use this time to set goals

so your loved one will gone for a number of months. what to do? how to keep busy? set yourself some goals. from fitness goals of getting healthier to financial goals of paying off your debts and saving more to finishing up your schooling, the possibilities are endless. but trust me, when your hero comes home and sees what all you've accomplished, you too will feel empowered, not only by his words, but by knowing you did this.

i set money goals. i pick a credit card and decide to pay that one off. if i have more than one that needs to be paid, i try to get them paid off too. after those are paid, i try to set the amount i had been paying and put it toward saving money.

i plan a small event every month to have something to look forward to. plan a mommy night out or a movie with friends. i also plan something halfway through. this time, we went to my dad's for a long weekend.
carlin
army
5 deployments

well for me it was going to school the first time hubby deployed. the second time it was paying off debt. by the third deployment i focused on the kids (then teenagers), always with something going on. really it depends on what you think will work for you. the important thing is to find something and get out of the house, stay busy. it makes time go by faster that way.
stacy
army
3 deployments

the first time my airman was gone it was about surviving single parenthood with a 4 month old and another on the way.. i missed him like terrible, but i was very consumed with feeling sick and taking care of our baby and baby on the way. this time around i am focusing on losing that baby weight (by the way, half through the deployment and i've made it to my goal weight!) and keeping my heart focused on the future. when my airman gets back, we will be that much closer to the end of our military career. we've made it this far, and we will finish strong! but, the greatest focus of my life, is Jesus. He gets me through like no one else!
taylor
air force
2 deployments

for the first deployment i focused on teaching. i had just started my new teaching job when hubby, then my boyfriend, deployed. i also worked on scrapbooking, a new hobby of mine at that time. during the second deployment, i was consumed with our son, who was just 5 weeks old when my hubby deployed. between raising our son with me at home and my hubby on the webcam, i also finished up my masters and lost all of my baby weight. having goals, like finishing my masters and losing that baby weight really kept me focused.

to help us pass the time, we also has little 'trips' each month. between visiting a new area attraction to visiting family, our son and i visited 8 different airports over the course of 14 months! it was nice though. this next deployment will be exploring our new duty station and the surrounding areas.
aaron's wifey
army
2 deployments