Page 166 of Dirty Discipline, Vol. 1

Jesse told me today that he loves me to Pluto and back because that’s further away than the moon. He’s been on a very sweet kick lately. I love it.

I’m heading up the FRG now. Charlotte Grayson had to step down because of health issues, and they asked me. I am honored. We are going to have monthly activities to try to keep morale up.

Love you to Pluto and back!

Wifey

She hit send and closed her eyes for a moment. She wouldn’t admit it to anyone, but she was exhausted. When they had asked her to take Charlotte’s place, her first thought had not been honor or excitement. It had been despair. Her stomach hurt at the thought of trying to add a single thing to her already overfilled plate, but she couldn’t say no. That had always been a weakness of hers that David used to keep a tight watch on. She was incapable of saying no when asked to do something for someone else.

With a sigh she got up and went to prep everything for dinner. They were having spaghetti with whole wheat pasta, organic beef, and homemade tomato sauce. As a treat she was fixing cinnamon apples for dessert. She had learned in their first little studio apartment that cutting up apples and putting cinnamon on them in the rice cooker made a perfect little dessert and was something she didn’t feel guilty feeding the boys.

The next morning, when her alarm went off at 5:30am like it did every day, she remembered the test she had set on her sink last night and went to take it. The two lines showed up boldly before the stick was even fully submerged. She sank onto the side of the bathtub and tears threatened to spill down her cheeks. A baby was the last thing she needed right now. And definitely the last thing David needed distracting him. She tried to cut corners where she could, but between the van acting up and the boys just having more needs, their budget was already stressed at the seams. The baby started crying. and she tossed the test into the trash and went to start her day.

At naptime that day, she was excited to see a note from David waiting for her.

Beloved,

I’m so happy to hear that everything is going well on the home front. Weather here is hot as hades, but we’re getting by.

I did ask Chaplain Jack about the study, and he brought it up to the guys this morning. We will see if there is any interest. Brett, one of the younger guys, came up to me at mess today asking if I’d be willing to meet with him weekly. I think he’s feeling in over his head. He went right from living with his folks and going to high school to boot camp. He seems like a good kid.

I miss you and the boys more than words can say.

I love you with my whole heart,

David

She smiled, glad that he seemed to be doing well. Being deployed always took a lot out of a soldier and she was relieved he seemed in good spirits. The last thing David needed was distractions and news of her pregnancy would definitely distract him. She’d wait a few more weeks before mentioning anything to him.

May 1st

Tori woke up to a quick note in her email.

I should be able to Skype at 8pm your time tonight, so please keep the boys up a bit so we can all talk. I love you with every fiber of my being.

Tori’s heart soared that she would actually see and hear her husband that night. It had been weeks since they had been able to video chat. Service over there was slow at best.

D -

Yay! I can’t wait to skype tonight. I know the boys will be out of their minds when I tell them.

We had a co-op with some of the homeschool families on base yesterday. It was nice to visit with other adults and let the boys interact with kids their own age. Today we talked about the planets. Even Gideon paid attention.

Your cucumbers are almost ripe for picking. I hope you get back in time to taste some of the crop.

Until tonight…

All my love,

Wifey

After supper that night, she gave the boys baths and got them all ready for bed early, so after their call they could go right to sleep. She was grateful the boys would get to talk with their dad, but anxiety swirled in her chest at them being off of schedule. She tried to shake it away and put on a brave face as she gathered everyone around the monitor.

“All right, troops. Here’s how it’s going to go—I’m not sure how long Daddy will have to talk with us, and sometimes, the connection makes it hard for him to hear us, so we need to be orderly. Take turns talking and make sure to give Daddy time to answer. I don’t want any roughhousing or foolishness, got it?”

The older boys saluted. “Yes, ma’am!”

Gideon tried to follow suit. “Yeth, Ma’am!”

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