<h1>theorymom, are your son’s friends mostly boys or girls? I ask because every party to which Son is invited and every party of which he is even aware is being hosted by a girl. There have got to be some boy parties, but not for anyone we know.</h1>
<p>Son got the course registration package from college yesterday. The student puts in preferences, then a committee builds the schedule. It was depressing, however, to get into the system and see how few of the “cool” courses are being offered or have space available. I know this is a problem for freshman almost everywhere, but it’s disppointing when you thought you were going to get to fullfill the Religion requirement with “Greek Mythology” and end up in “Intro to Christian Traditions.”</p>
<p>missypie - Started my day reading your post about grad parties and I cried with you. I am so happy for you and S.</p>
<h1>theorymom - {{{hugs}}} I know that sadness when S/D isn’t included. often I think my feelings are hurt more than D’s are - at times she really doesn’t seem to mind being left out. As others here have wisely pointed out there may be a logical explanation for your S (fewer parties, invites not out yet, etc.) Your S continues to rise to challenges so maybe there are invitations yet to come or maybe it really doesn’t matter to him.</h1>
<p>Yesterday was HUGE in the PRJ household. The school principal called to say the local paper wants to write an article about D - her choice of Brandeis and a Jewish studies major is very unusual for this semi-rural small Ohio community. Then we were stunned to learn she had won first prize in a local foundation scholarship essay contest. And finally, D presented us with the last issue of the HS paper in which she wrote a column about H and me, which ended with the following: *My parents are weird and usually pretty embarrassing, <a href=“okay,%20the%20beginning%20was%20more%20complimentary%20and%20it%20gets%20better%20;”>/i</a>) but they have been everything I needed in high school. I have so much to thank them for and this column can’t even come close to saying everything I want to say. Thanks to their guidance, I can truly say who I am, what I believe, and what I stand for.</p>
<p>I know that most/all of my D’s invitations to grad parties were via facebook. We received only one written invitation. So if there are missing invitations and your S is involved in facebook, I’d check there. These kids seem much less formal than we ever were. </p>
<p>D finished the last of her projects (publishing a book) last night YEAH and has a decent draft of her speech written finally. Today they’re off to a senior celebration but I think it may get rained out. Then back home for another cut at the speech. Graduation is Saturday and there isn’t anyone who has asked her to show them the speech which we all find fascinating. There’s nothing objectionable in it but the fact they would trust her with that says a bit.</p>
<p>PRJ—wow! congrats on d being selected for article, and for winning 1st prize in the essay contest–and oh my, what a poignant sentiment she captured…more reason to celebrate, and cry of course ;)</p>
<p>As graduation creeps closer I have less time on computer and more time stressing out and running errands. Section track and soccer game tonight. D2 losing it over group projects…hates them. My stoic and nonemotional D is distraught and overwhelmed trying to finish academics, sports, registers for college classes on Tuesday and is supposed to have training for summer job on Saturday. She completely broke down last night. Thinking about not having her work this summer as it would be for only 6 weeks. Hope it is the right decision. :(</p>
<p>S has aquaintances. No friends in this class. His closest aquaintance is this year’s val. He says this kid will be having a party. He thinks he <em>might</em> be invited, but gradutaion is in one week and he has not been.
All of his friends were in last year’s class. (again the val of that class and his buds) and he “hung out”, did overnights and partied some with those kids. No social life this year other than choir events and trips. But even last year his best “friend” did not invite him to his graduation party. I know on that one, his parents mostly invited adult relatives and friends of the family and had it catered, and their S had to keep his own guest list limited to other seniors with whom he was good friends.
No, I have a feeling there will be no invites this year either.
This is what happens in a small town when you are not the big guy on campus and you have not attended school with all of them for the entire 12 (13) years. This community is very “closed off” to percieved outsiders - in a friendly sort of way. They smile and make nice but do not really let you in, even after 10 years</p>
<p>Son hasn’t mentioned any party invites to me. He did say that he thought the joint grad party we had with his two best friends felt like it was more for them than him, but I think that was because the one person (girl) he wanted to come didn’t show.</p>
<p>Tomorrow is sign day at school - the counselors put yard signs in front of the school, each with the name of a college a senior will be attending. Great photo op!</p>
<p>Last night I thought of a whole category of people I had left out of the graduation announcements - the older people at church who remember Son as an infant and talk about how they babysat him at the choir retreats, etc. I had quite a few announcements left over, so I addressed a few to people in that category. I am so uncomfortable sending announcements as I fear that they are always perceived as gift requests, but I do think that some of those people who “knew him when” would want to know.</p>
<p>Just got a text from D2. One of her group project members didn’t come to school to hand in her part…due today. D2 was frantic but teacher said he wouldn’t ding the others. Whew! This was supposed to be a fun one quarter English class, the only regular English (as opposed to honors/AP) that she has ever taken. Teacher said it happens frequently. She is really a mess with stress! I hope this doesn’t carry over to stress about leaving for college! :(</p>
<p>ooh boy <em>I</em> even cried at your D’s newspaper column. How proud you must be of her - what great accolades she has received (and also given)</p>
<p>There are probably few things in school that cause as much stress and frustration as group projects. Everybody has a story. Why do teacher keep assigning them? I remember one night when D was in 6th grade, she was up so late because her group members were still emailing her parts of their project at 11 pm and she had to format and print it all. The very next day I dropped her off at the dance studio and there was a high school girl in tears…the girl was saying that there was a big group project and she was the only one doing anything.</p>
<p>My D isn’t in school today, even though they have a group project to do in class, because she is in pain. Her left big toenail has apparently gotten badly ingrown, and the problem has been exacerbated by the 6-7 hour rehearsals for the musical they’ve had the last 3-4 days. Dancing in 2-inch heels has put a certain strain on her toes. </p>
<p>They open TONIGHT. </p>
<p>She’s going to try to get through it, but she says she’s faking all the tap moves and basically "grimacing’ when they say “smile.” One of the solos features her en pointe. She didn’t rehearse it yesterday, hoping the toe would heal. It is SO disappointing after all the hours she’s put in, even if in someways it’s her own “fault.”</p>
<p>Would it help at all if you went to the dance store and bought either the gels or lambswool toe guards that ballerinas put in their toe shoes? Might provide a bit of a cushion. And give her Motrin.</p>
<p>Last night, when she got home at 9:30, I had her elevate her leg, we put ice on her toe, and gave her Aleve. We also used a trick I’d read about where you put a bit of oiled tissue under the edge of the offending nail to soften/raise it a bit. </p>
<hr>
<p>I just talked to her on the phone; she says it feels a lot better already. Right now there’s no real pain – of course she’s hardly walked on it for 12 hours. </p>
<p>So, we’ll give her some Aleve, and send her off with a hug and a prayer. Maybe it will be all right after all!</p>
<p>(Missypie, she does have some of that great gel which she can use …)</p>
<p>Facebook invitations abound here as well. However, we more or less insist on mailing even though between invites and postage, the cost is a killer!</p>
<p>But I think invitations are down this year. Not necessarily to son, but it’s a very small and tight knit class, but to us as parents. And part of me is actually thankful. We’ve also seen a number of “no gifts please” on invites this year. All very considerate if you ask me. And I look at it this way, if I am not invited they are cutting me some slack on the gift part as well. Then again, they may just not like me, but I aint gonna start changing now!</p>
<p>I HATE group final projects. There is always one slacker and always one who picks up that slack. Unfortunately, my kids are usually slack pickeruppers. So much so that younger D decided to do her final project is World Cultures solo this year. And then she was bummed that the project with three partners was so much better. I tried to explain there is a trade off… and she seemed relatively happy about that and only ruminated about it five more times on the way home. Hey, it’s progress. At least there weren’t tears! Until this year, I had completely forgotten how quickly a 15 year old can fall into tears.</p>
<p>And oh. I cry at tons of posts. I find myself to be an emotional wreck these days. I read about your kids and know how much I love mine and … well, I cry both happy and sad tears a LOT these days.</p>
<p>Ingrown toenail. This is what I would do (as I’ve had it happen). Soak the foot in epsom salts. Then… and I know I will have nurses screaming at me – but the pain comes from infection/pus in the area. It would be my position that you have to pierce the area where it is most swollen and squeeze out the crap to release the pressure. Soak again. Take tylenol. It usually isn’t the toenail, it’s the body trying to fight the foreign body that makes it hurt.</p>
<p>And I hope you D wasn’t the missing partner of NorthMN’s daughter!!</p>
<p>The last two years of HS, Son has asked if he can do almost every group project solo and has been granted permission to do so. Pretty funny coming from him, because I’m pretty sure that in middle school, he was the slug of every group.</p>
<p>Luckily, there is no pus yet. Just swelling, redness, tenderness … but apparently better this a.m. Of course, she hasn’t put on her dancing shoes yet. ouch.</p>
<p>Nope, not Nmn’s daughter’s partner! D is the kind of kid who always shows up to every group project having done most of the work. Last night when I suggested she skip this class (it is a cooking class, and so demands a lot of standing, today would be for 2 hours), she stiffened a bit, and then sent everyone else in the group a message on facebook saying, guess you’ll have to do this without me – and proceeded to tell them what to cook and where to get the recipes!</p>