This past weekend, Emily and I had the chance to attend a Strong Bonds retreat. It was put on by the Army Chaplaincy and was specifically for spouses & children of deployed soldiers. We were blessed with a free stay at the Great Wolf Lodge a couple hours away from Fort Bragg. Our stay included dinner Friday, breakfast Saturday and Sunday, and lunch Saturday. We didn’t even have to share our room with anyone! Of course the stay also included the waterpark during our free time, so that was an amazing bonus! The only thing we had to pay for the entire time was for Emily to play the Magiquest game, but that was optional and completely our choice.
The Army provided free childcare by licensed childcare providers while we attended sessions where we played ice breakers, chatted with friends, met new friends, and learned some great tips on communication with our spouse.
We had a great time! Emily and I got to spend a lot of time hanging out with some great friends of ours, and we also had some fun time together just the two of us.
If you ever get a chance to attend one of the Strong Bonds retreats (they also do them for single soldiers as well as for soldiers and their spouses), I highly recommend it!