The Hubs left on his deployment, though it still seems like he’s just gone away on a little trip. We already skyped last night, from his hotel in Virginia where he was waiting for his flight out of the country. Olivia and Peter took turns making faces through the camera. Conner mainly sat there saying, “This is cool,” with all the restrained emotion of a teenager playing it cool. We both thought the wall art in his hotel room looked like kitschy Christmas trees.
He’s going to Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan, near the capital of Bishkek. I feel like I can divulge that now that he’s safely away and there’s nothing anyone can do with that information. I don’t really understand exactly what someone could do with it to begin with… The Hubs is deploying in an individual billet, not in a unit with significant numbers. But I suppose it’s better to be safe than sorry. And yes, I’m very selfishly thankful he’s not going to Afghanistan.
The last time he deployed, to Afghanistan, one of the first things I did was go out (on the internet) and buy a map of the Middle East. I need my point of reference. And I love maps. I hung that map up in a prominent spot and talked to Conner, who was ten, about where his dad was, where it was on the map, how far that was from where we lived, (which was Italy at the time)…
I believe displaying a map showing where daddy is makes the abstract more tangible. “Dad is deployed,” to “Dad is here.”
Kyrgyzstan is a bit too far north and too far east to fit on a map of the Middle East. Besides, I already gave that map away, to another family with young boys whose dad had just deployed. A map of the whole of Asia works better this go-around. Kyrgyzstan looks tiny there nestled in between China and Kazakhstan. But it helps to have this open perspective. I also need to brush up on my Former Soviet -Stan geography.
Even Peter is getting the hang of finding Kyrgyzstan on the map.
Might as well go with it and let a deployment encourage a little geographic exploration.
I ordered the map through maps.com for $29.95. I used a free shipping code, and opted for laminated.
And yes, I included it in the budget. It was more than worth it. I wish I could say everything else we’ve spent money on so far this month was in the original budget. This whole creating and sticking to a household budget thing?
Still a work in progress. Ahem.
And the cash experiment? Let’s just say it would help if I would remember to take the appropriate cash out of the appropriate envelope before I left the house. Baby steps, people.
I’ll share the missteps with you all in a few days for a “mid-month budget adjustment” post. Should be entertaining.
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Thanks for the kind thoughts, everyone. We really appreciate it.
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What a great idea.. A Map… I would of never thought of it but I am sure it does help the kids a lot.
And Corve said it perfect.. God Bless Your Family.
And give your hubby a huge huge and tell him thanks for everything he does from our family to yours….
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Cool idea of the map- I think having that for the kids really help.
He will come home soon and safely.
God bless your family.
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Be safe, Hubs!!! And thanks for all that you do.
Cash….what a concept.
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