The food allowance each month is for the military member only. Ours is about $250 so no it doesn't cover our family's food needs for a month. When moving you receive per diem for food each day of travel and that amount of money exceeds what you'll actually spend on food for your family unless you eat at Cheesecake Factory for all 3 meals! (Mmmm, I love Cheesecake!)
As far as restaurants on base, there are only fast food type places to eat on base. Some bases don't have any restaurants or places to eat at all. We are located at a training base with thousands of airmen so they need to have eating facilities on base for them. There are cafeteria's for the trainee's but we are not allowed to eat there, too bad b/c it would be cheap. ;)
As far as preschool goes there isn't anything at our base that is free. They have organized playgroups and day care options but at our base there is no preschool program. However, the elementary on base offers free Pre-K 4 but that is ran through the state. I hope this info helps!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
The Colonel's Wife
The head boss of the JAG office on base is the SJA (Staff Judge Advocate). Ours is a Colonel and his wife is, well, unique. Some people don't know how to read her because she's a self proclaimed anti-social lady. I happen to go to the same church as her too. We share a passion though and that is we both love to be active. We even did an adventure race together a couple months ago. We biked, canoed, and ran together. It was a blast!! We're doing a bike race this Saturday morning too. Anyways, she doesn't throw parties or do get togethers like apparently quite a few SJA wives do but she is GREAT. Why you may ask? Because she watched my kids for a night while Top Gun and I escaped for 24 hours. It was just what we needed! See, I told you she is the best. Who needs monthly socials when she'll watch my kids for an overnighter?!?! Generous lady indeed.
Speaking of the need for our escape, Top Gun has been working crazy hours lately. Whenever they are set to go to trial or have a court martial be prepared for your spouse to work big firm hours. He would come home for dinner and then leave around 9:00p.m. and not get home til the wee hours of the morning. One night he got home at 6:45a.m. the following day and left for work at 7:25 a.m. He has lost weight b/c he hasn't even stopped to take his lunch break and as mentioned isn't getting enough sleep. In the past year this is the first time it has been this bad. Normally when he has courts it doesn't take so much out of him for so long. The late hours normally only last a week at most. But this case kept dragging. A lot of it has to do with his perfectionist attitude too if you ask me. But we got away and it was what both of us needed. At our hotel while we were swimming a stranger asked us if we were on our honeymoon...hah....we've been married for 8 years. It was a compliment b/c we felt like we were on our honeymoon!!
Speaking of the need for our escape, Top Gun has been working crazy hours lately. Whenever they are set to go to trial or have a court martial be prepared for your spouse to work big firm hours. He would come home for dinner and then leave around 9:00p.m. and not get home til the wee hours of the morning. One night he got home at 6:45a.m. the following day and left for work at 7:25 a.m. He has lost weight b/c he hasn't even stopped to take his lunch break and as mentioned isn't getting enough sleep. In the past year this is the first time it has been this bad. Normally when he has courts it doesn't take so much out of him for so long. The late hours normally only last a week at most. But this case kept dragging. A lot of it has to do with his perfectionist attitude too if you ask me. But we got away and it was what both of us needed. At our hotel while we were swimming a stranger asked us if we were on our honeymoon...hah....we've been married for 8 years. It was a compliment b/c we felt like we were on our honeymoon!!
Friday, August 6, 2010
www.ahrn.com / Military only housing search website
Congrats to Amy and Tiffany for getting their assignments this week! I remember looking on the Internet for days trying to find out all the information I could on our current city. Each base has their own official military website. Essentially it's the name of the base followed by .af.mil/
Tiffany here is Kirtland's
Amy here is Offutt's
Also, if you are contemplating living off base there is a GREAT website only available to military families to search for housing. You have to register but then you'll be able to search homes for rent/sale in your new area. The website is www.ahrn.com Remember all homes listed are also owned by military members.
****Another website from a reader is http://MilitaryForSalebyOwner.net
Tiffany here is Kirtland's
Amy here is Offutt's
Also, if you are contemplating living off base there is a GREAT website only available to military families to search for housing. You have to register but then you'll be able to search homes for rent/sale in your new area. The website is www.ahrn.com Remember all homes listed are also owned by military members.
****Another website from a reader is http://MilitaryForSalebyOwner.net
Thursday, July 29, 2010
To answer Lauren's question (deployment, JAG as career decision)
Dear Lauren,
I was scared to death and sometimes still am of the looming possibility of deployment. I hold onto 2 facts regarding JAG's deploying. #1. Not all JAG's deploy. #2. No JAG has ever been killed while deployed.
I have 2 really good friends whose husband's are JAG's and have been deployed. A deployment can either weaken a marriage or strengthen a marriage. For one of my friends she had her 3rd child while her husband was deployed. It was devastating and when he got back it took her some time to not be angry with him. She had an array of emotions she had to work through. BUT they will both quickly say the deployment experience brought them closer together and strengthened their relationship in an indescribable way. All hardships and trials are for our own good and benefit us if we allow it.
My other friend would say nothing good has come from the deployment. He has been home for 3 months now. First off, they were married for about a year before he was deployed so that alone was bad timing for him to leave. They fought a lot while he was gone, whereas my other friends didn't nearly as much. So time will only tell...
How do I rationalize this is my mind?? Good question, easy for me to answer but an answer you or some of my other readers may find as an unsuitable response. Here it goes.
I KNOW that my husband is doing a great thing by serving in the military. I was never a die hard military person and even looked down on it (shamefully I admit that now). But I believe Top Gun is a very intelligent guy. I like to brag (he did go to a top 10 law school ;). He has a lot to offer the Air Force and vice verse. He is practicing law in a way he couldn't ANYWHERE else.
PRAYER is my answer. My heart was changed when I knew that God wanted Top Gun on this path. Once I felt that, through personal prayer, our will became His will. Can I say the Air Force is the career path Top Gun has permanently chosen? When we came in, it was 4 years and out! Yet, everyday we are in, it feels more and more like YES! Let's keep riding this out! Which btw almost all JAG families we have communicated with respond the same way when asked if they plan on staying in or making a career out of this..."We ask ourselves that question everyday." Everyone is always thinking about whether to stay in or get out. Well I can't say everyone but the people we've been stationed with all seem to have that same response. But there lies my advice. Take it one day at a time.
I was scared to death and sometimes still am of the looming possibility of deployment. I hold onto 2 facts regarding JAG's deploying. #1. Not all JAG's deploy. #2. No JAG has ever been killed while deployed.
I have 2 really good friends whose husband's are JAG's and have been deployed. A deployment can either weaken a marriage or strengthen a marriage. For one of my friends she had her 3rd child while her husband was deployed. It was devastating and when he got back it took her some time to not be angry with him. She had an array of emotions she had to work through. BUT they will both quickly say the deployment experience brought them closer together and strengthened their relationship in an indescribable way. All hardships and trials are for our own good and benefit us if we allow it.
My other friend would say nothing good has come from the deployment. He has been home for 3 months now. First off, they were married for about a year before he was deployed so that alone was bad timing for him to leave. They fought a lot while he was gone, whereas my other friends didn't nearly as much. So time will only tell...
How do I rationalize this is my mind?? Good question, easy for me to answer but an answer you or some of my other readers may find as an unsuitable response. Here it goes.
I KNOW that my husband is doing a great thing by serving in the military. I was never a die hard military person and even looked down on it (shamefully I admit that now). But I believe Top Gun is a very intelligent guy. I like to brag (he did go to a top 10 law school ;). He has a lot to offer the Air Force and vice verse. He is practicing law in a way he couldn't ANYWHERE else.
PRAYER is my answer. My heart was changed when I knew that God wanted Top Gun on this path. Once I felt that, through personal prayer, our will became His will. Can I say the Air Force is the career path Top Gun has permanently chosen? When we came in, it was 4 years and out! Yet, everyday we are in, it feels more and more like YES! Let's keep riding this out! Which btw almost all JAG families we have communicated with respond the same way when asked if they plan on staying in or making a career out of this..."We ask ourselves that question everyday." Everyone is always thinking about whether to stay in or get out. Well I can't say everyone but the people we've been stationed with all seem to have that same response. But there lies my advice. Take it one day at a time.
Tricare Contact Information
Tricare is who controls, activates, approves, etc you and your families health benefits.
Tricare is controlled by various regions. Don't call the Tricare office where you are currently located. You want to sign up with the tricare office that is in the same region as your base you'll be stationed at. Unless your spouse is attending COT before you move to your base and you will be needing medical services where you are currently located, then obviously sign up for tricare right away in the region you are currently live in. Once you move to your base you'll have to complete registration again with the new tricare regional office if you are in fact located in a different region.
Tricare Region North
1-877-874-2273
www.healthnetfederalservices.com
Tricare region South
1-800-444-5445
www.humana_military.com
Tricare Region West
1-888-874-9378
www.triwest.com
Tricare Dental Program
United Concordia Companies
1-800-866-8499
Dental coverage is not free to military families only those that are active duty (so our attorney spouse would get dental coverage free)
However, tricare offers dental coverage for cheap through United Concordia
Tricare is controlled by various regions. Don't call the Tricare office where you are currently located. You want to sign up with the tricare office that is in the same region as your base you'll be stationed at. Unless your spouse is attending COT before you move to your base and you will be needing medical services where you are currently located, then obviously sign up for tricare right away in the region you are currently live in. Once you move to your base you'll have to complete registration again with the new tricare regional office if you are in fact located in a different region.
Tricare Region North
1-877-874-2273
www.healthnetfederalservices.com
Tricare region South
1-800-444-5445
www.humana_military.com
Tricare Region West
1-888-874-9378
www.triwest.com
Tricare Dental Program
United Concordia Companies
1-800-866-8499
Dental coverage is not free to military families only those that are active duty (so our attorney spouse would get dental coverage free)
However, tricare offers dental coverage for cheap through United Concordia
ACRONYMS
Acronyms-- Bookmark this post!!!! I wish I would of had this list for me available when we were first getting started!!!!!! I can't get over how much the military uses acronyms for everything! The ones posted aren't nearly all of them. I will highlight the ones I mostly cared to know about when I was first getting acclimated to the Air Force but all are useful to know.
AAFES- Army and Air Force Exchange Services. They supple and operate the base exchange (BX) and the commissary.
AFB- Air Force Base...duh
BAH- Basic Allowance for Housing, tax free money paid to you to go toward housing cost. If you live on base you forfeit this amount and live rent free on base.
BAS- Basic Allowance for Subsistence, this is an amount of money the service member gets each paycheck as their food allowance.
Basic pay- Main component of military pay
ABU- Airman Battle Uniform, their camouflage uniform
BX- Base Exchange, it is a mini walmart essentially but you don't pay tax only a surcharge fee. It's located on base and there you can purchase diapers to clothes to lawn care items. Some bases have nicer BX's than others
CDS- Child Development Services, daycare on base
CO- Commanding Officer, the head person of each individual unit.
COLA- Cost of Living Adjustment, this refers to a pay increase or decrease depending where you are stationed. If overseas for example your COLA is significantly higher than state side.
COT- Commissioned Officer Training, 4-5 weeks of officer training for medical officers i.e. doctors, dentists etc, attorneys and chaplins
DeCa- Defense Commissary Agency, the commissary, where you grocery shop without paying tax and items are generally cheaper as well
DEERS- Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting Service, the department that determines what benefits you and your family are entitles to. You'll have to register each family member with DEERS right away for health benefits to take affect.
DFAS- Defense Finance and Accounting Service, the ones responsible for paying us!
DITY Move- Do-It-Yourself move, if you move your own household goods this is what it would be called
DLA- Dislocation Allowance, money you receive to cover relocating costs
Duty Station- Where the service member is assigned to work
Exhange- Same as BX
JASOC- Judge Advocate Staff Officer Course, 9 week military law training
LES- Leave and Earnings Statement, this is your monthly pay stub that gives you all kinds of information like how many days of leave you have accrued.
MRE- Meals Ready to Eat, freeze dried meals that deployed members eat
MTF- Military Treatment Facility, a military hospital or clinic
NCO- Noncommissioned Officer, higher ranked enlisted members
O Club- The Officer's Club, the official bar/restaurant for the officer's
Orders- a physical piece of paper that is crucial for military member's to have so they can leave their duty station to go to a new job.
PCM- Primary Care Manager, your doctor who is assigned to you by Tricare
PCS- Permanent Change of Station, essentially means to relocate. You would be PCSing when you receive your orders to move to a new base.
POV- Personally Owned Vehicle, if you do a DITY move you'll see this acronym
PT- Physical Training, exercise required that is usually done as a group. Top Gun goes early in the morning 3 times a week with the JAG office to do PT together.
SJA- Staff Judge Advocate, the head attorney at an Air Force base (The Boss ;)
SGLI- Service Member's Group Life Insurance, inexpensive term life insurance plan
TDY- Temporary Duty, a temp assignment where the military member would be sent to, usually for a training course.
Tricare- The military's HMO
TSP- Thrift Savings Plan, a retirement savings plan
AAFES- Army and Air Force Exchange Services. They supple and operate the base exchange (BX) and the commissary.
AFB- Air Force Base...duh
BAH- Basic Allowance for Housing, tax free money paid to you to go toward housing cost. If you live on base you forfeit this amount and live rent free on base.
BAS- Basic Allowance for Subsistence, this is an amount of money the service member gets each paycheck as their food allowance.
Basic pay- Main component of military pay
ABU- Airman Battle Uniform, their camouflage uniform
BX- Base Exchange, it is a mini walmart essentially but you don't pay tax only a surcharge fee. It's located on base and there you can purchase diapers to clothes to lawn care items. Some bases have nicer BX's than others
CDS- Child Development Services, daycare on base
CO- Commanding Officer, the head person of each individual unit.
COLA- Cost of Living Adjustment, this refers to a pay increase or decrease depending where you are stationed. If overseas for example your COLA is significantly higher than state side.
COT- Commissioned Officer Training, 4-5 weeks of officer training for medical officers i.e. doctors, dentists etc, attorneys and chaplins
DeCa- Defense Commissary Agency, the commissary, where you grocery shop without paying tax and items are generally cheaper as well
DEERS- Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting Service, the department that determines what benefits you and your family are entitles to. You'll have to register each family member with DEERS right away for health benefits to take affect.
DFAS- Defense Finance and Accounting Service, the ones responsible for paying us!
DITY Move- Do-It-Yourself move, if you move your own household goods this is what it would be called
DLA- Dislocation Allowance, money you receive to cover relocating costs
Duty Station- Where the service member is assigned to work
Exhange- Same as BX
JASOC- Judge Advocate Staff Officer Course, 9 week military law training
LES- Leave and Earnings Statement, this is your monthly pay stub that gives you all kinds of information like how many days of leave you have accrued.
MRE- Meals Ready to Eat, freeze dried meals that deployed members eat
MTF- Military Treatment Facility, a military hospital or clinic
NCO- Noncommissioned Officer, higher ranked enlisted members
O Club- The Officer's Club, the official bar/restaurant for the officer's
Orders- a physical piece of paper that is crucial for military member's to have so they can leave their duty station to go to a new job.
PCM- Primary Care Manager, your doctor who is assigned to you by Tricare
PCS- Permanent Change of Station, essentially means to relocate. You would be PCSing when you receive your orders to move to a new base.
POV- Personally Owned Vehicle, if you do a DITY move you'll see this acronym
PT- Physical Training, exercise required that is usually done as a group. Top Gun goes early in the morning 3 times a week with the JAG office to do PT together.
SJA- Staff Judge Advocate, the head attorney at an Air Force base (The Boss ;)
SGLI- Service Member's Group Life Insurance, inexpensive term life insurance plan
TDY- Temporary Duty, a temp assignment where the military member would be sent to, usually for a training course.
Tricare- The military's HMO
TSP- Thrift Savings Plan, a retirement savings plan
Hindsight is glorious!
When the last reader left a comment saying she had practically just read my entire blog, I went back and read some of my earlier post...MAN WAS I NEGATIVE at times.
I guess when you are in the thick of it all and when you first get started (as in any new job, new home, new everything essentially) you can be so overwhelmed that in retrospect I think I came on too negative.
On the contrary, I believe I can share the truth, sometimes the ugly truth, be frustrated with the process of how the military works, and still be happy and properly portray my current experience...which is POSITIVE. I hope from here on out to be more positive because after all I was 100% against Top Gun joining the military at one point. But my heart was changed and I LOVE my husband's job and our life right now!!
I keep thinking of my new friend whose husband started as a JAG a few months ago but she finished up her job back home before just recently relocating here. She feels like she has almost given up her identity. She has moved here to be with her husband but has no job, hardly any friends yet, finally received her household goods, that took way too long, and is feeling a little lost. That will be the process for some of you wives, every time you move with your spouse to a new base. It takes time but you will make friends, you just have to put yourself out there.
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