PIR 10/15/10

I find them by Googling funny pics, silly animals, etc.

Glad they brought some smiles to the group!

Hugs!

Thanks for sharing Dana. My little one and I will have to find some fart cards. I know my sailor will love them. We do. Who can't laugh at fart jokes and farts period. I only have boys so I have no choice but to laugh. Thats all they do...Well and burp too.

My son said that he would get nothing for a few days and then a bunch of mail. I wrote everyday, but thats not how he got it. Remember, it takes about 5-10 days to get to your SR, as it has to be sorted, but mail sent to you just takes a few days. they do get mail everyday, except on the weekends.

Crap I just saw the calling card thingy.....I gotta buy lots more and send them! Why wasn't I told this??

Chris' girl - That's really nice, huh? So many people are proud of the decision your guy made... and it's no easy task to be the better half, either! You deserve to be proud and also respected for the role you play, too! :) HUGS!!

Hi Dana, I know I haven't been on in a while, (had the funeral) very sad.
I was wondering though....when would we know if our SR is a grad and go?

suwil68 I am so happy for you!!!!! I know you are so exicited. I'm sorry your son has been feeling bad : ( You should be proud!!!!!!

Vincent'sMom, I was wondering the same thing about grad and go ... I went the extra bucks and got refundable plane tix on southwest, but all of the other incidentals at some point would need to be changed/cancelled if we don't stay thurs-fri-sat-sun for PIR ... I'm getting the feeling, from reading other posts, that it's not until the week of graduation sometimes that people find out. Yikes!

I'm so happy for you suwil68!!! Just to hear their voice is wonderful enough but to talk to him that long, it's like you hit lotto!!! Sorry he wasn't feeling well but I'm sure he'll feel better after he spoke to you!!!

Hi Vincent'sMom! Hugs!!! It is a very sad situation... my heart is sad for you, too!

Sobe told me to ask often in my letters to my recruit whether or not he's going to be Grad & Go. Hopefully I can find out sooner than a week before graduation, but sadly, I don't think that always happens. I think we sort of just have to wait and see. There's no way to know for sure until they tell us.

suwil68 - THAT'S AWESOME!!! 63 MINUTES!!! WOW! I would LOVE that! And congrats to you and your recruit for AROC! It's a big responsibility and you both should be very proud! Prayers that he feels better quickly!

Thanks, Jessica! We really appreciate you looking after us! :)

A week in a half notice is even better for this list making, planning, momma! Maybe a phone call even earlier would be better.. but I won't hold my breath! ;)

Thanks for the info on the grad and go. I can always get my questions answered on this site. You are all so great. Thanks again.

Jessica- I can't remember so hopefully you'll know. Is Sunday considered a NDT - Non-Day of Training? I thought it was when I was in boot camp... but I can't remember stuff from last week, let alone 20 years ago! Do the training days go 1-1 through 1-7 and not include (skip) Sundays? Just curious because I bet suwil68's division 348 would love to know what day their recruits are on. Since her son told her this was their first day of training that would be 1-1, right? Then they could potentially follow along.

hey christina, yes, we got the form letter with a small comment that she is doing good. Of course that was only 4 days in,,,,, so I would really like to know how shes doing now.

Chris' Girl - Thanks so much for sharing that story. It does make me proud that all our men are serving their country in the Navy.

Suwii68 - Congrats to you and your recruit on AROC!!!!!!!!!!!! That is great news! And you got to talk to him for over an hour?! I can't even imagine that! So happy for you! I hope he feels better really soon!

Ok... here's my "calendar" from my boot camp notebook. I though you might like to see it.

Our recruits likely do something similar to keep track of the days. I don't recall if this calendar was mandatory or something I just did. Keep in mind that this was 20 years ago so our recruits schedules are slightly different. But I think numbering of days is probably still the same.

Processing days are listed as P-#... I apparently only had 3 days of processing. The days of the week are given a number. Week one, first day of training is 1-1 and goes through 1-5. Saturdays and Sundays are not included, nor are holidays - so Labor day will be a Non-Day of Training -NDT.

We had something called a Work Week back then, but they don't do that anymore. They do better stuff like Battle Stations 21!!! :)

You can click on the image to open it up full size.

Notice how I drew lovely stars around PIR day and drew a very striking plane for the day I left! In reality... I just walked to the other side of the base! ;)

Most of the activities listed are tests or Inspections.

Here's a sample of the detail expected and the specific way we were told to arrange our belongings in our locker. This teaches our recruits to pay attention and follow directions. A shipmates life could depend on their ability to do that... so RDC's make sure that they are ready for the responsibility.

We wore flip flops in the shower - here's how they were to be stored.

This is from my notes... written in all caps! :)

SHOWER SHOES:
LEFT SHOE ON TOP. HEEL OF LEFT SHOE TO THE LEFT. BOTH SHOES (HEELS) TOUCHING REAR OF COMPARTMENT. HEEL OF LEFT SHOE AND TOE OF RIGHT SHOE TOUCHING LEFT SIDE OF COMPARTMENT.

There are also very detailed ways clothing is to be folded... we even used rulers! I'm telling you... RDC's demand PERFECTION! It's all good!

The night before PIR we actually got to see our family for the first time. I think it was only for a couple hours at most. I sure wish they did that now!

What wonderful information DanaMN. It is great hearing your stories from when you were in BC. I am sure things have changed, but it is great being able to get an idea of what they are going through.

Thanks Megan... I hope it helps... or at least amuses everyone!!! Just trying to help make the days go by! ;)

Now that I think about it... I did go home right after boot camp because my A school was very long. So the plane drawing would have been correct. :)

Oh... that's funny, Jessica. I wonder when they stopped doing it?

Having a hard time tonight! My husband is off hunting so he is not here to reassure me that everything is o.k. What will I do for the next few days?

suwil68 - Caleb will get used to it. My son was spoiled, too! I won't go into detail as to just how spoiled... LOL! ;)

Natalie & Mitchell - THANKS! We appreciate your offer of advice!!! Can you tell us how often your Sailor received mail? Was it every day or only on certain days?

Justinsmom - Everything is FINE! Your boy couldn't be at a safer place! He's WELL cared for. The Navy takes very good care of their Sailors! My son and I joked that it'll be the first time in a long time that he'll be eating 3 regular meals a day and sleeping on a schedule.

My son is a video gamer and loved to stay up all night this summer... and then sleep all day. He probably ate one regular meal with us... the rest grazing here and there. It was nuts! But he's young and I tried to let him make those decisions... LOL... he was BAD at it! :) He knew that Navy was going to straighten all that out!

Please don't hesitate to come on here and chat with us if you are feeling blue. We enjoy supporting others and it help us get through this as well. We have those bad days, too.

Try and stay busy! Go window shopping or go the book store and look at magazines and books... that's what I did when my husband was out last Saturday. Stay positive! HUGS!!!

Good Morning! Just wanted to check in. Thanks for the insight into the schedule Dana! I think the inspection thing is going to be a challenge for my son - he was a video gamer and stayed up all night too and organizing his room was the last thing on his mind! I think this is a really good thing they are learning! :)

Justinsmom - You can do this! We're all here for you! Dana has good advise... go window shopping or get a good book - that takes me away for a while and I don't think about my son so much.

HUGS to all! Only 42 more days to PIR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DillonsMom - I totally know how you feel - it feels like forever since I've seen my son too! Today is a good day! HUGS!

Well another day closer to PIR!!

Planning your PIR trip: Here's sound advice from many moms who have been before me, and I back it up 100%.

Plan like they are NOT a Grad & Go - even if you know they are! Lots of reasons: One, the USN can change their mind any day, any time - and they often do. So you would feel horrible if you had to leave before your son/daughter! Two, you will want to hang out with them at the airport (more fun than you may realize!). Getting up early on Thurs to fly out, then Friday for PIR, and then again on Saturday to get to the airport to see them off will WEAR YOU OUT! Be kind to yourself, stay over Saturday night and sleep in on Sunday. You will thank me later!!!

Lots more info on the Grad & Go Info group - I recommend everybody read it because you never know if your recruit will be one or not! (click the link, blue underlined words).

I know I have a short novel on that group's page, but I tried to design it so that the reader gets most of the facts without having to ask a million questions and wait for an answer. Read the posts from recent G&G moms, that will tell you alot too!

And remember, some recruits are Grad & Go's - but they don't fly out! They move across the street to Great Lakes A-school. Those are the G&G's you want to have!!! After they move over (which they do on PIR day), you get them all weekend - including overnight!!! They are the only ones who can do this. That means you need to make a reservation for at least 2 beds in your hotel. Here's the funny part - most recruits moving to A-Schl that weekend do not think of themselves as a G&G, they only think those who fly out on Saturday as having that title. So that means they don't even tell you about being a G&G to GL. Several moms have been totally surprised when they find out they get them 24/7 that weekend - but they are also unprepared for it.

No letter today...but I did get a letter from the American Red Cross with a pamphlet about their services to military members... and with it was a "Service to the Armed Forces Family Identification Card" FILLED OUT BY MY BOY!!! Once again, the all caps printing and it was oh so neat! Not sure why they sent the card to me, because I would have thought they would have kept it... or discared it after they noted the info... but I'm not complaining. I love to see his writing. :)

I'm curious to know if anyone else gets this.

HUGS!!!

Did any of the rest of you get a file folder in your box of dirty clothes sent home? We got a white folder with "TREATMENT RECORD" on the front. I am hoping he wasn't supposed to keep this there? It appears to be things went over in DEP and MEPS processing.

Victoria - I'm sure you'll make good use of the daylight hours, though! :)

Justinsmom - I didn't get anything like that in my box... but I have heard of some mom's receiving paperwork in their boxes. I think if it was important, he would have called by now to ask for it to be sent or something. You could always ask his recruiter if you are worried.

Another silly question. Since my son did not bring a debit card, would it be o.k. to send him a VISA gift card in the mail with the appropriate amount on it to pay for his portraits? I would rather do that than send him a blank check I guess.

Justin's mom...good question.

Justinsmom - That's a great question! I'll send a message to Sobe and ask what she thinks.

Justins Mom... I kept inadvertently looking at your user pic and I just realized why. The lighting is the same as my recruits pics... so I looked at your profile and noticed you are from MN! Me, too!

Yes, north of Brainerd, but he left from Fargo, did your son leave from Fargo as well?

No, my son left from Minneapolis. We have that same type of wall at our MEPS.
We are going to drive to PIR - What about you?

We are going to drive as well. We are planning on meeting the grandma's in Plymouth at my sister in law's and driving from there on Thursday. Hubby figured a little over 6 hrs. from MPLS area, what were you thinking it would be?

It's 7 hours and 5 mins from Plymouth if you go through Milwaukee - I Google mapped it!

It's 6 hours and 51 mins from Farmington.

Of course... that doesn't include stops for food, gas, etc.

Make sure you leave early so you'll have time to go to the Meet & Greet Thursday night if you wanted to attend that. I'm not sure what time it starts... we'll have to find out.

We will have one 80 y/o grandma, one 75 y/o grandma, and our 10 and 8 year old girls traveling with us. We may need to leave Tuesday with all the bathroom breaks we will need to take!

LOL... too funny! "Are we there yet?"

Sobe said a gift card might work, but it needs to be able to cover the amount (so $200 would be safe). Her son spent $174 and he got the largest package, the DVD and an extra "fun" photo of his division in their NWU's.

The number for the NEX photo lab is (847) 578-6208 you could call them to be sure.

DillonsMom - My son is staying in GL for A school too! I'm not getting too excited about having him overnight either, but it has definitely crossed my mind!! :) That would be awesome!

Hey everyone, RTC just posted 23 awesome photo's on their Facebook page! Find them by typing the following in the friend search box: U.S. Navy Recruit Training Command

You will see lots of photos of all the performers at today's PIR (9/2/10), so that will be those recruits in the 900 divisions from several PIR groups.

Also - Craig in PIR 9/2 just posted photo's of their graduation on that groups page. He said he took a lot of photo's, will be posting more later too.

DillonsMom - I know what you mean! I'm a little nervous about that too. And, I'm sharing my hotel room with my parents so there will be 4 of us if he does get to stay overnight.... we will just roll with whatever happens! I'm sure it' will be fine.

Forgive me if you said already, but what rate is your son? Mine is ET or FC. I wonder if they will be together at A school?!

Young people are resilient! They'll be fine. It may be a little different for them to go out into the real world because they will have to remember all the things they were taught in boot camp about how to act, who to salute, what to do next, etc. After being told what to do, when to do and how to do it for 8 weeks... there's a bit of an adjustment. But it's no big deal. Try not too worry about that stuff. Your recruit will be able to handle themselves just fine and you will see you worried for nothing. ;)

In addition... they will have gained a real sense of confidence in their abilities which you should be very proud of. Although as Moms we wish we could keep them forever... we all really do want them to grow up and be successful in their lives. I miss my baby so darn much... but I sent him off to the Navy so he could have more options and gain that independence. If he decided to live in my basement and play video games forever... I'd cry myself to sleep every night and wonder what I did wrong!

Ooh... that was a good speech.. I feel better already! :) :) :)

Pink Helmet & Dillon's mom -- my son will be staying in GL for A school also.

Dillons Mom and Pink Helmet: Hi, my son is staying in GL for A school as well. I'm trying to speed read while I'm at work but I thought I saw that they may be able to have an overnight stay with us? That would be cool. So much info to absorb within the last 2 days! I'm trying to stay focused but it's kind of hard. I know now all we really need is a LETTER!!!!