Date : Friday may 7th , 2010 aka Military Spouse Appreciation Day
Time 8 – 9 pm EST
Location : Twitter  — we will be using the hashtag #milspouseday10

What is this all about ??
A Twitter Party to celebrate military spouses and the sacrifices that they make on a daily basis. We will have lots of cool prizes to give away!

Participating Organizations and Businesses :

Jane Wayne Gear
All Fired Up Candles
Beadwork by Sheree
Scentsy – with Patty Santiago , Scentsy Consultant
Army Wife Network
Soldiers Angels

If you would like to sponsor or donate a prize – email Tammy at tammy@armyhousehold6.com

The silence today is to show my support of a great American Hero, a friend and fellow military blogger – CJ Grisham.
(Read below)

Today — Wednesday 16 December 2009, many milblogs — including This Ain’t Hell, From My Position, Blackfive, Miss Ladybug, Boston Maggie, Grim’s Hall, and those participating in the Wednesday Hero program — are going silent for the day. Some are choosing to go silent for a longer period of time.

The reason for this is two-fold. First, milblogs are facing an increasingly hostile environment from within the military. While senior leadership has embraced blogging and social media, many field grade officers and senior NCOs do not embrace the concept. From general apathy in not wanting to deal with the issue to outright hositility to it, many commands are not only failing to support such activities, but are aggressively acting against active duty milbloggers, milspouses, and others. The number of such incidents appears to be growing, with milbloggers receiving reprimands, verbal and written, not only for their activities but those of spouses and supporters.

The catalyst has been the treatment of milblogger C.J. Grisham of A Soldier’s Perspective (http://www.soldiersperspective.us/). C.J. has earned accolades and respect, from the White House on down for his honest, and sometimes blunt, discussion of issues — particularly PTSD. In the last few months, C.J. has seen an issue with a local school taken to his command who failed to back him, and has even seen his effort to deal with PTSD, and lead his men in same by example, used against him as a part of this. Ultimately, C.J. has had to sell his blog to help raise funds for his defense in this matter.

An excellent story on the situation with C.J. can be found at Military Times: http://www.armytimes.com/offduty/technology/offduty_blogger_120809/ While there have been new developments, the core problem remains, and C.J. is having to raise funds to cover legal expenses to protect both his good name and his career.

One need only look at the number of blogs by active duty military in combat zones and compare it to just a few years ago to see the chilling effect that is taking place.

Milblogs have been a vital link in getting accurate news and information about the military, and military operations, to the public. They have provided vital context and analysis on issues critical to operations and to the informed electorate critical to the Republic.

On Wednesday 16 December, readers will have the chance to imagine a world without milblogs, and to do something about it. Those participating are urging their readers to contact their elected representatives in Congress, and to let their opinions be known to them and to other leaders in Washington.

Some milblogs will remain silent for several days; some just for the day. All have agreed to keep the post about the silence and C.J. at the top of their blogs until Friday 18 December. The issues go beyond C.J., and deserve careful consideration and discussion. We hope that you will cover this event, and explore the issues that lie at the heart of the matter. Contact the milbloggers in your area or that you know, and hear the story that lies within.

A Partial List of Participating Blogs:

This Ain’t Hell http://thisainthell.us/blog/
Boston Maggie http://bostonmaggie.blogspot.com/
Blackfive http://www.blackfive.net/main/
Miss Ladybug http://miss-ladybug.blogspot.com
Drunken Wisdom http://beerbrains.com/
Grim’s Hall http://grimbeorn.blogspot.com/
Frommyposition http://frommyposition.com/
CDR Salamander http://cdrsalamander.blogspot.com

Grisham Legal Fund
c/o Redstone Federal Credit Union
220 Wynn Drive
Huntsville, AL 35893
Please write “Grisham Legal Fund” in the memo line if you use this option.

Milblogs have been a vital link in getting accurate news and information about the military, and military operations, to you. Today, many milblogs are gone and others are under attack from within and without. Today, you have the chance to imagine a world without milblogs, and to do something
about it. Make your voice heard by writing your congressional representatives and others, and by making donations as you see fit.

The battle for freedom of speech and the marketplace of ideas is fought on many fronts and in many ways. Without your help, the battle may well be
lost.

Additional blogs supporting CJ:
You Served http://www.youserved.com
Bouhammer http://www.bouhammer.com
Pepple Drops http://pebbledrops.blogspot.com
Chromed Curses http://www.chromedcurses.com
Homefront Six http://homefrontsix.blogspot.com

Thursday was not only Thanksgiving – but it was also SGT Daddy’s birthday!  I was a little worried that he wasn’t going to receive his present on time…  but he got it the day before! WHEW!

It was a special day for another reason.. you see SGT Daddy received a coin from  Dr. Joseph Westphal,  Under Secretary of the Army – and Major General Scapriotti, Commander of the Combined Joint Task Force 82- Afghanistan.

Here are some pics–

]]> http://armyhousehold6.com/2009/11/30/update-on-sgt-daddy-2/feed/ 4 http://armyhousehold6.com/2009/11/05/fort-hood-tragedy/ http://armyhousehold6.com/2009/11/05/fort-hood-tragedy/#comments Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:06:38 +0000 Tammy http://armyhousehold6.com/?p=1572

image courtesy of FoxNews.com

My thoughts and prayers are with all of our military family at Fort Hood as well as those affected directly by this horrific act. If any of my readers at Hood need ANYTHING, please let me know and I’ll make sure to get you what you need!!!!

I just want to update real quick about what’s happening at Fort Hood.. these are the facts. I’m not going to speculate on ANYTHING (unlike certain members of the MSM)

• LTG Cone said all suspects were SOLDIERS!
• No kids were harmed .. they believe the situation is now under control. (at 3pm MT)
• The initial shooter (an Army major) died and the other 2 are now in custody.

Please remember – let’s not jump to conclusions on the speculations or rumors that we are hearing about. Let  CID, MP’s and FBI do their job and research the backgrounds of these guys before we start jumping to conclusions about the who and the why!

Now – as far as Obama’s press conference about Ft Hood. I think it was severely mishandled but what can you expect with someone who doesn’t have much leadership experience.

UPDATE
LTG Cone stated that MAJ Hasan was the ONLY shooter and that he is in fact ALIVE. Also – 13 people (including 1 civilian) have died and 31 wounded.

According to Fox News –

Survivors of the rampage that killed 13 and wounded 30 said the suspect, Major Nidal Malik Hasan, shouted “Allahu Akbar!” — “God is great!” in Arabic — before opening fire, base commander Lt. Gen. Robert Cone said.

Nominate YOUR Favorite Military Spouse!!

Yep Military Spouse Magazine is looking again to spotlight a military spouse who represents the sacrifice, patriotism, professionalism and altruism that embody this community of 1.1 million current and 20 million former military spouses.

Nominate yourself, your best friend or the person you admire most!

You have until November 13th to share your support by placing a nomination.

Make sure you stop and browse through this amazing magazine online (www.milspousemag.com) … There are tons of tips and GREAT information that is there to support the military spouse!

Send in your nomination(s) to: http://msoy.milspouse.com/

AMEDD - to conserve fighting strength

This is a REALLY LONG POST — this came directly from my husband, SGT Daddy (with some minor edits from me for OPSEC reasons). This account describes what my husband went through over a 9 hour period.

The morning began with the siren signaling incoming. I ignored it. I hate putting on my gear and besides the big boy voice had dutifully reminded me that I should remain in hard shelter. I didn’t argue by deed or word. In the meantime the 155’s began to blaze away in support of some action that did not affect me. Later I was called out of my room to help in the aid station. Two of the COB (combat operations base )  were in the midst of a full on assault by the Taliban.

Rumor had it they had made it inside the wire signaled by claymores just outside the gate exploding in response to encroachment. Later some treated would say that some of the Afghan Army had turned their weapons on them.

I quickly changed and found the Aid Station in the midst of preparations. The toll was 12 casualties coming in with 5 KIA. This would later be amended to 15 counting Afghan forces. I was in the way and ill prepared to offer much assistance but did whatever I was instructed to.

I was asked if I could be a recorder, that is to record the ongoing medical treatment of a casualty at a specific bed, I dutifully answered yes. I had reservations. The only MasCal I’d ever experienced was in JRTC, did this make me ready? I would find out but not for hours.

The fighting was ongoing and in answer of support the 155’s ceased only to be replaced by jet after jet as well as rotary support. I knew it must be bad just seeing the amount of firepower flying in to make defense of our troops. The area had to be secured in order to enable evacuation of the wounded by Blackhawk.

Later SGT S would relay to me that he had word of a billion dollars worth of munitions being dropped to that end. Familiar faces showed up in support of the effort as well. Tom, an Army Doc with some other providers arrived in support.

When word finally came that the first to be evacuated were on the way over 9 hours had passed. The number of wounded remained the same meaning that these guys had held on all day, some with horrible injuries. All day soldiers had been waiting dutifully outside to help the ambulatory patients while the litter of patients would brought directly to the aid station. The big boy voiced beckoned those that were a specific blood type report to the aid station.

Later those that were CLS (combat life support)  certified were called in support of those we would soon be treating. Finally word came that the first medevac had come in. I was asked to tag the casualties as they came in order to track them.

The first litter patient came in and there was no time to affix the wrist band so I followed him back. My heart was racing. I put the bracelet on quickly and got the hell out of the way as the FST began quickly in a measured fashion working on the patient. I think he was American. I hurried back to the door as the next patient was coming in. It was an Afghan Army Soldier. I again followed the casualty to affix his bracelet. I again met the next patient at the door. It was another Afghan soldier. He could walk but he had to be guided in as his was face bandaged up. With shaking hands I put on the bracelet. The medics got him on a stretcher and began assessing his wounds.

PFC H would later recount how a soldier had taken shrapnel to the face and eyes, his nose and some of his lip. The next casualties coming in were to be all ambulatory. Some of us had 5 minutes to collect ourselves. For most it meant cleaning up and resetting for the due in casualties. For the FST,  it continued to be a fight to save a soldiers life.

The next casualties arrived and I was tasked to record. SGT A would treat and I would try to relay in shorthand what he was doing and what the soldier had suffered.

Throughout the night it shocked me how calm these patients were. Had I sustained these injuries I would have been beside myself. I reminded myself that they had had hours to reconcile to some degree what had happened to them. Our patient had been peppered by shrapnel on his left side, from is face down to his thigh. His left arm had been fractured as well. His response to all of this was calm and information. He told us that he’d been shot in the forearm a previous deployment. Once he was appropriately cared for I remember the call coming for people to perform CPR.

SGT M told me later the First American brought in went into cardiac arrest. He’d gone back to perform CPR to no avail. The docs cracked his chest and began massaging his heart. He didn’t make it. The next patient to come through that I saw was another Afghan Army. He had major damage to his right arm. They removed his bandages and they immediately wept blood. He had chunks missing from his arm. The closest I can approximate the injury to is the effect a melon baller has on a cantaloupe. That is was his arm looked like.

I was then called by name to my surprise to assist with a new situation. Wow I was needed specifically. To my dread, Capt P was having issues with the X-Ray plate reader. I secretly hoped was a simple problem with a simple solution. At first it appeared that way. The CPT explained that that the plate was not being brought into the machine for exposure. When I went to grab the plate it fell into the machine and naturally the x-ray was spoiled due to it’s high velocity delivery. The plate had not been fed in correctly and my hands had dislodged it allowing gravity to deliver the plate unceremoniously onto the carriage. A grinding noise ensued and what might’ve been a simple problem was exacerbated. A grinding motor came in response to the melee that had just ensued.

I grabbed my tools and began disassembling the unit while fielding questions of the unit’s operability. It was out of commission until I could resolve the issue. This scared the hell out of me. Up to this point I knew all I had to do was my best but that ultimately the lives of the injured rested squarely on the shoulders of the medics and doctors. I was flustered and had no idea if I could remedy the situation; after all I had worked on such a machine only once previously. I stopped and thought, long enough to realize I was taking apart the backside. The motor is to front left, this is where I needed to be!

I took my queue from the medics and began working at a measured pace. Once I opened the unit up seeing what I needed to see I quickly diagnosed the problem and fixed the unit. While still reassembling the unit the reader was again back in use. One patient had to be sent back out to another facility with the x-ray down. The Afghan Army soldier with the injured arm needed immediate attention.

I was relieved at my success and also that all eyes were no longer on me. I had never been in such a situation and came out no worse for wear.

In the end, it had become more of a group effort than I had anticipated. I had counted on the medical folks to handle everything. While I know I by no means saved the day -  it was gratifying to see a real need for my skills. In the end I don’t think I’d have managed so well if I had not witnessed the controlled chaos. Throughout everything, I witnessed a synergy between all those present. All of the things every one of us learned came in to play and the theoretical use during training came to fruition via an actual event wonderfully successful.

It was an altogether exhausting day, both gratifying and heart wrenching. For my part I will never forget it. For others present it will be perhaps yet another tragedy marked by heartfelt effort.

- written by SGT Daddy (6 Oct 2009 @ 1310 hours)

As you probably have heard, this weekend 8 of our 4th ID , 4th Brigade soldiers gave the ultimate sacrifice in an attack from the Taliban(along with other groups) in Eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan Border.

I do not believe that SGT Daddy was one of the 8 (i would have heard by now), I haven’t heard from him yet either since the attack. In these types of situations, there is usually a communication blackout so that the families of our fallen warriors can be notified. I’m sure that is the reason for not hearing from him.

As the details get released about the 8 soldiers, I will of course update as much as I can. I will make sure to let everyone know if there is anything you can do. Of course, in the meantime, please pray for our soldiers and comfort for their families.

I am the new social media director for Jane Wayne Gear and All Fired Up Candle Company!!! I spoke with Roxanne (CEO and founder… and super cool chick) on Tuesday and I accepted an offer to put together their social media for the company! So I’m sure I’ll be super busy over the next few weeks getting things rolling over there.

Lots of other “excitement” happening around here too which I’ll share in an uber-long post tomorrow (just warning you now LOL )

So, of course the meeting has a THEME! It is come as a Music Icon. I couldn’t come up with anything majorly creative so I chose Cyndi Lauper since most of the 80’s fashion is back .

You guys know that almost everything is bloggable in my life (as long as no OPSEC violations) so here you go .. (please don’t laugh too hard)

1980's version of tammy .. Project 365 - Day 10

I wasn’t sure how a room FULL of Marines were going to treat this Army wife but they were AWESOME!( no worries I still love my soldiers! )

I even managed to learn a thing or two from the VA reps that was there as well as some detailed info on how the new GI Bill works. Also, I learned some new “lingo” (Marine Corps  style)!  Before the event, I thought I was pretty well-versed in Military-ese but those Marines taught me a thing or two for sure!

The thing that I was most impressed with was the push for getting help for post-combat stress (AKA PTSD). They showed a video that talked at great length about the effects of combat stress and how IT WILL AFFECT YOU one way or the other. The story of one Marine really stuck in my head was that of a Sergeant Major (senior level leadership) that told of his story dealing with the stress and that it was ” ok to not be ok ”

We hear about PTSD all the time in the news and on TV.. we need to make sure that our military is getting the help that they need for it.

The WWII and Vietnam generations didn’t have the resources back then …   For example, My Dad and Grandmother talk all the time about their military life but I can barely remember my grandfather (served 30+ years enlisted Army) talking about his experiences in the Army. The troops back then  coped” by just not talking about it.

Now, We have the resources to address the issues associated with combat .. so why aren’t we?? We need to make sure we are watching our neighbors, sons, daughters,  spouses, and friends coming back from deployment  for changes and encouraging them to get the support and help that they need. (hey fellow Household6 -  this goes for you as well … we can suffer from PTSD too )

(stay tuned…..there will be a post series coming up soon on PTSD/Combat Stress)