Hey everyone! So my husband is currently on recruiting duty but we are trying to decide where we want to go when he is finished next summer. I think we have narrowed it down to Pendleton or Hawaii. He is currently an E-5 and we have a 3 year old son. Hoping for baby #2 sometime, but not pregnant yet. What are the pros/cons of living in cali? We are both from NY originally but want to get as far away from that as possible. We were in North Carolina before moving here and we are currently in Ohio. Just looking for info like is it family friendly? Is it expensive? Is there stuff to do with our son? How would it be with a small baby or to have a baby there? Also if anyone has been to Hawaii and has info on that I would love to hear. Thanks! 

We lived at Camp Pendleton for 18 years and moved to Hawaii (Oahu) last August. The prices in Hawaii are about the same as Camp Pendleton (gas, food, etc), but you don't get COLA at Camp Pendleton. The weather in Hawaii is fab, you absolutely cannot beat it. But, I miss California so much. It's our home, I miss the shopping options (not having to buy stuff the second you see it because if you go back, it'll be gone lol), good food (Hawaii food is not my thing lol). Housing wait lists are nuts in Hawaii, traffic is no joke, it's hard to get things done here, people complain about the schools, but we've lucked out so far with awesome teachers, it's expensive to fly to mainland, but you can fly Space A if you have patience and time. I think either option would be a fine choice. 

Thanks so much for your input!! 

I agree with everything Irish said in regards to how the bases are. I love Pendleton but my husband, my daughter and I miss Hawaii desperately. I would love to back in a heartbeat. 

Did either of you have small kids? My son will be 4 when we go and if we got pregnant this month we would have a 3 or 4 month old moving over there. I am nervous about taking a small baby over there. If we are not pregnant this month we are going to stop trying so that we can just enjoy as many activities as possible with our son there. 

Plus I worry about flying that far and moving to a place where I dont know anyone with a newborn. 

I was pregnant with my first daughter when we flew to HI. And a year later I was pregnant with my 2nd daughter. So I carried both pregnancies in HI and gave birth at Tripler Army Hosp. My daughters were just hitting toddler ages when we left. To this day they remember living there and events that happened. I went to school in Vista and College in San Diego. Oceanside is my home, yet, I'd still prefer to live in HI. My husband has never been to HI so we are all hoping he gets orders there after his current duty station. At least twice a month my girls beg my husband (their step-father) to get orders to HI. LoL, more so now bc a few of their school friends got orders to HI. 

That is so good to hear!! Neither of us have been to Hawaii but DH has been to cali, japan, deployed, and NC so he would like to go to HI so we could all expereince something new. I am really REALLY hoping he can get orders there. 

I don't know how to compare to Hawaii, but I'm from Maine and the only things I like about sounthern California is the beach, big wave ocean, and the produce. I don't really like much else about it. 

I moved out there with my 4 year old and she went to Kailua Elementary. My husband deployed 2 weeks after I moved there. Long story short I wasn't planning on moving until after the deployment, went there to visit on my spring break from college and couldn't get on the plane to go back home and leave him. lol Anyways, at first it felt like I was in a foreign country all by myself with my kid but we got to know people out in town and from the school and they were amazing. They are people I could go back and visit here 6 years later and it would be like we never left. I had my second the august before we left (we left in Jan) and it didn't stop us at all. We still went to the beach all the time, we did a ton of stuff. 

DO the base houses in HI include appliances? Will we need to take a washer, dryer, fridge, or stove? Also how many bedroom will a family of 3 get? Will we get the two we need or an extra room? Also what are the sizes (approx) of the rooms? We are looking to buy new furniture and want to make sure it will fit. Also my son has a twin size car bed, will it fit in his room? 

Hawaii base housing on MCBH Kaneohe Bay, includes all appliances AND washer/dryer. If you end up on the other bases, they have different rules. We are on an Army base and they only provide washer/dryer for E4 and below, so we bought a new set once we arrived (we sold our front loaders because we had a gas dryer, no gas on the bases). The houses on the bases are decent size and you'll most likely get a 3-bedroom if you wait for on-base. The rooms are all decent size, I think the KBay homes are smaller, their great room is so much smaller than my great room on the Army post, but bedrooms are a good size. :) I made a video on Youtube of the walk-thru of our new house when we signed the lease, let me know if you want to see it and I'll look for the link. We lucked out and snuck right into brand-new housing, built specifically for DH's rank, so we only spent 20 days on TLA waiting for the house to finish being built. I have TONS of info about moving to HI, I don't want to inundate you. lol 

I had a huge house in Hawaii when my husband was e4. Let me see if I can find some pics for you. 

Lovebug I messaged you. 

Thnak you for th epm Maleficient!

IrishTwins please feel free to pm me ANY info you think will help. This is a really bug deal and I like to know as much as I can. Even little things- like which cell phone service works best (My husband just told me to ask that lol). 

When we lived in HI, my ex was E5 and we were a family of 3 living in a 3 bdrm by the big Xchange off the Nimitz(walking distance). And the walk-in closets in the hallway are big enough to turn into a playroom, that's what I did at least. It could be different with different housings/bases, however, if I recall correctly, all the houses near the big Xchange and in Pearl City came with w/d and all other major appliances. 

from what i've heard, some people end up not liking hawaii because you run out of things to do after a while and some people say the locals also hate the military. i would also think it would be hard to visit folks back on the mainland. also, access to certain things would probably also be more expensive. if you like the outdoors and the beach, then maybe you can find some things to do. if you haven't already, look up usmclife.com. i think that's the right address. it has a lot of information about bases. 

And the walk-in closets in the hallway are big enough to turn into a playroom, that's what I did at least.

I understand getting creative, but you turned a closet into a playroom? Sad. LOL 

from what i've heard, some people end up not liking hawaii because you run out of things to do after a while and some people say the locals also hate the military. i would also think it would be hard to visit folks back on the mainland. also, access to certain things would probably also be more expensive. if you like the outdoors and the beach, then maybe you can find some things to do. if you haven't already, look up usmclife.com. i think that's the right address. it has a lot of information about bases. 

In our experience, the local Hawaiian people have been warm and welcoming, it's been the other military kids who have been awful. That was surprising to me, I was naive and figured they'd kind of want to stick together, but that has not been the case, at least in regards to 5th/6th grade. 

In our experience, the local people have been warm and welcoming, it's been the other military kids who have been awful. That was surprising to me, I was naive and figured they'd kind of want to stick together, but that has not been the case, at least in regards to 5th/6th grade.
I have a 4yo boy and have discovered this as well here on Pendleton. I was shocked of how spoiled these children are. I would think their parents could teach them a little respect. I am little tough on my kids but when the neighbor kids hear how I scold my son they feel they have the right to boss him around too. I wish I could get the point across that maybe they should be hearing the same words and applying them to their own situation. 

Hawaiians are SOOOOO friendly! This is the biggest myth going about Hawaii. The problem lies with the single Marine who like to go out, get drunk and fights break out between locals and the Marines. Once you are friends with these people, they treat you like family for life. Seriously, they are amazing people. 

^^ agree with Maleficent 100%. Although we have only done some extended Hawaiian visiting, we like to get off the beaten path and not do just the touristy stuff. The locals we have met are amazing, very welcoming. Once they start calling you cousin, that's it, you are family. 

If you come to Pendleton, look off base for housing. I think others will agree 

If you come to Pendleton, look off base for housing. I think others will agree
There are a lot of benefits for families on base though. I count the days until we can go back home, but I thank God my children are well looked after with all the events and free activities granted to them.