<p>Well it feels like 4 years ago all over again as S is finalizing essays, personal statements and apps for law school. He has submitted his first 6 apps with one safety, a couple of matches and three reaches. Most of the schools including the upper tier schools are really beating the bushes for applicants and are waiving app fees which will save him (us) several hundred dollars. He is hoping this semester’s grades come through and push his GPA back to the 3.5 mark. That seems to be a benchmark for several law schools and he is just a few hundredths of a point under it through his junior year. So far he only has his grade in Econometrics which was an A- and made him very happy. He said the exam was the hardest he has ever had including the SAT, ACT and LSAT. It’s hard to believe that he only has one semester of college left. Where did the past 4 years go?</p>
<p>Holiday brunch is on the table, come help yourselves! Most of our kids will be done with UG in 5 short months (unless they already are!) Enjoy this time with them, by this time next year they should be fully launched into young adulthood (does grad school count as fully launched?)</p>
<p>@avonhsdad, where did the last 21 years go? It seems like yesterday that ShawD transferred to this school (it was 3 years ago) but we saw the dorm she lived in her first semester and it seemed like ages ago that she was there. I want even sure that was the dorm. Time goes fast and slow. </p>
<p>Add me to the list wondering where did the years go by? Just got the bill for next semester and was telling D that I can’t believe it is the last bill to be paid!</p>
<p>@arisamp, we have 18 more months to pay as part of the 5 year accelerated BS/MS program. Fortunately, our 529 Plan should cover. ShawD came over for Chanukah dinner tonight and she and ShawSon had a remarkably thoughtful intellectual discussion. ShawD said she was very concerned about our institutions of education. She sees lots of students incurring debt getting degrees for which they will not be able to earn good livings. She’s concerned about the social contract and also observed that people with debt at the age of 40 may not be able to buy houses and will not have as much disposable income to spend and that both will slow down economic growth. I dropped her back at her place - she’s going out with her best friend and study partner for her birthday and then they will jump back tomorrow morning to study for their nursing licensure exam. Interestingly, ShawD said that she took a practice test for this exam by accident – she thought it was a practice test for her last final – and prior to studying or the school-sponsored prep course, she had scores of 8 on each area of the test (the scores seem to be between 1 and 8). Another nice thing – I drove her in with her best friend for much of high school. They had a messy split after being inseparable. Well, ShawD needs one or two roommates for the condo and the HS BFF may be moving back and looking for a room.</p>
<p>Happy holidays all! Nice having both kids at home - although D is currently battling an ear infection. Spent a few hours at the ENT specialist yesterday and they are not sure if it is a perforated ear drum or not. She’s on antibiotics and some drops - still not feeling too good. She’s a very cranky patient!</p>
<p>She did hear back from her last interview and now has three offers to choose from. She has to decide by the end of the year and was planning to do pro/con lists, but then this happened. We are also supposed to be away for the rest of the week - so let’s see when she gets to decide!</p>
<p>@arisamp - Best of luck to your D with her choice of offers. It’s nice to have options although the future employers do not seem to provide much time for these kids to sort out the options/pros/cons and make an informed decision. Hope the ear situaiton responds to the meds and she is feeling better.</p>
<p>Happy Holidays, Happy Chanukah, and Merry Christmas to all!</p>
Happy New Year! Here’s hoping 2015 will be a great year for everyone and that graduation will bring great job offers or grauduate/professional school acceptances for everyone as they transition from the undergraduate world. It’s hard to believe that there is only one more semester left. It seems like we were just planning our voyage on the SS Indecicion… 
Happy New Year! I am keeping my fingers crossed our kids succeed in that next step!
I too wonder where the time went-although since he is at NEU and did the full 3 coop program he will not be graduating until May 2016. It is good for me since my little girl is a HS senior and the application part of the process has been even worse than it was with him which actually shocks me. The common denominator is me!
Happy New year to you all! Special hi to @Pepper03 - been a long time since we’ve seen you here! Good luck to your D.
D headed back to school today - last semester. House feels weird with both the kids gone - eerily silent. She took her time, made a pro/cons list , but knew all along which of the three offers she was going to accept - she’s headed to Atlanta after graduation! It’s beginning to sink in that this is real - she won’t be coming back home much anymore 
@arisamp- I didn’t put the connection together over on the cafe that your d was in this class, duh! Your d will be 20 mins from me and mine is moving to NY.
My D has finally come to terms with the the fact that she will have to go an extra semester and graduate in December. She is at Vandy, and it has not been easy for her - there have been some major bumps and setbacks - but she is determined to see it through. She has had other friends at Vandy who also have found themselves in the same predicament, so she knows it is not uncommon, but she still has found it tough to accept. I have to say, though, the support at Vandy has been excellent. She has a lot of people in her corner, and hopefully she will walk proudly on the lawn next May for her degree.
Moonmaid, good for your D for sticking things out despite the difficulties. Best of luck to her. It’s a journey, not a race.
My S was 2011 grad and is a senior now at Belmont U. But he will not graduate until August due to a major screwup by him and his advisor. The really bad news about that is that my D graduates high school in June, midweek, and he may not be able to attend her graduation. Anyone else in this possible predicament?
I also have a high schooler graduating. College girl is May 8th and hs girl is May 21. We had a slight panic when my high schooler thought she may have an AP exam May 8th- but thankfully she is done the day before. Gonna be a busy, but fun May!
I have a hs senior niece graduating the same weekend as my college D. I told my parents that I expected them to go to niece’s graduation because hs graduation is more of a rite of passage then college grad is.
Interesting. I hadn’t thought about it but ShawSon will be in school on the West Coast when ShawD graduates in New England. She attended his graduation which was on a weekend and she was 2 hours away (and drove with us). Hers is on a Friday (why Friday). I’m not sure anyone would expect him to fly home. If the current trend continues, he is working so hard that he couldn’t miss a few days.
S called this evening to inform us he received his first law school acceptance and that he was offered a 3 year merit scholarship that will cover nearly 90% of the tuition. While this was one of his “safety” schools, he is very happy to have one out of the way and in the bag. He indicated that it will be a real balancing act regarding acceptances and net costs to attend. It appears that he will be booking a cabin on the law/grad school deck on the 2015 sailing of the SS Indecision. $-)
^Congratulations.
Congrats to Avonson!