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Comment by sailorwifenmom on August 20, 2012 at 12:58pm

Eric, honestly, a lot of that will depend on how long the schools are.  The "rule of thumb" is if the school is over 6 months, then families can go. But, keep in mind, even if they can't move with you while you're at school, once you're out of training, it gets better, and honestly, separation from family is part of the military life :-(   Don't get me wrong though - while the separations suck, overall, the Navy can be a great life, and it can be a great thing for families.  Our kids have grown up as Navy "brats" (btw, the military doesn't put the same negative spin on that phrase that the civilian world does - so that's not a bad thing :-)  ).

If this is something you want to do, then I would encourage you to go for it!  One thing though, that you will want to talk to your recruiter about - I read in your comment that you all already have 2 kids and are expecting your 3rd... Of course you can have as many kids as you want, the military doesn't dictate that, but I do know that with a lot of the draw downs and all sorts of other things, if you have more than 3 dependents (and your spouse counts as one), and you aren't already enlisted, then they can require a waiver for you to join.  You might want to talk to them and get the ball rolling if this is something you want to do.

Good luck, and welcome to the Navy :-)

Comment by sailorwifenmom on August 20, 2012 at 12:52pm

Hi, I'm an Navy vet, a Navy wife, and also a Navy mom.  We recently transferred back to MD from Japan, our son is in VA, and our daughter just started college in OK.  Just wanted to introduce myself and say hi :-)

Comment by Eric on August 19, 2012 at 3:19pm

Hello all, I'm not a wife...a husband actually lol. I'm looking into joining the Navy just researching several different jobs that would interest me and get as many details as possible before taking the plunge. The AW/AIRR rating has stood out as one I think I would really enjoy, but my main question or concern rather, is how will my young family be affected? I'm 26 married (5yrs) with a 3yo son & 18mo daughter with our 3rd little one due in a couple weeks. My wife and I have talked over the years about my serving, but it hasn't happened yet. We live in FL so it seems training in P-cola would be good as I would be somewhat close to home, but what of FRAC-SERE? Will the Navy PCS my fam out with me for FRAC and could I live off base with my family while in ACCS and RSS schools? My last question is what is Navy life like after training and being assigned to a squadron or ship? Any help or advise would be great!

Thanks Eric

Comment by Charle&Brandon3 on August 11, 2012 at 8:28am

Hey ladies (: I had a few questions I hope you girls could answer. My husband and I are in Bethesda, MD and there is NO support here for the wives or the family. I was curious as to what other bases actually have good support? From your personal experience what are the best bases to be stationed at?

Comment by TropikalParadize on July 22, 2012 at 11:05pm

I still think bootcamp was way harder....but like you said, not everyone has contact with their husband every day like I did!!  Its thanks to him that this last deployment was totally do-able.  And I really didn't worry about him "being safe".....it depends on the job they do, but for the most part, they are working on the ship the whole time, and not in harms way....oh yes, they are in a volatile area, but the air crews and pilots are the main ones actually flying missions....the ships are mainly there for support.  I am speaking for surface ships, have no clue about subs, so they may be different.  But I really don't worry too much....now I would worry WAY more if he was in the Marines or Army, that's for sure....

But the truth boils down to whether to you deployments are easier or harder than bootcamp, they are still a huge fact of military life that you have to accept, and most likely are in your (and your husband's) future if you choose this lifestyle.

Comment by GraceRae<3 on July 22, 2012 at 5:24pm

Claudia Im sorry your feeling the way you do..and Im not trying to sound like a bad guy and Im not trying to come off rude but from what Ive read from other wives bootcamp is the easy part. After bootcamp you have deployments and he will be gone a lot longer than 2 months. This is the life we all have as wives... We need to find support and help for the times we cant handle alone.

Comment by NavyWife2010 on July 19, 2012 at 1:22pm

Anyone stationed in Guam or Bahrain?

Comment by TropikalParadize on July 14, 2012 at 3:30pm

As for our experience, I have to disagree about boot camp being the "easy part"....we are just approaching the end of an 8 month deployment, and this 8 monther was WAY easier than boot camp, in my opinion....and this 8 monther was SUPPOSED to be a 6 monther, but got extended....twice!! 

Why I say boot camp was harder, is simply because of the lack of communication.  No contact.  On this deployment, my husband and I talked every day and were a part of each other's lives.  Now, its not like that on every ship, but I am really thankful we were able to be in touch so much.  Made it SO SO SO much easier!  My best advice is to talk about communication before they leave, and I know each couple is different.  Because my husband put the effort out there to communicate so much, it made the experience totally do-able for me.  

I have met a ton of really awesome navy wife friends here in SD, so that has been a good experience, but as for the navy itself, my husband and I can't wait until he's done!  My husband joined later in life, already has an advanced professional degree, and so far the experience has been a joke.  Don't want to go into detail here but if anyone is interested, feel free to message me!!  My husband just can't wait to have his freedom back and neither can I!!! 

Comment by Emily on July 11, 2012 at 8:21pm

As far as homeschooling, you have to make sure you keep up with the laws. Each state is different. Some states only require that you send in a list of the curriculum you're using and a statement that you're homeschooling to the attendance officer. Other states are much more strict, so make sure you abide by whatever state laws you're in.

Mrs. B, I hate to hear about your experience! I can't imagine not having my support. I'm also glad to have found this site! It's so awesome to be able to talk to other people who have experience in the navy and to receive support from all of you!

Thank you for all the info! I'm sure I'll have more questions soon =)

Comment by Mrs.B_Div 302_Ship9 on July 11, 2012 at 3:14pm

I wish I'd had some support like you ladies when my husband was in the Navy. He was only in for a year before he got injured and got an honorable/medical discharge. But it was so rough for me. I didn't have friends. I had a small baby that was born 2 weeks after hubby graduated from boot camp. Our experience was horrible. His co-workers were mean and often stole his lunch while he was at work and made fun of him. He'd come home crying and even became suicidal (so much so he was admitted to the hospital for a while).  He joined because he thought he could serve and also provide wonderfully for his family.

Emily, as to getting your ID, you can get your ID whenever you want. Just make sure you take your DD214 form that your husband gives you. It might have a different # now, I don't know. But take that with you, along with 2 other forms of ID, plus your marriage certificate. They WILL need that. Oh and have your social security card. If you go to the Great Lakes Naval Base to get it, then you're going to have to get your car stickers from the front gate office before going on, or get a day pass. But if you wait until your hubby is at his duty station, then you can go with him and get it. You can even get your ID while he is still in boot camp. I went the week I got the paper in the mail from him. It was easy and the people were really nice to me and very helpful since I was so new at all of it.

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