<p>Wow, so, the whole college app process has been a two year thing for us, because my son applied to one school as a junior before deciding to do his senior year before attending college. So, two years of applying and essays and working on recommendations and filling out financial aid forms -- and now we're done. He's been accepted to his dream school, with full aid, and that's that. He's got six weeks worth of high school and 4 months (and 11 days) until he leaves for college. </p>
<p>So, for those of you finishing up this process, what are you doing next? Do you stop reading/posting to CC? Do you spend the summer doing some sort of idyllic family vacation? Are you drawing up plans to convert your college-bound child's room into a den? Spending all summer shopping for the dorm room? Doing it all over again with the next child?</p>
<p>Stop posting??? :eek: Bite your tongue, woman! Internet addictions don't just go away - you have to actively seek treatment.... ;) What do you do next? You start worrying about other things, like banking, and college roommate issues, and college drinking, and whether you should attend parent weekend or not, and.... you keep reading and posting, because grad school or post undergrad options are just around the corner.
I've been here 4ever! Started fall DD's junior HS year ('02), just finishing up DS's senior HS year ('07), figure I'll be here as DD explores graduate opportunities next year, and so on...</p>
<p><em>laugh</em> You know what? When he spent one summer at Stanford, we had to buy him all those things! I got the sheets, the comforters, the laundry bags, the whole shebang. I made sure I got things that were well made and would last, and they've been put away for him. So I'm out of shopping to do! <em>grin</em></p>
<p>There will be no stopping of the posting. :)</p>
<p>After son #1 graduated, yes, we took our dream family vacation. Then everybody went back to work and I spent the summer stewing over the minutia of his moving out. (Sheets, towels, dorm refrigerator, blah blah - none of it mattered to anyone except me.) </p>
<p>Son #2 is graduating this year. However, as usual for second kids, things seem much more laid back for him. I couldn't care less what sort of sheets and towels he lines up for school. LOL ;)</p>
<p>,You get a false sense of reprieve. You stretch, try not to gloat, have that cocktail.</p>
<p>Then, if you're anything like yours truly you start obsessing about another set of details: room assignments; room mates; move-in logistics; dental, medical and hair appointments(!); transportation home at breaks; hotel room for move-in days......I don't remember it all.</p>
<p>--all of which seems pretty silly in retrospect. But I had to come down slowly; even heroine addicts get methadone.</p>
<p>Since DD has not DECIDED YET (she refuses to give an answer until later in April, after another visit to her #2 choice), I will be planning a small family 50th birthday party and then DD's graduation party, all the while doing research into HELOC vs. refinancing vs, Plus loans, if we're indeed decide to go that route. Hey wait a minute, I didn't have a headache before, now I've got a doozy....Thank God the taxes have been done for months.</p>
<p>mafool: Honestly, I understand the methadone! Son says that living with me has been like having a full time college admissions counselor on call 24/7 -- working on admissions with him has been my "job" for the past two years. So now all that work paid off, which is good, except, now I don't have that thing that has been many hours a week for months on end. <em>grin</em> It's hard to switch gears!</p>
<p>Does it ever end? ... We spent 2 yrs. working with Kid #1, stopped for 2 years, then 3 yrs. working with Kid #2 (they're 5 years apart). During the 2nd yr. working with #2, we were somewhat involved (ok, too much involved) with #1's law school app process. #2 is now researching grad schools. #1 is finally done, employed, and about to get married. Where's the thread on how to help our grandkiddies get access to college when it will cost $$$$$$? In the meantime, for the 26th year, I'm listening to my students' sharing of disappointments, surprises, and their decision-making angst. Stimulating addiction. Requires a endless supply of duct tape. I'm in weenie's camp - there won't be any stopping of reading and posting. :) There's one thing we don't have to do anymore - dorm/apt shopping! Yea! Just a grocery run when we visit.</p>
<h1>2 is just a HS sophomore right now, so I've got a few years to go. And then it's going to be interesting to see what happens with colleges when the Echo Boom is over.</h1>
<p>You've still got XL twin sheets, luggage, plan tickets, cell phone plans, allowance or no allowance, home sickness, those first test, internships, grad/professional school and the list goes on. </p>
<p>And we are not even going to start talking about your great group of cyber friends that you connect with and the fellow CC parents you can't wait to meet at drop offs. </p>
<p>You've got people in the cafe getting stuff of their chest, checking their man cards at the door, drinking and sharing stories about sons from hell on sinners alley (the adventures of slugg's evilneighbors are worth staying for).
You may never get off of CC.</p>
<p>I thought I was "done" after having a son who graduated hs in 2002 and a daughter in 2005, but then my daughter unexpectedly was unhappy at her college and successfully applied to transfer after her first year. So there was a whole other round of requesting transcripts from her h.s. and college, recommendations from her old h.s. teachers, SAT scores, essays, etc. (By the way, many of these same items are also required for studying abroad and internship applications, so it really never ends.) Now that she is settled in a school which she loves and my son has graduated and working, I felt like it was time for me to decide what to do next. </p>
<p>I never had time to do volunteer work (other than the normal stuff related to my kids' schools) while my kids were at home, since I work full time and had a lot of running around to do with my kids. I am now planning to do ESL tutoring for adults through a local literacy program. I have already taken the training and am waiting to be assigned to a student. I am a little nervous, as I am not a trained teacher, and I hope that I am able to be a successful tutor. On the positive side, my daughter, who is usually quite critical about most things that I say and do, told me that it was a great idea, and that I would probably be good at it since I was so good at helping her and her brother with their homework :) That was a nice vote of confidence!</p>
<p>MotherofTwo- exactly! The shock of the unexpected unhappiness at the first choice school and being thrown back into the application process again!
The other thing you do is you make sure you are there to "help" every high schooler with whom you cross paths. You don't have to know them- you might meet them on an airplane or at church. You are the EXPERT and have to share this knowledge! :)</p>
<p>Remember to check in annually to discuss things like Finaid renewals!! Oh...travel back and forth, having your college student at home, where to buy cheap textbooks, how to navigate Craigslist, where to stay and how to travel...or even if you should go...to parent's weekend, preparing for graduation and...tada...GRAD SCHOOL applications.</p>