Thanks, @JanieWalker. maybe they still intend to ask me and didn’t realize their son already said something. I’m not sure they texted or called my D directly. I think it’s just coming through BF but he is not the type of boy to be speculating out loud to my D about a hoped-for (but not actual) invitation. My D said that I would have to let them know soon because they want to make the flight reservations ASAP and I don’t think he’d make that up. …he’s a reliable boy. We used to let the kids convey/ arrange outings without the parents communicating directly (after all, they’re not little kids) but that was for day trips, and before the time of Coronavirus.
@inthegarden I imagine it’s even tougher for your D than for my 3 teens since at least mine have each other - they don’t actually spend much time together and are all 3 very different from the other 2 (to something of an extreme), but I think just having other teens in the house dealing with the same thing is less isolating. The only one of mine who has pushed a bit to see friends is my youngest (D23) who, I think, is a lot like your D. She specifically wants to see her significant other, and we said about a week or two ago that they could sit on our outdoor porch sitting at least 6 feet apart and talk. That wasn’t what she wanted, so she didn’t do it at all and is waiting until we say they can hang out together “like normal.” I don’t know when that will be. My kids haven’t been with friends since March 12, and our state has lifted the stay-at-home order which makes it a bit harder since our kids’ friends are starting to see each other, but we haven’t allowed it yet. Sorry about your cat, too. 
D’s ex boyfriend came over on her birthday and brought her flowers, they sat on the porch for a long while talking. He was really wanting to get back together. D was able to explain in person (rather than facetime) why they can’t get back together and how he would be better off with a gf closer to his personality. I think D did a good job of high lighting all his wonderful qualities but showing how their needs (him with much more than her) do not match up. I was very proud of how she handled it.
In other news, D will be flying out this weekend to go stay a week with her dad (short direct flight) she will wear a mask . I don’t worry about her getting sick.
My old cat will be a loss, that’s for sure. He was a complete feral around my house for ten years before I was able to catch him and get him to the vet. Hid behind a sofa next to the radiator for almost two years, except after everyone went to sleep (sometimes I’d see him sitting in a window after midnight). Took another year to come out and explore the downstairs during the day, and yet another year to sit in my lap. Now he’s the most snuggly of Velcro cats that I have had in my life. Purrs constantly When held (even in this state). I hope he gets to die peacefully in my arms (which could be any time now). I would euthanize him except he doesn’t seem distraught or in pain.
@burghdad, how I’d your D feeling today? I hope that she is well enough that you can check into this forum…
@kbm770 The ten person rule still includes distancing and masks so it’s not as attractive of an option as it seems! I’ve seen groups of kids riding bikes and then sitting at a park on their own blankets six feet apart without masks. Honestly, I think I’m ok with that. Our D21 is kind of a whistle blower and gets furious when she sees kids on Instagram together in basements having parties with no social distance at ALL so I trust her to do the right thing. We’ve started allowing her to see once friend at a time, no mask if outside, social distance. I think it matters where you live too. We are in Illinois which is pretty locked down still so there aren’t really that many places for kids to go. She’s played singles tennis with a friend (allowed by our town now) and she’s gone out for ice cream (with masks when they went inside and then masks off but six feet apart outside) and we don’t let either of our kids ride in cars with anyone else. If they are meeting someone, they have to walk, ride their bikes, or drive alone.
@inthegarden Hugs!
S successfully submitted his APES exam, he says he didn’t have time to finish it all.
D successfully sent her APES exam as well. That is 4 successfully completed with one to go tomorrow and an essay submission for Seminar that has a window of time to send. Today she mentioned that after she received the “Congratulations!” about the exam being complete, it suggested that she take a screen shot or print the page for record of completion and she doesn’t remember the others saying to do that. Does anyone else have some AP experiences to report?
@inthegarden thanks for asking. She has no fever but still has a headache. She is not happy about not being allowed downstairs “in her own house.” That is the plan until we get the test results back. Hopefully by Wednesday.
I agree with your thoughts on the trip with BF’s family. Getting on an airplane and going on a beach vacation in FLA in July is not something I would allow either. I also think the BF parents should have definitely approached you before they even discussed the invitation with their son. I am sure when reason prevails, your daughter will understand taking that kind of trip does not make sense.
@homerdog Thanks. I tried to explain the caveats around the 10-person rule, but as an extreme extrovert, she insists that she doesn’t mind. We have consistently let her walk/bike with one friend as long as they stay at least 6-feet apart. Friends (and I) have unexpectedly seen them around the neighborhood, and they’ve actually been complying. We’ll see how long that lasts, though, when things loosen up here (also in Illinois). Her friends haven’t had parties indoors, but we can all see that there are already more groups of kids (and parents!) gathering in larger and larger groups. No masks, no distancing. That being said, DH and I have been looking for tennis courts, and they’re all still locked around here!
@Aguadecoco and @1Lotus , D21 had APES today too. Submitted with no problems. She said she did not have time to finish all parts, but she feels she did well on what she did submit.
That’s it for her this year. Still waiting for her grade from AP Calc BC, other than that she knows she got all As. May get a B in Calc since she feels she completely bombed the final. Her teacher told the class afterward that she made the final far more difficult than she had originally intended, so hopefully there will be a generous curve.
D21 will relax tonight, then she has an info session and a virtual interview this week, then she needs to make decisions about summer plans. She is still waiting to hear if two volunteer gigs are actually going to happen this year. In the meantime, I have told her to come up with her own project and have it at the ready so if the volunteer things don’t work out she is doing something besides writing essays all summer for college apps. She needs to do those too, but she should have something else as well IMO.
She has chosen five schools for ED possibilities, so this summer needs to also be about narrowing that down to two. I really want her to have all applications finished before fall classes begin, because she has a heavy load and with extracurriculars kicking back in full time (hopefully…), she won’t have much time for college apps. So if they can all be done by the end of August, I know she’ll thank herself once mid-September rolls around.
@inthegarden Virtual hugs to you! I am sorry about the meltdown and the cat.
Does this beach vacation absolutely require air travel? I would be reluctant to risk air travel at this moment for fun, but would risk it for something more essential if I had to do so. Even if it were drivable, it sounds like there are risks at home to consider. I think we’re all getting a bit cranky these days.
One more AP exam to go this week on Friday and then school is pretty much wrapped up. D has worked summer day camps for the past couple of years, which won’t happen, but has secured an online volunteer position and will be doing some community service. We are trying to come up with some fun projects that can be done from home, as well as jumpstarting virtual college tours, narrowing down the list, and maybe even getting a jump on some essay writing.
@kbm770 sorry about the tennis courts! Ours were locked until May 1 (I think) but the next town over never closed theirs. Drive around a bit to other towns! It’s been a huge thing. We already have a ton of tennis players in our town (the girls and the boys’ teams win state all of the time - it’s nuts) but now everyone and their brother is playing tennis.
D21 went out to play today and the state champ was on the next court. He’s a rising senior too and has already committed to Notre Dame. They’ve known each other for years. At one point, they switched up courts and she played against him and he used his left hand and was gentle with her. Then she asked him to serve to her like he normally would and she wanted to see if she could return it. She swung and missed and fell down. Lol.
@burghdad hope D is better soon and can move about her own house ? they are so dramatic.
Yesterday I took D21 and met 8 of her friends, the parents parked our cars distanced from each other with the trunks towards the center and we sat in our cars and they were able to talk. They were all so excited, filming Tik Toks in front of the cars distanced and it was nice to see the parents, who are my friends also. Maybe this idea will work for some of you.
We got word that the last day of school is June 16th, many teachers are not giving a final and D only had APUSH, submitted with no issues.
S21 successfully sent his APES exam as well…not sure how he’s feeling about it…he fell asleep afterwards and didn’t say much lol
My S says school is wrapping up after this week’s APs. The district is throwing in the towel – no more assignments. His AP Spanish at 4:00 on Friday is the last one offered! But finishing May 22 is about 2 weeks early so he shouldn’t complain.
@inthegarden – I wouldn’t let my kid fly for a vacation in July either. Sorry for the turmoil.
My S and I were brainstorming some job ideas today, but hard to know who’s really going to hire a 16 yo this summer with so many folks out of work. Maybe Chick-fil-A? They seem to have a lot of young folks. He’s not too keen to work in a grocery, and I get that. Seems kinda stressful.
Fast food is an option by us, but also big box stores like Target and Costco…including some stock person type jobs (no customer interface), including some overnite shifts. Not sure if all take 16 yr olds, but worth looking into.
Also, our park district said some younger kids’ day camps will likely be a go sometime in late June/early July…so maybe that could be an option?
S17 applied to Walmart for stocking/warehouse. Today they called and said if he wanted to be a personal shopper he had a full time job starting immediately so he’s now employed! At least it’s something!
@inthegarden Sorry about your cat. It’s funny how our affection for our pets has a way of sneaking up on us. I still miss one of our dogs that has been gone for 10 years.
Well, I think the stress of AP exams and technical difficulties has finally caught up to me. I dreamed last night that D was finishing her English exam (like most dreams that details didn’t quite measure up with reality) and we somehow knew that she would receive a perfect score, but it would not submit. Ha! Hopefully tomorrow’s Psych exam will not be that eventful.
Our tennis courts have been open this entire time as well. And it seems that many have suddenly developed a keen interest in playing- the courts were almost always busy any time of day.
I think I am mourning the loss of D’s summer plans more than she is- although she is bummed about one activity in particular. She is taking two online college courses- gen eds that should transfer to any of the schools she is considering.