Military Spouse Chatter

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10 questions with Shanna Muegge 41

What’s your name? Shanna Muegge

What branch do you serve in? Colorado Army National Guard

How long have you served? 15 years in January 2018       

Have you ever deployed? If so, where and how many times? Yes. Deployed to Mahmudiyah, Iraq in 2009. The ARNG often gets activated for state emergencies or sent to other countries for training; in June 2013 I was activated for the East Peak Fire in La Veta, CO and again in Sept 2013 for the Colorado Floods; in Nov-Dec 2015 I had training in Germany.

How many times have you PCS’d? In the ARNG it is a little different than active duty military. We can choose to transfer to another state or territory as long as there is a position available for our MOS/rank. I have served in the Wyoming ARNG, the North Carolina ARNG, and now the Colorado ARNG.

How many children do you have? I have one son, Andrew, light of my life/mini-me!

As a single parent who serves, what are some of the things you’ve done to help your child cope with the challenges – moves, deployments, etc – of military life? Some of the things I have done to help when I leave for training, is let my son help me pack. He feels more a part of what I’m doing if he can help me. When I deployed to Iraq I was not yet a mother so I am dreading my first deployment as a parent to be honest! Andrew’s school also has a military and family life counselor that visits with him during the week and talks to him to make sure he’s doing well in school. Because we live so far from family, I depend a lot on the close friends I’ve made living in Colorado to help take care of Andrew when I’m in the field. If I leave for an extended amount of time, Andrew goes to stay with family. Fortunately, he looks at it like a vacation.

Finish this sentence. My child will be better for growing up with a mom who serves because… He is able to see a parent who is resilient. Being in the ARNG may not mean that I get deployed as often as active duty, but he does experience the sudden change in scheduling  because I have schools that come up last minute, late nights, additional duty training, and taking care of Soldiers whether in or out of uniform. My resilience has helped him build resilience already with bullying in school and to stand strong when things are hard.

Any advice for other children of single parents who are serving?  Being a single parent is hard enough, so serving as a single parent adds all kinds of new worries to your life. Being able to lean on family and close friends makes a world of difference. I do not have family close by, 99% of them live in other states actually. So building a good support system is key in serving as a single parent.

Any advice for other single parents who serve? Cut yourself some slack. Single parenting is difficult, not impossible but difficult nonetheless. You have to be a strong parent for your children and a strong leader for your troops, so figure out a way to decompress this way you’re not treating your children like Soldiers and your Soldiers like children.

Bonus Question: What’s your favorite camouflage pattern?  I like the new OCP pattern the best, and I joined when we had the old BDU/Desert BDU’s!

This interview is brought to you by Sgt. Sleeptight – defender of sweet dreams for the children of military families. 

  • Justin Baum

10 questions with Rhiannon Trimboli 0

What’s your name? Rhiannon Trimboli

What branch does your spouse serve in? Unites States Marine Corps

How long has he or she served? 7 years next month(August 2017)     

How many times has he or she deployed (if at all)? 3

 How many times have you PCS’d? Twice. Both were cross country moves. You really learn a lot about each other when you move and learn new surroundings together.

How many children do you have? One

What are some of the things you’ve done to help your children cope with the challenges – moves, deployments, etc – of military life? Our daughter is only one so we haven’t had to deal with much of this with her yet. Facetime has been a lifesaver when he has been gone though. It’s nice for her to not just hear his voice but also see him while he’s gone.

Finish this sentence. My kids will be better for being part of a military family because…She will grow up making friendships that are for life even after moves. Military friends become family. She also will have a greater appreciation for the time we do get to spend with her dad.

Any advice for the children of military families? Military life is hard and no one will fight you on that. Lean on other military children who know what you’re going through. Embrace change when it happens and focus on the good.

Bonus Question:

What’s your favorite camouflage pattern? Tri colors

This interview is brought to you by Sgt. Sleeptight – defender of sweet dreams for the children of military families. 

  • Justin Baum
10 questions with Laureen C South

10 questions with Laureen C South 8

What’s your name? Laureen South

What branch does your spouse serve in? Army.

How long has he or she served? 14yrs and just re-enlisted for another 6 years.

How many times has he or she deployed (if at all)? He is about to leave for his 5th

How many times have you PCS’d? Once.

How many children do you have? I have one, he has one we just had one together 

What are some of the things you’ve done to help your children cope with the challenges – moves, deployments, etc – of military life?

We all converted to video chat capable phones. We placed two clocks everywhere displaying his time and ours. We all wear his dog tag around our neck as well as in my car and bed post. We all have journals to write in for him to read when he gets home so he can too know about all milestones. We have taken a lot of time off for family time lately which we took pictures of EVERYTHING to look at while we are apart. Each child has a Sgt sleep tight as well as a build a bear with a recorded message from dad

Finish this sentence. My kids will be better for being part of a military family because… they will have a stricter structure and organizational skills.

Any advice for the children of military families?

Making a countdown chart, put up another clock with their time as well as ours, voice recorded message from the deployed parent, set up an indivialized email so they can send pictures and keep a journal of milestones. 

Bonus Question:

What’s your favorite camouflage pattern? Digital Camo ACUs

This interview is brought to you by Sgt. Sleeptight – defender of sweet dreams for the children of military families. 

 

  • Justin Baum
10 questions with Amanda Hullinger

10 questions with Amanda Hullinger 11

What’s your name?  Hello all. My name is Amanda Hullinger.

What branch does your spouse serve in? My husband is in the Marines.

How long has he or she served? 12 years next month (July 2017).

How many times has he or she deployed (if at all)? He has deployed 4 times. 3 of those were combat deployments and one was a MEU. Currently he is getting ready to go on deployment number 5 this winter.

How many times have you PCS’d?  We have PCS'd from 29 palms to Camp Pendleton, CA. Currently, we are in the process of PCSing from Camp Pendleton to Camp Lejeune in 2 months. PCSing from 29 palms to Pendleton was easier; we didn't have kids or a dog and we weren't established as well as we are now in California. Basically, we have more stuff to move!

How many children do you have? We have two children. Zach just turned 7 and Kailyn is 5. Zach has experienced deployments but was too young to understand. Kailyn was born while daddy was away and met him when she was 2 months old. She doesn't remember much.

With the work ups for upcoming deployments, my kids have been noticing daddy's absence a lot more then usual and they ask questions which is good. To me it means they are trying to understand daddy's job (infantry).

Our son who is the oldest is having the hardest time with daddy being away. He cries for him at night especially before bed. It's a reminder to me at least of what families sacrifice for the greater good.

What are some of the things you’ve done to help your children cope with the challenges – moves, deployments, etc – of military life? I keep everyone busy by putting Kailyn in gymnastics/dance and Zach in karate/hockey during the week. During the weekends I try to tone it down so we can relax and watch a movie, go to the park, etc. Sometimes though, a good cry is all we need to refresh ourselves and move on. 

Finish this sentence. My kids will be better for being part of a military family because…they are resilient, strong and kind. Sometimes when Zach meets a new friend whose loved one is deployed, he likes to reassure the child that his dad is or has deployed too and that are not alone. I thought that was pretty awesome coming from a 7 year old! He went to a non DoDea school this year and was the only military child in the school. He made the most of it and made me proud. Zach showed me that he can adapt and overcome to different situations. 

Any advice for the children of military families? Some advice that I have for military families and children would be to not fear the unknown. Take life day by day and make all the memories you can. When daddy is home for a weekend, I try to plan a fun day such as going to the local zoo or amusement park then a relaxing day with board games, movies and popcorn. These are the happy memories that children remember for years to come. 

Bonus Question: What’s your favorite camouflage pattern? My favorite camouflage pattern is the USMC Woodlands. 

This interview is brought to you by Sgt. Sleeptight – defender of sweet dreams for the children of military families. 

  • Justin Baum
10 questions with Jenny LeJeune

10 questions with Jenny LeJeune 19

What’s your name? Jenny LeJeune (pronouned Luh-Jern) same family Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune was named for. John Archer LeJeune was my husband’s great great Uncle and 13th Commandant of the Marine Corps.

What branch does your spouse serve in? United States Marine Corps

How long has he or she served? He's been in for 12 years.

How many times has he or she deployed (if at all)? 4 deployments and many many field exercises, out of state and country trips and time apart.

How many times have you PCS’d? This upcoming move next month will be our 9th move and our 4th Military Related PCS.

How many children do you have? We have 3 kiddos, a cat and dog.

What are some of the things you’ve done to help your children cope with the challenges – moves, deployments, etc – of military life? Photographs. Photos have gotten us through a lot. Right before a deployment we usually plaster daddy all over the house so he's in each and every room.

Move – this is the first one where they're old enough to understand that we're saying goodbye to many and "see you later" to a few, we've been busy with sleepovers and fun in the sun, we're spending as much time as we can with our Military family and of course photographing those memories as well.

Finish this sentence. My kids will be better for being part of a military family because… they will have overcome obstacles the average American doesn't see until they move out of their childhood home and away from their parents. My kids have met amazing people, been exposed to different lifestyles, food, places, personalities and schools. I think all of these life experiences will give them a better taste of reality as an adult. I married my husband at 18 years old. I was one of the youngest wives at his then school TBS (The Basic School) I had never lived anywhere other than the home I grew up in. Meeting new places and new people each duty station is so much fun and I get to redecorate. I can't imagine staying grounded in a single place now that I've grown accustomed to this lifestyle.

Any advice for the children of military families? It will hurt at the time, you may feel like your life is over and you'll never see your friends again but at every duty station there are children going through and facing the same challenges as you. You may be just what they need. Its ok to cry. I'm 30 and I still cry.

Bonus Question: What’s your favorite camouflage pattern? Desert, not too happy about this new woodland all year round thing. Good thing we're moving to the Middle East where the dress is desert all year long!

***To see Jenny's amazing photography, visit her on Facebook or on

www.lejeunephotography.com 

https://www.facebook.com/LeJeunePhotography/

If you'd like to be a guest blogger, please contact me at justin@zzzbears.com

  • Justin Baum