TDT #3- G.I. Stanley

One of the ways I have always done my countdowns when my  husband is away is by counting trash days.  Most of the time it isn't as daunting a number as the estimated number of days he'll be gone.  And it helps me remember to put the trash out, or rather encourage my boys to put the trash out since it's their job.  So this will be my new weekly post, and I'll just really post whatever, no real set theme.  Please feel free to join me on this adventure of counting down the time until your loved one comes home!

Today I would like to introduce you to a close friend of our family's!  This is G.I. Stanley!

Read more about G.I. Stanley on his blog!

We love G.I. Stanley, he has been on  many adventures.  What I want to share with my Military Families specifically but anyone who has to deal with any type of separation is how wonderful having our own Flat Stanley has been. 

G.I. Stanley came about when I was helping a good friend of mine who was a 4th grade teacher start a  Deployment Club at the elementary school our boys attended.  We came up with the idea to use Flat Stanley's as a way for our kids to learn about where their Soldier parents were and to help ease the fears that are often created by the media.  We sent our own Stanley off to Iraq with Kevin to kick off the project.  It sparked a great project for many families and was a great tool to keep them connected and it helped ease the kid's fears in so many ways.  To be able to see where their parents worked, played, ate and to see the countries they were in.

Since then we have used G.I. Stanley and his buddies Cub Scout Stanley and Boy Scout Stanley as a way to introduce many of our non-Military friends to our lifestyle.  (We have three Stanleys because my kids couldn't decide on one design so they each made their own.)  While G.I. Stanley will be the main adventurer, you may see the other two pop in every now and again.

When Kevin got orders to Korea we immediately knew that the Stanleys were going to go with him.  Even though my boys are older, they still love the adventures of our Stanleys and look forward to the pictures that Kevin sends back.  It also helps to encourage Kevin to incorporate us into his life over there.

G.I. Stanley has his own blog and so if you want to follow his adventures, you can bookmark his page!  We hope you will and even if you don't, perhaps this project is something you can use to help cope with separations in your family!