I have finally recieved my waiver and will sign-up and swear in this Monday, the 27th, and I am very excited about my journy to become a soldier in the U.S. Army. My only concern is the fact that I have a wife and 2 small children. I am wondering if they will recieve the same medical benefits that i will while I am in the service? Also, is it as hard on the family life (the military lifestyle) as everyone has told me? Any replies would be helpfull but ones from members with families would be great.

Your wife and kids should receive full medical treatment/coverage. There are some.....tricks to the trade, so read over everything carefully once you start enrolling your family members into the medical plan. Dental plan is not as comprehensive, lots of cost shares for your family (you are cared for free).

And, yes, the military is hard on families/marriages. It takes a very strong spouse to put up with all the crap a military spouse goes through...I can't even name all the things they must endure-- deployments away from home are just one of them. Almost all of my peers are divorced (many not just once). My wife and I made it through 22 years-- and we separated twice during that time. However, now that "we're" retired we look back and say-- "that wasn't so bad....kinda made us stronger in the long run...". My wife even said I should have done two more years (another rank and more retirement pay)-- in 22 years I never hit her, first time for everything.

Thank you very much for your reply and congrats on your career, but more on your life with your spouse. I too am very lucky to have a wonderfull wife that has put up with me for 8 years, and trust me the Army will not bring anything harder owr way than the ups and downs of my profession (Direct sales, door to door). Since you have the answers I need I would like to ask you if you know about housing as well. Will we get BAH when im in OSUT, and how does this work when i get stationed somewhere? Will they pay for my relocation and will it be better to bring my family on base or off?

My friends and family (not my wife) tell me I'm crazy because I have a good life and make really good money and their probably right, but they will never understand why I am doing this at my stage in life (30). Now that I have a son I want to give him a real reason to be proud of his father and do my best to secure his future in our great country. The stories I will want to tell him later in life will not be about my best month of sales quotas but the time I wore a uniform and sacrificed for something bigger than money or possesions. I know it sounds corney, and I havent told anyone I know in person but because many of you on this forum are in the same situation I think you will all understand.

What's OSUT? Proabably an Amry thing I'm not getting....

Anyway, yes, you receive BAH-- though you give up the BAH when you're living in base housing. Base housing availability depends on the base. Living on or off base usually depends on on preference and the local economy. I lived on base in Japan-- well you can imagine property/rental values in Japan, but bought a house in NC. On base usually has some very strict rules to live by, so it does have drawbacks-- and sometimes (depending on the local economy) it's actually better to live off base. And don't expect base housing to be immediately available, some bases have over a year of waiting lists.

As far as relocation, yes, there is a Dislocation Allowance (DLA) and you can ask for 30 days advance pay (an interest free loan due in monthly payments in...I think 12 months was the max period). And they will move all your goods for free (or give you a check for the amount they would pay and you do it yourself). There are weight limits set by rank, so you might have to move some stuff yourself.

OSUT = One-Station-Unit-Training
a fairly new Regular Army thang.

Thanks again to all for your answers, they are a great help. Now permit me to ask one final question about college funds and ability to get an education while on active duty. Will I be able to take college classes when I'm in the Army and how does that work? Also, I've heard that I can get a laptop from the Army to take classes online and it will come from these education funds? And finally, once I've obtained a degree can I apply to switch to be an officer or possibly a Warrant officer? Thanks again and if you know of any sites with info that go in depth more than the basic questions on most I would be greatfull.