The story is about the Bennett family , a Navy family , going through yet another adventure-filled year . Grace is an awesome military spouse who supports her husband’s career choice , makes many PCS moves,trying t and making new friends while trying to stay in touch with old friends. They have 3 children who are also dealing with regular military brat lifestyle issues – missing their dad, getting used to living without him while he’s on the ship, etc.

I thought the book was just absolutely fantastic and well-written. It really showed what our military lifestyle is like and not something that can be wrapped in a 30 minute television show. It showed the true realities of being a military family that not everything is hunky-dory. There is happiness, tears, worry, etc.  I really loved getting a peak inside of a Navy family and what they endure during their deployments, which  are just as difficult as the ones that us Army families go through yet a bit different.

I recommend everyone- military and civilians alike – pick up this book and read it.

So drumroll please — the winner of the Scentsy Military spouse Appreciation Day Giveaway is

Congrats Wife of a Sailor !!!
Patty will get in touch with you shortly for you to pick out your warmer and choice of scents!

Day 11 - My new Flip Video Camera

I guess you could say that I’m a “Sears brat “! You see , my dad worked for Sears for 30+ years and I spent lots of time in a Sears Store as a kid!  : ) Heck I even worked there myself  in the 90’s and have shopped there a lot over the years as an adult.

A couple of months ago, I signed our family up for the Sears’ Heroes at Home program. It is a program created to give back to military families.

Over the course of 3 months , we received gift cards worth a total of $322.00

It was a much appreciated and welcomed gift.

Since this was all extra $$ that we certainly weren’t expecting to receive, we bought stuff for the house, a Wii Spongebob game for the girls and a Flip video camera (which I’ve wanted for a REALLY long time)

I have to say this camera is the coolest handheld camera I’ve used in a long time. It’s so easy to use Beck can use it with ease. It’s completely plug in pay… there is a USB connector built into the camera.(yes video is coming very soon )

So a BIG heartfelt thank you to Sears (and all those that donated to the program) !! You guys do so much for our military and their families!

Keep up the great work.

2010 is going to be an exciting year for us … with SGT Daddy coming home in a few months and lots of other things .  It will be awesome at the end of this year to look back at all the pictures documenting 2010.

So here is Day 1

Christmas without SGT Daddy was a bit depressing but we did what we always do, make the best of situation. I don’t know what we would have done if we didn’t have technology.

We got to see SGT Daddy in Afghanistan on Christmas Eve opening up his box of goodies. I don’t know if he was more excited about the Left for Dead 2 Xbox game or the HALO Encyclopedia. (yes there is an encyclopedia for a video game)

Also, Daddy got to hear the girls open up their gifts from Santa and us. (our webcam doesn’t work that great on his end) It was almost like he was home with us.

I’m so glad that we can cross one more holiday off the list. You see, Christmas was sort of a personal milestone for me.

I told myself right after SGT Daddy left, that all I need to do is make it until Christmas. I knew if I could make it to Christmas,  I could make it for the year.

So now our next milestone is his upcoming R&R .. which is only a couple of months away. All of us are super excited about it and are looking forward to it.

So to all my blog readers, family and friends… Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

UPDATE – 12/21/09 @10pm EST

The party was so much fun… and we managed to raise $550 in ONE HOUR for the Wounded Warrior Project!! Much thanks to all those that participated and Whitefence.com for sponsoring as well as donating!!

Yes you read that right … I’m excited for a Monday. You see… This Monday I’ll be co-hosting a Twitter Party with WhiteFence.com , starting at 9pm EST.

If you aren’t familiar with WhiteFence, I highly recommend you check them out. WhiteFence is a free service that helps people who are moving or looking to find the best deals on phone, Internet, television, electricity, natural gas and other home services.

Now this is no normal Twitter Party, there will be no gifts to give away. However there it is opportunity to have some awesome conversation, share our tips/tricks and help our wounded warriors …
you see every tweet that includes the party hashtage (#wfparty) a $1 donation will go to the Wounded Warrior Foundation. (up to $2000)

So how can you help get involved and raise money?
Well @whitefence and I will be talking about how how to make the holidays special when you’re loved one is overseas.  All you have to do is join in the conversation on Twitter (make sure to include the hashtag )

Make sure you follow me (@tammymunson) and Whitefence (@whitefence) so you don’t miss this fun event!!!

So spread the word to not only raise  money but awareness as well. If  you would like to make your own donation to the Wounded Warrior Project , you do do so at the WWP site as well!

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at tammy @ armyhousehold6.com

Hope to see you there !

Tammy

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/