Deployment Wine Glasses

I have a small group of girls I have hung out with during this deployment whose significant others are deployed with J.  I often refer to them as "the army girls."  Some time ago, we joked about how the guys receive patches for each deployment and we really should be awarded patches for making it through this deployment as well.  Deployments are a battle, literally for the soldiers and figuratively for the loved ones back home.

Materials for our Project

At first this was a joke, but then I got the idea that deployment glasses really would be perfect.  I thought it would be fun to design our own glasses with whatever best commemorated the deployment for each of us.  I picked up a box of inexpensive wine glasses, ordered a pack of puffy paint, and we were ready to go.

On my wine glass I wrote: 

• Deployment Conqueror 
• Afghanistan 2012-2013 
• Love Wins! 

Along the bottom I added:

• Love always and forever  

I then drew a little helicopter, a heart, and a yellow ribbon.  I had initially thought of using "deployment survivor" on my glass, but decided "deployment conqueror" had a better meaning.  My initial concern with "survivor" was that someone could easily interpret "survivor" literally, which I wanted to avoid.  I also prefer the connotation of "conqueror."  I won't just survive, or make it through, this deployment; I will conquer it.  Take that deployment!  Whatever you throw our way, our love wins!

 Here is my glass:

Deployment Conqueror
Love Wins!

Afghanistan 2012-2013

The other girls had great ideas as well.  Both girls made dog tags at the bottom of their glasses with their first initial and their significant other's first initial inside the tags.  

Additionally, one of my friends wrote:

• Our love is deployment strong 

She then added a yellow ribbon and a heart.  At the bottom she wrote:

• 2012-2013

My other friend wrote:

• We are one day closer and one day stronger

She also added a yellow ribbon and a heart.  At the bottom she wrote:

• 2012-2013

My friends were nice enough to give me permission to post pictures of their glasses on my blog.  Here they are:

our love is deployment strong

2012-2013

We Are One Day Closer and One Day Stronger

2012-2013

I don't plan to touch my glass until this deployment is over.  At that point, I will have one VERY celebratory drink to cheer that this stinkin' deployment has finally been conquered!!  After that, I will probably turn it into a candy dish or candle holder.  It is not really that practical as a glass.

In all, this project was a lot of fun and I love our deployment "patches"!  

The Three Glasses