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Comment by gonavymom on December 28, 2015 at 9:55pm

Welcome new moms and Happy Holidays to all.  I can answer laundry questions since I got to spend a week on the carrier for Tiger Cruise last June.  They are responsible for their own laundry (even officers) so no need to mark everything.  They can buy laundry detergent, etc on the ship. Almost everyone uses the laundry pods, they are small and space is a premium.  They all seem to bring the memory foam mattress toppers and almost everyone uses lots of different hot sauces in the mess.  For care packages, I found that metal tins kept cookies fresher and better protected.  Don't send anything in glass, my DIL made the mistake and DS received a bunch of broken glass.  There is a great library on the ship but DS really enjoyed all the books that I sent and shared them with his squadron.  You can also get smoked salmon that doesn't need to be refrigerated and that is a big hit.  If you get the opportunity to go on Tiger Cruise, don't miss it!  It was the experience of a lifetime and it was such a privilege to sail with the outstanding, highly professional men and women of our US Navy. Here are some pictures and in case you can't tell, my smile was from ear to ear the whole week long.  

Comment by CheriH on December 22, 2015 at 12:48pm

Welcome Navygal'15!  Tell us about your aviator and yourself.  And feel free to ask any questions.  We've all been there...and still are sometimes!

Congratulations on the winging Kama...As Marianne said, winging is worth all the twists and turns in the road. 

Barb- so glad you have your DS for Christmas!  Enjoy.  Tell me about patching.  Is he in a 1 seat or 2?  Does he know when he will deploy?

Thanks to those who responded about care packages...I know I will need that info relatively soon.  Good to hear from those with experience!

Merry Christmas to all...may you be blessed to see or hear from your aviators!

Comment by Marianne on December 16, 2015 at 11:09am

Campbellm: I'm not 100% sure, but since DS was often complaining that the laundry shrunk his socks and Ts, I am assuming that officers get their laundry done on board. I'd check with him, but he is off training again!

Kama: Congratulations! Sometimes the road is really crooked, but he got there. Winging is am amazing ceremony that you'll never forget.

Peace & Blessings to all and your children. I'm blessed to have my DS coming home, but I also have been through the years of deployment overseas. I hope that those who are in that position will get a chance to talk to your LOs.

I'm praying for our children and all others who serve. May 2016 see them healthy and safe.

Comment by Barb on December 15, 2015 at 9:18pm

Kama,

Congratulations, it's an amazing time!  All's right in my world, my DS arrived home this morning and will be here for Christmas!

Comment by Kama on December 15, 2015 at 5:20pm

It is finally official. My son is getting winged. Hoping for him to get the selection he wants. So far he hasn't had much luck with his selections. Maybe this time! I have made him a quilt with US Navy fabric and have incorporated patches from his military journey throughout the design. Turned out quite nicely for my first quilt! So proud to be a part of this community and for my son who has struggled and persevered for 6 years to get to this point. Bravo Zulu.

Comment by campbellm on December 15, 2015 at 5:06pm

Thanks Marianne and NavyMominOhio!  I will figure this stuff out eventually.  Great suggestions!  By the way, if I send sheets and towels, how do they get laundered?  Do you just mark them with a laundry pen or are they on their own for personal laundry?

Comment by Marianne on December 11, 2015 at 3:54pm

Campbellm:

Congratulations on the winging! You really have it right when you say that they never stop training. My DS is an instructor at Top Gun (after 3 years in Japan) and he's still taking on online course right now.

Go to the U.S. Post Office website and have them deliver a carton of flat rate military boxes for free. They are great and get priority. Mine averaged 10 days to the Far East and never more than 14.

Email is the best way to keep in touch on deployment aboard a carrier. They have limited bandwidth, so how often they can get on is dependent on what they are doing. A tablet is great for using face-to-face talks when they are in a port.

Appreciated while at sea: Sheets (XL twin) and towels. DS described the Navy issued ones as "awful." Socks (athletic & boot) are always welcome. Food is pretty bland, so we would always send hot sauce. There are actually really tiny bottles of Tabasco that my guy would carry in his flight suit!

Magazines are enjoyed by the whole squadron. A number of my friends would save everything from National Geographic to car magazines. They are heavy, but the flat rate boxes don't have weight limits. Go Post Office! DS would put them in the wardroom & ready room.

Any treats to share are appreciated. Be careful about chocolate, though. It can be a melted mess in hot climates. Action movies are great. I shipped over all the old Terminator and Die Hard movies and they would have marathons.

Remember they have very limited storage space, so save the lovely homemade afghan, quilt, etc. for when they are in port.

Good luck on the next step in The Great Adventure (as my family now calls Navy life.)

Happy holidays to all and blessings to our children, wherever they may be.

Comment by campbellm on December 11, 2015 at 3:23pm

Greetings everyone!  Well, wings are on, assigned to operational squadron, training continues (as it will until the day they retire), and it is time for the next step - time with a carrier group.  So, since this is a new phase of the adventure for me, how do we communicate with our LOs while they are at sea?  Do they receive mail (e-mail or snail mail) fairly regularly?  How often?  Does it do any good for them to take a cell phone or tablet along?  Are there good gifts to send when they are at sea or preparing to go?  Hoping my DS will be here for Christmas!  Merry Christmas, everyone!

Comment by JudyM on December 7, 2015 at 9:55pm

Kama, welcome to the Navy. Dates are rarely set in stone. I know we ended up with two winging dates. Deployment is not a whole lot different. Dates are flexible.
We spent Thanksgiving in Washington with DS and Dil. So excited they will be with us for Chistmas. Last year he as dployed for both.

Comment by Barb on December 7, 2015 at 3:00pm

Hi Everyone,

It has been quiet lately, CheriH and I'm glad you had your DS and DIL (and Grandbaby!!) for Thanksgiving.  We are counting down until our DS is home for Christmas and we've got him for 3 weeks!!  Today is his last flight in El Centro (maybe they are there together?) and he patched last week!  It's a long haul, Kama, good luck...third time's the charm, right?   Hoping everyone is well...take care!

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