that? Here are 3 ideas.

Spend Mother’s Day outside with your children.

Spend Mother’s Day with your Mom or Mother-in-Law

One year I asked my mom to visit while my husband was gone for training. We spent the day together. We got some lunch, took the boys to the park and let them run around while we sat and chatted. That year, I didn’t celebrate Mother’s Day as a mom instead I celebrated the holiday as a daughter.

If you can’t be with your own mom on that day, you could ask a friend if she wants to spend the day together. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. Just something to help your kids stay active and help you have some fun time with another adult.

Plan a picnic or take a long walk with your children when your husband is deployed during Mother’s Day.

Take a Mother’s Day Stroll

If you know that being stuck in the house on Mother’s Day will depress you too much, plan a short trip somewhere, even if it is a nature walk around your neighborhood.

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When my boys were very young and my husband was gone, I put them in the double stroller and went for a very long walk. This took up a lot of time and I was able to get outside and enjoy myself a little. We didn’t have a special meal but I brought my camera and we had fun walking around our village in Germany together.

When All Else Fails … Hope for Flowers

One year I got flowers all the way from Iraq. That made my day, especially since my husband doesn’t normally send me flowers.

It can be so difficult to celebrate holidays alone during deployments or other separations. However, by planning a little bit, you can still make sure you have a special Mother’s Day even without your husband at home.

How will you celebrate Mother’s Day this year?

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