Soldier's Wife, Crazy Life

military life

How Does The Government Shutdown Affect Americans

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Today’s post for Everyone Serves for Blue Star Families will be about the Shutdown.

Well it happened. The government shutdown. And while Active Duty Military will still get paid, a lot of other people won’t.

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A lot of things are happening and it is frustrating to watch. I hate that the government has shutdown. I personally believe it didn’t have to be this way. I just hope it doesn’t last long and is resolved quickly.

The fact is this shutdown is hurting a lot of Americans. These same Americans are the ones that voted for the people who have caused this. I get so frustrated thinking about this. I am not sure if congress thinks they are helping or what. They are not.

So how is the shutdown affecting people? I asked this question on my personal Facebook page as well as my blog page and my Twitter account.

This is how the Government shutting down is hurting the American people…

* Many who work for the government are being asked to stay home. They will not be paid. This is especially difficult when that person is making most of the money for the family.

* WIC is in danger of running out of funds. I know a lot of people who depend on WIC as a part of their monthly budget.

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* Monuments in Washington DC have been closed. People who have planned trips to National parks and other Federal places are not able to go on.

* Combat pay will be delayed. That extra money we can use for paying off debt, not going to see it again until this is all over.

* Drill has been or might be cancelled for some Reserve/National Guard. What this means is the extra money the family is counting out will not be earned this month.

* Commissaries will be closed. While I don’t personally feel it is the end of the world here as we do have a lot of other grocery stores in the area, I really feel for people in places like Hawaii or those that will have to pay a lot more to just buy regular groceries.

There is more that could be added to this list and the longer this goes on, the worse it is going to get. I really don’t understand why those in power can’t see how badly this is and will hurt Americans. It doesn’t make any sense to me. On a personal level I am pretty annoyed that my husband will not be getting his combat pay but I know others are in a lot more trouble. Many will be going without their regular paychecks. Many will have to figure out a different way to get by. It is such a frustrating situation and I hate that this is happening.

How have you personally been affected by the government shutdown?

Follow Blue Star Families on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ and build a support network so you can keep your family and personal community strong throughout the duration of the entire deployment life cycle.

 

Stories in Uniform A Look at the Heroics, Laughs, Sorrows, and Tragedies of Our Soldiers Review And Giveaway

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Stories in Uniform A Look at the Heroics, Laughs, Sorrows, and Tragedies of Our Soldiers Review And GiveawayStories in Uniform
A Look at the Heroics, Laughs, Sorrows, and Tragedies of Our Soldiers
By Editors of Reader’s Digest
Published by Reader’s Digest
Hardcover: 224 pages
May 2, 2013; $15.99 US/$16.29 CAN; 9781621450634

Description
From boot camp to combat, a collection of Reader’s Digest’s unique, emotional, and wide-ranging coverage of military life.

Stories in Uniform is a chronological retrospective of the best military pieces Reader’s Digest has run; pieces that will make you weep, make your heart sing, inspire you, enrage you, and make you laugh. Beginning in World War I and continuing though to the war in Iraq, readers will follow soldiers into the trenches, peer in on emergency surgery taking place in the depths of the ocean, watch heroes carry the bodies of fallen brethren, trail Eisenhower for the three days leading up to D-Day, and be inspired as men and women rise above and beyond normal human limits to preserve our rights and save their friends.

Stories include:

  • A moving memorial to D-Day
  • A tribute to one of the first African-Americans to serve as a Naval Officer • A pilot rescued after his F-16 is shot down
  • A soldier returns to the front after losing his foot in action
  • An American soldier who takes a big risk to save a dying Afghan girl

This book gives a complete perspective on the hell that is war, the love that grows from camaraderie, the pride from accomplishing the impossible, the humor that springs from the military bureaucracy, and more.

About Reader’s Digest
RDA is a global media and direct marketing company that educates, entertains and connects more than 130 million consumers around the world with products and services from trusted brands. With offices in 43 countries, the company reaches customers in 78 countries, publishes 91 magazines, including 50 editions ofReader’s Digest, the world’s largest-circulation magazine, operates 78 branded websites and sells 40 million books, music and video products across the world each year. Further information about the company can be found at www.rda.com.

For more information please visit http://www.rda.com, and follow the author on Facebook and Twitter

Link to Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Stories-Uniform-Heroics-Sacrifices-Soldiers/dp/1621450635

Link to Reader’s Digest Store: http://www.rdtradepublishing.com/book_display.php?isbn13=9781621450634

Julie’s Thoughts: I am a big fan of books like this. I love to read the stories and learn more what it was like in previous wars. I like that the stories come from different points of view. They are not all told from someone who went to war but from the family members too. Each of the stories in the book is short which is nice if you only have a few minutes to read each day. Make sure to keep a tissue by you when you read this book, you will need it.

Giveaway: I will be giving away TWO copies of this book to a couple of my readers. Just enter using the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

* I was provided a review company for this post.

Saving Money at Publix

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Saving Money at Publix

Every since we moved back to the states I have been a little conflicted about which grocery store was cheaper. I had essentially three main options. Kroger, Walmart and the Commissary.  I came to the conclusion that certain products were cheaper in certain stores.  A lot of people swear by the Commissary but since it takes me about 15-20 minutes to get there and most of the time that I am already on post, I don’t always have the time to go there.  Plus, I want to avoid the Commissary on payday.

We use to live right by a Walmart so we went there all the time. I really like being able to shop about 5-10 minutes from my house. We moved and then Kroger became the closest place to shop. I still went to the Commissary sometimes but not regularly.

Then Publix opened 5 minutes from my house. When I first went I was pretty impressed with the look and the feel but since I had no idea what I was doing I spent way too much. For the most part, their regular prices are more expensive than other stores. But then I went to a coupon class at my church and then one at MOPS and I decided I want to get back into couponing.

For the last month or so I have been going to Publix for my big shopping and I have been saving money.

The big thing is matching sales with coupons. I go to www.southernsavers.com for this although there are many other blogs who post the match-ups. I just go through her Publix list and write down anything we need that is on sale. She will tell you where to get the coupons. Either from the paper, the printable ones or the Publix coupons. I would say over half of what I buy each week is on sale with a coupon. For an example for how this works I can tell you about a deal I got last week.

Betty Crocker Mashed Potatoes. They are listed at $1.89 at Publix. I have seen them for $.99 at Kroger and the Commissary.  At first glance, it isn’t a deal to get them at Publix. But they are Buy One, Get One free right now so you will be paying $.94 a box. Another great thing is if you only want one box, you will get it for half-off. You do not need to buy two of them if you don’t want to. I had a coupon for $.50 off 2. Since Publix will double any coupons $.50 or lower than I got a $1.00 off for two. So I paid $.89 for TWO boxes or about $.44 a box. The coupons will double automatically too. You don’t have to say anything.

Every week Publix has a bunch of products that are Buy One, Get One free.

Another great thing about Publix is that they take coupons from Kroger. This is based on where you live so if you have a local Publix ask them. Some Publix stores will take Target too but ours won’t because our Target does not have a grocery. This even includes the coupons Kroger sends you for $5 off a $50 purchase or anything like that.

Publix is also really good about the printable coupons. If your ink isn’t quite right and they won’t scan, they will enter them in manually. Other stores are more picky about it.

They also will let you use a store coupon plus a manufacturer’s  coupon.

I have only been at this for about a month but I am learning that organization is the key to making this work. I spend about an hour a week making my list and sorting through my coupons. I also find that sometimes a deal with a coupon isn’t as good as another brand. I also don’t want to buy things just because they are on sale. I only want to buy what we need. I have heard that most sales come back around ever 6-8 weeks to I try to keep that in mind when it comes to buy more than one of something.

I am not sure if I will buy the paper every single week.  I get a lot of my coupons online.  If you have Swagbucks you can print from there and then when you use them you get 10 points for every coupon.  Just an extra added bonus to using the coupon.

Not everyone likes Publix or even lives close enough to one to make it work but I do and I really enjoy shopping there. I still go to Kroger, Walmart and the Commissary for certain things but I think I will do all my big shopping there.

Do you use coupons when you shop?

 

7 years of Army life

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Army lifeIt was October of 2005. We had moved to Lexington, KY the April before. We knew we needed a big change. We knew Ben needed a new career. He had been in the Army before and knew he could do it again. We decided together for him to enlist. He was ready earlier than I was. By October I was ready. My friend was getting married the first weekend in November so I told him we had to wait until after that. We should have waited until after the holidays. Stuff just doesn’t get done like it should during the holidays when it comes to paperwork and the Military.

He left for MEPS. We assumed he would have to repeat basic. It was 2005 and he went to basic in 1996. A lot had changed in that time. 9/11 happened. But when I picked him up from MEPS later that day he told me that he didn’t have to repeat basic. That he was going to Europe and he would leave in two weeks. Say what? Really? That fast? Yep, it happened that fast. In just a few weeks we went from a civilian couple to a Military one stationed in Germany.

We thought it would take a month to join him in Germany. It took 4.5 months. Welcome to Army life. Hurry up and wait. He deployed about five months after we got to Germany. He deployed a year exactly after he got back from that deployment. Then he deployed for the 3rd time 15 months after that deployment. I am praying that this next break can be two years but probably not.

I can’t say I love the Army all the time. I can’t say it is horrible all of the time. I have had a lot of good come from being an Army wife. I have shed a lot of tears because of Military life.

I am not sure how long my husband will be in. Not sure he will re-enlist next time. We still have some time to decide. I do know that the last 7 years have been a roller coaster for us. Not exactly what I expected Army life to be like. Not sure I really even knew what to think about what Army life would be like.

How long have you been a Military spouse?

Service: A Navy Seal at War by Marcus Luttrell Book Review

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Service a Navy Seal at WarI was asked to do a book review of the book, Service: A Navy Seal at War by Marcus Luttrell.  Now I don’t normally read books about war.  I guess I just never felt drawn to them but this book looked interesting-

After coming home from a fateful, star-crossed mission in Afghanistan, Marcus Luttrell recuperated and nursed his body and heart back to health. Throughout this time, he wondered why he and others, from America’s founding to today, had been willing to sacrifice everything—including themselves—for the sake of family, nation, and freedom.

Then, in October 2006, Luttrell did what any SEAL would do. He went back to war, this time as part of SEAL Team 5. Luttrell spent six months in the most dangerous city in the world, Ramadi, Iraq, in Anbar Province—Al Qaeda’s self-proclaimed capital in the Middle East. Full of high-intensity urban fighting, the battle for Ramadi was perhaps the most perilous U.S. military undertaking of the Iraq war. The epic battle ran from 2005 into 2007, and the fighting crested at the time Luttrell arrived, in 2006.

 Luttrell fought fiercely, and by the time he left, the city was virtually becalmed. Ramadi was the bookend success to Operation Redwing’s disaster and has been called the greatest victory in the history of U.S. Special Operations forces. In SERVICE, Luttrell walks us through this unbelievable battlefield and also offers new insight about his time in Afghanistan, Operation Redwing, and his awe-inspiring rescue.

Returning home and leaving military life, Luttrell began a quest to understand why a rare few choose to risk their lives to serve their country. Now married and a father, Luttrell also looks at the women who marry SEALs. The book features four women who discuss in their own words the challenges and rewards of being married to a serviceman. Luttrell also shares stories of brave warriors who served with him all over the world, including:

 

  • · The legendary SEAL master chief who showed him how America’s greatest warriors must put their lives on the line for a mission larger than themselves

 

  • · The Afghani tribesman who gave him shelter when his hopes were dimming on a distant mountain—and traveled to America five years later to deliver a powerful message

 

  • · The dedicated Air Force pilots who took part in the epic combat search-and-rescue mission to find his teammates in Afghanistan, searching relentlessly night after night until the last sliver of hope disappeared

 

  • · The ex-Mormon missionary and his five-man team who flew a helicopter on the impossible midnight rescue mission to take Luttrell off that mountain

 

  • · The SEAL senior chief petty officer who helped Luttrell kill the stigma of being the lone survivor

 

  • · The decorated 89-year-old Marine Corps veteran whose example of peace and grace helped Luttrell get past his conviction he wouldn’t see age 40, and past his regrets after going through the crucible of close combat

Reflecting on what it really means to take on a higher calling, about the men Luttrell has seen lose their lives for their country, and on the legacy of those who came and bled before, SERVICE is both a war story for the ages and a moving and heartfelt tribute to all who have served.

Marcus Luttrell became a combat-trained Navy SEAL in 2002 and served in many dangerous special operations assignments around the world. He was deployed to Afghanistan in the spring of 2005. He was awarded the Navy Cross for combat heroism in 2006 by President George W. Bush, and received his discharge from the Navy in June 2007. For more information, please visit www.marcusluttrell.com.

 James D. Hornfischer is the author of the New York Times bestseller Neptune’s Inferno, as well as Ship of Ghosts and The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors, which won the Samuel Eliot Morison Award and was a Main Selection of the Book-of-the-Month Club. He lives in Austin, Texas.

I have to say that I learned a lot about being a Navy Seal through this book.  I realized that I have heard of Navy Seals before and thought I had a general idea of what they did but there was a lot I didn’t know.  This book let me into his world and I got to see about what it is like to be a Navy Seal.  I also found it interesting that he was in Iraq when Ben was the first time and even worked with another unit in Ben’s Brigade.

The author gets into the missions he went on and what happened to some of the men during the missions.  Some of it was hard to read but I thought it was so important to his story.  At the end of the book we get to hear from some of the Navy Seal wives.  I could relate to some of what they were talking about when it came to deployments and supporting someone in the Military.

After finishing this book I wanted to read more about others experiences in the Military and overseas so I will be reading more books like this one in the future.

I was provided a free book for review from Little, Brown and Company. 

10 Things I Have Learned About Marriage During The Last 10 Years

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10 things I have learned about marriage the last 10 years

In August, my husband and I will celebrate 10 years of marriage! 10 whole years, a decade! We were 10 years younger when we decided we wanted to spend our lives together. We have been through a lot of things I would never have imagined. We have spent about 3 years of those 10 apart. That seriously breaks my heart but at least it wasn’t three years in a row. We have both grown and changed over the years. I can now look at my husband and instead of saying, “I want to grow old with you” I can say, “I love growing old with you.” Because let’s face it, when I look at our wedding pictures I see two younger versions of ourselves and it is very obvious that time has passed and that we are in the process of growing old together.

So what have I learned about marriage the last 10 years?

1) What works for one couple might not work for another. You hear a lot of advice about what a marriage should look like or what you should do about x,y or z. From TVs in your room to how often you go on a date! It’s nice to get advice about marriage but it might not all apply and that is okay.

2) Deployments can make a marriage stronger. I believe this can happen because it happened to us. I feel very lucky for this because I know how hard deployments can be on marriages. I am just thankful that deployments have not pushed us apart but made us stronger.

3) Kids change your marriage. They do. From what you do on a daily basis to how you view your spouse. When we had kids I got to see my husband in a new “Daddy” role. He gets to see me as a “Mommy.” It is different from our “husband” and “wife” roles.

4) Laughing together is good. My husband loves to make me laugh. Even when I am mad he can seem to make me smile. It’s good for us.

5) Let the little things go. I can find myself getting frustrated about the littlest things but I have learned it is best just to let them go.

Soldier's Wife, Crazy Life

6) I can do things without him. When he is gone, I can function. I can my kids and I halfway around the world without him. I can give birth without him. I can do a lot on my own. Doesn’t mean I like to do things this way, but I can.

7) Sometimes life gets really really hard. Sometimes it just isn’t the way I would have planned it. That can be so frustrating but in the end, I am glad we have each other to get through it.

8 ) When you were raised differently you will see the world differently and that might be challenging. We were both raised by parents who loved us and loved God very much but the overall our childhoods were very different and we sometimes see things very differently. This can be frustrating but we just have to take a step back and realize where the other person is coming from.

9) I made the right choice. Way back in 2001 when I said yes to marry this man, I made the right choice. He is the right one for me and I am the right one for him.

10) Trust goes a very long way. We both trust each other. I trust him, he trusts me. I can’t imagine going through what we have been through without it.

Family

How long have you been married? What have you learned in that time?