Robin Carpenter didn't have much experience with the military before her son, Kyle, joined the Marine Corps. The mom of three boys, Carpenter works as an X-ray technician. She met her husband, Jim, on a blind date in Mississippi. The two never would've guessed they'd once look on as their son was awarded the nation's highest medal for heroism for shielding his comrade from a grenade blast in Afghanistan.

Both men made it home from the warzone, but with extensive injuries. Carpenter helped nurse her son back to health through loads of surgeries and hospital stays.

Just before Mother's Day, MOAA spoke with Carpenter about her emotional journey, and what it was like to see her son earn the Medal of Honor.

Tell me a little about your background:

A: We have no military in our background. Except my father was in the Navy, but honestly she never knew anything about it. I have a picture of him in his sailor uniform and that's it. We were just your everyday, normal family that had a child that came home from college and decided to join the Marine Corps. I just know what we've been exposed to.

When Kyle was growing up, did you think he would join the military?

A: I can't think of anything in his childhood that would have swayed him in that direction. I probably said, "Yeah, if Kyle joined the military, that would be right up Kyle's alley." As far as the Marine Corps, no. For him to join the fight in the middle of the war. We had no idea.

What was Kyle like as a child?

A: He loved the camaraderie of sports. He loved being part of something and a common goal. He wasn't a single-sport person. It was all about that team goal - that one goal. I knew he was destined for something great. The types of things he did as a child.

He was very competitive. He was not afraid of anything. Some of the things he did were more indicative of what he did to receive the medal. I could see him doing what he did to receive the medal.

How did you feel when Kyle joined the Marine Corps?

A: He told me right out of high school that he might want to join the Marine Corps. I just told him, "You go on to college, get your degree." He went to college in the fall, and he came home at Christmas. He called my husband out on the screened-in porch.

Kyle, he had a lot of respect for us - he wanted our blessing. His mind was made up, but he did want our blessing. In the middle of a war, he wanted to serve his country. How admirable is that? He knew this was his window of opportunity. He told us "I do not want to live with regret." Here he is in the middle of a war and wanting to go infantry. His father Jim and I offered up everything we could think of to dissuade him. "Go find yourself in Key West. Go to Colorado and go join ski patrol." All we could think about was his safety. A lot of how I felt about him joining was just my background, probably like a lot of the civilian population. I think a lot of parents, if you're not from a military family, you're thinking, "Why?" Because I think we live in a totally selfish society now. It took me a while to accept that this was the path that Kyle chose.

Once we accepted it, and he had our blessing, and then he went ahead and signed all the paperwork, there was no way we were not going to support him.

How did you stay connected during his career?

A: We communicated a lot through letters when he was at boot camp - and care packages. I have every letter, and Kyle saved every letter from us - and every letter that everyone else sent him as well. We totally supported him by mail the whole time at boot camp. I do have letters that he sent me from Afghanistan as well.

What did you expect going into Kyle's Afghanistan deployment?

A: Kyle had a couple of predeployment meetings at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. They kind of tell you what's going to happen if they die. We thought he would either come back fine or he wouldn't come back alive.

I never knew about all the amputees who were coming back. I had no idea what was going on up in Bethesda [Md., at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center]. Nobody prepared us for what would happen if your child was injured.

How did you feel when he was receiving the citation?

A: Just to be honest, still to this day, it's just still pretty surreal, I think because of what we've been through … because we were so focused on his injury. It was just so emotional. It's just a lot of emotions. For us, because we have lived this injury and recovery, we're so proud of how he's handled his injury and recovery.

It's just hard to describe - there's a lot of emotion. As a parent, it's difficult to comprehend your child having that responsibility of receiving the medal for the rest of his life.

Did you realize what an honor it would be?

A: I had no idea. I see how big it is when I see other people's reactions when I'm with Kyle. It brings people to tears - I mean grown men.

What do you tell other parents who ask if their child should join the military?

A: I think for any parent, if your child has already made that decision. All you can do is support them. I can't fathom sending my child to boot camp, sending my child to another country. I can't imagine not giving your child that support. He could do what he needed to do in boot camp because he knew that we supported him back home.

What's your message to military families on Mother's Day?

A: Now that I've been around so many military families, I have so much respect for military families and their sacrifice. I just have to think what the children have gained from having a parent who has served. I can't think of a greater gift that a military member can give their child than getting to see that life of service.