<p>We have to fly from TX to NJ. When D1 first went to DC, we flew with 6 suitcases (2 each for D1, me and grandma). Then we went my Bed, Bath and Beyond and picked up the bulkier stuff. We had pre-purchased and it was waiting for us at the store near her campus. Easy-peasy.</p>
<p>We’ll be flying from the East Coast to Colorado. Southwest Air allows two free suitcases per passenger, so we can check six suitcases max for free, and I’m guessing for our son that’s more than enough. Our reservations already are booked (move-in is Labor Day weekend). Returning, I had enough points for one free ticket. We’ll probably order Bed, Bath & Beyond stuff near home and pick-up near college. We’ll also be out there two days before move-in to just relax and buy whatever else is needed. There’s a two-day parent orientation besides students’, so we’ll be out there for a couple of days after move-in.</p>
<p>We’ll be driving D from NJ to central PA. But, S goes to school in St. Louis, so he’s usually flown. His first year, H flew out with him (on Southwest so two free checked bags each), and rented a car. I ordered a bunch of stuff from Walmart Ship-to-Store and they picked up the stuff there in St. Louis. </p>
<p>The next summer he used the University’s summer storage service to store most of his things and flew home. His sophomore year he took a car to campus and lived in an off-campus apartment. I drove out with him and helped him get the apartment set up and then flew home. </p>
<p>I agree with those who say to book your Thanksgiving flights now. The Thanksgiving flights are always harder than Christmas/winter break, since everyone is traveling over a smaller time period. With my S, I’ve had a lot of problems with booking flights in advance for winter break and spring break, since he always wanted to change them later. One a class had a final scheduled, but it ended up being a paper, so he was finished earlier than expected. Other times, he has had to return to campus early because of an EC he participates in. I’ve learned to always book his trips on Southwest Airlines, since there are no change fees when changing flights.</p>
<p>D leaves on Monday for 7-week summer scholarship program at her college - and they paid for the air ticket so we are flying. She will fit all her personal possessions into 2 suitcases. We will pick up the stuff for her dorm room when we get there at Bed, Bath and Beyond (their pack and ship registry). </p>
<p>She will be home for 2 weeks in August before the Fall semester begins - during which she will store her stuff on campus. Saving large items like printer, TV, for August when we plan to drive there - so she will be “roughing it” this summer, haha.</p>
<p>FYI - S spent last semester abroad - and only took 2 suitcases which worked out just fine for him. </p>
<p>I also have Amazon Prime - so I can get stuff to her quickly (and free) if need be - and she can order text books.</p>
<p>Sad day for S2. We sold his piano. It was hard for me too since it was the one that my parents bought for me when I was 6 to start piano lessons. We can’t move it with us and I just can’t justify storing it indefinitely. We’ve told S2 that we will buy him a used piano when he finishes grad school. He played one last “sad” song and cried a few tears and then it went to a good home - church members who wanted it for their granddaughter to start piano lessons on. Sigh…memories.</p>
<p>Hey 'rents!</p>
<p>It’s been a little while…I just thought I’d give y’all an update on everything for the heck of it. In the past two weeks I’ve been to seven senior/scholarship banquets. I’ve had class night (where we get our yearbooks and reminisce), had senior picnic, had prom, and I’ve even gone to college orientation! I think I’m really going to enjoy my time at UConn! I met some pretty cool people there and I’m SOOO excited to start! It was awesome knowing that no one has any preconceived notions of me. Having basically a fresh start is really awesome. Not to mention, I have THE perfect schedule for me. I’m taking all of the classes I wanted to take at the times I wanted them at (I planned everything out before my advising session…) and at this rate, I’ll be done with everything besides my senior thesis classes by the beginning of my junior year! Anddd I’m on track to complete my second major, which I’m thinking will be journalism, on time! YAY!</p>
<p>In other news, at this moment in time I only have to take out $5,000 in loans for my first year of college! My guidance counselor couldn’t officially tell me, but they did say that in two weeks I’ll for sure know how much I’ll have to take out in loans and it will definitely be less than $5,000 for my first year! I’m REALLY happy! Things are going really well in that regard.</p>
<p>I graduate in 18 days. I have 9 more class days left…well 7 and a half because I have two field trips. I can’t believe it. Everything’s ending. It’s been nice getting to know all of my classmates over the past 13 years, but it’s nice to know things will be over soon and I won’t have to deal with the vast majority of everyone.</p>
<p>For now, I’m just enjoying myself. It feels like every night is a weekend night. I barely do any homework anymore. The only academic classes I still have are Spanish and physics, and I barely do anything in physics anymore.</p>
<p>So, regarding our yearbooks and stuff-I was actually pretty surprised with what a bunch of my classmates had to say about me. I know that you’re typically supposed to write nice stuff or just generic messages in people’s yearbooks, but some people really made me stop and think about everything that’s transpired over the past few years. One of my friends who likes to get himself into a LOT of trouble wrote to me that I am the sole reason why he has gotten to graduation-that I’m the person who has helped him out the most through this year and that he’ll be forever grateful for me. He told me that I inspired him and that I changed his life. I can’t even put into words right now the type of feelings I experience whenever I think about what he wrote. It’s an absolutely awesome feeling to know that I’ve changed someone’s life. </p>
<p>I’ve been waiting for all of this for the longest time and it’s finally right around the corner and I’m just stunned. Absolutely stunned.</p>
<p>megp - 
about the piano. </p>
<p>swizzle - congrats on all of your great news and for being able to lower your loan amount with hard work!</p>
<p>We had our open house and graduation for D yesterday at our home. We ended up with 81 people in our home throughout the afternoon. I had prepared a slideshow including some video clips, we showed her short film and had a short diploma “ceremony”. We also trekked everyone across the street to D’s piano teacher’s home so she could play her recital piece on the grand piano. It was really a wonderful day.</p>
<p>D has a busy summer ahead of her. She’ll be helping me run a filmmaking program for students this summer. She also has a couple of her own “projects” she’s wanting to work on before college. In two months, we will be driving (as a family) to NY so we can have a bit of a vacation along the way and visit some relatives before taking D to orientation.</p>
<p>I don’t know how I’m going to move in yet. NY->DC. Also don’t know what I’m really supposed to bring vs. buy there. Towels? Sheets? Blanket?</p>
<p>Megp - I cried when we had to sell my piano too. :(… </p>
<p>Swizzle - so nice to hear from you & that everything is going great. uConn is fortunate to count you as part of the class of 2017! May the scholarships keep flowing your direction! </p>
<p>Unicam … I really hope you’re doing okay. Maybe you’ll just stop in and let us know you’re alive & well. </p>
<p>Graduation was last week followed by a grad party where we were almost swept down the street by the amount of rain courtesy of Tropical Storm whatever her name was … LOL!! Despite the deluge, it was a wonderful time & the grads pretty much spent the evening playing Quelf. Oh boy, was that a hoot!! D is looking for work and just renewed her lifeguard certification so hopefully she’ll get a good gig. </p>
<p>She’s signed up for the roomie & dorm lottery, so we’ll see what happens. She’s hoping for a dorm where she can cook for herself and isn’t locked into a meal plan. So, keep your fingers crossed!! Oh and she’s met some nice local students who are heading to the same college. They’ve hit it off quite well, I must say.</p>
<p>One more thing: Did any of your STEM girls get a letter from the Mathematics Association of America (they run the AMC tests) re: an opportunity for a few days in NYC this summer?? If so, does anyone want to share their take on it? </p>
<p>Have a great day!</p>
<p>I swear to God–only D1. </p>
<p>I’ve already whined about what happened on Senior Awards night. About 200 awards doled out but only with one (1) was there the embarrassing looking around the room and waiting until somebody yelled “She’s at work!” (after I’d already called the office and indicated that she wouldn’t be there). Who was this person? D1.</p>
<p>Today was graduation. Lovely day–if hot out on the turf football field when the sun wasn’t fighting through clouds. Too many speeches (and the ones by the adults were uniformly awful), but a couple of those by the kids were good. So they finally get to the passing out of the diplomas. After each name is called, there are the whoops and cheering–some of course louder than others. So, we’re there, sweating and waiting and clearing our throats to do some serious cheering when her name is called. Because of the way the kids were arranged and a class of over 300 it was a pretty long wait, but, finally, she is next. Then it comes: "[NAME] [INITIAL]…silence. No last name. The mike apparently crapped out just for that syllable. So there was no cheering because there was no name. While there had been a couple of weird echoes during some of the speeches, this particular glitch happened to NOBODY ELSE. Not before her. Not after her. Her name was the only one that was not (entirely anyway) announced. </p>
<p>Four years of school and 2 and a half hours of ceremony, cameras ready, her grandmother who was wheeled there from the nursing home, sitting in anticipation. But, somehow, our D1 was the only graduate of this high school’s class of 2013 whose name was never called. Someone behind us joked “We’re willing to sit through the whole thing again if you are.” To which I replied, “The graduation, or the four years of school?” </p>
<p>OMG, I was, I still kind of AM so mad.</p>
<p>She did get her diploma though.</p>
<p>Oh tougis!!! Ours were all out of order and I almost missed D’s, but I would’ve been so sad if that had happened to us.</p>
<p>We made it through graduation. Luckily the temperature had dropped to 102 by the time it started. It had been 106 earlier in the day! I only saw them take one person away in the ambulance. It was a grandma and not a graduate. Tougis, if it makes you feel any better, I was so worried about getting a photo of each boy as they walked across that I didn’t even hear their name. I had to ask afterwards if they pronounced it correctly. They had some goofy system where they alternate sides for the kids to walk across the stage, so they don’t end up calling the names in alphabetical order even though that’s the way they are listed in the program. With sweat running down your forehead an entire football field away, it was hard to anticipate when it was my kid up there and I was really concentrating, so I truly didn’t hear their name. I hope those long distance photos are worth it!</p>
<p>Grad night was equally hot, but it was so much fun that no one really worried about it. At least the sun had set! I had heard a lot about what an incredible party our community puts on for grad night, but this was my first year volunteering and I was so impressed with the event! It really was tons of fun and the super vast majority of kids stay until the very end. They give away hundreds of door prizes, but the big ones are drawn at 5:00 am so must kids stay to the end. The very last name drawn out of the hat was… drum roll please, DS13b!!! He won a $400 voucher on Southwest. He gave it to me and told me to use it to come and visit him! Ahhhh. How sweet is that?!</p>
<p>The school where I teach has a fun graduation tradition. Graduates’ names are called at random. The kids have a pool and the last student called wins the pot. Folks who don’t know about it always wonder why the grads sometimes seem disappointed when their names are announced. The suspense created seems to keep the kids engaged, and it’s nice not following the usual alphabetical order.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Used the same process at our school. Had two alph lists going–one starting at ‘A’; the other somewhere in the 'M’s. </p>
<p>Thanks, carimama–I’m still furious, but I suppose I’ll get over it eventually (like when Alzheimer’s takes over). Sorry your event was also unpleasant, GM.</p>
<p>Congratulations on all the graduates!!! We have 2 more weeks to go! I am sure there will be some kind of name-problem drama…with our name, it can’t be helped! My DH gets so mad!!!</p>
<p>We made it through graduation - nice air conditioned indoor stadium! Speeches were short and they really moved everything along rather quickly. I did feel sorry for the two teachers pronouncing every name. 80% non English names. The teachers did fine on the Spanish names, but we have a large African population and some of their “formal” names were very long and full of consonants! S2 was cranky afterwards and did not want to pose for photos, so I’m facebook stalking friends and stealing copies of their photos. He didn’t go to grad night, but spent the night watching movies with friends. And…we had the first showing of our house yesterday. So, all in all, a successful weekend.</p>
<p>Mirabile - that sounds like a fun tradition but might make parents nervous about “missing” the moment. </p>
<p>I guess I should be happy that d13’s graduation was in an air conditioned gym! No sweating - actually had to wear a sweater.</p>
<p>I can finally breathe - graduation and all the events over, college orientation over, grad party over…I told my daughter we can now go shopping for college. I didn’t want her to get anything in case she got a duplicate as a gift at ther party. She got mostly cash, checks and gift cards - so now we can shop! With her gift cards!!!</p>
<p>Good morning! Happy Monday!!! Still 10 days until graduation. Prom was Saturday night and was a huge success. Except that he worked all day at the yacht club and didn’t have time to get his haircut and had a little sunburn. His date looked gorgeous. She is a junior and not part of his “group” so was a little nervous but I think everything worked out fine. He slept til past noon but then was up until midnight working on a project for English, which is basically a slideshow of his life. Tonight the seniors get their yearbooks (the rest get their tomorrow). He has an Econ project due on Wednesday. So life keeps plugging along. D1 graduates with her masters on Friday, so for the moment the attention will be pointed on her. </p>
<p>Names at graduation: Our school is I think 70% hispanic so they usually have the Spanish teachers announce the names. So our very common English/American name gets pronounced with a Spanish flair!</p>
<p>Congratulations to all the graduates! I am VERY jealous. Prom is 10 days away and graduation is still 12 days away. What is DD doing? Nothing to do except take one regents exam in Physics. Do you think she cares about that exam? Ummm, no. Oh well, we will survive through the next two weeks when we too can then celebrate being done!</p>
<p>I am WAY behind on reading posts from the last week or so, but I had to laugh at reeinaz’s comment about being her son’s personal assistant. I tell my boys on a daily basis that their life will suddenly crumble when DS13a doesn’t have a personal secretary and when DS13b doesn’t have his own personal waitress! And they haven’t even thought about the whole laundry issue! </p>
<p>I asked DS13a what he wanted for his dorm room.<br>
DS: “What do you mean?”
Me: “Well you know girls actually plan in advance what they will take with them to college and ‘decorate’ their room!”
DS: "Yeah, I think I will go with a ‘dude theme’.
Me: “What does that mean?”
DS: “You know, like a dude.”
omg. I grew up with a sister. This guy thing is really just too much for me! And I’m not really a girly, girl. I guess I should just be happy that it’s low key and not worry about it!</p>