Deployment Log: How We #America (Week #33)

#IThoughtSheWantedToBeAVeterinarian #WhoForgetsHowToEat #NotI#WhatShouldICallHerFirstGradeQuips?

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Well, I guess we have to “face” the facts. Our little “flower” has “blossomed” this year during kindergarten. This experience has “painted” memories on our hearts, but we are super excited for the next adventures of our rising first grader!!#MamaGotMotivated#AttemptedLastDayFacePaintingFunBefore8am #ToddlerHelped #FunWithPaintingAndPuns

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HEY HUSBAND! I don’t mean to “egg” you on. I promise I’m trying to be “chili,” but I have a “beef” with waiting for this deployment to end. Let’s be honest and “hash” this out… we both need a “break” from being apart, and “fast.” I really love you from my head “to-ma-toes,” so let’s “taco” bout homecoming… ?#BreakfastPunsAreSoTasty #IJustEatThemUp

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Deployment Log, Day 231:

Ok, so this “entry” is going to be a bit different. Might be a bit mushy, gushy, but hey, ’tis the power of personal social media.

Many of you remember that last September I made a slightly challenging request (as in, showing my vulnerability– “My favorite thing ever,” said me never) regarding our “Blessing Box” project. It was totally prompted from the Lord as a pick-me-up for hard days during this deployment.

My hope was to maybe get 9 people to send a box so that we would have something at least once per month. But guys. GUYS!!!!

Monday I cleaned out my master bedroom closet because #RedeploymentNesting. It was a wreck and was where I had been storing our Blessing Boxes… Just a few weeks after the deployment began, I was overwhelmed with YOU, my PEOPLE, this rock-star Jesus tribe as you stepped up to support us. Within days of the BB request, each of us (Malick, Charis and myself) had a FULL rubbermaid tote box of “blessings.”

And the boxes just kept on coming. So I had thrown them in the MBR closet, mostly unopened, until the totes emptied or we had some really hard days (See also: February and March. Gag).

Friends, I’m not exaggerating. I hoped for like 9 packages. But over the course of the last 8 months, I am pretty sure we received like 70 something packages. I lost count. And I think I owe the mail person/UPS deliver person some tacos or a 6 pack of beer.

Seriously. Ridiculously. AWESOME. As I was unpacking those remaining dozen + boxes on Monday and putting them into respective totes, I seriously started to get all misty-eyed. And it wasn’t the El Paso desert dust. You all RALLIED for us. You fought for us. You encouraged us.

I would love to tag all who contributed, but I will highlight a few who really stick in my brain at this very moment in time!!! (Please forgive deployment brain! I seriously should have made a list! #NextTime Also FB is weird and only lets me tag 50 people before thinking I’m a spammer. LAME).

We received things from local friends, immediate and extended family, churches that I’ve never attended, people that I’ve only met online and never IRL (in real life,  friends from college, FFA, Clovia, back home in SEKS  some of whom I haven’t interacted with on a face-to-face basis in years (nearly decades?), other friends of family members, distant-ish relatives, friends’ moms,  and even other military spouses who were/are going through their OWN super-duper tough life seasons.

So, if you sent us contributions to our blessing box, THANK YOU. And really, the blessing box contents weren’t all about the “stuff” (ok, at least not for me… I mean the kids are still like “YAY! BUBBLES! TRUCKS! CRAYONS! SNACKS!” and I’m like “YAY! INKY PENS! JOURNALS! CAFFEINE!”) but seriously, this was a tangible representation of how you all have had our backs during a hard life season. Say what you will about Social Media.. Sure, it’s kind of gross and stressful on occasion, but sometimes, like in this case, it can do a tremendous amount of good.

To all who have blessed us with support, “stuff” and/or prayers: THANK YOU. You ARE the blessing.

Now if you will excuse me, I need to go power through the rest of this deployment!!