I have made some progress on my list of tasks. I got a good start on the FAFSA (college financial aid form), but got stuck on a few things, like not having Rob’s driver’s license number, and not knowing how much money he made in 2015 (some, but not enough to need to pay taxes, so I don’t have a record of it anymore; lesson learned). So I didn’t finish it, but I got a good start on it, and I did the parts involving our finances and taxes and so on. One of the most time-consuming parts was getting my FAFSA ID: something was amiss with my email, so the confirmation number wasn’t coming through. So then I’d ask for it to be re-sent, and in the meantime the original confirmation number would show up, but now the original one wouldn’t work because I’d requested a new one, and the browser logged me out because apparently I’d accidentally opened a duplicate browser window. It was…a little frustrating. But onward through every obstacle, until our harrowing journey is done!
I tried to shop a little for Elizabeth, but if I’m going to pay non-clearance/Goodwill prices I didn’t want to commit to anything without her specific approval, and she was at school. But I was feeling so restless/unsettled about the whole thing and wanted to make SOME progress, especially because I can’t take her shopping until the weekend after this coming one. So instead (“What CAN I do?“/”What would make it better?“) I spent some time going through Elizabeth’s outgrown clothes, getting rid of the stuff that no longer fits, but also finding enough things to tide her over. I took one top I knew was too small for her and put it on her bed for reference, but there were other tops that same size that were several inches longer, or just bigger over all. And I brought out the nice navy pants she has to have for band concerts, which I bought too-big and had her roll up because I was not buying a whole pair of pants for one concert, and that increased by 50% the supply of pants that fit her. And she had some shirts wadded up in the back of her drawer, oversized boy-cut camp/fundraiser/club shirts she doesn’t like but for heaven’s sake she can wear them for a couple of weeks. And the whole project took me from “I don’t know what to do: she has two days’ worth of clothes and I’m leaving for three days” to “She can EASILY SURVIVE the torment of having FEWER CHOICES for a week or two.”
I did some packing for the college-tour trip. I’m quite anxious about it. I am drawing significant courage, however, from a friend of mine and her husband who impulsively drove three hours to pick up one of her college kids, and then drove fourteen hours to surprise her other college kid. I mean, they just put some clothes in some bags and got in the car like it was nothing, and maybe I too can aspire to such heights of chill. We ARE just driving within our own country, in our own familiar car, and there are stores and restaurants all over the place, and I have a GPS. This does not have to be so scary. (BUT WHAT IF WE DIE.)
I don’t have anything specific to contribute, but I just wanted to say thank you for continuing to blog in this manner. It seems like most of the bloggers that I follow have tapered off significantly or stopped blogging all together. I love these sorts of posts that are of the “here’s what’s going on/this is what I’m up to” variety.
I miss so many bloggers too! I feel as if I lost friends.
Yes! This exactly! It sounds a little weird to say somehow but it’s still true!
I was just thinking about this too and how glad I am that Swistle still posts and how much I like the commenters here! A lot of my long-standing reads seem to be posting less and less frequently, switching to FaceBook, etc.
YES THIS NEVER STOP SORRY FOR SHOUTING.
We’ve done lots of road trips as a family, as in the one-day drive to visit family or see something or what not. And I’ve learned to under-pack. I take far less stuff with me now with 6 kids than I did when I had just 2. You can find food anywhere. You can find gas anywhere. You can find a change of clothes or a toothbrush or what not anywhere, if you forgot those things. When I pack light, I feel lighter and more prone to adventure. So go for it! I make sure I have my contacts, glasses, and a phone charger, and we’re good to go.
This is my best packing strategy too. I make a list of the stuff that would be difficult to replace or that would make me anxious to be without (usually it’s just prescription medication and my cell phone charger) and then I come up with some fool-proof mechanism for remembering those things. After that, packing is not so bad because the stakes seem much lower.
Major progress! Way to go, Swistle!!! I, too, dread car trips, though recently I’ve experimented with knitting while my husband drives, and that really occupies me and helps the time to pass. Oh! Also taking photos of the weather and countryside as we go along.
I just remembered that you are the driver. Strike my comments on knitting and photography!
Oooh, but could Rob be the driver? And Swistle could relax? I don’t know at what point parents of teen drivers feel like their teen driver is as competent/safe as they are.
I feel reasonably certain that when I filled out the FAFSA 13 years ago (aack!) I estimated my measly earnings. If it’s not enough to pay taxes it’s not going to affect the financial aid.
This. Just ball park it so long as it fall under the FAFSA Income Protection Agreement (IPA).
This is the first result I found, it’s from a Washington Post article:
“The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) shelters a portion of other non-need-based student income. The Income Protection Allowance (IPA) is $6,310 in 2014-15 and $6,400 in 2015-16 and is adjusted annually for inflation. In addition, student income is reduced by allowances for federal income tax paid, FICA taxes and state and other taxes, which typically shelter 10 percent to 25 percent of the student’s adjusted gross income (AGI).
Student financial aid will be reduced by half of any income that remains after subtracting these allowances.
For example, suppose a student earns $10,000 per year from a combination of a full-time job in the summer and a part-time job (not FWS) during the academic year. Subtract the $6,400 IPA, $765 in FICA tax allowances and $300 in state and other tax allowances, yielding $2,535. (The earnings are less than the standard deduction and personal exemption, so there is no federal income tax liability.) Student aid will be reduced by half of this amount, or $1,268. The student will net $7,667 after accounting for the tax liability and the reduction in eligibility for need-based student aid.
Given that there are about 13 weeks during the summer and 30 weeks during the academic year, a college student can work a total of about 13 x 40 + 30 x 12 = 880 hours per year. The student should be able to earn at least $6,380 per year at the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. Most college students can earn more. An hourly wage of $11 to $12 should be sufficient to earn $10,000 per year.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2015/06/18/how-much-a-college-student-can-earn-from-a-summer-job-without-losing-financial-aid/
We just dropped our son off at collage 2 weeks ago. I tell you this so you know that we survived! We survived FAFSA, we survived the packing and the worrying and all of it. He’s there now. He’s 16 hours away. It sucks, but he LOVES it. Anyway…
Have you heard of Schoola? My friend bought tons of used clothes for her kids and self on that site for very low cost. I haven’t personally done it yet as my kids are gone, but I thought I would just pass along the info.
I always get so nervous driving in unfamiliar places. I try to remind myself of all the road trips I took in my teens and twenties with just gas station maps and change for a pay phone to check in with my mom every few days.
My parents came to my college twice in the 4 years I was there. And it was only 2 hours away (and it was also the college my Mom graduated from). They moved me in Freshman year, and then stopped in one day my sophomore year when they were driving to Vermont to see my aunt. Nope, I lie, they also came to graduation (not the huge school wide graduation, but the smaller business school specific graduation).
“maybe I too can aspire to such heights of chill”
This may be my new motto.
Me too! I love that phrase!
Ooh, will Rob be in the car with you when you drive to the college? If so, a good drive is good for you. But a bad drive might be one more reason why he decides he doesn’t want to go there, which could end up being good for you! So maybe even if it’s rough, there will be a good outcome :) Have a great trip!!
I am so much calmer about traveling since meeting my husband. It only took a couple of trips where he said “they have stores there, too.” Now I double check that I have the necessary ID (admittedly compulsively checking for my passport when traveling internationally) and my credit card and don’t stress the rest of it. Though, we took our two young children on a cruise this summer and I have to admit I kept thinking “but they DON’T have stores there!” In retrospect, it was a Disney Cruise. There was nothing important I could have forgotten that wouldn’t have been available on board!
This! Though we camp, and in isolated enough places (even though we are in a camping trailer, with a programmable coffee pot, so — not exactly roughing it) that I have learned to try to be sure we have enough food to provide several reasonable meals. Because the first thing you want to do after getting to the campsite and getting set up is not … drive 2 hours to find a grocery store, though we have occasionally had to do just that. But otherwise — right. If I have my credit card, keys, ID, and phone I can, in a pinch, get whatever the heck else I might need — there.
Echo the first comment–I’m so glad you keep writing, and sharing. It’s helpful to see your thought processes, and always interesting.
The following may come under the “Well, duh” category for you, but for what it’s worth, I’m a visual person, so when I’m going to a new city, it helps me to have a hard copy of something I can peruse and get a fix on the layout of the city. I download a city map, or buy* one, then I can get a visual picture of where my hotel is, where I’m going the next morning. Some cities are planned, so the streets run in grids either n/s or e/w, making it easier. But on the east coast, where a lot of cities just developed as people moved in, there is no rhyme nor reason to the pathways.
Maps will sometimes tell you that certain streets are one way, or that parking is restricted at certain times, and so on. Also, I recently visited a university to see a physician at the medical school, and my hotel offered a free shuttle to campus that you just had to schedule the night before. In addition, the university will have a map online that shows where the parking lots are on campus, which is most helpful.
May I suggest also that you contact a prospective student advisor in the admissions office and ask if he/she has any tips for visiting families? You are not the first parent to come with some anxiety about the trip itself, believe me! If Rob is at the point of wanting to discuss possibly attending this university, the advisor could also provide a guided tour (usually conducted by a current student, who will provide more of the lowdown that the student is interested in, while also answering the parent’s questions).
[*Some city Chambers of Commerce offer city maps free]
Also: Some universities have hotel-like lodging available on campus, not usually cheap but also not more than nearby hotels.
Maybe some of this will help.
BUT WHAT IF WE DIE. That is the most prevalent thought that goes through my head when considering a road trip of any kind. I have to drive two hours next weekend to an airport that I have only ever driven to once before, park my car for the weekend, board a plane, fly to a city I have NEVER driven in (and don’t plan to drive in next weekend) then fly back to unfamiliar airport on Sunday afternoon and drive home again. And my biggest worry is: WHAT IF I DIE? How will my husband handle our two daughters if I’m dead?
Of course I realize they’d be very sad for a while and then figure it all out but still…what if I die?