Sweet, sweet friends:: a huge, HUGE thank you for all of the prayers, love, and support showered over me and Hubs the last few days! The shell-shock of the news is slowly fading and reality is setting in!
I was able to share my feelings with Hubs yesterday and luckily, he was able to share his with a reservist at the hospital who once had the same billet we think Hubs is going to fill. Let’s just say there will be no foxholes, no semi-automatic machinery strapped to his body at all times, and most likely no need for a battle buddy.
I will of course still worry every minute of every day, but we are able to face this upcoming deployment with a much better outlook than we previously thought.
Now we can focus on the fun things… we’ve been talking about a nice vacation when he gets back (Um, yeah- we’re talking 2013!), our awkward airport homecoming for one, and all the vendors they bring onto base over there.
Maybe I put the location in the back of my mind and just think of it as an extended Navy deployment.
On an unrelated note I’ve taken to blogging outside on the patio! From our little table with God all around me in the greenery of our yard. I find it awkwardly refreshing to get in the fresh air and just be. The dogs enjoy playing in the yard instead of sitting on the computer on my lap as well.
Gotta love an awkward webcam shot!
We can officially begin all of our pre-deployment goodness from the mistakes we made last time… like adding my name to the accounts of every single company we pay a bill to! We only faced a few battles and the representative asking if my husband could call them back. Sure, let me get right on that! Of course we will have a POA, but do any of you ladies know how that works for a year-long deployment? Since, aren’t they only good for one year? Of course there are the little things like calling our credit cards and having the interest rates lowered! That’s right: Did you know if you (or in our case, your husband) has a credit card, they will lower the interest rate during a deployment and in some cases stop interest!? That was a nice way to add to the pay-off of some of our (and by our I mean the debt I married into! Ugh!) debt last deployment!
The next big thing we have to deal with is the phone! Oh good Lord, what a headache that was! We saved about $40 a month when we suspended his phone last deployment. Then we struggled with them not reconnecting it and international charges from Hawaii for at least one month. A few $400 phone bills later we just got it straightened out! A huge part of me wants to just cancel his phone and get him a new one when he comes back home. My fear is he could call me on his way home through various airports if we just kept his phone on and paid the darn bill! I just hate throwing that kind of money right down the drain since he won’t be able to use it over there!
Then of course there is the daunting task of updating his will. That is the worst part of pre-deployment in my opinion! I just don’t like having to talk about it. Nothing has really changed since we did it last year though, so I am thinking maybe we just leave it.
ANY OTHER PRE-DEPLOYMENT ADVICE? Anything you can think of we have to get in order? We won’t have a pre-deployment briefing like we did on the ship, and even with two under my belt, I feel like there is so much I’m just not thinking of! Maybe we will go down to the pre-deployment briefing for the ship since they’ll be going out again soon! (I’m kidding- we’re not PDB crashers!)
Once again:: Thank you ever so much for all your support, prayers, and words of wisdom. I think I got the tantrum and pity party out of the way and can focus on the task at hand- loving my husband with all my heart over the course of the next few months as we prepare to be separated once more. I know with all of the outpouring of love I have already received, you all will be the best rock I could ever ask for!
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The Young Retiree 
I can’t say for sure in the States, but here there is what’s called an ‘enduring power of attourney’ that lasts for as long as it is needed, basically until he revokes it. We’ve used the same one for all his tours.
The phone is a HUGE PAIN! Here, we didn’t find a single company that would suspend his contract while overseas, so we ended up paying out the cancellation fees which was cheaper than paying the contract every month.
We still have yet to update the will. Honestly, it’s more paying the lawyer that annoys me more than having to talk about it. We both need wills done, especially now with the kids…. we should get on that…. 😛
Our POAs are good for over a year, so I don’t think you will have any issue on that. Our trouble with POA is that my husband is a Jr. and one POA had his middle name, one didn’t, one account has Jr. on it one POA did, one didn’t. So, if your husband has anything like that have full name jr. aka full name. I was about to punch the DMV lady over that one and by punch I mean cry my eyes out embarrassingly in front of everyone there. haha
I’m glad you’re feeling a little better. And I am so envious of you blogging outside! Outdoor furniture hasn’t been a priority for me because our outside space is so awkward I don’t know what to do with it. But now I want to figure it out asap! lol
If he has an iPhone or Droid, he can use WiFi in various airports to call you. That’s what my hubby does. Skype is a lot cheaper than international fees! He called me at every stop along the route to his current location.
Also, with the credit card thing – they cannot charge you late fees or report you to the credit bureau once you send in his orders. Not that you guys would ever get behind, but we all know stuff happens sometimes so that’s one less thing to worry about. Look up the Soldiers and Sailors Relief Act for more info. Also, it’s good for ANY loan you have taken out before he received orders. Car loan, mortgage, whatever. (Just a little FYI for anyone reading.) The SSRA language makes it sound like it’s only for people going active from guard or debt from before they were AD, but it also applies to a PCS or deployment. Just have plenty of copies of his orders. 🙂
I’m so sorry you are going through this again so soon. The military really does always keep us on our toes…My thoughts and prayers are going out to you and your hubby.
First of all, the credit card thing is cool. I had no idea.
Could you cancel his phone and get a prepaid one? That would cheaper!
oh my goodness! The worst part of my whole processing deal was the “who do you want to be your beneficiary” conversation! I almost cried. Seriously. Luckily I had a very nice man who understood lol. I know it’s nothing like having a deployed husband, heck I haven’t even gone to boot camp yet. But it was still heart wrenching to imagine the pain my parents would feel if something happened to me. Ok, moving on…I’m crying now.
To answer your blog title: YES! EVERYDAY! hahaha. That’s really the only way I get through hard junk is exaggerating it and just being dramatic. Then I can see that it’s not THAT bad and it could always be worse. 🙂
I’m excited to see this journey unfold with the 2 of you…and the government lol. 🙂
Right before he leaves, call your car insurance company and tell them (esp. if you have two cars). You’ll save some money there. We did the semi-awkward airport homecoming. Him in civvies, me picking him up close to midnight. The good thing is that, unlike the pier, you can bring balloons! And you can probably pout your way into getting him right at the gate (I didn’t do this b/c I didn’t know). We also did it without the phone, but we’re on different contracts so it was super easy to suspend his plan. I don’t think he needs the phone for just traveling back to the States. He can get a phone card or whatever. I just tracked flights online without talking to him.