Packing vehicles!!

Parent Cafe
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We rented a minivan for the 850 mile trip from home to college. No trailers, no roof-top carrier. But the extra space helped for the 1st year move-in and the last-year move-out. This was in a time when computers and monitors and printers took up real space. Some kids brought mini-refrigerators! It’s useful to be in advanced contact with your roommate(s) so that you avoid duplication. Again back in the day there was no point for a room to have 2 TV’s; nowadays, of course, two or three students rooming together can pretty much do all the video they want on laptop computers.

Nowadays we’d probably manage driving a normal sized car, but also perhaps ship/mail some things beforehand.

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Pack all bedding in one duffle do you can make up the bed without rifling through everything else.

Pack all winter clothes in under bed bins and just stash them, the way they were packed at home, when you arrive.

Put a door stop and a tape measure (helpful as you’re trying to figure out room arrangements ) in a putse, backpack, or some other readily accessible bag.

Pack a bag with power strips, etc. It’s often easier to plug these in before dressers and desks are full, especially if they are in front of outlets.

If it doesn’t fit in a car (roof rack may be needed), you have too much. Dorm rooms come with the basics and are small.

If you are buying things like a fridge, have them shipped directly to the school. Anything you need after you move in can be there in 2 days thsnks to Amazon Prime.

At most schools, the process is well-organized but it will have its own stress - moving in with strangers, helpers carrying your things to the room faster than you can get it in the room, the good byes, etc.

Fwiw, my advice is get super organized in advance so this goes as smoothly as possible. And err on the side of taking too little. Everyone will be appreciative of the simplicity.

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Agree on the all-important advice – pack the fan(s) last so they come out first, and plug them in right away. Easiest to set the bed up right away, so that there is somewhere for someone to sit. Bring bottled water and power bars. It is almost always a long, hot, stressful day. Take breaks, eat. Realize that your kid will be stressed, even if they act like they are keeping it together. If you don’t want to get too mushy when it’s time to say goodbye, consider having written a heart felt note to them, and leave it on the bed etc. Sign them up for the free trial period with Amazon prime, now that they have a college email address, so they can order whatever they have forgotten/must have right away. Be nice to the roommate and roommate’s family. If you get there first, don’t hog the best of everything in the room – be empathetic and imagine if you had arrived second and found that the roommate had taken better location for bed, dresser etc.

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Put bedding in last. Make the bed first.

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Related…don’t bring too many people with you. First…it will free up room in the vehicle for “stuff”. Second…the rooms just aren’t big enough for mom, dad, college student, sister, brother, grandma, grandpa, favorite cousin, etc.

The rooms are barely big enough for mom, dad and college student…times two if it’s a double.

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2 kids, moving into furnished dorm rooms. We packed our minivan with just the rear row folded down. The biggest space hogs were the giant mattress pad, and for our daughter, the bike.

I can’t imagine needing a Uhaul! I never saw one on any move in day. Everyone had either a car with a top container, an SUV, or a minivan. Our neighbors moved their daughter from MA to Villanova in a Prius.

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Had an SUV and rooftop soft sided carrier. Used trash bags for clothing- they can conform to spaces, fill in gaps, unlike boxes and bins. Had to tell son he needed to take everything, that he was moving, not just a week’s worth of clothes. He was young (still 16) and ready for college but it didn’t hit him until the day he moved. Those trash bags should be saved for the move out and do not take much space. We were in the desktop era. The car foot wells work for stability for boxy things.

We used the dining room/table as a staging area. Put purchases there and sometimes returned/exchanged things as a better one came along. It is very important to have the student help pack so s/he knows what is being taken. But important that mom also helps. This means mom sets up the first aid/OTC meds kit, laundry supplies to be sure those things from various places in the house are there (band aids…) but kid knows what s/he has.

H and son helped load the vehicle then I reloaded it when they thought there was no room. I still remember when H was about to abandon pillows one May because he thought there was no room for the move back home. We hauled a big bed pillow which we brought home and then rebrought a week or so later. I knew he would want it- that’s why I had made it!

Son was a minimalist so we took everything from that dining room and his clothes. He did bring just a few books from home. I think there is a comfort factor there. The winter stuff can wait until after Thanksgiving.

We bought a 15"x15" wire shelf unit that he put in his closet for more shelving. Very little hanging stuff. Remember there has to be room for the dirty laundry- son used a bag. Taking him and friends home for winter break I noticed one guy had a basket and the third something elder (thank goodness it was winter- did not want eau de dirty laundry in that SUV).

Be sure to pay attention to what is provided by the school. The micro/fridge, waste baskets were in son’s dorm room. As was the thin, useless mattress pad- we bought a better one for that vinyl covered mattress.

We rented the UHaul (Penske I believe) for the UNfurnished apartment move, and the smallest size was more space than needed.

Plan on a Target/Walmart run after unloading. btw- pay attention to move in info from the school. They coordinate massive numbers well if people follow their time/day slots. Son had use of laundry carts (the Badger buddies were elsewhere by the time we rolled in late afternoon- did not leave home when mom thought we would because I think reality hit and son procrastinated that morning).

Son had a “house” meeting that evening- therefore parents did not take kids out for dinner or linger. Plus, he was the one who had to pick up his key- paradigm shift for parents who were used to checking into places… He unpacked- we did not. btw- he’s a slob, the next trip we noticed unused towel bar and bookshelf- stuff all over. His problem, not ours. Worried about his apartment mates putting up with this another year but it turned out all of the guys were slobs. Their place, not mine!

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At some colleges, volunteer student helpers unpack the arriving cars and take everything up to the dorm rooms. The purpose of this is to get the cars unpacked and out of there as quickly as possible. (Often, there is very little room to park cars near a dorm.) The student does not necessarily walk up with the helpers.

If your kid is going to a school that does this, it’s crucial to have everything packed in some sort of container, clearly labeled with the student’s name, dorm room number, and cell phone number. Things do go astray! Also, decide in advance which things you are not willing to turn over to the move-in helpers (e.g., the bag with prescription medicines in it, an expensive musical instrument), so that the people in the car can snatch these items before they fall into the volunteers’ clutches.

Another point: Move-in takes place in summer. It can get extremely hot in the car, especially when the car is parked – hot enough to damage or ruin some things (such as medicines and cosmetics). It’s prudent to pack such things in a backpack and bring them into every place you stop – restaurants, motels, etc.

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Those plastic drawer units take up a lot of space. Neither of my daughters – one of whom usually packs an entire suitcase just with shoes when we’re traveling by car – wanted them or missed them. On the off chance that once your student is moved in they actually decide they need drawers or bins, you can order them from Amazon and have them shipped. Easy.

We found the best thing for packing was soft-sided zipper bags from Ikea. Specifically the Frakta and Knalla. They’re structured yet soft, hold a ton, and collapse to nothing for storage. Also they’re strong but super-cheap, about 2-4 dollars each.

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Other reasons less is better:

a lot of colleges hand out free t-shirts for all sorts of events.

Kiddo will no doubt realize his/her shoes/boots/coat/whatever is uncool & will demand a replacement.

Student will gain or lose weight & need new clothes that fit.

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Also, if your student is a fall athlete with an early move-in date for preseason, there likely won’t be those football guys or orientation volunteers helping haul your stuff. Then again, if the roommate is not on the same team so doesn’t have preseason move in, you will have the advantage of just your student moving in, unpacking, re-arranging etc. – does simplify things.

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@moooop My oldest came up with a brilliant solution for all the free t-shirts since she rarely wears t-shirts herself. She collected them all year and it was her Christmas gift to her high school sister who only wears t-shirts. Win-Win.

My favorite part of the 2 hour drive to college two years ago when DD went for the first time was the fact that most of the cars on the road with us were stuffed to the gills and clearly heading exactly where we were. DD was extremely relieved to see that some people had bought more stuff than she did. (All her gear fit inside a Prius with 3 passengers.)

Here’s my pro tip. Don’t argue with your kid about what to bring or not to bring especially on the day. Emotions run high on all sides.

If your kid is an overpacker, you will be surprised what can fit into a tiny dorm room. Chances are some of it will come home to stay at fall break/parent’s weekend/first available opportunity.once child is tired of working around all that stuff.

If your kid is an underpacker, relax. No college student ever flunked out because they failed to have an extra set of sheets/towels/umbrella/screwdriver. Yes, you are right that they will probably wish they had it later but this is their choice to make. You can decide later if you want to be nice and mail it while privately savoring the "I told you so’s.

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One of the main purposes of “parents day” visits is to take your student shopping. After they’ve been settled for a month or two is when they will know whether any key items are missing. Say, a coffee maker (may not need it at all), curtains, a table, a lamp, etc. Or some clothes. You can’t anticipate it all in advance, nor should you try – if they don’t absolutely need it, don’t bring it at first. On parents day, you take your child (a) to dinner at a good restaurant, (b) to Target or the like, © to the bank (if there have been issues).

Also they may find that their roommates have brought a lot of extra or duplicate stuff. That is one reason it’s important to coordinate with the roomie before schlepping a ton of things.

Regarding banking, the kid’s spending patterns and need for cash can only be assessed after a few weeks. Our daughter kept “overdrawing” her account at college and would be hit with penalties ($20 for overdrawing by $1). We solved that: closed the account at the college. Set up an account at OUR credit union, including “no fee” ATM and Visa cards. No penalties for “overdrawing,” just warnings – and we could monitor the situation and transfer cash from our own account if need be or on a regular schedule.

Also, since our daughter was attending an art college, we initially way underestimated the costs of tools, materials, and supplies. She could buy what she needed at the college store, but it was expensive. All the more reason why it was difficult to lock in a particular spending level or credit line in advance. Some adaptation – learning – brought us to the solution in the previous paragraph.

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Each kid will need to make their own determination about how much stuff they want to have at college. Some like to have a lot of things with them and others take a more spartan approach. Whatever works for your kid works.

To me, I would error on the side of bringing a little less. You can always bring more and you presumably will have everything that you cannot live without. Amazon is your friend in terms of getting just about anything to your kid in 2 days.

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If you are going to buy a fridge or stackable drawers or anything else bulky, buy it near college.
I

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Take a few things that will make the room yours. Our son took the minimalist approach, and when we left I remarked to my wife that his room was so barren it looked like a cell. Since then he has asked us to send multiple decorations from his room at home. He has a much better dorm room now.

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We will be driving 1000 miles with 3 adult-sized occupants in a newer Honda Fit with an upright bass, 2 electric basses, an amp, and basic clothes. I wouldn’t believe it if we hadn’t made that trip twice before in almost the same configuration. There will be something on someone’s lap.

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@mom23travelers nailed it: “Here’s my pro tip. Don’t argue with your kid about what to bring or not to bring especially on the day. Emotions run high on all sides.” Some kids are easier than others. Like others said, pack the fan and bedding AND a small folding hand-cart (Costco/Home Depot under $30). Our son barely took anything but we did use plastic containers that could be moved on the cart. Clothes were left on hangers. Our cart got heavy use that day as multiple people borrowed it. The less people who go, the better. There might be 2-3 roommates moving in at the same time and it gets crowded.

When we moved our last one in 4 years ago, we helped carry everything in and then left for a while. There were too many people and we were in the way. Fortunately, the other 2 sets of parents left also and the 3 boys had more fun putting their own stuff away and bonding- went on an impromptu walk to the bookstore and got to know each other. Plus, by putting their own stuff away, they could find it all later. DS2 is a minimalist, but I would say that if you have room in the car and your kid wants to bring something ridiculous, let them. You can always bring it back home with you if they get there and find they don’t need it.

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I discovered that Bed Bath will allow you to return unused items, in their original packages/with tags,
four years after purchase. Not for a credit on your card-- but on a Bed Bath gift card.

You may ask, “Blossom, how the heck do you know this random fact?” and then will realize that the woman in front of you in the customer service line at Bed Bath with a huge shopping cart full of unopened items was Blossom, after her kids graduation from college.

Extra sheets? Nope. The sheets go from the bed to the washer to the dryer and then back on the bed. Ditto towels. Those cute storage units? Never taken out of shrink wrap. The fun white board to leave messages on the door? A relic from ancient times before texting. Anything electrical? Either unsuitable for a dorm built in the 19th century, or just plain useless. Alarm clock with a cute pencil holder attached? What’s a pencil, and why do I need a clock with an alarm when I have a phone.

By my last kid I learned that if it didn’t fit in a Honda Civic, it wouldn’t fit in a dorm room. And that buying new linens for a kid going off to college is a waste of time and money. Kid got to raid the linen closet, and Blossom got new sheets and towels for the first time since her bridal shower.

If your kid gets to college with the contents of the Honda Civic and needs something, Walmart, Amazon or Bed Bath can have it there in two days. Go light and save yourself the aggravation of hauling it upstairs and then back down when the dorm ends up much smaller than anticipated.

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We used a cartop carrier on our sedan. We used vacuum compression bags for clothing and linens. Those really minimize the space needed. We bought large items such as bins and desk lamp on site. Over summer breaks we rented a local storage unit for winter clothing, large items, etc.