<p>Still catching up! Calla1–hope your S has bounced back? And AKmom–hope your D’s tummy issues are resolved? Dealing with some of that here as well, lots of dizziness which Cheergirl’s doc said was stress-induced vertigo! Is that even a thing? No idea bur somehow giving it a name and acknowledging it made Cheergirl feel better. :)</p>
<p>Portlandia–What a beautiful post a few weeks ago! Thanks for the kind words. </p>
<p>The thing is, as much as I’m doing, I still feel like I’m letting things “fall through the cracks.” Does anyone else feel that way? Cheergirl loved Penn State but didn’t meet deadline to apply for Honors College, the application seemed long and demanding and we"d both hit the wall. I feel guilty for not pushing…errr…I mean encouraging more. <sigh!></sigh!></p>
<p>Momofwon–I feel your pain regarding the state flagship issue…ours is UMaryland/College Park, respected, rigorous, beautiful campus, and it meets ALL of Cheergirl’s criteria. It’s not a safety and not guaranteed admission at all (unfortunately). She applied and acknowledges that she’d be perfectly happy there, AND we can actually afford it…but she doesn’t “want” to go there. Most of her friends and teammates go OOS, sometimes even to schools that aren’t as respected academically as local schools that cost far less…I don’t understand that way of thinking! Cheergirl knows that we have “X” in her college fund and that she’s welcome to go OOS as long as “X” plus merit money equals cost of attendance for 4 years! I’m even willing to be a good sport and NOT factor in the travel expenses…but I’m not willing to go into debt and I won’t let her borrow and be in debt 4 years from now. Fortunately she understands and respects this “family value.” I just really hope this doesn’t end up being a painful decision in which she ends up feeling like she had to give up a dream…</p>
<p>BIG CONGRATS to BlueIguana-S and Cal1983-S! Such exciting news and so happy for you! I work with two colleagues who’s daughters are both likely to attend W&M although I don’t believe either applied ED. </p>
<p>Eyemamon–congrats on New Hampshire for your D! BRRR! And is Auburn a “yes” as well, or still waiting?</p>
<p>Congrats to everyone with all the great acceptances & $$!!!</p>
<p>Still no apps submitted on this front Encouraging DS to work on essay & supplements, but trying not to be overbearing. I am thankful & hopeful as the earliest deadline for DS’s apps is Jan. 15. He is also taking the ACT one more time - next week!</p>
<p>Cof’15 and BI - you left a dangling carrot - and I’m hungry - What is Tarte BB cream and Smashbox CC cream (my skin is as dry as a desert!)?</p>
<p>student4ever, BB and CC creams are kind of an all in one foundation. Depending on the product and brand they are advertised as primer, moisturizer, color corrector (thus the cc), SPF, etc. They are very lightweight and used in lui of foundation.</p>
<p>I still use a moisturizer, but as I said my skin is very dry.</p>
<p>Good luck to your son on the ACT next week! S2 took SATs in October and SAT2s in November, submitting his last RD app on Thanksgiving. By contrast S3 was done testing Jr year and was writing essays in August. Each student is different. Your son will do fine. No matter when they get that acceptance they all start in August. ;)</p>
<p>Cheermom, congratulations to your daughter on all the acceptances! </p>
<p>My son is doing much better, thanks! He was pretty shaky for about a month there but says he is over it and he certainly looks more chipper. He struggles with anxiety along with his Asperger’s, which is why he is only applying to colleges within a 4 hour driving distance. And with the applications hanging over his head, he had a lot to be anxious about.</p>
<p>Submitting the apps helped considerably, as did submitting the Eagle Scout paperwork. When both of those were in, things lightened up considerably around here! (He hasn’t yet received his Board of Review date, but the tough part is done.)</p>
<p>I’m really working on pulling WAY back and letting him manage his life, in order to assess his readiness to go away to college. Some days I’m confident he’ll be fine, and other days I wonder. Community college remains a back-up plan. </p>
<p>Congratulations to blueiguana’s son and Cal1983’s son!</p>
<p>blueiguana: Sent you a PM. Awesome news on Son 3. I know that was truly his No.1 choice. Glad for him, and for you!!! W & M is a great school. Older son got in there, too.</p>
<p>My son needs to spend some time today, since he does not have much homework and it will be nasty outside (snow/sleet/freezing rain), finishing an app for one, big scholarship and an app for another school that will give him a full tuition ride. His dad was chatting online with an old friend’s son about the school where he works and coaches. Son '14 would probably get a full ride there, and he could run D2 cross country/track. Running at the college level really interests my son, but it is a small college, smaller than his high school. And it also lacks one of his possible majors. So we’ll see what happens there.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the college bandwagon continues in our home. Oldest son took the LSAT yesterday. Thinks he did very well. He has a month to wait.</p>
<p>cheermom - d has two so far, auburn and new hampshire. We also live in your state, but d wouldn’t consider applying anywhere in state. Too boring she says. She even cringed when she found out some mean girls applied to some of her same schools. </p>
<p>I’m glad now she has a choice between two. But I have a feeling based on this info, she has quite a few more acceptances coming her way. I think I was overly paranoid thinking she didn’t have perfect test scores, she’s doomed. </p>
<p>There was one school va tech that d was really dragging her feet doing all the essays. I finally took it to mean that she wasn’t as excited for that one as the others. She did finally come to the conclusion she liked others more and with 9 apps in she dropped it. </p>
<p>You want them to have options, but they don’t need every option because that becomes an entirely different issue of choosing one.</p>
<p>I should probably encourage S to get moving on the rest of those essays. First decision is expected to arrive in email next weekend. The school sends them in waves, if past years are any indication. D got her acceptance from this school at like 11:30 pm Friday night- two years ago. She was glued to her email the whole night once she saw on here that notifications were going out. S will be performing in the school play that night so he will be distracted. </p>
<p>I’m being hit financially from 1000 directions at once- that’s the thing stressing me out. $180 more in application fees- medical bills coming out of the woodwork from things that happened last March, grad announcements, court of honor expenses, and Christmas - all at once. Eek.</p>
<p>Congrats to BI and Cal83 on the W&M acceptances. D has applied but she will be in the regular decision round. We are not getting too excited as she is OOS and the overall cost may not be acceptable. Time will tell. If we lived in VA I am sure it would have been her first choice.</p>
<p>Countdowns - just so that everyone is aware of the remaining time until: </p>
<p>December 15th/20th ED/EA decisions 7 to 12 days until decision day. It’s getting close!
December 31/January 1 RD application deadlines 23/24 days to the deadline. Less than a month! :eek:
March 14th - Pi Day (MIT) - 96 days to wait
March 30/31 RD decision day 112/113 days to wait (the waiting is painful!!)
April 1 - SS Indecision sets sail for a month - 114 days
April 30 - SS Indecision journey is over (hopefully!) - 143 days
May 1 - National admissions commitment and deposit due date and have a double margarita day to celebrate!!</p>
<p>Congrats to everyone on their acceptances - it is so exciting! DS was deferred at his first choice ED school and now his confidence is a shaken. He knew it was a reach but it still stings. He has been wondering if his second choice is going to reject him too…</p>
<p>Yeah, and my dryer died today. More $$$$$$. I sent a desperate email to my ex-husband who just got his first full time, not contract, not temp job in 4 years with the list- senior pics, Eagle Court of Honor, college apps, return ticket for Barnardgirl to go back to school in January… appealed for cash and he is going to come through by the first of the year, he says. <em>fingers crossed</em> Then I will be able to pay for the new dryer. <em>sigh</em></p>
<p>2016Barnard - it all adds up quickly, doesn’t it? My washing machine is making a horrible noise and leaking. I’m afraid it will need to be replaced soon.</p>
<p>I’m sorry spritle. It stings, but the best thing is moving on with the other apps and then just wait and see. It’s really hard to hear this, you will come to the conclusion that there are many places he’d thrive and do well.</p>
<p>My washing machine is probably not too far behind the dryer. I really want to move into a condo in about 5 years so I’m debating just how to go about appliance replacement. I don’t want to buy my dream appliances to have them stay with the house in 5 years. There’s a local place that sells refurbished appliances and I’m thinking maybe I’ll sell them my old ones and pick up newer ones that will work fine for at least five years but are nothing fancy. This just isn’t where I want my money to go right now.</p>
<p>spritle – sorry for the deferment – but it doesn’t mean he won’t get into his 2nd choice. There is no rhyme or reason to this stuff.</p>
<p>barnardmom – we felt the same – why put money into appliances only to leave them when we sell? I like the idea of refurbishing a washer/dryer. It’s like a car – you replace a few parts, and they’re like new.</p>
<p>Soooooooo confused - DS just declared he may go to the local cc and then transfer to the local state u as opposed to going away to a private. I would have no problem with that if the classes were smaller in size, but they have very large class sizes and DS has difficulty in large class sizes. That’s why I wanted him to apply to a local private. I’m wondering if he is getting nervous about going away to school?!</p>
<p>He also is changing his mind about his major - which isn’t a terrible idea. I’m expecting that will happen several times as he is still maturing and learning more about himself every day! The majors are very related and he will definitely stay in the STEM area - computers, physics, etc.</p>
<p>I guess I’m back to the drawing board trying to find local colleges. He didn’t want to have any local colleges at first. I had him partake in an onsite evaluation with the local cc just as a backup. He hasn’t visited either the local cc or the local state c that he’s now considering!</p>
<p>Congrats to Blueiguanas DS, Cheermoms DD Cal1983s DS, eyemamoms DD</p>
<p>Spirtle sometimes there seems to be no good reason! Hopefully, it will come through in the end. I have found when an opportunity I have really wanted didnt come through it seemed terrible at the time, however, when I look back years later it turns out that it was the BEST thing that could have happened. I hope that works out that way for your son!!!</p>
<p>Spritle–Echoing Maryjay’s sentiments, I truly do believe that everything happens for a reason, and sometimes it takes years to get that clarity. So sorry for your S’s didappointment. :(</p>
<p>Eyemamon–we’re on that same page…the perception about UMD/CP is often that its “13th grade” but academically thats so NOT true! And with 26,000 undergrads its unlikely that they’ll run into their HS friends more often than an occasional tailgate! And also like you, I had low acceptance expectations lol! But looks like both of our D’s are proving us wrong!</p>
<p>BarnardMom–keep breathing! This is a tough few months even without unanticipated appliance issues. Feels like every day is a juggling act. My 14-year old washer only agitates occasionally and no longer embraces the spin cycle, but willing it to last another 6 months! Hope things fall into place so you can have a peaceful holiday season.</p>
<p>momreads–Sending positive LSAT vibes to your oldest son.:)</p>
<p>Spritle - Those deferments can really shake confidence. No referendum on what later results will bring. At least he has a #2. My gf’s son was deferred ED, then WLd from his ED…legacy. This kid bled school colors and held on till June. They finally got him to apply to two other schools in Jan/Feb. By all accounts he’s VERY happy at one of those. He called S3 to congratulate him and he sounded amazing. We’re thrilled for him, and the school is very strong in his major.</p>
<p>Bernardmom - any possibility of self repair via online diagnostics and YouTube tutorials? Don’t laugh, last year our dryer went belly up and S3 helped me go though online diagnostics narrowing it down to two problems. We bought the less expensive part first. DH opened it up and I didn’t think it was every going to go together again. That part did need to be replaced but still not working so we ordered the other. A week and $150 in parts later the dryer was back together and working. Those videos are really good! A few screws left over from the reconstruct…I just looked the other way. minus that I’d definitely go the refurbished route. This set is fm our local Home Depot. Every Friday night they set out returns on never used appliances, custom orders. The whirlpool duet set was less then what they were selling the washer on sale. I got full warrantees also. They are 7yo now which used to be nothing, but appliances are not being made to last like they used to. I’m praying we don’t have to replace the fridge before we go. Counter depth with specific dimensions turned my perfectly fine whirlpool into something 2.5x the price. Ugghh!!</p>
<p>Momreads thinking of your oldest on that LSAT!!</p>
Encouraging DS to work on essay & supplements, but trying not to be overbearing. I am thankful & hopeful as the earliest deadline for DS’s apps is Jan. 15. He is also taking the ACT one more time - next week!</p>
minus that I’d definitely go the refurbished route. This set is fm our local Home Depot. Every Friday night they set out returns on never used appliances, custom orders. The whirlpool duet set was less then what they were selling the washer on sale. I got full warrantees also. They are 7yo now which used to be nothing, but appliances are not being made to last like they used to. I’m praying we don’t have to replace the fridge before we go. Counter depth with specific dimensions turned my perfectly fine whirlpool into something 2.5x the price. Ugghh!!</p>