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<p>Don’t want to be Debbie Downer, but for some percentage of us, the room will be occupied again within a semester or year…then what to do with all the college purchases? The bedding is all stacked on my son’s top bunk.</p>
<p>No great deals…mostly impulse purchases at Target. It has inspired me to be proactive in looking for good deals on linens and whatever else he will need. </p>
<p>All four kids are home on vacation this week, but I may steal away with just him some morning… to try to find some good stuff and sneak in some QT over lunch.</p>
<p>I asked him this afternoon…in case I DO see some good deals without him present. All he wants is oversized bath sheets in some solid color…not plush bath towels… and bedding in blue/khaki tones - a print sheet and a solid comforter that shouldn’t clash with his eventual roommate’s style. * sigh *</p>
<p>For those of you who are already thinking about shopping and shipping, etc:<br>
with our older daughter who went to school on opposite coast, we were very pleased we followed this advice that was recommended on this board. (This is for families who are flying.)
- Start saving all Bed, Bath, and Beyond coupons no matter when they expire.
- Go to BB and B and select all items that your child MIGHT want. They will be placed on hold for you in college town. When you go to store to pick them up, you don’t necessarily need to purchase all of them. (After you’ve seen the size of the room and what roommate brought, you might change your mind.) Pay for them with your wad of coupons you saved for the past few months/years!
- If possible, book tickets on airline which doesn’t charge for luggage. 4 of us flew on Southwest, so we could have taken 8 suitcases for free. 3 of us were just going for 2 days, so we just needed a carry-on. We didn’t need nearly 8 anyway, because we picked up a lot of stuff at BB and B after we arrived. But, if you’re buying clearance stuff to save money, you don’t want to pay to ship it or pay the airlines to carry it.</p>
<p>For my younger daughter, class of 2011, who has been known to fall in love with pricey items and then change her mind, we might start shopping August 1st!</p>
<p>^^ speaking of BBB coupons, I have noticed that they have stopped coming the last few months; anyone else noticing this??</p>
<p>Rodney: I also noticed that the BBB coupons haven’t been coming. I hope they aren’t stopping them. I used up my stash on Kuerig coffee pods.</p>
<p>^^for first time college kids, just a reminder that most college dorms have XLong twin beds–so make sure linens, etc will fit.</p>
<p>Great to read such good news for many. We’ve had a mix. Another hopeful audition/portfolio review completed (just one more and that’s by phone!), exciting (but annoyingly vague) new hints for admission to 2 special programs (yet, hint or no hint, I hate to hold out false hope, but…), plus the drag-- 2 big scholarships that required big involved applications have not panned out. Odds of kazillions to one–but still… Like others here have lamented, when that tantalizing possibility of affordable tuition disappears, some wonderful hoped for schools become wistful almost-was-es. (!)</p>
<p>And yet–I’m repeating my mantra!</p>
<p>fwiw…I recently set air fare watches …the tickets are unfortunately up from when the EA came in…sigh. so hoping for a tiny reprieve so I can get a better deal…we too plan on carry ons for 3 and baggage allowance for kiddo.</p>
<p>momofzach, we heard the same thing from our D last night, when we picked her up late from the airport, exhausted from a cross-country weekend trip for an accepted students’ weekend. “I don’t want to talk about college for a month!” she said, and I don’t blame her. I’m going to keep my mouth shut and let her process until she wants to talk again. </p>
<p>It’s easy to forget that they still have a fair amount of high school left in them.</p>
<p>Wednesday’s countdown is:</p>
<p>MIT (March 14th) - 19 days to go (less than 3 weeks!)</p>
<p>March 31st schools - 36 days to go</p>
<p>Thanks, AvonDad. This countdown is helping change my perception of waiting time from “infinite” to “moving along.”</p>
<p>“He wants to be a lawyer that does good! I told him prepare to be broke for a long time then.”</p>
<p>Pepper03 - That’s not necessarily true. My husband’s and my practice is based largely on plaintiffs’ civil rights cases, but there are certainly easier ways to make a living.</p>
<p>Definite senioritis from D1. She’s sick…and is actually staying home from school! :D</p>
<p>I’ve also noticed the drop-off in BBB coupons. I’ve been saving them for years, and am now no longer using them for little teeny discounts. </p>
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<p>Hardly. As soon as D1 goes out of town, D2 starts using D1’s room as a lounge. 
Last time it happened, I sent D1 a photo of D2 reading the comics on D1’s floor. Immediate text message back, thundering “get D2 out of my room!!!” </p>
<p>The big problem will be packing. D2 and D1 like to borrow and share clothing. Even my mother asked how they’re going to manage this when separated by 3000 miles.</p>
<p>We sent our daughter a picture of the dog lounging on her bed! hee hee!</p>
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<p>We’re dealing with the car issue. D won’t have a car at school, ever (urban). Her younger sister will turn 16 next fall. It would make so much sense to let younger D drive older D’s car.</p>
<p>D has firmly said she wants her room to stay as is and S cannot have her room. He doesn’t want it either (at least not now). We’ll leave this as it stays right now - for how long is the big question!</p>
<p>D got back from an overnight - still interested in the school. It went up a couple of notches as she described it and she didn’t see/find anything to rule this school out. Good news in one way, especially since this is a school she has been high on - but it feels like we made little progress - no whittling down the list yet at our house!</p>
<p>My younger sister could not move into my room fast enough when I left for college. I had the bigger room with the TV and cross ventilation. She totally redecorated. Never bothered me. I thought it was logical. </p>
<p>After son leaves, I will start Phase 3 of our reno - my office, guest bath, son bedroom & lounge/office & bathroom (hey, he’s any only child!). All will get new flooring, new paint, new bedding. Office will get new furniture and spare bed will move to son’s lounge to make it the guest room. Both bathrooms will be gutted & redone. Son doesn’t care as long as it isn’t girl colors. Hopefully this project will make me miss him less (yeah…right!!).</p>
<p>Just pulled the trigger on a black north face denali fleece jacket for D1. My next quarry will be good quality rain/snow boots.</p>
<p>slithey - if you find a good deal on rain/snow boots, do share. D needs those. We did get her a black north face denali fleece a couple of years ago - I don’t know if that is sufficient for real cold weather, but she has been using only that out here in MA. Granted she doesn’t have to be outside walking a lot…</p>
<p>March 2…new ipad coming.</p>
<p>I love stories about kids from warm climates prepping for colder ones …</p>
<p>Moving D1 into college in MA, her roommate’s mother (from southern CA) showed me the “coat” she’d bought her D, asking “Is this warm enough?” I’d say it was more like a blazer than a coat, and replied, “Maybe for October!” She was aghast.</p>
<p>Japanese D brought something similar with her to WI … before Halloween she bought a very thick, long down coat. And gloves. And hats. And real boots. But she still says she’s cold!</p>