I realized that I have been on CC for more than half of my children’s lives. How crazy is that? According to my profile, I joined in August 2004, but that is just the date when the board converted to a new format. I believe I joined about a year and a half earlier, in 2002 when DD was in fall of her junior year of high school. This board has seen me through college search, kid’s undergrad and grad school, years of DD overseas, two kid’s marriages, my own career change, and now, DD’s pregnancy.
When I joined: I was married, about 40 years old, working as a School librarian, with two kids (DD 16 and DS13), and DD was about to take the SATs. We had no money saved for college and I was unsure how we could afford to send her anywhere- but we were frugal and had no debt except our modest house, and two fully paid for cars. We were planning a family camping road trip to visit colleges, and hoping that one of the schools that offered full-rides for NM Scholars would be a good fit. (DD didn’t like that alligators at Univ. Of Florida - so we dropped that plan)
Now: Still married, almost 59 years old. Planning to retire from job as public library manager in August, so that I can help babysit my first grandbaby, due in September (fingers crossed that all goes well.) Both DD and DS are married to fantastic people, and we are happy that they have wonderful partners. They went to Rice U and then onto other schools for graduate degrees. DH will work for 4 -5 more years, and I will work some parttime gigs if it looks like we need more money. We are shaking our heads and wondering how we got so old so fast!
Where were you when you joined CC? Where are you now?
I joined cc 10 years ago (in January).
Then: I was 51, married working part-time. D was a senior in HS and had already been accepted to her ED school. S was in 7th grade.
Now: I’m 61, still married and have worked full time for several years. I’m still with the same company, but changed departments a few years ago. D graduated in 3.5 years, spent 5.5 years working and is now back in school full time in an MBA program. She has been married for 3.5 years. S attended a magnet HS, then a top liberal arts college, but transferred after his first year and finished university in London. He is now working in London.
One of the biggest changes in my personal life is in large part due to cc: I was so inspired by a fitness thread here that I started practicing yoga several years ago and began running 3 years ago. Fitness (especially running) has now become a huge part of my life.
I joined here after another college forum (which will remain nameless) when downhill. I think it was about 2003. Kid one was already accepted to undergrad, but kid 2 was starting to look for a 2006 start.
Do I really have to tell how old I was…and am? Who cares about that!
I joined CC when my oldest was in middle school I think, and the youngest was in elementary but then pretty much forgot about it. I started posting sometime before the board format changed. That kid turns 30 in two weeks. I wasn’t active in the “board that went downhill”. Before CC I mostly posted on aol boards and in fact was a moderator there for a while. Not that much has changed in my life except the kids are both out of the house and gainfully employed.
LOL— all us golden oldies are checking in. I also joined cc in 2003, and held out on the old version of CC until they ultimately closed it and we all moved to the newer iteration, in summer/fall of 2004. DS’s then were HS 2004 and 2008. Both are now married, one has a beautiful child, they are working in good fields and I am semi retired and eligible for Medicare.
I joined CC in 2011 after our son was accepted to boarding school for ninth grade looking for a community that understood that decision as no one around us did. CC was my lifeline during those years, and I made wonderful virtual and IRL friends through the prep school forums. Kiddo is now graduating from college and about to start his professional (service) life, so I’ve been here through all of his high school and college years. Just as he was graduating from high school, DH and I downsized to a resort community about an hour from the home we raised him in and retired a couple of years of after that. I keep saying that my work here is done and it’s time to move on, but that darn cafe…
I joined in the summer of 2004 when son was entering junior year of HS and then had to close my account and start over a few months later because I was too easily identifiable by my screen name and I realized CC might be a long term thing for me! I did not have the benefit of it for my daughter’s college admission process, but somehow she did OK! Son was in boarding school and had a little bit of a checkered past, and was also a recruited athlete, so the CC resources were great for me. I was living in Dallas at the time (married), daughter was at Rice and son was in the northeast in boarding school. We moved to Tennessee in 2006 for a job for me, and here we remain, but with me in a different job. I greatly enjoyed the fitness thread here on CC long after I had college and kid issues, and treasure the many friendships I have made on CC over all these years- both online and carried over into real life. A number of us have actually vacationed together! I still enjoy some of the discussions and the intelligence of this community. It’s hard to explain it to people…
I joined in 2008 when my S was a HS sophomore. I remember the heated discussions in the politics forum and that was before the 2016 election, lol. I remember the “greenies”. We were a rebellious group! Sinner’s Alley and marmots.
In 2007, S had a disasterous freshman year and was barely digging himself out of a hole. After lurking for some time, I finally joined CC for some ideas on how to motivate him. Wow, the replies ran the gamut from lay down the law to leave him alone. It helped me decide what was best for him and a helicopter mom was born. He got into a flagship state school after raising his GPA an even retaking a class. He did well on the SAT which helped. Graduated in 4 yrs and is now gainfully employed and independent. During that time, I worked fulltime but decided to go on leave for a year.
Middle D was a student athlete and I didn’t really get to go through the college search and apps process with her. She, too, graduated and now is in her last semester of grad school.
For most of the last 6 years, I was hanging out in the cafe following coralbrook’s flips, remodeling and vacation threads and jumping in and out of the exercise threads. My year long leave stretched into seven as I became more involved in the kids’ schools and community service. After our youngest started HS, I decided to go back to teaching part time.
Now, our youngest is going to be a HS senior and we’ve started the process again. This time, I have to say, I’m more relaxed about it. Maybe it’s because I’m 10 years older or maybe having seen two kids through it has made me wiser. In the end, she’ll be at the school where she was meant to be.
While CC has helped me immensely with college info, I suspect I will be more involved in the cafe as an empty nester next year. I’m not sure I’m ready for that!! Retirement for me and DH isn’t for another 5-6 years but we’re making plans!
I joined in 2008 while waiting for our DD to get accepted. I have no idea why we were so anxious except that she was shooting high. Really got involved for DS who was one of those super smart kids that didn’t turn in his homework and drove us crazy. He ended up in a special school for HS that got him out alive. AND he ended up in the perfect college for him (College of Creative Studies at UCSanta Barbara). I was working part-time (I think…it was soooo loooong ago). DH was working, but had a lot of medical issues (mostly since resolved).
Now DD is almost to graduate with PhD in Material Science, no SO. DS is working and living near by and is happy as a clam. Has a nice girlfriend. Both kids bought their own cars. DH is retired. We are still in the same house, but I have been trying to get us out of it for 5 years (or more). I had my mom in assisted living and took great comfort in the parents caring for parents thread. And received wisdom and support before and after she passed away. I try to give back there.
I also have met CC members IRL and hold the community close to my heart, even though I lurk more than comment. I remember “friends” and wisdom like SunriseEast. And it is inexplicable how happy hearing that the stepgrandmother wore a more or less appropriate dress to the wedding made me. I make liberal use of the Say it Here thread, mostly just in my mind, but sometimes venting words is so so helpful.
Joined in Dec 2016 just as my younger got into his EA school. Wish I had known about the site a couple years earlier before my older started her college process. Could have used some of the tips/experience on the athletic recruiting process for academic kids – we only had our travel ball coaches for sources and they were not very knowledgeable about Ivies or D3’s. Thought it was worthwhile to participate in this community to share our experiences and perspectives, and perhaps reduce some mystery and address some common “myths” and misconceptions.
I joined before oldest lad started his senior year of HS and now this past May youngest lad graduated from college. It’s been a few moons, but not as many as most of you posting.
Both middle and youngest lad ended up at colleges brought to our attention by threads on CC. I have no idea where they would have ended up if I hadn’t found the forum. They’re both glad I did!
I actually left for a little bit after youngest started college, then returned thinking I’d do more college counseling at school so wanted to keep up more on colleges I wasn’t as familiar with. Life hasn’t allowed that to happen and will likely have us soon traveling more - even snowbirding instead of doing more in school - so I tell myself it’s time to leave again, but I gotta admit I kinda like y’all. I haven’t left yet.
I’m a relative newbie compared to so many of you. 5 years next month…March 2014. Oldest was a college sophomore, youngest was a Jr. taking his SAT exams…that’s how I found CC. I was working 30 hours a week at my company of 25 years, then. Now, oldest is working, youngest is going to take his college victory lap next year and I was laid off, so retired, looking for PT work…but being very picky. I’m 59.
I have learned so much and have received tons of wonderful, useful advice that I’ve heeded. Tons of fun discussions, too!
Golden oldies! Ha - that’s us. And, the other college board -that-shall-not-be-named, I believe was “Princeton Review”. It got ugly fast over there, and they didn’t have the good strong moderation that has kept CC a kind, sharing, caring community. It just blows my mind that it has been 16+ years since I first started reading and posting here. Hello to all of you! Thank you for being a part of my life! (And I still miss Curmudgeon…)
Started (Jan 07): Sophomore in high school. No one in my family had ever been to college so I stumbled here for guidance.
Now: working on PhD, have 2 masters and 2 bachelors, married for 3.5 years and have been trying to get pregnant for long enough that we have a fertility doctor appointment in May.
When I first started on here, I was on food stamps, medicaid, and SSI. Now I own a house and am setting up funds for my niblings. Not bad for a little over a decade
FWIW, I’m still in a group chat with some of the people I met on the high school forum here. We talk daily.
Edit: I joined in 2010. Wow. I guess I’m glad those boards from 1995-2000 are mostly gone but strange to think that there’s some kind of record of my whole adult life on the Internet.
I was a parent of pre-schoolers concerned about the effect my husband’s negative attitudes would have on my kids in their extracurriculars. I got a ton of good advice here, a lot that I rejected and later realized was correct.
I got a divorce (for non-extracurricular-related-reasons), went back to school during the recession, and most importantly thanks to this and other advice from the internet, took a totally different approach to my career in my late 30s and 40s.
I have a stepkid in dual enrollment, another preparing to go to my own alma mater, and the two littler ones are getting prepared to have a solid educational basis for whatever path they choose. We have a good basis to pay cash for state school tuition for all the kids, and hopefully help out more as needed.
One thing the Internet has enabled me to do is see life from the perspective of people in a different social class than I grew up in. It’s been immensely helpful in making economic choices because when you work in public service and/or a service profession you just don’t meet people on the path to management and six-figure salaries. It’s hard to see the long game financially. So I’m really grateful for communities like this. I think my kids’ opportunities will be way more open than mine were.
I joined this month in 2006. D was a junior in high school, and I stumbled across CC while trying to figure out if she would end up a National Merit finalist. I don’t think I joined right away, based on the date … I lurked for awhile. I was a SAHM at the time, but I had worked in higher ed before leaving the full time workforce. I used CC to get my work skills updated, doing research to answer financial aid questions. Eventually, I returned to work as a financial aid officer. I am now large & in charge at a small school, and I still try to “save lives,” as my H says, on CC. CC has helped me to understand what students don’t understand, which has allowed me to anticipate what I should be messaging to students.
My kids are long graduated, both with jobs they enjoy. D is married, and S has a GF that is the equivalent of his wife, I suppose (since they aren’t into the marriage thing). H recently retired, and I am hoping to hang in another 3 years before I say goodbye to the work of full time paid work.
I now answer financial aid questions from time to time on CC, and I hang out in the Parent Cafe. I enjoy hearing about the new things the CC parents are doing as life goes on, and I like hearing about the things their kids are up to. I even know a few CC’ers IRL. I really enjoy being with @romanigypsyeyes on CC as she moves through her adult life … I recall offering advice on financial aid to her oh-so-long ago. I saw her wedding pictures. I almost feel like I know her! It’s not often that we longtimers get to see how things turn out for the students we advise on CC.
Joined September 2010. Now still lives in the same house and works for the same company. Unthinkable at that time as I changed jobs every couple of years before that.
My kids just started school at that time. Now they started talking about college.
According to my profile, I joined in August 2004, but that is just the date when the board converted to a new format. I believe I joined about a year and a half earlier, in 2002 when DD was in fall of her junior year of high school. This board has seen me through college search, kid’s undergrad and grad school, years of DD overseas, two kid’s marriages, my own career change, and now, DD’s pregnancy.