Military Moms: 3 Reasons They're The Best

Moms. We love them not only because they gave us life (the best gift of all), but also because of their unflinching love. They put bandages on our knees when we skinned them as children helping them heal with a kiss and a hug, and they made those awesome breakfasts with that secret ingredient; love.

While moms are awesome, military moms are even more awesome because they support our country. Whether they are wearing combat boots themselves, or supporting the homefront by supporting their warriors, military moms are the best and here are three reasons why.

1.Selfless
Military moms are notoriously selfless putting themselves last and everyone else first. Military moms who serve, like their peers in uniform, know that the mission comes first. The mantra tends to be mission first, but people always.
Juggling duty and family can have its challenges, but military moms make it happen. While deployed, they send emails, pics and videos and they stay tethered to the family back home. While they aren’t physically present, they work hard to ensure that they are a part of their kids’ lives back home. Putting the mission and family first can be draining, but military moms make it happen. And yet they still have time to work, be a mom, and at the end of the day do some self-care.

Military moms who have children who serve are no different. While raising your hand, taking an oath and putting on a uniform takes courage, sending your child off to the military certainly requires a lot of gumption. Not only are the absences long, but the realities of military service can often lead service personnel to less than hospitable places.

Military moms with children who serve step up. If their children are deployed, these military moms mobilize and send care packages and keep in communication with their kids as much as possible. And when their kids return from deployment or some far off assignment, these military moms welcome their warriors home with open arms with ample hugs and kisses. The long days, weeks, and months of waiting to see their babies’ faces again finally comes to fruition.

2. Strong
Women are strong, but military moms are even stronger. Imagine enduring some of the most difficult and trying moments in human life—like childbirth and attending Marine recruit training. Both stand alone as extraordinarily challenging events, but military moms in uniform can hack it. Basic training, officer candidate school, Ranger training, you name it—military moms have gotten through it.
Add to the rigors of service, a deployment or wartime service and you’ve got the hat trick of human challenges. Yet military moms grind away the task at hand with a strength known only by those who can give life. And as warriors, they can also take it.

Military moms who have children that serve are rocks. Steeled with love and compassion, these military moms know that they have to be strong for their kids especially when their kids call home or when they send emails. They cannot distract their kids and fill them with insecurity.

Military moms know that their child won’t be walking in through the door at the end of the day, and they know that they won’t be tucking them in that night. Yet they are strong enough to know that they find comfort, pride and strength in their child’s service.

3. Unconditional
A mother’s love is unconditional and the love of military moms is certainly no different. For military moms who are in the service, they are unconditional not only about their military service, but about motherhood. Those who have served know that a military member must accept the good with the bad when it comes to wearing the uniform. Motherhood is the same way and military moms, because of their military service, can be more fluid with their kids because of the flexibility ordinarily required in military service.

Military moms who have children that serve know that they also signed up to be a part of the military and while they are disappointed that they cannot always be with their sons or daughters, they unconditionally encourage them to serve. Odds are great that these military moms will experience at least a few holidays without their kids and that milestones like birthdays will also be missed. However, these military moms set no conditions and they love their warriors no matter what.

Military moms are in a class all their own. Military moms who serve are not only serving their country, but also serving their family. They are breaking barriers, at home and in the ranks, and setting new norms for women in the U.S. military. Long gone are the days of the nuclear family with the mom at home with the kids. The modern woman is transformational as is her family. She carries a rifle, commands ships, pilots aircraft, and performs challenging missions, yet she is still capable of providing a loving, nurturing environment to her children.

Military moms with children that serve have never been tougher. In more than 20 years of war and since 9/11, more than 7,000 U.S. service personnel have died. Millions have served in the global war on terrorism which means there are millions of military moms out there who have prayed for the safe return of their children.

Mothers are awesome, but military moms are the best. Then again, we could be biased.