taking a look back ( mail call and phone calls)

you know being a military mom isnt easy at all.
but here are a few things you should know
each branch of the military does it diffrently yet same same
so its best if your a army mom to ask another army mom what basic is like and what to expect .
navy mom 101
the kid is gone off to become a sailor
what do you do?

well the frist thing i did was go home and have a good cry.
then i waited for ira to contact me.
he finally called me about two weeks into his basic or when they finally allowed him to call me.
when he did he said ma all my personal stuff will be mailed to you via ups
they do that so you dont fall over in a dead faint if someone comes to the door to deliver your childs personal stuff back to you after all they no longer need that stuff all their going to wear from then on is a uniform right?

at some point ira had to sit and write me a letter. so i would get the information on his address and how to contact him . no phone numbers just a brochier on how to get to boot camp graduation. which i couldnt do since he was in the naval boot camp on the east coast. heck this is alaska good luck getting out of here and back in unless you got a ton of money laying around .
so i missed his gratuation totally both times.
couldnt be there when he shiped out to iraq either.
anyway that is getting ahead of myself
mail call...........
first off i invested in 100 stamps
and then ran off to locate every post card i could of alaska
and i would sit every morning at my pc and type him a quick letter
and send those off
here is the deal about post cards
if you feel like you want to send those please remember everything you write on the back is read outloud so those not getting mail can hear something from home .
sooooooooo no embarrissing stuff on the backs of those. and no mushy stuff
dont write things like love and hugs and all that from your mother
just put love from mom and leave it at that
what i did was this
i got me every post card known to man kind of alaska and took the opertunity to take the whole lot of them on a tour of alaska through post cards
would put triva about alaska on the backs or some funny thing on there something to get a smile out of them.
i was known as the mom who wrote the most when ira went through because i must have sent every post card out. sent out three of those a day and then sent about three letters a day too.

ok phone calls.......
i vowed not to cry on the phone with ira ever
and i vowed not to carry on about stuff back home like someone in the family not getting along or someone fighting or things like that.
i kept our talks to an upbeat thing didnt ever talk bad to him or tell him how to act or behave. heck he didnt need me to do that he had a person yelling at him all day and night during training he didnt need me to do the same .
and when ira came home on leave and left i would not cry when i put him on the plane either i would wait until i was down the road and at the nearest stop sign before i would fall totally apart.
i did the best i could to not add to any troubles ira had while he was in the navy by not falling apart or making him a part of any troubles going on back home.
not that i didnt include him in things either. i did include him told him about the walks i went on or the camping trips and movies i saw and places and people and events and alot of things but never about the troubles.
like he said once when i asked him where he was at he said if i tell you ma then i have to shoot you you know that.
he then asked me about something family and i said same thing there are things here at home you dont need to know so back at you if i tell you then i have to shoot you too. so dont ask.
and we kept it that way the whole time he was in after all there was not a dang thing he could do about what was going on at home. he couldnt reach through that phone and fix anything or make it better . though his calls made my days and nights and alot of time just hearing his voice made things a ton better.
and even know that he is out and on his own hearing his voice say maaaaa is that you maaaaaa and then begin to tell me about the place he is living at now well i sure miss the child i gave to the navy but i love the man they gave back to me. for sure
hugs and love and tons of prayers from this vetern navy mom to all of you.
aka ( crissy ira's mom) in alaska