My daughter and her suite mates did not like the water. They had a Brita pitcher which lasted about a month . After a while they didn’t care anymore and the pitcher now belongs to me. A lot of the things they thought they were picky about didn’t matter much after a while.
I must ask…because I’m getting the creeps thinking about it…
BED BUGS! My other mothers of college bound kiddos swear you MUST get the bed bug cover (the one that zips up around the entire mattress) for kiddo’s college mattress.
Is it needed? :-/
@tonymom, DS just had a mattress pad (for comfort reasons). AFAIK, no bed bugs. Knock wood.
I have read somewhere (on this thread ?) that all mattresses at Yale have bed bug covers. Can someone chime in?
^^ The mattresses at Yale (or at least the ones that were in my son’s dorm for 4 years) were enclosed in a thick plastic cover, so there was no need for a bed bug cover. FWIW: Those thick plastic covers did make the bed a bit scratchy and rough underneath the sheets, so we purchased an egg-shell foam topper to put over the mattress.
I splurged for the expensive bed bug protective mattress pad. The mattress seemed clean when we got there and did have some sort of cover, but I thought better safe than sorry.
I purchased zippered mattress cover last year and it at least made ME feel better 
dd left it on the mattress when she moved out (there was not one when she moved in). I’m guessing this is how some end up with them. Yes, I will be sending her with another.
Regarding move in day; dd was on FOOT adventure and did not return until about 1:30pm. My sis and I showed up to TD (dd was not in freshman dorms) at 0900 for the first trip. We were met by about 8 enthusiastic TDers. We returned with a second load at about noon and were met by 4 TDers who did their best to seem as enthusiastic as the first meeting. They wouldn’t let us carry a thing. It was a fantastic start to my dd’s adventure at Yale and I hope this tradition continues. I know dd is excited to meet the ‘freshies’ and will be available outside TD with her suite mates.
@Suemomsie - can you link to the one you purchased?
Any more comments about the need for Brita water filter?
My D drinks the tap water. She does not have a bed bug mattress cover. The only bed bugs I heard of in the past three years were in a grad housing building.
http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2016/04/05/sixth-bedbug-infestation-hits-grad-dorm/
The Yale Daily News site is a great site to search for any topic you are interested in.
@Kelowna last year I purchased the mattress cover through Yale linens as we were moving dd (and everything she owned) from the west coast. It was one of two things I ordered from Yale linen and could pick up there. (Though lots of purchases through bb&b and Target) I purchased this year’s at Target on sale for $17 and will send it with her when she moves HERSElF in this year. lol
Regarding the water pitcher: dd says “It’s somewhere?” She further explained that use dissipated and by the the last two months, no one used it. (This surprised me as she is the filtered water user at home.)
I sent my son with a Brita pitcher the first year, and a big reason he stopped using it was the difficulty of filling it, as it did not “fit” under the faucet of the bathroom sink, which was his only nearby water source. Better to send a water bottle that can be filled at the dining hall.
Another inclement-weather clothing suggestion for students unaccustomed to New England weather: waterproof footwear. I bought both my college kids angle-high ‘duck boot’-style boots (I believe they were from Bass) and they were a great investment. The only thing worse than having cold feet is having cold, WET feet.
Good luck to all new parents!
Seems like a Brita water filter pitcher could be filled from the shower head, or by using a large measuring cup in the sink.
My daughter stayed in a suite in Vanderbilt and her host used a Brita pitcher daily.
I bought a twin XL mattress cover at BB&B mainly to provide a layer between the mattress and the sheets. The package notes that it protects from bedbugs.
Yeah, @Faulkner1897 , I had the same thought about the cup–>pitcher method, but apparently that would have required too much effort. ; ) I think the bathroom sink also had a certain “ick” factor (suite bath ‘cleaned’ by the kids…or not!).
You can tell I am a new parent whose child has not lived in the dorms yet! Still idealistic!
I saw a funny solution to the Brita water filter in a shallow sink situation - a dustpan used to funnel the water to the filter. I must admit, that grossed me out a bit.
Any other incoming Frosh parents having difficulty motivating their students to pack, organize and generally get ##%^€ moving!!! Getting kiddo to pack his necessary belongings is like giving birth a second time :-/.
I’m attributing it to his anticipated missing bros and the girlfriend but my patience is wearing thin. Maybe it’s a guy thing. I remember being packed and ready to go weeks before I left for college.
Yes, it is likely a guy thing. Packing things is simply not registered with my S. He only concerns about his collection of CDs.
@tonymom My oldest was like that. The day he had to leave was the day that he packed his clothing in a garbage bag and the only things that were neatly ready to go were the silly Star Wars decorations, the things I bought for him at BJ’s (which I packed and 90% stayed pack all school year) and his art supplies. Everything else was thrown in laundry baskets and lugged to school that way. My OCD daughter on the other hand vacuum sealed all of the college things at the end of last year and stored it in large storage bins.
Mattress had plastic cover- no worries about bugs but we did get a 3" foam pad for the mattress as well as an egg crate topper.
My daughter is leaving on Saturday for FOOT and none of her clothes or personal items have been packed. I decided to take charge of the bed and bath related items, and that has all been packed (and some items will be picked up in CT). We do not live within driving distance, and are flying in with her stuff. There is no option for throwing things in laundry baskets and garbage bags! Luckily, my daughter is a minimalist and is taking to heart the many recommendations to pack efficiently. I have a feeling it will all be done on Friday.
@Memmsmom
I like your daughter’ style! I bought some of those vacuum sealed bags for my daughter to use for packing, but wasn’t sure if she would be able to use them at the end of the year due to lack of access to a vacuum.
^^you can also buy the saver bags where you just roll out the air and don’t need a vacuum.
Trying to buy a comforter here. Can someone please tell me it is cold, warm or hot in the dorm during the winter time? Thanks.