This site is for mothers of kids in the U.S. Navy and for Moms who have questions about Navy life for their kids.
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.
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:
**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:
**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.
Format Downloads:
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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Visite esta página para explorar en su idioma las oportunidades de educación y carreras para sus hijos en el Navy. Navy.com
My son leaves for bootcamp on Monday. He was originally scheduled for December 20th. Before Christmas, but close enough that we could have had an early Christmas and it would have felt like it. We were only told a couple weeks ago that they would be moving up the date and then only yesterday that it would be Monday. I keep crying like a little baby. It seems so silly because it isn't like he'll be gone forever. My husband and younger son think I'm silly for crying, but I can't seem to help myself. Are there any other mothers out there struggling with this?
They say it's empty nest, but I still have my younger son around. I guess I just worry how my older son will handle bootcamp. He made this choice all on his own and we support him completely and are extremely proud of him. He keeps counting down the days and telling me to see my reaction I think. I have tried not to cry around him even though he knows I will come Monday.
I would appreciate hearing from any mothers who have been there or are there now.
Tags:
Tammy, the first thing to do is to go back to page 27 to your comment which mentioned your son by name. You'll see a little "x" on the upper right of that comment. CLICK ON THIS. It will delete this message. Feel free to repose without disclosing your son's real name. You do not want your comments (whatever they may be) to be connected with your recruit at boot camp. As moms, we tend to get emotional and it's reflected in the words we express. At bootcamp, this is not necessarily good for our recruits if a connection was made. The sailor recruits are there to be trained to be part of a huge military organization. To some degree, they have to separate a bit from loved ones - in particular mommas.
Your departure date is not until April. Enjoy you time with your depper. One suggestion I have is to concentrate on getting your son ready - physically, emotionally, spiritually. He should join Craig's NavyDep.com group if he hasn't - the link is in my previous post. When you know that he is ready for this adventure, ready to explore the world, ready to become a man, you'll be more ready to let him go. Yes, they will always be our babies - just DON'T remind him - EVER.
Deleted his name, sorry about that.
Hello, new moms. We are lucky enough to have a number of dedicated moms in a number of groups (like the Bootcamp Moms and the PIR groups) who devote countless hours to making your journey as easy as possible. There is so much to learn. It's easy to feel overwhelmed. Follow the suggestions outlined below. I think this will help you develop a sense of where to go for information, what to do and a "picture" of what your recruit will be going through. Best of luck to you and your sailor recruit. BunkerQB.
P.S. Save this link. The information can be retrieve any time you need.
SURVIVAL GUIDE FOR NAVY FOR MOMS NEWBIE
STEP 1 - This is the official website from the Navy contains information for recruits & families. Here you'll find the phone number/email for the Public Affairs Office, FAQs, mission statement for the Recruit Training Command, the history of the program. Here is where you will find the graduation dates for various Training Groups and the link to get your password for parking at graduation (call PIR Pass In Review).
Recruit Training Command - Main Page (clickable link)
STEP 2 - Study this fantastic power point presentation made by Craig, a N4M member. He was in the Navy himself and has a son in the Navy. He has a website JUST for the recruits. If your son/daughter is struggling with getting answer, this site may be for him/her.
NAVY DEP.com (clickable link)
In the PDF files below, you'll see maps of the Recruit Training Center at Great Lakes, the ILL area, photos, diagrams, a list of the addresses of the "ships", - a great overview of the beginning processing days. It will take you from the beginning when your recruits arrives at Great Lake to the end of processing days - you will feel like YOU have been processed too. This link opens up a PDF file. You can print a hard copy. If you are downloading this for the first time - it may take a minute or two (depending on the speed of your computer - possibly longer - be patient). You can also save this file to your own hard drive for future reference. But don't worry it'll always be here.
Boot_Camp_Processing_Days_P_days.pdf
Aerial_View_of_Camp_John_Paul_Jones.pdf
Battle_Stations_Part1_of_2.pdf
Battle_Stations_Part2_of_2.pdf
Keep in mind that the "ships" at Boot Camp refer to barracks. For example Ship 12 is USS Triton which may house more than one division. The real USS Triton has been decommissioned.
Here is a diagram of the location of the various barracks.
STEP 3 - Watch the five videos. It will give you a really good idea what your recruit will be going trhough. PIR stands for Pass In Review (Graduation From Boot Camp).
CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING:
New Video "Welcome To Boot Camp - Processing Day" (Navy Live) (click here)
New Video "Return To Boot Camp - Reveille" (click here)
New Video "Return To Boot Camp - PT Physical Training" (click here)
New Video "Return To Boot Camp - Preview of Battle Stations, PIR" (click here)
New Video "Return To Boot Camp - Battle Stations, PIR/Graduation &a... (click here)
STEP 4 - Get to know the Navy For Moms site. Just underneath the big blue Navy For Moms masthead, you will find a menu bar with a bunch of tabs. The tabs you will quickly become acquainted with will be "MY PAGE", "EVENTS", "FORUMS", "GROUPS", "BLOGS" and "CHAT"
KEEP THESE TIPS IN MIND ON USING THIS SITE:
STEP 5- Getting Involved, Joining Groups, Preparing for PIR and other stuff.
This is an on going project, please feel free to make suggestions. We will revise this periodically. Please note - if someone out there would like to revise/rewrite this, please feel free to give it a shot. BQB
My son is also leaving on Monday. I am having a hard time, I keep praying for God to give me strength to see him go. I think we all feel like we have done our job raising them and now they are off to a new journey. Time went by so fast that its hard to let go. The pain hits me in waves. I am fine and then all of sudden I start crying. Today he emptied out his closet. He only left a few things. It is so painful. I am glad that I am not the only one feeling this way. I think that us moms need to have a voice. We are letting go in silence, I feel that none understands our sorrow. So you are not alone. Thank you for sharing. We must think that they are going to become better men.
Jenny
I never thought I would be so sad about his room being clean. He checks into the hotel on Monday afternoon so its getting really close. His brother is coming in from college tomorrow to spend some time with him so that will be a big happy/sad thing. Just think, we thought when they got older that being a mom would get easier. Boy, was I wrong. I can't believe that over the next several years I will hardly ever see him. I guess I'm going to become a big letter writer. I just keep trying to hold it together so that I'm not crying in front of him. I know this is really challenging for him in a lot of ways too. He's also sad because his best friend wanted to join but has a heart condition and couldn't so he feels like he is abonding his friend. Its hard when all the other friends in their age group are off at college and these are the last ones their age left. He has had a little trouble sleeping the last week but that is probably normal. Right?
I know how you feel. I cried for 2 days. Cried so much my eyes almost swelled shut. I have the one child so when he left for boot camp it was overwhelming for me. But I lived for his letters and any phone call we got. He has been in for six years and he has been deployed twice. He is now doing his shore duty which is great. Hang in there, and hopefully you will be able to attend his bootcamp graduation.
My youngest son leaves in five days. I'm keeping a brave face in front of him but inside I'm a mess. Don't feel silly for cyring, it's a normal emotion. Although fathers and brothers have their own special relationships, we mothers have a bond that fathers and brothers don't really understand. We are "sort-of" empty nesters also. My older son is a senior at college and will be home after he graduates but only for a short time as he is planning to attend grad school in Colorado or Arizona. We haven't truly had the house to ourselves in 23 years! I keep joking with Ty that I don't know what upsets me more, him leaving or knowing that I will be stuck with his father all by myself. He just laughs and rolls his eyes at me. Anyway, I hope you are feeling a little better now that you are into this a few weeks. Just know that you are not the only one and that my time to say goodbye (eyes tearing up right now just typing this) will be here all too soon. I plan to take the day off from work, attend the swearing in ceremony, and then go home and cry the entire afternoon. I have a math class that night so hopefully I will be able to concentrate that evening. I'm not a big math fan but for once it will be a nice distraction.
Take care everyone and have a wonderful weekend!
Im trying to stay stong for my son too, trying not to cry in front of him. But it is hard. Hes leaving in april. Im going to be a mess. I cry everytime I read other posting. He has never been away from me. everyone keeps saying Ive got to let him go, hes a adult now. I dont want to it hurts too bad.
My son is leaving for bootcamp on the 6th,and i too,are having the same feelings as you are and im also in the same situation with a younger son at home,,,im at a loss ,like you,,i think its normal to be feeling this way because we are their mother,,
My son left on Monday, 1/30/12 and I'm still crying, so don't feel bad, its a very emotional experience, we raise our children to go out into the world and experience the journey of left but we are never willing to let go!!!
Just checking on you to see how you are doing, When my son leaves i dont know how im going to react. he leaves april 4.
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