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Our sons cell phone broke and we have not been in contact with him in 2 weeks. He is in navy nuke school in S. Carolina.What is a good way to get in contact with him?

Boot camp is over. The experience we had in post PIR liberty was priceless and quite comforting.  There have been differences during this period even at a far. The muted communication gave a synthetic stress like no other. Differences did occur and have only become partially resolved, mostly by concession. We are in love. Are we in love with the idea of being in love or is it the real deal?

I figured I would not end the relationship or permanently engage during this artificially stressful time. Sailorette wants to commit to a eternal bond through this tough time, which is hard to ignore,yet still hard to acknowledge. Ultimately I am totally game. But, there are still differences yet to be worked out. Is such urgency brought on by youth? I don’t know.  To permanently commit with small differences in the rafters is obviously of some concern. The element of utmost concern is the fact that we want to commit and haven’t been together completely in 10 weeks. I worry this love is just an idea, or only manageable because of distance.

Our love is hot right now, and she wants to strike while the emotions are strong. Is it best for me? And, is it best for her? Should we act on these feelings? What if I delay? Will she not feel I am committed? Having a girlfriend in the service is stressful . You hear one thing but see another. I cant help but wonder if the person serving is so helplessly in it if they can see the same thing.

I am not sure it is right to feel your relationship is only healthy when there has been two and a half months of separation. She tells me she is committed to me and not the service, but the reality is my bed is half empty every night.

18 November 2011 Graduation Day (a.k.a. PIR) - We shuttled in and arrived at the main gate drop-off area roughly around 0700. As we made our way to entering the base, we were warmly greeted by courteous heavily armed MAs who checked our photo IDs. From there we walked a short distance to the graduation hall and at the door we were handed the graduation programs. They asked for our names, our sailor’s name and division number.

Our names were validated and checked off of the access list and we were hand-stamped. We then made our way to the bleachers. You have the option to sit anywhere in the bleachers but in front on the ground floor; they had signs for every division. The idea is to sit directly in front of that specific area as that’s where the designated division will be in formation throughout the whole ceremony.

I couldn’t help but notice the happiness in the air. Everyone had nothing but smiles and excitement. You have the opportunity to purchase a souvenir sailor hat imprinted with RTC as well.

The start of the ceremony was kicked off by the color guard and band division which in our case was DIV 901. I believe every training group has one. Their performance was nothing short of fantastic!

Now for the best part… When the rolling doors opened, I cried like a baby inside but was quiet as a rock. I managed to hold back the majority of my tears though a few snuck out. This was the moment we’ve all waited for. Each division was introduced as they marched in order and took up their formations. I was filled with silent joy and emotions no words can possibly express.

After all was said and done it was Liberty Call!

Again I want to thank all of our new Sailors for serving our country most especially during this time of war. I also want to extend my gratitude to all of our friends and loved ones for showing their unconditional support throughout the entire boot camp experience…

It’s been almost eight weeks since our son entered the doors of the U.S. Navy RTC. Since day one, I’ve done nothing short of worrying non-stop about him all the time…

I just wanted to express my gratitude to his recruiter S. Sargent from the Navy Recruiting Station, Fairfield, CA and the entire team at RTC for giving him the opportunity to serve our country in the most awesome Navy in the world.

Bravo Zulu to all of the Sailors for a job well done Hoo-Yah!

Last but not least, a “Special Thanks” to all of the Admins and Members of NavyDads.Com for all of the information, resources, support and helpful advice which got me through my own emotional boot camp of sorts.

We are packed and ready to rock and roll for PIR this Friday!
Thank You Lord and God Bless You All…

The Boyfriend of a Girlfriend in the Navy:  PIR, Getting Through 67 Hours of Emotion on 6 Hours of Sleep.

*Spoiler alert! If you read all the way to the end you will find a happy ending.

Wednsday

0430 Woke up for work

1130 Get the sailor call. Nice to talk to Sailorette, but we all knew she would make it, no surprise there.

1730 Left work early to head to airport. There are only 2 Nathans hot dogs in Phoenix. I’m so looking forward to a Philly and lemonade at the airport.

1830 Denied by Nathans. Out of Phillys and they only have that Country Time garbage.

2015 A flight on a 737 with 16 passengers !

Thursday

0030 Arrived at Midway Airport, Chicago.

0045 Get rental car off airport site 15 minutes before closing

0130 Settled in my room.  Pacing until the anxiety wears off

0300 Finally able to lay down and SLEEP.

0500 Woke up, bathed, ironed, got coffee. Red Carpet Inn does not serve their horrid doughnuts until 0600 (doughnuts aside I do very much so recommend the Red Carpet Inn). You are actually far better off to go to the quickie mart down the street for coffee and edibles. Put rose pedals in the  Jacuzzi tub. Made hotel bed with sheets and blankets from home. Set up lamp and stuffed bear from night stand at home.

0615 Left for base. Great advice going early Kurt (yes Kurt I really do mean it, the earlier the better if you want a good seat). Sit in traffic until the gates open.

0700 doors open sit front and center for Sailorette. If your worried about smoking there is a HUGE smoking section outside the gate.

0845 We get to rewatch all the videos of the Navy, that we watched on YouTube wondering  what our loved ones got themselves into.

0900 I hope you like the sound of horns and drums this goes on for about 2 ½ hours.

0930 We get to watch 561 people stand at attention for 2 hours while RDCs walk between them making sure they don’t pass out.

1045. “With out further ado! Hip Hip Horah! Hip Hip Horah! Hip Hip Horah!  Now this is where you and your sailor need a predetermined plan. Look each other in the eyes. Look at the nearest exit and make a run for it!

1100 Make it to the room Lay in bed stare at the ceiling and talk about every very personal moment we had apart. I will warn you my friends neither of you will be tearless.

It is now time to make up for lost time.

1500 Sailorette and I are hungry . We cant make up our minds on what she is craving. Finally we want food like she makes, when she makes a nice dinner for the two of us. Since I don’t care for steak we agreed on a place that specialized in it. We discover The Tavern does not open till 1700

So we decide to make up for more lost time.

1700 We go to The Tavern. I encourage you to make reservations, or it is likely you will not get in.  We agreed to finish dinner in under 2 hours so they lets us have a table before the next  guests showed up. Also if your shirt does not button completely up the front and/or it is not tucked in don’t go.

I want to take the time to specially note there steak with the truffle butter sauce was amazing. I thought it was good and Sailorette enjoyed not eating the feral geese from the base for a change. THE TAVERN (http://www.tavernlibertyville.com/index.php/tavern-dining) treated us VERY VERY well. I encourage you to strongly consider the dining experience there. Check the reviews on yelp(http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-tavern-libertyville).

1830 returned to  the room. And said our good byes. Meanwhile making up for lost tim. (Did I mention we were apart for 8 weeks?)

2100 Dropped her off at the chapel.

2130 Back in the room

2200 already missing her

Now. The ceremony I could take or leave. I don’t recommend the DVD but I probably would have enjoyed it more than the ceremony.

The irreplaceable feeling I experienced was the complete and deep happiness I saw inside Sailorette. I have never seen any one so happy in my 38 years. I didn’t see it in her large glowing eyes. It wasn’t even in her smile. Neither of us smiled much at all. I could see it inside her. I have never been able to look inside someone in such a way before. And her happiness was contagious. I felt all the joy she had. It was a complete exchange of emotion without speaking or the facial queues we depend on. I saw inside her and It was amazing

2230 Going to bed

0230 getting up to make my 0600 flight. Which is good because I had to turn around to get my cell phone charger and I got lost returning my car to a site not at, but near the airport.

*0900 Land in Phoenix talk to Sailorette. Her and 3 other girls were giving hi five in the showers last night for the afternoon they spent with their boyfriends.

1000 back to work till 1800

So let this be a lesson. Sending letters, actual tiny flowers, sweaty hockey equipment, pictures, poems, origami love boxes, and going out of the way to make sure they feel at home after PIR pays off. Sailorette and I have discussed it Neither of us love each other anymore or less than ever before. And we are not proud of having to go through this to learn how much we truly do love each other. (As for the Navy, to me its just a second boyfriend).

A footnote to those with short sailors. The Navy likes uniformity in every thing including the size of their sailors. They stick the short ones in the middle. If your sailor is short you will not see them, and they will not see you.

Posted in the Navy Times.....

Seabee killed checking road in Afghanistan

A Seabee working with a provincial reconstruction team in Paktika province, Afghanistan, was killed Wednesday while assessing a route, according to a Defense Department release.

Chief Builder (SCW) Raymond J. Border, 31, of West Lafayette, Ohio, was assigned Navy Mobile Construction Battalion 74 in Gulfport, Miss. His parents told the Sun Herald newspaper of Gulfport that Border was inspecting a road for a convoy to pass and had stepped out of his vehicle when a bomb went off.

Border enlisted in September 1999, and made chief in 2009, personnel records show. His awards include a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and three Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals.

I’m happy to have received yet another letter from my son. As we all know with boot camp schedules, there’s no telling when you’ll get a letter or a phone call from your SR.

He is doing well and continues to focus and work hard to remain in the top ten percent. At this stage the “welcome to boot camp” culture shock is pretty much over. He’s passed the PFAs required to-date and told me that they were awarded the Athletic Flag. Though I really have no idea what this means, I do know getting an award for something good is always a great thing…

Bravo Zulu Div 002 I’m so proud of you all. Keep up the good work Hoo-Yah!
See you soon my son…