<p>Mammall-
No- no twins- One graduating HS, one graduating college. S's are 4 yrs apart.
It will be a surreal weekend- celebrating DS #2's 18th bday tomorrow- and graduation Sat. I got a call tonight and heard about all the receptions and celebrations at DS#1's college. I am sad to miss all that, and to have the family split up at this exciting time. Oh, and never mind about mothers day. Thats lost in the shuffle (tho DS sent me this really cool gift, BBC's "Planet earth"-- thoughtful guy) and ds#2's birthday celebration will be postponed bit too. I have balloons, banners, card, cake. (And his laptop conveniently died this week. Gift idea solved.) Well, it's all good stuff. We'll cope.</p>
<p><strong>edit</strong> all good, except for the laptop, that he'd never backed up!! Grrr</p>
<p>Jym626 - I'll be thinking of you tomorrow! Heading off to Rice for various ceremonies, dinners, fireworks, etc. Maybe you can check the webfeed on Rice website to see the opening marches.</p>
<p>^^^^^^ Waaaahhhhhh!!!!! I wanna be there!! What time does the feed start? I actually thought (for about a millisecond) about bringing a laptop to DS#2's graduation (I dont have a phone that would handle the webfeed) but I know the people around me would HATE me. SO, we have orderded the video, and DH brought a little videoo camera-- only holds 1/2 hr of stuff. He can skip the boring speeches :D</p>
<p>Oh, and the laptop idea is now dead b/c ds's laptop is too! Died this week. Well, at least it solves the gift problem :)</p>
<p>FYI -
in case anyone is interested, Bed Bath and Beyond has the dropps laundry detergent (individual portioned units) on clearance. Website says it's $3.75 for 15 loads, but my local store has it for $2 on clearance. They couldn't find them in the store, so I called another local store and they're honoring the $2/price.</p>
<p>D didn't get them as a grad gift, but we bought a couple of those camping chairs in a sling bag this year for her common room. Great extra seating when extra people come over that can be tucked away in a very small space when not in use! Academy has them starting at $5 and they come in lots of colors.</p>
<p>When S1 went to school 3 years ago I packed a book of family and friend photos (mostly prom and grad photos taken with friends). I also packed, secretly, the dog's photo in a recording photo frame so he could hear him singing (howling) with the push of a button. I also gave him Red Sox and Patriots felt wall hangings, which I happened to find at Marshall's by chance. Before the beds were made on move-in day he had those up on the wall (he goes to school out of Red Sox Nation). Re: tools. My husband took this on with a passion. He decided to purchase "quality" tools that my son would have for a lifetime. Big mistake as few remain in the toolbox after 3 years, which speaks to how much they are needed, as well as how one should not invest heavily in college tools. </p>
<p>I echo the graduation checks for "20.08" for other grads. For special friends we did give gift certificates to Target or bigger checks. Gift cards for places to eat or shop around the campus will turn out to be highly valued as the school year progresses. I love the idea of a card a month. However, it surely is an expensive year for we parents! </p>
<p>Oh, my BIL gave S1 a Bose iPod speaker/docking system. That seems to have lasted as a must have and highly used item for a special gift - I don't know what they cost now.</p>
<p>A cool golf umbrella--with a wacky pattern, maybe monogrammed or something--will be super useful in the fall and spring. I LOVE MINE and have suggested this to a few friends/moms/etc.</p>
<p>i also second the stationery idea. one of my best guy friend's mom gave me a bunch of 5x7 paper in an open acrylic box that says my name in a cool script at the top and "university of missouri" along the bottom. i'd say there's probably 500 sheets in it, i doubt it was that expensive, and i use it ALL THE TIME.</p>
<p>basically, it's a stack of paper with a pretty ribbon tied around it that sits in this clear acrylic display box. by far one of my favorite grad gifts.</p>
<p>LOVE THE LOCAL TSHIRT IDEA. what a great idea to give friends that are moving away from town!</p>
<p>I love some of these ideas, but I have to admit I'm way too frazzled to gather pictures or t-shirts or anything like that. What I've been doing though, is buying 'useful stuff' here and there and stashing it in a bin. So I've already bought laundry detergent, and shaving cream, and things like that, hoping to avoid the $300.00 'essentials' shopping trip.</p>
<p>I will definitely be putting together a first aid kit, and one thing I've already gotten for it is a tick remover. I have them in my camping first aid kit, and I got a couple extra so I can put one in my daughters first aid kit.</p>
<p>I've also heard that portable vacuum cleaners (Shark, Dirt Devil) are useful, and you can find them on sale relatively cheaply.</p>
<p>I gave gift cards to the campus bookstore at the college each student was attending. Most of them are imprinted with the school logo, and they are easy to put in a card in the mail.</p>
<p>I have also been putting together a bunch of essentials in a box little by little, so far I have gotten on sale and put in the box:
Feminine Products
Toothpaste
Deodorant
Screwdriver set w/ allen wrenches
Bug Spray
Shampoo
Shaving Cream
Razors
Ethernet Cable</p>
<p>I am also trying to avoid the $300 "essentials" trip. It will be a little less painful this way. (Big thanks to Walgreens for their awesome Proctor and Gamble sale w/ register rewards last week!!)</p>
<p>My neighbor's S graduated last year and the mom of one of his good friends made laundry bags for all of his friends and attached a laminated card with VERY basic instructions. Think she used denim for the bags--also included a roll of quarters. Great idea that I'm going to use one day. Even if the kids prefer to use a laundry hamper or basket, the bag will clearly come in handy for something in a dorm room...Another of his faves was a tool kit put together by another friend's dad! Says that kit is used by everybody on the hall! I worry that it gets so expensive to give gift cards to so many kids and they seem to do seem to appreciate that time and effort went into the 'different' gifts....Just a thought!</p>
<p>I'm going to scan/print family photos for S and make an 11x17 collage. I have a printer that will print this size, but this can also be done at Kinko's and other such stores. Then I'll laminate it so that it can be used as a poster and will help the colors not fade.</p>
<p>Thanks for the ideas. I always have a lot of girls to buy for so I buy a box of Maria Shriver's book "And One More Thing Before you Go" and give them out, either by themselves or with a more expensive gift. An inexpensive but very thoughtful book. </p>
<p>I also purchased luggage tags from their respective university, online if necessary, for the HS graduates. So many go on study abroads and are happy to have them.</p>