Resources for Deployed Families

I'm making a list of resources that will make my families lives easier while our husband/father is deployed. Please tell me about anything you know of or did to help with the time away so I can add it to this page!

Free welcome home banners

Online Resource for children

United Through Reading - free dvd of member reading to child

Dog Tags for Kids

Daddy Dolls

Hugs to Go Dolls

Long Distance Touch Lamps

Pillow Talk

Build a Bear - military clothing, recordable boxes for inside the bear

Operation Love Reunited - free photo sessions

Military T-shirts (use tabs on left to view several different types)

Project Evergreen - free lawn care

Birthday Cake to deployed members

Treat the Troops - free cookies to troops

Community Coffee

Cup of Joe for a Joe

USO Care Package Program

Waves of Honor - military tickets

Blue Star Museums

Vet Tix

I made my own version of flat daddy to play on flat stanley http://www.flatstanley.com/about and we take him everywhere with us and take pics of him and then upload them into an Adventures of Flat Daddy album.  To make them I develop a 5x7 photo of him and then cut it out and laminate it.  I also did this with a photo of our kids and gave it to him so he could take pics with them while he was in port.

Deployment Jar / Kiss from Daddy Jar
Fill a jar with hershey kisses for each day member will be gone. Eat a kiss each day and watch the amount of kisses get lower and lower.

Deployment paper chain
Make a paper chain, add a chain for every day the member is gone, or a chain for every week. Cut one off each day/week.

We also made our sailor a chain so he could countdown the weeks with us.  I made his out of yarn and crocheted the links but if you can't crochet you can easily just tie pieces of yarn together.  I used yarn because it doesn't take up much room and can be folded and tucked away without getting ruined, unlike the paper chain.

Track where the member is on a map hung up on your wall. Add a counter with it with a count down of how many days/weeks/months until they come home.

Keep a blog. Update it daily with photos and daily events.

You can also order flat rate boxes online to be shipped to your house for free (I always get the 10 pack of large flat rate boxes)