Skip to main content

About Kimber






Taken by Liz Benroth Photography at lizbenroth13@gmail.com
Copyright Liz Benroth Photography 2014

Hello! Welcome to my blog! I am a stay-at-home mother and aspiring writer. This blog is about our life as a military family, lots of emphasis on family. We strive to find normalcy and routine as we move every 1-3 years. I've struggled in my role as a military spouse, longing for past duty stations and trying to make friends with more (and more) kids. I've felt guilty for putting my dreams on hold, guilty for moving our kids so much, and guilty for resenting the Navy at times. But somehow, we have managed to (occasionally) find that balance of military life-- because the military always comes first-- and family life. We have made each duty station feel like "home" (some more than others) and we have plugged our children in to every new community we have moved to. The military life is sometimes messy, sometimes sad, sometimes glamorous, and sometimes lonely or overwhelming, but through every trial we have faced, we have put love first.

I stay at home with our 5 children. We have 4 boys, including a set of identical twins, with our youngest child being a girl. I've had two miscarriages and 3 D&C's. My first pregnancy ended in a surprise miscarriage late in the first trimester. My fourth pregnancy-- and second multiples pregnancy-- ended in a miscarriage and partial molar pregnancy early in the first trimester. I hemorrhaged 2 weeks post-partum after my last delivery from retained placenta and required an emergency D&C. 7 months after baby #5 was born, I had my post-partum complications fixed which included a hysterectomy and so we are officially done having children. We knew baby #5 would be our last pregnancy as I had the complications after the birth of baby #4. Home is relative for our children. Our oldest was born in New Hampshire. Our twins were born in North Carolina. Our youngest son was born in South Carolina and our daughter was born in Washington.

My husband is a career Naval officer on submarines. He spent 9 years enlisted and was commissioned as an officer after completing the Seaman to Admiral program (STA-21). So far we have been stationed in New Hampshire, Hawaii, North Carolina, South Carolina, 6 months in Connecticut for Submarine Officer's Basic Course, and Washington state. I am from California; my husband is from Alabama and we met in Hawaii. As we navigate life as a career Navy family, we have learned the importance of communication, good friends, and a strong sense of family. No matter what happens in this unpredictable life, I keep in mind Philippians 2: 18b-19, "Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance."

With such a young family, my life is currently focused on the happenings inside my home. Because of my husband's unpredictable schedule, I have put my degree on hold for the time being, though I write whenever I have a chance.
 



Taken by Liz Benroth Photography at lizbenroth13@gmail.com
Copyright Liz Benroth Photography 2014




Contact me at kimbersnavyfamily@gmail.com and follow Kimber's Navy Family on Facebook!

Comments

Anonymous said…
I am a grandmother of 4 plus another on the way. I was a Navy dependent with my Dad going from seaman to LCDR during his career. My Mom was a stay at home Mom with me and my 3 siblings. I really enjoyed your blog. It gives me fond memories and I certainly support your dedication. My Mom received a plaque when my Dad retired that thanked her for her dedication as a Navy wife and Mother. It was one of my Mom's prized possession. My son is currently in the STA 21 program. My daughter likes your blog, too. Thank you for sharing!
Kimber said…
Aw! I love your story! :) Congratulations all around-- to your son and for the new grandbaby! My parents have 5 grandchildren. It is fun getting them together and watching them interact. :)

All the best to your son with his career! As I'm sure you read on my blog, my hubby is STA-21 as well. Thank you for stopping by my blog.

Popular posts from this blog

I love my stroller

Napping while we are out. North Carolina September 2011 I get stopped all the time when I go out. I don't mind that people want to wave at my babies or ask D if he is a "big help" or throw their hands up in mock distress and say, "I don't know how you do it." Sometimes, yes, I would rather run in and out of a store, but, honestly, even if people weren't stopping me, would that really happen heading out with three kids? I've gotten used to the "you have your hands full" conversations, but one thing I never tire of talking about is my stroller. People stop me all the time to comment on my stroller, either to tell me that they wish they had that stroller back when their kids were young or to find out what it is and where to get it. Let me start at the beginning. When D was an infant we had two different Chicco strollers, the travel system and the Chicco $40 umbrella stroller. Neither was that exceptional, but they both served their p...

Supporting yourself during deployment

I recently posted my top 10 ways to help a military spouse through deployment in my blog post " Supporting military spouses through deployment. " It can be really hard to know exactly what to do to help a friend or neighbor or whoever the military spouse in your life is when they are navigating the deployment of their spouse. But how can you, as the military spouse, help yourself through a deployment? Help comes in various ways and sometimes the help you need is abundant and everywhere you look and sometimes you can't catch a break and feel completely on your own. So what are things that you can do to make your life just a liiiiitle bit easier? 1. Deployment pre-planning To quote Monty Python, "No one expects the Spanish Inquisition." Before deployment, before you are navigating the emergency situation on your own, make a list of every phone number you could possibly need. It sounds ludicrous, but when you start making this list and you struggle through th...

7 years of car seats

Do what really stinks? Car seat shopping. You ask online, "Hey, what car seats do you recommend?" And suddenly you are flooded with comments, "We bought the ExpensiveGoldPlated seat deluxe because we just really thought our child's safety was worth the investment. We are so glad we didn't go with GenericAffordableSeatYouAreLookingAt because it would have said we don't care about the well being of our child." It is hard. The prices for each car seat vary drastically and it is hard to tell with each seat whether you are paying for safety or brand name or styling. Obviously as parents we care about the safety of our children; it just is nice to know what is actually worth the money. Before I go any further on car seats we have owned and currently own, here is an excellent link from Consumer Reports on which car seats are safest: Best Car Seat Buying Guide by Consumer Reports . I loved that article when I read it. It was so refreshing to see in side by s...