Am I the only one who's "Holiday" stressing around here?

Parent Cafe
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<p>From patient:

</p>

<p>I think that about my little nieces and nephews. (I’ve already thrown away just about all the junk and clutter my kids owned – I’m the Anti-Santa.) </p>

<p>I only buy them a book each and then I give them a check for their college 529 funds. How boring is that?! I sort of don’t care though. None of them has a dime saved for college otherwise.</p>

<p>I think all moms should be able to go somewhere warm after Xmas - alone, or better yet, with girlfriends.</p>

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<p>Dogwood:</p>

<p>Here are some possible options for communication:
My husband travels in Europe a lot. He uses a phone that has the European standard built in. T-Mobile and Cingulair both use that standard but if you buy that phone in the US, you have to ask the store to “unlock” the phone so it can be used in Europe (or China or wherever). I don’t know what standard is used in China but you could find out.
Once you get to your destination, you buy a “Sim-Card”. It is a prepaid card with a phone # on it. In Europe they are available at tobacco shops and kiosks. It has a different # on it from the actual phone, so you have to get the # to your family. The rates are very cheap on these cards and incoming calls to Europe from the US are free, so I can call whenever I want.
My neighbor’s husband was in China last year. They set up a VOIP (voice over internet protocol) system on their computers with cameras and microphones and used Skype to talk free on the computers. Vonage may also offer a product like this.</p>

<p>Good luck. It makes a huge difference to me to be able to check in when my hubby is so far away. I’ll have a junior student abroad next year and will appreciate it even more!</p>

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<p>sjmom2329 and spinner - Thank you both for your suggestions. Son is actually traveling with a high school friend and her family and they are from China, so he will be staying with locals, so that is a definite help. The mom had actually given me two phone numbers, in case of emergencies, but I had hoped that son could use his own phone. H and I had thought about getting S a calling card. Perhaps that is the best way. I just want him to have something that he could use to get in touch with us immediately, if needed. I will look into the Sim-Card. I hadn’t even thought of his medical insurance, so I will definitely check into that as well. This will be such an amazing opportunity for him. The family he is traveling with is just wonderful. He is almost like their son, so I know he will be in safe hands. I am just being a mom! Thank you and enjoy the holidy season!</p>

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<p>If you want to call China for cheap, just use SkypeOut. It costs 2.1 cents/minute to call a certain list of popular calling destinations, including China. Yes, just 2.1 cents a minute. All you need is a computer with microphone/headphone capabilities, and a broadband connection although officially it should work with dial-up too.</p>

<p><a href=“http://skype.com/products/skypeout/[/url]”>Download Skype for mobile & desktop | Skype;

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<p>My son’s roommate’s family provided the calling card, but I understand that it is around 2 cents per minute. Here is a link to one such service. <a href=“http://www.ecallchina.com/[/url]”>http://www.ecallchina.com/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>The Skype option also sounds good, though. I’ll send the link to my son – thanks!</p>

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<p>

Awww, don’t worry weenie. From what I have seen, non-savers will eventually be rewarded. Still, I know where you are coming from, and unless I get a specific wish from my nieces and nephews I usually get them a book, too!</p>