Flying and GI Bill
To Z06stinger;
BLUF: IMHO, fly ME in the CONUS, prep for retirement, and get the GI Bill transferred. Go C-12 your a$$ off, and fly some local stuff on the weekends just for fun.
Let's talk college; is daughter #1 going to a low-cost state school, or a pricey private school? I'm assuming you don't have a big 529 nest egg saved up since you're planning GI Bill. And that's OK, the GI Bill, with Yellow Ribbon, is AMAZING. If she wants to go to (Pick a name) State U, she can attend ANY State U on the GI Bill at In-State tuition if she enrolls within 3 yrs of your retirement. That's in all 50 states...
If she's looking for that Ivy League program...the GI-Bill with Yellow Ribbon will cover a huge chunk of it, and in many cases, ALL of it. My daughter will attend a pricey Private school, and the Yellow Ribbon will cover all of it. Zero cost to me...nada...zilch. PM me for more details if you'd like. I feel truly blessed to take adv of the opportunity. She has earned it, and I can provide it thanks to GI Bill w/ YR. All I did was keep making O-5 pay for a few more years beyond 20.
Now I can focus on slogging it out in the regionals for several years (I'm not there yet), eating Ramen noodles as a family on low wages, with out worrying about how to pay for college.
I have my full (top 3) O-5 pay, a nice VA check each month to help offset the regional low pay, and the wife can go work at Wally World or something. But I don't have to worry about paying for college.
Just my 2 cents, best of luck in your planning.