Military Spouses

I am wondering if anyone can share some insight into how squadron spouse groups function (or if there are any) in the rest of the AF outside of the fighter world. My husband was casual with an F-16 squadron, did UPT, got 38s, IFF and was assigned F-16s, so that's my only experience with spouses groups(other than the OSC). He is transitioning to another aircraft, possibly C-17s, and I was just wondering what to expect. Are there monthly gatherings, First Fridays, or things like that? Or is there not really a squadron spouse group and most normally join the base OSC? Thanks in advance for your insight- it'll be a change, but I'm excited for it!

So we have been at McChord for 3 years now and its time to decide what to do next, or its past due depending on who you ask. I know about the usual C-17 contenders for second assignments: Charleston, Travis, Hickam, McGuire, Dover, Elmendorf & Altus as well as primary training bases but I am more interested in the crazy stuff that most people don't know is out there. What are these more rare jobs and how do I find them? I know most of these are probably unattainable based on the odds but thats why its a dream sheet, right? Example: Some friends of ours just got gliders at the academy. Who knew that existed? I didn't. Don't know if my husband would have even bee…

It's the holiday season, I'm finding myself in a familiar situation, still not quite knowing what to say. I'm sure you've all been there: Of course friends and family that we don't see often always ask when/if my husband deploys again. Acquaintances that I run into wonder where I live and what I'm doing these days. Inevitably, it comes up that my husband is going to miss another Christmas. Here comes the response: "Oh, that's so awful. I'm so sorry," or "That must be terrible. I feel so bad for you." That is the same response I'd get if I said that my husband is dying of cancer or that we lost our home in a fire. It never crosses their mind that he is doing EXACT…

So, my boyfriend is getting commisioned as a pilot at the end of December and i feel like i should get a present for him but i don't really know what is appropriate. I am kinda new at the whole military girlfriend thing and i don't want to look like a fool around his retired airforce father or him. I want to show him how proud i am of him and all his hard work. any suggestions on the perfect gift?

Are any of the spouses here General Schedule types? I would like information about how one gets hired as a GS-"x" and what kind of jobs are out there. Thanks.

when i started upt, the wives were very friendly to the 2 of us (female pilots in my upt class). i was invited to dinner when the married folks invited other single pilots over, we all hung out and had fun. when i got to my first base, the unit was small, and though i wasn't invited to the spouses' club meetings, when the wives came to the squadron they were all real nice and friendly too. adn we still went out to dinner in groups and what not. i'd say that the wives in my current squadron are not as nice or friendly. my personal opinion is that the spouse club "leader" should invite female pilots to their group - at least once. why not? i'd love to meet more w…

Hi Spouses! My husband and I will be selling one of our cars while in UPT training. We aren't sure what to do because it would be nice to have two cars at Columbus and then sell one during our 4 1/2 months at Altus. If we can't sell it at Altus, it would be a big problem because we are going O-CONUS. So here's my question. Does anyone out there have experience trying to sell a car specifically at Columbus or Altus? If so, how long did it take your car to sell? Thanks, KC

I have one year of a BSN in nursing completed. This will be my 2nd Bachelor's degree, so I probably have about 2-2.5 years left of school, although I would like to get a minor in Spanish, so that might bump it up to 3 years. My husband is going to start at Whiting next week and I have an opportunity to take a class or 2 at a state university in the spring semester. I'm just not sure if I should hold off and try to do all 3 years after he is done with pilot's training or if I should take some classes now. If I do take classes now, I probably won't be able to go back to school until Fall of 2008 because of his training and moving around for it. Does anyone have any…

My hubby of 7 yrs. will be leaving me to go to OTS in 2 weeks and we have never been separated for that long. I am happy for him, but at the same time feel sad that I will be without him and alone with our newborn who is now 6 weeks old. The whole situation is bittersweet. We just moved to this new area and so I don't really know anyone and now my only support is leaving. Anyone have any advice? I have read the threads about UPT and I get the impression things can get pretty lonely for spouses there too. So I guess the family gets put on the back burner just by default? That's okay I suppose, but how does one like me cope? By the way I am using his profile to write this.

kind of an abnormal post, but my question is, do you think people do better in UPT if single? I had a good talk with one of the MSGT's in my unit, and we were discussing what I wanted to do, and we both agreed that dating while trying to pursue a fighter slot should be something to shy away from because of how busy a fighter pilot's life can be. dont get me wrong. with all due respect, I love women and dream to start a family as well, but I do believe that they can distract you from your goals. as most of you know, the energy, money, and time spent on a significant other is enormous. I can't seem to shake the idea in my head of "how much better I could be doing…

Has anyone ever been in a position whereas their spouse started out as a foreign national (such as without a green card or US naturalization)? What do I need to do first if we are to get hitched? I'm a newly commissioned LT about to EAD in two months. I punched this question off to my Det NCOIC but he needed to research a bit and ask some questions off to others as well. I basically have no idea where to start and would like to look for some additional experiences. The marriage paperwork I understand is straight forward, but everything else, such as the security clearance (I have a current TS) and the fact that she is not a US citizen, is unknown territory for me.…

My family and I will be hoping to be at UPT in 2008. For those of you who live in the base housing, what utilities/services do you pay? Trying to make the "Do we live on base?" decision. Also, does your housing vary depending on the size of your family? We only have 2 kids, but want to compare to an off base equally adequate living space. -Crazy

My Daughter just PCS to Ramstein. Now that I wont be able to help her out with a car. Does anyone know of a decent place she can get hers worked on?

Did a search. Any 'spouses' gather information on how to successfully start and complete a PHD program during an assignment? Looks like 4-7 years on some Doctoral programs. Also, any legit ways to do this for a spouse that is not through Phoenix or other online shady degrees?

Hi everyone, I had a question about significant others and them going to med school. Has anyone gone through this? I'm commissioning in about a year, and I really don't know how this is going to work after graduation. Thanks for your help.

Hi guys, currently an ANG STUD in the UPT pipeline slated for the TH-1 track based off of my final MDS, so I'll be headed to rucker in the fall (September). Currently unmarried, but will be traveling with the significant other and dog (husky). For those that have recently gone, currently there, or just have something to add, please chime in! Looking for living recommendations around the area and general lifestyle (pace of training) to get a better idea of the future. Obviously still a couple months out, but any advice is appreciated. If anyone knows of pet friendly apartments or housing rentals within the BAH limit, that would be great too. Thanks!

My fiance (wife-to-be on 14 May 05) is getting her secondary ed (English) degree at the same time I'm commissioning. We're going to Sheppard AFB for ENJJPT (my medical came back qualified last week! woohoo!!!), and we're wondering what we should do to try to get her a job there. She has her teaching certification here in AZ. Does she need to get recertified in TX? Also, should she look for a job now in Wichita Falls or should we wait till we have our orders? This if off the subject, but when should we start looking for a place to live in Wichita Falls? I've been told I should wait for my orders to start looking. Also, she really wants to work on her masters degree,…

Any and all who have recently stayed in base housing at any of the locations for UPT able to help me out? I’m wondering what’s all included and what I should bring. It’ll be the wife and kid. I called all three locations and they informed me that there are is washer or dryer and not furnished....I’ve read that some stated they were? Is it hit or miss? Many help and advice is greatly appreciated! -AH

I am new to the military community, recently engaged. I am also a reporter, assigned to look into the issues facing military families, especially spouses, during deployment. It is an attempt to expand media coverage of military families beyond the surface of just deployments and re-deployments and instead, focus on what goes on in-between. With your help, I can gain further insight into some of the civilian issues faced by spouses and families. I'm not looking to find out about missing your husband, fiance, boyfriend, etc. during a deployment. I know those struggles first hand. I also know there are tons of support groups, FRGs, etc within the military community for sp…

Hello, all. I wasn't sure what Discussion Group this fell best into, but this one seemed to have more family-specific questions. Barring any unforeseen issues, I'll be heading to Kelly for PIQ here in a few months and I'm looking to bring my family with me. I was wondering if you folks might have some pointers on helping to make that happen. I gather they won't put any family provisions on my orders for a TDY, but I'm trying to figure out the best way to go about it all since they are coming with me. As of now, I'll likely have to have a TDY en route or TDY from UPT because I've got a tight turn between UPT graduation and my first day of PIQ class. There likely won'…

My girlfriend and I are both going to be going to UPT (6 months staggered) and we're also planning on getting married.. I've heard plenty of advice against it, but it's going to happen. That being said, has anyone even heard of a successful pilot-pilot marriage? What are the factors that would affect us (air frame selection, deployments, etc)? Any info at all would be greatly appreciated.

Hello! Heading over to Europe for a 3 year tour. For the spouses out there, what job opportunities did you find? Keeping it broad for a reason.

My husband was recently hired to an ANG unit and I will be moving with him for UPT/B-Course etc. We aren't sure what location we are headed to yet as he doesn't have orders (and will probably be receiving them later rather than sooner) so I am trying to cover all my bases on employment opportunities. I am an A&P with military aviation experience (not Air Force) and would like to get on a contract for the trainers. I've heard that L-3 and M1 conduct all of the maintenance at the various UPT locations but would like to see if anyone here has additional information about these jobs and who is the best POC. I'd like to talk to someone over the phone rather than go through…

Just wondering if anyone knew if there was a supplemental dental insurance for the TDP/United Concordia. I was stupid to not buy dental insurance through my job, thinking the TDP would be more than enough for my 2 cleanings a year, now I have to wait until October of '09 when annual enrollment comes around and I need several thousand dollars worth of dental stuff done in the mean time. I've already past my $1200 maximum that the TDP will cover annually with 2 cleanings, some minor periodontic work, a root canal, and a crown. It's looking like I'm going to need some periodontic bone grafts and going back into orthodontics so we're looking at something around $5-6k out o…