Communication durning deployment

One of the toughest things to deal with during a deployment is not knowing when you will be talking to your soldier next. I am so happy that technology is where its at today and I am able to keep in touch with Joe almost everyday. It really varies based on what's going on with his job, but I am able to talk to him on the phone daily, email multiple times a day, skype a few times a week and he sends me cards weekly. When he has access to wifi, I can even receive texts from him on an app from his iPad.

 A lot of people are shocked that we keep in touch so much, but I believe that this is very important to any relationship and very important to me while he is deployed. Please remember that the amount of communication varies based on many things. Such as, where they are deployed (some FOBs don't have great internet or cell phone tower access), what their job is, and what their schedule is like.

We have been able to work out at least one night a week (morning for him) that we dedicate to "date night". Right  now our "date night" is every Thursday and Saturday night. The day of the week has changed a few times since the beginning and we have missed a few because something comes up, but it is always nice to have that to look forward to. "Date night" is the one night a week that I know we will Skype (unless of course the internet is down, but it has been really reliable where he is). We often share stories about our past, talk about our future,  or just send each other funny videos that we have seen on the internet. It's really nice because I don't feel rushed when talking to him and I know that he has set aside that time just for me. I know that I have been very lucky that Joe has had the flexibility that he has had and I do value the time that we spend talking.

Ways to keep in touch:

• Phone Calls - I would highly recommend that your soldier buy a cell phone when he gets there
• Skype/Google+- A must 
• Care Packages - To let him know you care
• Letters - It's always nice to receive a hand written note, they do take more time to get to them then a care package
• Emails- Since I have my email on my phone, Joe always emails me first see if I am free to call/Skype or I email him to see if he can call me
• Texts- There are many apps out there that allow texting, we just use  his iPad and do iMessage, the only problem is you need wifi