Military Spouse Appreciation Day

In 1984 President Ronald Reagan declared that the Friday before Mother's day be Military Spouse Appreciation day. He recognized and honored the sacrifices that faced not only the servicemember - but the spouse and his/her family. They are the pillars of strength  this country relies on to keep the fire burning at home,...... no easy task! Army, Air Force, Marine, Navy & Coast Gaurd Spouses (Reserves too)- thank you!
What better way for me to celebrate Military Spouse Appreciation Day than to attend an Army wife Bunco night? The ladies in my neighborhood gather once a month to play bunco. It's really an excuse to eat, drink and visit. It also makes us feel a little bit rebellious because we are playing bunco with REAL money on a federal military base....shhhhh! We get loud too, so it's not like we're even trying to hide our gambling.
Tonight's bunco will be the last one of this season. Summer brings PCS (permanent change of station) to military communities. There will be a turnover in the neighborhood and some of us won't be here to play with this group next year. For the last three years I've been the one saying good-bye. This year, it's my turn to be farewelled. I'm not sad, I'm excited. I'm looking forward to the next chapter. I will miss my girlfriends here though. I think we, as military families, make friends fast and make our friendships very deep. We know they are for a short time so we take advantage of the time we have. It's a small Army though, you never know when you'll run into an old friend again.