As a military spouse, you know how unpredictable life is better than anyone. When you get the call that your partner is being deployed, there is a tidal wave of emotion: fear, anxiety, sadness, just to name a few. Not only are you facing an extended separation from the one that you love, you know that there are about a million things to do in the meantime. Fortunately, if you are proactive, you can tackle this stressful time in an organized way that ensures that you get the time with your beloved that you need. In this blog, we will go over the things you must do before your spouse is deployed.

Financial

It’s crucial to get on the same page as your partner about your finances before they’re deployed. If any of your accounts are in your spouse’s name, it’s time to make sure that you have access to them. Make sure you have logins for any accounts, know how to pay all bills, and manage any investments. If your spouse is in charge of your budget, make sure you are in agreement about how you will be spending money during this deployment, especially given how service members’ pay usually increases when overseas. Regardless of what you specifically do with that extra money, it’s imperative that you and your spouse have communicated about it, and that you stick to your agreed-upon budget to maintain the trust in your relationship.

Legal

Before your spouse is deployed, you want to make sure that your legal matters are all in line. You don’t want to think about it, but it’s important to have the will updated, as well as the power of attorney and special power of attorney, just in case. It’s also important to update any ID cards and to make sure you have all essential documents safely stored, including your marriage certificate, social security cards, and birth certificates.

Household

With your spouse out of the house, the lion’s share of household responsibilities will fall to you, so it’s important that you have your bases covered. For example, if your spouse is the main point of contact for child care, it’s time to connect with those people yourself. If your partner takes care of the repairs around the house, you should go over how you can take care of these issues yourself, or at least have a list of service people you can call. You also want to make sure that everything is kosher with the vehicle situation before they leave. Make sure you have the car title safely stored, the insurance and registration are updated and in your vehicle, and it has been serviced recently.

Communication

Perhaps most importantly, you want to make sure that you and your spouse are able to communicate when they’re deployed. Fortunately, advances in technology have made it easier than ever for service members to keep in touch with their families while they’re overseas. A great way to ensure that your spouse has the ability to communicate long distance is with Sapphire MiFi. Our international wireless hotspot reliably provides an internet connection in more than 100 countries and counting, which is why it is the preferred MiFi device of the U.S. military. Invest in a Sapphire portable WiFi device before deployment to rest assured you are able to communicate with your spouse.

Additionally, make sure you and your spouse are on the same page about frequency and type of communication. For some couples, knowing every single detail of each other’s days is critical to maintaining intimacy. For others, that makes it more difficult to be apart, so keeping it more surface level works better for them. You should also take about how often you want to communicate—is an email and a call once a week sufficient, or do you need more frequent contact? In addition, some people really love being able to video chat with their spouse, while others find that it feels awkward. Regardless of what you both prefer, set expectations about communication before deployment to ensure that no one is disappointed.

At Sapphire, we are happy to help military families keep in touch during deployment. Our MiFi device has helped many deployed service members and we would be happy to add your spouse to the list. Shop Sapphire MiFi today!