For driver’s tests - in CA, it’s supposedly the easiest in the country. No parallel parking. I don’t know if you even have to back up at all? DD took it and passed - but I don’t think she’s ever parallel parked in her life…
@Dave_n and @LoveTheBard I know my dd does read CC sometimes. Not sure which forums, but I know she has read this thread off and on. I never say anything online that I wouldn’t be willing to share with anyone who asked. 
Mine hasn’t read here because according to her “that’s where the crazy people are”. Can’t argue with that.
I just had to put another dollar in the swear jar.
In NY you have to take the driver’s test at the DMV. My D19 is turning 16 in 2 weeks, so we get to start the process all over again.
Kids at the same school- I think there is a chance that at least 2 of ours could end up at the same school. D19 is lazy and if her sister D17 is happy at her school, I could see her following. It will be interesting to see and then D21 is a whole other story!
@carachel2 In CA you don’t need to parallel park to pass the test. Instead all you need to do is back up along the curb for a while. You can ONLY take the test through the DMV and must make an appointment. Appointments need to me made in advance but the spots don’t open up until 6-8 weeks ahead of time. Normally apps can be made 90 days in advance but I seem to remember it being less for the drivers test.
@theshadow You do need to backup along a curb in CA. But don’t need to parallel park.
Kids at same school: That would be a dream come true for my three boys. They are very close and would have a blast together. The oldest would have to attend for a fifth year to overlap with the youngest. Not so sure I want that to happen!
@MotherOfDragons, @Mom2aphysicsgeek - D17 and I tend to compare notes and give each other or the heads-up on posts we find particularly interesting or relevant. We often share some of the same favorite and least favorite posts – and posters, for that matter!
So I guest the QOTD is: How much sharing of CC goes on in your households? Do you keep things separate and private or do share? We are pretty much open books around here.
S17 does not read CC.
He sees me reading and posting on CC all the time. He says “Stop wasting time on useless stuff and go to bed!” :))
My wife thinks she knows everything and that our kids can get into wherever they want to go, so she has no interest in this site. She actually doesn’t want anything to do with college planning. No idea this site even exists.
Son17 really doesn’t care that much, other than trying to get into the few schools he has on his list. He has done no research and doesn’t intend to. He literally doesn’t care. He’s perfectly content if he gets into the school 15 minutes from our house, lol.
Son19, clueless to date. He only thinks he will be a recruited soccer athlete and wants to study engineering. Good luck with that.
My D thinks that I end up meeting some creepy stranger here at CC site and get into trouble. She WAS listening when I warned her about the danger of online communication!!!
This year is the first time since kindergarten / 3rd grade that my kids will be at the same school they will be freshmen and senior in high school. D20 was in GATE and D17 was not, so that put them on a different track in elementary and middle school. However they are both doing the IB program at the same high school which they had to apply to and transfer into. I’m curious to see what the teachers make of the Freshman this year. Although on paper she is GATE and scores higher on standardized tests than her sister, her sister is much more organized and hard-working. Adjectives adults use to describe D17 always include mature responsible disciplined organized hard-working. D20’s backpack and binder always look like something exploded and she’s the classic A on every test but got a C because she never turned in any homework kid
Thanks @LoveTheBard More research ahead…
D does read the forums and she reads my posts sometimes. Waving…::::hi sweet pea!:::: You are MY special snowflake!
H does not. He has never logged on. He is a great guy and very smart…but he just does not get how much things have changed. He still struggles to understand EFC and why it isn’t different at different schools because the price is different. I love him though. After any college conversation he is known to quip such helpful bits as “there is no reason she can’t work her way through school” and “we got an email from X university and it says they are generous with their financial aid.”
This is in keeping with our time honored marital tradition of me doing all the research on matters like this (infertility/vacation planning/college planning) and then his role is to “ask questions” which at some point is interpreted by me as nitpicking and arguing.
H and S know I read things on the interwebs, so I imagine one of them could find CC if they felt like it. I can’t imagine a scenario where either feels like it. H has no clue about the college app process in 2016. Yesterday he had to ask me why S was texting him all sorts of weird questions like “where did you go to college?” I told him it sounded like S was finally starting the common app. Cue H: “whats the common app?”
In our area in CO, you can go to DMV to schedule a driving test in 2-3 months or cross the street and pay $50 more at a driving school and get it done!
Let’s see.
- Doubtful that my 2 will attend the same college. No real point for S17 since he could get virtually the same experience for less money in state. (D just wanted away.)
- As long as you pass drivers ed in Iowa, no driving test to move from a permit to the first level of license. If you wait until you turn 18 and don't take drivers ed though, I think there is a test. I think there's also (or used to be) some sort of lottery system where you might have to drive for license renewals, but then it happens right then at the DMV. Both of my kids had to drive me 40 minutes away to find a spot to prove to me they could parallel park.
- S has no interest in CC although I pass on a lot of info I glean from you all.
Drivers test must be taken at DMV, and they do recommend scheduling an appointment (usually 2-3 weeks out at least). D19 has her permit and is taking lessons. Sunday night they drove over the same route that the drivers test will take, including the area at the DMV where they do the parallel parking. Instructor said she nailed the parallel parking on her first try and each of the three times she attempted it afterwards. Also want to throw out a recommendation for the Driver’s Edge program. D17 did it, and D19 will do it when she is a bit more experienced. Driver’s Edge is a nonprofit group that puts on driver training courses around the country that put the drivers into real life scenarios. They have them evade objects, feel what its like to use the antilock brakes, and even put them into a skid on wet pavement. They also have a classroom session where they put a pair of “beer goggles” on to simulate what it is like to be impaired and put the kids through a sample sobriety test. Was a half day program that was free, but the value of it is tremendous.
Hey you all – just wondering where is our hilarious stress-busting @2muchquan ? MIA or was there a planned leave of absence?
Required reading here for AP Lit – Sun Also Rises + 2 more books off approved list.
Driving - No interest yet by DS17 in driving - maybe next summer. D18 though can’t wait.
Got GATech app supps mostly done; working or others for EA. Fingers crossed much more gets done before wisdom teeth operation!!
Many students take driver’s ed via a private company and then schedule the road test with the DMV but booked by the private company. A DMV instructor conducts the tests on the roads near the driver’s ed company, making it much easier on the students. Second son is not a confident driver and may never attempt to parallel park, now that he passed his road test. I admit that I never parallel parked until I lived in Boston and then I became en expert at it. Owned a car in both Boston and Manhattan, so spent plenty of time perfecting that skill. Now, I would rather walk further than attempt parallel parking.
I send school-specific quotes from CC to my son. He digests them. Plenty of useful info here but I don’t share unless relevant to his academic interests.
@CA1543 …good luck with the wisdom teeth! Hope it all goes smoothly.