<p>proudmom - maybe your daughter can find a place to volunteer her time by serving Thanksgiving dinner to those less fortunate. one of our local churches does this on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. We volunteered there for many years. It made the holidays more meaningful.</p>
<p>Emilybee - I don’t know your neighbor’s financial situation, but there are organizations such as Rebuilding Together which help those in need do home repairs.</p>
<p>Thanks for the good wishes for my D1. It sounds like the interview and job weren’t quite what she expected, so we’ll see how things turn out. </p>
<p>2Ed: I hope your sons have a great day together.</p>
<p>BI: So glad that bjrjr is recovering well.</p>
<p>Proudmom: I’m sorry that your D’s plan didnt work out. Is there any way she could find other transportation to your relatives? I think it would be hard to be stuck at school during the holiday. Another option would be to try Yalemom’s suggestion and try to get creative with flights home.</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I’m still sorting through options for D2 so I’m not sure what we’ll end up deciding but we’ll have to figure it out soon. I’m cross-eyed from looking at different scenarios on cheaptickets so I’m going to step away until DH gets home tomorrow and I can bounce things off of him.</p>
<p>BI~Hope Blue jr is feeling ok today :)</p>
<p>Proudmom~sorry her plans have changed…local parishes may need a hand during the holidays.
Or you may find a cheap tickets…is there any other friend that she could share the break with. :(</p>
<p>bump up from page 2</p>
<p>Good morning all. Coffee is on and there is a box of Dunkin Donuts waiting for those who wish to indulge this morning. (DD had a couple of her friends stay over last night - they are still sleeping so first come first served… 
)</p>
<p>**10 days (or less) to Thanksgiving break **</p>
<p>The days are counting down and the turkeys are getting nervous!</p>
<p>(Based on kids touching down at home on the Wednesday before TG. Some kids may get the full week and will land at home sooner.)</p>
<p>thanks for the coffee and donuts, AvonDad!</p>
<p>My dad and I are having a good time in New Orleans. We couldn’t see much of the regatta yesterday. My daughter had failed to tell me that the levees and been rebuilt at about 10 feet high. Neither my day nor I are tall enough to look over those to see the races. We were able to watch the launches and dismounts, they get on and off in one area, then have to row under a LOW bridge to the main canal.</p>
<p>We spent a couple of hours in the French Quarter and ate on Bourbon Street. We will take my d for breakfast today, then a target or walmart run, then head home. </p>
<p>It is a 15+ hour driving time only drive, stops add to that that time. I have to be at work at 8:30 am Tuesday, so hope the drive goes alright.</p>
<p>Well, it is time to check out of the hotel, “see” you all later!</p>
<p>Thanks so much for the coffee and the countdown Cptn! Both are very much appreciated this morning! I’ll pass on the donuts and leave them for your guests!</p>
<p>2edu - Hope your boys enjoyed the game yesterday. We actually caught it on a local channel for once. Glad to see them hold on to the lead. It was a fun game with the exception of the Duke players dropping right and left…lots of injuries! 
I never like to see that for any team. The UVa coaches were in BDU’s for military appreciation. I really liked seeing that support!!</p>
<p>Poudmom - I hope you are able to find a reasonable fare for your DD to make it home for part of the T’giving holiday. If some of the suggestions here should keep her focused on the ‘Giving Thanks’ part of the holiday, even if she can’t do that with family this year.</p>
<p>bajamm - Glad you are having a good time! I haven’t been to New Orleans since the kids were born but remember loving the atmosphere. Cafe Du Monde was just amazing! Please have a safe trip home!!</p>
<p>Good morning all,</p>
<p>Thanks for the coffee Avondad :)</p>
<p>Bajamm~Glad you had a good time, I have never been to NO. S1 was on a rebuilding mission there last Christmas, and he mentioned the atmosphere, the people, definitely a place on my list.</p>
<p>Blue~I have not heard from my boys as of yet. S1 called to tell us 
and he was over the moon happy. 
</p>
<p>Made a run to some stores yesterday , and the Christmas decorations are all out 
Some very nice little things were spotted :D</p>
<p>Waving to all~~</p>
<p>I’m on my second cup and still in my jams. Bliss. </p>
<p>BI, hope Bjrjr recovery is moving along swiftly. What a brave kid going w/o the general. </p>
<p>Poudmom, is there a way for your D to go to your family even if she doesn’t have a ride with her friend? Might be a lot cheaper. Has she checked the ride board?</p>
<p>We are knee deep in leaves and today’s agenda is raking and more raking. They need to be gone so the lawn guy can put the fertilizer down on Wednesday. </p>
<p>FLMM, she is way to0 proud (and stubborn) to seek assistance. She has a quote from one tank removal company and is waiting for another to call her back. I told her not to dilly dally as that company already gave her a prelim quote last week and the estimates are fairly close. She gave me a lovely bottle of wine for helping - which I told her isn’t necessary, but she won’t take no for an answer. </p>
<p>Hope everyone has a lovely Sunday!</p>
<p>Laundry done and trying to decided if pulling down the Christmas boxes are in the cards. It’s either that or a lazy day with the paper. Deep cleaned the house this week for Friday night house guests, so I am leaning toward paper and maybe a late afternoon trip to the flagship whole foods.</p>
<p>Hi All</p>
<p>Well YaleMom/EAO etc…seems kiddo had a fine time at the screw. The blind date went fine. Had met the match very early in the year yet hadn’t talked much since then (just not on same schedules). Stayed for the whole dance etc and I think a good time was had by all. kiddo was under the impression that the roommate of the match approached kiddos roommate about it.
The better part of Saturday was spent with the “initiation” of the frosh on the team. A variety of scavenger hunt items and “tasks”…So kiddo had a full weekend.
today it is all about Psets…or so we hear.</p>
<p>Next weekend Y-H game and then kiddo flies home Sunday.</p>
<p>House still standing…had to be gone Fri and Sat night and so younger kiddo was “home alone” YIKES. If you look back at other posts from years ago I said I wouldn’t do that…ah well…
Worked out fine. With coordinated sports practice etc. Left rules/expectations taped to fridge. Both neighbors knew to watch for signs of distress
Except for spaghetti sauce splotches on the stove top/counter (kiddo2 cooked a bag of froz ravioli for supper Fri night , and I think ate pasta again Sat eve)…the house is in perfect shape. Kiddo2 was in the midst of finishing chores when we arrived at 12:30p …and is doing own laundry (school clothes/workout gear) :)</p>
<p>Thanks for the morning coffee and the countdown - love that we are almost at single digits. These last few weeks have seemed to crawl as I await our visit to DS for T-giving, the first time we will have seen him since August. How did this happen? How did I go from seeing my kid almost every day with the longest separation being 3 weeks to now 3 months? Growing up, I guess. Both of us! Happy weekend to all.</p>
<p>I’m still here! Okay, this time I did not go back and read everything I missed…</p>
<p>But glad to hear that peoples’ parents are on the mend and that there are all kinds of plans for the various upcoming holidays ranging from intimate little gatherings to big chaotic parties.</p>
<p>I feel like the odd one out in a way because I don’t have to do the Thanksgiving count-down, etc. We see D once or twice a week, which is hopefully not too much. We got to see her in a dance performance at the U last night, which was a real treat. She had been worried about being less experience at modern dance than most of her classmates, but she looked great (and I say that completely objectively of course!) We’ll get to see her in an African dance piece next week.</p>
<p>I think she’s starting to “bloom where planted.” For the first few months there was much talk of transferring to her dream school (howdy, kinderny!), but I think reality (of the financial variety) has set in. She likes most of her professors and her classes, beyond the shock of receiving B’s even when she’s worked really hard. She is officially a double major in bio and dance and has a four year plan all mapped out.</p>
<p>Socially, things could be better. She doesn’t get along with her roommate very well. Nothing awful, but they’re very different and roommate, while thriving socially is unhappy at the school and apparently may transfer out next semester. D only knows this from overhearing stuff, as she and roommate don’t really talk. D has talked to some other students but not yet made any friends. She does have her boyfriend there (he is a freshman at the same school) and she still hangs out with some friends from high school who haven’t yet graduated. She plans on joining a science fiction club, so hopefully that will bring her together with like-minded folk. She is so sweet – her little sis (13) is having really terrible times socially (that’s a whole other post…) and D and her friends took little sis trick-or-treating and little sis had a great time. She does have a great group of friends – it would just be nice if she could add some new ones from school!</p>
<p>And lastly, a funny story… D went to a concert with a couple of my friends and me (yes, she likes my friends!) She had emailed a bio lab report that was due that day and while we were eating dinner out downtown pre-concert, she got an email that she’d have to re-send as it was in the wrong format. D really likes her lab TA and wanted to fix things right away, but I wasn’t thrilled about having to retrieve her laptop and find a hotspot and return the laptop since the concert was starting soon. My friends said “email your TA and tell you’re seeing a concert with your mother and maybe she’ll let you turn it in later since it’s not like you’re out partying.” She sent the email, but we went ahead and started back to the car just in case, which meant passing by the theater where the concert was and where people were already lined up to get in. We all heard someone call out D’s name and say “Hey, I didn’t know you were going to THIS concert!” Yes, it was her TA, who said that it was fine to send in the lab later after the show!</p>
<p>Anyway, glad to be back!</p>
<p>snoozn–it was kismet that you Dd’s TA was there! Great story. Sorry for the roommate issues, but sounds like it may be resolved at the semester if the roommate leaves. Glad you enjoyed the show!</p>
<p>Am I the only one that just realized that the Thanksgiving countdown was a two edged sword? I’m excited for DS to be home, but it seems like I have a lot to do and a short time to get it done! :eek: I better start cleaning my house and figure out what I need to buy for the dinner. DH will be gone all week on travel, so I should have plenty of time to get everything done! </p>
<p>I had a great weekend visiting DS at school. Veteran’s day ceremony was wonderful. An Alum who was one of the liberators of Dachau spoke, and it was such a moving experience. The swearing in ceremony was also wonderful. We also got to attend the football game on Saturday, since it was at noon. DS played in the band and it was great to finally see them in person! I got some great pics and I promise to find time to post them in the next day or so!</p>
<p>Glad to hear so many had great weekends.</p>
<p>Just a warning…it’s been my (disappointing) experience that as much as I love seeing my boys at Thanksgiving, it’s a stressful holiday because they want to see us, they want to see their friends, they want to sleep…and they are waking up to the fact that finals and final papers and projects are staring them in the face.</p>
<p>Stress!!! and meltdowns!!!</p>
<p>My grad student has already warned me that she will be working on a 25 page paper while she’s home! My freshman son is coming home early, early Saturday morning - they’re planning to leave Vermont at 5 pm. Not too happy about that.</p>
<p>snoozn, glad to hear that your D is adjusting well.</p>
<p>Just returned from our self-declared Parents Weekend with ShawD. Although she seemed happy on the phone, she was so happy that we were coming that both ShawWife and I were concerned that she was holding things together but that things weren’t going well. We got there late-ish Friday night. I’d used hotel points at one chain and for some reason they didn’t make available a king bed although rooms with king beds were available for purchase. I’m not sure why so I called the parent company and said, “Hey, I’ve accumulated 350K points at your chain, the least you could do is give me a king-sized bed if I ask.” Well, we got there and they had a King Executive room connected to a suite – huge dining room table many couches, three refrigerators total, … " A bit of overkill, but fun. </p>
<p>Anyway, ShawD seemed fine. She wasn’t holding things together, and we had a good time. Out for breakfast (good eggs) and fish for dinner as requested. We rented a car and took her shopping – the mall for H&M and Roots and Costco for food she can cook in her room. Today, we got her really warm Lulu Lemon leggings. She felt really spoiled. Plus great hamburgers or salmon burgers for a late lunch/early dinner. She has lots of friends, prospective housemates for next year, seems relatively on top of her work. [I’m still a little concerned about chemistry]. </p>
<p>She told me that she wants to apply in nursing not only to her school but to other schools. Although she is really happy where she is and prefers to stay there, she’d rather study nursing elsewhere than science at her current school. Clear preferences being expressed.</p>
<p>She’ll be home for the weekend after Thanksgiving (no days off in Canada for US Thanksgiving) and she’ll face the same dilemma as your boys – want to spend time with friends first, second with us, third with work.</p>
<p>Good morning!</p>
<p>Glad to hear that Bajamm, Vamom and Shawbridge had good visits. Vamom, that ceremony sounds very moving. </p>
<p>Snoozn: Thanks for checking in. I’m glad that your D has settled in at school. The roommate situation sounds tough. I hope she “finds her people” soon. I’m sorry to hear that your 13 year old is having a tough time. That is a terrible age for girls.</p>
<p>I have a question for those of you whose kids have part time jobs. My D2 would like to find a job next semester, but H is worried that it will interfer with studying. I think it’s a good idea. How many hours do they work?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I should have said leaving 5pm Friday night.</p>