Nephew joining army, Gift question!

My son left for the army last year. I could not give him anything . Boot camp supplies all that they need. Maybe you could give him a prepaid debit card. I am pretty sure they let them have money. But even if he cant use it now he might after boot camp. it is so hard when they go off to bot camp because they cant have hardly any contact with family members. Oh I gave my son a big hug and a "I love you" as my gift to him.

The stationary set is such a thoughtful idea. He isnt allowed to take much along but I would think something that fits easily in his bag would be nice. If he is leaving his famliy stationary is something he would use. How nice of you.

My son joined the Navy 2 years ago. He was not allowed to take ANYTHING! When he got off the plane at boot camp, he stripped and they sent back all his clothes and belongings. I mailed him paper, pens, stamps and envelopes right after he got there. He never used them, he brought them home after boot camp. Phone cards are the best thing to give him, until he goes over seas (most only work in the country where you buy them). Prepaid credit cards are great too. After he is there, they do moderate his diet, so don't send food until after he's out of boot camp - then send all the goodies!! I remember my son's first Christmas in Japan, I sent him some of my mom's cookies. When I talked to him he said "Every bite was like a taste of home." Yeah, I cried!!! Wish him the best! OH, an tell him to sign up for the GI bill as soon as they offer it - apparently you only get the offer once, then you're stuck with the decision.

The stationary is a good idea, but he may want to use the army stationary they can get in the PX. How about having people write their name and address on address labels, he will not have much time to answer mail. This way he can just pick the label and even put it on a post card depending on the time. (I did that for my son when he wnet to boot camp) They aren't allowed to have food or anything else. You might as well forget anything else, since he can't have it. The made my son send back everything, and then he had to go to the NEX (Navy) and buy it all again. The one thing he could keep was running shoes, maybe a gift certificate would be good to the local foot locker if the army allows the running shoes. After boot camp, my son still did so much running, he need new shoes about every 6 weeks. BTW_ Thank him for us. We appreciate what he is doing

I was in the military. The best thing you can do is write letters to him. He won't be able to keep a journal. I believe all the calls I made were collect. Later on we were allowed to receive care packages. My parents sent me tastycakes which I would share with my friends. You weren't allowed to keep any food in your room. I can remember going to the commissary but I forget how I paid for those things.

Can you get a few pictures of the family together and give them to him? I dated a boy once who was at Camp LeJeune and his photos from home were like gold to him. Wish him luck for me...