PIR 12/17/10

Congrats to all! Thought of you all day! Yay! You all (moms and sailors) did it! I remember hearing when you all got you boxes and 15 second calls...I couldn't stand waiting for it to be my turn...and here I am today thinking how much I too was with my sailor! :) Bravo Zulu PIR 17!

We just made it home with our new sailor... He is trying to get reacquainted with the kitty.... She is mad at him

We drove home last nite. S didn't want to stay overnite, so we made the11hr drive. Got home at 1am. What a day it was !! So happy to meet so many of you at the fantastic Meet & Greet that the Ramada put on for us !!  How wonderful are they to do this for all the graduates !! ??

 Now to enjoy him for a few days. Seems like the girlfriend has plans for most days. I understand that she misses him and they have so little time to be together. I will get squeezed in Christmas Eve & Christmas day !! I hope !!

Enjoy your time with your loved ones, it will go by fast. Next we will counting down graduation at their A schools !! Hope many of us will meet up again !!

Salma graduation was Amazing!!! And I was so pleased to get to meet you. We are home and my Sailor and I have already been to the dry cleaners to drop off Uniform and get his cell phone reactivated..

Jessica when CJ and I left to go out for errends this morning after we left the cat had a complete fit. She almost took down the tree accroding to my other son. Wow did not realize she liked him that much.  Poor kitty.

I hope everyone is enjoying time with their Sailor and either home or experiencing safe travel home.  We are home and A is settled in and off doing his Christmas shopping with his girl Ashley :-)  PIR was amazing!  I'm so Proud of my Sailor that came home with me - the foundational character of my son is very visible, but....I must say, he is a much more grounded and responsible man - thank you to the fine and outstanding leadership by Section's 024 Chief and RDC's.  My boy is so handsome and in great physical shape.  The history my son knows is astounding.  I am thoroughly enjoying his boot camp stories (those he can share). I especially like the story about the Sailor that stowed away his cell phone the entire 8 weeks at BC - only turning it on at night here and there to text home.  Do the RDC's know - yes, the night before leaving boot camp a time was given to share something you did in BC without punishment and he chimmed into the conversation, with phone to ear, pretending to talk to someone - the RDC's were surprised.  My son't only sneaky action - putting cookies from dinner in his pocket and hiding them in his rack to eat at night :-)

LoLo - CJ's is telling all kinds of stories as well. Oh my gosh a couple of them turn my ears red.

Anyway it is truely amazing what he is growing into. He also went shopping this afternoon with his girlfriend. We are doing a family movie tonight. Time is going by too fast.

Does any one have the email address for scheduling. CJ forgot to make a copy of his ticket information for his flight back to school and we are not sure how to get it. Any help will be appreciated.

The Navy delivered my sailor complete with a bad cold, but other than that, in good spirits.  I was so surprised and pleased that his division made the HOF!  In his very first letter home he said he really hoped they made it on, and when it was announced, we just jumped out of our seats cheering!

We spent most of Friday staying local.  He wanted to just get OUT so we went to the Guernsey Mills mall and kept running into other sailors he knew.  One girl exchanged phone numbers with him and they've been texting back and forth.  She's transient waiting for her shipping out to A School, so I guess she had a bit more free time than expected.  My sailor is now down in Cincinnati visiting his grandparents with his dad.  He'll be out in Virginia in a few days and he will be home for Xmas.  I can't wait to have him back under my roof, if only for a few days.  It'll be wonderful!

Sharon - my A came home with a dilly of a cold too; if not better by Monday he's going to get checked at Urgent Care.  Sounds like you had some fun in GL and a great Christmas present arriving in a few days :-)

Penny - I don't have a phone # for Scheduling; just the email.  Perhaps calling the PAO would be a good start.  Hope you had fun at your movie night!

Kathy - Hi Friend - thank you for popping in to say congratulations and hello.  We miss you and think of you often!

Lori, You almost threw me off with your new name.  lol  My A hasn't stopped coughing since we got him  He said he is doing fine now, since he doesn't feel like he is coughing up a lung anymore.  :(

Sharon, we were at Gurnee Mills Mall today too.  Adam saw loads of sailors he knew. especially since we were standing at the Verizon kiosk for hours waiting to buy some Droid phones.

CJ was coughing some one his way home. He said he had felt sick just before Gas chamber and then felt great afterwards (Cleaned his sinus out) then he said he has felt cruddy again.

He broke both his BC glass and his glasses from home. I can't believe they did not make him another appointment fro my glasses. So now he has to get some new eye wear when he goes back to school.

Chief,  I hope you still check this on occasion,  thank you for turning my boy into a new young man,

Hello ladies! My "E" is very sick but trying to enjoy is ONE "day" home! He took a nice Nap on Saturday...just because he could :), and I am letting him sleep today (last day home)...10 hours and counting!! I feel so bad...he looks and sounds miserable! Enjoying the stories as well...AND the "modeling show" :)!! He has put on all his Uniforms to show of his new fine tuned physique LOL!!I I cried with each and every change of outfit!

BRAVO ZULU To all our Sailors, to the RTC and to us Mom's! I miss all of you already!!!! It is going to be a rough day for me to say good-bye to my Sailor again!!

((Hugs))

Cindy

It's so good to be home in Kentucky with my sailor!  We're enjoying our time together. It was nice to meet everyone and I wish you all well!   I hope we are able to stay in touch!   Now I'm off this forum and now a member of "Alumni".   Cya

Cindy my heart breaks for you having to say goodbye so soon to your sailor. Mine is home until the 27 and I'm already dreading taking him to the airport. I haven't seen a lot of him since he got home, he's been visiting friends and he seems distracted and depressed. I'm really worried about him. Keep in touch.

Jacque my son said hhe missed his friends from boot camp and his RDC's He also misses the routine. Just give your son his space he will be okay

Oh no, sorry to hear Lori!  Glad you got her into medical today though.  Sorry you have to see her go so soon.  :-(

Cindy - :-(  Thinking of you today as you send your Sailor on his way to A school.  (hugs)!!  A is sick too - sounds like many of them are home from BC will a bug.

Thank you everyone! My heart is breaking, just got back from the Airport, "E" is off to Pensacola FL!!! And I can't stop crying!!! Jacque...thank you for saying that about "seems distracted and depressed"..."E" is exactly the same way, AND Very quiet, I didn't know if it was because he was sick or not? But I let him have his space, and sleep. He slept the entire day today until 3:15 when I woke him so he could pack...we needed to leave by 4:00! So, I got no time with him today...but he needed to sleep! He was very quiet at the airport and spoke not two words the entire time...and then while sitting there the "BREAKING NEWS" out of Korea comes on...HELLO! I lost it!!! He did tell me Friday he "seems out of his element, and did not feel right wearing civilian clothes, he felt lost," @ Lori...thanks hun, appreciate that! He found out he was given the wrong information from his recruiter...he will be in A school for 3 months, and no leave in February....so, that may have been upsetting him as well! But, he is armed with his new cell phone with all the bells and whistles so I can contact him whenever I want via FB or email or text or call just to hear his voice on his voice mail message :) (Come on....don't tell me none of you are planning on doing that :) ??)  :)!!! Well, thanks for listening, I'm lost...nobody is on, but your all spending time with your Sailors...HUG THEM for me too!!! If anyone is going to Pensacola, send them with a extra Hug for my "E!!!" :)

Miss all of you too!!

Cindy

Awww Cindy, I'm so sorry! I can't imagine having to turn loose so soon. D has also been acting different. He has been frowning a lot and has a cough. I will be praying for him and for you! I think the transition out of BC is probably harder than we can imagine.  Susan

:) Thanks Susan! It is comforting to hear other Sailors are the same 'spirit.' "E" only smiled big when he tried on his uniforms for us :)! Commented..."I don't feel right in civilian clothes!" Thanks again Susan!

Hello to all of my friends out there!! We had a GREAT time at Graduation!! We spent the day Sat. in Chicago and boy was it COLD BRRRR. I totally see why they call it the WINDY CITY!! Graduation was AMAZING. I am so glad to have my SR home for a few days . Our week is pretty full already!! I am sorry to you that did't have much time with your SR. I will forever remember our times on here and hope that we will continue on our Alumni page. This site was a LIFE SAVER and I was amazed at how much I knew from here , before we got to Graduation. Best of luck to you all and you will all be in my PRAYERS!!!!

Moms watch your son or daughter make their bed.  Mine before BC pulled the covers up and called it good.  Today it was perfection in my eyes and yet he was still concerened it didn't look right.  I said it was great.  Mine slept until 2 when I finally woke him

Hello ladies. We just got home from GL about an hour ago.  The only thing my son wanted to do, while we were there. was go to dinner with us, spend time with us and buy a new phone.  We went to the mall in Gurnee Mills and somehow 3 of us ended up with new Droid X's.  :)  A has a cough that doesn't seem to quit and he told me that he had chest pains while in boot and had to have an echocardiogram. :(  Of course this is the first I've heard of it.  (He didn't want to worry me) He said they said he was alright and sent him back to work. He seems ok, but he did say that one of the reasons that some of your recruits may be distant or down, is because they are probably thinking about how little time they have with you.  :(  He said that he has thought about that a lot.  *tear.

I was also watching the developments in Korea on the news today.  I don't even want to think about it.

I hope all of our sick recruits get well soon and that you all enjoy the time you have or have had with your wonderful sons and daughters.  I will catch up some more tomorrow.

Betsy - I'm glad you made it home safely! A was talking to Kailtyn on FB last night and said you giys were getting ready to fly out :) D is wanting a Droid for Christmas too, lol. All of these new Sailors are going to have the same phone!

Dana- I have not seen him make a bed but I have been throughly impressed with how he folds clothes! He helped me fold laundry last night and I kept stopping and staring, lol.

Anita - I'm glad you enjoyed Chicago! Your right it was freezing :) I'm so glad we got to meet :) Susan

Susan, I mentioned Kaitlyn to A and he said "How did you know I was talking to her?"  I told him that Navy moms know everything.  LOL

Dana, my son never made his bed before BC.  So, I asked him to do it today and he jumped right up and did it.  It was totally amazing that I didn't have to wait 3 days for him to get to it.  lol

Anita, I had a good time talking with you the other night, and I'm sorry that we didn't get the chance to meet in person.  :(

Cindy, so sorry to hear that your sailor had to leave so soon.  ((hugs)).

Sportsmom, Lori. so sorry to hear that your daughter is so sick.  ((hugs))

Lori, Michigan mom, I hope D is feeling better soon too.  ((hugs)

I had a hair appointment this morning and when I got home, A was eating his breakfast.  He apparently really missed chocolate because he was drinking a YooHoo chocolate drink and eating a Hershey's Cookies & Cream candy bar for breakfast.  lol

Sorry to hear so many of your sailors are sick. I hope they feel much better very soon. I hope you all had a great time and the weather didn't cause too many problems. Enjoy your time with your sailors.

Did you sailors like your ribbons?

If you're wondering what to get your sailor for the holiday (or for any celebration), the NEX sells gift cards online.  You can personalize them and make the card for any dollar amount.  I created one for my sailor and used a picture of us from earlier this summer. 

You can go to http://www.navy-nex.com/ and order. :)

************************************Ladies***************************************************We We now have an alumni page now!    Please come and join us there.

http://www.navyformoms.com/group/alumnipir121710?xg_source=activity

One thing about the sailors getting new phones, they should look at the contract very carefully and be sure to pick a provider who will suspend service for the military.  If they go to Japan, their new phones will be useless for three years. There phone service is completely different; same for any other overseas duty station.  When they deploy on a ship, they can't use their phones, and if they turn them on, sometimes even to listen to music, they can get socked with a four digit phone bill.  The international roaming charges are KILLER.

They are very excited to be adults with spending money, but they need to think their choices through about that paycheck just now.

Sharon, thanks so much for the information about the NEX gift cards. I have been running out of teeny tiny gift ideas. LOL

Anti M, thanks for the information.  I can either pray that my sailor doesn't go international or his brand new Droid X will be passed down to his sister.  lol

Sharon, thanks for the idea.  I need another gift for my sailor too.  :)

Any orders for any school are for "seat time", not for actual time spent on base.  There are always holds and delays.  Yes, clearance can play a part in all that.  Whether or not they need their clearance will vary from school to school, so I won't comment on IT specifically.  (LOL, I don't know).  Also, there will be indoc classes, and assorted general training.  There is always more training.

Thinking ahead to next year, your sailor may be on a ship or other place where they don't have room for stuff, or any real needs.  My nephew is in transit to his first boat (subs are boats).  I gave a recurring monthly donation to the USO in his name for his gift.  Just a thought....

https://www.uso.org/donate/

@ Lori, my son said the same thing and was very stressed after Monday...he said there is a lot to know and do and its stressful!! I am assuming because it was overwhelming, and he was sick and had arrived late Sunday night at midnight...and was still up at 2:30am doing paperwork. I am hoping after they once again settle into this phase, it will be OK! Tonight he text-ed me saying he was on the way to the mall with "A Liberty Buddy!" Since MEDICAL was closed and couldn't get in :( !!!

((HUGS))

Cindy

Part of indoc is to sit down as a group and make sure the paperwork is addressed step by step.  Each and every form has to be done 100% correctly; they walk them through everything.

One of my married friends went to an A school in Texas, the flights were delayed and she missed the first day of indoc.  As a result, she missed filling out the form saying she was MARRIED!!!  So when her orders arrived, they were for Diego Garcia, which is an unaccompanied tour.  She got it changed, but it was a real hassle.  

Thanks Anit M, I love all your insite. I always look for your posts, because it is so informative!

@Betsy...not sure if he did paperwork that entire time, all I know is his plane landed at 11:15 and then he texted me at 2:30am with a message saying arrived, still doing paperwork!" Yes, a friend of his From Boot Camp went strait to Pensacola from PIR, I am not sure if that is the same 'buddy' he was with though?!

@sportsmom Lori, I am only going by what he told me as far as Liberty. I beleive after their work is done during the day they do get a few hours of "liberty" until "A School" convenes on January 3rd. Since a lot of new Sailors are still on "Leave" until the 28th. What does 'phasing up' mean?

Liberty = normal tim eoff such as evenings, weekends and holidays

Leave = earned time off, vacation days.

Liberty can be no more than 72 hours, and can be "secured" (taken away).  If the sailor has duty, and Glakes has a four day duty rotation, there is no liberty that day.  Leave is taken by submitting a request chit and getting approval.  Liberty has a mileage limit for travel (300 miles, usually), leave does not.  So no flying home on those three day weekends on liberty.

Great Lakes is similar with liberty phases.  Phase one is very limited, they can't even leave the base.  Phase two means civilian clothes, going off base, overnights on the weekends.  No one goes on liberty by themselves, they have to have a liberty buddy or two.  Married sailors still have to earn phase two liberty to get permission to live off base with their spouses.

Oh, and if they mess up, they can be set back to square one for liberty.  So don't mess up.