The Perspective of a Fort Benning Military Wife and Mother

One of the hardest parts of being a military wife here in Columbus, Georgia is that our extended families are not here. We find ourselves trying to keep in touch with out of town family but even with modern technology it can still be hard. Lucky for my husband and I both our families are within driving distance so we are constantly entertaining family. This brings up the problem of trying to find new and interesting things to do in Columbus without spending too much.
One thing that we found to be entertaining was to go for walks on the scenic trail at the Columbus Botanical Gardens. This was especially nice for our grandparents and parents. They enjoyed getting out doors and being able to see the beautiful flora and fauna. My stepdaughter Ana, who is five, said she loved seeing all the pretty flowers. The best part was that it is free. This is nice if you are looking to get out of the house but don’t want to break their budget.
Another good place that we like to go that is also free is Cooper Creek Park. This is a favorite of our children. They have multiple playgrounds, picnic tables, grills, and a beautiful lake view. Our favorite outing is to take picnic food and have dinner at the park. The park also has walking and fitness trails. If you like getting out but feel guilty leaving the family pet, after all they are part of the family too, this park is pet friendly. This is our favorite park but there are many beautiful parks in Muscogee County.
A place that is slightly more expensive but worth the trip, is Animal Safari in Pine Mountain, Georgia. This gives families a chance to experience wildlife that is not native to the area up close and personal. We visited Animal Safari one weekend when my in-laws were in town and my niece Sylvia (3) loved it so much that every time that she comes to visit she asks if we can go back. This outing is pricy but it is fun to go if you are looking for something unique to do with family and don’t mind the splurge.
If the outdoors is not your cup of tea there are other options here is Columbus. The Columbus museum of art is also a great place to take the family. While it is not free it is fairly inexpensive. There are so many programs for adults as well as families. The museum has everything from Egyptian art to Architecture. They also have a restaurant so you can eat and then take a tour of the museum. This is one of my personal favorites for a family outing.
Hollywood Connection is my stepdaughter’s favorite place to go on a family outing. This is a family friendly movie theater and more. Most of the movies that are shown there are family movies which is nice for us because we have two children under 6. Not only is there movies but there are also amusement rides as well as movie snacks.
There are many things to do here in Columbus. I find that getting out when family is in town helps us all to have a better time. Sometimes it can be overbearing to have a house full of family and it helps to alleviate that stress by getting everyone out of the house. It also helps to tire out children who may be over stimulated by the extra people in the house. Columbus is a great place for families and we have found it to be a great place to be stationed.
C.J.

The Perspective of what it is like to be a Georgia Military Wife

The Perspective of what it is like to be a Georgia Military Wife

As I sat there in the oh so comfortable gynecologist chair with my one year old son next to me in his stroller screaming because he did not want to be confined and would prefer to be exploring the room on foot, I realized that being a military wife can be difficult at times. If I had a husband who worked in the civilian sector and did not go to the field for days or weeks or even months at a time, then when I could not find a babysitter he could step in and save the day instead of me bringing my son, or my little shadow, as I so fondly call him, along for what is already an uncomfortable event without a screaming child. Part of what it means to be a military wife and mother is that you are a part time single parent as well. Dealing with this means being able to understand what your husband’s duties are as a soldier and the willingness to pick up the slack when he is gone from time to time.

Another aspect of being a military wife is being flexible. This means that when you have a romantic evening for the two of you planned with babysitter and everything and he gets a call that someone needs him to cover staff duty last minute, that while you may be disappointed you don’t freak out and take it out on him. It also means that when you plan a vacation you purchase the travel insurance because you never know when things might change. My favorite phrase when talking about field time or deployments is “unless amended or extended.” This says it all. Things change all the time in the military. Nothing is set in stone and the sooner that military spouses understand this and accept it the sooner they will be better able to cope with the military lifestyle and the better the quality of life will be for the military families. Am I saying that everything has been 100% okay all the time since I accepted this fact? Well no, it is just that once I was able to put things into proper perspective and be more flexible things did get easier.

As for being a military wife in Georgia I would say that it is probably the same as being a military wife anywhere else except for the scorching heat in the summers and months of frizzy hair due to high humidity. There is plenty to do here at this base with Atlanta being nearby. Being stationed here is just like being stationed anywhere else, there are things I love and things that are not so great but it is all what you make of it. I heard this saying that home is where the Army sends you. All you can do is make the best of it.

So is being a military wife all hard work and no play? Of course, not. We have husbands who do a job that is truly respectable and worthy of admiration. Don’t let my husband read this or it will go straight to his head, but I am so proud of what he does. (Only kidding my husband knows I am proud.) Also one of the perks of having a husband who does a dangerous job is that he and I are very appreciative of our time together. When we do have time together we try to make it quality family time and try not to take any of it for granted.

My husband and I had a conversation before we got married about how I would deal with military life. I told him that I would rather have him for whatever amount of time that I could get as opposed to living every day with anyone else. So yes, at times being a military wife is hard. We make many sacrifices in our families so that our husbands can defend our country. All in all I would not change.
-C. Jordan

2000 is the Magic Number by May 30th

We hope you'll join us by sending this blog address to everyone you know. We'd like to show our 2000 Georgia Troops and their Families currently in Afghanistan just how much support they really do have at home. Please send this information to your contacts so we can have 2000:2000 by May 30th!

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Hometown Hero

Do you know of a Hometown Hero?

Hometown Hero
Nominate a Hometown Hero today! The Atlanta Braves and Operation Homefront Georgia want to award your Hometown Hero with 4-755 Club Seats, parking and a meal for a Sunday, home game. Email us with your Hometown Hero recommendation and why.
Winners to be notified by telephone

Does anyone know about this? Please comment

Navy Petty Officer Mike Monsoor PO2 (EOD2) (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) Mike Monsoor, a Navy EOD Technician, was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously for jumping on a grenade in Iraq, giving his life to save his fellow Seals. (Notice: Mike was not a Navy SEAL, he was EOD. He gave his life to save a group of Navy SEALS.) During Mike Monsoor's funeral in San Diego , as his coffin was being moved from the hearse to the grave site at Ft. Rosecrans National Cemetery , SEALs were lined up on both sides of the pallbearers route forming a column of two's, with the coffin moving up the center. As Mike's coffin passed, each SEAL, having removed his gold Trident from his uniform, slapped it down embedding the Trident in the wooden coffin. The slaps were audible from across the cemetery; by the time the coffin arrived grave side, it looked as though it had a gold inlay from all the Tridents pinned to it. This was a fitting send-off for a warrior hero.. This should be front-page news instead of the we see every day.. God Bless our Troops

Hometown Hero - Sgt. Fair

Operation Homefront Georgia and the Atlanta Braves are honoring "Hometown Heroes" every Sunday at Braves' home games this season. On May 3, Sgt. Fair, United States Marine Corps was honored during the sixth inning by all fans at Turner Field. Sgt. Fair was escorted out onto the field where he got the crowd on their feet. Photographs of Sgt. Fair were shown on the outfield jumbotron after the announcer spoke of his tours in Iraq and great service to our country. Sgt. Fair received high fives and hand shakes all around as he exited the field back to his seat.

We are so proud of Sgt. Fair and his family, not only for his bravery and service but for being a genuinely nice person. Way to go Sgt. Fair!

Photographs & Videos forthcoming. To see all Sunday highlights of heroes visit the blog often!