Children's Christmas Party- Air Force Style

"All the fun starts at 2pm- don't be late!" is what the invitation to the squadron children's Christmas party said. So my husband and I made threats and barked orders, somehow managing to get the girls to the hanger where the party was starting with five minutes to spare. We were then ushered outside onto the flight line. You could see the confusion on even the parents faces. All I could think was, "Damn it's cold outside, this better be good!"

We were standing out on the stark runway for a few minutes before the thumping of helicopter rotors could be heard approaching. Of course I then in my headheard Arnold Schwarzenegger in my head yell "Get to the choppa!!" like in The Predator.

My mind work in a weird way people.

When the helicopter swung around we saw this...

What the what? Is that? Noooooo.

It was.

I guess his sleigh was in for repairs......

My kids of course at this point were going completely insanely bonkers. "DID YOU SEE THAT?!?!?!" LaLa screamed at me over the beating of the chopper blades.

"I sure did, kiddo!"

I sure did.

Decision Time

We have a year left in the UK. It is now decision time. Do we want to stay longer or do we want to go back to the USA? I am pretty much firmly in the camp of I want to stay. I know this might be hard for my family back in the USA to understand, but I love it here. I honestly love the UK. I love my friends here. I love my life here. I love my children's school. I love my children's friends. I love the culture. I love being able to see things I would never ever have the chance to see if we lived anywhere else.

When I think about leaving I get choked up and a bit teary. I just can't even force myself to imagine not living here. This is in complete contrast to when I was leaving the USA for Britain. When we found out that we were moving here I was excited. I couldn't wait for the adventure. Yes, the adventure has had it's ups and downs, but I am not ready for the adventure to end. I couldn't wait to get out of the USA, not because I don't love my country, but because I wanted my kids to experience the world.

So, now, with my husband on the fence about staying, I am trying to pull out all the stops to convince him that we need to stay. Yes, this hasn't been the best assignment for him personally; he has been away from the UK more than he has actually been here. However, he has seen places that he wouldn't have otherwise. There aren't many Americans who can say that they have been to Romania, Sweden, Italy, Germany, Belgium, France, Afghanistan and Korea in the last three years (unless they are military members). He don't have many friends here and less ties to the community. He misses his family back in the USA, which I do too, but I guess I always think "We could be stationed in California and still be half the world away."

I want to stay, but the decision is ultimately up to him. And I hate that.

Transitioning

When a military spouse comes back from a deployment or TDY (temporary duty) there is always a bit of time that it takes for the family to transition back to normal. Mind you "normal" could not be the "normal" that you had before the absence at all. You have to find a new normal each and every time the spouse comes home. It can almost be like the end of the "honeymoon" period of a marriage. There will be irritations, little fights about small things, bickering, and sometimes hurt feelings, but there is always the under current of love and adoration because you have missed your partner for so long.

For me this is always a bit of a rough period because I am used to calling the shots when The Man is away. I like the independence I have when he is away. I like having the remote control at all times. I like being able to go here and there with no regard to his opinion. Not that he cares where I go, I just like to be able to go without informing him where I am going. I like not having to leave a note so he doesn't worry. I like to take my own sweet time when it comes to cleaning the house. I don't let it get to absolutely disgusting levels of uncleanliness, but it definitely gets to the level of "lived in" before I feel the urge to clean. The hubby likes to come home to a tidy house, so there is that when he is home. I am used to doing all the disciplining, comforting, and parenting when he is not around and sometimes I feel like my toes are being stepped on when he steps in. It doesn't matter how much I moan about how I feel like I am a single parent and I just want a bit of help when he is gone; this always happens. We have vastly different parenting styles.

This transition has been especially odd though, I haven't felt like my toes are being stepped on at all. We seem to be doing a lot of giving and taking when it comes to this whole parenting thing. We only have one car right now, so he's gonna know where I am going anyway. OK, well the cleaning thing is still a bit of a sticking point, but I just get on with it and he helps out as much as he can (He washed the walls yesterday, for real). I just can't help but sit here and wonder what is so different about this transition in comparison to the others. Is it because the children are older? It is because we are older? Is it because we have done this so many times now? Is it because of the hurried nature of our reunion? Is it because of the impending surgery? Is is because we were ONLY separated for two months? I can't put my finger on it. I just know that I am glad he is home.

The Whirlwind

It's that time again. We try to prepare. We brace the girls. We support each other. We gather important paperwork. We try to squeeze as many magical moments as we possibly can out of the very few we have left. We have moments where we throw up our hands in resignation. We cry. We laugh. We make sure everyone feels loved. We pack. We unpack. We repack again. We make checklists. We hope for the best. We prepare for the worst. We know nothing else. This is our life as a military family. We soldier on.