Suggestions for a university essentials box for DD please

[WillowtreeHouse]

I don't mean things like toaster/kettle etc, I mean little things that she won't think of and I actually can't think of right now either, which is why I'm asking here. 😂 So far I have a trolley token and pens and I'm doing this to take my mind off the fact that she's leaving home in a couple of months and I think my heart might actually break (through I'd never show her that).

Dd3 says a deep baking tray.

A tiny cheese grater

@endofthelinefinally I am so very sorry. Every parents worst nightmare.
I will add to that make sure they have had their booster MenACWY.

Lots of practical stuff suggested but for each of my DC I also did a little fun box.
Contained things I knew they would like, plus condoms. Printed photos of family and cat, shot glasses and a bottle of vodka, chocolate, some cash.

Yep, thirty years later I still keep a basic sewing kit and medical kit in my wash bag.

I took tablets so it wasn't so heavy

Condoms.

Are they confident in the kitchen? Could you write a collection of recipes for their favourite dishes at home and then include a box of the store cupboard basics needed to cook them? Salt and pepper, cooking oil, EVO, some simple spices or spice mixes. Soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, tomato purée, balsamic vinegar, flour and cornflour. Also foil, cling film Sandwich bags and clothes pegs or bag clips.

A book of stamps is handy to have, used very rarely but handy none the less. It's always nice to have a few generic birthday cards too. Drawing pins for notice boards.

Joining for ideas. If results day goes ok DD is going to a uni which is a 10 hour drive from home so getting stuff between home and college is going to be a headache. How does post normally work in halls can they get Amazon deliveries etc?

A decent pair of scissors
Sandwich bags
A torch and batteries
Condoms
A deck of cards

@endofthelinefinally so sorry
Nobody sends their child off to university to have them die. Truly a worst nightmare.

@Cathpot Most halls have Amazon lockers now, it seems.

@endofthelinefinally I am so sorry.

Love the fun box idea!

@endofthelinefinally I cannot imagine what you have been through I am so sorry.

A tape measure, that way they can take measurements for anything they might want to buy and wonder if it fits, or provide those measurements to you to buy something for them and deliver (depends how far away they are). Uno and a pack of cards because pretty much everyone knows how to play Uno.

Best advice I can give about packing is walk round your own house, what do you use day to day in all rooms? Nail clippers, tweezers, plasters, medicines especially for Freshers' Flu where you are in germ city. Herbs and spices and squeezy garlic in a tube, no one wants to be using a garlic press. Ds also had a mini slow cooker but then upgraded to a mini Instant Pot which is a pressure cooker and slow cooker in one but check the rules about kitchen equipment. It is usually banned but they allow rice cookers. He loves cooking from scratch.

A torch. Things you rely on having to hand to fix stuff- DS has a roll of gaffer tape, and a mini tool kit. First Aid Kit, over door hooks, favourite condiments - DS like mayo and sriracha with everything. Kitchen roll or magic cloths for spills. Paracetomol/hayfever pills/sore throat pastilles if that's something they have a tendency for.

@endofthelinefinally oh my love

Aside from the obvious: spongebag, plasters, extension lead, chargers, some basic life skills and common sense and an adequate allowance. There are shops in their uni towns and Amazon delivers, most campuses also have a campus shop.

Your hearts will not break. Once they have been home until late September, they will be more than ready to take their next steps.

I WhatsApped dd a picture the cat every day, and sent her a card regularly with things like a book mark, picture, pair of earrings, gift card in regularly.

You have let them grow now watch them go and be proud of their flight.

Oh and take pictures of their passport, driving licence, credit card, NI card, etc., ready for when they get their bag nicked.

Sainsburys/Tesco gift card

Nothing else to add to the box but my youngest is going this September. My heart will shatter even though I’ve done it all twice before. But at the same time I’ll be proud of her following her dreams

Bottle opener/ corkscrew, tin opener, sack of pasta, big jar of tea or coffee.

When I was a student I never wanted to spend on cleaning products; they seemed expensive. My mum started giving me a shoe box with wipes and a few bits in so I could at least clean my room and shared bathroom. Appreciated that!

Also a clothes horse thing that goes over a radiator or hooks for the bathroom if allowed, saved me from permanent damp towels.

Hardly anyone has tools or wants to buy a screwdriver for simple fixes so that was also helpful.

DD3 just walked in and said "You know that uni thread" me "Yes?" her "Kitchen scissors!"

so now we are buying her some (she goes into year 2 in September)

Choose good quality bedding together reusable sealable bags I find them a godsend.

My gave me, a Proper Sabatier kitchen knife, pepper mill, a cook book called "Poor Cook" I still have all 3, (there wasn't internet then)
Also a writing kit( paper, envelopes, stamps!

I also put DS1 on my Amazon account so he could order stuff directly.

Things he bought included a laundry bag and pictures for his room. I also sat down with him and did an online food shop to be delivered to his halls so he had food for the fist couple of weeks.

Plastic tubs to store food in the fridge so he could batch cook. Wooden spoon, spatula, fish slice, pizza tray.

I also put my bank card as a back up on his Apple Pay so even if he ran out of money he wasn’t stuck. He rarely used it (apart from the odd mix up when buying a burger at 2am 😂😂😂)