2017 seems so long ago, now they're fledgling graduates.

[latedecember1963]

4 years since A Levels and the wait for August and confirmation of where our chicks were about to fly the nest to.
It's been 4 years that has sprung a few surprises along the way, not least this lovely series of threads.

I'm through the refund pain barrier Xenia, but only just, so still a bit raw. The expiry date doesn't seem to matter provided you still retain the card. I've lost £215 on each cancelled trip so could be a lot worse - but the hours spent on the thing!
I've decided to go out with a bang next August with two weeks at the original much re-booked farmhouse in deepest Provence (we've been once before and Madame is the height of honesty and good grace, quite apart from having a beautiful second home). But after that I've said to each that it would be fun (for me) to take smaller numbers to a place of mutual choosing. My second daughter has opted for Lwow, my eldest daughter for.... French Polynesia. I haven't yet had the conversation with the others so who knows where they'll all elect.
Very exciting, the grandbabies - mine are not there yet.

Good luck with the holiday refunds. We claimed back for our cancelled trip last year to New Zealand. It took six months but we did get the money back onto our credit card. I chased a couple of times and then left them to it.

I have said (as I did last year) I will sue if I am not refunded within the statutory 14 day period for package holidays. Last year that results in a repayment within 3 weeks so I am hoping for something similar this year.

On holidays with one child, after each of my older child's babies were born she and I went abroad for a week with the then newish baby when that daughter was on maternity - just the 3 of us. Daughter 2 with baby due in Dec has reminded me of that so it is probably likely she and I will go away with the baby next year in the spring abroad but I am not booking in advance this time. Only last minute booking seems to give an iota of certainty.

Anyone else's DCs still awaiting results? Both my towns , DS waving for his undergraduate degree Maria be his twin sister has not handed in her Masters thesis yet

Both my twins I mean ! Need to wear my glasses

Liking your posting style @Carriemac My DS is waving Maria too and still working on his masters.

DD bought my car off me today, as we've planned for a while, I'll get DHs old one instead. DH has sorted out the insurance and transfer of ownership stuff. They went out today - while still on my insurance with insured no-claims - for them to see if the park assist really works. I've never used it as the all round sensors were sufficient for anywhere I wanted to park. She, however, may need to put it in small spaces in Cambridge- though their house does have an off-road parking space somewhere, and it's rather larger than the driving instructor's car was.

@Carriemac

Anyone else's DCs still awaiting results? Both my towns , DS waving for his undergraduate degree Maria be his twin sister has not handed in her Masters thesis yet

Dd at Bristol is still waiting for her degree classification and is hoping it will be soon.

Good luck for those waiting for results. In a sense one of my twins is because he has the resit in August but the result will not be out until Oct. Luckily it does not stop him starting his next course in September.

The CEO of the holiday company sent me a personal email (or at least it sounded personal) in response to my legal letter and apparently the refund will indeed be with me in 14 days (which was not what I was told by telephone so perhaps the legal letter worked). Our holiday destination is going on the green list we noticed yesterday. I am laughing as I type as it is so hard to plan things and the holiday company had had so many people moving from our week to other weeks it was not viable to open up that week.

I'm sure being a lawyer helps a lot in these situations, Xenia! You're taking the situation with such good grace - such a pity after all the work and planning you and goodbyestranger put into the planning for your families.

It was my daughters who were keenest and had us book yet again in January 2021. I am sure they will be fine. I think one is going to France this week (I think) and the other has Spain for the postponed honey money in August if that goes ahead.

I don't usually play the lawyer card as it can back fire and as there have been some dreadful examples of pompous men ( it is usually men) on trains saying to some poor ticket inspector - do you know who I am or I am a lawyer.... it was just the holiday companies generally have been slow with full refunds I just speeded up the process with the special delivery letter to head office on my legal notepaper.

I was quite pleased the son with the resit is considering doing it early in the exam window not the last day so he is then totally free after that for rest of the summer. It sounds like a good idea . I think it may be a 7 or 14 day window to do it in.

Good luck to your DD @bevelino - my BFFs son is also waiting - I think they said 22nd?

Ds had his virtual , online graduation yesterday....basically a pre recorded YouTube video with the Uni dignitaries on a dais in hall where ceremony should have been and so one from faculty reading out list of names with photographs of students
Bit of an anticlimax after 4 years study and 16 months of poor Uni experience (3 months of which he was entirely on his own in student flat , 350 miles from home) his dsis graduated from same Uni 5 years previously and the contrast between the experiences was so sad
Anyway we celebrated as best we could with bubbles and a beautiful cake made by his dsis.
He has no idea what he's doing next - been totally put off any postgraduate study until at least next year

DS gets his masters results next week. He had completed his thesis early - one of the advantages of his time at home with less partying than usual. His job doesn’t depend upon the results but it will contribute towards his professional qualifications

Crikey Parker, he must have pressed on!
DDs deadline is sometime towards the end of Aug I think!

I'm an old hand at writing to CEO's even though I'm not a pompous man and don't usually say do you know who I am. I once took a cross letter by hand to the top floor of Harrods to give to Mohamed Al-Fayed, past all the Don't Enter signs, and got a kitchen, curtains and full dinner service from him plus a very gracious letter of apology. More recently, after eighty e-mails to 'Customer Service' at Fired earth i got so fed up I e-mailed the eighty first email of the thread to the CEO and got a whole set of brand new kitchen surfaces.

To be fair, both companies were contractually in the wrong, very clearly, it's just that 'Customer Service' so often doesn't get it or is simply dead set of fobbing customers off, in wars of attrition.

Lousy typing again.

..."honey money"... should have been "honeymoon"....
Son who has the paralegal job has been pinged by the app for the 2ond time in 10 days. It is not legally binding to isolate but he is doing it yet again so will at home until Wednesday now. Each time he has had 2 or 3 tests all negative done that week already and had one jab and the chance he has covid is absolutely tiny. At this rate 1m people will be at home on full pay and the nation on its knees due to the app.

@bigTillyMint - DS decided on the subject for his thesis as soon as he registered for the masters course. He had agreed it with his advisor before Christmas.

We’re at a wedding in Bath this weekend - rescheduled from last year - the weather is perfect. It’s been lovely catching up with everyone. I got pinged a couple of weeks ago and isolated. It was when we were out for dinner at a local restaurant.

Dh and I have uninstalled the C19 app because it kept draining our phone batteries.
I have to take LF tests on Weds and Sun each week and haven't had a positive result since January even though I work in a school.
DH works from home and we are both very careful about social contact because we are carers for my mum and MiL who are 83 and 88. We are also both doubled vaccinated.

I have LF tests each time I volunteer at the vaccination centre and we’ve been advised we will need a negative to go into the office.
Our trip to France to see DD is off due to the change to red status and DH can’t do any isolation time because of work as they already have one GP isolating as he was pinged and the practice nurse is at home with her DS as his school bubble burst.
My niece has saved the day as we’re now going to Luxembourg. She has sorted out some amazing accommodation for us. My family in Belgium will drive there and DH, DS and I will fly over - phew!!

That's great parker, flexibility is the key to freedom!

Delighted to report the Leeds results are out and DS got a first!

Congratulations to your DS @Carriemac!

@Parker231 phew!