<p>ParentSparkle, I’m with you!!</p>
<p>ParentSparkle…I know exactly what you are saying! I fondly remember the first day I brought D to pre-school…it was emotional!! And now with senior year approaching so fast those emotions are all coming back! I know D is so looking forward to her senior year and wants to make the most of it.</p>
<p>This will be the dramatic year of lasts. Last picture on the front porch on the first day of school, and I thought it was sad last year when she took the photo alone! It’s a rough year on us - anxiety on college admissions, but poignant for the last parent teacher conferences, dances, etc. </p>
<p>Although I admit in my most helicoptery of emotions I kinda wished we could have these conferences with the college professors - lol. Remember that strange feeling when they went off to school all day? I remember how weird it was to not know what he was doing all day. You go through that again in college. </p>
<p>My daughter vowed last year after seeing me cry over her brother that she’d text and call all the time and tell me she was meeting friends, eating at the cafeteria with people and doing well. Regardless of the truth -lol.</p>
<p>I’m not feeling as emotional about my son’s senior year as I did with my daughter. I was a mess her entire senior year, starting about now, when her “lasts” started with marching band activities. Much of my social life was tied to marching band- hanging out with the other band parents at football games, competitions, concerts, and, of course, band camp. Each of those “lasts” with band were really tough for me. I’m simply not as bonded to as many of my son’s activities, although we’ve been doing Scouting for 11 years now. I was very involved when he was in Cub Scouts but let his dad be more involved with Boy Scouts. </p>
<p>I think I also have survived it once now and it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. The anticipation of Barnardgirl being gone was worse than the reality. We were in touch a lot. The year flew.</p>
<p>Part of me is really looking forward to an empty nest. I’ll also be done with grad school by the time S launches. No home work, less laundry, less cleaning, less cooking- it sounds like a dream to me right now.</p>
<p>I agree it will be so bittersweet. We’ve all worked so hard to “launch” them into the world–but it will be strange to have them absent at the breakfast table. </p>
<p>This article just popped up on my fb page–I thought it was great to share…</p>
<p>[What</a> works?and doesn?t work?in applications - Collegewise](<a href=“What works—and doesn’t work—in applications”>What works—and doesn’t work—in applications)</p>
<p>I’m definitely less teary-eyed with youngest (of 3) even though it will be our final year of “lasts.” I’ve been so used to having the 3 around (within 4 years of each other), then 2, that now it seems downright lonely with just youngest here. He spends a lot of time with friends and is definitely ready to head out, so I’m eager to see him find “his” place and watch him fly.</p>
<p>Hubby and I have talked about about empty nesting and I’m pretty sure we’ll do ok. The food bill might not drop so much though - do you realize how inexpensive it is for just two to eat out?</p>
<p>DD threw a few random colleges on her list last night (one which dropped off by morning…) Anybody have information on Bentley U in Waltham, MA?</p>
<p>It’s even more inexpensive for ONE to eat out! I can get food and it lasts for 2 or 3 meals.</p>
<p>I have family near Bentley so I have driven by many times and know the area well. A Seattle area friend’s son just finished his first year there. He’s a swimmer and absolutely loves it.</p>
<p>The business programs are their biggest strength.</p>
<p>All I know about Bentley is what I’ve read in books and online. We circled around it a little bit at first. It seems primarily a business school and I think it had more males than females by a significant margin. I got the impression, and I may be wrong, it didn’t necessarily seem like the traditional college experience. </p>
<p>I’m also not dreading the empty nest, but I don’t deal well with change so just being different will make me cry. We cook dinner nearly every night at home - hubby and I pretty much split that task 50/50. However right now I don’t know if I’ll be feeding 2 of us, or 8 on any given night. I’m looking forward to just taking a more casual approach, eating a bowl of cereal at night or making something the kids have turned their noses up for so many years. This one doesn’t like mexican, that one won’t eat fish, etc</p>
<p>My senior daughter is certainly living the life this summer. She seems to be sleeping til 11 or 12, she has a car, and she is now just out and about all the time. I got to see her yesterday when she ran into change and she came into my room last night around 11 to let me know she was home. She’s facing a foot surgery and wisdom teeth though and I’m not sure how we won’t strangle her when she’s stuck at home for awhile.</p>
<p>Eyemamom, I could have written your post on family dinners. We won’t be empty nesters next year but we’ll just have one picky little one so at least it will be more predictable for a while.</p>
<p>Hey everyone! I’ve been out of the HS Class of '14 loop for a few weeks. Lurking when I can but just overwhelmed with life. Still fighting with school about implementing 504 plan in time for August 23 deadline to apply for ACT extended time…trying to focus a little more on the affordability piece of this college search…just sent my mom back to FL after a 3-week visit.</p>
<p>Quick update…Cheergirl working SOOO hard as counselor at private camp and HATES it. It’s her 3rd year there but this year things aren’t clicking. She’s paid a weekly salary that isn’t awful BUT she’s putting in crazy LONG hours so hourly rate is actually ridiculously low. Very hot days with no relief and surrounded by first grade girls that ADORE her and won’t let her out of their sight for a minute. She badly wants to quit but she’s not a quitter AND even if she was, she signed a contract. 
Live and learn…</p>
<p>So, just dropping in today to say hello and looking forward to re-connecting with this wonderful community!</p>
<p>MImama–Re: Bentley–we toured/attended info session and my son interviewed there a couple of weeks ago. We were very favorably impressed with both Bentley and Babson in nearby Wellesley. (They call it Babson Park b/c they carved out their own zip code in order to be allowed to serve alcohol as Wellesley is dry, but it is essentially in Wellesley.) I went up there thinking we wouldn’t like the schools, but did. I am still wary of a business-only school as options are non-existant if student decides he doesn’t really want to study business. </p>
<p>Both are pure business schools and while they seem to be trying to emphasize liberal arts, the LA offerings aren’t as broad or deep as you would find at even a small university. I believe they have endowments of a similar size, but Bentley has twice as many students as Babson. (I am writing from memory here so I may be a bit off on the figures.) Babson’s focus is entrepreneurship. BIG emphasis on that. Bentley seems to have spent money lately on impressive tech.</p>
<p>Overall, I think we were more impressed by the students at Babson, but that is a tough call given the few who were on campus in June. Babson seemed a little more slick even though Bentley had the higher tech classrooms. Bentley is the easier admit, going on stats alone.</p>
<p>If you plan to visit Bentley, you may want to visit Babson. I believe both schools consider interviews as part of the admission process, and you can arrange to attend info session & tour and interview at both on the same day as they are approx 20 min apart. It makes for a long day for the student, but as my son said, he only had to wear his jacket & tie for one day!</p>
<p>CT1417, if your son decides that he does not want business, Babson allows students to take classes at Wellesley, Brandeis, also the teeny tiny engineering school next door (don’t remember the name … Olin College of Engineering… I believe). Babson’s known for Entrepreneurship and Bentley’s focus is Accounting/Finance.</p>
<p>cheermom – sorry to hear your D hates her job! That’s too bad. Being in the hot sun all day long doesn’t help. Is the camp sleep away or local? Because if it’s local, I bet if D put the word out she also does babysitting on the side (where she’d get paid cash and perhaps be inside with A/C while parents go out for dinner) that might make her summer a little better. I bet those little girls who adore her would go crazy at the thought of cheer girl as their baby sitter!</p>
<p>S doesn’t say much about his summer camp counselor job; a boy his age said he hates it.</p>
<p>Good morning! DS14 had senior portraits taken last week. I teared up when DS11 posed in cap and gown, but this time I just enjoyed seeing how handsome my senior looked. I was relieved at my ability to enjoy the process as 2010-11 was an anxiety filled year for me. I hope I take the rest of this year in more relaxed stride than I did the first go round.
We will drive down to visit UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly SLO this week. We will be in San Luis Obispo for their Thursday night Farmer’s Market, which is supposed to be really well done. They are lots of food vendors including Santa Maria style BBQ, fresh local produce, live bands, and craft vendors along 5 city blocks. Really looking forward to this road trip!</p>
<p>Cheermom, we learn so much from the jobs we hate. They’re not fond memories, but those summers in the bean fields, running an industrial dishwasher in an unairconsitioned kitchen, and manning the drivethrough at Burger King (smell of that place still makes me sick), built a lot of character. Good for your d for sticking it out. At my job, I have no sympathy for the students who don’t have spending money but are only willing to do certain kinds of work. (They’re usually turning up their noses at working for food service.)</p>
<p>Fwiw, in this world of helicopter parenting, working with other people’s kids would be way up there on the list of undesirable jobs. D’14 comes home with awful stories about the parents of the kids to whom she gives swimming lessons.</p>
<p>2016BarnardMom ~ I am in your exact shoes. Band is what brings on my most emotional moments, in thinking of all the “lasts” coming up… In fact, my biggest identity crisis fears are tied to that – I have no idea what I will be when I am no longer a Band Mom after all this time. I seriously need a hobby or a boyfriend or something by the time DS graduates, lol.</p>
<p>DS is meeting with his Eagle project advisor today. At this moment, actually. Really, really hoping that he gets the green light for the parent committee presentation, so he can get council approval and he can get the project done before school starts. He’s not good at multitasking so this feels like our window of opportunity right now.</p>
<p>On a different note, does anyone else find themselves worrying about whether their child will be ready to leave home? DS has Asperger’s so I know we are in a special situation. There is an amazing school and program about an hour away from us. But even that may be too far. I know a year is a long time and he will change a lot, but I am bracing myself for maybe telling him he needs to live at home another couple of years.</p>
<p>^yup, went through this with our '11 daughter. Not asperger’s but anxiety and depression. It turned out she did need another couple of years at home, but it took a few weeks away at college for it to become crystal clear. She is doing much better now. Feel free to PM me.</p>