<p>I suggest making reservations as soon as possible, not just for a place to stay but for a restaurant as well if you’d like to eat someplace nice. My son is an '11. About 6 months ago we rented a house in Quechee VT for the week before graduation. Now so many relatives have decided to attend that we tried to get a hotel room for the overflow- nothing is available within an hour of Hanover. We also tried to get a reservation at Simon Pierce for dinner and there was nothing available. </p>
<p>Another thing to think about is getting seats at the graduation itself. Commencement begins at 10 am but the seating area opens at 6:30 am and I’ve heard that by then there is already a long line of people waiting to get in. Apparently it is a tradition for seniors to pay some friends who aren’t graduating yet to save a space in line.</p>
<p>Yup, S is a '14 from 5,000 miles away. HE ABSOLUTELY LOVES THE PLACE. In fact we hardly ever hear from him because he is so busy with studying and attending the events. He loves his floormates in the substance-free dorm in the choates, attends as many sporting events as he can, and participates with the Dartmouth Asian Organization (open to all races). His physics study buddy is the son of another CC parent, LHornmomof4. He has gone skiing for the first time, jumped in Occum Pond for the polar bear plunge. He signed up for the cycling team so will be training in Virginia during the spring break instead of working on his tan back home. Go figure. Go Big Green.</p>
<p>No, just the two girls. Which is a relief. I hope to retire some day. But that won’t be possible so long as I’m paying to put smart girls through Ivy League schools.</p>
<p>Last year hotel rooms started to open up in early March, as cancellations rolled in, and they started to unblock rooms. I even found reasonably priced rooms in early April – with only a two-night minimum. </p>
<p>And yes, the Bro’s and other friends who are in Hanover for summer are in charge of getting up early and grabbing seats for the grads’ families. Some departments have coffee/bagels/breakfast that morning, and handout departmental awards, so getting to the seats early is not always possible. </p>
<p>The underclassmen pay it forward, but tips from the parents are always appreciated. :)</p>
<p>Again, Thanks to every one for your help. I feel much more comfortable now for him to go to the cold place. Daughter just graduated from another school in Boston and came back to california. I never worried about weather for her since she DID all the shopping, especially cloth shopping by herself. S just won’t do that. He wears T-shirt and hoodies year round. BTW, he is not worrying about the weather at all. It’s all me.</p>
<p>Another question is about major. Any computer science major here? S wants to major in Computer Science, but didn’t take AP compsci in high school. Should he take some computer science class now, online or from CC? How good is Dartmouth’s computer science department? S is already dreaming about study aboard. If he is majoring in Computer science, what courses can he take when he is studying aboard?</p>
<p>Had dinner with 8 14’s this weekend. Only one was under the weather, and there were no no-shows for health reasons. What a great, worst class ever!</p>
<p>Hi All, saw that article on the cost next year. My D also was telling me about the change in the dining plan, she likes it better the way it is now (for her). She really has too much, almost a quarter’s worth on her food plan still. Hope they don’t start making them buy a full meal, etc. We’ll see, but you may hear about it soon.</p>
<p>Talking about cost, if anyone applies for aid, do you know if the IDOC email was sent out? I guess after freshman year, you don’t have to do the CSS profile, but send documents to IDOC. The website said they send out a connection/email the beginning of February, does anyone know if that went out?</p>
<p>Well, I know another quarter almost done. D loves Dartmouth and can’t wait for parent’s weekend. Won’t be long…should warm up by them. Have a great day/weekend.</p>
<p>Just as an FYI, today is my daughter’s bday so I got in touch with Lou’s Bakery in Hanover the other day and ordered a cake to be delivered. It was a bit pricey ($65.00) but it included paper goods, candles, a card, and a cake server. As it turned out, my daughter happened to be at Lou’s celebrating with friends when she got the call on her cell from them, so she was there to pick up her cake, but they would have delivered it right to campus. And a woman from the bakery called me at home to let me know my daughter had the cake…very sweet! Their website is </p>
<p>happy bday to your daughter…thanks for sharing, I hadn’t heard that before. Anyone here ever use the/a laundry service at Dartmouth? My student was wondering about using something, especially during busy times.</p>
<p>My College Kid: My daughter is a '14 and has used the laundry service this year. They are out of Manchester (E&R Laundry) and it is very easy. They give you a laundry bag, and she just puts it outside of her dorm room on Monday, and everything is returned on Thursday. They will dry clean anything that needs it also. She was lucky, as some good friends gave her a gift certificate for this laundry service as a high school graduation present, figuring she would like this better than anything else. They were right :).</p>
<p>I think all of our kids can relate to the song, “Time of My Life”. Could be the best four years for all of them. Son is itching to get back for Spring term after spending the last term in DC. He comes home for five days on Sunday and back to Hanover on Saturday.</p>
<p>Sad, won’t see my D. She is doing a ASB (Alternate Spring Break)…but it is a great way to spend some time. I did visit last month and then there is Family Weekend!</p>