<p>Military Mom, I guess I wouldn’t necessarily base what I experienced during a summer program on what it is like to be on campus during the school year. Many colleges rent out space to different programs or run programs geared to kids who will never apply to the college during the summer.</p>
<p>OK
huddle up please
birthday gift ideas…for rising sr…</p>
<p>Student already has decent MPS player, decent cell phone,
and uses family computer.
Computer needs will be addressed come college/fall etc.
Does not have car- uses family car when needed. No need and nto in budget. We pay for gas–as student rarely uses car–and so its not a burdeon.</p>
<p>Student-athlete does not wear much jewelry–wears watch on occassion.</p>
<p>Past gifts have included latest PS3 game desires.
PS3 is family item…and will not be traveling to college…
Family tv is in family room–no kids have tvs in bedrooms. </p>
<p>Other past gifts have included significant costs of summer trips etc. and often included special requests for gear.</p>
<p>We are scratching our heads–</p>
<p>Ideas?</p>
<p>Teens are hard unless there is something specific they need or ask for. Gift cards to movies or fast-food restaurants where kids go together? iTunes gift cards? Concert tickets to some favorite band coming to town?</p>
<p>Past gifts for the teen boys in our house have been a new guitar, new drum kit, a new bike (for the college sophomore to get around campus), clothes, a surfboard, a skim board, and an iPod Touch. Not much help I guess if your child isn’t into any of these things (and he already has an MP3 player).</p>
<p>A gift I like to give to a young adult just before or during their Senior year is personalized note cards, or informals. They come in handy for writing all those thank you notes - for everything ranging from admissions interviews to graduation gifts. It’s not a gift of substance …but it is a very practical one.</p>
<p>
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<p>can’t remember, or if you have revealed if you have a girl or boy. Is this the 18th bday? If so I would suggest nice piece of jewelry even though they don’t wear if now. If it is a boy, how about a nice suit, that is what we got S on his 17th, 2 suits actually, they were on sale. For some reason he was especially pleased with owning nice suits. </p>
<p>If they are really into sports, how about a few sessions with a personal trainer? Nothing beats having someone new give you ideas for uping your perfomance. (not that they need upping!) I like the concert ticket idea, Blue Man Group tickets, etc.</p>
<p>No AP mail results yet. I admit to calling in to get them, but it would be nice to have them in hand.</p>
<p>I sympathize MilitaryMom. Kids can get turned off by the tone of the other students, and perhaps they are right to be aware of the social vibe–but summer programs are usually <em>not</em> selective, even at very selective Universities. These students that seem so “off” may be unlikely admits–so it’s a shame she is turned off by the kind of students who wouldn’t even be at the school! The same can be said of others on college tours. Heck, they aren’t attending the school–just looking. But it can color a visit just the same.</p>
<p>My two S’s love their smart phones! I got them the latest Droids for the holidays and apparently they were Phones that Changed Lives. Is it time for your son to get an updated phone? With web service, my boys are finally very up-to-speed on their email. With S1, this has really helped with college communications among work-mates, friends, and profs. Will also say S1 used his own work $ to buy an iPad and thinks it’s revolutionary good. Even better for email, plus lots of useful apps and so cool that cute girls approach him in Starbucks just to look at it. Heh.</p>
<p>Tickets to a performance, dinner out (family and an invited guest) at a Big Deal restaurant, a gift certificate for an “experience” (massages, hot air balloon ride, skydiving :eek:).</p>
<p>Mine turns 17 tomorrow!!! No big present this year, because we made the major saxophone purchase. But I am going to let her get a massage - which she will love. The concert tickets are also an excellent idea.</p>
<p>She’d love one of the new Gameboys, but it seems a very bad idea in this season of college apps …</p>
<p>My boy is hard to buy presents for. He says, “If I ask for something, you will generally get it for me. So, I have what I need. If you get me a present, you’ll be getting me a present I don’t need.” He did ask for a basketball for Chanukah. More audiobooks. But, what he asked for as his birthday present was money for his trip to Europe. We were going to pay for it for his gap year, but he couldn’t go. So, we paid for it this year.</p>
<p>My daughter is easier. A facial. Manicure and pedicure. Gift certificate to H&M or Forever 21. This year, people got her makeup brushes, soaps that smell, a very elegant bracelet, a book. She asked her brother for concert tickets to a particular concert (She and Him).</p>
<p>Iphone was the present last year. New laptop this year.</p>
<p>I too am struggling with the gift for DS2 - birthday is soon. He has as he put it “all he needs” and I am out of ideas. I also do not want to purchase just for the sake of having a wrapped gift.</p>
<p>Finally, AP scores here. One as expected, one better than expected, and one one point less than expected; he looked up the directions for a rescore of the third, and then - never wrote the letter. </p>
<p>I do wish he would churn out some of those darn essays. He’s got ideas but no drafts yet…</p>
<p>Birthdays are a quandry for gifts
–we plan to handle the new laptop issues next yr when we know where our student goes to school and what kind of laptop and apps are available with the student package (engineering)
and our student is using an older Palm–and my plan was to let that ride until college–and then consider which phone is better for email/text and uses a docking thingie etc…
Kiddo will probably take bedding and linens from home–and so I hope to keep dorm room costs down (so I can convince my spouse that a new phone is not too extravagant)</p>
<p>The family has PS3 and Wii–and Rock Band etc apps–the kiddos dont play alot of games as it is…
and </p>
<p>we generally cover needs for athletics, clubs ECs etc…</p>
<p>and so for example–this summer our student is at a camp doing the sport all summer–it is pricey and really the B Day gift—Since kiddo is out in the sun all summer–I bought kiddo new sunglasses–as I wanted kiddo to have good UV protection…since kiddo wears daily contacts…</p>
<p>We dont have really high maintenance kids…meaning they are not clothes horses and understand that there is not a fountain of cash for movies, restaurants etc etc…</p>
<p>I am wondering if maybe a “grab bag” of gift cards–is smallish denominations–
say
Old Navy
Dicks Sporting Goods
Best Buy
local movie cinema</p>
<p>would be fun and then as kiddo would have the some “independence”…
Kiddo doesn’t shop–and generally i’s me who suggests–“hey–do you need a few new things?”</p>
<p>Informals are a nice idea–I wonder if I order them today (online?) if they can be here next week? I had suggested to my younger kiddo that we order custom M&Ms for fun–just as a novelty…and younger kiddo thought that was silly</p>
<p>Son and I had always liked to watch Star Trek (the original series), so for his 17th birthday, I got him the complete series on DVD. I had thought we’d get through it together before he left for college, but he’s finished his freshman year and we’re still working our way through it. So…is there a TV series that both of you have always enjoyed watching together - House, Gilmore Girls, or whatever - that you could buy on DVD?</p>
<p>Lots of bonding time at our house over “Scrubs” - the first medical TV show my doctor H can enjoy watching since “MASH”!</p>
<p>My D2 gave D1 as an 18th b-day present (3 years ago in August, just before she left for college) several of the DVDs they’d always liked watching together. She wrote a note on each one (I think they even rhymed!) and hid them around the house as a scavenger hunt. It was adorable.</p>
<p>17 seems an anti-climax … or a pre-climax. I guess some of us are on 18, others on 17. Congrats to the upcoming 18-year-olds! And good luck to the parents! Living with one through HS can be rough. I’m glad mine both will have turned 18 after they graduate …</p>
<p>On the 2010 thread, there was a discussion a while ago about 18th birthday gifts. Someone got 18 different gifts. Most of them small gifts with one big gift. Thought that was a cute idea. Also made it like a scavenger hunt to find the gifts. D’s birthday is in March - so I want to do this, I have to start making a list now to get to 18 gifts that mean something special to her :-)</p>
<p>But finding the one big gift is usually difficult. Ran out of ideas completely for D’s 17th bday this year - but at the last minute, found tickets to a Celtics game for all four of us. H was out of town, but came back and surprised D on her bday and all four of us went out to the game and had ice cream after. She loved it!</p>
<p>This discussion will come up again in a few months about graduation gifts, esp. those whose kid already has a suitable lap top. One of Son’s grad gifts was a lifetime membership to the Eagle Scout society/association (or whatever it’s called.)</p>
<p>I understand the interest in gifts (my son turned 17 in May, he got a video game and some clothes) but could we get back to college talk? :)</p>
<p>Anyone going to Colleges and Careers at RIT next week? [RIT</a> College & Careers Homepage](<a href=“http://www.rit.edu/emcs/admissions/careers/index.php]RIT”>http://www.rit.edu/emcs/admissions/careers/index.php) I just booked my hotel room and am trying to decide if we’ll have time for a pitstop in Ithaca on the way home or maybe just stop at Watkins Glen for an enjoyable hike. I’m reaching my limit for college visits!</p>
<p>Thanks for the ideas…our student has a summer B Day and is young for the grade–
won’t be 18 till just before college starts–</p>
<p>As far as college talk for our house</p>
<ul>
<li> The AP scores are in</li>
<li> The app is not online yet</li>
<li> No essays started–as our student athlete is away all summer so nothing to start til mid Aug–not even on the radar</li>
<li> Most college visits are done already over the last 2 years–2 more in mid August- because one of the schools is a major “show the love” school</li>
<li> Resume updated with all recent test scores etc</li>
<li> ACT done --unless pre-reads indicate the ACT should be higher still</li>
<li> SAT1–won’t retake --ACT was better</li>
<li> SAT2s were highly successful</li>
<li> FAFSA–too early to start–</li>
<li> Our student asked the theachers about recs–for early fall–getting them signed on–in case they only did a certain number of letters–and gave them a heads up to the early timing (Sept) back in May before school got out</li>
<li> Waiting for pre-reads results and OVs</li>
</ul>
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</p>
<p>I guess…but the thread will be a lot more fun if we are allowed to stray on occasion. On the '09/'13 thread yesterday we covered inlaws and house guests. In recent weeks we’ve tackled appliance replacements, home repairs and kids who don’t help around the house. And last weekend we even celebrated a wedding!</p>
<p>I like the 18 gifts idea and may use that one in October. I will need that long to come up with 18 gifts. The big one will prob be her own laptop. Right now she shares with her sisters.</p>