*ARMY WIVES and MOMS....boyfriend/husband/fath… joining army?!?!?

My boyfriend is joining the army soon and we just had our first little girl on October 2nd :), but joining the army is something my boyfriend has always wanted to do and i want to support him but my question is how do you wives and mothers of army husbands cope while he is gone? My boyfriend is leaving at the beginning of the year for basic which is 5 months long and then in 2010 he leaves for Washington for a year, my daughter and i can go and see him when ever we want but still, so my main question is did you and your husband grow a strong relationship while he was away or did y'all drift apart and your marriage steadily worsen over the months/years?