2017 seems so long ago, now .....

[Xenia]

Continuation of our previous thread.

@Needmoresleep they're all big lads too sounds like whatever the outcome your DD has a good plan. Things have a way of working out .

My twins received their official graduation photographs yesterday (2020 graduation, ceremony 2022) so progress is being made for making up for the pandemic when things were on hold.

..actually that was wrong - graduation was 2022, degree was 2020.

@Needmoresleep @Carriemac Dd is lucky that one of her good friends from uni is also in London - a different deanery but they live close enough to see each other regularly. Plus her flatmate is also an F1. They didn’t know each other before but had a mutual friend. Their experiences have varied a lot - DD’s friend had longer hours & less support in a more suburban hospital than Dd did in a central London one. Joining the mess room committee seems a established way to get to know colleagues outside work.

Snap. I expect they were on the same day as my DD.

Probably or similar - one was on 8th April and the other 14th - we had to go to Bristol 2 weeks in a row. I was getting very familiar with it by the time of the second one......

It is all revision here so nothing interesting to report.

Xenia, fame at last mol.im/a/10854049

Thanks. I hadn't seen that.

Just catching up, this thread had dropped off the end of my list.
Such a shame about Sri Lanka Haff, but hopefully Tanzania will work out well.

Needsmoresleep - you're right about landlords quitting the rental market. The first place DD looked at had >100 people interested in it. Fortunately they've found somewhere in a village outside Cambridge - similar commute for her, right next to a train station for him, and also can use the trains to get into the town for social events &hobbies. And instead of being a shoebox it's got 3 bedrooms (I expect they'll use at least one as a home office), a driveway (swoon....) and frankly an excess of garden! So, hopefully the apparent setback of being kicked out of somewhere they liked will turn out quite positive.
They're off on Eurostar to Amsterdam for the long weekend, which seems like an excellent idea. We're a bit ambivalent about the local street party, I expect we'll enjoy it on the day. Rather down because the 16yo dog is very wobbly now, at the stage where it's hard to know what to do for the best.

Sorry about the dog (and I agree about landlords - it is not profitable for them in many cases, although tenants do not understand that, I expect).

It is still exam central here at home as the twins' last law exams (unless they have resits) are this coming week and they had this week too. They seem to take longer now there is the online observed/proctored option as they split all 3 hour exams into 90 minutes morning and then 3pm afternoon start so the whole day really gets covered in them. it is all about not being allowed to eave the web cam and for those who cannot go 3 hours without a loo break needing that break and the fact some people have extra time for disabilities and that you can start any time between 10 and 11am or 3 and 4pm so someone might start at 11am and have longer than 90 minutes and then need lunch before starting at 3pm. Instead mine start around 10am to get on withi t and then have a long gap until 3pm. Anyway it is nearly over now. I am much closer to it all since March 2020 when the state sent them home to do finals from home due to covid laws so I have been hosting exams ever since.

We go on holiday on 17th a week after they start work as trainees (although I think one is not starting that first week and taking leave which is better for me anyway as I can ease one in first and not the other).

2017 is indeed a very long time ago now.... in case this thread is still going strong or limping on... my twins had their final exams on Wednesday (results are out in late July and resits (hopefully there will be none) in August). They are trainee solicitors from Monday, so all grown up in that sense... and qualify in 2024.

Ds is travelling back to Uni city for his graduation ball , 5 days ahead of his graduation when we're joining him
Travel plans made very complicated because of rail strike , so instead of 7 hr train journey( with 2 changes) , he's now having to fly from Liverpool to Belfast International with easy jet and then Belfast City to Dundee with Loganair! ( no buses or flights from Manchester/Liverpool to Edinburgh or Glasgow!)...used to be able to fly Manchester to Edinburgh with Flybe!

Open days for university start again this week with the Oxford open day

Stop, that sounds very complicated but at least he can get to it. Good luck for the graduation.

My twins are now my trainee solicitors (one started on Monday and the other is on annual leave as wanted a break first - they finished their exams last week). That has worked out quite well so I can get one of them going first and he is working well despite working for his mother.

We go on holiday on Friday all being well (2020 and 2021 holidays were cancelled 2 weeks before we went which had been with the whole family so very disappointing) but hopefully this one with just the twins and me will proceed.

@Xenia congratulations to your 2 trainee solicitors - the end of one journey and the start of the next for them. And @Stopyourhavering64 hope the graduation is great - sounds like quite a marathon journey to get there too!

DS is having quite an eye opening time in Tanzania. He's met some great people and done some exciting trips but he's also experiencing some quite challenging situations including having his money stolen and a few dodgy sounding encounters out and about. Despite being based in a relatively well-resourced private hospital he's been most shocked by differences in priorities and treatments. Holy water in the operating theatre was a new one for him!

DS1 has selected Bristol Uni as his med school so we'll be following in the footsteps of many on this thread

That gin bottle was a smile when I clicked on it, I'm sure!
Never mind, perhaps gin is more appropriate.

Well we've had the Oxford open day, ds was very keen. Next up is Bristol, he's going with his sister so she'll be telling him all about it I expect.

Good to hear younger siblings above are interested in Bristol where 3 of mine went. They have a cousin who may be going to Oxbridge this year if the grade requirements are met.

Meanwhile the twins and I are in the Caribbean - 2020 family holiday cancelled 2 weeks before, 2021 the same so this is third time lucky for us and despite their car dying the night before and being towed home as thankfully we could take mine instead and the air port parking we had booked we hope allowing the switch although it does mean I have had to drive us there and will back too as we are in my car instead which I was trying to avoid. Had a lovely day in Santo Domingo today - wonderful place.

Then once we are back one of them is off to France a week later (and the other has just been to Cyprus) so we are making up for lost time on the foreign trips front now.

Hello everyone. Been a while since I posted but dd1 has finally (almost) finished her dentistry course and will do her foundation year somewhere in Liverpool. Graduation mid July. Any tips for graduation day @horsemad as it will be my first one?

Nice to hear from you @RedHelenB . No tips on graduations I'm afraid as I've never had the chance to attend one (despite 3 degrees and counting between my 2 ds so far).

Enormous congratulations to your dd when she gets there. Do dentists have to apply for their foundation jobs or do they get assigned to a practice?

They all get ranked after a SJ type test and interview and then they rank the areas they want to work in and it gets matched up. She's got her third choice location, just needs to finalise which practice now. Funnily enough she'll be in the same area as dd2 doing her masters, but no way would they be house sharing!

Ds has picked Oxford, Bristol and Durham as his favourites so far , he's now looking at St Andrews and Cambridge.

Tips for graduations - when mmy twins had theirs just before Easter at Bristolone was surprised some friends did not have the official graduation photo taken - I think it was people whose parents had not graduated so did not realise it was quite a thing and nice to have. I stll have mine today ad haev been sending it round to the family now we have the 5 children all graduated with their graduation photos.

Secondly I bought the DVD/download of the ceremony but not everyone will want to bother if they are there trying to film their child at the time.

Allow plenty of time as they often have to go to the hall for the ceremony about an hour before the start time and before that have to get photos and then be fitted for gowns, hoods, mortar boards etc. We booked lunch after but each time for each twin their friends wanted to do something else instead immediately after eg a reception at their particular faculty so I cancelled both lunches although some keen parents stayed on much later and had a very late meal once the student had finished all the hanging around with friends.

One son statyed in Bristol for 4 nighs in an airbnb with friends remembering the Bristol days and the other 2nights including one with his girl friend - they m et in Bristol. Check timings. One twin's was at 10.30am so we had to come the night before and book a hotel. the other was about 1.30pm so we had time to come that morning and no over night stay.

Aslo don't assume if they say only 2 tickets you acnnot get more people in - we were able to be early and get spare tickets on the day for my daughter (and her baby) and with the older children we always managed to get about 4 of us in despite the supposed 2 ticket limit.

Try to get his friends to group together and throw mortar boards in the air - my son and his friends got some lovely photos doing that with his group of students.

Good luck to the dentist. My son's friend is doing that - very long course. The twins qualify (law) in 2024 so that will be 7 years to qualify as they did not do a law degree first which adds an extra year.

We are just back from a week in the Caribbean - firs trip abroad since 2019 for one of my twins and me and he has a holiday to France in about a week. However he did a very good first week as my trainee solicitor and has even said he wants to work tomorrow (Sunday) although he certainly does not need to do so. At least he is keen.

Had a fabulous time at ds graduation...followed by garden party on the campus ( complete with ceilidh!)
then spent weekend celebrating with family at Gleneagles ( was my birthday and first time in 6 years we'd all been on holiday together and all dcs were able to wish me a happy birthday in person! ( both dd have been working abroad since their graduations)
ds starts his grad scheme job next month so is frantically looking for accommodation , elder dd is returning to Uni in September to do PGCE and younger dd returns to her job in Bali at the weekend, so will have a very quiet house again

That sounds great. Good luck to them all.