@Sweetbeet - My H has a cookbook called “A Man, a Can, a Plan”. He swears it saved him during his bachelor years, and it’s still in print. So often, recipes call for seasonings and other special ingredients that college students don’t have on hand or are too expensive to buy for one meal. This book contains really basic, inexpensive recipes and instructions that assume you know nothing about cooking.
I decided to send a care package, so I included some package spice mixes - my mom used to make spaghetti sauce using ground beef, tomato paste, and McCormick “Spaghetti Sauce” mix, so I got him one of those, a teriyaki marinade mix, etc. And a few other things that might be helpful, like some burger seasoning mix. He says he’s going shopping tomorrow and will get some meat… I’d forgotten he doesn’t like to handle raw meat, though he loves to eat meat, so that will be a challenge for him. He’s pretty tired from his 8 am workdays, but he gets to sleep in tomorrow.
@Sweetbeet – if he does not like handling raw meat, what about the pre-made patties? I have defaulted to using Costco’s ground sirloin patties. I realize that he will not be shopping at Costco or consuming Costco quantities, but I think some grocery stores sell patties. Of course, then your seasoning won’t be needed, but I have never added anything other than diced onions to hamburgers. Stopped doing that when my sons started picking out the onions!
@CT1417 Another good idea! The pre-made burgers would be great for him. I’ll suggest it tomorrow.
Happy Father’s Day to all the dads of the Parents HS Class of 2014! I hope you have a great day.
DS called his dad today, which really made DH’s day. And even better, he asked for cooking advice (DH is the chef in our house), and then called back to tell him how the food turned out! DH doesn’t text or IM so the rare phone call from DS is really special, and two in one day is over the top.
Looks like he’s not starving; apparently he made chicken with one of the spice mixes I sent and it turned out ok. College cookbook should arrive on Tuesday, a little surprise from me.
Greetings! Just returned from my folks’ place after a very lovely visit. The house is still standing! And for the most part, it is clean! Guess my son did not have time to make much of a mess since he was working a lot or doing his online classes while I was out of town. He ate most of what I left him. Did a load of laundry or two, although when I returned, I did a couple of more. Made certain the trash went out on trash day – probably the most important chore.
Meanwhile, he is quite excited about heading south to see his girlfriend and her family in a week or so. He said that he told her that he was coming a couple of weeks ago – he originally planned to surprise her. So while he’s away, I’ll get into his room and give it a good cleaning!
Quick help needed… my daughter is finishing up her overdue thank you notes. She received a gift from my aunt and uncle, but a few months ago my aunt passed away. Any suggestions on how should she handle the thank you?
@JAM113 How about: Dear Uncle John, I wanted to write and let you know how much I have enjoyed the gizmo you and Aunt Jean gave me. I find special delight and comfort in it, since each time I use it I remember all the good times with Aunt Jean. I hope you know you have been in my prayers and thoughts of gratitude this year at school. With love,
If the gift was money, pick something that was purchased during the year at school that cost about that much - I wanted to let you know that I bought a printer with the generous check from you and Aunt Jean. Each time I print a paper, I remember how Aunt Jean encouraged my love of writing…
Hope that helps, and my condolences on your family’s loss…
@Maryjay60 , Thanks for the suggestion. It’s exactly what I was looking for, but got lost in the “this is why you should have done them sooner” thoughts! I appreciate the condolences as well.
Checking in after awhile although I am always reading! So much has changed throughout this first year of college. So much growing up. A boyfriend…finally lol! Got to meet some of her college friends who are really cool. I find myself reminiscing my glory days and missing then a bit.
Visiting you '14-ers from the '15-er board to ask a question. Did anyone get theft/broken laptop insurance for the college kid and did you find it useful? Are there companies to seek out and others to avoid?
DS is shopping for a new laptop. He found one he likes a lot and told me the price is around $1,000. I was surprised at how costly it is as I recall buying his last laptop for around $500 3-4 years ago.
I am curious… How much did you or your college kids spend on buying a laptop for college use.
@4beardolls d’14 spent close to $1000 on hers, but as a CS major needs a few more bells and whistles. The back-up laptop (yes, she has a back-up laptop) is my old one, one of those $299 HP specials. Other than the battery being shot due to it’s age, it works just fine for the vast majority of her computing needs. Honestly, kids don’t need/won’t use a lot of the features on the pricier machines.
@Mamabear16 No, we didn’t get laptop insurance. I believe, however, we opted for some the protections offered by Dell (doesn’t cover theft).
General update, had d’14 clean out the piano bench (tuner was coming) and what did she unearth? Her ACT report. Remember when that mattered? Oh, how much simpler this last year was.
My son took his two year old Mac Book Pro to school. IIRC it was $2200 three years ago, and probably massively outperformed by newer models, but perfect for his current needs. I fear that something will go as soon as the three year Apple Care expires in a couple of months.
I don’t think that anyone ‘needs’ an Apple laptop but he purchased it with birthday & Christmas money and summer earnings.
@ordinarylives – I wonder when he last backed it up. He has an external drive for that purpose but I do not think he backs up regularly. Good reminder!
My son got his laptop as a graduation present a year ago. We paid about $1000 for it, but that included the software and a two-year damage protection plan. We do not have insurance on it, but our homeowners will handle that.
I haven’t posted on this thread in probably a year! I’m glad to see so many successfully finishing freshman year! D is halfway through her summer break and is enjoying her summer job. She is also shadowing a doctor and has started watching surgeries. Her boyfriend is transferring to her school and will be moving out here in early August.
@MamaBear16, Last year I bought a $3,000 dorm insurance policy through NSSI with a $25 deductible. It was under $100 for12 month policy. It covered just about everything including drops and spills for electronics.
http://www.nssi.com/insurance/coverage-premiums/
We bought D a new Mac Airlbook last August ($1000) and a new iPhone 6 a few weeks after that. It seemed like a better deal to go with a secondary insurance company vs an Apple policy or use our homeowners policy because we have a $500 deductible on our homeowner’s policy. Since we didn’t have any claims with NSSI, I can’t say how the company handles things, but other reviews I’ve read have been mostly positive.
edited because this was supposed to go in the class of 2015 thread, not 2014, lol. Guess I’m tired.
D bought a MacBook Pro Ret with graduation money before heading off to college. She got a discount through her school and Apple was running a promotion that brought the cost with tax, case, a few upgrades, and accessories down to about the base price of $1300. The laptop is covered though a rider on our homeowners policy with a lower deductible. We also purchased the Apple Care plan.
We bought DS a MacBook Pro last summer. I think it was around $2100. We did buy the tended apple care. We also bought dorm insurance for a nominal amount.
DS is having a good summer and enjoying his internship. They’ve already mentioned that they would like him back next summer but since it’s not in his major field of study I don’t think it will happen. But it’s good to know he’s doing a good job and he can get a great reference from his bosses.