Can't help on schedules, as you are able bid for schedules that fit your preferences once you have enough seniority. Starting off, on reserve, you get 11 days off a month. You bid either am or pm shifts. This means you either fly in the night before, or fly out the following morning. You can expect to get mostly, only two days off between trips, with a 3 or 4 off inbetween. As a commuter, anything less than 3 off between trips will eat you away internally until you either quit or move to base. You have a family, so I'd imagine you'd give it 6 months before you say its enough. Should you hang around long enough to have seniority, you could possibly get 13 days off a month with 3 in between on the CRJ side. I can't answer your questions with the United side of the operation. Generally the United side is considered to have much better schedules. Your primary consideration should be an easy commute, don't underestimate the importance of having a higher priority while commuting on American. If you are on United, you won't have to worry about any wholy-owns bumping you.