April- The Month of the Military Child

April is the Month of the Military Child. This month Military Children are celebrated and honored for all they sacrifice.  All 1.8 million of them! It may not seem like it, but a member of the military is not the only one who gives up a part of their lives for our country. Spouses and children give up so much too.

Liam is so young that he does not seem to be affected by the constant in and out of his Dad. He does seem to wake up more during the night and has a harder time going to bed when his Dad is out to sea. I know if he were older it would be a lot worse.  Older children are much more aware that their father is not home. They can never quite settle into a routine at home with the crazy schedule that some ships keep. They're in for a week or two and out for a month, then home for a month and out for a week. Children need consistency and the Navy does not provide that. They never know what to expect. It's hard. On them and on all the spouses holding down the fort.

 I'm not looking forward to this upcoming deployment. We have not done a deployment with a child yet. That does not mean Pablo has not been away. He's been in and out a lot since Liam was about 6 months old. He missed Liam's first time crawling and his first steps. I think that at this age the separation is harder for Pablo than it is for Liam. Liam is blissfully unaware that Pablo is missing so much of his early years. Don't get me wrong. When Pablo comes home Liam runs as fast as he can into his Daddy's arms. He missed him, he just didn't realize it. ;)

All of the separation, the unknown and the constant change of Military life makes Military Children resilient, flexible and strong. They can grow wherever they are planted. I could not have put it better than this 11 year old Military Child. This is beautiful. It brings tears to my eyes and a smile to my face.

 "My family and I got your back." And we do! This little one too!