“It’s the Most Wonderful Time of Year”

Just like the song says, it is the most wonderful time of year! I know that this phrase is usually saved for Christmas, but back to school really takes the prize.  As the mom of four, I’ve seen the gamut, from the first day of pre-school to graduation day of college. 

Let me just say the first day of pre-school is a lot easier than the first day of college, mostly because in pre-school they don’t “know everything” like they do in college and you get to choose the outfit and take the picture!

The other day, I was talking to a friend who is getting ready to send a niece off to college and was going dorm shopping.  Of course, I gave her the warning “you don’t really need what you think you do”, “she’ll never use that rain poncho”, “yes, got talked into one of those”.   My friend came home with way more than she mentally committed to.  I told her that when my son was going off for the first time I asked a seasoned “freshman“ what was the most important thing she brought to school?  Her answer surprised me; bed risers!  My reaction; what are those?

So, of course I took her advice and that’s what we got.  I must say they were a lifesaver and thought about buying some for every bed in the house.  What’s great about the risers is you can store triple what a dorm room offers in storage space. 

On my second go around I discovered the “thin” hangers and, just like the commercial said, it used one third of the space.  Bam, I scored again.  Between my bed risers, another set of four per leg purchased, and my hangers, I was the Rock Star in the building.  Everyone’s parents were coming down the hall to see what I had done to the room.   I was the talk of “Move-In” day.  It was very cool to have my 15 minutes on stage!  Even my son thought I rocked!

Since I’m not the first nor will I be the last parent to send their child off to college, I know there are lots of hints and ideas to share.  Got hints?  Let me know, working on the third son's applications as we speak.  Yikes, by the time I’m done, I’ll have to get geriatric advice on how to carry all their “precious possessions” up those multiple flights of stairs while using my cane. 

And don’t forget the quarters for the washing machine: I’ve paid to have dirty clothes flown home, just to pay to fly them back!