The Cyber Sisterhood

Oh wow Janet. I will be thinking about you through the process again. Let me know how everything goes.

The Army called yesterday, they want Sean (younger son). I told them they could arm-wrestle the Navy for him.

I've discovered what I believe to be the most refreshing drink in this unbelievable heat. Perrier water with lime,

It's very quiet around here. : (

Shhhh! Be vewy vewy quiet, I'z huntin' a sailor!

Lol :))

Chris is coming home some time in the next week. He gets his travel itinerary Monday, and may be flying home as soon as Wednesday. Then he has to report to Japan by Aug. 30.

That's a nice long visit, Arwen! When was he last at home?

My sailor and I are so excited. His mom is coming out to see us next weekend and it till be the first time we have seen her since PIR!!

That's a long time, Janie. It will be exciting to have her come visit y'all!!

Slimsam, sorry you missed talking to Sam over the weekend. The time difference must be an adjustment. I haven't had that experience yet.

Rebecca started the 7th grade today. Bless her heart, she could not fall asleep last night. It was 1am before she was able to sleep. I'm praying she has a good day. She's going to try to get straight A's this 9 weeks. Her Sailor brother told her if she got straight A's for the entire year that he'd buy her a cell phone!! She has plans to hold him to it! I hope so. It's a big order, but she can do it.

Lol!! Well, that's encouraging news, Slimsam! I'll share that story with her!! I HOPE her brother will have to live to regret it too!! : )

Wow Janie! I hope you enjoy her visit! How much longer do you have there before you get orders again?

Slimsam, that was always something I'm sad to say that I miss...the time difference that is. It stops people you don't want calling all the time from calling. Plus then you know something is wrong if they call at 2am and don't stop until you pick up.

It's been crazy around here. We finally only have a few more boxes to unpack from forever ago. Shawn took me to firing range the other day and we both kicked butt and it was our first time. The people we were with just kept saying it's because we are from the south. I'd never even held a gun before then. With physical therapy and playing soccer I have been dead lately. Let's just hope that we score at our game tonight!

Thanks everyone. I love her to death so I'm sure we will have tons of fun. We are taking her on a tour of the sub so she's really excited.
Sarah - We will get new orders when he grads A school the first week of Nov. I'm excited but nervous all that the same time.

Chris received his travel itinerary today. He comes home Friday. They are giving him a flight almost all the way home, but at the most inconvenient airport possible. LOL, at least it's a 10 hour round-trip, rather than the expected 10-hour one-way. We weren't expecting the Navy to pick up the tab to get him this close to home, so I find I must muffle my complaints.

Slimsam, I will be careful. I'm just playing on the command team because they have a rule that there must be 2 girls on the field at all times. It's indoor on a smaller field and the games are less then an hour. The practices are long but all the guys know about my issues and they all are very encouraging no matter how bad I am. Plus Shawn is playing with me and watches me more carefully then I would like him to so he is right there if needed.

Sandra~ Keeping Nichelle in my thoughts and prayers. Her spirit is amazing. Keep us update.

I'm sorry Nichelle has been unable to carry her pregnancies to term, I have close relatives who have been through that heartbreak. Having been pregnant in the Navy (I also miscarried) I know it's no picnic. I wasn't able to carry a pregnancy to term until after I left the Navy, when the stresses went away. My sister-in-law quit her 8-year blossoming Navy career after multiple miscarriages. And the Navy isn't terribly supportive, they really frown on pregnancies among women E-4 and below, especially in the first few years. So you need to give her as much support as you can. Sadly there are those who will be talking behind her back saying nasty things about new female sailors who dare get pregnant.

The first few years in the Navy are rough on the body and really stressful. Sometimes our bodies are telling us what our minds don't want to hear. Maybe she can use these next few years as a chance to let her body heal, come to some kind of physical and emotional balance, and try again when her Navy life is more settled.

Sandra - I am so sorry and I will keep Nichelle in my thoughts. Ryan and I have lost 3 babies since we have been married so I know how heart breaking it can be. I can say that the Navy has been extremely supportive with us and helping figure out a great doctor. An office that works in medical actually referred me to the Yale Infertility Clinic and they have been doing wonders with my entire system. If they are considering adoption we were told to look into a few programs when I learn more about them I will let you know. One is that someone mentioned the Navy assisting with all of the adoption fees and there's always being a foster parent for babies with the chance of adoption. Then they wouldn't be paying anything out of pocket for the adoption. I have several friends that have went this route and adopted new borns fairly quickly.

No problem Sandra I am more than happy to share with her. I will email you my facebook info.

That has to be heartbreaking. Prayers for Nichelle. God will guide her and he will put the right people in her path who can comfort her and give her the hope, guidance and information that she needs. She's still very young and there's time for things to work out either through a successful pregnancy or adoption.

Chris called from the Chicago airport, he's on his way home! Erin (my youngest) started making a welcome-home sign for him - WELCOME HOME SAILOR CHRIS. My husband asked if he's related to Sailor Moon and Sailor Jupiter.... lol.

AWESOME, Arwen!!! Hope you have a wonderful time with Chris. :)

Good Morning Ladies~
Sandra~ Sign me up.:)

Chris is home. We dragged our sorry hineys in the door at 3:30 am. Ugh. I do not like midnight flights, Sam I Am.

The dog freaked out when she saw him, barking her head off. She did NOT like his whites. He had to change into shorts and a t-shirt before she realized it was him and stopped freaking out about this scary person in our house.

Thought everyone would like to see my new tattoo and yes my parents are okay with it. They just don't know I got this one yet.

Sandra- I hope Nichelle gets some answers and that they are able to find a solution.

Arwen- I'm glad Chris is home and finally done with schooling. That just means you can start saving so you can visit him.

Donna- Keep us posted on where she gets.

Kyle Melissa~ Welcome :)). The more..the merrier.

You know there is a tattoo group? It's at http://www.navyformoms.com/group/tattooshop

Did you know that you can call 1-800-610-8734 opt 1, then opt 1 again. Tell them you want the military package. They will send you 6 priority pack N ship boxes of various sizes. Along with packing supplies and tape.

You can also print your postage online and save up to 40%. Just DO NOT tape over the bar code.

www.usps.com and click on Qucik N Ship. You can even schedule a pick up. You can also reorder as well from the site. Nice to have on hand. It takes about 7 to 10 days to receive.

One person told me that she buys some things in bulk for her soldier that she knows he wants and then she keeps this on hand at home. Then she has the boxes already there on hand, tape and all and 1,2,3 she just takes it to the post office or arranges for them to pick it up!! Nice for moms with small kids, busy parents who only have the weekend or for those who cannot get around town due to any reason. They can STILL send their loved one care packages right from home!!

Hey Ladies~ A list would be awesome. We adopted a Seal team a couple of years ago. We sent everything from Dr. Scholl's inserts to candy.
Tricia~ Great info.
Colleen~ That is too funny (rooms). I texted Ed with the info and he replied, "Yep." lol. Keeping my fingers crossed all will go well during Power.

Check it out! Go Navy!
http://www.king5.com/news/steel-bridge-skokomish-river-100949169.html

I don't see that either. Someone told me about that from my Army group. If I can get more info regarding it I'll post it here. Perhaps it is something they had but no longer have. It was in June or July when she said this. I'll see what I can find out, although I just looked pretty thoroughly and did not see it.

That's sooo exciting, Colleen! How nice and wonderful people can be. I find it hard to ask people for things, but in order to help our sailors, soldiers and airmen I'm determined to become stronger regarding that.

Just so y'all know, right now I am currently involved in the Hugs Project helping to get the Christmas gifts ready to send to our troops. I'm keeping track of what y'all are doing too, and I do believe the Hugs Project also does things for our sailors as well not just the Marines and Army. I'll let you know what I find out.

So far I have made lots of survival bracelets which are a really neat thing for them. I'll explain what they are in another post.

This is sooo good that we're all getting active and involved in "helping them". Hooray! I love it and I know that y'all do too. There's never been anything that means so much to me as these projects do because I know how much it means to THEM!

I need to go to work tomorrow to recover from my weekend. We went camping in the redwoods with my parents. For them it was a day-long trip, for us it's a half-hour drive. Here's photos from our visit.

We finally found something that dwarfs Chris!

One of the many stumps left from building a road through the redwoods...

Oh, remember for scale, Chris (in blue) is 6'5"

Hi Moms. I'll catch up here tomorrow on everyone. I just wanted to tell you that I had the nicest time at a Military Mom's dinner tonight. Most of the moms were Marine moms, but there was one Navy mom. Her son just finished "Hell Week" in Coronado, Ca training to become a Navy SEAL. Wow. She was so excited for him and rooting for him so much. It is his third try. That is SO hard to accomplish. I told her I'd pray for her son everyday. I just know he's going to make it. It was very exciting meeting another Navy mom. God bless then all! We're all so proud.

There was also another mom whose Marine son was badly injured in A'stan and he is home recovering. God bless him. Her story was heart wrenching. He's going through a tough time.

There was another mom AND dad there. Their son just left for his 2nd time in A'stan. God bless them too.

And all the other moms were all so nice. It was a very special time!

There's a large wildfire some miles east of us. It's not threatening us at all, but the wind has shifted and we're getting all the smoke. The smoke is setting off Chris' hay fever nasty bad, he's suffering. Poor guy, he actually had to go to the urgent care clinic yesterday.

There was no problem with his using his ID card for insurance. That's probably because we have a lot of Coast Guard around here, they're accustomed to seeing it.

Arwen, I hope Chris feels better soon.

So once again I'm broken. I won't know exactly what's wrong until the morning and hopefully it is something that rest will help. Sometime last week my ankle started hurting and as of last night I can no longer put any weight on it without bursting into tears. Like I said, hopefully it won't be to bad but what concerns me is I am swollen only in one area and it's more of a bubble. I guess we will see in the morning if it's anything to worry about. It's a good thing I have crutches!

Anyone have any news on how Melissa is doing?

Sarah, I really hope that you will feel better soon.

Arwen, I'm sorry to heat that Chris has been ill too.

The meds they gave him (simple allergy meds) are working very well, Chris is feeling much better. Also, the smoke is going some other direction, so he may not need them much longer.

Charley, a new retiree-greeter at Wal-Mart, just couldn't seem to get to work on time. Every day he was 5, 10, 15 minutes late. But he was a good worker, really tidy, clean-shaven, sharp minded and a real credit to the company and obviously demonstrating their "Older Person Friendly" policies.

One day the boss called him into the office for a talk.

"Charlie, I have to tell you, I like your work ethic, you do a bang up job, but your being late so often is quite bothersome."

"Yes, I know boss, and I am working on it."

''Well good, you are a team player. That's what I like to hear. It's odd though your coming in late. I know you're retired from the Armed Forces. What did they say if you came in late there?"

''They said, "Good morning Admiral, can I get your coffee, sir?'''

I'm so very sorry to hear about Michael Swink. God bless him and his family.
I do not like the news from Iraq at all.
We (military moms and others who care in my area) are working on getting as much as we can prepared and ready to go to troops for Christmas.
God bless y'all.

We're taking Chris to the airport tomorrow, he will soon be on his way to Japan.

It was a strange visit, he's part of the family, but somehow not - at the same time. It throws our family routine off, and he says it's awkward for him too. He certainly isn't my little boy anymore.

We won't see him again for at least a year, probably the end of 2011 at the earliest.

The hardest part is getting him to actually be a part of the packing. He's reluctant, not to go back to the Navy, but to go into yet another unfamiliar situation. In the past he has waited until the last few hours before he has to leave before packing. We're not letting him do that this time. He will be packed tonight, if I have to do it myself. I'm NOT stressing over it tomorrow as we're heading out the door.

I'm so jealous of his immediate future, I would gladly change places with him, but I got my chance 20 years ago. It's his turn. *sigh*

Please tell Chris that ALL of his moms from the Navy will be praying for him to have a safe journey to Japan and we know that he will find it to be very interesting and a good experience. Tell him to keep you posted so that you can keep us posted!! Navy mom hugs to him...and to you. You'll probably need them when you leave the airport. Hang in there.

Sandra, it's good that you're staying so busy at this time which is difficult for you. I know you worry, I know you're stressed...I can tell even through cyberspace.

But you're an angel to do so much for our blessed and wonderful troops and to get all of us moving on this urgent need to show them our support. That is our job now and it's so important that we do this. God bless you. You're on my mind and in my prayers. God will watch over them. Keep staying busy.

(We still don't know for certain....but our soldier does expect to go somewhere soon. We still think it's to Iraq as a replacement, however nothing is known for sure right now. He went to Korea but he is back in the U.S.at his post now.)

He's not gone quite yet. We're driving down tonight, for a flight *early* tomorrow morning. We have to do this because it's a 6 hour drive to the airport, for a 6 a.m. flight. There is no way we are driving through the night, so we're going to stay the night there and drop him off at *gasp* 4 am. I'm not HUMAN at 4 am.

Okay! I have my adopted sailor now, thanks to Sandra! I'm so excited! I have a box (you know the boxes they will deliever to you...which we've already discussed here)

So all I have to do is to go shopping and fill it up! I know he would like protein packets....(rings a bell from our sons...they used to want them too). So, tonight when I go to sleep I'm going to "think" about what I want to put in his care package. Thank you, Sandra!

When will the temperatures chill off in Iraq? Does anyone know?

Best wishes on seeing Chris off, Arwen. I know it won't be easy, especially at those wee hours of the morning. Navy mom hugs.

Since my sailor is requesting protein packets, it tells me that he is trying to maintain his health and strength, therefore I'm only going to send healthy things. (not candy) I thought as a treat I would put a few large packages of chewing gum which he can pass out and share. I would like to send a football in the box. Sandra, do you know if they have many footballs? I know the guys love to throw the football. Please let me know if you can. Thank you.

Remember Moms, tonight the White Office will discuss Iraq, not sure what time. The last 48 hours have been hell in Afghanistan.

Sorry, I got caught in between saying the Oval Office or the White House. Anyway, I'm glad the country turned our attention to our troops tonight, God bless them....they have been through so much. We have to stay strong for them and show it through our support....like Sandra has put the fire under us to do.

Hooray regarding the football. Onetime I saw some troops on the news who were trying to play football and they had to roll something up...like a part of their uniform and had to throw THAT back and forth to be their football. I've always remembered seeing that.