<p>sharon so glad things went as smoothly as they did for you. I think Harriet’s H and mine are in the same time warp as yours. Mine has been assiduously avoiding all college talk for over 2 years and is just now…we leave Wed. realizing/verbalizing that there are some lasts happening every day.</p>
<p>Thanks for the report CBBBlinker! So happy to hear that #theoryson made it! Of course I’m glad for all of the 2013 kids but I think that one even gave ME a couple of grey hairs ;)</p>
<p>missypie: your S sounds like he has a good perspective and NorthMinn your D seems to be settling in well now that the unsupervised crazines is over.</p>
<p>DDs started packing yesterday. DS got in on the action, carrying things down to the living room and making separate piles for each girl. It was all very upbeat and fun. My girls are taking old stuffed animals including “old bunny” and the “Cubby Pets” which were given on the first day of Kindergarten by their teacher as a way to ease the transition. Part of a snow globe collection is making the trip as are members of a collection of sea otters.</p>
<p>another great site for posters is [Zazzle</a> | Custom T-Shirts, Personalized Gifts, Posters, Art, and more](<a href=“http://www.zazzle.com%5DZazzle”>http://www.zazzle.com) You/your kid can design their own using online images or their own photos. </p>
<p>I won the “how many cars to take argument” But may have to aquiesce (sp) on the “which route do we take” I wanted to go down 101 (leads through the best shopping), DH wants to go through the Napa Valley and has no interest in stopping to purchase shoes along the way…men! I suppose heading home through the Napa valley and stopping for some wine tasting is appealing but I really wanted to pick up those Addidas sneakers on the way.</p>
<p>moda…sorry your H is being a pill. Mine agreed to read the OP in the “advice for dads on move in day” and I have had to remind him of rule #1 a couple of times Rule #1 for those who missed it is roughtly “For the next few days your wife is 100% right 100% of the time”</p>
<p>ohh missypie good suggestion! I think “bunk stretchers” and “shelf extenders” are available at OSH and Home Depot heh heh heh ;)</p>
<p>Son took very few decorative things from his room. He’ll be coming home for Labor Day, so it will be interesting to see if he brings more things back. </p>
<p>I’m in a big clean out and get rid of mood. We have two bookshelves packed full of children’s books. I was going to go through them with the girls but to be fair we need to wait until Son is home so all can keep the ones with real sentimental value. As for the huge quantity of stuffed animals…I think I’m just going to have to sneak most of them out of the house…it’s hard to throw away anything with a face, but there are just too many of them.</p>
<p>I have the reputation in the family for packing having managed to get all of us on vacation more times than I care to discuss with less luggage each time so I’m given particular respect when it comes to playing tetris with luggage contents and car packing. I do love my husband when it comes to letting me do what I’m good at.</p>
<p>FYI, BB&B trip in Richmond was helpful although their prices are really way too high. One item we picked up there we then determined we didn’t need so returned to a BB&B in Durham NC as we were passing it. The item was in the car and luckily the receipt was in my purse (the only one of many receipts I actually had on me).</p>
<p>We started the house cleaning a few weeks ago but it will now go a bit faster. DH and I are going to spend about 2 hours each weekend trying to clean stuff up. Luckily there’s a Goodwill that recently opened about 1 mile from the house and they’re open on weekends as well.</p>
<p>missypie, your suggestion has me laughing out loud ! I’m pretty sure my H is convinced that most things I send him to the store for don’t exist.</p>
<p>Another WPI mom reporting in! The RL meet-up was great, it made for a nice distraction from the launching process. CBBBlinker (now that I know the origin of your screenname it’s not quite so hard to spell ), I agree with your statement of not feeling like strangers.</p>
<p>The WPI drop-off went very smoothly (I’m sending many good thoughts out to those frat guys & girls who moved all of the stuff). But it sure was hot and humid!</p>
<p>More on the “small world” front: it turns out that skithesteeps went to high school with the brother of my college boyfriend.</p>
<p>Re: “how many jeans”, S took 3 pairs of cargo pants, which he is convinced is more than enough to last for doing laundry every two weeks. Sadly, he’s probably right. I’m just glad he took 15 pairs of socks and underwear!</p>
<p>My H still doesn’t get it. He was on the phone yesterday with his parents and said that we were driving Tues and leaving D on Wed. of next week. No dear – we leave her on Tues and drive on Monday. So he committed an extra day at his parents. Ugh. I didn’t want to stop anyway and now we will be there an extra day. </p>
<p>I don’t know why it’s so hard for him to get. It’s even on the calendar that is on the Fridge. Seems like it would be easy to remember.</p>
<p>I’ll be doing the packing of the car once D has packed the boxes. That isn’t to say that I won’t be going through the boxes to figure out where I can compress things. I can always it seems fit more in than anyone else in my family.</p>
<p>Hopefully she will continue with the packing this week without being asked.</p>
<p>We will be leaving bright and early next Monday. Hopefully with H if he can get his days right. ;)</p>
<p>Yikes, if several days with the inlaws had been my “reward” for a successful drop off, I don’t think I could have made it through. (They are unemotional, “suck it up” kind of people, which would not have been a welcome attitude.)</p>
<p>:) Rochester Mom though he has asked and been told many times this month, DH asked again on Sat "So when are we dropping thme off?? I think it’s a sex-linked characteristic.</p>
<p>Upper classmen will be on hand to move our kids’s stuff, the physical plant employees loft the beds and the word on the street is that virtually no parents stay for the farewell Mass and BBQ. That leaves us with hardly any jobs. DH can plug in the ihome I guess if he wants to have a manly task and I can help make the beds and put stuff on hangers. There is an old farming expression that comes to mind…We are going to feel like “teats on a boar.” But I am NOT sad about avoiding the long drawn good-byes.</p>
<p>It’s not a reward by any means to stop at my in-laws. Not only do I not really get a long with them but neither does my H. Makes for a GREAT time had by all. I try to take a “project” – something crafty to work on. That way I always look busy. I’m sure that there will be a list a mile long of chores that we have to do. No wonder we never want to go visit. Oh well. At least I then come home to a long weekend with just H and myself.</p>
<p>We arrive early for athletics, so not sure anyone is there to “help” per say, but then again, there is also an elevator and so shouldn’t be too bad regardless. I have been asked several times where we are leaving and I’ve repeated myself about a dozen time. Son still has not told roommates he is there a full 2 days before them, but I guess it doesn’t matter. He’ll just end up looking like the “first come, first serve” jerk. :)</p>
<p>And oh… Everyone knows I am the one that gets the most stuff in a suitcase, duffle and box. I can pack a car so that it resembles a jigsaw puzzle perfectly fitting the space. This does not prevent anyone from thinking they can do it better. And while packing itself might be a fairly quick job, getting it all together to make sure you have what you need is not. I have already noted that son somehow managed to lose the brand new pair of jeans I bought him in the spring (probably in changing for sports/game etc) and a windbreaker coat that was his favorite.</p>
<p>Still debating if I want to take both of these boneheads to target or similar once we land or if it wouldn’t be more peaceful to just go and buy it and choke down shipping. It’s all a question of managing the sanity at this point.</p>
<p>After as few visits, I adopted the philosophy of “drink whatever is offered, whenever it is offered” at my in-laws house…so what if I think 3 pm is too early for a cocktail? If they’re offering, I’m drinking. (So it’s worse at my own parents’ house because they are Southern Baptists.)</p>
<p>Modadunn, you could order your Target stuff ahead and pick it up at the store nearest the campus. We live in driving distance to the school, but I know it has worked for others. We did our shopping ahead (D thought it was way fun, but I can imagine sons being otherminded) and fit everything in 2 cars. Her roommate’s family managed to fly with quite a lot of stuff but still did a Target run. I don’t think they urgently needed things as much as it was something to keep busy with and engaged with their daughter as long as they could be. We picked up a case of water bottles after lunch but that was about it.</p>
<p>My H just cannot seem to keep straight in his mind what time D and I are leaving for the airport tomorrow, even though it’s written on the calendar AND I printed him the flight schedule AND I’ve told him half a dozen times.</p>
<p>So I asked D’s dad (my ex) to drive us to the airport. For once in my life, I appreciate his obsessive punctuality! And it’ll give him one more chance to hug his girl.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, my younger D is feeling a little left out of things because today’s her birthday and everything has been college-college-college-packing-packing-packing. But we’re taking her out to dinner tonight & there are some surprise presents she won’t be suspecting.</p>
<p>Glad the drop offs have gone so well! And, how cool that some of the CCers have had the chance to meet up!!</p>
<p>Funny about the hubs and failing to remember the logistics of departures. Maybe they are subconsciously blocking it out? I planned all the details of our drop-off of son, incl. time departures, hotels, etc. But, husband did drive the 40 hours in a car (down to family vacation, then straight to college & home). I simply would not have had the wherewithal to do that, especially the 15 hour stretch drive thru the night!</p>
<p>I’m also into a reorganization mode – some things in the house (selling on Craigs List) and also reorganzing our lifestyle in other ways (more planned fun, review of finances, getting house projects lined up, etc.). </p>
<p>Partly distraction, partly realizing w/son gone how fast life goes – better enjoy it & do your best while you have the chance!!</p>
<p>H says he is getting ready for his Pack Mule Job when we drop off. We leave at 7am tomorrow, early flight. A little time to pay in NYC, then drop off.<br>
Finished Ds quilt this morning~~ I am very proud, even my fussy SIL loked it, said it looks very California. Had family over last night and tonight its whatever friends still here. </p>
<p>Don’t think we are getting any help either, early movein for a service program. I would pay some big dude 50 bucks toc carry everything up the stairs.</p>
<p>Well, we need to leave for the airport at 4:30 am tomorrow. Drug S to get a haircut (was hoping for a CUT, but the long hair trim is better than nothing), but packing? HA. H volunteered that if S put what he wanted to take on my bed, I’d pack it for him. Of course, this is the same H who insists I do far too much for S all the time. I’m trying my darnest not to spend the last day at home nagging, but since I have to do the work, you’d think he’d get his 15 minutes worth done.</p>
<p>All freshman move in on Wednesday, so it’s going to be a madhouse as far as parking goes. S has continued to insist that I not get involved in the organization of the room, so no loft was ordered, although it would be perfect for his triple - all the beds and dressers could go in one room, leaving the other for futon, desks, etc., but what do I know? :)</p>
<p>Glad to hear all the drop offs are going well and that the kids are starting to adjust.</p>
But may have to aquiesce (sp) on the “which route do we take” I wanted to go down 101 (leads through the best shopping), DH wants to go through the Napa Valley and has no interest in stopping to purchase shoes along the way…men! I suppose heading home through the Napa valley and stopping for some wine tasting is appealing but I really wanted to pick up those Addidas sneakers on the way.</p>
! I’m pretty sure my H is convinced that most things I send him to the store for don’t exist.</p>
), I agree with your statement of not feeling like strangers.</p>