What special gifts do you send yout DD's off to Uni with ?

[Flossiefoo]

I don't mean practical things like dried pasta or condoms ha! ha! We've bought all the essentials ... I mean poignant or special ideas. Or little thngs that would make them smile when they start to unpack and get sorted ?
I've been mentally book marking little comments like ' Ooh i need a nice diffuser, cushion ...' etc

I've also bought a cool little calendar type flip book '365 messages to a daughter'. It contains a quote and illustration for each day of the year to remind her to be confident & proud. Sounds cheesy but they're short and sweet & nice thing to glance at & know how proud we are of her.

Any other ideas ?

I'm making up a little box for DS:

So far have:
Personalised mug
Bottle opener keyring
A couple of arimugami things I crocheted (related to his course)
I'm wondering about a small photo collage of family / pets

Fairy lights
door wedge
bottle opener
one of those wheat filled heat cushions- so much nicer than a hot water bottle
nice shower stuff, a shower caddy/basket thing
cheap flip flops for said shower
face packs
a “fake” candle for ambiance
pack of cards- good ice breaker for making friends
big box of sharing biscuits (as above)
extra long charging cable
head torch

I sent dd off with a box with condoms, various toiletries, toilet cleaner, a Just Eat card and an Asos voucher. She said it was just what she needed 😆

Im making up a homesickness box. It’s going to have various envelopes/wrapped items in,
eg “ for when you can’t be bothered to cook” - Just Eats voucher
”for when you need pampering” - face mask, hair treatment sachet, nice nail varnish
“ for when you need some me time” - nice chocolate bar, special tea bags, nibbles”
” in case of emergencies” - £20 note

Ive bought a box from IKEA and will make it up, fill it and slip it under her bed when she moves in to halls.

Wetherspoons voucher 😀

These are fab ideas. I love the envelope box @Alsoplayspiccolo !

I made DD2 a chocolate cake and hid it in the car before we took her to uni. She said it was the best gift ever as it was a great ice breaker in halls. Everyone wanted a bit of homemade cake!

Aww this is lovely! My little SIL is off in September, stealing this idea.

When I went off to uni many moons ago my mum wrote me a lovely little card and a pot plant. I still have both!

Absolutely love this idea @Alsoplayspiccolo Definitely going to do something similar for DS!

Me friend's DD is all about things being practical so her mom got her a custom desk pad calendar with family photos and a table lamp that has different light settings. It was decorated with handmade drawing of their cat, so came out both useful and sentimental. So think of personalized stuff that has the glimpses of something familiar and would feel like home.

These are lovely and making me feel very emotional , and my child is only 10! 😃

First year, lots of lovingly wrapped parcels with hand written personalised gift tags, included face masks, magnets, pencils, fairy lights, mug in a cup, coffee vouchers etc.
Second year - a large bottle of vodka 🤷‍♀️

I sent my dd care packs for her sore throats with Strepsils, hot blackcurrant drinks for sore throats, chloraseptic throat spray, a couple of sachets of Aero hot chocolate.

My DD would 🙄if I did any of these. Especially the condoms!

Home made traybake (great icebreaker!), door wedge, groceries for the first few days, pillow spray, condoms, monzo card, phone charger.

You don’t think she would be secretly a bit chuffed though, even if she never said so??

These are lovely! My mum got me a cheesy book with quotes about mothers and daughters, but she’d annotated specific bits that were relevant to things we’d done or conversations we’d had. I still keep it in my bedside drawer.

I would have died of shame if she’d got me condoms, though, however useful they’d have been 😅

Don't your adult DC have the gumption to pack a phone charger or door wedge?

Why condoms - it's a bloody weird thing for a mum to pack!

We're going back a looooong time, but when my Dad dropped me off at university, he helped me move in to my room in halls and made sure that I was happy with everything. Then he gave me some money and left.

I was so grateful when I compared myself to the people whose parents just hung around for ages like my Mum would have ...

You don’t think she would be secretly a bit chuffed though, even if she never said so??

I've just asked her.
"God mum - just no!"

i don’t get it. i didn’t get my DD’s anything they ordered a few things for their rooms in their own taste which they wanted not what I thought they’d like which I paid for, I speak to them about every other day so they know i’m thinking of them
When my siblings and I went to Uni we didn’t get anything from my parents (and certainly didn’t expect/want anything) just got on with it

I'm very close to my dd and although going to uni was obviously a big deal for both of us, some of the stuff on here is just cringeworthy!!
Yes I got her a little card (with a very soppy message!) and ensured that she had plenty of money for her first week but really is there any need for any of the clutter/tat that's being suggested on here?
Some of the suggestions are beyond controlling!

I kitted her out with all her essentials eg kitchen stuff, bedding etc and did a big food shop with her too but my god on what planet would you give your adult dc condoms?!
Seriously? 😳

Let them buy their own diffusers, fairy lights, throws etc If they actually want them...
I feel suffocated for some of these freshers just reading some of the replies!!

Thank goodness!
A reply I can actually relate to 😂

When I went to Uni the landlord of the pub where I had a summer job gave me a three cases of short dated beer to take with me. (Rolling Rock- not sure they still makes it). Now that's a fresher's week present!

I’ve bought all of her necessaries, bedding, kitchen stuff etc and I just planned to give her a bottle of Apple Sourz and 6 shot glasses to help her make friends and that’s that. It’s costing me a fortune as it is never mind various envelopes with stuff in!