You Know You’re a Military Spouse When…

Military life is a funny thing. Nothing ever seems to stay the same, but somehow, we embrace change as our “normal.” Finding civilian friends who understand your “normal” is another funny, yet rare thing – much like a unicorn. We know they’re out there, and when we find one, it’s magical. While not all of our civilian friends understand military life, there’s always a military spouse out there who can relate to the exact place you’re at in your life.

In honor of your “normal,” here are a few of the funnier ways you know you’re a military spouse:

• You have enjoyed a beautiful sunset on your installation, complete with barbed wire fences in the view.
• The majority of your laundry consists of camouflage, green shirts, and brown socks. If you’re Navy or Coast Guard, it’s blue shirts and black socks.
• You can pack and unpack a house within a couple days, but you still have a few boxes that haven’t been unpacked from your move 2 years ago.
• Your kids have a drawer full of soccer jerseys from playing on so many different teams over your years of moving around.
• You use a military I.D. all the time and get frustrated when places ask for a “real I.D.”
• You still find colorful little moving tags on various pieces of furniture even though it’s been a year since your last PCS. Bonus points if you’ve found multiple tags from multiple PCS’s on the same piece of furniture.
• You don’t panic when your doctor walks in wearing ACU’s or BDU’s.
• You know that a month-long separation is short, no matter what anyone says.
• You read all of the homecoming banners on base and smile over each one. Then wonder, “What will my banner say?”
• You save voicemails from your spouse, so you can listen to them anytime you think of him or her.
• You refer to your spouse’s friends by their last name. And no one holds it against you if you don’t know their first name.

Please click here to access the rest of this hilarious list!