This is a good idea, and you don't have to wait until it is actually rush hour to check it. Ask Google maps to route you from the apartment to his office, then click the 3 dots by the start address. One of the options that's comes up on the list is "set depart or arrive time". You can choose and it will return estimated trip durations.

The public University in my neighborhood has held tuition constant for the last decade. Now there is a new president and I can see the first slabs falling from the facade. Last month in-progress hiring searches were drastically cut (even some with offers extended) and this month early retirement offers are suddenly being rolled out to everyone over a certain age. On the consumer side, a lot of the decision of where to attend rests on general reputation, rah! rah! marketing, and affordability. Internal cuts don't get much notice until graduates can't find jobs. As far as I'm aware neither of the colleges my kids currently attend are cutting faculty - but I probably wouldn't know without a fair amount of investigating. They are in different states, so I'm not too aware of what is going on.

I, too, would use the highest deductible I can afford to cover.

Sure. I guess it will depend on what OP finds difficult versus enjoyable. If she has in a past life enjoyed latch hook or embroidery, keeping track of multiple colors might not be a blip on her radar. If she is a knitter, then keeping track of a chart, and up vs down is no problem. If she enjoys quilting she is probably also friends with algebra and geometry to the extent that designing her own top might be just her thing. Any quilt could be done with a million different fabrics, or monochrome, it all depends on what floats her boat. If she decides to do a 5 color log cabin with 5" squares to cover a California King she will be making a lot of those blocks - which could be easy and encouraging or could kill her with tedium. Maybe you know the OP better than I do <shrug>, but I'm sure she is able to flip through the options people have presented and do her own version of swipe left, not interested or boy, that one is boring but if I .... it would be really personal and fun to make.

This isn't a traditional idea at all, but one possibility would be a "pixel quilt" It could be a picture of whatever you want, and all the pieces are squares. It could be them or something they both enjoy, or whatever. Here is an example someone shared recently. Think of a Chuck Close picture.

What a stressful situation, Sue. You will be present in my thoughts this week.

Be careful about completely enclosing that space. Your refrigerator may need some air flow to keep the motor from over heating.

I do this all the time with my cheap black tea bags. I usually use them twice. The second steep goes a lot longer, sometimes I finish my tea before taking it the bag. I rarely squeeze them out because they are hot and I'm using my fingers. It doesn't bother me if they wait over night, but it does complicate my caffeine ingestion system a bit. After the second use I put them in the compost bin and pat myself on the back.

In my house we have a cabinet up there that stores the big wok I only reach for occasionally, a year's worth of coffee filters when I stock up, the pasta machine I inherited from my grandma, and some electrical transformers for the kitchen lights. I really like Katy's idea for matching whatever you put up there too the cabinets, even if the trim and all was just built on as part of the cabinet doors.

I enjoy Wegman's when we travel east and Hy-Vee when we travel west. I'm a grocery store fan girl. When I travel over seas I like to spend time studying grocery stores. 😁

Thank you for the update, I hope he has a smooth recovery.

I'm sorry I don't have specific advice for you, just support. It sounds like you are in a difficult situation. Any possibility of out sourcing to public school for your youngest two altogether? You've already paid in the money for that option. Even in the best of times home schooling high school is difficult and it sounds like the next few years will see you looking to find your own balance. If that won't work, I wonder if you can spend 8th grade really highlighting his strengths and interests. Is he a sports player or a reader, history buff or video gamer? Has anything you used this year been working and doesn't need to change? Any subjects in particular that have been a struggle?

@Eos sorry to hear about the trauma your dd experienced. Mine had a similar experience in the fall. She was able to switch rooms over the semester break, whew. I agree with your mystification about spending so much money to attend a college or send your child to a college, when they are not interested in getting much out of it.

Or the one about procrastination (funny, but not terribly instructional) https://youtu.be/arj7oStGLkU?si=IO0PpsXNnEmyFLqA I hear you about the frustration of inefficiency. I do think you need to give him some room to be in charge, however you can also put down your own boundaries - family things that he needs to attend, and behaviors that aren't acceptable. Now is when he starts learning to be a good roommate, another skill that will be useful in his future

Can ya'll help me revise my makeup policy? Cosmetics should be worn at the users discretion, but thoroughly removed every night before bed to avoid staining the pillowcases.