Chapter 14: When Your Love is Far From Home ["keeping sane" ideas]

He surprised me at my work during his lunch break :)

Surprise visits at work, flowers "just because", dancing in the kitchen, finding notes/love letters from my husband in various places of our home, & much more... these are some of the things/memories that I cling onto whenever my husband is gone for whatever reason—whether it be duty days, underways, or deployment. It's so easy to get sad thinking about how much I miss these things when he's gone instead of being happy over the memory. This part of military life is never easy & it's never fun having to cook for one... but it's even less fun staying miserable. 

Below is a list of things to do to keep yourself occupied when duty calls [if you're military] OR if your love is just going away for an extended period of time for whatever reason.

"Keeping Sane" Ideas

• Pick up a new hobby (or old hobby) that you may not have the time for when your love is there
• Workout! Go for a run, hike, yoga class, kickboxing class, or what have you! You already feel lousy enough missing your love—don't make yourself feel worse by just laying in bed or being a couch potato! 
• If you don't have any kids or pets, do what I do & have music (or the tv, whichever you choose) playing constantly. Sometimes silence makes us feel more alone.
• Get your creative juices flowing with some arts & crafts! Make some new home decor, start a scrapbook, etc... Whenever you create something, you get a sense of fulfillment & accomplishment when you're able to say to yourself, "Hey... I made that!"
• Please help me out & don't let the old fashion art of writing letters die! Snail mail is much more personal than text messages, emails, facebook, & technology in general. Grab a pen & some paper. Write to an old friend or family member you haven't talked to in a while. 
• Buy a calendar [a paper one that hangs on the wall]. Post it on a wall that you see daily. Every night (or morning) cross off the days as a countdown until you & your love get to be together again! Remember doing this as a kid when counting down the days till Christmas? It may seem silly, but having that visual & seeing all of those "X'd" off days really helps to put a smile on my face, so maybe it'll help you too! :)
• Start reading a new book OR finally finish that book you already started!
• Don't forget about that occasional outing with friends! We all need a "Ladies Night" from time to time. Whenever my husband is home, it's sometimes hard for me to go out with friends because I just want to spend all my time with him [that's either because we're newlyweds, we were in a long distance relationship for 5 years, we're a military couple, &/OR we're just that obsessed with each other]. Whenever he's gone [& after I get out of my funk of feeling sad & lonely over missing him] I'm more open to hanging out with my gal friends. Don't be afraid to have fun! Wouldn't your love rather you be happy & having fun instead of miserable & stuck at home [or work] all day?

Hope some of these suggestions help! Feel free to comment with your own "Keeping Sane" Ideas to add to the list!

On a different day he picked me up from work with these in hand ♥

Some recent notes/love letters from my husband written to me for no
special occasion other than celebrating life, love, & our marriage.