Boot Camp Moms (and loved ones)

Moms whose sons have an S.O. Contract headed to BUD/S there is a group for you.

It is called, BUD/S and SQT (Stages of a S.E.A.L.)

Interested:

Send a friend request to NavyMom(J) for more information.

(Click on the highlighted links.)

The Navy has updated their Cell Phone Usage.

Read the article here on personal cell phones for call homes:

Personal Cell Phone Use for Calls Home

Be sure to join your PIR group.  Here are the links:

PIR JUNE 2024

PIR MAY 2024

PIR APRIL 2024

My picture of the eclipse - looking through my homemade cereal box eclipse watcher lol!

We only got partial here in SoCal. Click on the picture to make it bigger - then you can see the crescent better.

Just wanted to say that I like the weather forecast up here that shows what it's like there at Great Lakes. :)  

Be sure to join your PIR group.  Here are the links:

PIR JUNE 2024

PIR MAY 2024

PIR APRIL 2024

Good Morning Everyone - Please join me in welcoming Iris to our group. 

Iris - this is the best place to post your hello to the group and any questions you have or just to share your ups and downs, or other thoughts about BC and your loved ones new Navy journey. Be sure to scroll back through the comments from the last few days to see links to helpful information. Including this blog from BelovedbyHim -   Here's the link:

Welcome to the Navy, everything will be ok!

So, a funny BC story. My son was at BC during the last major solar eclipse to cross the Midwest. I had not found this website or any information about what to send and not to send to my SR (seaman recruit). I stuck smiley face stickers all of the backs of the envelopes that I mailed to him. And I even went so far as to mail him a pair of the cheaper, flat, cardboard framed solar glasses which we had bought for that viewing. I carefully put it between two thin, stiff pieces of cardboard inside a greeting card, took it to the PO for the postage, and mailed it off. Thinking that surely such a significant event would be allowed to be witnessed by our sailors in training!! 

My son got the glasses, but it wasn't until later that he told me he got a good ribbing from his RDC about them. I also found out that I should not have been putting stickers all over the envelopes either. So, if you need some help with letter writing or what not to do, check out this page from the upper right here on our group page. 

Letter writing and fun stuff/questionnaire

 AxolotlMom -  Yes!! Isn't the weather forecast posting great!! You can see what to expect for PIR, but you can also see what your SR is dealing with every day. 

My DIL sent this picture of her and Oli watching the eclipse using the colander trick.  If you zoom in on it you can see it better!

Hi Iris.. welcome.. feel free to ask away or just talk..

Be sure to join your PIR group.  Here are the links:

PIR JUNE 2024

PIR MAY 2024

PIR APRIL 2024

Hi everyone, Thank you for welcoming me, I'm still learning to navigate the site. I'm excited for my son, he made it to BC.  

Welcome WolfpackMom!

Welcome Iris and WolfpackMom! 

WolfpackMom - You are welcome!! You managed to find your way over here to the BC Mom group page, and you posted in the Comment Wall area, that is a plus. This site is a lot easier to view, in my opinion, on a full computer screen than on a mobile device. 

Feel free to ask any questions you have. There is a lot of information in the pages in the upper right but we can also repost the link here in the comment wall area. 

Greetings Wolfpackmom..

B'sNukeMom - That is a great picture!! Thanks for sharing. Now I realize that mine was about as good as I was going to get it. I think I missed the peak of our coverage. 

Hi Iris and Wolfpack mom! Welcome! My sailor is now in his 8th month of enlistment having graduated from BootCamp the beginning of November. 

So I have a little story as I was trying to fly out from Dallas Ft Worth airport to Chicago Tuesday night and was on the delayed flight that FINALLY left Dallas at about 10:30 and arrived in Chicago about 12:45am. 
On the flight we’re at least 10-15 new recruits heading to Great Lakes to start Boot Camp! Some had ball caps on, at least one had a cowboy hat, a few in recruiter t-shirts that were the navy blue Navy.com shirts, One said he was planning to be a Yeoman. One recruit was talking to another about all his plans for education using the resources through the Navy. 2 gentlemen did not make it on the flight after all at the point of boarding (which, it was a crazy crazy flight situation) so they must have stayed back and called their recruiters. All the recruits appeared excited and talking with new found friends, some looking focused on what was ahead for them. It was such a wonderful sight to see these young people and be able to wish them prayers of strength and wellness and perseverance !  
As any of the new Navy moms out there this week, maybe I saw your bison among them! Congratulations new Navy moms! It warmed my heart knowing they were on their way to this new Navy Life, and to see them all together forward! 

Thinking of all our troops this evening, and especially of our Sailors in the fleet and our new Seaman Recruits Tuesday night’s group, resting easily now after a long arrival night and day. 

LOL!! 
Warmed my heart to see these young people and maybe one of them your son — not “bison” — LOL!! —  although to see bison would be heartwarming too!! 

Good Morning and Happy PIR Day!

You can watch it live here:

LIVE PIR APRIL 11, 2024

Lara - "bison" lol!

Lara -- That's what all the Mom's said to their Son's as they shipped out... Bison!!! (lol)

I watched the PIR online and saw my kiddo performing! Her PIR is 2 May, but she is in the 921 division and is a flag :)  Was good to see her chubby little face! I'll admit I had to look for her specific flag to make sure it was her, my eyes are getting old. They all looked so good in their uniforms!

AxolotlMom - Yay!  So glad you got to see her - that's exciting.  I got to see B perform in a PIR prior to his too and I remember how good it made me feel ;-D

You're getting close to PIR - woohoo!

Woohoo Axolotmom.. always gotta love those extra glimpses we can get and hoard in our heads and hearts..

AxolotlMom --- WHOOP WHOOP WHOOP!!!!! That's Awesome!!! No, it's not your eyes!! They all look soooooooo different in their uniforms!! I doubted my eyes even when my sailor was standing right in front of me!!

Happy Monday!  

As for liberty...i know on Thursday after graduation, they must remain in uniform. What about on Friday, do they need to be in uniform that day too? If so, which uniform will they be wearing? I know I could just wait til that day comes and see for myself, I'm just genuinely curious.  Wishing all that have big tests this week good luck!!!!!!!

AxolotlMom - I believe this is still the rule:

Sailors will be in their dress uniform on the day of PIR and in the Navy Service Uniform (NSU, AKA peanut butters) on the following day/s of Liberty and at the airport.

This link gives you a breakdown of the training schedule at boot camp.

BASIC MILITARY TRAINING SCHEDULE

Just got a call from my kiddo! She passed her OFPA test, next step BATTLESTATIONS!  Then she will officially be a sailor! Oh I cannot wait! She said that her division has been doing stuff way out of order. 

That's great news AxolotlMom!  The finish line is near!!!

Be sure to join your PIR group.  Here are the links:

PIR JUNE 2024

PIR MAY 2024

PIR APRIL 2024

Axolotmom— so awesome to hear that she is just moving forward each day!! Super exciting to know she is close to Battlestations! 

My son wore his Navy Service uniform over the weekend. Something I didn’t think about until I was watching him over the weekend was in how people in the public arena were responding to him when we were out and about! Very neat! 

Congrats AxolotlMom! Almost there... best of luck to your daughter in the final weeks.

Uniforms: My son wore his service uniform the day after PIR, and then had to wear his dress blues at the airport on Saturday. That was November 2022 so maybe it's different now. I agree with Lara - it's so cool to see them get recognition in public. Lots of "Thanks for your service." The greeter at Bass Pro Shops told him it was an honor to have him in their store. Makes a mom proud.

Another quick question...She wants her laptop to take with her to A school in South Carolina. Can I send that back with her when I drop her off on Friday evening?  Or would it be considered contraband? Would I need to wait til she goes to the airport and just meet her there on Saturday and give it to her then?  I wasn't planning on going to the airport as we have a 14 hour drive back home, but if that's what i need to do, i will of course.

AxolotlMom - First of all congratulations to your daughter. Second, I forgot she was headed to SC for A school. I know it means a long drive for you all, we did the same one - we took two days home because we were very tired from the entire weekend and we stopped in MO at my hometown to visit both of my parent's graves as well. 

I would suggest you plan to take her laptop to the airport. It has been seven years since my son was there almost, but they were not allowed to bring their phones or laptops back with them to RTC after liberty. We had to meet them at the airport. My son left way early in the morning for the airport and we actually spent more time there with him, than we did after PIR. He also had PIR on Friday and flew out on Saturday, so it was slightly different. If you still have time to get a letter to your daughter, you might suggest that she ask her RDC for clarification on the rules for getting laptops from family, since now they keep their phones at RTC and I don't know when they are distributed back to the sailors. We had to take my son's phone and Kindle to him at the airport. He did not have a laptop, but it would be much better for her to fly with it to SC than having to pack and mail it to her. 

I posted this discussion after my son's PIR in 2017, and it has been added to over time - there may be some helpful information, some of it may have changed though. 

What PIR weekend may be like for those flying out of GL

Also, if your sailor is in dress uniform, I believe they will be switched to the white uniform by May, if they haven't already. My sailor had PIR on Friday and flew out early morning on Saturday in his dress whites, so they had no down time. Hopefully, the new change allows a little bit of breather for everyone. 

Thank you Chipmunk that was some really helpful information (your link)! They will be in the dress blues for the May 2nd PIR, then they switch to whites. I'll bring a little drawstring backpack with some essentials like you described. If anything else, I can take it back with me if she doesn't need it. I'd rather be prepared :) She will have one more call telling me she's a sailor (she's already passed the OFPA, so we are just waiting on the BS21) and i'll ask her about the laptop then.  

On another note, she made some friends there, but one girl in particular she said she will remain friends with. I'm so glad! She's kind of an odd duck (my kid) so I'm glad she found a friend! They will be in totally different A schools as they have different career paths, but I'm so happy she found a friend :)

AxolotlMom - I am glad that you daughter has found a friend! And that my information was helpful.