<p>No lau lau in Iowa? I’m sure spam was available, but probably no malasadas.</p>
<p>My D graduates next month from college in New York City. She grew up in a beach community in SoCal. After graduation she will continue to live and work in NYC. As others here have suggested we did not buy warm clothes before she left, but purchased items in the city once she saw what other kids were wearing and decided what she liked. She wears a black Northface fleece in the fall which seems to be very popular in NYC. She also does a lot of layering as it can get warm on the subways/busses and in classrooms. She also has a couple of peacoats she wears when it’s not too cold. She has a warm down jacket with a hood that is black and knee length that she wears in the really cold weather. I think we ended up ordering this from Eddie Bauer. For boots she wears Hunters with inserts during cold and snowy days and takes out the inserts for rainy days. UGGS are not good boots for snow or rain.</p>
<p>OP, I totally understand your desire to feather your D’s nest. I suggest that you limit yourself to bedding. :)</p>
<p>A memory foam topper, a fleece blanket, a not-too-heavy down comforter with a nice washable duvet cover–layering for the bed! 
--nice sheets, a couple of
sofa pillows that she can put up against the wall to make her bed couch-like. That kind of thing. I recommend The Company Store, Target, Cuddledown, and maybe BB&B for this stuff. The two of you can order it online and have it available for pickup there or have it delivered.</p>
<p>BTW, a full-size or even queen comforter and duvet cover fits nicely on an extra-long twin and hangs down the sides like a bedspread. And can be used when those four years are over.</p>
<p>I agree that Uggs are not good for snow or rain. And they seem to be waning as a trend.</p>
<p>We did just as Consolation suggested and bought D a nice queen size down comforter and duvet cover. The comforter will work for her even after college that’s why we bought a queen.</p>
<p>Girls in SoCal wear UGG boots and short shorts in the winter.</p>
<p>Dad, lol</p>
<p>Gos, you’re exactly right, why is it that the “flyover” states get no love? When I mentioned the schools we were considering in the southwest, northeast and even the south, people nodded and understood. When I tell them our selection, all I hear is “Indiana!?!,” and other such reactions, mostly from midwesterners haha. As I’ve said in the “Response” thread, after time, it starts me second guessing myself, could a million ppl be wrong? If it’s such a great school and a hidden gem, then why aren’t more Californians heading there in droves? Guess I have to keep on keeping on and know it’s the right thing for her even if I will miss her so much it hurts.</p>
<p>OP - D is going to Missouri from SoCal. Get the same responses! She’s texting her suitemates already(all from MO) and I told her to tell them they’re taking her shopping. I don’t want to ship bulky coats anyway! The UPS account sounds like a good idea.</p>
<p>I love how the posters that suggest getting large comforters for after college all have daughters. No way would any mom in my son’s dorm have expected to <em>want</em> to use their comforter after 4 years :)</p>
<p>Haha…I hadn’t thought of that, but I’m sure you’re right!</p>
<p>D didn’t even want her comforter the whole 4 years of school - she got a new one 2 years in … and a totally different one once she was out on her own. :)</p>
<p>South Bend has a very nice mall, and there are plenty of other stores in surrounding strip malls (our cottage is about 20 minutes from SB, so we go there on rainy days). I also suggest waiting to buy. It won’t be cold for a while. A North Face fleece is definitely a good staple piece she can buy beforehand, and she can purchase school hoodies when she gets there. She will most certainly wear jeans a lot, and she “might” wear long underwear under them for cold football games - Hot Chilly’s are thin and warm. She will need gloves and a hat, but I would suggest basic, inexpensive ones to begin with … she will probably lose them, anyway! Plus, if she is like my D, she won’t wear a hat no matter how much sense it makes (even on windy, bitter Chicago days). I would wait on winter boots, and I suggest Kamik or Sorel for warmth. </p>
<p>SB is really not all that cold, but it depends on how far she has to walk to class. My S doesn’t have to walk far for class at his midwest school, so he doesn’t dress all that warm. My D is in Chicago without a car, and she bought warmer clothing than she had in the Detroit area (which is similar to the SB area in terms of weather). However, if your D is outside a lot, she will want the really warm stuff. That is why I would suggest waiting to see what her life is like when she gets settled in.</p>
<p>Nice! Keep em coming and tx for the info! We’re thinking about squeezing in a trip to the lake before the big launch in mid August, any ideas on where to stay anyone?</p>
<p>You mean Lake Michigan? There are lots of great places to stay up along the eastern shore in Michigan.</p>
<p>Yes lake Mich! Is it too late to rent I wonder? Out here beach props are a yr in advance</p>
<p>Don’t worry too much, SalveMater. This will be a wonderful growth experience for your D. My D went from Seattle area to northern CO which was a huge change and she benefited so much from it! Lots of snow and freezing cold in winter there. She wore long underwear or tights under her jeans every day in winter! You will be able to send your D anything she needs. </p>
<p>It’s good to live somewhere else different from your home in college if it works out. There are all sorts of lessons to be learned outside the classroom. Moving so far away from home where she didn’t know anyone was hard, but it prepared my D for her next move, driving off alone (with just her little dog) five years later to med school in another state. And now she is graduating next month and will drive to another state for residency. We have discussed several times how going out-of-state to college helped prepare her for her future. And she still has the plant I had delivered to her dorm room the second week of freshman year for her 18th birthday!</p>
<p>I have adorable snow boots, so they do exist. Try Sorel brand. I couldn’t agree more about getting at least a couple of cute hats, gloves, scarves and jackets. I also recommend underarmour. She may never use it, but there will be at least one day when she decides that freezing legs are the last thing she needs. Entire days in cold weather can and do happen (tailgating and games) and that extra layer can be the difference between misery and staying the extra hours after the game.</p>
<p>Let your daughter pick out her own snow boots. Sorels are really warm and I think nice…but my 20 something daughter hates them. But then…my 30 something daughter NEVER wore boots here in New England but bought her Uggs for college in the east bay area of CA. Go figure!</p>
<p>@thumper, yup those Uggs worn with “daisy duke” short are a staple out here. Ur story reminds me of my Ds friend, an international student here from Denmark who on the first cold and rainy day here showed up to school in shorts. When my D asked her why in the name of Jehosaphat she didn’t wear pants on such an inclement day, the girl replied, “they told me back home not to pack any pants, no one in CA wears them!” ;)</p>
<p>Dadx3 They called saimin ramen and made fun of spam.I had someone ask me if we had electricity.I thought I was in the twilight zone.</p>
<p>Girls wear Wellington-type boots (i.e. Hunter) for rain and for snow.They are versatile and you can get linings/welly socks for winter. Your D can get a shell-type rain jacket from LL Bean or Eddie Bauer that goes over a fleece jacket for additional warmth in the late fall and early spring. For deepest winter, she’ll need a down parka of some sort. She will need a knit hat/earmuffs/knit headband (whatever she feels most comfortable in).</p>
<p>A great way to ‘see’ what midwest college girls are wearing is to use the Bivouac website. It’s a store in Ann Arbor but pretty representative for college girls (and guys). It’s all summer stuff now, but you can scan through the clearance stuff. I agree with sending a (heavier) fleece jacket, North Face is still popular and rain boots (agree with NJSue that it’s nice to have the liner), hat and gloves which should hold her until December. Then she’ll need a warm winter coat (and I did see a ton of black down coats on campuses last year) and real boots (last year Sorel’s and Merrell’s - NOT the hiking styles - seemed to be the most popular). Leggins tucked into any kind of boot are still very popular all year round. Layers are key…</p>
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<p>Um, I think I suggested it first, and <em>I</em> have a son. 
Not only that, but he lived in a fraternity house with his down comforter for two years! It is still just fine. Key thing is to have a washable removable duvet cover, preferably something fairly sturdy.</p>
<p>His memory foam, on the other hand, we threw out. :)</p>