<p>We are also trying to decide what to do. Driving out from California would be a fun adventure for my son and his two younger sisters. It would mean he could bring more of his stuff, including his bike.</p>
<p>I wonder about having him fly out alone since my husband will have already gone with him for orientation. Having stuff shipped seems easy for us to do.</p>
<p>Or having a parent fly out and by stuff in Birmingham or Atlanta and then drive down from there. Not sure…any suggestions?</p>
<p>Same here parent56. I just told my son yesterday “if your friends can’t go home for a holiday or break feel free to ask them to come home with you…as long as they are good kids 
…I know it would break my heart if you were left at school because it was a short break and too expensive for you to fly home for a couple of days”. He will have his car and they can pile in! Atlanta should keep them occupied :-?</p>
<p>Where are you from in Calif. Just checked SW fares and they have $300 rt trip fares to Birmingham and you can check 2 luggages/pp. Also found out I can go to an optional work related conference in atlanta August 25 and maybe hubby and I can come out then to visit Krazie. . . hmmmmm decisions, decisions.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>there’s another Calif mom who posts here that has a son coming in the fall. I believe they are from central Calif.</p>
<p>mom of four…I am the one who goes to your church!! We should probably talk since we are coming from the same city!</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>Wow!! What a coincidence!</p>
<p>A girl from my high school started at Bama last year.</p>
<p>My middle son arrived in T town alone via airplane for Alabama Action August 2008. You can pull up some of my posting history for the play by play details of how my son’s move in went smooth. In a nut shell, I sent one large “Rubbermaid - Tough Neck” Storage Trunk (wheels on one end and molded handle on the other) at least one week prior to his arrival. I had our local shipping franchise (UPS or Fed EX) secure the lid with extra binding straps. I used duct tape to secure the lid. In this large storage trunk was various things he would need. The last item I packed in this trunk was an aluminum folding hand cart I purchased at Sam’s Club for $25 and short bungee cords to secure boxes to the hand cart. This came in handy because he had to transport other shipments from Paty Hall to Riverside North. Other items we purchased on line and had the merchant ship directly to Paty Hall included his printer (Staples), TV/Monitor (Best Buy) and Lamp/Waste Can/Desk Fan (Bed, Bath & Beyond). Most offered free shipping. Since BB&B did not have a store in T town, I negotiated the free shipping at the local store. I was able to use multiple coupons too. My son had the hand cart to move the boxes back to the dorm. I used Space Bags for all of his bedding, packed them in a soft side 36" roller duffle bag (cheep luggage from wal-mart). I had the local shipping agent send it Paty Hall as well. With the airlines charging for bags, I knew it would be one less bag for my son to juggle at the BHM airport. He left with enough clothes in a large pull duffle to get through the warm months, brought one carry on and is back pack. * If your student is receiving a computer as part of their Scholarship, you might receive a back pack too. </p>
<p>If you are sending off a son, they may not even want Mom to help set up their dorm. Mine just appreciated my help purchasing things that he never would have thought to pack. </p>
<p>I have got to run now, if you have more questions, I’ll be glad to help.</p>
<p>Where are you flying out of with Southwest? Having to fly out in July then August and possibly Sept I hope to find the deals (although I thinik S will want to veto Sept - that’d be almost like he stayed in CA.)</p>
<p>how much did you spend on shipping that stuff</p>
<p>Mom of four: If you guys can’t/don’t want to come and help me move in, Steph should come with me. (:</p>
<p>Krazie…did you post that to your own mom? Isn’t Mom of four your mom? LOL</p>
<p>Hah, yeah. But she isn’t home, so internet is the easiest form of communication. (:</p>
<p>Thanks, m2c. We connected. I’ve had trouble getting CC consistently in the evenings. It seems I have to log on early morning.</p>
<p>Hope you and yours are well.</p>
<p>I’ve been out of town since April 24 and just got home tonight so that is why Krazie posted the reply she did. SoCal Bama, southwest currently has fares for $300 r/t. We are trying to fly out of John Wayne. One good thing about SW, they still don’t charge for luggage.</p>
<p>I just flew on southwest yestarday from Ohio to BHM (one-way ticket was about $100.)</p>
<p>I meet my son for lunch at Bryant and went to his dorm to start packing his stuff that needed to get moved to a storage unit. My son has one more exam in the morning. After that, he gets cleared from the RA and we drive 11 hours north to Ohio.</p>
<p>In the original post, someone asked if we were there early can we move in early? I haven’t seen any response to that. Anyone know if Saturday move in is a possibility?</p>
<p>Saturday move in was a possibility last year. I remember getting a letter that had us go online and select a move-in time, where Saturday and Sunday options were available. That may change, but that’s how it was done previously.</p>
<p>Saturday move-in date should be available by request because they know that other kids have travel issues, too…such as the band kids, etc.</p>
<p>^^^OK, so I posed the move-in question to Fran Oneal, the Outdoor Action director, and here’s her response:</p>
<p>In all past years, its been strictly limited to the Sunday move-in date. The housing staff are not present prior to that. Can we help you in any way? Our student leaders can help with the physical move-in on that Sunday morning, if thats a concern.</p>
<p>Fran Oneal</p>
<p>Don’t know if this is any help, but last year, certain dorms or floors of dorms moved in on that Saturday and the other moved in that Sunday. For example, Tut and Ridgecrest South had students moving in on that Saturday. Wait until you receive information from housing (it came out last year in mid July) and then see what can be done.</p>