This site is for mothers of kids in the U.S. Navy and for Moms who have questions about Navy life for their kids.

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FOLLOW THESE STEPS TO GET STARTED:

Choose your Username.  For the privacy and safety of you and/or your sailor, NO LAST NAMES ARE ALLOWED, even if your last name differs from that of your sailor (please make sure your URL address does not include your last name either).  Also, please do not include your email address in your user name. Go to "Settings" above to set your Username.  While there, complete your Profile so you can post and share photos and videos of your Sailor and share stories with other moms!

Make sure to read our Community Guidelines and this Navy Operations Security (OPSEC) checklist - loose lips sink ships!

Join groups!  Browse for groups for your PIR date, your sailor's occupational specialty, "A" school, assigned ship, homeport city, your own city or state, and a myriad of other interests. Jump in and introduce yourself!  Start making friends that can last a lifetime.

Link to Navy Speak - Navy Terms & Acronyms: Navy Speak

All Hands Magazine's full length documentary "Making a Sailor": This video follows four recruits through Boot Camp in the spring of 2018 who were assigned to DIV 229, an integrated division, which had PIR on 05/25/2018. 

Boot Camp: Making a Sailor (Full Length Documentary - 2018)

Boot Camp: Behind the Scenes at RTC

...and visit Navy.com - America's Navy and Navy.mil also Navy Live - The Official Blog of the Navy to learn more.

OPSEC - Navy Operations Security

Always keep Navy Operations Security in mind.  In the Navy, it's essential to remember that "loose lips sink ships."  OPSEC is everyone's responsibility. 

DON'T post critical information including future destinations or ports of call; future operations, exercises or missions; deployment or homecoming dates.  

DO be smart, use your head, always think OPSEC when using texts, email, phone, and social media, and watch this video: "Importance of Navy OPSEC."

Follow this link for OPSEC Guidelines:

OPSEC GUIDELINES

Events

**UPDATE 4/26/2022** Effective with the May 6, 2022 PIR 4 guests will be allowed.  Still must be fully vaccinated to attend.

**UPDATE as of 11/10/2022 PIR vaccination is no longer required.

**UPDATE 7/29/2021** You now must be fully vaccinated in order to attend PIR:

In light of observed changes and impact of the Coronavirus Delta Variant and out of an abundance of caution for our recruits, Sailors, staff, and guests, Recruit Training Command is restricting Pass-in-Review (recruit graduation) to ONLY fully immunized guests (14-days post final COVID vaccination dose).  

FOLLOW THIS LINK FOR UP TO DATE INFO:

RTC Graduation

**UPDATE 8/25/2022 - MASK MANDATE IS LIFTED.  Vaccinations still required.

**UPDATE 11/10/22 PIR - Vaccinations no longer required.

RESUMING LIVE PIR - 8/13/2021

Please note! Changes to this guide happened in October 2017. Tickets are now issued for all guests, and all guests must have a ticket to enter base. A separate parking pass is no longer needed to drive on to base for parking.

Please see changes to attending PIR in the PAGES column. The PAGES are located under the member icons on the right side.

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Navy Speak

Click here to learn common Navy terms and acronyms!  (Hint:  When you can speak an entire sentence using only acronyms and one verb, you're truly a Navy mom.)

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Navy.com Para Familias

Visite esta página para explorar en su idioma las oportunidades de educación y carreras para sus hijos en el Navy. Navy.com

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Hello all!  My son left for boot camp on Wednesday.  I am sure you are all familiar with the roller coaster I am on.  Any feedback/advice on Sandboxx?  Thank you!

Views: 403

Replies to This Discussion

My recruits left may 1.  It is absolutely worth the money.  I love it.

Designgirl, i love it. I had a sandbox letter ready to send as soon as i got his "form letter"  so that he would get mail asap.  My recruit gets mail almost everyday, and he has said many times, please send please seed. THe sandboxx letter has an envelope attached, its really easy and quick for them to reply back.  ITs totally worth. I did the 3 letter price, (save like $1).  But i ended up sharing it with a lot of friends, and they signed up too, so i got like 3 free ones.  I have one left im saving for last minute communication the week of PIR. I think the letters are about $4 each. He gets them in about 2 days, depending on when you submit it. We're from Texas, so a letter from here takes 5 or 6 days to get to him. I would use the sandboxx to write to him imediately after getting a phone call from him, just so could get word back to him and afirm all the things he said in his call.  Definitely worth it. You can put a picture in it too. I used an app called PIC Collage to upload several photos and put on one photo so he could have more than one picture on the Sandboxx picture. You could probably do that easily on a computer. THe picture has to be square.  Hope that helps. These first days of waiting are intense!  Also sign up for Informed delivery through usps.com. ITs free, it lets you see what mail you having coming that day by 8am. keep reading posts here, great community here, ask lots of questions! 

Based on reports on here and from a few recent "A" School graduates I have talked to, using the Sandboxx app does get letters to your recruit within a day or two rather than 5 days or more that writing snail mail does while in BC. One had a niece born while he was in BC and he was happy to get the news with a pic the next day through Sandboxx while a snail mail letter with the news came 8 or 10 days later. They all agreed that they also liked getting cards and handwritten letters and one said the hand written letters were special to him "because he knew Mom had actually touched them and he could see the love in her writing." He was teased a bit about that, but this mom gave him a hug and I understand what he meant.

While in "A" School they said that they liked packages better than letters and could call or text loved ones almost every day.

What is sandbox? I have seen a lot of people talking about it, but haven't figured out, other than an app, what or how to use it.

Thanks for your help!!

Hello, our SR left May 8th. I know exactly what your going through. I use sandboxx and love it. I just pay by letter which is 4$ a letter but they do have packages you can purchase for multiple letters. You can also attach pictures to your letters. It's really a neat app.

Love Sandboxx! The letters get there the next day.  Had some issues in sending letters on a Saturday or Sunday. Those usually get there the following Wednesday or Thursday. If I were to do it all over again, I would just wait and send the letter on Monday before 5 o’clock so it gets there Tuesday night. Definitely use it and send a picture with each letter. Definitely use it and send a picture with each letter.

Also get the referral link. If someone else uses the app you get a free letter credit.

I used the sandboxx app and when my son called me today he said he got it quickly and encouraged me to use it, I am going to send him a combination of Sandboxx letters and written cards to help him keep in touch and to provide support. When you refer others to use it you can get free letters.

Thank you all!  I am signing up right now.  Enjoy your weekend!

Hello, my son has been in BC for aprox 3 weeks now and I am just now seeing the "sandbox". Could anyone please explain this process to me? I have been sending letters almost everyday and I am worried he may not be getting them. I also just realized I have not been including the ship name in the address but I have included the ship number and division. Thanks in advance. 

Hi Amanda, I thought I had replied through email on my phone but not seeing my response. Our SR left on May 8th and I have been using sandboxx and using usps. I love the sandboxx app, your letters get to the Navy Training Command the next day as long as you get the letter wrote Monday-Friday by 5pm. We got to talk to our SR on Sunday and he said that he hadn't received our letters yet due to the mail recruit not being trained yet, ( I'm sorry I can't remember the term for the mail recruit) Any how, from what I understand, you don't need the ship name. All you need is the ship number and the div number. Hope this gives you some comfort. 

Tabitha, thank you so much, you’re words are comforting. I just hate the thought of him thinking we aren’t writing to him. I’ll download the sandbox app on my phone, I hope it’s self explanatory because I’m not that tech savvy lol. Thanks again and if there’s ever anything I can do for you let me know. 

Amanda, No problem at all. I have found this community to be very helpful and comforting. I have never been so emotional in my life until our SR who is the oldest of 5, left on May 3rd. :) The sandboxx app is pretty easy to use. If you run across any problems, I'll be more then happy to help if I can. :) 

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