<p>I seem to remember buying my dress in December. And praying to god I wouldn’t gain or lose any weight by Spring. If we waited until the month before there would have been nothing left! But around here you buy your own ticket and go whether you get asked or not. I went in a group of like 20 and there were maybe one or two couples, who were kids that were already in a relationship before prom became a question. I’m not sure if anybody really asks someone out just for prom.</p>
<p>Personally I would never have waited to get a dress and book the hair appointment until somebody asked me unless I didn’t plan to go if I didn’t get a date. I understand at some schools that’s still how it’s done… at my cousin’s school you can only buy the tickets in pairs. I ended up going with her because she and her boyfriend, who had graduated, broke up just before the prom-- they seated us right next to the teachers at dinner so they could keep an eye on the scary 19 year from out of town! haha. Her prom was a totally different world from mine.</p>
<p>I feel really bad. I got a “Mom, quit putting so much pressure on me” this morning, when I mentioned the prom. I just pointed out that it’s three weeks from tomorrow and spring break begins after school today. Our town clears out during spring break. He may end up having to text his invite.</p>
<p>Wow… here in New England the girls did their prom dress shopping over February break - for May proms. The boys in D’s class made a pact to wait till March to start asking, but then one kid broke ranks and the rest panicked that the girl they wanted to take would go with someone else. So they were all asking in Feb for the May prom. </p>
<p>My S waited until the last day tickets were being sold to ask a girl to his freshman semi. She was already going with someone else. The next years he wised up and asked earlier.</p>
<p>Of course when they ask that early, someone always ends up bailing out on their date at the last minute.</p>
<p>Finding this interesting…Prom culture varies widely region to region and school to school. I never heard of the bid ask until CC. </p>
<p>YDS, I am commiserating. I swear my D was a boy in a past life. Her bf is not in her class so she needs to ask him to her prom…she has decided to wait until a “few” weeks before to make sure she really wants to go with him. No dress yet, no plans made with friends, no hair, nails, make up…She has some time-but you have to wonder what the bf is thinking. Early June prom here. </p>
<p>Hopefully your S will listen to your one last suggestion.</p>
<p>Update: Last night at a ballgame, a mom told me that her ds is interested in the same girl and wants to ask her! I see my son and this girl together and think the other kid doesn’t have a shot, but part of me is thinking, Oh no. Biting my tongue …</p>
<p>Wait, I have a girl and I have no stress about prom. D2 already has a dress, waiting for some decent guy to ask her out. She has plan B in case it doesn’t work out(I won’t mention it here).</p>
<p>The bump of the late-bloomers thread made me think I should bump with an update.</p>
<p>He finally asked her Tuesday a.m. very first thing in the morning. A friend had let him know that another boy (not the one mentioned above, yet another one) was going to ask her in English class, so he snuck in there just under the wire. He felt kind of bad because the other guy is nice, but, as he said, “The tactical mistake he made was telling people his timeline.” :eek: :)</p>
<p>So, apparently, this is the week for everyone to ask. Today at lunch, he’s part of some big production for his friend, and tomorrow the bff is going to ask. I’ve been drafted to help with that one. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>The “ask” was a huge pressure-filled thing for DS1’s group. Let’s see there was “invitation written in sand at the beach”, “shirtless friends with painted on stomachs P-R-O-M ? (the prospective date kept his shirt on and stood at the end with flowers!)”, “signs held up in the stands for the soccer girls playoff game”…and DS1 made a MOVIE for his gf with background music and at the end was the invite. I thought that was cute…more work than texting :-).</p>
<p>Didn’t read all the replies yet, but if there is a group and they are not boyfriend/girlfriend they may all just sort of go together…That is, the girl is going to go regardless so she’ll have been shopping. Around here not everybody went as “dates”</p>
<p>I don’t get this “ask” stuff. DS spent lots of money on flowers and a meal for the girl he asked this week. Then at dinner, she told him some news about her past that sent him into a major crisis because he’s so worried about her. Good grief.</p>
<p>Interesting to read about all of the different traditions. I have never heard of parents attending prom before. We do have parents volunteer to chaperone, but they are usually from the younger classes, who probably don’t have a child attending. What kills me is the price of tickets- $90 per student this year. My junior son says no way he is going- his GF is from another high school, so it would cost him $180. That does not include dinner- YIKES! I would be interested in hearing what other schools are charging. I think it is a ridiculous amount to spend and that it really limits who can attend. We told him we would help him with the cost, but he said that a group of them are just going to go out to dinner and then hang out at someone’s house instead. While a lot of our kids go in big groups without dates, they still go all out on the limos, clothes, dinners, etc. The prom is always held in an outside location-always someplace really luxurious and usually quite a distance away. Mine were in our high school gym and definitely no limos- boy, have things changed! We also hold an after-prom party which is reasonably priced, has a ton of activities, and goes until the next morning. It is an effort to curb the drinking, and they get a decent turn-out.</p>
<p>D1 went to her junior prom with a boy from her HS. They had been dating, so it was assumed that they would go together. She bought her dress in February for a prom that was the first weekend in May. They have a junior-senior prom, but the juniors are the ones who go with dates. Many senior girls just attend with a group of girls.</p>
<p>When she was a senior, she was dating he current bf, who was in college. She had no desire to attend. They ended up going out to a very nice dinner, and saved a ton of money.</p>
<p>DS’s prom is $50/ticket and doesn’t include dinner. It’s at a nice venue (have no idea what it is, but it’s not the gym), and there are snacks but not a full meal. I don’t know ds’s plan for dinner; the dad of one his group is a former chef and cooked for them at Homecoming. He might do the same this time. I’m trying to get a friend to host a post-prom pancake breakfast – something that allows them to stay out late but doesn’t involve a hotel. Prom is when a lot of the drinking goes on.</p>
<p>Not sure exactly what tickets cost because they haven’t started selling them yet but I think they were about $60/couple last year, no dinner included. They hold the prom at a fancy office building courtyard thing. It’s actually very lovely (and where I had my senior prom). They use the escalators for the Grand March (where they introduce the couples-ride down one, up the next). Parents take too many photos then go home. Then the dance starts.</p>
<p>The kids generally go out to eat before to a nicer restaurant. A lot of kids use limos because prom is a distance away and most parents prefer the kids not drive. I’m ok with that. Usually several couples go in on a rental and it ends up costing about $25/per kid. The parents typically pay for it so even the girls help pay the cost.</p>
<p>After prom the kids typically go to someone’s house, spend the night there, usually on the floor of a family room somewhere and watch movies—at least that is what OUR kids have done. I am sure there are plenty that do worse. The day after prom kids typically go to a big park or boating or something.</p>
<p>My daughter’s friends called all this prom fuss “proma”<br>
Beginning in February, there were a bunch of her friends who were not in relationships who got asked by a friend or asked a friend and were told no. Facebook is filled with “big ask” pictures - the cookies spelling out prom etc.
The girls all bought dresses ages ago (they will go as a group if not asked by any boy). The Facebook group to post your dress so nobody gets the same one has been going strong since January (the prom is in May). Last week during spring break there was almost a cat fight when two girls in the FB group realized they had the same dress! The nasty comments were really flying fast and furious!
The latest fuss is about tables - tickets go on sale in a few weeks and they now are jockeying for who to have as the ten people at your table (this is senior prom for junior prom there were no pres-set tables).<br>
The tickets are $75 and the prom is at a fancy catering hall for dinner (wedding type place). The assumption is that kids (boys and girls) will leave school that day at noon to get ready for a 6:30 prom! No girl would dare attend without professionally prepared hair (this is NJ).</p>
<p>Similar prom drama as kiddie right now with arranging tables of 10, limos, etc. Our school has the whole day of prom off, except for the poor kids, including my D, who have AP tests (and an afternoon one at that!). So she is wondering if she should get her hair done at 10 AM. I find it funny but try not to laugh in her presence. She was just asked this week, was surprised to be asked, so we are dress shopping this weekend.</p>
<p>When my daughter had her prom, the tickets were $200 per PERSON and the prom was held on a yacht in another state, so transportation had to be arranged, whether a limo or something else. Since it was a NYC public school I believed then and believe now that the cost excluded people. She graduated with 700-ish people in her class, but only 250 couples attended the prom.</p>
<p>Wow I feel bad for all the parents who have to fork up $75-$200 for their son/daughters prom!! I go to a small private school and I’m the prom commissioner and we do our ticket sales differently, maybe you can suggest this for next year. So our prom is May 18 and tickets go on sale next week. For the first two weeks tickets are $40 then the following two weeks tickets are $50 and the week of prom, and the day of, tickets are $60. Also someone suggested that next year we do a couples price. So if you have a date then you can get two tickets for $70 during the $40 weeks! So maybe it will work at a big public high school!</p>
<p>Also I have to say, planning prom is insane…especially at a small school. Because you have to cater to the majority of what people what and like. It’s not like a big school where someone just decides the theme and you have to just go with it…everyone in the senior class has to agree…(Mind that there are only 13 seniors, but we still have a lot different opinions)…Anyways even though some people think prom is dumb, all we are trying to do is create a fabulous memory of high school and your friends!</p>
but part of me is thinking, Oh no. Biting my tongue …</p>