Parenting

Picture this—three kids, ages three and under. I was raising them alone while my husband was deployed to Afghanistan. It was noisy. It was stressful. It was exhausting. Deployments are never easy, but deployments with young children are especially difficult. If you have multiple kids during a deployment, you are forced to juggle the demands of solo-parenting with the non-stop needs of babies or toddlers. It is a frustrating situation that can push you to your breaking point. There will be times when you go to bed tired, then wake up tired, and wonder how you are going to get through another day. But you can get through it, because I did, and so do numerous military spouses every year. No one must go through deployment alone, and this is especially true if you are caring for multiple children. You are going to need a little help sometimes. There is nothing wrong with admitting that! Asking for help may feel awkward, but you would be amazed how many people want to help you. Here are some ways to reach out and find resources available to you.