Thread 41 Corona Cohort - Autumn Adventures of our Adult Children

[CinnamonOrangeCremeBrulee]

This is a support thread for our young adults post GCSEs 2020, regardless of their educational setting, and their results ( or life updates for those who went into work or have had results earlier). It is respectfully requested that all are supportive and helpful to each other. If you want to start a debate, e.g state vs private, uni vs employment please don't within this thread.

Some of us have been here since first thread back in yr10, some will be new. Everyone has been friendly and helpful in the past. Everyone is welcome. It is hoped this will continue. We were previously on the secondary board and then further education, now we shall be here in 'Parents of Adult Children' gulp

Our DS/DD may continue down various pathways ( employment, apprenticeships, higher ed). Be warned there might be lots of 'Uni Freshers' chat this time of year. My experience is that everyone is welcomed wherever, whatever their child is doing we have some in work, gap years , apprenticeships etc too. Lots of contributors with different experiences and always sympathy and support to be had !

previous thread

@PhotoDad I’ll send you a DM as I’d rather not say which one given there’s not many Classics students per college and it could ‘identifying’ !

@EspeciallyDivided I think ds1 would have preferred something like that rather than his biology degree. He didn't want to go to university until late into year 12 so was all a bit rushed to decide what degree to do

Good luck to those moving in this weekend.

I know at least one of ds's lectures is at 5pm. He hasn't told me how many he has or times, I just happened to message as he was about to leave for 5pm lecture.

@HarrietDVane ds1 didn't have any reading weeks at UEA. But maybe that was because he was studying a science with lots of hands on time.

Ds messaged to say he doesn't have enough clothes. He left quite a few clothes here. I told him to take them all, he doesn't have that many clothes anyway. I think he thought he'd use the laundrette more often. He also asked me to post him an Xbox remote. So someone obviously has an Xbox. He only mentions 3 girls names in his messages. I asked why...he said he does most things with the 3 girls in his house. Apparently one lad goes home a lot, he lives in Eastbourne, which isn't far and the other lad spends all his spare time on his Xbox in his room. So maybe Ds wants to join him. I've not sorted out posting it yet. I was hoping he would come home in nov. as he has tickets to see Harry Hill locally, they were the 18th birthday present he asked for. So tickets were bought last year. But I get a feeling he won't come home for it. I don't particularly want to go instead. It's not my sort of thing. Dh seems keen though.

I don’t mind posts at all of younger siblings, education related or other.

DD planning on returning for a few days during her Reading week, hope she does, but don’t have the heart to tell her it may clash with moving dates of Mum. If we ever get to exchange, really hoping her buyer doesn’t pull out now with all the mortgage woes.

It is so stressful dropping your child

Your daughter is very good Photodad, her embracing all aspects of her course with such enthusiasm is really commendable, she is clearly thriving.

I think heated airers are a bit overrated to be honest!

Good luck to those moving in this weekend!

DS has almost full days on Mon & Fri, with 9am starts, one lecture on Tues & Thurs & I think Wed is free.

I haven’t heard from him for a few days - I did text him mid week as a Northumbria student was murdered in their accommodation 😢 I sent him the link to the local paper. I got a ‘yeah I saw. It’s crazy’. Just awful.

Oh please elaborate Piggy, why do you think that?

My DD doesn't have a reading week either! I am coming to the conclusion that ARU is either unique or at least very unusual in having two long terms rather than three normal ones. (They start early and have a short Christmas break.)

We are going down to see her at the end of October half-term and staying for a couple of nights. DD would like us to bring some more stuff from home, DS (Yr11) would like to look around Cambridge, and it's DW's birthday so we can go out for a nice meal as a family!

@ealingwestmum fingers crossed the sale goes through. We have a mortgage offer taken out in May (fixed for five years) that expires in Nov just after our new build is supposed to be finished. I’m pretty sure we wouldn’t even get a mortgage now let alone a relatively low fixed rate.

We have a heated airer but no idea where’s it’s from! We don’t have a tumble dryer. I don’t necessarily need to turn on the airer in the winter when the heating is on - but I will do if I’ve got lots to dry or something needs drying quickly. I also use it in summer when it’s wet. It’s most effective with a huge bed sheet over it.

Thanks Crazy. We, rather stupidly now took out a tracker for the 2nd, to enable us to have flexibility to pay down some of the capital once Mum’s house sale had completed. DH has absolutely hated the thought of a 2nd mortgage, which we’ve also swallowed the additional stamp duty for. I will now need to hang onto the proceeds to de-risk the several int rate rises due to cover the higher payments.

But, if it buys back a bit of quality living for her over the coming years, it’s worth it; I’ve been in worse during the late 80’s.

Birmingham has semesters.

They just dry the tiny bit heated by the rods. You have to keep moving all the washing about! It's maybe half an hour quicker than any old airer. In my experience...

We have a heated dryer from Lakeland: I rate it, but then I don't have a tumbledrier, so it's better than radiator drying - my standard may be somewhat low ;-)
I have a Y12, and I think there is a Y12 thread, but agree with others that if it doesn't drive others mad, I'd rather post for advice in here as I trust you lot!
Fingers crossed on the exchange @ealingwestmum . Ds doesn't have a reading week. York is apparently moving to a 2 semester model next year @PhotoDad but if I've understood correctly it looks like the holidays are relatively unimpacted, more about how the teaching modules are set up...

TCD also 2 x semesters

DD is sick and we had to bring her home. She’s missed all her lectures this week so she will have a lot of catching up to do.

Edinburgh also two terms, and DD gets a reading week at the end of Feb.

@bluemarigold How unlucky. I'm sure she's so glad to be back in the comfort of home.

I perfectly happy to read of other DC of different ages or elderly parents. We are the sandwich generation.

@PhotoDad I thought most places had 2 semesters these days. Both mine have Christmas and Easter holidays, but change timetables/modules after an assessment period at end of January/beginning of February. DS gets reading weeks at UWE. DD has a week with no lectures timetabled, but seems to have a couple ot tests during it and pieces of coursework due in at the end of it.

I've just had the 'does my black and white striped top go in the lights/darks wash?' convo 😆

Good to know that other unis use semesters too!

Yes, we're very relieved that DD has settled and thrown herself into the course. She found sixth form really tough (partly due to friendship and MH issues) and it's been a chance for a fresh start, doing what she's always wanted to do. Fingers crossed that everyone will find their feet.

Maybe it's time for me to transfer my worries/urge to do research to DS? He's interested in a degree apprenticeship (for engineering), does anyone here know anything much about them?

@Seeline Interesting! DD has exams etc just before the Christmas break. Back on 9th Jan, a two-week Easter break, and then they finish for the year in mid-May..!

That was exactly why my friend didn't like her airer PiggyWasPushed (hence trying to fob it off on me .)

I’ve had a heated drier for a few years now but it’s crap to be honest! As Piggy says, it just dries the bits that are actually on the heated bars. Saying that, mine doesn’t have a cover and I have been considering getting one after seeing someone comment that they work better. I’ve also been looking at small dehumidifiers or a small oil radiator to put in the utility room under the drier.

Today we have wind and sun, DS2 is out rowing on the Thames enjoying the sun and I’m running around like a headless chicken trying to get as much washing done to take advantage of the weather!

Heated airers only really work well with a cover to keep the heat in - otherwise they are just going to heat the bits in contact.. With the cover it traps the heat generated and all the cloth gets heated up and dries quicker.
(glad all those years studying engineering are useful for something!)