@momtogkc My daughter attended CAST earlier this month. Your D should look at classes now and register for some tomorrow morning as soon as the schedule gets unlocked. My D did not meet with an advisor until the afternoon. By then, there were no TIDE classes available that she liked. She was also forced to pick a math professor that she was trying to avoid. We did not realize that spots in classes opened in the morning so she missed out and now needs to wait until July to change her schedule. The other tough part is that different advisors gave different advice about possible AP placements. We are pretty sure my D will need to change her math class because the advisor gave her incorrect advice when registering. We are waiting until AP scores are in before trying to change.
@Momof3kidz Thanks! CAST is on Monday so I wonder if the schedule opens tomorrow or Monday? We did all the videos and forms tonight but the class schedule page was all messed up and every few times we looked for a new class it wold show nothing offered. Then we had to cancel out and start over, ugh.
@momtogkc I was told that new seats are released the morning of each CAST (possibly 8am but not positive). I found the class search pretty frustrating but it worked well enough once she was able to schedule classes. It did not work for the TIDES classes but the drop down menu worked.
Thanks @Momof3kidz! I just noticed when she logs in to the class schedule it says her registration opens at 8am Monday, Of course we are supposed to be there between 8-8:30 so hopefully we can figure it out!
@momtogkc sounds like an amazing trip!
We are in our home country for a visit. We usually do a summer trip, and D19 got invited to the senior prom at her old school there so we timed it to coincide. She had a wonderful time at the dance! (Itās a pre-K to 12 school equivalent and she had been there for her entire school life before we moved, so she knows many people despite having done high school in the US). So special that she got invited and could join them - and that early bonds of friendship can run really deep.
Hi everyone, I havenāt posted here for a while, too caught up in real life.
S19 graduated in May summa cum laude (his school does Latin honors instead of ranking). Soon after this we went to Europe for a (probably last) family vacation. We visited Ukraine (where DH was born), Croatia and Venice. It was a lot of great impressions and great food, but somewhat spoiled by the fact that S had to do his math and writing placement tests for Caltech while we were away (they donāt count any AP/IB scores at all), and so he stayed in the rental apartment for quite a few evening to work on them, while DH and me went out. Writing test especially took forever because he is a very good writer but doesnāt really believe this, so he was scared heād have to take a remedial writing class. He still has a few tests to take in July.
Now that weāre back he spends most of the evening and weekends talking or visiting with his friends, so I hardly talk to him at all. He spent a whole weekend in his friendās house, and at the same time DH was on business trip, and the weather was rainy, so I was cooped in the house and bored out of my mind. Iām already dreading being an empty nester!
Also I canāt decide whether we should fly or drive to college. It starts at the end of September and I was looking forward to a family driving trip from Denver to Pasadena, but DS says he really dislikes long car trips (or, in fact, long trips of any kind not on foot). I still canāt give up the idea of driving there, maybe even alone, while DS and DH fly - itās a great pretext for a relaxed mini-vacation! Iād love this but I donāt think I can justify it either financially or in terms of the amount of stuff to take (pretty sure the stuff heāll need will fit in the free luggage allowance on Southwest).
@yucca10 , Iād be tempted to fly there and take the Zephyr back! The zephyr is something we really want to do when we can find the time 
(although, youād also have to get up to the Bay Area first.)
@SJ2727 yeah, also the sleeping car is really expensive. Iād stop by a couple of Utah parks if I drive. Lots more flexibility than train.
@peachActuary73 my son will also be a freshman at Rice. Parentās weekend is kind of early this year, and Houston has an abundance of shopping close to campus, so you donāt have to pack or ship too much. We will be driving over from Austin, so we donāt have pressure to buy too much. Look into getting her ACL tickets for weekend one!
@juststaycool Thanks. We also just heard about the weekend shuttle to the Target strip. Interestingly, she has said no to the mattress pad. Wants to wait and see. She wants to take our small flat screen TV, though. Sheās never had a TV in her room, so this will be a first. She said her experience (mind you they were at STEM programs) was that the common TVs were used for gaming. The other pre-departure purchase is a rain jacket.
Sheās gone again for a few weeks, so Iām continuing my teen room declutter campaign. Iād actually āfoundā many items on the pack list in the house, like gifted bath towels hiding at the back of the linen closet. Also found DSW, Macys and Barnes and Noble gift cards at the bottom of a jewelry box she doesnāt really use. And cash in a Happy 15th Birthday card. Glad I helped with (i.e. seized) all the graduation stuff. Everything was logged, thanked, and deposited.
@peachActuary73 - Once she tries a night with a foam mattress topper (even the inexpensive ones) compared with the crappy dorm mattresses, sheāll never want to go back. 
HS2018 parent here. My son is from Georgia and just finished his freshman year at an Ohio college. We fly him there and back, and as well as Christmas and spring break. My husband flew with him last August, taking only what fit in suitcases. They supplemented at the Walmart in town. My son shipped books and clothes home in May and then he flew back with suitcases. He said he took too many books to college freshman year. Hope this helps someone!
Ciao yāall, just got back from our trip to Italy and am trying to catch up here! My D is going to school in the desert, so we donāt have to worry about boots, lol. I do have to worry about how we are getting all of her stuff to Arizona, since we have to fly. I am in a few ASU parent groups on FB, which is jam-packed with valuable information from parents who have experience under their belt with transporting, delivering and storing said stuff. Now that our big trip is behind us, I have to concentrate on the dorm stuff.
Since my younger D22 starts her sophomore year at the same time D19 will be moving into her dorm, I have to do the dorm trip with just D19. I have a cousin and friend in the Phoenix area so I might have to put feelers out to see if can have some things delivered to them so I donāt have to worry about schlepping everything.
Another thing I want to accomplish is getting my Dās passport renewed. Hers expires next April, like the rest of us in the fam but I donāt want it to lapse in case she finds some study abroad opportunity for next summer. So thatās something I will research this week. There are two positive things about renewing her passport: That it will be good for 10 years now instead of just five, and, that after this one, she can renew it herself online in 10 years.
@jellybean5 if your D wants boots for the desert, I highly recommend Vasque Breeze. They are the most amazing hot weather boots Iāve ever owned (and, growing up in Israel and making many desert trips, Iāve owned many many of them).
@MWolf thanks for the tip on the hiking boot. Actually she kind of needs a pair since the ones I bought her for Italy hurt her feet since she did not test them out at home like I asked her to do. Many times. Hopefully she learned a lesson though.
Not a fan of the redesign.
Information density has definitely suffered So far itās a lot more clicks and scrolling to get to where I want to go.
@ninakatarina I agree itās terrible. Can we all just migrate to FB and continue on without this headache? Lmao.
Yes, I agree. Itās awful.
Agree here too. Really canāt stand it. 
I went ahead and made a group on FB. CC class of 2019 (the avatar for the group is a cartoon college). Feel free to join me over there. Anonymity is overrated imo.
Iāve never made a group before though, so bear with me.