Before I give you some ideas on what to send to Iraq, I will give you the list of

• Nothing Pornographic, no Semi-nudes.
• Firearms (if they list this you know someone has tried it!)
• Nonauthorized political materials
• Pork or Pork by products
• No bulk mailings of religious materials contrary to the Islamic Faith (1 or 2 St. Christopher Medals are OK…50 are not)
• No Flammables, Corrosives, or Toxins

This list now includes:

• Perfumes, colognes, hairspray, matches, butane, flea and tick collars and sprays, shaving crème, aerosols, some cleaning agents.
• No alcoholic beverages…as much as they would like a Brewski, don't do it!
• No homemade food, candy, or cookies (let the Keebler Elves do the baking for you). They are told to throw it away.

Now for some

  A Card or a Letter  

Keep packages either food or non food. If you put soap in with cookies, the cookies will pick up the taste of the soap. Keep in mind that those packages will sit for a while so nothing scented in with foods that can pick up the scent.

Toiletries:

• Baby Wipes
• Liquid Hand Sanitizer
  
• Nice shampoos and crème rinses (the women say their hair gets really dry)
  
• A good moisturizing crème
  
• Deodorant Soap…the women love the Oil of Olay bars
  
• Facial Wipes
  
• Toothpaste, Toothbrushes, Floss
  
• Q-Tips and cotton balls
  
• Feminine supplies are sometimes needed, depends on the group.
  
• Razors…now a lot of the male soldiers like those Mach 3's, but they can be a little expensive, and if you think they are pricy here, I understand over there the price is outrageous. Send what you want…again in a large group someone will use it.
  
• Toilet Tissue..send something soft. The officers get the nice stuff, but the enlisted men get wood chips, OK, it's not exactly that bad but lets just call it generic toilet tissue – you can smush the rolls and use it as packing material – works great!

• Tums, Rolaids
• Chapstick, their lips get really dried out over there.
• Eye Moisture drops, like their lips, their eyes get dry and sand is a constant problem. Wal-Mart has some that cost 99 cents a bottle. They don't get out the red, but they do wet the eyes….you don't think I would send them to our troops without trying them out first do you???
• Deodorant (stick – no sprays as above)
• Foot and Body Powder, they prefer the Gold Bond, but you can send others.
• Any foot product that will help their feet.
• Nail files, clippers
• Sunscreen

Snacks:

• Chocolate (but it melts so put it in separate zip lock bags)
• Tootsie Rolls
• Gummy Candy will melt together, again put it in a separate zip lock bag.
• Things that are wrapped individually and they can carry with them are nice.
• Cookies, any kind, prepackaged, try to stay away from those covered in chocolate though until the weather changes.
• Potato Chips – some groups do have them available, others do not. Maybe get a flavored kind, something that is local to your area may be nice to send. Pringles, Fritos, Cheetos ---- you know, JUNK FOOD!
• Hard Candies (not only for them, but they like to hand them out to the children)
• GUM…GUM…GUM
• Tootsie Pops, Blow Pops
• Cereal, sugar sweetened, you can send some of that boxed milk with this, but I understand they eat it right out of the box. The little boxes are good to send.
• Bars…Cereal…Nature Valley…Rice Krispy Treats, these kind of things are really good for traveling.
• NUTS
• POPCORN…send prepopped unless you know for sure that they have a microwave or a way to pop it.
• Little Debbies…Entemanns…Tastycakes…depending on where you are…keep an eye out on the expiration date.
• Prepackaged Puddings that don't need refrigeration (double bag something like this)
• BEEF JERKY
• Freezer Pops
• Raisins

Food:

• Tuna or canned chicken…don't forget the Mayo…squeezable bottles
• Canned Fruits (those in the plastic explode, I think it may be a buildup of fruit gases along with the heat)
• Soups, Chunky, Cup a Soup
• (Ramen Noodles seem to be a favorite maybe because they can take them along, they are light to carry and easy to fix)
• Some microwave things like chili or soup or pasta meals. Even if they don't have a microwave they can be taken out of the can and warmed in a pot.
• Oh Oh Spaghettios
• Sugar
• Spices

Drink Mixes:

• Gatorade (this can help with the heat and keep them from dehydrating, get their electrolytes back) Kool Aid (PRESWEETENED)
• Crystal Light, these are nice because you can always tuck a couple somewhere in a care package.
• Ice Tea
• Lemonade
• Hot Chocolate Mix
• The individual water flavorings are GREAT!

Needs:

• Underwear
• Bras
• Socks (white for down time, black for working time, they go through socks fast. Wool ones will be nice when the cold weather gets here.
• T-shirts have to be solid colors (they do like the ones that take the sweat away from their bodies )ARMY BROWN, also in case it may be needed MARINES GREEN, AIRFORCE BLACK or BROWN, NAVY WHITE
• Washcloths have to be brown.
• Watches, all black and buy cheap ones, the sand gets in them and ruins them fast.
• Sunglasses, all black, doesn't matter where you buy them, just make sure they have a good UV protection. Theirs gets scratched fast with the sand. Even if you just get ones that they can use until they can get themselves a new pair.
• Flip Flops…those that have showers use these for going to and from.
• Keep an eye out for winter things on sale.
• Knit hats, scarves, gloves…all in solid black.
• PILLOWS
• Sheets, blankets – most use twin.
• Small Flashlights, all black
• Batteries, AA, AAA, etc.
• Disposable cameras
• Air Fresheners – Renuzit has a nice scented strong odor control. When they don't get showers and the ones that they do get are what we call Marine showers, you know 2 minutes and sometimes they are not everyday..well the air fresheners are needed!
• OTC Meds….Tylenol, Nyquil, cough drops, VITAMINS
• Calendars
• Plastic bins/or tins…they will be needed especially during the rainy season when the rats come inside and eat everything they can find.
• Come winter, those hand and foot warmer package things are nice for those who have to stand guard outside – available at Walmart

Things for downtime:

• Newspaper, books and magazine…you can already have read them.
• Puzzle Books, Crossword, Search a Word – Dollar Store is great for these. Remember to include a pen or two and put the pen in a plastic bag or two because it may leak.
• Note Paper, Stationary, Blank Cards, Paper and Envelopes so they can write a letter or two home. Again, don't forget the pens.
• When the Holidays come up, they need some Holiday Cards to send home to loved ones.
• Playing Cards
• Board Games
• Some of them have DVD and CD players…so you can send DVD's and CD's; put something on the DVD or CD cover and the DVD or CD itself in permanent ink…like property of the U. S. Army. What happens is that they are being stolen and then the culprits try to sell them back to our soldiers.
• Balls, bats, gloves, Frisbees.
• Some of the women like to do needlepoint.
• Jigsaw puzzles
• Handheld games
• YO-Yo's
• Comic Books
• Fun things to keep their mind off of what is going on.