subject: Making A Memory Album For A Parent On Active Military Service Duty [print this page] There are numerous homes all over the world that are lacking one or both parents because they are on active duty in the military. Military parents sacrifice the greatest when they serve our great nation and must leave their kids and families for lengthy periods of time. In many cases, a military parent may be gone from their loved ones for a year or even longer at a time before being able to return home. This is really hard for the parent as well as painful for the children and other family members.
Anniversaries, Thanksgiving holidays, Christmas celebrations, and Birthdays are occasions which are often missed by many soldiers. Many family photo albums hold holiday pictures where their beloved soldier is absent. They may not be present when their own child is born or their toddler takes his first step. Furthermore, family members frequently graduate from high school or college, or even marry while their loved one in active duty is gone. These courageous men and women will miss many significant events. Many families have begun to produce memory and photo albums especially for these soldiers. This is a great way for them to remain connected to their loved ones from far away.
Combining Special Experiences
When you are getting together photo albums or perhaps memory albums for the men and women who are serving, make sure that you find several pictures of the important event they could not make it to. As an example, a wife might have her first child while her soldier husband is gone on active duty. Photos of the wife throughout her last few weeks of pregnancy should be the first pictures in the memory album. There can be photos of her on the big day when she goes into labor. If a wife is sufficiently comfortable with it, she could even invite someone into the delivery room to take pictures of the whole birth to send to her soldier husband. A photo of the new mother holding her child could be a great ending for this section of the book. Arranging the book in a timeline arrangement is a great idea. The occasion should be chronicled from the start to the finish. You may do graduation ceremonies, birthday parties, and weddings all in this same way.
Make Sure You Add Personal Details
It is essential to include little handwritten notes with details on each page in the memory album. Pages can be decorated with patriotic themes or designs that match the subject of the event in the photos. Some people like to incorporate some clippings out of local newspapers into the memory albums so the soldier may feel closer to their home. These books can be given as surprises in care bundles sent to your beloved troop. The people on active military duty who have small children will adore a memory album which has been created and designed by their own children. Children can decorate the album with crayon drawings and stickers of their favorite cartoon characters. This tells the absent parent that the child deeply cares for them and misses them tremendously. At times a soldier can feel forgotten. When they receive these sweet gifts, soldiers can feel closer to family even when they are particularly far apart.
So if you or your kids are feeling the distance between a parent or another loved one, using these suggestions will help close that gap.