After reading a Navy Wives Facebook Support Page, I thought a few girls needed this one.

This Column is Dedicated to The Spouses, “Those who Silently Serve.”

Anything But Dependent is the title I chose for this weekly spouse column. I came up with this title because of the stereotype we are given. Our civilian counterparts have labeled us as dependent, needy, and whiney.  I am normally pretty reserved when someone has views different from my own.  I respect them, keep an open mind, and try to gain perspective from listening to others.  But this is something that I can’t keep quiet about.  I even caught myself snapping at a very rude woman in line behind me at the store once.  She was talking about living in “this town” and how she was tired of “these lazy military wives” to a friend on the phone.

She was referring to an exhausted looking woman in pajama pants who was in front of us holding her credit card and a Military ID.  While I waited for her to end her conversation, thoughts flew through my mind.  Who was the woman in the pajama pants? I wonder what would bring her to the store at 7:45AM.  Was she sick with no one to help her?  Was she getting something for her child that couldn’t wait until later?

I then started thinking of all the times that I have gone to the store in sweat pants and my hair tied in a knotty mess just to get the much-needed medicine for my children or myself.  So many thoughts were rushing through my brain that it made my face heat up.  The women hung up her phone and I turned to her and said, “I couldn’t help but over hear your comment about military wives, I just wanted to let you know that you are putting a very negative stereotype on a large and amazing group of women.”  She replied, “There’s nothing amazing about women that sit around waiting on their husbands and having babies!”  Continue reading →

North VS South

I’m originally from St. Louis, Missouri.  I grew up watching the Cardinals play baseball on warm summer nights.  I was an All American Midwestern girl who day dreamed about getting married and moving away, although none of my dreams included a sailor and moving to the South.  Somehow there I was in my early 20’s married and moving to Kings Bay, Georgia.

On the news, shortly after arriving in my new town, an alligator had being captured out of someone’s back yard and I realized “I wasn’t in Kansas anymore.”  In Missouri you call on a stray pet, not a man-eating reptile. Continue reading →

Parents, don’t dress your girls like tramps

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• LZ Granderson: Some parents dress their young girls in provocative outfits
• Retailers have encouraged this behavior by marketing inappropriate clothing
• He says it’s OK to blame retailers, but it’s parents who are ultimately responsible
• Children need parents who will set rules, not be their friends, he says

Editor’s note: LZ Granderson writes a weekly column for CNN.com. A senior writer and columnist for ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com, he has contributed to ESPN’s “Sports Center,” “Outside the Lines” and “First Take.” He is a 2011 and 2010 nominee and the 2009 winner of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation award for online journalism and a 2010 and 2008 honoree of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association for column writing.

Grand Rapids, Michigan (CNN) – I saw someone at the airport the other day who really caught my eye.

Her beautiful, long blond hair was braided back a la Bo Derek in the movie “10″ (or for the younger set, Christina Aguilera during her “Xtina” phase). Her lips were pink and shiny from the gloss, and her earrings dangled playfully from her lobes.

You can tell she had been vacationing somewhere warm, because you could see her deep tan around her midriff thanks to the halter top and the tight sweatpants that rested just a little low on her waist. The icing on the cake? The word “Juicy” was written on her backside. Continue reading →

This being our first Shore Duty after back-to-back Sea Tours, I envisioned bliss. I had a picture show playing through my mind at night as I counted down the days to having a husband home every day. And with a husband home, came help with kids and daily activities. I saw a more relaxed me having dinner at the same time every night and someone to cook with.

I didn’t foresee that Shore Duty was still considered Active Duty Military and therefore requires travel, after hours and weekend emergency calls, and finishing degrees. Don’t get me wrong, Shore Duty is still pretty impressive. The other day the Washing Machine broke and I wasn’t the one fixing it, nor did I have to call anyone. Yesterday, I wasn’t the one on top of an extremely tall ladder trying to put hooks on the house for hanging baskets. And most nights I get to fall asleep next to a man who I not only love, but after getting to spend so much time with, I actually LIKE! To put the icing on the cake, I can also say, “Ask your Father!!” This alone is magical.  Continue reading →

Welcome to all the new readers! When you check back, you will find things looking a little different. I’m still adjusting and getting settled in. It’s important to me that this be a blog that is not only fun, but easy to read and share with friends.

If you have the time, I’d love for you to leave comments. Your thoughts let other people know that they aren’t alone! : )

Thanks and Happy Reading!

M