Transition from BMT to Tech School

[proudmomofsep]

Hi Everyone!

I'm so excited ... a week from today at this time, my husband and I will be flying to Austin..(it was way cheaper than flying to San Antonio) and getting closer to seeing Sarah!  My husband is retired AF and it will be very cool to return to Lakeland with him where he went through BMT 37 years ago.

Before she left Sarah packed a bag for Tech School that she wants us to bring with us.  I was just wondering if there is anything you can think of that you were asked to bring to Tech School that maybe I've overlooked.

I also welcome any suggestions you can offer about Graduation or tips you learned from  your loved one on the transition to Tech School.  Sarah will be staying at Lakeland for her Tech training.

Thanks again for your support throughout these past 3 months!

Hugs,

Lisa

 

[wendy6832]

Hi Lisa,

I think you mean Lackland . . .

This is so exciting for you! Congratulations to your daughter.

Tech school bag: If I'm remembering correctly, my son was allowed to wear regular clothing after a week or two and needed some regular stuff to wear off base. He had lost some weight during BMT so he had to buy a new pair of shorts for himself. A camera is good to have so she can take pics to share with everyone. Tech school went by very quickly and was a good experience for him. It's very nice to be able to talk more often and have fewer restrictions than BMT. There are still plenty of rules.

Graduation tips: Go to every event. Be ready for the weather. Take lots of pictures. Bring lots of tissues. Be ready to give a lonely grad a hug if you see they don't have their family there for them. I'd stay close to base to avoid driving around too much. We rented a house while we were there because there were 4 of us visiting for the graduation. It was great to have our own kitchen and place to hang out.

Enjoy your trip and travel safely.

[KETGP]

Next week will be here before you know it!  My son graduated BMT on July 10th and went straight to California for tech school for 18 weeks where he still is till he graduates on Nov 23rd.  Since the situation is different I will just share my experience, it may still help.  While we where at Lackland we purchased a large backpack for him to take on the plane and that is all he took besides the bags he already had while at basic.  Once he got to tech school I shipped him a box a week for the next four or five weeks of his personal belongings that included street clothes, DVD's, X-box games, snacks for his dorm, etc.  I also put together a small photo album of pictures from BMT Graduation week, along with a couple of other family photo's.  The biggest problem my son had transitioning to tech school was managing his money.  This could have been a bigger issue because of being in California and the fact that he was on a Navy base rather than an Air Force base, but all of a sudden they have freedom again and want to get off base every chance they get and since their evenings and weekends are free he found himself taking lots of weekend trips.  I know it was once in a lifetime, however he scraped towards the end of each pay period to get to the next, and now he is regretting it. 

I don't know how long your daughters tech school will be but hope all goes well and ENJOY and soak up every minute of the time you have with her at Lackland!!!!

 

[sharen64]

if she has one i would suggest taking her laptop and cell phone if she left it at home like my daughter did! have fun and thank her for her service from us!

[green4mee]

Lisa,

This will be a wonderful time for you and your family. My son graduated in July and is now in Monterey for Tech school.

Some of the things I took from home to my son were vaccum bags(the kind that you roll the air out of) for reducing bulk in suitcases, battery operated alarm clock, cell phone and charger, laptop and charging cord, contact lens & cases, sunglasses, camera, larger memory card, rechargarable batteries and charger for those. Also I took hoodies as the temp in northern CA would be colder and his favorite sneakers. I could not leave the suitcase that I took for him. There is a specific size and color that must be used. You can purchase one there or take max. 26 in plain black bag, it can have wheels.

Hope this helps. Don't forget to get picutres of the dorm, your daughter with her friends since most of them won't see each other again, and offer anyone w/o a family member @ graduation to tag along. It broke my heart to see them alone.

Marla

[jmsmith]

Lisa i know you are so excited!!! I can't believe my daughter is about to have her 1 year anniversary. HMM ...tech school. Mostly what Christin wanted was her clothes. Of course her phone , camera, and she bought herself a laptop during tech. school. She had some of her pictures  and her i pod. She really didn't want the rest of her more personal stuff  until she got settled in her firt base. And then the AF will pack and ship her stuff for free. She did buy an extra back pack before leaving lackland to take on the plane along with her suit case. It was funny when she left tech school she had to go out and buy another suitcase for all the clothes , shoes and accesories she bought in Pensacola. She is a true girl. haha 

As for graduation I agree with everyone, just be ready for any type of weather. Bring a camera, and or video camere and cash.  When we went I said I wasn't going to spend a lot of money. haha. The excitment just gets to you. We bought shirts, sweatshirts, hats, bumper stickers and some things for her sister. They weren't able to go with us because of school. Oh, and of course lots of tissue.

Have a wonderful time with your daughter. Let us all know how it goes.

God Bless

Jeriann

[msgzal]

Lisa,

Didn't that time pass by quickly? Almost done and then you can talk sooo much more often with Sarah.

Graduation would be just as everyone said -- just enjoy your time with Sarah. The weather swings so often there and went from rainy low 50s to upper 80s and sunny while we were there.

Zach, like Sarah, is at Lackland for training. I have to ask -- what is she training for? If you told me before I don't remember :( Anyway, tech school housing for Zach started in the ROTC dorms -- there wasn't enough room over in Medina at first. About 2 weeks in Zach moved to a dorm over at the Medina Annex which is where his tech school is as well. He'll be there for many more weeks, so perhaps they'll bump into each other. Wouldn't that be funny? As someone else said, they are limited in what they can take to tech school, even staying at Lackland. They have to take their duffle and the bag they went to BMT with. Then they are allowed to take a 26 in black bag OR a garment bag, and a backpack. Any of these can be bought at the BX and you don't have to schlep anything. That said, I did take (when we went for graduation): laptop with charger, a hoodie, and couple of his shirts, boxers and shorts, and a pair of jeans. I had packed a lot more, but that is what he kept to keep taking stop from ROTC dorms to Medina to a minimum. When we got home and he was settled in his dorm, I sent more stuff to him and continue to send a care package every other week. Right now I'm trying to figure out how to get a good turkey dinner to him for thanksgiving. Any suggestions out there? They don't seem to have Heavenly Ham in TX, but there must be something else. But I digress.....

So...bottom line -- go, have fun, take lots and lots of photos, spend some money on AF momentos, and worry about the rest later. That is what USPS and UPS are for :)

Lynn

[proudmomofsep]

Thanks everyone for your good wishes and great suggestions.  I do appreciate all the support and love here!

We bought her laptop last night...anyone know if they have access to the internet at Lackland?

You are all the best!

Lisa

 

[dixiecharmer]

Quoting proudmomofsep:

Thanks everyone for your good wishes and great suggestions.  I do appreciate all the support and love here!

We bought her laptop last night...anyone know if they have access to the internet at Lackland?

You are all the best!

Lisa

The base library has internet access.  There was also some places at the BX where they could access the internet. I can not remember if there is a fee for these.  But the library was free, check at the desk for the information you need.

[TJSproudmom]

Wow....how time goes by.  My suggestion for a room through Priceline earlier is still my best advice.  The amount of money you will spend will blow your mind.  That first break between the Airmans Run and the Coin Ceremony will break you.  I think I spent $100.00 is 4 minutes. 

If I am not mistaken we saved just over $200.00 by using Priceline and stayed an extra day.  We did stay at the Airport but it was only 15 min. from Lackland and we never experienced any traffic. 

As far at Tech School...I have spent almost $60.00 on postage as I think I have mailed Tyler's entire room to Pensacola.  My sweet son had put this great plan into motion to fly home Thanksgiving day and just walk in during lunch unannounced....but some moron in Fort Hood ruined it for the true American heroes.  So, his plans had to be cancelled and he will stay in Pensacola until Dec.  The good news is that he has organized a Thanksgiving feast at a local soup kitchen to feed the folks who otherwise could not afford a nice meal.  His heart is a big as they get. 

I was going to say that I hope your trip is great but I will write this instead.....This is going to be the most wonderful experience that you will ever witness.  I still get chills just thinking about it. 

In short, bring kleenex, money, money, some more money and money.  Did I mention money?

 

 

[proudmomofsep]

Oh, it breaks my heart that Tyler won't be able to surprise you at Thanksgiving...but what a beautiful heart he has to help others on Thanksgiving. 

Thanks for the tips of what to bring....did you say bring money?  LOL!  That means I should leave my DH at home then! 

We'll have to see if Zach and Sarah can track each other down at Tech School.  She'll be in Supply Maintenance....I'll learn more next week.    Silly question....I don't know Zach's last name!

Thanks again!

Lisa