OK ladies, put those thinking caps on! DB is going on the carrier soon, and I want to get started on a care package, but i have no idea what he'll want, or need.:dunno Im sure some of you ladies out there have men on ships, and Im sure they've asked for things. What sorts of stuff do you send them? Is there anything that would make things easier, or nicer for him? I have no idea what he can use, or what will just get in the way. I know he wont have tons of room. Hmm...any ideas? :puzz

^^^^ is she stalking me??? LOL

I've sent my husband:
boxers,
undershirts,
shampoo,
razor blades for his shaver,
TP (Im sure we've all heard how awful the TP is on the ships)
contact lens,
lens cleaning solution,
eye drops,
hair gel,
cards,
pictures from the kids and of the kids,
snacks to include; chips, cheez its, LOTS of candy, cupcakes so he can have and share cake on our sons birthday, cup-o-noodles, mac 'n cheese in the cups, pop tarts, 100 calories snack packs, cereal bars, fruit leather

you can google military care packages or just care packages and find some cool ideas.

Another good thing to send are power bars. I send my husband an entire box of power bars (or something similar) in every package I send to him. I also do things that remind him of home. DVDs are always good if he has a laptop or dvd player and I send lots of letters and cards and drawing from our son.

All the above and I have also sent drink mixes, Foldger's coffe int the teabags all personal items like shampoo, soap deoderant. Mine dips (yuck) so I send him dip and I have also sent beef jerkey.

Those are handy ideas, thanks! I never thought about power bars. He eats those all the time :tu


^^^^ is she stalking me??? LOL

Aww, why do you say that? I'm not, but I can if you want :tease

My dh asked for a big soft bath towel so I sent that. I send him movies that have come out since he's been gone in each box. And the same as all the other ladies, beef jerky, coffee (starbucks ground), powdered creamer, body wash, chips, cookies, and candy. Oh and he smokes cigars, so he gets those regularly also.

A fan... when DH was in Bahrain he was miserable because the A/Cs were out on the ship... so the first carepackage I sent out had a battery operated camp fan and industrial strength duct tape (for mounting the fan) in it... I also sent along magnetic picture frames so that he didn't have to tape the pics inside his rack or locker and ruin them. Something that has your perfume sprayed on it is nice, but remember to seal it in a ziploc so that it doesn't spread the scent all over everything in the box and then in his locker. I ALWAYS sent extra ziplocs since I'd send whole packages of cookies or candy, so that he could store them easily and keep them fresh.

I sent a few gag gift items too.. like when he asked for a fan, he of course got a nice one, but I also sent a little battery operated one that had a spray bottle attached to it. I sent microwave popcorn and stuff too.

Keep in mind that chocolate melts... the only chocolate items that won't melt during shipment are M&Ms... I sent DH a cannister of different types in one of his packages. He loved that!

Holiday (Christmas, Valentines or 4th of July) themed ones go over well too.. Or the Birthday party in a box.. Could be a package of Hostess Cupcakes, a birthday candle, some balloons, and party hats..

Lots of letters and cards.. DH swears that his favorite part of the packages I sent were the letters that I included. DD was old enough during his last deployment to send him pictures that she'd colored and decorated with stickers.

OOOh, and don't forget those all important disposable cameras, especially if he doesn't have a digital one with him.

You have to remember that being on a ship you have less space to deal with. I got mine portable battery operated fans and lots of sun screen. I would send him magazines and articles I thought he would like. I sent microwaved popcorn and cups of noodles. I sent peanuts and chips and lots of bars of stuff.

I also sent him hand sanitizer and after sun stuff that is cooling and kills the burn.

you ladies are brilliant! I am so excited now! Haha, I can't wait to get started, and he isn't even done with his school yet. I still have quite a few weeks. :)

you ladies are brilliant! I am so excited now! Haha, I can't wait to get started, and he isn't even done with his school yet. I still have quite a few weeks. :)

I really enjoyed putting DH's packages together.

Don't forget to call the post office and request a military kit! I don't remember the number, since I always just ordered each item separately (boxes, customs forms{you need the white ones}and labels are free)through their website, but I'm sure one of these great gals has it!

I really enjoyed putting DH's packages together.

Don't forget to call the post office and request a military kit! I don't remember the number, since I always just ordered each item separately (boxes, customs forms{you need the white ones}and labels are free)through their website, but I'm sure one of these great gals has it!

OK, I have a question about that actually....I got the military pack thing, so I have all of that stuff. Do I need to use a customs form? I have no idea how to even send a package to a house let alone a ship. Im guessing Theres a difference. I have the flat rate boxes, and I just bought normal 9 buck stamps. (Or whatever it was, they raised the prices grrr). Is that enough or does it cost more to send it out to seas?

Here is what I sent my wife: A case of soups, 2 fans with extension cords, cornnuts, feminine things, a book, a t-shirt that I strictly wore for 3 nights only and put the cologne she likes me to wear on it. Letters and cards of course. They may ask you for ribbons for their dress uniforms and white t-shirts. 2 rolls of tobacco even though she does not chew because the ship tends to run out of stuff at the "best" times. I have sent out over a dozen boxes since the deployment began. the flat rate boxes that I use you can fit a lot of things in them if you pack it right. I have sent her a lot more but cannot remember, lol.

OK, I have a question about that actually....I got the military pack thing, so I have all of that stuff. Do I need to use a customs form? I have no idea how to even send a package to a house let alone a ship. Im guessing Theres a difference. I have the flat rate boxes, and I just bought normal 9 buck stamps. (Or whatever it was, they raised the prices grrr). Is that enough or does it cost more to send it out to seas?

You need to fill out a customs form for each box over a pound in weight. you can go to usps.com and pay for postage for each box, I believe I pay like 10 bucks for it and they come right to your door to pick it up. Or you can go to the post office and they will do it, but yes the customs form is needed if it is ove a pound. I slid by my first 3 boxes without the customs forms and they were 5 pounds each!!!

This may or may not be a little corny; got it from an idea online. I sent my boyfriend a couple pillowcases, washed them, and slept on them with my hair wet so the scent would stay on. Sprayed a little of my perfume on the other one and put both in ziplock bags. Theyre the kind of pillowcases that are nice and cool, not the thick cotton ones that will get too hot during the night for him.
Care packages are my favorite things to put together! Hope you have fun! :heehee

a little thing I came across the other day. I was thinking of keeping to myself but its too cool not to share.

A cake in a jar. I don't have the exact directions but you buy wide mouth canning jars and the sealing lids that go on them. You can use the rings too but you don't need to. make up a cake mix or from scratch if you like and put the batter in the jar like 2/3 of the way. It was HIGHLY recommended you test ONE jar first just make sure your not over filling them. Place the jar on a cookie sheet and bake until a tooth pick inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and immediatly place the sealing lid on the jar. Be sure to listen for the ping of the lid sealing. let it cool and wrap in bubble wrap. Tape the bubble wrap to itself so it doesn't come undone then tape the bubbled wrapped jars to the box so they don't move around. Be sure to include frosting, paper plates, plastic forks and a plastic knife.


This also works for other baked goods like muffins, brownies or banana bread.

Label the customs form baked goods and it shouldn't get searched

OK, I have a question about that actually....I got the military pack thing, so I have all of that stuff. Do I need to use a customs form? I have no idea how to even send a package to a house let alone a ship. Im guessing Theres a difference. I have the flat rate boxes, and I just bought normal 9 buck stamps. (Or whatever it was, they raised the prices grrr). Is that enough or does it cost more to send it out to seas?

You'll need the white customs form, not the green one... they're very straightforward and easy to fill out. The people at the post office can walk you through it!

The postage rate is the same for ships and bases all around the world as it is to mail a letter or package right down the street. Flat rate boxes are great, and you can cram a lot of stuff in there if you pack it right!

my hubby always says don't send me crap that can't be used...quarters, laundry soap, gel, personal items are great, but things like books and magazines after a while start getting thrown overboard....his mom used to send him all this wierd stuff and he said by month 2 the boxes were being tossed overboard because he had nowhere to put the stuff.

my hubby always says don't send me crap that can't be used...quarters, laundry soap, gel, personal items are great, but things like books and magazines after a while start getting thrown overboard....his mom used to send him all this wierd stuff and he said by month 2 the boxes were being tossed overboard because he had nowhere to put the stuff.

That was the thing with mine. Mine is on a Frigate which is teh smallest ship in the Navy so he did not have a lot of room.

You really have to be creative.

That was the thing with mine. Mine is on a Frigate which is teh smallest ship in the Navy so he did not have a lot of room.

You really have to be creative.

that's funny mine's on one too so I guess we know exactly what they mean by no room for "crap"

Here is what I sent my wife: A case of soups, 2 fans with extension cords, cornnuts, feminine things, a book, a t-shirt that I strictly wore for 3 nights only and put the cologne she likes me to wear on it. Letters and cards of course. They may ask you for ribbons for their dress uniforms and white t-shirts. 2 rolls of tobacco even though she does not chew because the ship tends to run out of stuff at the "best" times. I have sent out over a dozen boxes since the deployment began. the flat rate boxes that I use you can fit a lot of things in them if you pack it right. I have sent her a lot more but cannot remember, lol.

lol i just did the ribbon thing the other day..i got the wrong ones..lol but i got it figured out, but im so glad hes getting his uniform ready for homecoming WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO WE ARE ALMOSTTHERE WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO