A veteran has recounted how she and her husband spent the first few months of their marriage fighting side by side in Iraq after they were both shipped off to Baghdad just weeks after tying the knot.
In her new book, Honeymoon in Baghdad, Heidi Radkiewicz, 38, details how she and her husband, Jake, 39, developed an unbreakable bond as they battled the stifling heat, boredom, and frequent ambushes from murderous insurgents while in a war zone.
'Other spouses don’t have the opportunity to go through this together, like we did,' the Iowa native told the New York Post. 'Normally the soldier’s wife doesn’t have any idea what her husband has been through.'
Newlyweds: Heidi Radkiewicz, 38, and her husband, Jake, 39, spent the first few months of their marriage fighting side by side in Iraq after being shipped off to Baghdad
Timing: A few weeks after they said 'I do' at their courthouse wedding in 2002, they were called to serve in a six-month deployment in the Middle East
Heidi was in college when she realized school wasn't the right fit for her. Unsure about what she should do with her life, she signed up with the National Guard as a student.
Memories: In her new book, Heidi details how she and Jake developed an unbreakable bond while in combat together
She met Jake at a drill weekend in Laramie, Wyoming, and he proposed to her just nine months later.
A few weeks after they said 'I do' at their courthouse wedding in 2002, they were called to serve in a six-month deployment in the Middle East.
The National Guard recruits were allowed to be deployed together and stay in the same unit due to their marital status.
As newlyweds, the two relied on stolen moments and secret trysts that were often interrupted by other members of their unit.
According to the New York Post, Heidi describes in her book the moment she and Jake were called out by a fellow soldier after he caught them being intimate while the other soldiers were sleeping.
It was just one night after they had arrived at Camp Safir in Kuwait, and she and Jake 'flagrantly disregarded the delicate sensibilities of our fellow soldiers and, under cover of darkness, got pleasantly busy.'
Team: The National Guard recruits were allowed to be deployed together and stay in the same unit due to their marital status
Far from traditional: The two are pictured enjoying their 'honeymoon suite'
Unique: Many soldiers admitted to Heidi that they could never fight in a war zone alongside their spouses
However, any previous embarrassment she would have felt before she joined was non-existent, as 'Army life strips all that anxiety and social pressure away.'
On another occasion, the two hung ponchos around the catwalk of Jake's truck to take a shower together using water bottles.
The 'moment of private, intimate companionship,' was spoiled when they realized a fellow soldier was taking photos of them from up above.
Jake ended up smashing the soldier's new camera after he refused to apologize for his actions, which he tried to defend.
'Come on, man, you guys already get to be with each other — I just have myself. How is that fair?' the soldier said.
Start of it all: Heidi signed up for the National Guard when she was in college. She met Jake at a drill weekend in Laramie, Wyoming
Stolen moments: Heidi and Jake were once caught being intimate while other soldiers were sleeping
Conditions: Heidi is pictured shielding her face from the sand and dirt while working on the trucks in Kuwait
Staying positive: Heidi is pictured giving two thumbs up next to their new sleeping quarters
Although many soldiers admitted to Heidi that they could never fight in a war zone alongside their spouses, she and Jake couldn't imagine doing it with anyone else.
'You know, this isn’t the traditional way people spend their honeymoon, but you’ve got to admit, it’s kind of cool being here together,' Jake told her when they were hand-washing their laundry at a camp north of Baghdad.
'How many husbands and wives get to experience something like this? I mean, after this, what could life possibly throw at us that we can’t handle?'
The couple faced constant attacks from armed insurgents as well as roadside bombs and mortars. When they weren't in immediate danger, they were battling boredom.
'The hours crawled by more slowly every day,' Heidi writes in her book. 'We spent a lot of time playing Risk and doing equipment maintenance, generally losing our minds with the boredom and the waiting.'
Positive: 'This isn’t the traditional way people spend their honeymoon, but you’ve got to admit, it’s kind of cool being here together,' Jake once told her while they were hand-washing laundry
Struggles: The couple faced constant attacks from armed insurgents as well as roadside bombs and mortars. When they weren't in immediate danger, they were battling boredom
Difficult moment: Heidi was sent home after she found out she was two months pregnant. In her book, she recalls bursting into tears when it was time to say goodbye to Jake
Heidi and Jake were taking a belated honeymoon at the German military resort Garmisch-Partenkirchen when she found out she was two months pregnant.
The mother to be had to be sent home immediately because of her pregnancy, and she recalls bursting into tears when it was time to say goodbye to her husband because she didn't know if she would ever she him again.
She returned home to stay with her parents in Iowa, but she struggled with a severe case of PTSD.
'Trash by the side of the road became a bomb. Every underpass was a place to hide insurgents,' she explains in her book.
Heidi eventually had to go to the VA hospital for antidepressants, and while the medication helped her symptoms, it didn't completely diminish them.
Jake took a leave of absence to be with Heidi when she delivered their son, who was born via C-section. After consulting a baby name book, they decided to name their little boy Wyatt, which means 'Little Warrior.'
Difficulties at home: Heidi was constantly worried about Jake (pictured), and she struggled with a severe case of PTSD
Bond: Heidi's husband returned home 10 months after she did, and he also struggled with PTSD. However, unlike most soldiers' wives, she knew exactly what he was going through
Family: The two now live outside of Chicago with their children Wyatt, 14, and Summer, 12
They felt the name was fitting a baby who was most likely conceived in a semi-truck during one of their war zone trysts.
Heidi's husband returned home 10 months after she did, and he also struggled with PTSD. However, unlike most veterans, his wife knew exactly what he was going through and was able to help him with the transition.
Nearly two years after Jake came home, they welcomed their daughter, Summer. They now live outside of Chicago, where Heidi is a stay-at-home mom and Jake works full-time as a software developer.
Heidi told the New York Post that she and Jake treated 'parenting like it was a mission.'
'We had our wartime missions and our civilian missions,' she said. 'After what we went through, we knew how to work together as a team.
'We were buddies on the battlefield, and we’re buddies in life, too.'
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News Pictures Veteran who fought alongside her husband in Iraq details their marriage in a war zone
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