Another path ....... the journey begins

[chopc]

Hello @321zyx @AvocadoPlant @bendmeoverbackwards @BigWoollyJumpers @Braveheart35 @calculatorqueen @ChimneyPot @Dobbyisahouseelf @Eastisup @jano69 @Majaso12 @MidLifeCrisis007 @NCTDN @Notagardener @OnTheBenchOfDoom @Parsonage63 @Pumpkintopf @Peaseblossum22 @quest1on @Peaseblossum22 @SATSmadness @SeasonFinale @Tenpastseven @Vargas @Xenia

Apologies for anyone I omitted to tag

Glad your DD is feeling better and congrats on the jazz team!

Onthebench, you mentioned about applying sooner the better, how do you know? Have they specifically said this? What is the official deadline?
Asking as "our" deadline is end of January and as mocks are in January was going to wait for this.

Oh good grief, apparently it’s time to start looking for Y2 accommodation! At least it is according to DD. They’ve barely been there 5 minutes!!!

@Notagardener the deadline is usually mid Jan for equal consideration, (it was extended last year), but it’s probably better and less stressful to have everything ready this term, and maybe have 2-3 definite choices even if you tweak the remaining ones depending on the mock results,
School should tell your DC what grades they are predicting for ucas, and these should be pretty much in line with the grades s/he has been achieving to date. The mocks are unlikely to change this substantially - unless your school are telling you differently?

You can submit the ucas form with just a couple of the definite choices for now and add to them later. But really it is better to get it all set up and sorted as it’s a fair bit of work and will detract from revising if left too late, or will be rushed if left until January to start.

@AvocadoPlant

Oh good grief, apparently it’s time to start looking for Y2 accommodation! At least it is according to DD. They’ve barely been there 5 minutes!!!

Hi there Avocado. Not been on for a few days, hope your DD is on the mend.

I was looking the other day, and saw that Exeter have some sort of rental fair thing in November. I assume that is when the stress ramps up again. Happy days!

It's crazy isn't it? Some students are still wobbling about whether to stick with it at all, let alone deciding on what they are going to do next year, and who they are going to share with.

That sounds fantastic @AvocadoPlant well done to her. I have 2 dancing dds (not my Bristol dd). Oldest is on a full time dance degree course. Youngest dd does a lot (8 classes/week) and loves it, not sure if she’s good enough to take it further though.

I’m going to visit dd! On the train to Bristol. I’m watching her in a show tonight and we’ll have a quick bite to eat beforehand. Just a short visit as I’ve got to leave early tmw morning to get back for a family event. So excited to see her! (And also to have a night in a hotel on my own 😉 )

Enjoy @bendmeoverbackwards

Ooh @bendmeoverbackwards have a lovely time.

We’re off down to Bristol next Saturday 😁

@bendmeoverbackwards I always loved the times DD was dancing, she made some wonderful friends and learned such a lot!
At 16 she went to full time PA school on the acting course. All the hours spent at dance meant she had great self discipline and time management skills. I used to chuckle watching her and her friends sat on the floor between classes/rehearsals getting their homework done!
How fantastic for your DD that she is able to do this on a full time course. What are her favourite styles?
Hope the show goes well this evening and you enjoy the hotel x

@BigWoollyJumpers hiya! hope everything is well with your DDs?
DD has just been told she’s been enrolled on too many options! So now has the choice of dropping an option having covered nearly half the work, or carrying on and then dropping 2 options next semester.
As she was finding one of the options a real struggle, and is looking forward to her optional module next term, she has wisely chosen to drop a module now, and write off the work done so far.

Honestly life is never simple! I wish the uni had spotted this error before she was struggling to keep up and cope with pneumonia

DS just messaged me to ask if he's been vaccinated against meningitis as apparently someone on his course has developed it and they've all had an email!
I was pretty sure I'd checked this over summer, but it had me refling through my files again and yes, phew, he has his MenAWCY back in 2017.

@AvocadoPlant DD’s had some great experiences and yes has made life long friends along the way (as have I). She did the festival scene for many years, that was hard work! Seems crazy now, all that driving, costumes, hair, make up for their 2 mins on stage! She did English Youth Ballet 5 times which she loved. Another highlight was meeting Victoria Beckham when she danced in the same show as VB’s niece! She WAS going to Birmingham to read English having decided she wasn’t good enough to get onto a dance course. However last year during lockdown she decided to audition. She chose 4 colleges and got 2 offers, 1 waiting list and 1 rejection. She’s now in her second year and enjoying it very much. She’s on the contemporary pathway but also does ballet, jazz and various options. Whether she’ll make it professionally remains to be seen, it’s a tough industry, but she’ll have a degree behind her in any case.

@bendmeoverbackwards what a lovely update, she sounds incredibly talented and loving what she does.

@Jng1 oh no!! Thank goodness your DS was vaccinated.
Honestly between freshers flu, covid, bronchitis, pneumonia and now meningitis I think our freshers are incredibly resilient to be dealing with it all!

@bendmeoverbackwards @AvocadoPlant

Loved reading about your DD dancing.

I also have a singing and dancing DD but she wants to do it for fun and performances rather than do exams etc. Her style if more Street although she is also good at Latin and ballroom. I don't think either of us have the dedication to take it further than just fun though

@Jng1 does your DS know what type of meningitis it is?

I know all our DC were vaccinated against ACWY but not against B which is not in the NHS schedule for their age group. My DS made two appointments at boots and they cancelled both for various reasons. Your message prompted me to remind him to get it done in Durham

Hope the affected DC makes a smooth recovery

[quote chopc]**@bendmeoverbackwards* @AvocadoPlant*

Loved reading about your DD dancing.

I also have a singing and dancing DD but she wants to do it for fun and performances rather than do exams etc. Her style if more Street although she is also good at Latin and ballroom. I don't think either of us have the dedication to take it further than just fun though [/quote]
Fantastic @chopc I did a bit of Latin and ballroom in my youth. Dd3 does street/hip hop, I love watching it, the movements are so fast!

Wow, our poor teenagers and their flatmates having to cope with freshers 'flu', pneumonia and now meningitis. I hope everyone is on the mend soon.

@AvocadoPlant My DD mentioned accommodation for 2nd year tonight and my first thought was 'Dear God please can we get through the first semester without anymore admin'. I've told my DD that she needs to be vocal if she wants to be included if others are making plans.

Loving everyone's news and how well they are managing, before we know it they will be home for Christmas!

@chopc yay- I think we have a dance troupe on the thread.

@Dobbyismyabsolutefav good advice regarding speaking up.
DS1 ended up being left out of his group as he had flu when they went out looking for a house. He ended up moving into a different house knowing nobody, it all worked out in the end, but really stressful at the time.

Having had various issues with looking forward places to live myself - in my head I figured if DS ends up in a pickle we will sort something out for him eg a studio or even back in halls. At the present time he is so enjoying getting to know different groups of people , it would be a shame to have to think about who / what to share next year

@AvocadoPlant That's my worry that my DD will miss out.

I hate groups at the best of time ...... brings back horrible memories of house hunting groups in central london. In the end I sorted myself out and got a room in a hostel in front of the British library ..... and actually ended up sharing with my best friend at the time who followed me there

Loving the dance degree.
My DT2 who took up singing/dancing/acting last year would love to do musical theatre. It is obviously very difficult to get into a good MT degree even if you have been doing it for years but she wants to try.
DT1 wants to go to the US like her sister. I am over in the U.K. with her today so she can take a US college application exam that she couldn’t take in Ireland because of our Covid rules.
DT1 found a school near Heathrow that is allowing her to take it. I just dropped her off and I think she is in shock. It is very different to her state school in Ireland. I am sure it is very different to U.K. state school too though.

I think I got the first slight sign of missing us from DD1 yesterday. It is family weekend in Brown so a lot of families visit and there are family events. Her best friend there is from Dubai so doesn’t have family there either. Actually most international students don’t have family there because most non Americans still can’t enter the US.
Another friends family are taking her out to dinner though so she isn’t alone.

THank you about the information to get our act together applying for 6th form. Older 2 dc were easier as they just stayed on where they were....

As for hunting for accommodation for next year, I remember hassling dc1 during his first term, but he wasn't bothered by it all and ended up getting it sorted around June/July time (in fairness I think his friends and parents put the effort in, he just agreed to it....). I think the tricky bit was that some friendship groups either had 4 or 6 people in it and the house was for 5.

"dance troupt of this thread". Can dc2 join, she did it just for fun but was 2 when she joined her danceschool and stopped just this year.

Oh yes, the nightmare of starting to look for next year's housing has begun!

DS texted me 'Feeling panicked. Ppl are beginning to group up for houses next year...'

Of course I went into 'calm down/ don't worry/ don't rush into anything/ there will be plenty of time, just start asking around and see if you can get together with some people you like etc'

I then got back a "no, the problem is I've been asked to be part fo two different groups (one course/ one current flatmates) and I don't know which to choose!"

@Jng1 does your DS know the type of meningitis his colleague has?