My Dos and Don'ts of Deployment

Tom is currently at deployment training. He'll come back for a bit and then deploy. We've said goodbye many times and I've realized that I might do things a little differently. Here are the Dos and Don't that happens when Tom deploys.



--I DON'T iron any of his stuff.

Some spouses apparently take care of uniforms and such. I never did. I've never ironed a day in my life. In fact, when Natalie got an iron as a birthday gift, she thought it was a bed for her baby.

--I DO slip tiny love notes in all his bags.

When they deploy, they bring lots of bags. I try to slip a note in each bag. Mind you, Tom doesn't always find these notes. Sometimes they do get lost. But the ones he does find, he enjoys.

--I DON'T pack his stuff.

Spouses have said they pack for their soldiers and I'm like ???? Did they lose their hands? Tom has always packed his own things. He actually folds his clothes better than I do. I sort of shove my items in my suitcase. Meanwhile, Tom folds neatly so if I did it, he'd be all, "Did a CHILD pack for me?"


--I DO buy some things on his list.


Tom usually just buys new packs of underwear and socks. It's easier to pack and then if he needs to, he can just toss them all out before he returns home. The item I get confused on is deodorant. He asks for Old Spice, but there are like a billion Old Spice products on the shelf. I understand how men feel when we ask them to bring us home Tampons.


--I DON'T like sending those creative care packages.


I tried to do some, just to surprise Tom. He knows I hate to craft and it was a bit of a shock for him to open a box and see...a theme? But I was not a fan of doing them. I just wanted to toss everything in the box, tape it, and mail it. When he goes this time, there won't be any creative care packages. I might tape pictures on the flap or a love note. Or a funny photo of Stewie from Family Guy. But that's about it. This is my extent of being crafty: cutting out arms so my kid could wear a bag:

--I DO try to look nice when he comes home

Nothing terribly fancy. I mean, I need to be comfortable. If I showed up in a tight dress, I'd look constipated, because if I can't breathe properly, I'm not happy. I also dye my gray hair. Yes, I have them and most of the time I just let my roots grow because I'm not in the mood to sit for two hours to get rid of them. But for a reunion? I'll do it.