Help a mom out! moving

Parent Cafe
1

<p>Ok parents, I need your expertise. Here is the background story - I went to college in a small town about 1.5 hrs from home. On moving day, we drove to school in my mom’s Camry, she dropped me off, and (after I realized I had left all of my hanging clothes at home in my closet) she came back the next weekend and brought me the rest of my stuff. After which, each time, we had a nice dinner and she drove home. Lather, rinse, and repeat - going and coming - many more times, until I got a car, at which point I drove myself to, and from. (In my ever-so-fabulous Ford Fairmont Station wagon - also known as the “keg mobile” - but that is another story).</p>

<p>DD has now decided she is going to College of Charleston. A scant 10 hours from where we live. Urgh. Here is the problem: on a normal beach vacation (1 week), with 4 of us (including my 13 y.o. son), we fill my CR-V to the bursting point. Suitcases, beach stuff, etc. Even paring things down as much as possible, we would minimum need a large suitcase for our clothes for a few days. DD has to be at school mid-August. We were thinking we would all go to drop her off together, and spend the night in Charleston. We are thinking of stopping at myrtle beach for a few days on the way home since its summer break. She cannot have a car on campus as a freshman, nor do I want her to. Which means we need room in the car for (1) the 4 of us, (2) her stuff - all of it - because I am not driving back :-), and (3) clothes/beach stuff for the three of us for about a week. Not. fitting. in. the. CR-V. Never.</p>

<p>To the “experienced ones” - how in Hades do I manage this?</p>

<p>Here are the options I have come up with -</p>

<ol>
<li>Best option is borrow a big pickup truck. BUT - Only have one friend with one, it is brand spanking new, and I am not sure I am comfortable asking for it for a week. Put this one on hold for now.</li>
<li> Take our other car. we have 3 cars including the CR-V. The biggest (an SUV) has 250K miles and is not reliable, not an option. That leaves the Corolla. Which might work. Except that option leaves both of us with cars the whole trip. 10 hour drive by yourself (for at least one of us).ugh.</li>
<li> Rent a u-haul trailer one way and fill it - drop it in Charleston. But, I do not have a trailer hitch on my new-ish CR-V. Dumb, I know. That will cost at least $300 to install. plus the rental ($50). BUT - we would have the hitch available each time we went to/from. That could be economical.</li>
<li> Rent a car - one way. Baltimore to Charleston. drop off rental in Charleston. A small SUV or midsize car would work. 2 people in each car with assorted stuff on the way down, drop her and her things off at school, and the rental dropped in Charleston. About $250 from what I preliminarily priced out. Then we can hit the beach with 3 of us, one car, and only our stuff. All drive home together.</li>
<li> Something else I am not thinking of?<br></li>
</ol>

<p>How do you all do this?</p>

2

<p>Clothes and bedding are relatively light. I can Fedex ground ship a 16x16x16 box to D for $11, weighing up to 25 pounds. Her school mail room was happy to hold boxes. Bed Bath & Beyond offers local pickup, which lots of families like. Three or four of those boxes ought to hold just about everything she might bring from home. My D’s 13 hours away by car, and we don’t drive it any more – we either ship the stuff Fedex ground or she takes it with her on a Southwest flight.</p>

3

<p>Rent the extra car one way. Also spend summer really looking at what she needs. Ups will be your new bffs</p>

4

<p>I would also consider shipping college stuff. This year, sent my S’s golf clubs (and as much clothes, shoes as he could cram into the golf carrier bag) via fed ex for $45. Would have cost me $150 on plane. Fed Ex held until he picked up.<br>
Freshman year, we also shipped stuff right to campus–but be sure to check whether or not CofC will accept early and hold.
Agree with arabab to utilize BB&B, Target, Walmart all who have pack and hold options. </p>

<p>Also, how about a car topper, like a Thule? We have one that holds far more stuff than I ever imagined. (H complained when I bought, but we have used it extensively and he agreed it was well worth the cost). If you have to make trips to and from college for a few years, might make sense.<br>
Or, does UHaul rent toppers?</p>

5

<p>Any of your d’s friends also going to the same college?
Maybe you can work it out with them taking a box or two or three.</p>

<p>Priced one of those on the CRV roof racks($300+) and a cargo baggage ($70+).
You’ll use them both for 4 years and be worth the investment.</p>

<p>Pack everything in the XXL Ziploc bags and everyone will have one or two on their laps as you drive down.</p>

<p>You’ll have to move her and her stuff back home in 9 months.</p>

6

<p>After you figure out how to get it all to Charleston and she is moved in, you have to figure how to move it out! FYI: at many campuses, there is a summer storage service for students that is reasonably priced. Use the summer storage. That way you don’t have to do this major move several times over the next 4 years!</p>

7

<p>We also did a vacation with a move in after freshman year. The difference, and a big one, is that there were only 3 of us in the car! </p>

<p>Here are some tips: </p>

<p>Only send summer clothes with your DD. She won’t need boots, and a ski jacket in Charleston in August, or the fall for that matter. You can send the winter clothes later on, or if you plan to go to parent weekend this is a good time to bring fall and winter clothing.</p>

<p>If she needs a fridge, microwave and TV either buy it near the school, ship it, wait until parent weekend to bring it, have the roommate bring these items if she already has them, have your DD buy these items after she moves in. My son had a microfridge in his dorm room so we did not need to deal with this. We brought the TV on parent weekend. He survived for 4 weeks without a TV in his room and did not complain. There is a lot to do in college :).
Get a one of those car carriers for the top of the car if you can. </p>

<p>You can prebuy a lot of items at Bed Bath and Beyond and pick up in Charleston, but we did not even do that and we fit EVERYTHING in our SUV. We do have a carrier that we put on top of the car. Also, the car was busting at the seams!</p>

<p>Pack light clothes, and Myrtle Beach will be hot anyway. You can minimize what you pack, and if you need to wash your clothes after 4 days, just stay somewhere with a washer and dryer. </p>

<p>Good luck and enjoy!</p>

8

<p>Oh yes, I forgot, space bags are great for reducing volume! We bought a bunch of these at Costco.</p>

9

<p>DD1’s move-to-college-vehicle was a full size Toyota Sequoia SUV from my company’s motor pool, slightly smaller than a Chevy Tahoe. Two people and enough stuff for a mission to Mars. </p>

<p>I would rent or borrow a larger vehicle for this - maybe a minivan. No good way around it. Shipping stuff may work for some, but gets expensive just as much. Also, a CRV is not exactly a huge vehicle to begin with, so loading it to the hilt would not be a good thing (We were in the same boat).</p>

<p>You’ll like CoC. I have a friend teaching there, nice peaceful place.</p>

10

<p>You can also wait till you get to Charleston and go to Target, or large drug store and buy all those items all at once. Since you will be arriving the afternoon or night before, the stuff you need for your family trip will be at the hotel so you will have a bit more room. You definitely will not need the warmer clothing in August so they can be brought or shipped later on. It is the odds and ends that you need that take up lots of room-desk lamps, message boards, garbage pail, fan. You can even wait till at school and order microwave from Amazon.</p>

11

<p>10 hours away isn’t very far. Here are some ideas - </p>

<ul>
<li><p>Get a roof topper bag. I bought a Keeper 07203 one from Amazon for $50 and it worked great for a 3000 mile cross country trip. It holds lots of stuff. These things hold more than it seems they would. When you’re done with it, it folds back up into a small box and takes up almost no room (I had a hard shell one before - the soft side bag is much easier to stow).</p></li>
<li><p>If your D will be in a dorm then she doesn’t need all that much stuff and doesn’t need it all right away. Bring just what she needs until you either make another trip there or she visits home. Since she’s only 10 hours away making another trip out with more stuff a few weeks later wouldn’t be that big of a deal and you’d have at least one less person taking up room in the car plus, you’d get to see her plus she’d get to have you buy her and her friends lunch.</p></li>
<li><p>Buy some of the things she needs after you get there since they likely also have BBB, Target, etc.</p></li>
<li><p>You can always send her more things later if she needs it or she can just go buy the stuff locally.</p></li>
</ul>

12

<p>Ok, too funny, I have no idea why this was moved from the Parent Board, but you all are awesome! Did not consider the car top carrier! Good thought. I agree, as much as people say ship it or fly, this is not happening. Oh, and the -“do laundry” - right! perfect, the place we stay in has a laundry! I am thinking we will borrow or rent, but keep the ideas coming.</p>

13

<p>We have a roof rack on our CRV and have used it twice: Once on a beach trip with 4 in the car, and just a couple of weeks ago moving our son out of his apartment in Boston. 3 of us + an incredible amount of junk in the little CRV. Both times we put duffle bags on the roof rack. Worked great, but really hurts the gas mileage. 24 highway mpg instead of 30! Made me wonder about those streamlined Thule cartop carriers. </p>

<p>However, even with a roof rack, 4 people + beach + move to college in a CRV… I don’t know…</p>

14

<p>The one-way car rental drop-off charges are absurd - it could easily be $300 in addition to the rental.</p>

<p>The car topper is would probably work, or, since it is a one day trip and I believe the CRV comes with a roof rack, just put everything in garbage bags, then boxes, and tie it on the roof rack.</p>

<p>Minimize clothes for yourselves and stay in a place in MB with a washer/dryer. Leave the beach chairs and what-not home, you can either buy super-cheap ones in MB or sit on the sand.</p>

<p>And hopefully your D is not a clothes horse and won’t want every article of clothing and every pair of shoes she owns. :cool:</p>

15

<p>Also, if your kids don’t mind being a little cramped in the back, you can fit a suitcase or narrow box on the seat between them, and more on the floor.</p>

16

<p>How about just renting a larger SUV or mini van round trip? If you take two cars (one rental, one yours) you are paying gas for two cars. Renting a larger SUV or mini van many mean less miles per gallon, but only one car and no one-way drop off fees. This way your personal cars don’t get the wear and tear a move-in and beach trip can have on a car.</p>

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<p>U-Haul has a program for this [Ship</a> to School, Ship Home, Student Summer Storage - Collegeboxes](<a href=“http://www.collegeboxes.com/cb-com/global/services.seam]Ship”>http://www.collegeboxes.com/cb-com/global/services.seam)</p>

<p>DS goes to school 11 hours away. We utilized a program through our local UPS Store to ship and hold items as well.</p>

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<p>Great suggestions. I would install a trailer hitch. It’s one of those things you use if you have one. She’s going to go to school for 4 years. One trip there and back every year, at least 8 trips. </p>

<p>Now she may have an apartment the last 2 years so her stuff can stay over the summer and you could pay for summer storage but it could be cheaper just to move her stuff home and back if you want.</p>

<p>We have a hitch and it’s useful. We have a bike rack and love it.</p>

19

<p>It sounds like you want to make the going off to college a family fun trip as well, and that is a great idea. Traveling long distance in a small car is so cramped and limited. The best idea so far would be to rent a large SUV or Van to drive there and back. You will have no worries over breaking down or adding mileage to the regular family vehicles. Plus with all the space it will be a nice ride.</p>

<p>Shipping ground is a great idea if it seems like no matter what some things will not fit in even the large car. It will also work for later when there is more to ship. Starting out in college a little lighter is not a bad idea either, and then having more shipped as time goes on. </p>

<p>A ten hour trip can be very long and nerve wracking, a nice ride with plenty of space will make things so much better for everyone. It seems like a nice send-off!</p>

20

<p>When DD went to school 18 hours away, we had no car that we trusted to drive that distance. We rented a minivan for about a week. It was well worth the price and much less expensive than buying a new trustworthy car.</p>