<p>S2 is at Tulane today through Monday, for Destination Tulane today, and then Top Scholars Weekend Sunday/Monday. He is with his brother tonite and tomorrow - Crawfest and a baseball game on tap for tomorrow, although rain may dampen their plans a little. He is really enjoying himself so far; loved the campus and can’t wait to choose classes and register during Top Scholars. They really get along well, so it’s going to be nice for both of my boys to be able to see each other more frequently, and S1 is a great font of information about Tulane for S2. I think he made the right choice for him, and I think he is going to do well there. </p>
<p>We were pleasantly surprised to see S14’s FA award for USC posted today. He earned a Leadership Scholarship for $10k per year for 4 years. University Grant was high as we could potentially have 2 at SC next year . Even with this award COA is higher than UCLA. Will be even higher after S11 graduates. We are no closer to a decision… Sigh.</p>
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S never had an offer of admission while on the wait list. As I recall, the first wave of offers went out in early May and the follow-ups were at about three week intervals well into June. The school did update everyone via email and asked for continued interest a couple of times. At one point, they indicated the class was filled and the waitlist was being closed. It was a large pool of applicants and very few were taken. I would definately move forward with the best fit from your accepted list. If you are fortunate to get an invite from the list, you will have a few days to consider it. They will also provide you with your FA package at that time based on my recollextions from three yers ago.</p>
<p>Thanks @AvonHSDad. I’m figuring her chances are very slim, and that’s okay, because maybe she’s just not meant to be there. Honestly, it’d be a relief if she decided she wanted to stick with one of her current offers before May 1st. I hope your S -2011 is very happy at the school he chose.</p>
<p>@1dilecon While S14 is doing what he needs to do to express continued interest in his two WL schools, we are proceeding as if the two that accepted him are his only options. He will commit to one by May 1st and we’ll figure out what to do from there if he gets an offer from a WL school. </p>
<p>Since he has banned college talk, I’m moving to planning the graduation party 
I’m seriously considering having it catered because the amount of work in doing all that cooking for BarnardGirl’s party was insane. I also bought way too much food for her. It’s hard to judge when it is an open house! I planned for 150, thinking that the whole marching band would show up at some point. I didn’t consider that the kids go from party to party all day long and don’t eat much. We had enough food to cover the party twice and then some. I’m planning for 75 this time. He wants a Mexican menu and one of his fave restaurants will provide botanas, a taco bar, chicken, spanish rice, refried beans with cheese, corn chips and hot sauce for 75 for $675. I think I easily spent that on chicken, pasta with marinara, fettucini alfredo and salads/sides for D’s party. Might as well have someone else cook, right?</p>
<p>I’m all about bringing in help to cook @2016barnardmom I’m hosting the preprom party - I’m making a few things, picking other things up from local restaurants. We just had a baby shower at our office on Friday and our local mexican place brings in all the fixings for a taco bar. It’s so nice to not deal with it. I also got those heavy duty plates from BJ’s - nicer than paper, they get tossed at the end of the night. The biggest tragedy is that I’m allergic to avocado and I love guacamole, but I decided I like breathing better. </p>
<p>I’m also doing a graduation party for d but I feel like I need to get through prom and spring break, then I’ll move on to that. Then the day after graduation we’re flying out for orientation! Maybe this is God’s way of getting us okay to send them off to school - we need a break!</p>
<p>@2016BarnardMom - think we will approach D’s WLs the same way, although I think I would be thrilled if our visit to the west coast next week seals the deal and D decides to take her name off the WLs. Love the catering idea for your S14’s grad party! Menu sounds great, and that way, hopefully, you can relax and enjoy alongwith everyone else!</p>
<p>We’re cooking! We had about 300 people roll through the house for d’11’s party. I think we’ll probably have the same for d’14. We won’t do a full meal this time, though. Vietnamese spring rolls, fried rice, fruit and dessert. I’ll spend a lot of the party manning the fryer. Last time, the open house was over and we’d cleaned up. Man, was I hungry. Oops, turns out I was so busy, I forgot to eat. It takes a special kind of stupid to forget to eat.</p>
<p>@ordinarylives --I wouldn’t say that forgetting to eat is stupid at all. The adrenaline of planning and running the party just takes over while you are in process. I am guessing you didn’t feel your aching back until the last spring roll was fried either!</p>
<p>@ordinarylives - Yummmm! So impressed - i can’t begin to imagine cooking for 300 people! Must be lunchtime, all this talk of food is making me hungry! </p>
<p>Hi all,</p>
<p>I guess I should start planning a grad party. Well I have been thinking about it but I feel like I can not move forward until S makes a final decision and we pay the deposit.
He just received a revised FA package from Clarkson. It now includes a 2K honors scholarship in addition to other merit (27.5) and grant $. He had applied to the honors program and never heard either way about acceptance. The honors program is suppose to come with an additional 2K honors scholarship so maybe he did get in? But I think he will pass on the offer. It looks like a great program but now he is focusing on UVM honors or Muhlenberg -both have good neuroscience programs. We are driving down to Muhlenberg on Friday for Saturday open house then on to UVM for open house on Monday…hopefully a decision will be forthcoming next week. I hate being in limbo…I just have to remember that it will all work out…</p>
<p>I’ve been gone a few days – first at a church youth group UN seminar in NYC with CrowSon16, and then met up with CrowSon14 at RIT for accepted students’ day.</p>
<p>So, WOW! Exciting that decisions are being made left and right. Congrats everyone, and hang in there those who are at odds with their kids or whose kids are still struggling with the hard decisions. @momzie Quadruplets? Goodness, the rest of us really shouldn’t complain about our process. @TitanAPBioTchr I cry at every Kodak moment, but I’m chuckling that even dads are susceptible.</p>
<p>Looks like we have confirmation that RIT is The One for CrowSon14! Every stop on the schedule resonated: first his college & major, second the special interest dorm he wants to live in, third the activities fair, and fourth the campus bookstore. He connected with students he’s likely to be spending time with, felt at home on the campus, and didn’t mind the bitter wind. He even liked the snow flurries!</p>
<p>At one point I noted that there were at least three schools he was admitted to that are more competitive and consequently have more elite reputations. His response is, why encourage them? I’m proud that he is making his decision based on the quality of his program and how much the school community fits, rather than on reputation. It isn’t all perfect, but no school is. He’s going in with a good attitude.</p>
<p>And I guess I’m now among those serving drinks on the USS Indecision</p>
<p>crowlady - congrats on the awesome decision. My son is at univ of rochester so I’ve very familiar with the weather 
This year was BRUTAL up there. Secondly - his bestie from home goes to RIT and absolutely loves it. Feels challenged and immersed in class - he’s doing some kind of gaming/computer major. How cool were those tunnels, I felt like I was in a post apocalyptic underworld when I saw the stores and food places in them! </p>
<p>@eyemamom We missed the tunnels! And my S is in the Game Design major which is termed “intense” by others on campus. It’s going to be interesting!</p>
<p>Decision day here as well! My S has decided he is going to be a Purdue Boilermaker! It was an agonizing decision for both he and my H and I, having to pass up a nearly full tuition scholarship at one of his safeties in-state, but we are all excited with his decision and feel it will be the best fit for him. I’m all ready to help serve those drinks on the SS Indecision! Best of luck to all those still working it all out! </p>
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The SS Indecision will be docked by the date of your party and my Captain duties completed for another year. Please forward the party address and we will be there. Mexican menu - Yum!!<br>
Actually, we found the same thing with the kids. They went to several parties and grazed a bit at each. Since ours was the last of the day and they were invited “after dinner” at 7 - 730 but they still managed to clean up everything that was left and we nearly ran out of cake.</p>
<p>@incadinca As a Boilermaker myself, let me congratulate you and your son on his decision. Hail, Purdue!</p>
<p>My daughter wouldn’t consider it at all, since she went to the same high school as I did and even had some of the same teachers. I couldn’t convince her that no one at Purdue would know me! </p>
<p>My son grew up SURE he would be a Boilermaker - we have time-lapse photos of him hanging out with Purdue Pete - but, in the end, he has made a different choice. Sigh! </p>
<p>DS does not want a graduation party but I am sure he will go to his share. We would have to do it on some weekend before graduation anyway (as does everyone else) since graduation is at 7 pm on a Saturday and the everyone leaves for beach week the next day. If we had it before the ceremony that means out of town relatives won’t be here yet and they would miss it, so no party is fine with me. We’ll just add the money we saved to what we give him for his graduation present!</p>
<p>@eyemamom - Where are the tunnels at RIT? We will be visiting soon and I would like to see them.</p>
<p>Congratulations to @collegetime18, @crowlady and @incadinca on the wonderful decisions! </p>
<p>So is anyone else amazed at the amount of mail the schools send after your child has been accepted? D keeps getting cards, handwritten notes, letters etc. on a near daily basis. She still hasn’t done any accepted students days (she is doing one in mid-April and an independent visit late April) but I’m tempted to send in a deposit and have her notify the other schools just to stop the mail!</p>
<p>I am amazed at the size of some of these graduation parties. I would be a basket case if I had 300 guests coming for a party! Luckily for me, D doesn’t want a big party. I think we are either going to host a small family affair, or maybe, I’ll just make dinner reservations someplace nice. </p>