My d lost her roommate. She just decided she couldn’t afford to return. it’s too bad as D and roomie were very close.
@ordinarylives – hope your D finds a new roommate soon (and one with whom she is compatible!).
@ordinarylives – that is too bad about your DD losing her roommate. That can be a be adjustment. Our DS just started packing. He left most of his things in storage at school, but he will have his own room this year (first time in his life), so he thinking of what else he might like to bring. He returns at the end of this week.
chrysanthMum: Got our son a mini fridge for his room in the fraternity house. It has a wonderful kitchen, but he wanted a fridge to keep things like yogurt, jelly (for his PB and J sandwiches) and a quart of milk (for cereal). He got more clothing – in fact, he has way too much clothing! My husband and I also got him some food items to snack on, or if he is under the weather, Ramens.
He called a couple of days ago to say he was adding oil to the car – glad that he remembered to check this! He has been working three or four days a week for a moving company. Says he’s ready to return to the classroom and wants to do well, so he can increase his chances of landing a nice internship next summer.
@ordinarylives - Hope it will all work out for your DD with a new roommate!
I can’t believe they’re all heading back so soon! DD goes back in just over two weeks - not sure of the exact day yet. She’ll be an RA in a single - yay - on the 4th floor -yikes! She was given a “earliest day” they’d move in last spring but no further official word yet. She’s hoping to delay from Friday to Saturday to move back as there’s a big group friend activity on Friday with all her hometown friends she really doesn’t want to miss out on. Hopefully it will work out as rumor is RA training starts on Sunday.
We’ll be renting a fridge/microwave combo for her this year (don’t want to lug her brother’s old fridge up to the 4th floor with no elevator!) But it won’t be delivered until she’s been at school for a while because of the early start of RA training so she’ll have to do without in the beginning.
I also have to get another stronger fan to help cool down the room more this year as last year she and her roommate both brought fans and she’ll definitely need more than her small one moving in two weeks early and being up so high. And due to new light sensitivity issues, I’ve been searching for a new desk lamp with different light settings as well as a printer so she doesn’t have to read as much online. I ordered a couple of lamps today so she can test them out. Will wait on the others until tax-free weekend sales.
She’s spent the summer as a nanny for a couple of tween/teen boys and starting up a direct sales business of non-toxic personal care and household products. And probably her last show with the community theatre company she’s been involved with since first grade. It’s been great having her home and we’ll all miss her when she goes back to school. But I’m planning on bringing some fresh food down when her fridge comes and bringing the dog and new puppy down to see her and meet all her friends 
Hope you all enjoy the end of the summer with your kids!
@akmom123 – Re: a printer. You may know this already, but monochrome laser printers are the least expensive cost/page. I bought one for my son last year. Paid maybe $50 (maybe less actually) at Staples. He went through at least 1000 sheets of paper (I think friends used also) and is still running on the toner that came with the printer.
Dealnews dot com allows you to sign up for notifications by category, or just watch the Staples ads.
Of course, if she will be printing thousands and thousands of pages, you may want more of a workhorse. I use HPs at home. Good luck!
@CT1417 - I’m hoping she won’t be printing that many pages! But we can’t do a monochrome as she needs to be able to also print in color for her business. And she wants to be able to print double sided. We’re still using an ancient HP Laserjet 4 at home! Definite workhorse of a printer. But I’m looking at a Canon and a Brother that both get good reviews for ink prices and are less than $100. I guess how much printing depends on which classes she ends up taking too. But I’ll check the deal and Staples sites - thanks!
HP LJ4!!! That is an oldie. I can’t tell you how many printers we have been through since that one. Impressive longevity. We have the HP 2035n at home now. Am not 100% certain, but I think it allowed everyone to network wirelessly and handled Macs and PCs.
I really do not know what it is my son printed last year. His entire floor may have used it, but given how little I paid for it, I do not mind.
Happy shopping. No mention of back-to-school shopping here.
@ordinarylives - Hope your DD gets another good roommate.
We opted for a small inkjet for DS so that he could print in color. He did print some, and his roommate used it as well. The roomie supplied the paper and DS supplied ink. He only refilled the ink once so I don’t think they printed that much but it was still nice for him to have when he inevitably wanted to print something late on a winter night when it wouldn’t have been fun to walk outdoors to the nearest printer!
Last day of work for him today and he goes back Tuesday. I will miss him!
Dropped DS’12 at the airport early this am. Just got a text, he has arrived and moved into the dorm. Just like that - sophomore. :-S
Spygirl began R.A. training this past weekend. She’s settling into her single room but it’s so big she’s not sure how she’ll fill it. I’ve suggested more fans as it doesn’t have a/c. I keep reminding her that she’s going have to move at the end of the year even though she has an internship lined up for summer and and is hoping to R.A., she’s not likely to be in the same building. She lucked out and got a room on the first floor near her good friend who’s also an R.A. so the year is starting out on a positive note.
DS and DH just left for the airport. They’ll pick up stuff rom storage, make a Target run, and DH will move him into the fraternity then catch a 7 pm flight home. He is excited to be reunited with college buddies.
It’s been a good summer for DS. His internship,proved a great experience. His work was used for two Board presentations and both the CFO and CEO volunteered to be references. They also said he was welcome to return if he changed his mind about finding an internship more aligned with his studies. He hung out with his high school pack, went to a couple of concerts, went to friends’ lake houses, visited a college buddy in New York, and visited UVA for midsummers. Best of all, his transition home was painless and he was a joy to have around.
I will see DS next in late September at a game. DH will see him Labor Day weekend in Chicago and then mid Septemberr, also for games.
@glido - Can’t believe the sophomore year has come so quickly!
@Agentninetynine - Good luck to your DD as an RA! I know mine is looking forward to it - but she has a dorm full of fellow sophomores. Some of her best friends are living on her floor which will be fun (although she’s not as thrilled about her former roommate living there too!) But she is looking forward to having a single and being able to be on her own schedule!
@2014novamom - So glad your DS had a wonderful summer and was enjoyable to have around! And nice you’ll be able to see him relatively soon!
DD goes back for RA training next Friday so no watching friends band at the last big bash of the summer 
But she’s had a good summer too and spent time last week with her BFF at the lake house in NH so that was great. I think she’s going to be able to catch up with all her friends before she goes back. She’s hoping to be able to have lunch with her grandmother on her unexpected day off tomorrow. That frees up the weekend for more time with friends (and packing?!) We’re going to make a Target run this morning to stock up on toiletries, medicine and storage boxes - getting that done will reduce my stress level! Then it’s just up to her to start organizing and packing and I have an online Amazon order to put in this weekend during the tax free shopping.
D is flying to Seattle tomorrow to spend a week with her BFF from HS who attends UWash. She’ll have 3 days when she returns to get ready before she heads back to school. Somehow the end of summer snuck up on her. She has been a total slacker about sorting the things she brought home. There’s still stuff in her car she never unpacked. And she has doctor and dentist appointments scheduled those 3 days. Talk about procrastination. It will be a hectic 3 days. Sigh.
Otherwise, D’s had a good summer. Pretty low key and relaxing. She’s excited to return to school and see her friends. I’m going to miss her so much, but have to admit I’m looking forward to getting my house back in order.
I haven’t tried to catch up from last fall - is anyone else’s kid not going back to school? DS had a bad second semester and now says he wants to “work and save some money so he can be more independent.” I think the GF (who is also not in school) has a lot to do with it.
@jeannemar, on the Facebook page for parents of the class of 2018 at my daughter’s school, there’s been a big discussion following a post by a mom whose son was not successful academically last year and is not coming back. Many people posted that their kids had struggled too but they were too intimidated to share because of the overwhelming number of posts about great successes.
For what it’s worth, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, my second semester at college I got four Fs. After a summer and fall at home getting community college As, I went back and got 4 As the next semester at my original college. Hoping for the best for your son.
I was surprised at the number of 2014 kids my daughter lost during the year! A boy from her high school, who had received a large merit award, dropped out in September and we’ve heard he’s going to a more local school (although the school they she’s at is only 2 hours away, and the one he’s in is at least an hour from his house). One of her best friends dropped out in October. She had a bad second semester (not grades but happiness-wise) but ended the semester in a better frame of mind and happily went back this year. I didn’t think she would.
My nephew, also 2014, attends the state flagship which is about an hour from his house. He’s returning, but many of his high school class are not returning or had already left their OOS schools and will either go to the flagship or another state school. I don’t think many chose to leave because of grades or success, they just didn’t like being away from their friends. I don’t think being away from their parents played as big a part as being away from their friends did.
My friend’s son was on a full scholarship for four years this past year. He went to college happy and social and came home completely despondent, lost weight, and is now on medication and seeing professionals. he is not going back to college at all this next year. He is going to work and try to get his head back together. I suggested maybe foing an online class or two just to keep getting through the gen eds.
The thing is…he was well liked, no problems. I think he just got overwhelmed. It manifested itself by his becoming “jammed up” in social situations. and very depressed. even when a waiter asks for his order, He just can’t get out words. Has anyone else experienced this or know someone who came through this?
Late adolescence/early adulthood is prime time for the manifestation of all kinds of mental illnesses. Probably doesn’t matter that the kid was well liked and had no problems before. He got sick. Like any other major illness, the road back to wellness is arduous and slow. People tend to think once therapy and meds start, it’s a quick recovery. Not so much. And even worse, the disease is chronic. Depression is episodic, so expect periods of fine, but the sufferer always has to be vigilant for signs that the next episode is coming.
D’14’s roommate isn’t coming back for financial reasons. She’ll be at her local cc this year. A guy she was “kind of” seeing started at the flagship, transferred to d’s college because he had to get away from the party atmosphere, and then this fall is transferring again to the other flagship (only out of staters thing we’ve got a designated flagship).
If you read the Chronicle, you’ll have seen many articles about the increasing transfer rates. It’s not uncommon and it’s hard to pinpoint an exact why, but many of the students do seem to be chasing a better financial “deal” after year one when the thrill of “best college I can get into” is replaced with “how the heck do I keep paying for this?”