If you have college aged kids

[nesser1981]

OMG, I can't believe I'm even typing that out. LOL! I mean there are days I certainly feel like I'm in my 40's, but typically I don't think of myself as someone old enough to have a college aged child.

Anyhow, Keira leaves for school in about 3 weeks. If you kids lived in the dorms, I'd love to hear the ONE thing your kid needed that they didn't take at move in time.

And ONE thing they took they didn't need.

We're working on her list, we have a good amount of the things she needs, but we need to go out and do a little shopping for a few more things.

I joined the military 9 days after high school graduation, so I keep forgetting she can leave the dorms anytime she wants. LOL! And my first duty station was Japan, so again, the foreign country thing. And Amazon took a month in those days, it was just for books and movies back then. I guess I am old enough for a college aged child, LOL!

[LynnZant]

An often forgotten item is cleaning supplies if needed. The first year my daughter didn't need to clean their bathrooms because she was in a suit and it was cleaned for them. But the next year she was in a regular dorm with three others and needed to clean their own bathroom. However, cleaning the shower wasn't high on their priority list, so shower shoes were a must.

[HeatherH]

Need-power strip, extension cord, (he was in an old dorm with few electrical outlets), fan.

Didn't need-Hangers (he took them 2 years in a row and they are still in the package).

[3BluEyedBabi]

My daughter, who will be a sophomore at Johnson & Wales this fall said she took dressy clothes & shoes that she never wore as a freshman. A thick & comfy mattress topper and containers to organize all the little stuff in her desk drawers since in her dorm her desk was where she did her make-up and homework, and sometimes ate were the things she wish she would have brought.

[bienejen]

I would strongly recommend signed HIPAA and FERPA forms. Better to have them and not need them than to need them and not have them.
https://lilleyconsulting.com/article...lls-in-college

[stephc777]

Something my daughter needed & didn't have - basic first aid stuff - bandaids, cold medicine, cortisone cream, pepto bismol or charcoal - for upset stomach (or suspected food poisoning) & also a lap desk for using her laptop on her bed

Something she took & didn't use - an excessive amount of pillows - she did not take them her sophomore year

[nesser1981]

Great suggestions everyone! Thank you!

[aussiegirl]

Fan if the dorm is not air conditioned. A water bottle cleaning brush and small container of dishsoap (to clean all their dishes and water bottles). Travel/cloth laundry bag for bringing dirty clothes home (as well as a plastic heavy duty one for the room). Flipflops or water shoes for the showers. A copy of their insurance cards- medical, dental, vision (and a book safe to store all of them- you can buy one at Hobby Lobby or Target. They look like a dictionary or journal style book, but are a safe). Extension cords and power strips.

We have 3 in college, and when they move home for the summer, all of their college stuff (minus clothes, toiletries etc), goes into 3 different piles. That way their stuff is still all together come the end of this month! Good luck Mama, you've got this! (Where is she going? MSU? UofM? WMU?)

[nesser1981]

She’s going to CMU. . Your pile comment made me think, they?re already driving me crazy! �� I have a pile in the Mudroom and in her room, I?m going to grab some plastic totes, so we can pack everything I there to load up and then we when we move her out, we can load it again and she can keep it stored at least in an organized pile. At least I think.

Originally Posted by aussiegirl

Fan if the dorm is not air conditioned. A water bottle cleaning brush and small container of dishsoap (to clean all their dishes and water bottles). Travel/cloth laundry bag for bringing dirty clothes home (as well as a plastic heavy duty one for the room). Flipflops or water shoes for the showers. A copy of their insurance cards- medical, dental, vision (and a book safe to store all of them- you can buy one at Hobby Lobby or Target. They look like a dictionary or journal style book, but are a safe). Extension cords and power strips.

We have 3 in college, and when they move home for the summer, all of their college stuff (minus clothes, toiletries etc), goes into 3 different piles. That way their stuff is still all together come the end of this month! Good luck Mama, you've got this! (Where is she going? MSU? UofM? WMU?)

[CindyB]

I will second the first aid kit…neosporin, hydrogen peroxide, Motrin, cold
Meds…all that stuff that they don’t want to spend their money on but it will come in handy! Spend a little extra and get a solid mattress topper, dorm beds are usually trash.

I’m not thinking of anything that’s she brought but didn’t use…my daughter was in a quad with a kitchen and she had to have cleaning supplies, TP, pots and pans, so it was a lot. I loaded her up with Amazon cards and she just bought what she needed.

[rach3975]

Don't get me started on the piles--as bad as they seemed before he left for school, they were so much worse when he came home for the summer and we had to deal with them from May until August!

Everyone's experience is so different--my son needed his dress up clothes for 1 formal dinner that they do for freshmen, and he used his hangers (but not as many as we thought he would.) Definitely his first aid supplies, too. Some of the things he thought were valuable to have and often overlooked were a small set of tools (for assembling things, tightening screws, etc.) and a rubber mallet for lofting beds (only needed at move-in, and only if your dorm beds can be adjusted. The school has rubber mallets, but there was a long wait for them on move in day.)

He was in a suite with strangers his first year, and although he talked to his roommate ahead of time he didn't make contact with his other suitemates. They ended up with 3 or 4 microwaves, which of course they didn't need.

He and I did a ton of research ahead of time on what he might need (we're both Type A personalities who like to be prepared!) so there wasn't much he forgot. The things he needed after move in were things he couldn't have known he'd need ahead of time, like containers that fit on the shelving in the room.

[nesser1981]

I think she's ready!

Other than consumables like tp, laundry detergent, things like that. We'll probably do one more trip next week to grab those things.

Her birthday was in May, so I put a little first aid kit together for her, along with a bag w/ 2 each of towels, plates, bowls, cups, those kinds of things and another little container of kitcheny things like can opener, small utensils, they have kitchens on every floor sounds like. Microwaves they can only have if they rent a fridge microwave combo unit, we bought a fridge and rented the loft bed instead, she didn't think she'd need a microwave that bad, especially since there would be some she would have access to.

She probably bought too many hangers, but I bought some of those things that give you more room w/ the hangers. LOL! So hopefully they help, or I know they will at home. Our closest at home don't have rods, they have little hooks, so weird. Anyhow, I appreciate all of your help!

2 weeks.

[rach3975]

Originally Posted by nesser1981

I think she's ready!
2 weeks.

Exciting and nerve-wracking! I hope she has a smooth transition (and everyone still at home does, too)!

[Scrapcrazy]

We are headed into junior year with our 4th. Lots of good suggestions here. One thing that my daughter really needed was a desk hutch. If you can find the measurements of her dorm desk, amazon and walmart have a variety of options. It helps to give her additional storage space without floor space. She used this for her makeup and jewelry and a potted plant or two along with pencils and pens and other smaller school supplies.