<p>Oh, Greek. As my ds said, whatever they decide he’ll be sad so I needn’t worry about him feeling bad. In other words, it’s inevitable.</p>
<p>GreekMana - I will say that after DD broke up with her BF (about 2 weeks ago) she has totally “moved on”. I am really very happy that they made this decision - it was a mutual decision - and quite mature I think also. He will be fine!</p>
<p>@reeinaz - Yeah. it’s after 9 PM and he is still washing the clothes he plans to take. I’m not sure why he couldn’t have done that before now…</p>
<p>My S has always been a contrarian…he broke up with a boyfriend of 9 months in January because he didn’t want to be tied down when he went to college. Now, he has just started to date someone new who is “the love of his life.” Bad timing…</p>
<p>Good luck with today’s launch MichiganGeorgia.</p>
<p>I finally finished all the shopping. I realized that most of what I was buying/thinking about buying was more for my sake than his. The “last” chance to parent and all. I have just one online shopping cart of cleaning and laundry items to hit submit on and I will officially be done. He will be living in a temporary dorm for the Summer Bridge program, then moving into his permanent dorm on the 19th. So he doesn’t need everything just yet and I’d rather not have him bogged down with too much stuff for his real move-in. </p>
<p>We fly out Monday and we still haven’t started packing yet and he has some tentative plans to meet up with friends at some point this weekend. Maybe I’ll start packing the nonclothing stuff and hope it inspires him to get started. I think this will be a weekend of Chinese take-out, pizza, and cheese steaks. He won’t be getting a taste of Philly cuisine for quite some time.</p>
<p>My dd and I did the last marathon shopping yesterday - $400 at Target! and she already had the “big stuff”. I think I went to college without all the extras and just bought them as I needed them - my dd will probably go until Christmas break without having to go to a store! Now to organize how we are going to travel on Tuesday with all this crap!!!</p>
<p>We aren’t done shopping and are running into budget issues (well, timing issues because of where the paychecks fall). I guess I’ve just gotta not buy that “other half” that he doesn’t need…</p>
<p>The third roommate hasn’t answered anyone yet at all, the second roommate is flying in, and the first roommate is on service trip in the Yukon until the 15th. So, we’ll be deciding on Big Stuff at the last minute, or maybe buying there.</p>
<p>Is anyone else suffering from roommate insecurity? All three of S13’s roommates were valedictorian of each school. One is a big ND scholarship winner (one of 25). S13 says “what’dya know, I’m gonna be the dumb jock in the group.” At least he has a sense of humor about it!</p>
<p>Good luck today Mich.</p>
<p>D had an anxiety attack today. In the midst of tearful phone to me at work, she admitted that she had a bit of a breakdown at rink training today and wonders if she is good enough for Disney. I think she has seen too many videos of other people’s auditions…
I reassured her that the casting people know what they are doing and what they are looking for.</p>
<p>She has her big birthday / grad party this Saturday. She leaves on the 25th and I think it has finally hit her that she is really leaving. Rationally, she says she knows she would probably be stressing out about going to college too.</p>
<p>She has not started packing (although we have done a small amount of shopping). They are still a bunch of items we need to get. </p>
<p>I am starting to think that maybe I should take a few days off work the week before she leaves (although she will probably be working and/or out with friends so I wouldn’t see her anyway).</p>
<p>This too shall pass…</p>
<p>confetti, how does he know they were all vals? Do they talk about that? If so, he’ll be the only not-obnoxious one in the suite! :)</p>
<p>Ds has booked his days solid so we had an argument about that. He is going to miss his friends and gf soooo much, and he’s balking at any limits I’m trying to set … and by limits, I mean just give me some time when we can work on shopping/packing that’s not 11:30 p.m. I finally put my foot down and said if he’d be a little proactive about packing (what’s packing???) I wouldn’t feel so stressed about the fact that he’s leaving next week and has done nothing toward getting ready. Soooo, he’s giving me Friday evening and Saturday while the gf is out of town. I’ll be much happier come Sunday. I’m laughing at the thought that he’d be “proactive” as he’s one week from leaving!</p>
<p>Still, last night was the final time seeing the girl he considers his best friend after the gf before she leaves Saturday. Tonight is a big pool party with nine guys and our families. This week has been day after day of activity, and I’m sure next week will be, too.</p>
<p>ETA: zag, I hope the nerves calm for your dd.</p>
<p>Definitely an emotional time. I was looking at the size of S3’s room and realizing that he should bring the bare minimum.</p>
<p>D is “soiling the nest” before she leaves in a couple of weeks. She is on edge and snapping at everyone over everything…I think it is just nerves kicking in but she denies it. She finishes work tomorrow and then has a bout 10 days to get her act together…it will be hard to drop her off - it is my last one. Empty nesta fiesta?</p>
<p>confetti, as I mentioned we found out that D1’s roommate was valedictorian of her magnet school. D1 was not only not valedictorian, we often wondered whether she’d graduate. Maybe she can get this smartypants to teach her a language?</p>
<p>And thanks for that cyrus family song link. It is indeed sad, but it was hard for me to either enjoy or cry to because of Miley’s recurrent “pitch issues” (Paul Simon taught us long ago that not everyone can sing in-tune live) as well as her strange hand and arm movements.</p>
<p>Forgot to wish bon voyage for MichGA’s launch!!! Hope it goes well.</p>
<p>It’s good to read of everyone else’s issues with non-packers! Two years ago my S packed everything the night before he left for college, so I am used to it. I am trying to get a box ready to ship for D, since we will be away on vacation next week and it will take a while to get across the country in the slow US Mail system. Their rates are lower than UPS, but I need to allow more time to get there. Trying to figure out what to ship and what will fit in our suitcases. </p>
<p>She’s taking online placement tests today for a couple of classes. Waited until the last minute for that too!</p>
<p>We are now officially homeless - by choice, of course. We moved out of our house today. I was a little weepy with 18 years of great memories. But my weepiness was tempered by 105 degree temps and last minute packing. S2 and I are now happily nesting in a 2 room hotel suite for a few days before we head to grandmas. S2 was, not surprisingly, unemotional about the move declaring that it wasn’t really our home once the stuff was gone. True. It’s just a house - and an old, money pit of a house too. </p>
<p>We don’t leave for college move in until 8/23. We’re headed first to DC to see daughter and pick up his stuff, then move into the dorm in NJ on 8/28. And I fly to London on 8/30. It’s going to be a busy month.</p>
<p>Dropped DS off today. It went pretty well. DS was surprised at how many layers we had on the bed though(bed bug encasement,foam padding,mattress pad and finally the sheet).Also because his bed is lofted we had to pull the mattress off the bunk to put all that on.And his body wash top popped open on the way there so it got on a bunch of stuff. Good thing we had brought paper towels. The room smelled like men’s cologne when I left. </p>
<p>Oh and the first thing DH said when he looked at the room was ‘Looks like we need to buy you a desk lamp and power strip.’… Of course I had to say tell him I already had.:)</p>
<p>One more thing. The RA had taped Harry Potter type letters to the dorm room doors welcoming each kid. They also had a Harry Potter hat decoration by the elevator. I thought it was cute.</p>
<p><strong><em>LAUNCH DATES</em></strong>****
MichiganGeorgia’s DS: Georgia Tech 8/8/13
STEMFamily’s DD: Arizona State University 8/12/13
reeinaz’s S: Beloit 8/13/13
ahsmuoh’s D: University of South Carolina 8/14/13
cromette’s D3: Texas A&M 8/14/2013
our2girls’ D: Belmont University 8/16/13
Yds’s ds: 8/17 (we’ll join him 8/22)
Sophienlola’s DS: University of Florida 8/17
EastGrad’s S: Harvard (with prefrosh week): 8/18/13
Viewer’s S: Harvard (prefrosh week): 8/19/13
dadotwoboys’ S: Duke 8/20/13
fidoprincess’s S: Columbia (preorientation river trip) 8/20/13
confetti247’s S: Notre Dame 08/21/13
Terinzak’s S University of Utah 8/22/13
Kelbee’s Niece: Clark University 8/22/13
Swizzle13: University of Connnecticut: 8/23/13
Tx5athome’s DS: Berkeley 8/24/13
pkdof13’s S: Wheaton (MA) 8/24/13
13Floor’s S: Amherst College 8/25/13
pkdof13’s D: Wellesley 8/26/13 (we leave for Boston 8/22 - lucky their move-in dates worked out so well)
Geogirl1’s D: U of Rochester 8/27/13
drmom123’s DD: Bryn Mawr 8/28/2013
Megpmom’s S2: Rider Univ 8/28/2013
LizzieT’s D: University of Maryland 8/28/2013
coralbrook’s D: Cal Lutheran 8/30/2013
tougis’s D1: Northwestern (pre-orientation) 9/8/13
psblstnr’s D: Carleton 9/10/2013</p>
<p>Haven’t really been posting on this thread but I have to say the “soiling the nest” comment really struck a nerve with me. DS is not only soiling the nest, he is making it uninhabitable! </p>
<p>Thirteen more days until I can tidy up the nest again! The absolute unreasonableness he displays is astounding! He needs to be on his own so very badly, it cant come soon enough!</p>
<p>Thank god he a a job every day working at our county fair. </p>
<p>With that being said, I do see glimmers of his impending maturity, and look forward to the day when the glimmers become the norm.</p>
<p>Good luck to all the launchers! Another house here that isn’t packed. And since we’re buying most things on site, there shouldn’t be much anyway. But things feel unfinished!</p>
<p>The first of D2’s friends leaves today, and I can see it’s dawned on her that it’s almost time. No “real” nest fouling here, although she & DH have gotten a little snappy with each other. </p>
<p>Finally booked the hotel & rental car for next week. </p>
<p>Certainly I must need to make another list :)</p>