Thanksgiving When They Are Deployed

Thanksgiving When They Are Deployed

It was 2006 and my husband had just left for his 1st deployment. We were about three months in when it was time for Thanksgiving. We were in Germany on a smaller post so almost everyone I knew had a deployed husband. Instead of spending the holiday alone a bunch of us got together and spent the day talking, eating and letting the kids play.

It was the best idea we could have had. Instead of being sad about our husbands not being home we got to enjoy the holiday together. I was pretty pregnant with my middle son but I still really enjoyed myself. Some of the wives were even able to video chat with their husbands during the meal making it feel like the husbands were not so far away.

Even years later I think about that day and how it was a perfect example of Military wives working together to turn a bad situation into a good one. We all had each other and enjoyed spending the day making memories even though we had to do so without our husband there.

Another great thing about doing this is that we got to try new foods that might have been special to another wife that we had not ever had during Thanksgiving. It gave us a chance to share food or traditions that were special to us. This was a lot of fun and it was great to try foods I would never have thought to make for myself or my family.

Now I am looking at another Thanksgiving with a deployed spouse. I have plans to spend the meal with a very good friend, her family and a bunch of other people. This year it won’t be a group of wives with deployed spouses but I know we will have fun and will enjoy the day. We will be with friends and we will be making memories just the same.

In other years we have gotten together with other Military families who did not go home for the long weekend. Not everyone can make it back home for Thanksgiving. It is nice to be able to do that so you don’t feel so alone in being without family for the day.

One of the things about being a Military spouse is that sometimes holidays are spent with friends, not family. You make the best of a situation and go with it. By doing this you become closer to each other because of the bond spending a holiday together can bring.

If you are going to be without your spouse this Thanksgiving, think about who you could spend it with. Think about how next year your spouse will probably be home and how this is just one year of many that you have to spend without each other. And remember, it is just one holiday and if you want to keep it small, you can do that too.

Have you ever spent a Thanksgiving with a deployed spouse? What did you do to get through?