A few months ago my wife and I made the huge decision to join the Navy. For the last two months, I have been working toward taking my ASVAB, working through background checks and eventually selecting a career as an Aviation Machinist Mate. Now that I have a date set for bootcamp, we feel comfortable saying we’re “in” and we have been busy working towards the next transition: Boot Camp and A-School.
For families who join the Navy, the immediate separation can be hard, especially when you have a four year old who understands just enough to make things worse. When I leave in September, we will be separated for a minimum of four months. Before this point, the longest we have ever been apart is a week and a half and even that felt like an eternity to my daughter Maddilyn. We know that being apart is going to be difficult but it’s important to us that she feels like she has access to me anytime she needs it. If I can’t be here in 3-D maybe I can a part of her day in 2-D.
One of the most obvious ways we thought to keep me a part of the daily routine is through our bedtime ritual. My wife came up with the really great idea of recording me reading bedtime stories for her. My daughter has an extensive library and we’re working our way through the books one by one, creating individual videos and messages. For particularly hard days, Ashley has set aside some “gifts” for Maddilyn to open that will be accompanied by surprise videos as well. In addition to downloading them to our Venue Pro 8, we stored them on One Drive, along with pictures of us, family photos, and pictures of me.
One of the best parts of storing on One Drive, apart from the amount of free storage, is that we don’t run into compatibility issues. We record the videos on my wife’s Lumia Icon (a Windows phone) but they can be accessed from apps on Android and iOS. That way if Maddilyn is at her grandparents or away from my wife she can still have a bedtime story, view a photo or hear a message anytime she needs to. If only I could find a way to keep her a part of my daily routine.
The staff at Surf and Sunshine are Microsoft Windows Champions however, all opinions expressed are 100% original.
Wow! Congrats on such a bog decision and best of luck to all of you in this new adventure! I love how the One Drive can keep you connected and make your life easier.
Such a great idea and I’m sure your daughter will cherish getting to hear you read while you are gone. Best wishes for you new journey.
That is a great idea to record you reading bedtime stories to her! I love that idea, and hope it’s utilized by parents everywhere, especially parents who travel sans kiddos quite often!
I love that this is compatible across multiple platforms!
Oh I bet the separation is so hard on the children especially. I love all the devices that’s out for families to keep in touch with their daddy and mommy or any loved one. One Drive is a great tool to have to do just that!