<p>I am curious to know how many parents show up to help their college students move out of their dorms for the summer and back home?</p>
<p>Son is a student at U 2,000 miles from home and is wrapping up his first year next week. I offered to go up and help with packing and shipping and storage, etc., but he decided he will handle his arrangements. I am glad he is stepping up and taking responsibility, but I can't help feeling a bit guilty! He is splitting a storage unit with fellow students, one who is from NY and whose parents will be present and helping out with many of the little practical matters.</p>
<p>My Husband says I'm crazy and of course, he is correct, but just wondered what other people do...it's my first college kid!</p>
<p>My freshman son is close by (2 hrs) so I did go pick him up. However, he had everything packed and ready to go when I got there. So, other than driving him home I really had no part in the whole move out/check out process. It’s great that our boys are wanting to take ever more control of their responsibilities (even if it’s sometimes hard to let them grow up)! So, let that guilt go and give him a big pat on the back when he gets back home :)</p>
<p>I didn’t go help my D 800 miles away. I told her I would pay for one suitcase on the airplane and she would have to store everything else. Luckily, she had a week between her last 2 exams, so had plenty of time to find boxes, buy tape, disassemble shelves, get everything packed and put it all in her future roommate’s car. (Her roommate lives in the college town and agreed to store her stuff in her basement).</p>
<p>We didn’t help our D move out last year. She stayed a day (or two) aftger finals to pack and store. She is about as far away as she could get (CA -> NH). </p>
<p>And we didn’t help her move in, either. Shipped 2 boxes and popped her on the plane with her two suitcases. I admit I am getting very exited to help DS move in to his instate school this Sept. (But, no, I don’t plan to stay over 2 weeks!!LOL)</p>
<p>He can handle it so don’t worry about it - look at all the other things he can manage to accomplish on his own. There’s really not much to moving out of a dorm - it’s like moving out of a quarter of a bedroom. If anything goes awry it’ll be a good life experience for him.</p>
<p>Your son should be fine, especially since he is storing most of his stuff. I also go to school 2000+ miles away from home and my moving process consisted of 2 suitcases and two boxes I shipped home.</p>
<p>I hope its okay. S is flying home today, just finished his last paper and turned it in today and you guessed it was finishing packing things into a pod to go into storage today. Oh, and he is leaving the country on Sunday. I hope his youth allows him to keep up with all that and the results will further foster the can do attitude. My fingers are crossed for him.</p>
<p>This is what is called a good learning opportunity. If he wants to do it on his own, let him, with no guilt. Three and four years from now, when he’s got this all down pat and moving is much more complicated, he will have a firm grasp on it, and you will be thankful.</p>
<p>Last September, D1 moved for the first time without any of our physical help (we did pay for movers since she was in a third floor apt. with no elevator), but she was 1000 miles away, and we didn’t step foot anywhere in that state, despite her pleas. And guess what, the movers complimented her on what a great job she’d done at packing and getting things organized. It cost us less to pay for movers than had we flown out there, stayed in a hotel, rented a moving truck, etc., so it was worth every cent. But prior to this move (she graduated two years ago from college), we’d always been there to either drop her off at the beginning of the school year, or pick her up at the end (we’ were 700 miles, so we could drive it). She never lived in an apartment prior to this last one, and had not acquired the knowledge and skills it took to move, so it was time. She always wanted us to come, but had she not and volunteered to take care of it all herself, we would have let her.</p>
<p>He has always taken care of packing, shipping home what he wants to and storing the rest in peoples off campus apts.</p>
<p>This year, he flew home with luggage and stored the rest in Public storage.</p>
<p>Younger, freshman son, got public storage (large 10X10) and split it with 6 kids. He flew home from SUNY.</p>
<p>Glad my kids are so independent and organized.</p>
<p>Friends daughter is a freshman at Fredonia. She drove up (7-8 hrs) from LI. Helped her pack. Moving co. picks up the kids boxes and takes them to storage for you. Great, easy deal. Don’t see why she had to drive up and back.</p>
<p>We did not “help” son move out 1600 miles away…he went to the storage facility, arranged for the storage and managed to find friends to drive the boxes, bags etc. to the facility. He left all his winter gear, clothes, bedding etc. (even washed everything before he put away after some prompting). Just chalk it up as one of those maturing processes… good for them and good for “us.” Don’t feel “guilty.”</p>
<p>When students attend college so far away from home that they fly back and forth to school, it makes sense for them to make their own arrangements for shipping and storage.</p>
<p>But for those who attend college within driving distance and do not have a car at school, it is usually easiest for someone from the family to drive to the campus and pick up the student and all of his/her stuff. Even if the driver has to stay in a motel overnight, this arrangement is usually cheaper than paying for shipping, storage, and transportation home for the student.</p>
<p>When parents pick up their kids at college, whether or not the student is packed when the parent arrives usually depends on the amount of time that has elapsed since the last final exam. If it’s a day or more, they’re usually ready to go. If it’s less than an hour (as was the case with my daughter last year and will be the case next week), I don’t expect any packing to have been done at all.</p>
<p>We just got back from picking our daughter up from U of Miami. We drove all the way from N. NJ!!! 20 hours drive. Two days drive down, one day to pack, two days drive back. I AM EXHAUSTED!!!</p>
<p>I went because I felt guilty NOT going. When we got there we found that almost all of the kids who lived any distance at all just took care of it themselves. </p>
<p>Don’t feel guilty. If he says he is fine, trust him.</p>
<p>We just got done doing this today. D is about an hour away so two weeks ago I went down and helped her get the first batch of items ready and brought those home with me. Then she had finals period and H and I went down today to help her get the rest of her items. She will be living there this summer so we loaded up the SUV and brought everything home with us. Everything will go back when she moves into her apartment mid-June- till then she’s a nomad, staying with various friends. </p>
<p>Marian is right- it’s all about the location.</p>
<p>SVMMom-
What will you do come fall? Did you leave anything down there? Shipping stuff back? If you plan on shipping, don’t send UPS to the dorms as they haven’t accepted it in the past. With UPS, you can deny delivery and UPS will try again the next day. 3 strikes and it goes back to sender. Use USPS instead for the first week. After that you are OK. (We initially shipped to the UPS store across from campus and they do a “hold for pickup” and you pick it up there. Works if your daughter knows someone with a car.)</p>
<p>You are a very good Mom!!! Enjoy having your daughter home!</p>
<p>We did rent a storage unit. She is sharing it with 4 other students (we even took one of the girls stuff over for her also). They had a deal at Miami Mini Storage for $175.00 including tax for the whole break period, so it was only $35.00 per kid. </p>
<p>I am not sure about the fall. Two of her suitemates will have cars so they can drive her to pick-up her stuff. Thanks for the shipping tips. I think I am leaning toward flying her down and shipping a few boxes. Then I can just go visit on parents weekend and relax!!!</p>
<p>Celebrate the fact that your son says he can take care of it. He’s independent. It’s a good thing!</p>
<p>We live on the West Coast and our daughter’s in Boston (how many miles is that? Tons…). She’s taken care of all these arrangements on her own, and is now finishing up her junior year.</p>
<p>Son goes to school 1,500 miles away. He stored two boxes, shipped two boxes, and when I picked him up at the airport, he came off the plane looking like somebody from 1939 Germany going into hiding: a backpack the size of a Buick, wearing layers of clothes, coats, and blankets so that it could all be considered “carry-on”.</p>
<p>But he did it, albeit in a bizarre fashion.</p>
<p>Cross this worry off your list of Two Thousand Things To Worry About.</p>
<p>D is 1300 miles away. She is taking care of it all. She’s arranged for pod storage with a group of other students. Her last final is tomorrow; she had to be out of the dorms by Wednesday - we got her a flight home Tuesday evening to give her some time to pack and clean after finals. </p>
<p>I was concerned about not helping but she seems to be fine handling everything. I work at a university and I cannot take vacation right now because of our end of term.</p>
<p>@heyalb I can’t stop laughing about your post because I am pretty sure that is what I can expect when my son comes home on Friday! lol! </p>
<p>@calalum do you go to Boston for the family weekends each year? We went for son’s first year but with so many schools holding their family weekends at the same time we found the city so crowded and travel cost somewhat inflated so we considered visiting on a different weekend and leaving the freshman parents the run of the place. </p>
<p>I’m so happy for my son and his first year experience (so far; finals for the next three days). Thanks for the tips and encouragement in your replies. I hope everyone has a wonderful, restful and/or productive summer!</p>
<p>FLAmama – No, we’ve never attended a family weekend, although I did accompany our daughter on her initial trip east, when she was a freshman going off for a pre-orientation program. After that, she bought her own plane tickets to come home at Christmas.</p>