#1 topic: Daddy

I spent all weekend listening to women who have never been a wife in the Army or know what the Army is tell me how to deal with deployment and what it is. It was very kind of them to put us up in a hotel and feed us, I guess that meant they had the right to talk to us like children.

Friday night, one hour after arrival,

Speaker (in a cheery sing-song that made me want to vomit): Okay! We are going to talk about rules! Everyone LOVES rules, right?! They give us boundaries!

Me (whispering to my neighbor): How much you wanna bet me it's no drinking?

Speaker: NOOOOOOO ALCOHOL! I know, alcohol makes us feel better, but it really doesn't let you be PRESENT, you know? You have to be present for all the GREAT information you are going to get this weekend!

By the time she had stopped talking many people had cleared the room to go and break rule #1.

I know that rule #2 was "No cell phones" but I had quit listening. All in all it was okay, the last day had the most information that was totally rushed through. Saturday we listened to hippy music and closed our eyes to go to our "happy place". Good times. We also did a Psychology 101 exercise that helped us figure out what personality type we were, and that was fun, but I have no idea how it tied into helping me cope with being the sole parent, house-fixer, bill-payer, car oil-changer and everything-under-the-sun for a year. Lots of laughs, though, since Shawn and I were TOTAL opposites. Another great opposite was the parenting session, where apparently everything I'm doing and have done and will do is absolutely wrong. Especially dialogue with the children. I really did try to change my word choice when we were having dinner, but, alas, all was for naught. *sigh*

The nice part was meeting Army wives that I haven't met. I've been missing that connection lately, since the only person who really knows how our world is about to be turned upside down is an Army wife. I even met some who can paint and use a drill. Although, my husband was vehemently against a drill-using lesson for me.

The kids got backpacks full of what-nots, including writing packets for letters to Daddy, and "Daddy-dolls". They are thrilled with their contraband, and haven't asked lately if Daddy is going to "fight the bad guys". I seriously don't know where they got that phrase, we have never mentioned anything but that Daddy is going to help people, just like he does here. I write "we" loosely, since I am not always around to censor what my husband says to my children. Maybe he should take the parenting class instead of me, the introverted recluse that he is.