Showing Support to the Troops: Care Packages

First: If you are interested in sending a care package to Josh or CLB5 (his unit), here are some helpful hints.  I will include their address below.  The unit LOVES getting letters from home.  Thank you letters can come from perfect strangers.  They also love hygiene products (body wash), candy, snacks...anything from the states! Please consider sending a package to this unit, what better way to support their efforts as they continue to fight for your freedom!

LT Earls, Joshua R
CLB-5, H&S 
Unit 42230
FPO  AP  96427-2230

Sending a care package from home is a way to show service men/women how much you love and miss them.  Last deployment, I sent numerous packages to Josh's ships and a couple of them never arrived.  In fact, it was so bad that some of the guys on his ship felt bad for him and mailed him a package from within the ship:(  That broke my heart. Well, this time around I'm hoping he stays put in Afghanistan!  Hopefully this first package arrives on time!

So, what do you send someone stationed overseas?  Hmmm....well, this is what I just sent Josh:

First, let me show you something sweet:

CLB-5 "Build-a-Bear" Day

Ok people, how awesome is this!  The family readiness coordinator Christine, set up a day for the families of the unit to build a bear that has a voice chip from the service man/woman in it.  They also had their own navy/marine uniforms to select from.  We chose to build a "monkey" because we decided daddy is a hairy monkey... sorry Josh :) This is Bella after the final product was complete...cute monkey huh?

Hygiene Products

Josh commented to me that besides notes and candy, one the most popular care package item has been hygiene products (body wash, shampoo, lotion, deodorant, ect).! Maybe it's because marines deal with sand storms like this one below?

This is a picture Josh took in Afghanistan recently.  No, that is not a mountain in the distance, that's sand....yikes.

Home-made Cookies / Favorite Candies

 What care package would be complete without home-made cookies and your loved one's favorite candies!? I put all of the cookies in plastic bags then placed them in a tightly shut tupperware with padding.  Will they arrive unharmed?  Probably not:(  A girl can try though!

Stuff That Makes You Think of Home

This one is an inside joke between Josh and I... we clearly love Churros.  When we go to theme parks, we get them as often as possible.... So, when I saw this, I just had to:)

Notes / Pictures

Nothing is better than a hand written letter from someone you love (or even from a stranger).  Email is nice, but knowing that someone sat down, touched the pen and paper....well, it makes it more special I think:)   Oh and pictures that are printed out are nice because they can be taped up for the service man/woman to see!

Anything From Your Kid (or someone else's)

 There's something special about getting hand-made art work/letters from sweet little ones.  Knowing they delighted in the process of making it and that they miss their daddy or uncle or loved one more than they could imagine :)

MISSING DADDY- We love Skype!

Until the package arrives, we'll have to tell daddy how much we love him like this.  Thank God for Skype:) Bella usually won't sit still to talk to her daddy, but on this occasion she had lots to say:)

MISS YOU CHAPS!