Thank goodness they had a great meal service in college. D1’s ability to cook was was boxed mac n cheese or scrambled eggs and D2 could order out. (Dismaying, since on DH’s side and mine, we’re from long lines of people who love to cook.) Again, they surprised me. D1 looks things up online and D2 actually sends me recipes.
My daughter recently ordered a dress off Amazon for a wedding she’ll be in. She used my Prime account and I got the email confirmation because it is my account. Anyway, I noticed the address she used was her dorm at Disneyworld where she’s doing an internship, that it was to “Maggie DCP” and then an address (I think there are 2000 living in the building). No last name. She thought they’d just take it off my account (my email address?). Of course, because she is blessed and lives life walking under a rainbow with fairies tossing flowers on the path, she got the package in 2 days just fine. Why do you always worry about these things Mom?
My other one ordered something off Amazon in the fall and then suddenly noticed a $50.99 charge on her debit card last month. What is that from Mom? Who do I call? I guessed it was the yearly membership and I was right. After 6 months of ‘free’ (although she’d only ordered one thing) they charged her. Who do I call? She called Amazon and they nicely took it off. But she also had to call the bank twice. Oh, this being an adult is hard work! She can’t believe all the stuff her boyfriend’s parents still do for him - pay his bills, make his plane reservations, make his doctor’s appointments. Um, I still do a lot of that too.
Both sons still don’t have a driver’s license because we live overseas in a country that drives on the wrong side of the road.
My daughter has that issue to @GMTplus7. Also, low motivation to drive. Though she is happy to call a cab, hop a train, bus or plane, and can figure out even the most complicated subway maps in the world and find her way, even if it isn’t in English.
When my son started graduate school, he didn’t realize that a $25,000 teaching assistantship is actually very little money to live on. He didn’t live as frugally as he should have and ended up wiping out his savings.
I saw a 20 something man in the post office the other day who said he’d never mailed a letter.
I made sure my D16 could pump gas. Several of her friends didn’t learn how and had to ask for help.
Something I wished I had known when I was in high school: During a football game, the teams switch sides. Twice. (AFTER exclaiming loudly - “They’re going the wrong way”)
Something I wished I had known when I was in high school: People find out about what songs are popular by listening to the radio. I was mystified for years by people referring to something as the “number one song” and I had no idea where that information had come from (and usually had never heard the song).
I’ve pumped gas maybe three times in my life, so I can’t say I really “know how to” either.
Jerseygirl
Interesting note about making a “do” lists. My D. does it all the time, she has been doing it since I remember. Guess what, I NEVER DO “DO” LISTS, I would feel stressed if I did, I just do whatever I feel like doing at the moment. My way is based on the fact that if I want to do something right now, then I have the best chance of doing it very well. I operated like this my entire life and I am passed full retirement age. We are all different, we have different ways of achieving, but I believe that the happy people have a better chance at success, so stay happy, do what you want!
Frankly, I did not teach my kid a lot. One was: keep in mind that you need a lot of sleep. The next day is wasted if you did not sleep enough. OK, where did it lead her? She has to work many 30 hours shift now, cannot follow this advice.
Another one was that working hard always pays off one way or another, which may not be so obvious.
I would say that I failed to teach everything else, just like “do” list. They are capable of learning on their own though.
My D and H are both list-makers - and my D has ALWAYS made lists, from a very young age. We never really taught her… I think you’re just a list-maker or you’re not, lol.
I’m with @MiamiDAP , making a to-do list just stresses me out more. I do better keeping it all in my head, and just - well, just doing it!
I mean this in the nicest way…
Kids are not being taught proper table manners.
Having ease and confidence making polite dinner conversation with table mates while the dinner is ongoing.
Watching college grads, new hires looking like deer in headlights at dinners with formal table settings, fumbling with utensils, hunched over and tense.
Had to give a guy the no head shake when he was about to place his cell phone on the table.
I keep finding my kid using a measuring cup to measure the amount of water in which to boil pasta.
"“BF can sew on a button?!” I was thinking, wow, good for him. “No, Mom, I’m going to do it.” Beats me where she learned that. "
I didn’t teach my kids how do that either. But believe it or not in middle school my sons all were required to take a 9 weeks Home EC type course. So they all know how to sew a button, crochet a cap, make a small needlepoint thing and how to make rice Krispy treats. To say that they were glad when the class was over is an huge understatement.
My D, a first-year college student, got a head cold about a month into school. She called from the CVS slightly panicked: “Mom, there are so many choices! What should I buy?” I HAD taught her to always check the dosage on the package (e.g., one pill vs. two, every 4 hours vs. every 6 or 12, nighttime vs. daytime), but I guess she’d never had to actually choose a medicine based on her symptoms.
@2muchquan But at least he can a) boil water and b) make pasta.
D16’s BF is sweet but can not use a table knife. We keep inviting him for dinner and modeling it for him.
Thread on this topic from a few years ago-- funny stuff http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/17503147#Comment_17503147
Don’t pour boiling water on an icy windshield. If your kid has always parked in the garage, or has grown up in a warm climate, he or she will not know what to do with that icy windshield.
Yes, sending “real mail”, dealing with addresses and stamps is pretty foreign to most kids. I have received mail from a niece at an extremely selective U addressed to “Aunt [my first name]”.
Using EMAIL was foreign to my youngest, who always communicated through text.
On other threads, people have posted about teaching their kids to make plane reservations. I admit that I always did that for the D who went to school far away because I was paying and I knew how to scrounge for the lowest price. (Now that she is paying, she’s great at that…she’s learned that the flight that arrives at 12:45 am is the least expensive!)
My S has a leather wallet that is falling apart. Like literally rotting out, it’s so worn. He keeps insisting he’s going to take it someplace and they will fix it back up. No, honey, it could cost hundreds of dollars to patch this thing up - it’s so not worth it. Just get a new wallet. I was able to convince him to use a cheap wallet that they sold at his college bookstore - it’s not leather (I don’t think) but it will do.