Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction -- 1.Great expectations -- Hollywood versus real life -- Military families matter -- Your family's must-take first steps -- Translating military language into English -- Command structure, pay grades, ranks, and insignias -- Common military customs and courtesies -- 2. Military money and benefits -- Newbies' guide to military pay and allowances -- Understanding the Leave and Earnings Statement (LES) -- Know your important military benefits -- Military money management basics -- Your good credit: maintaining and protecting it -- Scams, fraud, and identity theft -- Online financial resources -- 3. Military family support -- Important DoD websites -- Military family support centers -- The Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) -- Military childcare programs -- Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) -- Military OneSource -- The commissary and the exchange -- DoD lodging and AFRC vacation resorts -- Armed forces entertainment -- Military family support outside the DoD -- 4. Mastering military moves -- There is a downside to moving -- Coordinating your military move -- Potential moving benefits and entitlements -- Weighty matters -- Beyond boxes: preparing for your move -- Moving day to-do lists -- Moving with small children and teenagers -- Bringing furry family members along -- If you're moving overseas -- Unaccompanied tours: the lonely move -- 5. Military spouse careers and education -- Five military spouse employment realities -- How to find a job at your new duty station -- Looking for a job while stationed overseas -- Volunteering for the greater good -- Working for Uncle Sam -- Becoming your own boss -- The grateful exit: leaving your job -- Funding your education and job training -- 6. Dealing with deployments and other separations -- Predeployment: preparing for the inevitable -- Deployment: when it really happens -- Demobilization : anticipation -- Postdeployment/reintegration and reunion -- 7. Difficult topics in military life -- The rise of online haters -- Stressed out: emotion commotion -- The warning signs of depression and suicide -- Sexual assault and domestic abuse -- Divorce in the military -- Caring for a wounded warrior -- Casualty assistance and surviving loss -- 8. Mission transition -- Making now count for later -- Taking care of transition business -- Potential postuniform benefits and entitlements -- Military-to-civilian career transition strategies -- Conclusion -- Graduation day -- Parting words -- Appendix A: Military life 101 recommended reading list -- Appendix B: Common military terms and expressions.