Military Ball Babysitter: Bedtime and the Early Morning After
Going to the military ball with small kids at home? Book the sitter early, hand over one written bedtime, come home quietly and split the early morning after.
Read the entry →Situation
The homefront field guide · for military dads
Plan
5 sections · pick the one you are in
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Deployment
Before, during and after — goodbye days, countdown rituals, letters, care packages, and staying connected across the whole deployment cycle.
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PCS & Moves
PCS with kids without losing the crib hardware — checklists, the pre-move purge, school transfers, and settling into the new duty station.
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Homefront Dad
Running the house solo on either side of the goodbye — bedtimes, mornings, reintegration, and the temporary stay-at-home-dad playbook.
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Military Family Life
The rest of the ride — childcare and CDC costs, one-income budgets, base life, the Month of the Military Child, and books for military kids.
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Gifts & Gear
Daddy dolls, deployment gifts for kids, care-package contents, homecoming-day gear and the other stuff worth the postage — reviewed by mailing it.
Kit list
Run-books to print · gear worth the postage
Run-books and checklists
7 on file- No-Fee Passports for Military Kids: The OCONUS Run-Book
- Pre-Deployment Checklist for Military Families With Kids
- New Baby in the Military: DEERS & TRICARE Checklist
- Military School Transfer Checklist for a PCS Move
- PCS Purge Checklist: Cut Weight Before the Movers Come
- PCS Checklist: A Printable Run-Book for the Whole Move
- Solo Parent Bedtime During Deployment: A Dad's Run-Book
Gear worth the postage
7 of 9- Deployment Journals and Countdown Kits Worth Buying
- Homecoming Signs and Outfits: What to Buy, What to Make
- Military Dad Shirts and Army Dad Merch Worth Wearing
- Care Package Ideas by Month: 12 Themes for a Year
- Daddy Dolls: A Buyer's Guide for Deployment Families
- Deployment Gifts for Dads: What's Worth Packing
- Deployment Gifts for Kids That Actually Get Used