Stay cool @carolinamom2boys
Well, DS now has nearly all his bedding, laundry stuff and a stock of most of his toiletries. He still needs a fan, his books, a pillow, all of his school supplies, and possibly a desk chair. Dorm mountain is growing. I now have lots of $5 gift cards to Target because of the specials they were having. I told him those will surely be used before he goes to school.
Question and this may be a dumb one- How do you know what school supplies like notebooks, binders etc before classes start?
Thoughts on whether freshman who are living on campus should/should not have a car? S16ās campus does allow it, and the campus is about 3 hours from our home, so it might be nice if he decides to come home for the weekendā¦especially since our trip to his college would take longer because itās the only route to the eastern shore/beaches in our state and usually crowded on nice weather weekends. If he comes home, heād be traveling away from traffic both directions. I think my concern is that if he brings the car, he might come home each weekend if heās homesick. Or, it will be parked so far away from his dorm that it could get stolen/vandalized. Campus is less than 100 miles away, so we donāt qualify for an insurance discount if he leaves it behindā¦but it probably costs more if he brings it to campus. He paid for a good portion of the car purchase last year, so itās more āhisā car than a family car heās been using.
Just curious if others have thought about this or have experience on whether itās a good/bad idea in the fall of freshman year. Iām sure by second semester weād have him bring it to campus.
@Justathought1 We have also struggled with the concept of an allowance and how much to give. In my view D will have enough in her bank account to easily pay for her entertainment plus personal care stuff, detergent, and the like which will need replenishing through the year. She really doesnāt need anymore but I feel a little guilty not giving her anything.
On a related topic, I am on Dās bank account since she isnāt 18 yet so I can easily deposit money if I need to. I think this is how we will work it if we do decide to give her money.
Found this article helpful today. Actually the whole grownandflown website seems useful. http://grownandflown.com/30-free-apps-freshman-year/
Weāre dong the same @me29034
@readingclaygirl I remember when we received a school supply list for each gradeā¦those were the days.
My daughter has decided to use the same type of 5 Star, 8 Pocket Notebooks she used throughout her IB Diploma Program.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Mead-Five-Star-5-Subject-Notebook-Eight-Pockets-College-Rule-200-Sheets-Colors-May-Vary/14931531
The most important item I didnāt think about until looking at the list of items for GW was a compatible printer and printer paper. The school does not allow extension cords only power strips.
We have power! Yay!
Wonderful @ carolinamom2boys. The heat is brutal this weekend.
Yes, my D is getting those heavier weight notebooks. I donāt think she used binders last year.
No car for D but thatās because she is in a city and parking would cost an astronomical amount, she also has free bus pass.
In your situation it might be useful though.
My son will be in a big city so things may be expensive. He currently gets $40 per month for allowance but opted to upgrade his phone so we only give him $30 per month. He usually has additional money in his account for various reasons so that amount seems to be sufficient.
He has saved most of his graduation money so he has some of his own money. However, we will send him a monthly allowance and he will have to go to his savings account when he wants extra special things like concerts or clothes shopping.
I posed this same question in a Facebook group and the amounts ranged from $100-$500. He will NOT receive anything close to $500 a month for allowance. I hardly spend $500 a month on myself and I work full-time.
@Justathought1 Now Iām feeling cheap. I was thinking more like $50/ month.
This is such a personal decision. Donāt feel cheap. You know your childās needs and if you find $50 doesnāt work, you can always increase the amount.
We are debating allowance, too, since we will cover the phone bill and any necessities. S16 is working close to full-time all summer, so he will have a pretty good savings and there are so many things to do on campus that are free. Iām worried if we give him allowance heāll just end up spending it on fast food or the food options on campus that arenāt covered by his unlimited meal plan, and I donāt want it used just to go buy food somewhere else :). We might give $50 a month and see if thatās enough - if he saves it, all the better.
^I agree, do what works for you!
@Justathought1 100-500 thatās a ton of money! But every situation is different
For this first year, weāll give D16 the money in a savings account that we had specifically designated a long time ago as ācollege spending moneyā - itās just a matter of deciding how much of it she gets. Sheāll have graduation money and money from her 8 weeks of work this summer and may not need too much more, but she may also be buying a bike and purchasing a lot of dorm mountain with her own money.
Iām hoping to never give her an allowance again (I havenāt for awhile, but I feel like I handed out way too many random $10 bills and she uses my Starbucks app more than I do). She can use my Amazon prime account (with her own money), use my Netflix, Hulu, HBO passwords, and weāll continue to pay for her phone.
Last year D16ās boyfriendās dad was giving him $20/week for college and I heard his complaints secondhand! D tried to get me to buy him a pizza and have it delivered to his dorm in Richmond! (However, I donāt think he had any money saved for extra food or necessities, and the $20 had to cover laundry, shampoo, any extra food, etc.) Maybe Iām just used to DC area prices and Iām accustomed to the $15 lunch.
We have settled on $50/month for a haircut, necessities, school supplies, and the occasional off-campus meal. We will keep him on our phone plan, continue his net flicks and stock him up on necessities before he goes. He does have some grad money and restaurant gift cards but he will not be going out for anything fancy on the funds he will have available. No car freshman year. We will consider one for sophomore year if he has reason for one (like an off campus job or internship), can pay for the insurance, and he is doing well academically. It is a privilege to be earned though, not a right. He does not spend much on entertainment now but we will see what all that freedom brings. I have offered to buy some gift cards from him that I would use, but he would not. No sense it letting those gifts go to waste.
Our son has an account with birthday money, ect. that could get him through. We would like to see him work a few hours a week anyway while heās in college.