<p>I haven’t visited this thread for a long while. I had to read Rochester Mom’s question twice before it would compute. Rising sophomores?! Wow, how time has flown by this year. I hope all of your students have fared well their freshman year. </p>
<p>Plant son told us he had applied for a summer research fellowship at school and was notified that he had been awarded the position–writing code…something…models of dark matter…something, something…physics department. This is much more up his alley than the job we had told him he’d have to apply for here: theme park worker. He is quite relieved! So, we’ll have him home for a few weeks, and then he’ll be back to his college for summer. My D, a rising junior, will also spend her summer doing research for he advisor at college. I’m trying to adjust, along with the youngest sibling who’s become an only child all of a sudden, to the idea that my older two have really “flown the coop”.</p>
<p>PlantMom, my older one didn’t come home after the first summer, either. Look like he won’t be around this yr, either.</p>
<p>When we flew with the guys to the west coast when each was ~5 mo. old, they were dream babies. Slept in the front pack on my chest the entire time. 18 months was a hard time to travel. Once they were two and we got seats for them, we brought the car seats on the plane and they reacted like we were in the car. No escapees. </p>
<p>We always brought new books and activities, lots of finger snacks, we all wore the same color t-shirts, and they had their own little backpacks with a change of clothes. Also brought Benadryl for stuffy heads/ears, since both had a lot of ear infections when they were small. This was in the era before hand-held video games were popular (tho even once they were, the guys generally read or slept). We always carry a spare set of clothes. DH calls it “n+1”! </p>
<p>I always try to engage with little ones on the plane. Saves the parents from being the only entertainment and sometimes averts a meltdown. DH is particularly silly in this regard.</p>
<p>Odessagirl applied for two jobs while home on Spring Break. Hopefully, she will apply for a few more electronically or when she is home for Easter. She currently has a job, but usually only gets around 15 hours a week in the summer. She needs more hours for more money. Wants to study abroad spring semester of Junior year and travel in Europe afterwards, so knows she needs some money.</p>
<p>I am a little worried about her. About a month ago, her scalp itched her so bad. She scratched it so much that it created a sore spot. Then it went away. Now she has joint pain in her elbows and knees and the itchy scalp is back. Our dog was just diagnosed with Lyme Disease and she is wondering if she has it. I looked it up and found nothing about a scalp issue, but the joint pain, for sure. She is going to the health center tomorrow. And I told her to make an appointment with our hometown doctor for when she comes home next Friday for Easter Break. I just hate not being there to fix everything. But this is how they grow up.</p>
<p>“I have never been on Facebook. I am quite sure my kids don’t want me looking at their pages anymore than I want them reading what I post on cc.”
Excellent point, TheAnalyst, excellent point.<br>
PS GO BIG RED!!!</p>
<p>CBB - my 81-year old mother was on Facebook before me! </p>
<p>As far as DS’s summer: He is going to National Scouting Jamboree as an assistant scout master for a couple of weeks. He is planning to go camping at an outdoor music festival with his GF for a week. </p>
<p>He has no job prospects, but told us at spring break “If someone offers me something, I’ll take it.” This prompted a serious father-son talk about getting out there and being proactive. If he can’t find a paying job, then he is going to have to do volunteer work.</p>
<p>DH asked me not to nag about getting a job! Me, nag?!?!?</p>
<p>If someone offers me something, I’ll take it.</p>
<p>I love teenage magical thinking! :)</p>
<p>I flew with my little one from Miami to Houston where she screamed the whole way. I never complain about any screaming babies on any airline trip I take. 17 years later, I’m still paying penance for having put everyone on that plane through hell.</p>
<p>I do object to kids kicking the back of my chair though…and I find the electronic game sounds (beep, boop for hours) very annoying. Put on your headphones, for heaven’s sake. (Actually, I’ve taken to wearing noise-cancelling headphones on plane rides.)</p>
<p>shawbridge–my d and s went on birthright this past winter, (separate trips, each with their own college Hillel) and we all met up there after their trips to celebrate my youngest’s bar mitzvah. we had an amazing trip, in fact just tonight we watched the slideshow of the trip that my s put to music…beautiful. hope shawson gets the opportunity to go–feel free to ask ?'s --both my kids had trip of a lifetime experiences…my d met a soldier who plans to visit this coming winter…</p>
<p>I was hoping they could pull out an upset. S’s team advanced to the elite eight but it wasn’t pretty. A key ball handler is injured and the turnovers were ridiculous. They are going to get killed in the next round IMHO. H went to law school at Syracuse and he was upset by their loss last night to a school neither of us has ever heard of before. I didn’t see it but the highlights on the Kansas game sounded good. </p>
<p>S2 comes home tonight so I will be baking a cake today. H has a 10k race tomorrow (goal is to break 45 minutes) and has a 20 mile training run on Sunday (training for Boston). We have to go to C’ville to pick up the car sometime on Saturday because S1 still has it from his visit to see his brother and S2 will need it for spring break. H copied me on an email he sent this morning before his run asking S1 if he wants to go for a hike while we are out his way. I think he is getting enough exercise this week-end without needing to add a hike. We have work to get done like cleaning the house, grocery shopping, applying weed killer to the lawn, taxes, etc. H, S1, and S2 are all big time procrastinators.</p>
<p>“I was hoping they could pull out an upset.” Yeah, that wasn’t pretty but neither was the Syracuse game, ouch!
TheAnalyst, that sounds like a bit too much strain on the ol’ hip and knee joints if you ask me. My niece ran the Chicago(?) marathon, continued to train for Boston and then did Boston without a break. Well, she hasn’t run since, has had major hip surgery, and remains in constant pain. Sometimes we take a good thing a bit too far…</p>
<p>H puts in a lot of miles (more than 50 a week) and hasn’t had an injury in years, so I don’t worry that he will over do. It is just time consuming and his passion for running is an interest I don’t share. He always wants me to come watch his races like that would be fun for me. I hate crowds and have repeatedly told him that isn’t the way I want to spend my day. I’m not going to Boston or going to the 10k tomorrow either, but he still always asks. I say no and then end up doing all the things that need to get done around the house while he is out having fun. I need to find my own hobby I guess.</p>
<p>Well, the D who has caused me so much lost sleep putting her on airplanes called from Chicago yesterday and said, “I want to go to DePaul. Just sayin’.” DePaul was actually on my “list” for her. This morning it was University of Chicago, DePaul or any other school in Chicago. Think we’ll focus on DePaul.</p>
<p>Has she been to The Windy City in the winter??? ;)</p>
<p>The Analyst…Butler is an Horizon League team located around Indianapolis. They usually have good basketall there. That league consists of Butler in Indianapolis, Valparaiso, Loyola, Cleveland State, Wright State, University of Illinois-Chicago, University of Wisconsin - Green Bay, University of Detroit, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee and Youngstown State.</p>
<p>No, but she thinks she has. She’s been twice in March, which she thinks is nicely cold. She hates the heat (I know, bad for being a Disney princess) and has ruled out every school south of us in her college search.</p>
<p>We did a driveby with both girls to Loyola and DePaul. Also toured Illinois Wesleyan. D2 fell in love with that school but it was too far away from home!</p>
<p>We knew back then she was a small private school kid because she loved Carleton, St. Olaf, Illinois Wesleyan, and other campuses like them. That’s why we were shocked when she suddenly picked a state school!!! :eek:</p>
<p>She looked at Illinois State for soccer. Too big!</p>
<p>LOL, I think the AP Art History field trip must have reached the Robie House, because now D is texting that she wants to go to the University of Chicago.</p>
<p>I have found myself thinking back to a year ago and how anxious of a time this was. D already knew she was accepted to three excellent schools with great opportunities but we were waiting ever so anxiously on what we thought were the “big ones”. A year ago, there were some bitter pills to swallow but it’s amazing how well everything turned out and how happy D is at her chosen school. </p>
<p>I don’t envy you, missypie, having to guide more children through the college search and selection process. I’m not sure what S is going to want to do; I hope eventually he’ll take some community college courses to strengthen his foundation and then decide where to go from there. </p>
<p>missypie, I wanted to go to UofC for law school. Didn’t work out for a variety of reasons, but I recall loving the area. I understand your D’s desire to go to school in Chicago! Sure, winters are cold but that’s a great city.</p>
<p>While I know Milwaukee is not Chicago, if your D seriously wants an urban campus, have her look at Marquette. Unlike DePaul, students are required to live on campus the first two years, so it is not the suitcase-like school DePaul is, and for my son, the merit aid was MUCH better! It’s only a quick hour from ChiTown. Okay, shameless plug over.</p>