<p>Fender, funny story about your mom and the cereal and milk. I'm the mom, but MY mother did that when I was growing up. I never got to choose my own cereal because it was in the bowl complete with milk! I was so very happy to leave home for college at 18 just to do things for myself. My mom is in her 80s and she still calls me at work when the roads get bad in the winter and tells me to drive carefully (I'm 50 something). My mom was the original helicopter parent. Now she's a helicopter grandma, too! I love her but she's painful. Consequently I liberated my boys at a younger age. I think my youngest was 3 when he learned how to pour cereal and milk into a bowl (so mom and dad could sleep in alittle on Saturday mornings!).</p>
<p>Opening cans of frozen lemonade?!?!?</p>
<p>Who'dathunkit? Last night, I asked my S to make a pitcher of lemonade and he didn't know how to open the can. Granted, we almost never drink frozen juice, but... goodness!</p>
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my problem with grocery shopping is how every single store is completely different from each other. it took me ages to figure out where everything was where i shopped in college, then i had to come home and now here i go to one of like six grocery stores and i have no clue where anything is in any of them.
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<p>I think they do this deliberately to encourage people to shop regularly at the same store -- or at least the same chain. If you look carefully, you will notice that all of the stores of a given chain -- Safeway, Food Lion, Giant, or whatever you have in your region -- are laid out the same way. But each chain is different from the others. There is a reason for this.</p>
<p>Also, the best bargains are on the shelves that are hard to reach -- either way up high or way down low.</p>
<p>It's also so that you have to walk through every aisle to find what you want. That increases the "impulse buying" that is so important to a grocery (or any) store. </p>
<p>And around here, since groceries are often in buildings that housed something else, even the store chains are organized differently. I have a choice of 2 Shaw's Markets, equidistant from my house, and they're both laid out differently.</p>
<p>Any ideas on how to convince a kid to keep his calendar in his backpack and write ALL upcoming events on it? It would make life so much easier.....</p>
<p>The calendar thing my son's middle school started teaching in 5th grade. That and internet research. I thought he was wasting tons of time, but turns out he was learning a lot! I thank these teachers every chance i get.</p>
<p>The ironing thing--I used to do it once a year to press autumn leaves between sheets of waxed paper. We're differently clothed here in VT.</p>
<p>Momofthreeboys, your mom was my motherinlaw. I loved her but she drove me crazy. Luckily my husband learned to fend for himself in grad school. I was like you with the kids. I think I taught my oldest to pour his own cereal at age three too.</p>
<p>I thought I was the only nut that had her toddler getting his own cereal and milk! I would have the bowl of cereal already out with saran over it and 2 cups of milk in the fridge; one was a tupperware sippy cup and the other was a plastic cup without a lid to pour on his cereal. My big boy was up at 6:00 in the morning hungry and I hated getting up so early. This same child needed to be dragged from bed as he got older and refused to eat breakfast!!</p>
<p>If your soon-to-be college student has never visited a college library--make sure they do before they arrive on campus. Fortunately, son's senior HS English teacher had them write two research papers using the local college library. (He obtained permission and they were even allowed to check out books and have a printer/copy account!) Now, I know that we live in the era of Internet and much research can be done via internet. However, I will tell you that son arrived at college last fall and indeed had to write a research paper using materials in the library. He said he knew exactly what he was doing thanks to that senior HS English class. (Husband and I visited mid-semester and indeed visited the library--I was absolutely lost!! Not to mention overwhelmed as it had been a long time since I had set foot in a college library!) Try to have your soon-to-be college student visit that college library--even if they don't think they will use it. They just might be surprised by some course they HAVE to take!!!</p>
<p>Impt to know: Dont' be naive and think your kids won't drink. Chances are they will or at least they will be at parties where others are. Whether you are drinking coke or beer or hunch punch....anything you ingest needs to be guarded.</p>
<p>Prevention is impt. Here are some tips i gave my kids after having a niece raped at a university frat house. (she was given a drug in a bar and woke up there).</p>
<p>Take your own drink to a frat party.</p>
<p>Make sure it has a screw cap and keep it on it when not drinking.</p>
<p>Don't leave your drink ever. If you do buy another one, My treat.</p>
<p>Don't accept drinks from strangers or better yet from anyone. Buy your own
and again get one with a cap on and YOU take it off.</p>
<p>NEVER walk alone at night.</p>
<p>ALWAYS be aware of where you are and who is around you.</p>
<p>Don't tell guys you have a single room or your roommate is out of town.</p>
<p>visit the above website....get more tips about dorm safety etc.</p>
<p>I guess I am a little amused at this list. D just came home from year one of college. 99% of what is mentioned here, I guess she absorbed from just growing up here and being expected (in high school) to be pretty independent. The rest of it she figured out on her own, for the most part. Or she asked someone. She even asked me! </p>
<p>If kids learn to solve problems on their own, from a fairly early age, and get to experience the consequences of messing up, they will hopefully learn how to deal with most of the items listed above. </p>
<p>The only thing I wish we had talked about more (though doubt it would have helped) is about pacing herself. D has always found that being over-busy and over-scheduled is how she likes to live. She took every AP class she could, was in musical theater, and did about 20 other things on a regular basis..........that was in high school. She is still doing that in college.<br>
Last night we picked her up from the airport and, oh my, what dark circles are under her eyes!</p>