Waitlisted for all on-campus apartments 
I’m trying to just keep the faith, as I’ve heard there is a ton of movement in the next month or two and that many (most?) kids on the waitlist get offered a spot. The tricky part is that it would end up being with a random roommate instead of the girl she really wants to room with.
How frustrating!!
So pestilence has come to the NiceUnparticulars’ home base. I caught a chest cold, I strongly suspect from the person sitting next to me on the train back from S24’s Nationals. I have likely given that to NiceUnparticularMom. And now D30 is in the hospital with appendicitis–fortunately no rupture but she is waiting for an appendectomy.
I suspect S24 does not currently mind being a healthy distance away in St Louis!
Get well vibes being sent to the NiceUnparticuarFamily!
Oh no! I hope your daughter’s surgery goes well. I’m so sorry your family is sick.
Oh that sucks! Hope you all feel better soon!
Random bits of news from The Child:
AAAAHHHH! LolD24 called last night and we had such a great talk. She really seems so happy, and I am thrilled that she is taking advantage of so much at Smith. I was lurking on another thread where parents were talking about whether or not paying for certain schools is “worth it,” and I am really glad that we have been able to support her choice to go to Smith. She really thrives in the historically women’s college environment, and she is taking every advantage of the small classes, connections, and opportunities for students. Just this week, she went to two academic lectures; a dinner with a department chair, a guest lecturer, and another professor from Amherst; interviewed a different professor for an article she is writing; networked with a Mount Holyoke friend about working on a non-profit; had another article published in the school paper; submitted multiple summer internship applications, and managed a few trips into Northampton for coffee with friends and a reading night at a local library. She loves all of her classes (except statistics!), and is making some really wonderful friends. She has gained so much confidence and is really putting herself out there. She is considering running for a leadership position on the school paper, and she is absolutely loving her part time job on campus. I hope I’m not coming across as too braggy, but I am just so proud!!
S24 is heading home for Spring Break next week. Maybe. His plans seem very fluid. He may come home first, he may head to UF to visit friends there, he may go to one of his suite mates’ beach house. Who knows? I do know he will at least make some brief appearance, and I’m looking forward to catching up with him. He hasn’t called for a long chat in too long, and when I try calling him he is usually with friends or busy. I am glad he is happy, but I miss him. And I worry he is partying too much. It’s hard to tell. He is doing well academically, so that part is fine, but I suspect he goes out a lot more than I would prefer. Hopefully he is making good choices.
Puppy continues to be so much fun! She got groomed for the first time yesterday and she was so clean and fluffy and soft and beautiful, and then as soon as we got home the older dog slobbered all over her.
My D20 attended an historically women’s college (much to her own surprise, tbh) and absolutely thrived in that environment. So empowering and so many opportunities.
My D24, OTOH, is at a school with a 65/35 M/F ratio 
Different strokes for different folks!
So D30 is out of surgery, which went well. S24 has been very responsive texting. They don’t always say it, but very much care about each other.
As an older brother whose only sister is six years younger, this warms my heart. 
I love to hear this! Smith continues to be the most amazing place for my D22, for so many of the reasons that your D24 is loving it. Encourage her to wear some Smith gear (hat or t-shirt) whenever she is traveling–it is so cool to see how many alumnae/people connected to the college will stop to chat.
D24 shared that she’s been studying in ‘the computer room’ in her dorm 'because there’s a lot less distractions in there…like, I can’t really focus well in my dorm room because there’s too many distractions, too much noise, and my iPad is there and when I leave to go study somewhere else that’s more quiet, I can get my work done faster instead of telling myself I’m going to mess around on my iPad for ‘just a few minutes’ and then an hour goes by and I got nothing done."
Woo!
Smith is officially on D26’s list. I think she would love it there! But I am staying quiet. 
that is a level of discipline that I haven’t achieved yet in 53 years. Good for her!
It’s taken all of middle school, all of high school, and fall semester of freshman year of college to finally figure this out. Let’s just hope she continues those good habits! LOL.
D26 was diagnosed with influenza today. Just in time for D24’s arrival on Friday afternoon later this week. Dang it.
This must be why DH & I, about a week and a half ago, both felt run town, super tired, lots of coughing (no fever though). This whole time, we’ve just thought it was seasonal allergies flaring up pretty bad. Looks like we were wrong about that!
So plan is for D24 to sleep in the guest bedroom instead of in her & D26’s bedroom while she’s home for spring break.
In the spirit of passing down a sense of resilience to our offspring, thanks to our parents raising us to be feral (ah yes, the good old days of growing up in the 80s) and figuring stuff out on our own, when D24 called earlier, I showed her this Visio-type of diagram that lays out the course sequence for the classes she needs for her major & PA school.
Then showed her where to find the course catalog/aka ‘bulletin’ online…and showed her what it says for Anatomy & Physiology 2…Prereqs were A&P I plus 2nd semester general bio. AND it had a note that said 2nd semester algebra-based physics highly recommended (but not required).
And explained how thanks to the School of Hard Knocks that Daddio went through (in the pre-Internet days), he got burned many times by well-meaning advisors who told him this or that was required or wasn’t required when the policy actually was different than what he was being told.
So in the spirit of ‘knowledge is power,’ do your own research before you go into the meeting next month w/your faculty advisor (i.e., just before you register for classes). Do your own research before you meet next month with the pre-health advising office on campus. Be prepared if they tell you it’s absolutely required…because it’s not.
D24 said, “One of the big reasons I chose this path in healthcare is because I wouldn’t need to take Physics. I survived honors physics in high school, but I don’t want to endure a repeat of all that in college. No way.”
Then she asked where can she find the Visio diagram thingy. Big change in attitude on D24’s compared with a couple of weeks ago. The winds have shifted in a positive direction.
Three more sleeps until I see my girl! And 4 more until I see her big sis. They have both been gone since early January…I can’t wait! D24 comes home Friday morning and then the three of us fly to Puerto Rico Saturday morning, where we’ll meet up with D20, joining us from Boston. We haven’t had a full family vacation together in three years. I am just bursting with excitement.
I spoke to D24 last night, she only had a few minutes for me, which as crazy as it sounds, makes my heart so happy (quite the contrast from fall semester where she seemed to have quite a lot of down time in her dorm room). She sounds so happy - everything is really coming together this semester. Classes are good, pledging the sorority is a lot of activity, but she seems to really be enjoying it. Still dating the same boy. On the waitlist for on-campus apartments for next year, but she’s very close to the top of the list, so it seems she is going to get something once the list starts moving in April. Mid-term exams this week. Feeling a bit crunched for time to study with all of the other stuff going on, but it seems it is forcing her to be a better planner/more efficient with her time now that there isn’t always going to be time “later”.
One other thing, which maybe will make no sense to anyone that doesn’t know her, but it is HUGE…thru stalking her school friends’ Insta accounts, I have seen a number of photos of her “in the wild”. And she is smiling, like big grins showing teeth and all, and just looking so unself-conscious. I don’t think I’ve seen her smile like that since she was a little girl. She is someone who has been overly (I think) concerned with aesthetics and her image and every photo of her she generally looks perfect, hair and makeup done, with a tight, closed-mouth smile, head tiled a certain way (to catch her “good side” 
). To see her loosening up and just enjoying herself is incredible. A year ago when she was considering schools, her concern about this one was “I’m not sure I’ll find my people, the kids here all seem awkward.” I could not be happier with where she has landed and how it is transforming her.
I am so glad I am not the only one who does this! Yes, seeing them happy and social “in the wild” is such a relief Glad your D24 seems so happy and relaxed. That is really wonderful.
I think a lot of our kids are overly controlling about their social media images. I don’t think they would even say they are catching their “good side” so much as avoiding looking terrible! 
I am so grateful that D24 has recovered from her Covid-era eating disorder, and I hope they all grow into the attitude of not giving a darn if their friends post pictures of them looking like gnomes or ■■■■■■. Pics happen–but in truth they are all young and thus beautiful!