»» Welcome to the MEPS and DEP group ««

I know Idaho has beautiful country, but I will be honest I don't have the fondest memories of the state. While vacationing in Buhl when I was young I was shot in the leg with a 4 pronged deer arrow by a 9 year old. Still have the cross scars to show for it.

Jennifer congrats on the CTI for your daughter. My son wants to take the DLAB again. He missed by 11 pts but I think the test was more difficult than he thought it was going to be.

CC had a Starbucks when I moved here in 2008, on the corner of 101 and E Cooper, across from the Home Depot. Brookings actually has one too, but its inside a grocery store. :-/

They didn't even have a Home Depot when I left. I miss the coast sometimes - when it is 100 degrees here in the summer!

Congrats moonblossom. Fair winds and following seas.

Congrats Moonblossom and we'll see you soon in the other groups!

This weekend we're getting a taste of what life without either of our boys will be like. Sean went on a school choir trip, he won't be back until late Sunday, so it's just Mike (hubby), daughter Erin and myself.

So far we've discovered we're going to have to cut back on our cooking – again. We discovered that Erin is VERY unhappy about inheriting both brothers' chores. When there were three kids to spread the chores around it was easy for all of them. Doing all three jobs, no so much. She was in tears last night over doing the cat box, which has always been her brothers' job.

We discovered that the animals are much harder to take care of with three people. Even four gave us options on who walks the dog this hour (we have no yard, we have to take her for a walk every time she has to do her business). Three reduces those options.

It's easier to decide what to watch on TV. With 5 of us it was too much, so Mike and I always dictated the TV schedule. With 4, we gave the kids more say, and one of them would always end up leaving because s/he wasn't interested. Being only 3, we seem to agree on shows more easily. I think taking sibling rivalry out of the picture has something to do with it.

Jessica, what system do you use? I use Linux at home and Mac OS 10 at work, both with Firefox browsers, and neither has any of the features you describe.

Aww...Thanks Angie. :)

I am playing a bit of catchup. I didnt touch my computer all weekend, so I am a little behind in my reading. I really enjoy this. I feel so embraced! It is a great comfort to see that others are going for this ride right along side me!

Hello,, I am new here.. my son will be leaving for BC Nov 9th.. and has been in contact today by his recruiter about SEALS. I have millions of questions,, and will be back tonight after I get home from work .. Thanks for any and all information ' )

Hi to everyone. I've been on the N4M website for a couple of weeks but just found this group. My son Matt is leaving for BC 10/5. He is contracted for the NUKE program. I will also be joing the oct family group:)

JessicaB - Thank you for the info & link.

braintreeMom-
my son is scheduled to leave the same date and is also waiting on his SEALS contract, so many questions as well. I am going to be meeting with the recruiter this week or next. would love to share information with someone!

Jessica, I have a favorites feature, but it works completely differently. I think I could set it up to be on the side, but I have mine on the top, and I have a "favorites bar" for my most-used bookmarks at the top, just under the navigation bar. All I have to do is right-click it, tell it to "save this page" and it's done.

My daughter is still in H.S. and graduates the end of May. She is scheduled to leave for bootcamp Nov. 22. My question to mom's is this: Has your son or daughter had doubts? Not so much of joining but of being able to do the work that is needed for the Navy. She came home last night from her first DEP meeting and her confidence is down and i have never seen her like this before. I know that she is a very strong young lady and not really sure what to say to her. She has wanted to join the Navy for a long time now and would hate for her to be down on herself and question it.

kk, that you for making me feel better. She has gotten the same response from teachers and kids in her class because they are unaware of what the military has to offer. she is the salutatorian of her graduating class and this makes people even say more things to her because she chose the Navy and not college. Her recruiter was even shocked when she told him the Navy was her first choice and not college. thanks again for the support, much appreciate and i hope that your son does well.

A lot of the reason for the attitude is because of leftover memories of Vietnam and the draft. At the time the military was something you fell to. If you couldn't get in college, you got drafted. Drop out of high school, get drafted. So anyone who went straight to the military was either a gung-ho Rambo type or had failed in everything else and the military was all that remained. No one went military unless they had a death wish.

Even though the draft has been gone for 35 years, the whole episode remains in people's psyches.

I have friends in the VFW who are Vietnam and Korean War veterans, when they hear about kids who get in trouble they always say "send them to the (Army/Navy/Marines) and they'll get straightened out."

They don't realize the military doesn't want troublemakers, won't take them, nor high school dropouts. They don't realize that it's harder to get in the Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force right now than it is to get into a good college.

This attitude won't change until the Boomer generation and their memories of Vietnam are gone.

One of my friends had a great comment when she found out my daughter was going in the Navy. She said "It is great she will have support. If she doesn't show up for work, someone will go look for her". She went on to tell about someone's child that got a job accross the country from home and had problems. I had never thought about it that way. My daughter really researched the Navy before she went to MEPS. When she was able to answer everyones questions, they supported her.

Several of my daughters friends are sooooo unhappy in college. Two of them have dropped out with no plans & others are changing their major. The parents of the ones that dropped are looking into vo-tech or other options, the students are clueless. I'm so happy my daughter has choosen the Navy.

My son tried the college route for 4 yrs, but really wasn'y getting anywhere (sigh). I don't think he really knew what he wanted to do. He always seemed to start the semester gung-ho but always seemed to fall off due to distractions. He is one who decided on the Navy. He is very excited re: the NUKE program. He feels that the Navy will give him the discipline that he needs to succeed.

We have done both medical and POA with first our current sailor and also now with our depper. We explained that if they are seriously injured, decisions need to be made. If he is comfortable with another adult, you might want to suggest he has them do it. It is so difficult to take care of these arrangements when decisions haven't been made. Actually what we decided to do is Mom is the medical POA and Dad is the financial POA. That is where our strengths lie.

A lot of people didn't understand why my son chose the Navy instead of college including his father. It took awhile, but now they understand. I am so proud of his choice. His rating will be Corpsman (not to happy with choice but will go and give it his all).

There really wasn't any other choices at the time so he chose it so that he could get in sooner with the understanding that there might be a chance of changing. However, that did not happen. He is okay with it though.

Angie F - WA:HM/ Pre Buds mom Thanks so much for the support. It will be a scary ride for me (and more so for him) but I know he will over come.

Angie, all the wonderful wisdom you have provided is so true. I am a returning depper mom. My first sailor went out last Sept and is currently in C school. I was on this site for about 6 months before she left and made many new N4M friends. I became very good friends with a Mom who lived in the northern part of our state, our daughters meet on FB so they would know each other at BC. We were so excited, our girls would know someone, we could follow them through BC knowing they were doing the same things. We would get the chance to finally meet at PIR. We were just so excited.Her girl went on a Monday and although mine went to MEPS on Monday she didn't leave for GL until Wednesday. Well the worst of all possible things happened. Her daughter was put into the last division and by the time my girl got there she had to wait almost a week for her groups to division up. We didn't even end up in the same PIR group. Her daughter graduated a week before mine.
So while we wait for our next child (19) to go off to BC we will have more of an understanding of the process and not have the expectations that everything will work according to our plans. They are truely in the Navy now and they are in control not us sidecar moms as Angie so aply put it. Thanks again Angie, you are the best in keeping us grounded and well informed. Happy Mother's Day all.
p.s. This past spring break I did make a trip to visit my N4M friend. It was wonderful. God Bless

My depper had her gall bladder out yesterday. Mother's Day was at the hospital - it will be one to remember! She talked to recruiter and everything is fine. She has plenty of time to heal before August. She's been sick for a while and I think having it removed will do the trick. So glad this did not happen at BC...

Fleur, so sorry to read about your daughter. She will heal quickly. I had mine out a couple of years back. Hope she is feeling much better.

Angie I am actually sending off my youngest and only son. Will follow in his sister's path and go IS. Not one for big celebrations so it will be more on the quiet side with family and a few close friends.

Just an update on my daughter. she's home. She had her gall bladder removed Sunday by laproscope. She has been in contact with her recruiter. She came home today. Her blood work needs to improve, more blood work tomorrow, and possibly another scope by the gastro doc. Thanks for the prayers.

Blood work was normal.. She is home resting, heads back to work tomorrow(no lifting). Now to make sure at the paper work is complete with the recruiter. They have a group meeting tomorrow.

Hi Fleur, So happy that your daughter is home and resting. God Bless.

Just an update - she is doing well. The recruiter called and asked if she need to delay the ship date. We said "NO" - she has plenty of time to heal, her friends will all be back in school if she delays, and an old boyfriend is back in the picture. She does not need any distractions.

Hope everyone's Future Sailors are doing great!!!

We have a great BSM group. I had lunch last week with another Navy Mom who is a member of the group. I'm so glad to have the local support as well as N4M.

Well, had a meeting with my son's recruiter yesterday! That was quite an experience, never would I have imagined doing this, not that I don't believe what he is doing is the best thing for him, because I do! The recruiter was very nice and informative! And it is so nice to see my son so focused. We are still waiting on a SEALS contract, but for now he has an AO (aviation ordinance) contract and is scheduled for departure on November 9.

BBWinthermoom, my boy is leaving the 16th of Nov and signed as an AO also. Good Luck!!

gcmb,

Prayers out to both you and your son. My son is also a senior in HS and Depper scheduled to leave for BC in November. My problem is what will he do with himself till then. Hopefully he can find some work and not get lazy or have something go wrong till he leaves. He is an amazing kid but you never know. One thing in common, I too found a spark in him since he signed. He is also showing a rise in maturity especially with his younger sister. Amen to that!!

So prayers to us all and to all the sailors and their families!!

Hi Ang!

gcmb - Prayers for you also. These last few months are hard. Maybe his recruiter could give him a "pep talk".

gcmb, I'm in a similar position. My son has only three weeks before graduation and is definitely NOT going to make it. He will have to take two summer classes to graduate. He too got a bad case of senioritis and just quit trying to do well. Since he didn't get into any of his colleges, he quit two of his college-prep classes (calculus isn't necessary for graduation) to have more "relax time." If he had a summer ship date, this would be a huge problem, but since he's still waiting on a waiver, there's no hurry.

What is his ship date, and is there a summer credit recovery program available to him? If his high school doesn't have one, can he take a community college class and transfer credits?

I am so upset with our local recuiters it isnt funny. We went to a DEP picnic and it ended up being held in the recruiting office because of rain. They didnt acknowledge us or talk to us even if we tried to talk to them. Then today her recuiter called her and told her she was "kicked" out of the Navy for poor eyesight. (That is another story) But my other daughter sw him at the high school and he [reseded to tell her that her sister was kicked out for poor eyesight. Doesn't HIPPA apply to the Navy? Where is the confidenciality?

Any DEP's from Louisiana?

Yvette - I'm from Ruston, LA. Where are you from?

Yes i will continue to develop the relationship with the recruiter! I am hoping that he can help us out with some "issues"

Colleen, Congratulations - you are on the next step of the journey. Best wishes. I can't wait until my son leaves as he is getting so restless and sometimes a pain. It will be difficult for me as he is my youngest and we are extremely close. However I am very proud of him and this is what he really wants. To the Moms with sons suffering from senioritis as you call it - hang in there. My son has been out of high school almost 2 years now but his senior year he made my hair grayer and I wanted to pull it out. I used to even cry sometimes. But low and behold - he pulled it together and graduated on time (not with honors as he should and did in the other grades) but he did and that is all that is important.

Hey Fleur Di Lis Mom,
I am originally form Chalmette but moved to Baton Rouge ( Post -K) and love it. When is your son scheduled to leave? Corey is very excited and scheduled to leave in November but has asked his recruiter to call if anything sooner comes up.

Yvette - I have a daughter leaving in August. She was offered to leave in May, July or August. Since then she was offered a June date. She has a job until she leaves, a lease that will be up July 31; so she stuck with August.

Tell him to keep checking with the recruiter, there may be something sooner.

We have several families in Ruston that moved here Post K. They are great assets to our commuinity.

Last night, my daughter and I went to see Letter to Juliet. Afterwards she said “I want to live in Italy, are they Navy bases there”. It told her “Yes”, Next she asked “Can I be assigned there”. Since she is IT, I told her “yes”. The next question was “Will you come to visit me there?” I told her “YES!”.
I reminded her that the top of the A School class gets first choice at assignments and she needs to be at the top of the class. Maybe I should take her to a movie set in San Diego, so she will want to be closer to home!

Hi Angie F. I was LOL at your comment to me. More gray hair is okay as I decided when I started turning to gray - just to leave it. I see all my girlfriends struggling to keep the "roots" from not showing etc. I just tell all that I earned each and every gray hair and it is my honor. I know tears are coming again but definitely will be tears of pride and joy for his success. He is counting the days until Aug. 10. His best friend left last Sept. and is in Seattle absolutely loving everything.

Hi, My son just found out his week he is leaving for BC June16 from Raleigh NC. Was to leave Sept. 9. I am so proud of him, doing something with his life. TJ's best friend Chris is in Nuke school so he has really helped him with all his. I feel like I have two son's in the Navy.

kk: Such nice comments - I am new to this site, but am just loving it. My friends here don't understand my emotions. They feel it is oh so easy. Glad we have each other.

gcmb: My son also went all the way through school with his friends. His class was small (54 students) so they all were extremely close. Senior year was hard for me as my son just went into slow mode and I thought he was not going to make it. We have a lot of sunshine - perfect beach weather (we live in Puerto Rico) so trying to keep them in class was almost impossible. Most of them went on to college, 2 in the military. My son had to wait as he was only 17 when he graduated and didn't want college right away. So I gave him the year until he turned 18 to decide what he wanted to do. Navy was his choice. He knows he will need college education but planning on doing so while he serves his country. God Bless Him as he has his life mapped out - hope it goes accordingly for him. We all know the changes that can happen along the way, but at least. Yes, it is scary (more for me than him) but we will survive - yes one day at a time. Oh my, didn't mean to go on so.

Kat Q, I understand what you are feeling. Some people don't understand. My son is 24 been to community college didn't work out. Really didn't know what he wanted to do with this life. Moved back home last Febuary and was going to join the Navy and then said no. Thanksgiving he best friend more like a brother came to visit us and was telling him how great the Navy is. So he said I am going to do it. And he is. He will be a Information Tech just what he wanted to go to school for. I couldn't be prouder. Yes I will miss him, he has always lived near me. But I know it is the best thing for him. The Navy will make him strong and give him a life. I pray everyday for strength for me and him.

My prayers are with you Proud Mom. My son has several months, I am excited for him but know at the moment of departure... well many tears will be shed(sad ones and joyful ones)