We do Google Hang-outs with S once a week. Texts are usually on the day before – "When should we talk tomorrow? So far, we have been fairly successful coordinating the “meetings” with DD at another school and a third time zone. About the only other time we text with S is when one of us has a specific question.
DS only texts when he wants something. I was recently hospitalized for 3 days and I had to text him to say that it’s traditional for a son to phone his mother when she’s in the hospital before he actually called. I hope this self-centered thing is just adolescence and not a lifetime trait.
With DD, we video chat only once every few weeks, and maybe text once every few days, usually questions about something. DS texts a lot more, several times a week. But we’re in the lovely situation of only being 45 minutes away so we see them in person a couple of times a month 
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We are planning to get into more of a skyping schedule with DD when she goes off to Harbin China in the fall, though!
D texts whenever she has news or wants something from me. I text whenever I feel like it. Last fall, I probably texted every other day or three times a week. She always answers my texts. Now I text once every week or two. But the main method of communication for D is a monthly letter. Her school does one course at a time, so after every block ends, she writes a letter telling us how the course went and what she plans to do during the mini break. Now, if I can only read her writing…
I’m starting to write short notes to her. Incredibly old fashioned, I know, but DH and I like getting letters and she also likes getting something in the mail.
D has skyped her brother a couple of times.
Guess I should add to my post above because I forgot about our gaming. We have a Minecraft server where we can all get on and build things, or if we feel like it, compete against each other to kill the dragon first. So I’ll sometime hop onto the server on Sundays and find a child already there, building something or leaving messages on signs for the rest of us. That’s a lot of fun .
@SlackerMomMD Letter writing is almost a lost art. Very cool that she does this.
My daughter has one friend who she made right at the end of high school last May that she exchanges long handwritten letters with. It is way cool. She also had fun last summer writing the letters and walking them out to the mailbox at the end of the dirt road to our summer house and putting up the flag so that postal worker would know there was a letter to pick up. That’s old fashioned too.
Talking about handwritten letters reminds me of being in college and my mother was going through hard times financially, but she always managed to tuck a dollar inside every letter or card. I used to call it “financial aid” at the time. It meant a lot to me that she did that.
I get messaged links to cute kitten videos practically daily.
Right there with the cute kitten videos from DD. Also mostly sends photos through text of her and her friends with 3-4 word captions, so I know she’s alive and well. Calls if she needs something or gets sick–lots of colds/flu first semester, despite flu shot; much healthier second semester knock on wood.
Wow, real letters! Lucky! If I asked my D to this, she’d tell me there are laws against “cruel and unusual punishment” 
@mcdmom what will your D be doing in Harbin? I hope she’s ready for the extreme cold! will she be there for the ice festival?
For some unknown reason I have been hanging out in the 2016 parents’ thread a lot to help give tips and receive tips for my younger kids.
Today it occured to me to check in here and I’m glad I did!
I am happy as well that D is liking her school a lot, getting along well with her roommate, making some good friends and doing well academically.
Her roommate is transferring to a school closer to home for next year.
She applied for and was able to get an on campus apartment with three of her friends for next year, and is excited to have a kitchen.
This summer she is coming home to work and study for the PCAT. It will probably be her last summer at home as well.
She had her birthday the week after getting back to campus after Xmas break. It was weird not being with her on her birthday, but it was a weekday and a busy one with classes so even if I had went to visit she wouldn’t have really had time. So she requested a birthday package and I sent her presents and her favorite treats.
Her roommate got her a cupcake, I thought that was very sweet of her.
D and I probably text daily, it is rare that I go a day without some small text question. I had thought we would FaceTime more often, she does that rarely, more with her brother than with me, but privacy in the room is an issue for that. D has had some thyroid issues this semester that have meant that she has had to come home about every three weeks to see a specialist, so I guess I see her more than most parents, even thought sometimes I bring her back for a an appointment and she goes right back to school, but most times she spends at least one night at home. She will be home this summer, possibly for the last time, but I don’t like to think about that…
@insanedreamer - D would much rather write letters than talk on the phone! Also, by only writing monthly, she gets a lot of freedom (unless she needs something from me - “Mom can you get me a black suit?” was a recent text)
We text all the time, but phone calls are usually very short and once or twice a week (for 5 mins). Face time is longer, but less often, maybe once per month?
@insanedreamer, she is doing a semester abroad for intensive Mandarin study. She’ll be there from August - December so she’ll miss both the ice festival and the most extreme cold. We’re hoping to supply her well for the cold; she got to experience -20F last month here in upstate NY and survived that so hopefully it won’t be too much worse there before mid December! The tricky part is keeping within the luggage limits. I think she’ll wear her coat and boots on the plane, and take them off as soon as she gets on.
Our daughter is still waiting to hear about some long shot summer internships that she applied for. She should hear by mid-April. They would be great opportunities, but I can tell that my husband is secretly hoping that she doesn’t get one so that she can hang with us for what will likely be her last summer at home. With admit rates <4% he will probably get his wish.
It is so great to hear how well everyone’s kid is doing. Even those who have had bumps and struggles seem to be making it through and getting problems solved. I have been realizing daily that we are at the end of the first year of college, and the whole process has been exciting, scary, fun, sad, amazing, and I don’t know about all of you, but I feel very proud and privileged to have had the chance to be a parent. These are the things we work for.
I know, I can be sappy sometimes!
I’ll be sappy with you!
D didn’t come home for spring break, I’ll see her in mid-May when I pick her up.
I am in the process of putting together a care package for Easter. We aren’t really religious, it’s the traditional basket-candy-little fun things type of care package. (I did one for valentines day too, with dime store valentines and conversation hearts in case she wanted to give them to her friends like back in elementary school.)
What all would you put in such a package? I got a fabric basket and candy, and some plastic eggs (in case she wants to organize an easter egg hunt with her group of friends, I’m a geek.) Some microwave popcorn, a card.
I have room for more stuff, thinking not too heavy (shipping…) and not going to last long enough to have to pack and bring home in less than two months. She is on a full meal plan and has plenty of coffee, hot choc, etc already.
Any ideas?