<p>Do any parents of recent plebes or midshipmen have any advice for when to arrive for Plebe Parent Weekend? Like always, my parents are worried about plane tickets and hotel reservations for that too. Would you advise arriving a few days early to explore, too?</p>
<p>Go at least a day early so you can crank up the air conditioning in your hotel room and get comfortable. If parents haven't been to the area before, there is great sightseeing in Annapolis and certainly Washington, D.C. They can also wander around the Yard without making any contact with the plebes (big no-no), and shop in the midstore. Most parents attend PEP at the crack of dawn, so you really have to arrive the day before you are reunited with your plebe. It's all just an amazing experience.</p>
<p>Plan to arrive on Thursday. There will be a whole variety of information tables set up in Dahlgren with information on everything from their medical care, food service in King Hall, various academic majors, sports, etc. They will answer many of your questions. You can shop in the Mid Store and buy many nice things for yourself as well as some items that your Plebe may need (printer, iron, ironing board, etc). Just don't wave or yell to your Plebe if you encounter them on the Yard. They will get in trouble for that. Do not miss the 6 AM PEP on Friday morning. It is so impressive so see them all working out and when you do see your Plebe, you will be quite surprised at the physical change. All in all, it is a terrific weekend.</p>
<p>thankyou both so much! my parents are glad to get the info. they are both starting to get pumped up about me leaving. Are anyone else's parents not flying out wiht them for I-day?</p>
<p>liz - you flying out of St. Louis? My parents are going with me, we're going to night before and staying in a hotel. Maybe we'll meet in the airport!</p>
<p>marmadillo--that would be awesome!!! i think i am flying out of st. louis, but my parents have yet to purchase the tickets. if i am, i will be sure to contact you and maybe we could meet that day before we leave for brunch or breakfast or something. do you have tickets yet? (if you do, i could have my dad see if he could get tickets on the same one)</p>
<p>Nope, haven't made tickets yet - we'll probably fly Southwest on the 27th.</p>
<p>My son got a call from his congressman on Saturday -- He's IN! It's his first choice so I want to make hotel reservations for dates I need to be up there. We're from NC so it's only a 5 hour drive. Any idea what date and time they report? Do parents just drop them off and leave? Thanks</p>
<p>Yahoo, jtipton. Congratulations!</p>
<p>Hi, jtipton and congratulations! Your mid's report time and company information will be sent to you with their Permission to Report Packet. </p>
<p>For I-Day there is an entire day of activities for parents after the new midshipmen disappear into Alumni Hall. The Superintendent (Supe) spoke with the parents, and the Academic and Athletic Deans gave their perspectives. They even answered questions and set the parents at ease. </p>
<p>Then, at around 5 p.m. there is the swearing-in ceremony, accompanied by a fighter jet flyover and then a 20 minute visitation time where you visit with you plebe before they again disappear, this time for good, into Bancroft Hall. There are differing opinions on whether to accompany your mid to I-Day, but for our family, there was no other choice. We loved it and relish the memories.</p>
<p>Of course, if you are only able to make it to one of the two, I-Day or PPW, then go to PPW. The Plebe Parent Weekend is highlighted by the reaffirmation ceremony, where the mids are again sworn in. I doubt I could convey the depth of emotion that is felt when the plebes march in, and, again, take their oath. Suffice it to say, it is awe inspiring, as are all of these young men and women. </p>
<p>Enjoy the ride! It is definitely a roller-coaster! There is a wealth of experience here if you have any questions!</p>
<p>Welcome aboard jtipton! Congratulations to you and your child! Don't forget to send an email listed earlier in this post if you would like to stay in the loop with a group of us parents hoping to connect at Parent's weekend in August.</p>
<p>For all parents - here are 3 great websites to visit - explore all their links. I spent the entire weekend reading everything posted and got alot of questions answered. Enjoy!</p>
<p><a href="http://www.usna-parents.org%5B/url%5D">http://www.usna-parents.org</a>
<a href="http://www.napcnt.org/index.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.napcnt.org/index.html</a>
<a href="http://www.usna.org%5B/url%5D">http://www.usna.org</a></p>
<p>Peskemom - Thanks for the websites -- lots of great info and photos!</p>
<p>Thanks for all the info --I will check them out. I have made reservations for August, just not sure about when to make them for I-day. But I guess we'll find out soon enough. He doesn't graduate till June 10, so it's going to be a short summer.</p>
<p>You will need to arrive in town on June 27. I-Day is June 28 and report times begin quite early in the morning. You want to make sure that you have arrived and are ready to go by the night of the 27th. Anything can happen if you try to cut it too close, plane delays/cancellations, car trouble etc. It is too stressful of a time when you get to that point to have travel issues to worry about.</p>
<p>Great-- that is what I needed to know--I made reservations for the 27th & 28th. I am thrilled to have one going to school within driving distance from home. My other is out in CA and it's impossible to pop over for a weekend even if I fly (we're from NC). I've been reading about what to expect for plebe summer -- and it scares the heck out of me although he's fine with it. He runs about 5+ miles or so a day even in the summer so I guess he'll be in decent shape. I'm more worried about the structure of the days, but I'm sure they get used to it.</p>
<p>where in CA is your other child?</p>
<p>He's at Harvey Mudd College in Claremont -- It's about 45 min east of LA--loves it out there and happy as can be with the school--but hopefully he'll come back east for grad school.</p>
<p>Claremont Consortium offers one of the best undergraduate experiences in the United States. Sounds like a smart kid! It's funny because the daughter of our Justice Dept. friends who live in Fairfax, VA, attends Claremont College, and my California mid is on the opposite coast. The girls attended elementary school together and were in the same Girl Scout troop for years.</p>