Boot Camp will be hard for you to contact him. You can write him and he will need to hear from you a lot to get him thru it. My son has been in the Navy for a year now... he was lucky, he went to boot camp with his two cousins, so he had family there, now all three are at the Navy Base in Virgina. but when they ship out they are all on Different ships. Anyway the more you write to him the easier it will be for him. when he is done you will see the son you raised will be a man... but he will still ask to borrow Money. LOL!!

Eddie, Welcome Aboard!

My son is an ABE aboard the USS Ronald Reagan in San Diego, Ca. and my family and I couldn't be prouder of him. When he first enlisted I found NavyForMoms in searching for answers to my son's future. I just knew their had to be a site for dads like n4m's but I was wrong. So I started this site so us dads would also have a place to call home. I'm new at this and I hope this site will benefit fathers that come behind us. So jump right in share concerns, join groups, share info, and show off your Sailor. I'm so glad to find out their are so many proud Navy Dads just like myself. I hope this site benefits you and your family throughout your sons journey in the Navy. Thank Sean for his service for me and thanks again for joining us.

Sincerely, EG

Well, the funny thing is that my son has meet a couple of guys recently that will be leaving the same day he does. One of the boys mom works with my wifes cousin. I am really really proud of what my son choose to do. This morning I asked him if he was ready. He said that he is. He knew how many days, hours, and minutes were left till departure. I know he is excited and also nervous, but he said he is gonna be the best that he could be....................

Welcome to NavyDads Eddie! I'm sure you'll find the site as fun, useful, and educational as I have. Explore the site and make some friends, add your comments to a discussion or two, read the postings in the various groups-- even start one or two. I certainly have! If you have any questions or concerns about your sailor and what he is going through...ask! I'm sure someone here will have the answer or can point you in the right direction to find out. I'm lucky enough to have two sailors in the family - my son Eric (AM3) recently returned from a seven-month cruise on the carrier Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and my daughter Kat (MC3) returned last fall from a seven-month cruise on the carrier Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72). And Eddie this is a great place to brag about your sailor as well! So join in and let us know how Sean is doing! We do ask that you remember that we talk about the Navy here and we must keep the security and safety of our sailors in mind at all times. On the right side of every NavyDads page is an area we call About This Site. Please take a minute and read through the Operations Security (OPSEC) link and the NavyDads Guidelines link.

As a parent of a sailor currently or soon to be at Great Lakes you'll have many questions about what your son is going through. Thanks to one of our members we have two excellent videos that you can access from the Video area on the NavyDads.com main page: New Bootcamp 1 of 2 and New Bootcamp 2 of 2. These videos will answer many of your questions and concerns and will give you a better understanding of how the United States Navy transforms our children into sailors! In the Navy Bootcamp group is a discussion called "A MUST READ for All New Navy Parents". I would suggest you take a few mintues to read through this post as it will do a lot to give you some understanding about what your sailor is learning and why.

Be sure to spend some time in the Bootcamp group- there are many questions and answers available to help you understand what your sailor is going through. And as PIR draws closer, be sure to spend some time going through the PIR-Tips, Hints and Helps group- we’ve tried to assemble some tips and suggestions to make your sailor's PIR more enjoyable. And stop by the NavyDads offical store- Navyoutfitters.com. Show your support for NavyDads by wearing the latest in NavyDads attire. Best Regards- Paul

HooYah....two months! Be sure he's doing some running...it'll make the dreaded timed run that much easier!

hey eddie,welcome to navy dads,my son has been in for about a year and a half.we remember boot camp was hard for everyone at first but after about the 3rd wk he will be able to start calling some.wear out the pen and paper-we did,your letters to him will always be appreciated.my son is currently in norfolk on the carl-vinson(cvn-70) doing security.he is scheduled to go to san antonio for m/a school at lackland.thats where they train all the military police,he is looking forward to get back to texas for a while.I also have a friend whos son just graduated from great lakes and now he has about 10 wks of a school there.Never having been to Illinois it was really cool at graduation,tell your son thanks from all of us and were proud to have him protecting us and our greaytcountry.this is a great place to converse with people and get info from ones that have been there.........

Eddie - my son started boot camp on Nov 3 last year- same time of the year as your son. I won't lie - the first few days are tough. My emotions were just below the surface for the first week or so. But you get the "kid in a box" after a few days, then the form letter and finally after maybe 2 weeks you get a real letter. Those things all make it a lot easier. As soon as you have his address you can write him and that also make it a lot easier to bear - for both of you. They crank out 1000 Sailors a week out of RTC so they know what they're doing. Your son will be in excellent hands - the hands of the finest Navy in the world. Danny still tells some funny stories from boot camp - it is tough for them but they adjust realy quickly - faster than we do! I'm incredibly proud of my son for his decision to serve and you obviously are too. Hang out on this site and feel free to answer any questions you have.

This link may be a start...see where it leads and what you can find through Google

There may be a break until he classes up , but he will be on base. He may get to know the operator's end of a broom or mop for awhile, but that seems pretty normal. After he completes a portion of A-school he'll get to leave base, but it'll probably take a couple of weeks to complete that phase.

Thanks Eddie for posting on my page. My son will be training as a Sonar Technician (surface) in San Diego after RTC for A School. I know we are all going through lots of mixed emotions now. Hang in there and know that you are not alone. PIR will be here before we know it!

Hey Eddie...maybe they should rename the band vonNavy !!!!!!!!!!

I see your son is an Operations Specialist. I'm sure that my son and yours have gotten to know each other since they are on the same ship an division. In addition, my son was actually interested in an Operations Specialist job, but there were none available when he went to MEPS and he didn't want to get on a wait list. He ended up selecting a Sonar Technician job as it was an area that he thought would be interested in and they work very closely with Operations Specialists - even cross training in various duties and technologies.

Hang in there Eddie...PIR will be here before we know it!

note that parking passes are not sent anymore..... if you click this link it will tak eyou to the PIR date page where you can download a parking pass. Note that the passes are not posted until 11 days before PIR

Glad to hear you received your first letter. It seems that the longer they are their the more opportunities they get to actually mail letters, Typically only Sundays to start depending on how well their group is doing and the RDC's they have. Sometime around week three they may be given an opportunity to call home (ours was 15 min). Breathe and relax it will get easier with time. Paul B.

My son commented also about the RDC's, saying they practically "breath the F word"...but he seems to be adjusting fine. He said that after a while, the harsh rhetoric seems to be a bit scripted and it doesn't really bother him now. He said that he LOVES the food at RTC and said it was provided by Good Will. He said that the "lunch ladies" always put a smile on his face and he tries to get a good laugh in once a day since he has to keep a straight face the rest of the time. I hope to get a call from him in the near future. We will definitely have to meet up at PIR!

Morning Eddie, I hope all is well for you and your family. another week is passing by as everyone gets a week closer to PIR. Have a great day and I hope you are able to hear from your son again soon.
Paul B.

how you been holding up Eddie? Bet the time actually went faster than you thought it would!!!! HooYah!!