Early days at uni 2017

[HSMMaCM]

How is everyone settling in?

DD starts on Wednesday.

DD just sent a picture of her dinner. She had chicken, korma sauce, rice and naan bread.

Mangles? Luxury! (Coincidentally I had cause to mention the Four Yorkshiremen on another thread today)

I really want all our children to be ok! It is so emotional reading about the effort they are making.I hope it all comes good. Ds is sharing with 3 girls he is going to cinema on main campus tonight getting the hopper from his campus....on his own. He has cooked himself pasta as he said he wont have time to eat in canteen. He went to a party with the girls and said it was good but he isnt really a party animal.i am so proud of him getting out there and doing things. I might bring home washing tomoz and we are 1 hour and 30 mins away so i win!

We've had dinner photos too. We are calling her nigella 😁

Onemandown My DS missed the halls meet up as he felt unwell on the first night and went to bed. He left his folder with all his important documents in my car and I drove home with them. He's a bit shy too (not social anxiety but quiet and prefers his own company) so he's not gone to any social things yet. So your DS certainly isnt/wont be the only one who misses stuff and I am sure all the uni's are used to herding freshers who've missed/lost/messed up stuff.

Anyway... DH dropped her off this morning, nice room though the 'kitchen' is tiny (I think she knew that, they're better after the 1st year). I think she had a couple of hours to unpack before her thing started ... DH is under the impression its maths from 12 till 9pm but I saw the schedule and they do meal and tea breaks.

On the competitive excessive parenting front... for reasons which apparently make sense to DD and DH but slightly elude me, he's going back this weekend with her bike (and also will by then have acquired a mattress topper, and earplugs, plus the still-drying woolly...)

That looks ... er tasty HSM

I do sympathise with all those students who aren't party animals. DS2 is in his 3rd year and went back early for freshers as he so loves to party. I think DS1 on the other hand is putting a brave face on things - especially having lost his wallet, coming down with freshers' flu (he thinks) and having to cope with a not very comfy bed (I flouted Mumsnet rules and didn't send him off with a mattress topper).

My mum stumbled on a very novel way of dealing with my initial unhappiness at university (in the dark ages you understand). She was so stressed by my regularly sobbing down the phone that she went to the dr to get something for her nerves. Dr's DD was at the same university, in the year above. He got her to visit me and check up on me regularly so he could report to my poor distressed mother that, yes I may be crying on the phone to her, but actually the rest of the time I was giving a very good impression of having a ball!

I've tried to explain to DS2 that it is possible to feel anxious/overwhelmed AND happy/excited at the same time.

I am going to drive 3.5hrs to see mine for absolutely NO REASON other than I want to see him.
Is that ok with everyone?

Obviously, I won't go too soon - I was thinking about 3wks time.

This thread is for support and I'm glad everyone here is in agreement that however we choose to support our DC is upto us (and them, of course)

(I stopped myself from mentioning vegetables)

anxious/overwhelmed AND happy/excited at the same time. - yes. I think this probably describes a lot of them.

DS has learned to use the laundry, is buying and eating vegetables and hasn't left any of his belongings at home by mistake.

Bugger - I haven't left myself any excuses to need to go and visit him in a week or two. I blame MN for its comprehensive packing lists and good advice, damn you.

DS's computer broke after two days. DH is a bit of a computer whiz so we drove up to collect it, brought it home for a few days and took it back mended. Two and a half hour round trip each time. We managed to time it at lunchtime and took the boy out for a feed .

I have been unable to avoid mentioning vegetables in texts to DS.

Or clean pants (in a have-you-done-any-laundry-yet context).

His mantra to me now is "Don't Worry".

Competitive clingy parenting? I bought myself a new iPhone just so I could bribe DS home with the offer of my old 6S...

Ah, you're good Soup, very good...

I told ds I'd visit and take him for lunch (about 2 hrs each way whether by train or car). He asked me today when I was going. Not sure if it would helpful for me to go soon or not. Don't want to keep pulling him back to home emotionally, but if he wants me to go ....

I felt a bit like that stone. DS is adamant that he doesn't want to come home only because he is worried he won't want to go back again.

But ten days in he seems comfortable for us to go to him and then leave again. He has also asked his grandparents to visit.

Soup that wouldn't work. My phone is older than hers. I could of course buy her a new one and then I could have her old one .....

Ah, you clearly didn't plan far enough in advance for this moment :o

TBH, I wasn't going to tell him, I was going to just give it to him when he came home of his own accord. He sounded so down about his wallet though I thought it would cheer him up.

DD seems to be settling in nicely. She facetimed last night and looked tired but happy. She was excited to have seen Grayson Perry in her department building (an exhibition of his starts there today)!

She's getting to grips with cooking which was a worry for her - many texts talking her through stuff, but she's done curries, stir fries, and apparently her aubergine parmigiana tasted exactly like mine!

Some friends had come down for a festival day at the weekend and they had a great time. Her boyfriend is visiting this weekend but has to be back in Yorkshire on Sunday as his band is playing in Leeds. They only got together recently, although they've known each other as friends for a couple of years. He seems lovely, but the timing isn't great. Me and her dad managed long distance for three years when I was at uni though, so if it's meant to be they'll find a way.

She is finding her flat mates' messiness in the kitchen difficult - she sent outraged pictures of the mess - I've seen far worse in student places! I'm missing her, but happy for her too. I'm proud of the lovely young woman she's become.

Classy, soupy

Some impressive cookery there, fuster.
*
Horse -* nope, but you've got a couple of weeks to think up a pretext.

I'm peeved because I had a cast iron excuse - attending a training course, my company office is in the science park - but they've decided I should do it remotely. Humph.

tobee (was it... too much chilli?) - send them off to a poundshop for some tubs. Put the chilli in freezer. They will appreciate having a 'ready meal' when they don't fancy cooking.

When ds went, a friend gave him an old slowcooker they had spare, and he used it a lot to make chillis, soups, stews etc, then freeze in portions and not have to go and shop or cook when it was raining he didn't feel like it.

dd told me she bought sausages for lunch today but then realised she'd have to have sausages 3 days in a row- I think she's beginning to realise it is a bit more difficult shopping to feed one person than it is shopping to feed family. She's going to see if she can galvinise people in her flat to take turns to cook a joint meal a couple of times a week.

Can she freeze the sausages Back? Do they have a freezer?

Errrol can't you do it remotely, but pretend it was in the science park? They'll never know

I actually work in DS uni city but it is a bugger of a commute (4 hours a day) and I gave my notice in a couple of weeks ago for a new job nearer home. I'm almost regretting it now.