In honor of Aaron M. Smith

Today, Dot Mil Mom, is encouraging everyone on twitter to honor the memory of Sgt. Aaron M. Smith of Manhattan, Kansas. According to the Department of Defense, Sgt. Smith died in Afghanistan on October 2, 2009 while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Please honor his memory and show support for his loved ones by posting a message on twitter today and include the hashtag #aaronmsmith.

This post is part of a daily campaign, started at Dot Mil Mom, to recognize the sacrifice of one military member that has given his or her life in supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Each day a military member will be mentioned here and on twitter. We encourage you to write a post of support, from your twitter account, using the related hashtag. If you are not a twitter user, please feel free to leave a message of support and gratitude in the comments' section. Thank you for taking the time to honor our American heroes.

In honor of Roberto D. Sanchez

Today, Dot Mil Mom, is encouraging everyone on twitter to honor the memory of Sgt. Roberto D. Sanchez of Satellite Beach, Florida. According to the Department of Defense, Sgt. Sanchez died in Afghanistan on October 1, 2009 while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Please honor his memory and show support for his loved ones by posting a message on twitter today and include the hashtag #robertodsanchez.

This post is part of a daily campaign, started at Dot Mil Mom, to recognize the sacrifice of one military member that has given his or her life in supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Each day a military member will be mentioned here and on twitter. We encourage you to write a post of support, from your twitter account, using the related hashtag. If you are not a twitter user, please feel free to leave a message of support and gratitude in the comments' section. Thank you for taking the time to honor our American heroes.

Shop Hop

The following shops have been added to our APO/FPO Friendly Shopping Guide. We thank them for their service to military families and encourage you to take a look at their shops.

My Lip Stuff

Phase Three

In honor of Ryan C. Adams

Today, Dot Mil Mom, is encouraging everyone on twitter to honor the memory of Sgt. Ryan C. Adams of Rhinelander, Wisconsin. According to the Department of Defense, Sgt. Adams died in Afghanistan on October 2, 2009 while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Please honor his memory and show support for his loved ones by posting a message on twitter today and include the hashtag #ryancadams.

This post is part of a daily campaign, started at Dot Mil Mom, to recognize the sacrifice of one military member that has given his or her life in supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Each day a military member will be mentioned here and on twitter. We encourage you to write a post of support, from your twitter account, using the related hashtag. If you are not a twitter user, please feel free to leave a message of support and gratitude in the comments' section. Thank you for taking the time to honor our American heroes.

Shop!

The following shops are the first to be added to our APO/FPO Friendly Shopping Guide. We thank them for their service to military families and encourage you to take a look at their shops.

Polkadot Patch

Mee a Bee

Polished

In honor of Russell S. Hercules, Jr.

Today, Dot Mil Mom, is encouraging everyone on twitter to honor the memory of Spc. Russell S. Hercules, Jr. of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. According to the Department of Defense, Spc. Hercules died in Afghanistan on October 1, 2009 while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Please honor his memory and show support for his loved ones by posting a message on twitter today and include the hashtag #russellhercules.

This post is part of a daily campaign, started at Dot Mil Mom, to recognize the sacrifice of one military member that has given his or her life in supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Each day a military member will be mentioned here and on twitter. We encourage you to write a post of support, from your twitter account, using the related hashtag. If you are not a twitter user, please feel free to leave a message of support and gratitude in the comments' section. Thank you for taking the time to honor our American heroes.

Blog Design

Don't you just love the blog design at Dot Mil Mom? It was designed by Diana at Custom Blog Designs by FreeStyle Mama Creations. I highly recommend working with Diana for all your blogging needs. The design process was easy. The communication was great. The editting process was efficient. Plus, the price was very reasonable. If you would like to redesign your blog or have other blogging needs, check out Custom Blog Designs by FreeStyle Mama Creations.

APO/FPO Friendly Shops

I would like to share a frustration of mine. My family has been stationed overseas four times, in four different countries, and my husband has been deployed four times. All those assignments and deployments have combined to total nearly 10 years of living and working overseas. While we welcome each chance to live somewhere new, living at military bases overseas comes with some unique challenges. One of those major challenges is shopping. While it's fun to get off base, and buy locally (My home can attest to the fact that I'm good at shopping in other parts of the world.), on a daily basis my family has needs that are best fulfilled by items we can purchase in the States. The Commissaries and AAFES help with many of those needs, but in addition, I do a great deal of shopping online. Here is where the frustration comes into play. While I appreciate all the retailers, big and small, that ship to APO and FPO addresses, there are many that do not. I think that there are a number of reasons that shops choose not to ship overseas, but I believe that one of the biggest reasons is that they simply don't understand the process. APO/FPO addresses include a US zip code, so shipping to them is done via the United States Post Office and the shipping rates are the same as they are Stateside. The only difference in shipping to military bases overseas is that a customs form must be filled out for most packages, but the process takes only a minute or two.

Ghandi said "to be the change you want to see in the world". So, rather than sitting at home and complaining to my husband that I can't order a particular birthday gift for my daughter, I am starting a shopping directory, at Dot Mil Mom, that features shops that ship to APO/FPO addresses. If you already do so, please contact me at dotmilmom at yahoo dot com to be included in our shopping directory. If you don't ship to APO/FPO addresses yet, but would like more information on how to start, please contact me as well. It is a wonderful way to Support Our Troops and I look forward to hearing from you.

In honor of Jack M. Martin, III

Today, Dot Mil Mom, is encouraging everyone on twitter to honor the memory of Staff Sgt. Jack M. Martin, III of Bethany, Oklahoma. According to the Department of Defense, Sgt. Martin died in the Phillipines on September 29, 2009 while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Please honor his memory and show support for his loved ones by posting a message on twitter today and include the hashtag #jackmartin.

This post is part of a daily campaign, started at Dot Mil Mom, to recognize the sacrifice of one military member that has given his or her life in supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Each day a military member will be mentioned here and on twitter. We encourage you to write a post of support, from your twitter account, using the related hashtag. If you are not a twitter user, please feel free to leave a message of support and gratitude in the comments' section. Thank you for taking the time to honor our American heroes.

Quick, Healthy Meal

Cooking is not my calling. Plus, I'm a military wife, and that means, even when my husband is in town, I rarely know what time he might get home. So, it's important for me to have meals on hand that I can put together in a matter of minutes.

This recipe is as simple as it gets. It's healthy, and the ingredients can be found at your local Commissary, or grocery store.

Ingredients:

One 18.8 oz can of Campbell's Chunky Healthy Request Chicken Corn Chowder
One 8.5 oz bag of Kashi Original 7 Whole Grain Pilaf

Directions:

Cook the Kashi Pilaf in the microwave, according to instructions on bag. Add it to the soup in a saucepan and heat it according to instructions on soup can.

Result:

It makes a nice stew and serves 3-4 for lunch or dinner. Add a vegetable or two as side dishes to make a full meal. The whole process takes about 5-7 minutes!

In honor of Christopher D. Shaw

Today, Dot Mil Mom, is encouraging everyone on twitter to honor the memory of Sgt. 1st Class Christopher D. Shaw of Markham, Illinois. According to the Department of Defense, Sgt. Shaw died in the Phillipines on September 29, 2009 while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Please honor his memory and show your support for his family and loved ones by posting a message on twitter today and include the hasthtag #christophershaw.


This post is part of a daily campaign, started at Dot Mil Mom, to recognize the sacrifice of one military member that has given his or her life in supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. Each day a military member will the mentioned here and on twitter. We encourage you to write a post of support, from your twitter account, using the related hashtag. If you are not a twitter user, please feel free to leave a message of support and gratitude in the comments section. Thank you for taking the time to honor our American heroes.

Come along for the ride.

Dot Mil Mom is going live this week, and we are encouraging everyone to follow along on this new journey. From now, until Sunday, October 11, 2009, each person that adds themselves as a public, Google follower, will be entered into a drawing to win a $20 Amazon e-card. If we reach 100 followers, there will be 2 cards given out. An additional card will be added for every 100 followers after that.

Dot Mil Mom hopes to inspire everyone, whether associated with the military or not, to support those who serve, to share his or her thoughts and ideas, and to have some fun. Please consider following this blog and you might even win a little e-money this week.

To be eligible to win an Amazon e-card, just add yourself to the list of Google, public followers, leave me a comment letting me know you did so and the winners will be announced at Dot Mil Mom and notified via email. (If you don't have a valid email address associated with your Google profile, then just shoot us an email at dotmilmom at yahoo dot com with your profile name and email address.)

Thank you for taking the time to visit Dot Mil Mom and we hope to see you often!

Dot Mil Mom to Launch October 5th