Son in Boot Camp. Siblings having a hard time adjusting

[Shannon]

My Son left for Boot Camp 10/26 and will graduate right before Christmas.  Any one else have that time schedule?  He has been able to call once.  He is doing good and so far does not regret his choice. My youngest child is 11.  He really misses his big brother.  Has anyone else gone or are going through this?  Right now I just have the kids write him letters and we talk about how great it is going to be to see him next month.

[Shannon]

That is a good ideal. We will work on that this weekend. I think Thanksgiving will be hard on everyone. We will just have to get through it as best we can and keep a positive attitude about it.

[Cindy in Snowy MN]

Dear Helen, I see you are from Ham Lake...I am very close to you in Circle Pines MN...

[Cindy in Snowy MN]

Shannon, my son also left on 10/26 and my youngest son of 12 is also having a hard time adjusting...he misses his older brother very much! When my SR called home, my 12 year old cried when he had to hang up the phone! He writes him every day to let him know how his school day went and what else is going on, this seems to help...but not a day or evening goes by that he doesn't say "I wish "E" Was home!" What is your son's division and PIR date?

Hang in there!

[2navymen02div915]

I know my daughter will be sad, her eyes tear up already when we bring it up. We have two leaving on the same day. My oldest and my second son will be missed and the fact that the leave on the same day will no doubt me me feel so so so sad. : (

We are planning a thanksgiving together since they will leave soon. I hate the way the days fly by now... tick tick tick

[EDS - USS Ronald Reagan, Japan]

My son also left on 10/26 which was also his 19th birthday out of San Diego. We'll be heading out too for graduation before Christmas. He too was able to call once which was quite a welcomed surprise. So far adjusting has been hard. I no longer include his likes an dislikes with what's for dinner. But when we do have his fav's we talk about how much he likes it and eats to his hearts content. Can't chat anymore about how work was and what he's doing for the weekend. We really haven't touched his room much. Only opened the box that came back with his personal belongings long enough to get him a number from his cell when he called. It's still in the box. I passed on his mailing address to family and friends asking them to write him for support. Can't wait to see him next month. We really miss him.

[JessicaB-Sailor Mom]

eDAMIANsanchez here is the link to your PIR group http://www.navyformoms.com/group/pir12222010

[EDS - USS Ronald Reagan, Japan]

Thank you so much for the link.

[Charlotte Anne]

My son just left today. I had to pull my 15 year old daughter off of him. I never thought this would be the issue. They are close but are both into their own lives, I wasn't really worried about her. So I understand what you mean.

[Cindy in Snowy MN]

Hugs Charlotte!!!

[skell456 (AO wife)]

I haven't thought about how my sibilings will handle my absence. My husband is joining, but he is very close to them and eventually I will also be gone. It is a hard thing to go through so Thank you for this question. I hope the very best for you and your family as well. My advice would be just to let him watch videos about the Navy so he knows what his big brother is doing with his life. Make it very positive and proud for him. Keep sending letters and pictures. Let him know that someday he can follow in his footsteps and be just as great as his brother!!! Good Luck!!!

[dj's mom]

My oldest left May26th for basic and his litte sister was 8 and in love with him. She had a hard time. I talked to her teacher and she had her class write him letters. It made her feel better and it sure made my son feel great to get them all. It will be nice that you will see him around Christmas. The letters make it so much nicer for our sailors. Just make sure the kids know that he does't have much time to write back but he sure looks forward to hearing from them. Once he is out of basic consider putting skype on your computer and his if he has one. Being able to se her brother helped his little sister alot. Good luck and Congrats

[kathy]

My son left for boot camp on 10/25 and will graduate the week before Christmas if all goes as planned. I am still trying to figure out how to pay for his plane ticket home. His younger brother is missing him, but does not express his feelings well. He has some special needs and is visually impaired so he relied on his big brother a lot and so did I. So, I am not sure who misses him more. My son was never big on writing letters, but he is now asking me to get him addresses for his friends so that he can write to them. Sending letters helps us all feel a little closer. I also sent him a letter with a update on one of his favorite tv shows (mine too) which wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. The time has already gone by more quickly than I expected, so it won't be long before they are home. Hang in there!