<p>Gosh VA, that’s an even shorter window than what even I have between visits.</p>
<p>Yesterday I turned on the oven’s self cleaning mode so if it broke I’d have time to get it fixed before T’day. It was also nice enough that I could open the windows to get the stench out. Today I am soaking the racks in the bathtub. Fun, no?!?</p>
<p>emily - I’m going with the “no” option, however it will be very nice to have it all cleaned up before the holidays! You go!!! :)</p>
<p>VAMom2015 - That is a close window! Glad you are enjoying your time with your family. I wouldn’t worry about gutting your son’s room before he’s home. Don’t you have other reno jobs going on too? It will be there after he visits!</p>
<p>I actually let Bluejr off the hook for a weekend he’d planned on coming home when we saw him Saturday. Talk about progress!! He was home two weeks ago for Fall break, we saw him Saturday for a few hours, next weekend we are on campus for Bluejrjr Friday night (which also happens to be Parents Weekend but it’s a separate event). He’d talked about hitching a ride home for the weekend. I said if he wanted to go to dinner that was fine, but he really didn’t need to come home, he has a life there, friends, clubs, etc. (a gf now), and he doesn’t have to spend the weekend with us there or at home because it’s Parent’s weekend. He’ll be home for a long weekend for Thanksgiving soon enough. He looked at me like I had lost it (are you really my mom?!) and agreed. We see him plenty.</p>
<p>Am I the only one who hasn’t seen ds/dd since Aug drop off? He wanted us to see a football game at some time but it isn’t going to happen. So first we will see him since Aug. 17th will be thanksgiving. NOT that I haven’t been texted and skyped and called and facebook posted and…by ds nearly everyday since he left. A girl from the band invited people from the section out to her parent’s house (20 min away) for a homecooked meal and ds was so happy to be in a real house with food. He said he missed that. Dd3 asked if his dorm (she’s never been to campus) is like a hotel and I said, “yeah, like a really cheap hotel. not like a hilton, more like a days inn.”</p>
<p>It might be fun to head over there for a weekend, but I am not sure that could be done with hs band here and other obligations.</p>
<p>Oh and he was shocked that when he went to buy his coffee the other day that he had only $5 left on his “dining dollars” from the meal plan which means he just buzzed through about $420 in about 8 wks. Given he has 8 weeks to go…he’s got alot of scrimping to do! He didn’t out and out ask for money…but it will come to that, he just thinks he’s being sly about laying the seeds for discussion now. The hardsell will be Nov. 23rd.</p>
<p>Classof2015, the spouse and I are Almodovar buffs, but this latest one sounds like it’ll be put on the Netflix queue. There are so many of his films that I haven’t seen…I need more time to read and watch movies! </p>
<p>amandakayak, we’ve not seen D1 since dropoff either. Not even Skype.</p>
<p>BI, I’m sensing progress! :)</p>
<p>I’m sorry amanda, I just crammed a semester’s worth of visits both ways into three lines. 
We live 90min driveway to dorm, and only have one other at home in hs. His brother’s EC hours are odd, but we aren’t tied to hs football games, just STEM competitions which start in Nov. We planned around them. I think you are FAR more the norm.</p>
<p>Amanda, we haven’t seen DS since August either, and won’t seem him until Thanksgiving. We were going to visit sometime this fall for an alternative parents’ weekend, but it just didn’t work out and he assures us that we would just be in the way ;-)</p>
<p>It’s just funny because over the weekend we had our home band competition where alot of the band alums come back because most of them are 1 to 1 1/2 hr away - they were all wondering why he wasn’t back and I’m like “because the bus would take about 7 hrs!” </p>
<p>He was supposed to go to this concert downtown (a real venue) with friends after a mid-term last week but told me today that actually he never got there because the exam ran late and he had to go alone. He took the wrong bus and the bus driver wouldn’t help him and (boohooo noone was holding his hand booohoo) he ended up getting to the venue 45 min late and they wouldn’t let him in. He was standing downtown, lost basically for about an hour before his friends came out. Soooooooo, I am not too confident in his ability to take a bus to NYC and back out here - without getting lost.</p>
<p>[The</a> Best Time to Buy Thanksgiving Airfare Is … | The Points Guy](<a href=“http://thepointsguy.com/2011/10/the-best-time-to-buy-thanksgiving-airfare-is/]The”>The Best Time to Buy Thanksgiving Airfare Is ... - The Points Guy)</p>
<p>If anyone doesn’t have Thanksgiving airfare booked yet, now is probably the right time…</p>
<p>Hello everyone! </p>
<p>Well, here we are in the heart of fall. I just got back from my big weekend in NY with D. I’m very glad I went - it was good for her, good for me, and good for us. I’m grateful I had the opportunity. Also it was just plain fun!</p>
<p>We did great stuff - she has found some amazing ways to get theatre tickets, and we saw 3 wonderful shows and also enjoyed exploring the city more. I met some more of her friends and got a taste of campus life, too. But mostly the trip was to get her a little break away (she stayed at the hotel with me for 2 nights) and to spend time together. So I guess it was kind of like one of those Parents’ Weekends where we skip all of the school activities!</p>
<p>I learned a lot about how she is, and where she is at in her transition to college. She very much understands this is all a big adjustment, with lots of balances. In her case it’s a combination of some true issues at the school, some true issues about college life in general, and some true issues in her own maturity level and personality that put a few kinks in this process. </p>
<p>But the bottom line is that she is very focused and determined to do these two programs and make the most of where she is. She has some wonderful friends, has nary a complaint about her classwork or her profs, and likes her peers in the BFA and the Honors College (she’s barely met anyone else).</p>
<p>She chose this school for the opportunity to do an exceptional degree program, knowing that in other ways it could have significant deficits. We’d hoped what people had told us about those deficits being “not so bad” would have been truer, sooner - but D knows she can keep chipping away at what she doesn’t like, finding people she likes, getting into the city more, making her own way. She’s looking forward to getting deeper into both programs and knows she can get an enormous amount out of being there. The stuff that doesn’t appeal to her - the partying, the lack of a more fulfilling residential life, and some other hassles - she’ll just avoid, or find ways to make better.</p>
<p>So … our story is a bit like momofboston’s, although more in the spirit than in the details. My D IS staying in her major, isn’t talking about transferring (openly, anyway - in fact she denigrated a couple of kids who are talking about it, so I’m thinking she has no intention of doing so). It’s similar in that D understands that college isn’t necessarily something that just happens FOR you, but that you make happen for yourself. There could have been more idyllic places, maybe, but in terms of opportunities and admissions and all that, she knew she had virtually no chance of ending up where she wouldn’t be dissatisfied in some way. And I’ll also admit she has a natural tendency toward that, anyway. She’s more and more ready to take charge of her own life, all the time. In the big picture, that’s all I want for her - period. </p>
<p>I was glad she said I didn’t grill her too much, that she had the kind of weekend she wanted to have, that she appreciated being able to talk about what we did talk about. She agreed when I asked if she felt like she was “coming toward center,” and she said she feels confident that she will continue to move into the more positive side as time goes on.</p>
<p>She’s really looking forward to coming home at Thanksgiving, for lots of reasons. But she also said 30 days really isn’t so long, and she has lots of stuff to do - work, and fun - in the meantime. Sounds good to me!</p>
<p>EmmyBet, that’s such a wonderful post–so very glad to hear that your D2 is finding so many positive things. Liking her peers in the BFA and Honors program is huge. It’s great to hear that she clearly has a tribe.</p>
<p>Sooo nice to hear EB. </p>
<p>Sorry some of you have had less contact with your student than you would like. </p>
<p>We are doing great here, had a lovely fall weekend and heard good things from D re college in phone calls the last few days. Only thing that is still a bit bumpy for her is the writing/rewriting of papers for her classes. We knew it would be hard, and she knows she can go to the writing center to work it out. But at the 5 week reviewn for all first year students, she got no negative comments or concerns from her profs so she is on the right track at least.</p>
<p>Thank you, ST. Definitely the right things are good - the other stuff in many ways is frosting, and the opportunities she has on the outside more than make up for the on-campus deficits.</p>
<p>Yay for kinderny’s D - grades or no grades, it does seem clear that these kids do all essentially care that they are doing all right as students. My D told me one of her suitemates works at the Writing Center at her school, and D said it’s wonderful that if she goes there she could get help from someone she knows is smart and nice. I was so glad when she brought that up, because I was wondering if I could find a way to ask “Do you think you might ever go to the Writing Center??”</p>
<p>I am still trying to avoid too many nags that just make it seem like more WORK, even if the ultimate result would be that she would feel better. Some of these things she just has to figure out on her own - of course I’ve mentioned them, but have decided now to let go. I’d much rather she said, “Hey, I solved this problem such-and-such a way” than “Oh, Mom, you were right, how could I do this without you.”</p>
<p>Emmybet: I’m glad that you have a nice visit and that your daughter is focusing more the positives. </p>
<p>I’m sorry for those of you who haven’t seen your kids. Thanksgiving will be here before we know it! </p>
<p>We enjoyed a great family weekend in Boston. My D1 came for part of the weekend, which made it even better. We didn’t do any of the official activities other than the hockey game, but spent most of our time walking, shopping and dining. The weather was wonderful, and we caught some of the Head of the Charles rowing regatta. My daughter couldn’t be happier. She even loves living in her enormous freshmen dorm, which has been descrived as “the most fun you never want to have again.” It was great to see her thriving in her new environment.</p>
<p>EB- Sounds like a terrific weekend and your daughter seems like she has the right attitude for success. What shows did you see, would you recommend?
Amandakayak, haven’t seen daughter since drop-off but will see her this upcoming weekend for parents weekend.
Momjr, also sounds like a great weekend. Gotta love Boston, my two older kids are in school there and I love to visit them.</p>
<p>Just talked with my D about upcoming Family/parents weekend. Her roommates dad made reservations for all the parents and suitemates to go out to dinner 4 girls 8 parents so that will be fun. She did say that the schedule for stuff to do looked a bit dull. I told her that we were there to see her and anything she wanted to do was fine. Husband needs a tour of campus as he has never had an official tour of it. I always did the college tours when we were looking. </p>
<p>Sounds like the weekend was success for most everyone. Hope your Monday is going as well!</p>
<p>We saw Elaine Stritch at the Town Hall - how inspiring. A one-night show, but I think she does a cabaret once in a while (she is 86, after all). She’s my D’s hero.</p>
<p>Man and Boy was excellent. Frank Langella was awe-inspiring, but the entire play was stunning.</p>
<p>We both were overcome completely by Follies. H and I are going to Chicago this weekend to see the production there, so I’ll have quite the experience seeing it twice in 7 days!</p>
<p>There were so many other things we would have liked to see. We also walked the High Line Park, built on an old elevated train track. That was really magical.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I haven’t seen D either since we dropped her off. Amanda - you are not alone! Most of D’s friends are all in the Boston area and they’ve all been back home several times - one mom told me her D has been home for at least one night every weekend!! </p>
<p>EB - great to hear that your D is adjusting so well to college life, figuring out what works and what doesn’t.</p>
<p>D is on her fall break and busy planning out courses for next semester. They get to pick classes within the next month and she’s using some of her free time now to get ahead. She’s had a great long weekend with some good friends and is headed back to school tomorrow. She has a very full schedule until thanksgiving - so time should fly by! She was amused to hear that we had a thanksgiving countdown!</p>
<p>Thanks for all your wishes and thoughts for S. He’s doing ok so far - in a great mood today since he found out he made the travel teams on Sunday. We go for the specialist appointment tomorrow and we’ll see if there’s anything conclusive then…</p>
<p>EAO & momjr: Thanks for the heads-up on White House/Black Market a few pages back (and everyone else who chimed in on the little black dress conversation)! D just texted me that the dresses arrived today (in time for the Family Weekend concert on Saturday). The long dress is beyond perfect; the short one may go back, but will do for now. Not sure about the cost, but we have been warned that a renegotiation of her clothing allowance is on the cards for Family Weekend this Saturday. Oh well, it turns out that the several-times-year tours are fully funded somehow, so if we only have to buy some dresses it comes cheap!
I just bought S’14 a peacock blue dress shirt and a lime green tie @TJ Maxx for his first a Capella performance ($30 total). OTOH, we have to pay for his (mandatory) trip to Italy later this year. I know which one I think sounds more expensive!</p>
<p>EAO and HighHead, I just Googled the weather in New Haven for this weekend: partly cloudy, no rain and in the 50’s- let’s hope it stays that way! Looking forward to getting a read on S2 in person, Skype only goes so far. It sounds like all his suite mates’ parents are coming in so there are a lot of bodies to seat somewhere if the restaurant idea comes through, not sure if any of the boys have gotten their acts together to make reservations, I’m going to give it another day or two…Definitely sensing academic fatigue in S2, which is normal for this time of year I guess, the end of the semester is still just a bit too far away and there’s lots to be done in the meantime.</p>
<p>Amanda - another who has not seen DS since drop off in Aug! We are going to him for Thanksgiving b/c he has a very short break (classes through Weds pm) and travel so tough. He just had fall week off but elected to stay on campus and “chill with friends” rather than come home although he had that option. We’re glad he’s comfortable enough to stay. Family Weekend is Nov 4-5 - too close to T-giving for this family that lives 2000 miles away. But he’s home for a month in Dec/Jan!</p>
<p>Anyone else starting to feel the pressure of thinking about next summer??</p>