So, my baby bird has been home fulltime since Dec. 20. I have to admit, although I've loved having her home and we've done a lot of family activities, she has driven me a teeny bit mad with her messiness. Dirty dishes, dirty drinking glasses, dirty clothes everywhere. She'd clean up just enough if company was coming over, then revert.

Well, I figured, okay, she's been working full-time ever since she came home, I'll cut her some slack until after New Year's. So I planned to lay down the law tonight and force her to clean up. So guess what? Last night she had a frenzy of energy and began cleaning before I even brought it up. Her room is now clean, there's a row of bags ready to go to Goodwill of clothes she no longer wants (and she informed me she'll come home during lunch and get them), and the only mess is on our pool table which she has been using to sort things she wants to take back to college. I can live with that!

Just when you think they're hopeless, they can surprise you.

I love reading about others whose children are home for the holidays. Aren't you glad you kept your mouth shut and things turned out well? What year is your daughter and how far away from home is she?

All three of mine are here until they begin disappearing this weekend. I am enjoying every minute of it except between the hours of midnight and 3:00 AM. Does your daughter stay up late?

Between the three of mine, we have kids coming and going all hours of the day and night. Last night we had no boarders (only several boys hanging out in the basement who went to get Chinese at 11:00, then came back to eat, then left around 2:00) but the night before we had two of my oldest son's friends and my daughter's boyfriend. I've been doing nothing but sheets, pillow cases and blankets because I'm funny about them re-using the bed clothes. There's a comforter in the dryer as we speak.

I have such mixed emotions about them leaving...

Ohmygosh, yes, the baby birds bring their buddies. Not only friends, but the older sisters have been coming by too. They say "Hi" to me, then troop downstairs to hang out with their sis. It's nice that they get along, but oh the mess they leave. New Year's Eve, we had daughters #2 & #3, #2's husband, #3's best friend, and #2's best friend and HER husband. Considering we didn't know we were having ANY guests until about 7 pm, this was interesting. However, they provided their own food and (kinda) cleaned it up.

My daughter goes back to school this weekend too. I hope she has a better semester next time, this one was a challenge. She was sick with colds half the time, but won't have marching band to contend with now, just concert band - that may help. She goes to school in the mountains and it's COLD.

She's only 90 minutes from home or was - since a rockslide obliterated half the road, she has to take the other route - now two hours from home.

dejavu
the apple does not fall far from the tree....your baby bird knows her manners.
My daughter also cleared her room...would not have me there.Filled Goodwill bags too.She is not a student(in her thirties)but the great thing is she is not tempted to buy things to replace the Goodwill .She is clear that we all buy too much.She has said her drawers and cupboards have to close comfortably and she feels better NOT buying.
Mind you she has abundance of things.
Mounatin Ash

Well, today baby bird is sick. I think she might have the flu. Hope it's not gonna get me! (I had my flu shot, fingers are crossed)

Sorry to hear she's sick. Nice that she's home though so you can take care of her. We don't get many chances to do that these days.

Before our youngest two left for college this summer, they purged their rooms too. My daughter had clothes from middle school in there. You wouldn't beleive the stuff that came out of that room. It was unbelievable. My son's wasn't quite as bad.

Okay, baby bird is back to school. Already having a roommate problem. The roommate is a friend from high school but they had a lot of differences last semester about things like drinking (my kid doesn't but roommate does), smoking (ditto), and other problems. The roommate also did not have a car on campus so my daughter was always the chauffeur (never any help with gas money either). I urged my daughter to either get a new roommate or at least get more of a backbone but she's still a bit wimpy. Well, the roommate was going to bring her own car this semester so my daughter came up to college today with all her stuff to get her room in order and the roommate was going to come tomorrow.

Well at noon today, after we were already at the college, the roommate calls to say she didn't sign up soon enough for a parking space and now they're all gone. She wanted my daughter to drive back home tomorrow and get her. I put my foot down on that idea.

There are other parking spaces available, just not on campus and they cost a little more. The roommate needs to bring her own stinkin' car and I feel really strongly about this. She was just plain rude on a regular basis all last semester. I've known this girl for about 4 years and I've really lost my patience with her.

So we'll have to see what happens. When I left, my daughter already had a stomach-ache over what she's expecting will happen. GAhhhhh. All part of the growing experience of college but I hate it for her.

Oh how I remember those days when my girls were in college. No matter how you think a roommate situation will work, it often doesn't. Think about it...living in close quarters with someone when you probably always had your own room while living at home with family you loved and knew all your life. Talking on the phone in front of others, having to turn the lights off even if one of the them still has homework to do or wishes to watch TV. Getting sick in the same room with a healthy person and wanting your privacy and so on, and so on. It is soooo hard. Personally, I would hate it. I remember my girls calling home in tears over who didn't clean out the hot pot with the dried up noodles in it or who let her boyfriend come in and sleep over while she was in the other bed! Tons of stories going way back. One of my daughters had to go to the RA on the floor and then to Housing and be moved. It really can create a nightmare for all concerned. I wish your daughter the best...sometimes we think we know people but learn we don't!

I can't believe your daughter's friend wanted her to pick her up. That's not her responsibility. Where are her parents? Why can't they take her to school?

So far, my kids have lucked out with roommates. Our oldest son had the best roommate his freshman year. Even though his roommate transferred to another college, they have remained very good friends. They visit one another on breaks and in the summer. His second, third and this year he has lived with friends from the club baseball team so he has been blessed all around when it comes to roommates.

Our daughter has a roommate and a suitemate. Each suite has a room for two and a room for one. I am so glad my daughter didn't get the single. She is closer with her roommate, but they do include their suitemate in everything they do. So far, no major upsets.

Our youngest son is living with another freshman who is in a totally different major so they rarely see one another. They get along but have different sets of friends.

I still can't believe all three are in college. Wahhh...

My daughter's roommate's parents, as soon as she was in college last fall, left the state and moved to Florida. Apparently for them, out of sight, out of mind, and that's one reason why my daughter has always felt guilty if she turns her friend down for any reason, because the girl gets so little help or encouragement from home. I'd have a lot more sympathy myself if the girl ever showed any appreciation, like at least not bitching about no smoking in the car.

The roommate finally got a friend from home to drive her and arrived without any sign of hard feelings, so that's good, however she now doesn't have her car on campus so there will still be issues ahead, I'm guessing.

Today there's expected to be 2-3" of snow on campus! Hello, new semester!