This week’s Friday Fill-In!  Enjoy!

1. What is one of the things you always do special when your husband returns from a deployment?  submitted by Keep Calm and Soldier On

I’m not sure if I can use “always” in these answers, since my husband has only ever had two deployments to come home from…and I’ve had two deployments to come home from also.  In 1998 we returned from concurrent deployments within a few weeks of each other, and we were able to squeeze in an amazing ski vacation in Taos, NM just before we PCSed to Korea.

Otherwise, we tended to spend the first days readjusting to a life that includes more than just getting a mission done.

2. What do you do to help your spouse and/or yourself re-adjust after a deployment or long separation?  submitted by Diapers, Dogs and Deployments

We try very hard not to plan a ton of stuff.  That sounds vague and all, but we want to make sure there’s a buffer in there before we allow visitors to come into town, or we take big trips.

3. Are you a crazy coupon clipper (I’m becoming one, so share your secrets with me)? submitted by Married My Airman

Here’s my take on “Extreme Couponing” and how much of it is incompatible with a military lifestyle.

That being said, I try very hard to strike that balance of taking advantage of coupons, but not buying things we don’t need just because there’s a coupon.  You all know what I’m talking about, right?

4. What’s your most treasured memory of you and your spouse (not counting your wedding – that’s a given)? submitted by Scrubs, ACUs and One Crazy Ride

I don’t really know, we have so many.  Getting to see the joy on each others’ faces when our children were born is probably at the top of my list.

5. If you could live anywhere overseas, what would you pick and why? submitted by Little Moments Like This

I’ve been chomping at the bit for Dave to get assigned to Germany for as long as I can remember!  For some reason, it’s never happened…

[And NO, rotator flight layovers at Ramstein and Rhein-Main ABs don’t count!]

As Dave gets older and higher in rank, his opportunities in Europe really dwindle.  Since around 2000 we’ve put off any kinds of European vacations, just in case the powers-that-be feel Dave and Germany could commingle for a couple years.  But it hasn’t happened yet.  Oh well…

One thing I do know, we’re planning our 2020 trip to Obergammerau NOW!  We’d have a 17- and 15-year-old sons and I couldn’t think of a more special trip to take with your kids…when they’re old enough to understand/appreciate the Passion Plays.