what is it like to be a kid of a military parent?
411520
The job is not as important of a factor as what kind of parent they are.  I know messed up military kids because the parents hate the schools and pull them out to homeschool everywhere they live, and I know some well-adjusted disciplined military kids.  I know of similar situations with civilian parents also.
616321
A military dependent is classified as any person which is dependent on the military member for 51% of his/her support.\n\nGrandma, mom, dad, in-laws, whoever.  As long as they meet the criteria mentioned above, they are dependents.
895693
this came straight off a navy enlistment site....\n\nSingle Parent Restrictions \nIf you are a single parent, you cannot enlist in the Navy. If you have joint custody of a child by court order, and you do not have a spouse (who is not considered a spouse for enlistment standards), you are considered a single parent. In the event your former spouse takes full custody of your child/children, you can qualify for enlistment.\n\n\n\nDependents\nThe Navy will normally not allow you to enlist if you have more than two dependents under the age of 18. Who is considered your dependent? Read the information below. If you have questions, contact a recruiter.\n\nA spouse (who is not considered a spouse for enlistment standards), to include a common-law spouse if the state recognizes such, or \nAny natural child, or one adopted, if the child is under 18 years of age and unmarried, regardless of whether or not you have custody of the child. (If you are an unmarried male living with your child, you are considered to have custody of the child.) The term natural child includes any child you claim as yours, or whose birth certificate your name is listed on as the parent, or who a court order establishes your paternity or if any person makes an allegation of paternity toward you that has not been finally adjudicated by a court; or \nA stepchild under the age of 18 who resides with you; or \nAny parent or other person(s) who is/are, in fact, dependent on you for more than one-half of their support, as determined by the Navy.
236501
I think  it is more "Terror of War" my son is getting real close to 18 and it scares me everyday to think of him at war . I don't think I could bear the idea of not knowing if he were safe or not.
705443
Because you child is in the military and it's part of his job.  i am so  tired of you whiny ass parents.  Why don't you try SUPPORTING your child than bitching about his/her career choice.  I am a Air Force wife and my husband deploys to a war zone regularly. I don't complain, I don't whine.  i support him, i love him and I will always be there for him.  He wants to be there for his country.  Your child knew what they were getting into when they sign on the line.  Stop whining about it and get a life!\n   We have a small son who knows what daddy does and is proud of his father.  My husband parents are also proud of my husband and his career choice.  Why can't you be proud of yours?
229698
After having served in the Air Force, I'm kind of partial, but I know that in my 4 years of being in, I was deployed only one time and that was one I volunteered for.  If you are trying to raise a family, the AF is the way to go.  With the Navy, you are out to sea too much of the year.  With the Army, you are more deployable than the AF.  With the Marines, if they wanted you to have a wife and family, they would have issued it to you in boot camp.
180710
I have a friend who is a single father. When he went to talk to the Air Force they told him that he had to sign over part custody to his mother so the kid would be taken care of while he went to basic training and tech school. I know you have to sign over some of your custody to someone but I don't think all of it. Call an Air Force recruiter and they will tell you what you need to do.
1111009
It depends on the base, the community and his job and deployment schedule. It also depends on how you feel about day care and babysitters. I stay home with the kids now, and I have better earning capacity than he does, it is just not the most important thing right now to us. When the kids go to school, at the next base, I plan to go back to work, just because i want more money and It is nice to dress well and be around adults all day. \nThe military doesn't pay that much, but it provides all necessities for a family. If you husband is away often I would take that into consideration, kids need a parent around, and military life can be hard for them.\nGood luck in your decision.  There are other services than just army. I think if your boyfriend is out of options and you guys are willing to get married then it is a win win solution. You can finish school if you want to while you stay at home, and you will have everything you need.
711176
Well hopefully I will feel as you do!!!  But my mom is the EXACT same way.  She is now 49, I am 25, my older sister is 27, and she wants grand-babies so bad.  My baby sis (19) got married to her Marine in July before he went to Iraq so we are wondering who is going to have a baby first!!! :)   I  think I'm about ready to get married, and I've let my boyfriend (of five years) know.  I always thought I'd be a young mom, but I just keep getting older.  And i thought i'd be married by 24, child by 26!  :)  I also thought after two years being with someone you SHOULD KNOW YOU WANT TO MARRY THEM!!! :) haha.  But our first few years he was in the Marines, so it was different.  :)  This kinda went off the subject, but it was more or less me comparing you to my mom with the grandchildren because honestly she wants them sooooo bad.  My dad said "i want them to be married first" :)  \n\nGood day to you RLP!!! :)
880435
the very moment my daughter entered my life.  the moment I saw her little face. the whole world shifted. It has been CRAZY ever since. The hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life was become a parent. It makes everything else look like a walk in the park. NOTHING on this planet can change everything for you quite like parenthood.
259102
I was at LeJeune with my husband and daughter (younger than Pre-K at the time) from '97 to '00.  I heard nothing but great things from the DoD schools at that time.  I wouldn't hesitate to put my child in base (DoD) schools.  While private education has it advantages, your child will have different needs being a military child.  \n\nThe teachers and administrators at a base school will understand temporary behavioral differences while a parent is deployed.  They'll work with children who move every 3-4 years.  They're more apt to keep the curriculum the same, military-wide, due to the amount of transferring children each year...so no one will be left behind or have to spend a lot of time catching up after a permanent change of station (PCS).  Now, the public schools in the area (off base) will have a large population of military kids, as well...so I'm sure they're used to the unique situations the military life can impose on its children.  However, if an emergency were to ever happen (we were stationed on Kaneohe Bay Marine Corps Base, Hawaii, on 9/11), I would feel much more safe if my child was in a school protected by thousands of Marines.  (My daughter was in Pre-K during that time.  The childcare facilities and base schools had armed Marines standing at the doors and driveways until the security level was lowered.  I felt much better about sending my child to school during those tense days/weeks/months.)\n\nWe may be heading back to LeJeune in the near future.  It's a great place to be!  Good Luck with the schools and your marriage!
408092
Absolutely... Join the military... Travel to strange and exotic lands... meet interesting people... and shoot them!!!\n\nSeriously... I'm in the Army... we still travel a bit... but its not to the touristy spots you'd really want to go... I've always heard the Navy goes to different ports and spends weekends ashore.... I don't know how true that is... \n\nAir Force... depending on your job... as a Load Master on an aircraft you could squeeze in quite a bit of travel... but probably won't have much time to actually go off the base and experience the "culture" of those places... \n\nThe Marines... well I don't think the Department of the Navy really trusts them to get off the boats in most of the ports of call... \n\nYour familiar with the Army through your parents... I suppose it depends if you want to keep that "familiarity" or try something new... and piss your parents off!!! LOL... just kidding
232255
To join the military is a big adjustment period.  Let alone with a child already.  First you have to realize that there isn't one job in the Army where you can say 100% that you will not deploy.  Now deploying means anywhere from Kosovo to Iraq.  I have two children of my own.  I didn't have any when I joined.  Due to training, Temporary Duty in places where I'm not stationed, and Deployments I have missed both child births, both first steps, and both first words.  Is it hard?  Of course.  Is it worth it?  I believe it is.  Now also realize I'm an Active Duty soldier.  When I deploy it involves a lot of training before hand which means weeks away from home and long hours before I'm gone for a year.  For NG and Reservists deploying means "mobing" at an Army base for up to 6 months followed by a year long deployment.  As far as the push ups and the climbing goes. Ask your boyfriends father to teach you the correct push up form and start working on it before hand.  The minimum you have to reach by the end of training is 40 pushups, I believe, for the age group you're in.  Basic Training is hard but not impossible.  When things get hard just remember that you aren't the first female to go through it and you won't be the last.  I'm also an Army Brat.  My dad served two tours in Vietnam as well as Panama, Somalia, Bosnia, and the first gulf war.  I'm extremely proud of him and he helps me in my current carrier when I have leadership challenges.  Your boyfriends dad may or may not tell you what you want to hear.  He has a tough job though and I couldn't really blame him.  However my recruiter worked for my dad at one point so I got straight answers.  Ask him and when he tells you see how it makes you feel.  This is a decision you have to make for yourself.  You are responsible for raising your child and if this is the best way you can then go for it.  Is it better for a child to have a homeless family who's there all the time or a taken care of home who's parents are gone for periods at a time?  Granted that there are in betweens but I hope this kinda puts things in perspective.
932766
Life as a single parent will be tough either way.  \n\nBoth involve some initial entry training that will probably last several months.  The active soldier and the Guard soldier both go through the same basic training and initial skills training (AIT).  \n\nBoth will require you to have a family care plan.  That means that someone other than the Army will agree to care for your child when you are away on duty.\n\nBoth carry a good chance of being deployed overseas into a war zone.  Of course the active soldier has much more or a chance of that happening but the Guard soldier shouldn't enlist without recognizing the possibility of a deployment.  The Guard does have the additional possibilty of having to respond to state emergencies so if you are in a hurricane state then that is another consideration (and other states too but maybe not so much as ones that have to deal with hurricanes)\n\nThe active army will offer a wider range of career options then what may be available at your local Guard unit.  Unless you are willing to drive long distances you may not be able to find a slot fo the military skill you want to pursue.  The active Army can send you anywhere so that removes that constraint.\n\nWhat are your goals?  If you want to go to college or some technical civilian training then it might makes sense for you to join the Guard.  Many states add to the tuition assistance that is available through the GI Bill.  If you aren't interested in that it might make sense to do an active duty tour\n\nI've seen several people join the Guard and then go active duty and that may be a best of both worlds.  I'll have to caveat that by saying that some commands are more friendly then others when it comes to letting a troop leave the Guard.\n\nI note that someone posted that the National Guard is the worst "branch" to join.  Having served in all three components fo the Army and having done a trip in the sandbox I can say that is not true.  There are good and bad units in all components.   I've seen National Guard units run rings around an active duty counterpart.  I've seen active units that were great and active units I'd want no part of, same with the Guard and the USAR.  Also, to say that National Guard are deployed more is a generalization that doesn't hold up.  Some units, like Military Police, are deployed more, others aren't, and some hardly at all.  That all depends on what the mission requires.  Some units are getting a second turn in Iraq but some active units are already seeing a third turn.  Same holds true for the Army Reserve.  One advantage of the Guard is that people are usually in the same unit longer and develop more of a family connection.  In my experience that means people are more apt to watch your back, but again that varies from unit to unit.
868281
I'm not really a mother, obviously but I am a single father.  That has changed my life more than anything in the world could have.  I'll be quite honest, before my kids were born I was a bit of a partier and I really didn't take much seriously.  When my oldest was born I was only 18 but he really taught me there was something to life other than staying out late drinking with friends.  And because his mother couldn't see that and she didn't want to be held back from the life I gave up, I had to and still today have to play the part of mum and dad.  \n\nBeing both a mother and a father to my kids has turned me around so I'm not pretty much the polar opposite of how I was before they were around.  I learn something new from them every day and I think and hope I'm becoming further and further away from who I used to be.  Being a parent has taught me to put them first instead of myself.  I'm so lucky to have each of them around, they've all changed my life in so many ways that it isn't possible to write.  I'm sure every parent says this but it really is true.
1075939
Deployments never get easier.  My husband is now looking at his 3rd deployment to Iraq, and I feel the same way I did when we got news of the 1st one.  I know when he does deploy, the first couple months will be the hardest, and then I will get back into my routine of being a single mother again, waiting faithfully for his call or a chance to IM and see him on the web cam.  \nJust keep yourself surrounded by positive people, other military wives, and your FRG.  \nIt is a given, as soon as he deploys something always happens at home, the car breaks down, the washing machine quits on you, the kids get sick, ( my sons appendix ruptured 3 days after my husband deployed last time).  Remember that you are not alone.\nIf you need someone to talk to feel free to contact me anytime.\nGOD BLESS OUR TROOPS
1138289
They are probably scared. The thing is you will have to soul search. Alot of young kids join the military today for college, but ulitmately it's still the military, if you are called to duty you must go. It's not just a free ride and never has been, and you shouldn't go in with that mindframe. You join the military to serve your country for a certain amount of time. I joined the Airforce when I was 18 years old and I knew what it entailed. They didn't have the great big enlistment bonus's they offer to the new recruits today when I joined 14 years ago, and they only paid a certain amount for college then too so that wasn't my reason for joining. Alot of my reasoning to join was to get out from under my parents thumb...which is funny since being in the military you are just getting a whole new set of rules , lol. I enjoyed my time in and then got out, I'm proud to say that I served my country and I am still married to a wonderful Airforce sergeant today, it's a good life honestly and we love the traveling!! I wouldn't discourage my daughters from joining, I'd be proud! Good luck, only you can make that descision for your life, do youre research on all the branches and make sure they give you the job you really want, even if you have to wait, dont let them talk you into doing something you'll hate!