Boot Camp Moms (and loved ones)

Good Morning everyone,

How is everyone doing this morning? Another day closer to some of you for your PIR's. 

Remember no news is good news. Keep your phone on you at all times and that ringer on loud. You just never know when a call will come thru. 

ChosenBlessings- Hey and yes my son says the same thing. They actually tell them in bc not to listen to us or any of the Navy mom groups. He has relaxed his opinion some but he still doesn't like that I may know more than him about what he's doing. Lol

Any questions ladies please don't hesitate to ask and one of us will answer. 

It can get quite on the weekends but that's ok to. We are still here.   :)

It will be a beautiful 85 degrees today. I am hoping that our summer is finally gone and we can look forward to our wonderful winters.  :)

God Bless and have a wonderful day!!

Hello, Moms!  Thank you for your encouragement and love when I had my meltdown on Wednesday.  When I talked to my mom later, she said that I sounded better.  I told her that y'all really encouraged me.  I am so grateful for that!

We got good news today -- Our form letter came!!!  Woo hoo!  My husband and I checked the postmark and it was mailed on Wednesday.  I just feel so blessed by God, and so grateful for all of y'all!  

Gigi - I am so sorry to hear about your niece.  I will be praying for her and her family.  That is heart-breaking!  :-(

Elina, welcome back. Just wanted to say hi, I just tried to stay busy all the time. There are alot of newer moms on here so  perhaps one of them will jump on and share with you, maybe one of their recruits are sharing a PIR with yours.

Hi, Elina!  My son reported last week, so today is Day 12.  I was trying to just keep myself busy, but I had a supreme meltdown on Day 9.  Part of it was life-stuff, but the big trigger is that I didn't know if my son would have to quarantine.  (He took his vaccination card, but from the scripted call, it wasn't clear if that would be accepted.)  And then when I found out he might also have to wait for a division to form, I just broke down and cried and cried.  The women in this group were REALLY encouraging, and that helped a lot.

I wrote some letters (as suggested by moms on this site) and I numbered them so he would know what order to read them in.  I signed up for the Sandboxx app, and on Thursday, they had a special where I could get 3 letters for $8.24, so I purchased those.  (Now that I have his address, I'll send one now, one in the middle, and one just before graduation - since they are delivered quickly.)  And of course, I'll send some by snail mail.

I also signed up for Informed Delivery from USPS, and at 6:30 this morning, I found out I was getting his form letter.  THAT was so encouraging!  And since I had the image of his return address on the USPS app, I addressed his letters and put them in the mail.  They were waiting in the mailbox when the postman delivered the form letter.

I'm not sure how I would have done if I had to wait another two weeks to hear from my son, but I am glad that I had things ready to go when the form letter came in.  (Also, one of the moms gave me a link to tips for letter writing, and THAT was really helpful!  It said, "Do not send anything with glitter," and talked about how it gets on the floor and on their uniforms and can cause them to fail inspection.  I thought, "That's a non-issue because I wouldn't send a glittery card to my son."  BUT, I wanted to add a picture to the first card I wrote my son, and when I pulled it out of the envelope, get what was on it?  Clear glitter!  I never even noticed.  Today I went to the Dollar Store and it was amazing how many cards (even boy cards) have tiny specks of glitter on them!!!

Sorry for the long message, but those are some of the things that helped make the silence more bearable. 

Gigi- I am so sorry to hear about your niece. I am glad that BBH could answer some of your questions. 

Elina - We are glad you are back and are here to help you through this great silence and offer our encouragement and information. I see that MomofJoseph has jumped right in to share with you what she knows. That is great!!

Hi Everyone, 

Sorry I've been MIA.  I was so happy to get the form letter this past week and then I kind of went into a funk but slowly climbing it out of now.  

Gigi - I am sorry to hear about your niece, but she was brave enough to sign up and try and if it didn't work out she can still hold her head up high because she tried.  And if she decides she'll give it another shot then great, and if not, that's great too.  There's never been a success story without failure.

Hi Elina.  My daughter has been there for 17 days as of today and the first 10 days were tough.  This group helped me immensely.  And now receiving her form letter will help get me through the next couple of days until we get her first letter.  God knows us mom's worry about everything and not having any communication doesn't help.

Momofjoseph - Woohoo on the form letter!  I know exactly how you feel!

Gigi - I'm so sorry to hear about your niece being separated.  Here's the link to the Ship 5 group - you'll be able to find some info there regarding re-enlistment.  I know the group isn't real active but it does have a link to the FaceBook group which is pretty active.  She will have to get a couple of waivers but it can be done. Keep us posted and thank her for trying!

Ship 5

MomofJoseph-- I'm so happy that your form letter arrived!!  That seems to always happen, Just when you give up all hope, you get the news you were waiting on. I'm glad you are able to get support and feel up to giving it too. 
Glitter-- The herpes of the Crafting world!! There is NO where that once glitter has been introduced will not always have glitter there!!

Elina -- I know just how you are feeling.  You are in the right place and you will be ok again!!  Read back a few days and you'll she where I shared my epic melt down.  That was over 8 years ago.  It never gets easier but you get better at doing it.

mytidbitz-- And now you see why we call it a roller coaster.  I'm so sorry you were having a hard time.  This is a safe space.  No one will judge you for your feelings because we have all had them at one time or another.

Loretta--Welcome.  I'm going to leave some information on your page.  Please feel free to tell us what things you don't understand and if you have a preferred language you can share that too and maybe one of our moms will be able to communicate in your native tongue.

Hi Everyone, I want to first apologize for missing in action for so long but I was present just not posting but really reading and praying diligently and I'd like to say a warm and loving hello and welcome to all my new sisters on Board as well and that you guys I've been going through mightily but I thank God this part is here, today is Saturday and I'm overjoyed to be with my son and family but it seemed like the enemy fought us every step of the way getting here, But to God be the glory. This is why it's so important for me to meditate on the word, and pray without ceasing and to fellowship amongst the brethren because it helps me know that God is able. You are my sisters for life and there is nothing you can do about and I thank God for you and I never want to take your support for granted and I want to be there for you as well. 

Loretta - I agree with BBH, please share with one of us if you need help with another language or if you need help reading the information, is there someone who might be able to read the information to you and explain it for you? You might also be able to reach out to your son's recruiter if you have that information and see if they can help you in any way. 

LilDsmom - Enjoy your time with your son!!

Good Morning Everyone,

Loretta- Hi and has your loved one left yet? What is your native language if it would help you I can try and have some of the material translated into your language. Let us know how we can help you. there is also information for you on your profile page that is very helpful. Please let us know how we can help you. Big Navy Hugs to you!!!

Elina- Good Morning and welcome back. I know the first few weeks of silence are hard and I'm glad that MomofJoseph was able to help you. We are glad that you are here. Any other questions please don't hesitate to ask.

MomofJoseph- Hey, you are very welcome and yay on getting the form letter!! And don't you love that app. I love knowing what mail I have coming in every day, it is really neat!! And now your loved one has mail coming right away and it feels so good when we are able to start hearing from them. 

Remember to keep your phone on you at all times and that ringer on loud. Answer all calls as you never know if a call will be coming in and you don't want to miss it.  :)

Yes glitter is a big no no and it's good that you caught it! :)

Thanks for sharing and helping out Elina. :)

God Bless and have a wonderful Sonday!!

mytidbitz- Hey that is totally normal. You will experience those high and lows. Hopefully soon you will have a letter coming from your loved one.  :) It's good to hear from you thou and I'm glad that you posted. 

Keep your phone on you and that ringer on loud and keep writing those letters. It really does help us while they are away.

Gigi- I am so sorry to hear about your niece. Thank her for trying and if it's in God's plan for her she can try again. Big Hugs to you!!

liLDsmom- Hey and it's good to see you on here. I was thinking about you. yay for visits. Enjoy this time with your son and your family. 

God Bless you and your family.

God Bless and have a wonderful Sonday Everyone!!

Exposing a Navy Mom

Your son/daughter comes to you and announced " I'm joining the Navy! Now what?

Perhaps you are confident, "I did a good job raising this kid, he/she is ready to spread his wings. You are a strong woman! You are so proud , you smile as you tell others about his/her desire to serve. Anxiety is trying to creep in but you fight it. Be brave you tell yourself on the way to Meps. You fight back tears as you hug tight their neck, telling them " you got this". You wait for the I'm here phone call.

Have you fallen apart yet or are you still holding it together. Minutes, days, weeks it doesn't matter, that day will come when you fall apart. What triggered it cooking his favorite meal, a hamper with his dirty clothes, only God knows.

Your sad, scared, anxious, empty whatever the feeling, the emotion is real. Fearful of what others in your world may think about you you pour out your whole heart on Navy Moms. Everything is a mess, your not eating or your eating all the time, you can't sleep, tears and uncontrollably sobbing is now a way of life. Something is just not normal, everyone else seems fine, what is wrong with me?

Immediately a Navy Mom is there. Someone that went through all the emotions you are feeling right now and she is reaching out to you. Full of compassion she understands, she encourages you. You draw from her strength, she builds you up through all the knowledge and experience she has accumulated. Friends you had for years didn't understand these new feelings yet this brand new lady seemed to get all of it. 

You grow stronger by the day by the month and now your that incredible Navy Mom, reaching out helping that new mom overcome their sadness, fear, anxiety and emptiness. Strengthening her to become that next Navy Mom!

Ms. They will probably be doing them sometime this week, keep your phone close. They can't publish the actual days or times.

My SR is at the halfway mark of BC and his PIR is Nov. 5th.  We’ve received the form letter, five personal letters from him and two calls.  To all the new moms right behind me.....the “great silence” is rough but follow the advice of the experienced navy moms on here and take it one day at a time and stay busy.  And keep telling yourself, “no news is good news.”  Before you know it, you’ll get that form letter and a call (mine came before the first real letter) and then more letters and more calls.  You got this!!!

Ms. It- Hi and I left you a welcome message on your profile page. It is good to have you on here and sharing. We are glad that you found us to.

You are almost there. You are in the home stretch now. When you hear from your loved one again you can ask and you can ask in your PIR group where it's a little more private than on here.

Ging- hey and yay for the form letter, letters and phone calls that is great!! You are starting on the down ward slope as well!! It won't be long now. 

thanks for sharing and posting you said it right.  :)

Northwoodsmom- thank you, that is exactly right!!  :)

Ms. It- 

You are very welcome.

Yes it will probably feel that way.   lol

Good Morning Everyone and welcome to all of our members. We are glad that you are here.

Remember to keep your phone on you at all times and that ringer on loud. You don't want to miss any calls that may come thru.

Another day closer to PIR for some of our families!!

Hope everyone's weekend was good. We are having beautiful weather this week!!

I spent the day cleaning the house and yard and decorating for Halloween and fall. It makes my heart happy and it always looks so good when you are done. 

Have a good day everyone.

Good Morning Everyone.

Thank you Northwoodsmom.  This really sums it up.  One minute I'm fine and the next I'm crying.  I'm really trying not to let my imagination go crazy, and just focus on how she wanted to do this and she's dong it.

I started to look at hotels for PIR but haven't booked anything yet.  I told myself I should prob wait until I get her first letter.  I don't know if that's the right move.  I welcome any and all suggestions for PIR.  We would be flying in, so do we rent a car or is using a taxi service better? What hotel is closest or which is better?  I want everything to be perfect because I'll be making the travel arrangements but then I also remember what you Mom's told me about being flexible and so that goes for my husband and younger daughter too.  Lol

Ging - How long were the calls?  I'm so worried she will call me when I'm not home and therefore my husband and youngest won't be with me.  My youngest taught me how to add an additional call to "the" call so if I'm not home we can all be on the call but I know I'm going to be too nervous to do that and don't want to risk hanging up on her.

We received a phone call last night. I was surprised when my son said he had an hour, but it ended up being 45 minutes. I was glad we were all there to talk to him. I would also like to book my hotel. I know a others have been there over the last few weeks. Can anyone give me a good hotel recommendation that is close by? 

45 minutes!  That's awesome.  How long was his first call?

I'd also appreciate any tips from any mom who's recently been to PIR.

mytidbitz - The morning of PIR, plan on getting in line early. They don't open the gate until 6:30am (if I remember correctly), and traffic backs up quickly. I'm certain that if the majority of drivers had to retake Driver's Ed as adults they would fail. Have your ID and tickets ready. Once your in, it's pretty straightforward. My experience once in the building was a bit different because my husband was in uniform. We ended up with an escort to the dais, which was unexpected, but pretty cool!

We had 3 kids go to BC over the summer, so our family had to decide who would go to which PIR. I went to my middle son's PIR, so my youngest son will be attending my daughter's PIR with my husband.

mytidbitz - My son called on the Friday of his P-week. He was sure to tell me it wasn't an official call, he was just aloud to call because he needed additional information to finish up processing. He called twice because the phone disconnected. They were each about 3-5 minutes. Only long enough for me to look up the information he needed. But I was glad to hear from him. 

mom-of-5 - I would be happy to hear from my daughter even if it's 2 minutes.  My husband says I'm a control freak, I disagree, LOL, but I'm anxious thinking should I still go on the dinner date with my friend on Tuesday, because what if she calls me while I'm out and then my husband and youngest won't be with me.

mustangmom65 - That is very cool!!!

knowing me I will be in the car lane at 6:30am.  I'd rather wait around inside for everything to begin than sitting in traffic worried we won't make it.  Do you recommend driving your own car or taking a taxi service?

We rented a car. Our son is in GL for A school, so we knew we would have the weekend with him, and we wanted to be able to take him to dinner, etc.

Good morning and happy Monday!

Here are the links to the October and November PIR groups.  Be sure to join your group:  

 PIR NOVEMBER 2021

 PIR OCTOBER 2021

This is the latest brochure put out by RTC:

RTC Brochure

It has some hotels listed - the key is to make sure of their cancellation policy just to be safe.

If you book your flight now do the same thing.  Either get insurance or book with someone like Southwest that allows you to make changes with no penalty.  Better safe than sorry!

We used Sarge's taxi service back in 2012 and it was super easy and convenient.  And one day we took the train into downtown Chicago and then got a day bus pass and rode around.  It worked out quite well.

Also, Sarge isn't doing the Meet N Greet at this time but here's the link with info on his taxi service.   

Sarge - Taxi Service

Ms. It - be sure to join the October PIR group.  Here's the link:

PIR OCTOBER 2021

I was so worried I would miss a call from my son and guess what?  I did.  My phone was somehow set to silence calls from numbers not on my contact list.  Thank goodness he called again and again till he got my husbands phone.  We got to talk for about 45 minutes.  Such a relief to hear his voice.  What a roller coaster of emotions this whole thing is.

Devonson- Good Morning and it's good to see you on here. I am so glad that you got your phone call and that he was able to call back.

Sometimes they are not able so it is very good that you guys got to talk.  :) Yay for 45 minutes. That is awesome!!

It does happen that sometimes we miss that first call so it's good that you know why now. It is good that it worked out in the end.   :)

It truly is a roller coaster ride of emotions that is for sure!!

Devonson - so glad your son was persistent!  

Ladies (and gentlemen) - this is a good reminder to check your settings on your phone!  Sometimes when your phone does an  update it will automatically do the "silence unknown callers" and the "silence junk callers".  For now you will want to turn that feature off!  You can always hang up on the caller if you don't want it - and if they are trying to "update your car warranty" simply block that # after the call is done lol!

Hello BC Ladies -- The roller coaster has left the station.  Just sit back, relax and enjoy the ride!  Yes check your phone settings.  Sometimes they make an information call during P-Days.  Those will be short and sweet and ALL Business.You can ask them for their Div number however!  Once you have the Div# you will have the PIR date too!  You can ask for Ship# as well but they may not know since they don't always move there right away. (Covid may have changed things)
First Social calls are usually around an hour but they need to get the calling cards activated and sometimes they also need to get stuff from the NEX so that may shorten their Phone time. Calls are usually between 9am and 9pm Central time.  They can be earlier or later but that is NOT normal. If you know that other family is also wanting to visit but you are not home you can always shorten your time to leave them time to call the other folks If you cannot add callers.  Also if you r connection is bad they can try another phone in the phone bank.  These phones have been there a LOOOOONNNNNNNGGGGG time and they are abused regularly! They have not been replaced as far as I know ever.  Sometimes the cords are damaged and you will just get a bad connection.  If you are disconnected as long as their time isn't up they can call you back so be sure to tell them that right off.
As for the Hotel and Transportation-- That is going to be an individual decision.  What can you afford, How long is your sailor in GL, What is your comfort level driving in Heavy city traffic, Can you find a rental?  You are the best one to make that choice. You want to look at staying in Gurnee at the hotel chain that best fits your budget.  There are many.  There is also the Navy Lodge right next to GL but it's farther from food so you WILL have to drive for most every meal. You have 3 airport choices, O'Hare, Midway and General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee.  Stay at least till Sunday just in case your Sailor doesn't leave right away.  Make sure your Flights are changeable or refundable just in case something happens last minute.
There is a Shortcut to get around the traffic  that has been shared and I believe is in the files for PIR weekend.
Most of all just be prepared to go with the flow.  Stressing about it does nothing but cause wrinkles and Grey hair and the fact that our kids chose Military Service already does enough of that on it's own!
You can start researching as soon as you get the form letter.  Time really does go quicker than you think!

LilDsmom & anyone else with a sailor now!! - First of all, please go to your profile page and change your sailor's status from at BC, leaving for BC, in DEP or whatever to Enlisted!! They are Navy official - proudly share.  

I would also like to extend an invitation to those of you with sailors to join us in the    Beyond BC     group.

mustangmom65 - Thanks.  Knowing my husband he will want to rent a car.

Belovedbyhim - LOL!  the roller coaster has left the station had me cracking up. So did "calls are between 9 am and 9pm!" That's all day! Which means I can't relax until after 9pm every night. LOL

First of all I hate roller coasters, LOL, but here I am picking up spam calls even when they say scam likely, signing up for informational delivery when I'm the last person to ever check the mailbox, counting down the days to our first phone call and worrying about whether I'll miss it or not.

So thank you for the laughs.  I'm going to take some deep breaths and slow down.  

mytidbitz - One of the moms usually recommends that if you are traveling to PIR (especially flying) where you might not be able to answer the phone, to be sure to leave a voice message on your phone that you were in route to PIR. Not sure if I like that for PERSEC reasons, but you could leave a message "Hi son, sorry I missed your call, please call so and so, I love you" Something short enough for the voicemail message but not obvious that you are out of town.

I recommend for those who have not sent their loved ones off to BC to make sure and put a small note card with other phone #s or addresses in their wallet or a small notebook (memo sized/ breast pocket sized), which they should be able to keep, with the phone numbers and addresses of other family members if you are not available to answer the call. 

mytidbitz, he was allowed an hour for both calls.  We were shocked & delighted we had that long!!

mytidbitz-- I'm glad that I could make you laugh!  See even when you are missing your kid you can still find joy!  I Promise, YOU Can do this!!! If your child, whom YOU raised, is strong enough to get through, even with being yelled at and having to do and ro-do things Day after day, You are strong enough to get through BC with our support!

We rented a car but that was because there were 3 of us and we wanted the ability to just go whenever our sailor was available even if that meant driving to the airport at Midnight to wait till he flew out the next morning!

Random BC phone calls are more training for Navy Mom life after BC. You learn to answer any call even if you don't know the number and even if you do know the number, it gets you ready for those random calls that your sailor will make when you least expect. Like just getting ready to go into the bathroom at a rest stop while traveling. With your other children, you always figure they can leave a message and you can call them back. That may not be the case with your sailor, so you answer their call no matter what. It is also good to get into the habit of asking them if they have anything specific that they want to talk about or if they just called to chat. And to find out how much time they can talk with you. 

My SRs first call home happened on a Saturday afternoon and his brother was down the street (without a cell phone) at his friend's house. Our SR had barely 30 min for the first call. There wasn't any way that I could get myself down the street for his brother to talk to him and I be able to talk either. 

His 2nd call that we sort of knew might be coming was at week 6 and he called my phone. As it turned out, I was driving us all back from little brother's swim meet. I had kept my cell phone on me which was generally not allowed if you were helping to judge or time the meet. I was prepared but the call did not come during the meet. Instead, it came while I was driving. I could not get to my phone in my pocket fast enough before it quit ringing. I was so upset. Thankfully, he was able to call his Dad, whose phone connected with the car speaker, so not only was I able to talk to him but Dad, his brother and one of his sisters who was with us, were able to talk to him as well. 

My point, it wasn't the ideal situation that we / I was expecting, but in the long run it worked out. He told us, if I did not answer, he would call dad, then his sisters and then his grandmother, hopefully someone on his list would be able to talk to him. 

Some things we can control, others, we can only plan and prepare for as best as possible and trust that it will work out in the end. I would not cancel your other plans, but I would let those know who you are with, that if your son calls that takes top priority. Even when my son's ship comes into port, I expect to be his first phone call, therefore, if he calls me and I am on the phone with someone else - including a sibling which happens more than you would think - he always gets first preference over them!!! Especially if he has been out to sea!!

A lot of life can be wasted waiting for that call to come, so you learn to just keep your phone ready. I have answered my phone in church and doctor's office even, when I knew it was my sailor. I turn it on silent only if we are at a movie or music performance.