<p>D is doing the “gratitude challenge” on FB where you post 3 things you’re thankful for each day for a few days. Today one of her items was “I’m grateful for everybody who told me to go to Temple University because I am loving it here”. Epic win!!! The year(s) of reading, planning & a bit of obsessing here on CC have paid off - we never would have know about many of the colleges & programs she ended up applying to & all the aid/scholarships available if not for all the info here. Feeling a little warm & fuzzy today!</p>
<p>Happy Belated Birthday, @12dandelion! So glad your daughter called and you were able to visit with her.</p>
<p>Fell asleep on the recliner Thursday night, waking up about 1:30am, so quietly walked upstairs so as not to wake H. Just as I was about to lay down on the bed, the phone rang. As I whispered “Hello”, D joyfully burst out in song “Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! . . .” She said, “I was going to call you just after midnight, but it wasn’t your birthday in California yet.” Glad she didn’t wait til just after midnight California time (lol!), though happy to hear her voice anytime!</p>
<p>Happy birthday to you too, @1dilecon 
that’s very sweet of your daughter of your daughter to call and sing for you. My D sent a facebook message, then we got on Skype. She’s not much for phone calls, but I like Skype so I can see her anyway. Then I try to get a cat on the webcam for her to check on her fur sisters.</p>
<p>Happy Birthday 1dilecon! That’s a great BD present! </p>
<p>@GertrudeMcFuzz – I still marvel over the generous support that Temple offered your daughter, no doubt totally deserved. As another Californian whose kid is now on the east coast, I am SO thrilled to hear that life is good for her. It’s a big move to make, and it showed a lot of wherewithal and good judgement for her to make the leap. Plus it’s gotta be wonderful for her to know that she’s somewhere that really wanted her.
Keep posting updates!</p>
<p>@AsleepAtTheWheel - thanks for the kind words!!! You can probably relate that I felt like it was a big roll of the dice to send her far away. It could easily have gone a different way where we had a homesick kid calling us in tears. Initially, she did not want to leave California. There were no options in our state anywhere near the Temple offer though, so off she went. So relieved that it’s working out!</p>
<p>DS is home this weekend…sort of. He got in about 6:30 last night, and within ten minutes was making plans to leave again. Home very late, left before seven this morning to work a half day at the job where he worked part time senior year. Now…he is asleep…of course. Nice visit. He has online course work due in four hours, so that will be priority after his nap.</p>
<p>He seems to be loving the small Christian LAC that he chose, thank goodness, and although he and the roommate don’t hang out, they get along fine. Already seems to have acquired a girlfriend, very pretty, so of course I hope that doesn’t become a distraction from his studies, but so far so good grade-wise.</p>
<p>I am concerned about his weight, however. He is thin already, about 5’11", wears 28 waist jeans, but I thought he looked even thinner. He weighed this morning before leaving for work, and he weighed 126 pounds—he’s lost about six pounds in the three weeks that he has been at school. Apparently he has the whole freshman 15 thing backwards!</p>
<p>I think the problem is the cafeteria doesn’t accommodate his food issues. He is very lactose intolerant, several food sensitivities, GERD issues in the past, occasional IBS. He has to avoid tomatoes, spicy foods, and even salad bothers his stomach. The cafeteria (meal plan is required if you live on campus) is set up somewhat in a food court design, with various stations. A pizza station. No can do. An international food station. Lots of unknown ingredients, and he is picky to boot. No can do. A very nice salad bar. Not an option. An ice cream bar. Definite no can do. A sort of plate lunch area, which he says is typically pastas, cheesy or in a cream or tomato sauce, like chicken alfredo or chicken spaghetti. A sandwich area, cold cuts on bread, nothing fancy, pretty boring, particularly when you leave out the cheese. And a grill, where he can get a hamburger. I think the hamburgers are about the only thing he is eating. He is not much on breakfast, never has been.</p>
<p>He loves McAlisters, loves Chick-Fil-A, loves Wendy’s chicken sandwiches, the boy could eat chicken every meal, but he feels guilty spending the money to eat off campus when he has a full meal plan at the caf. Not sure what the solution is, but he can’t afford to lose any more weight! I made him meat loaf last night, gonna try another of his faves tonight.</p>
<p>Anyone else have kids losing weight at school?</p>
<p>Third post in one day - eek. I should be doing something productive, but it was a grueling week at work. So instead of cleaning out closets, I’m watching college football, drinking mimosas, and surfing the net. Found this link on D’s FB page. These boys are a little nerdy and totally cute! I can’t believe they shot this video in a single take! After watching, I had a desire to send these boys cookies - lol. </p>
<p><a href=“Frat's Taylor Swift Lip Dub Is Better Than Taylor Swift Herself”>http://jezebel.com/frats-taylor-swift-lip-dub-is-better-than-taylor-swift-1633127348</a></p>
<p>@Overtheedge - what fun! They did a ton of practice & planning to make that look so effortless. I had fun looking at all the decorations in the rooms & hallway - lol.</p>
<p>@12dandelion - Belated Happy Birthday. I can relate to the issues surrounding a 9/11 birthday as I also share that date. It’s been a bit different ever since 2001.
@1dilecon - Happy Birthday to you as well
@GertrudeMcFuzz - Glad to hear your D is enjoying the Philly area. Our D is on the west side of Philly and is also settling in nicely and is enjoying the city and school area (and King of Prussia mall according to the credit card bill!).</p>
<p>We are off next Friday for parents weekend in Philadelphia. S-11 is coming up on the train from Washington to meet us for dinner on Friday. Since he doesn’t have classes on Friday he had arranged a law school visit at Penn in the morning before he meets us mid-afternoon. He has to return Friday night as he has a proctored practice LSAT on Saturday morning.</p>
<p>D has a full week off for fall break in mid-October and will be home for 8 days. I swear this college has more days off than her high school and she seemed to have something every week last year at HS.</p>
<p>@1mississippi A lot of schools these days have a dietitian or other support for students on meal plans with dietary complications. Maybe your S should see if someone can help him navigate some healthy choices within the meal plan. (If they cannot accommodate him, he should be allowed off the plan.) </p>
<p>@mathmomvt Thank you for the information, this is my only child, so I haven’t had to navigate these waters before! We will definitely look into it—hopefully we can find the name of someone he can talk to on campus.</p>
<p>Whoa, have we had a cold snap. Frost already. Fall break isn’t until the end of October, and d’s wardrobe isn’t quite warm enough for what appears to be an early fall. May take a trip to her with some warmer clothes and bring home the tanks and shorts. There’s a family event in the area, so we could make the in laws happy and take D some stuff. </p>
<p>Strong storms and heavy rains resulted in some flooding on campus. Students in the ground floor rooms got about 6 inches of water. Yikes! Glad D is on 2nd. </p>
<p>Looking forward to hearing about all the parents’ weekends.</p>
<p>@1mississippi - As mathmomvt stated, most schools have a dietician on staff. Our D was having some issues this summer and it turns out that she has developed a lactose intolerance. We were able to speak with dining services and the health services dietician during parent/student orientation and they are working with D to assist her in menu choices. She reports that she has actually gained back a couple of pounds that she lost this summer.</p>
<p>@AvonHSDad - Happy Belated Birthday to you! So glad the dietician and dining services were able to work with your D, and she has gained back some weight.</p>
<p>@1mississippi - hope your S’s dining services can work with him to provide some more palatable options, and he can regain the weight he’s lost.</p>
<p>@GertrudeMcFuzz - so glad your D is so happy. My D is also on the opposite coast. Really missing her, and not being able to see her til Christmas, I am just so thankful she is very happy. It would just seem too hard were it any other way.</p>
<p>@overtheedge I heard this morning that Taylor Swift is giving them free concert tickets after seeing their performance!</p>
<p>@1mississippi I agree with the others about talking with someone. My son’s school has contact info on the dining services website. They will work with the students to figure out what they can eat and prepare special plates if necessary too. </p>
<p>Double post. My lawn service went away to college 
I have to do it myself today because I haven’t contracted anybody yet.</p>
<p>Well, the nest is empty! We put S2 on the plane to spend two weeks at Summer Bridge. We will drive the rest of his stuff down and move him into his dorm in two weeks. I made no plans for the rest of the day but I think I better plan an activity out of the house. I can feel the void settling in. </p>
<p>@2016barnardMom I find myself in the same position with regard to cleaning bathrooms. I never used to clean any. Then d1 left, and I had to clean 1; d2 left and now I’m cleaning 2. (H has always had to clean his own.) Why to I live in a house with more bathrooms than occupants?</p>
<p>Happy birthday, a bit belated, to you as well @AvonHSDad. I hope you were able to acknowledge your birthday in some way. Husband and I had a very nice dinner at a white tablecloth place, a rarity for us. I also have 2 dinners with friends to look forward to next week. </p>
<p>For the first time my D complained about the food service. She said it was getting worse,then elaborated that it was just that her tolerance for it had lessened. Unfortunately she is burning through her food debit $$ way too fast. I warned her to 'do the math, ’ but somehow she still has 6 meals left for this week, which will end tonight at 12. </p>
<p>Also for the first time she seemed a bit homesick, expressed in a FB message as wanting ‘real’ food and to see the cats. So I think she will come home for Columbus Day weekend. I will feel better if I can send her back with soup, cold meds, more hats and gloves - all the things moms worry about. </p>
<p>Guess we are lucky to still have S17 around. He took over D’s household chores, and he is actually better at them than she was. </p>