Well done, mama!

I noticed that he had no need for a page turner. Holy cow! He had no music. Does he have a photographic memory or what??? Thanks for the heads up about the feet. I typically listen while I food prep so don't watch much. I can't fathom how anyone can move all 4 limbs to produce music like that. Congratulations to both of you! Thanks so much for sharing the music. I love to see how accomplished our WTM kids are.

Thanks! I am a terrible shopper and gift giver and need all the ideas I can get. My parents gave me, at my request, a sleeper sofa. But since ds is staying in school, he doesn't really need/want furniture. At least now I have an idea or two besides money...

I assume they are Medicare age. Are they on traditional Medicare (to which most doctors belong) or a Medicare Advantage plan (which has a particular network)? Sounds like the latter. This is good information for the potential snowbird.

Ds was accepted into Mines Engineering and Technology Management program. It's a 1 year MS degree. I am going to have to talk to ds about financial aid. I called the office today and the guy was not friendly. It sounds like ds has to go through FAFSA and since he'll be a grad student, he will be an independent student. Maybe he'll be able to get something that way. He said teaching assistantships and research assistantships come from the department and ds should talk to the department. I'm not sure if ds has done that.

I had never heard of this until my niece was being courted by PHD programs in Environmental Science approx 5 years ago. I am in awe! :party:

Absolutely. :lol: Maybe they'll start a sub-forum for us.

I'm sorry there is a delay. You have some other irons in the fire?

Grrrrr :toetap05:

Any further update?

you didn't ask for this, but ... hula hoop competition :party:

Very exciting! Congratulations. Please consider posting how we can listen to it. :bigear: Thanks for the kind words, Janice. You are right. It helps him to get a rough draft of an idea about the future and others help him fine tune it. Loved this. Especially the Lux Aeterna and Daniel. I spent a little time looking for more. They sing like angels! How wonderful that your ds gets to have such of a rich college experience.

It's difficult for me not to do the research about applications, majors, etc. I want to pester ds about deadlines, references, transcripts, etc. I think I need a homeschoolers anonymous group. Hi, my name is Sue, and I'm a recovering homeschooler.... :rolleyes:

My memories from 1987 are a bit fuzzy, but I chuckled today because I was thinking about when I applied to graduate school for Industrial Engineering/Operations Research. I applied to Northwestern, Purdue, Stanford, Cornell, and maybe 2 more of similar caliber. I think I was rejected by 2. I think I was accepted at 4. Northwestern offered a fellowship. Purdue offered an assistantship. Stanford (and the other acceptance) offered no financial aid. I remember being very amused at being accepted at Stanford. I think I had applied there for undergrad but was rejected. Being accepted with no financial assistance was as good as a rejection. I hope for acceptance AND financial assistance for our WTM students. :blush5:

Well, I guess it ain't over until the fat lady sings. Ds will have surgery at the end of the month. Apparently, the coaches told him that there was money and a spot for him on the team next year if he wanted it. He'll be applying to graduate school after all. Likely a 1 year MS in Engineering & Technology Management.

I also wear monovision contacts. I've worn contacts since I was 16, so I am not sure how well you would get used to them. Mine are gas permeable, so no tearing at all. My optometrist tells me that she had to try contacts when she was in optometry school and it felt like there was a block of wood in her eyes. She also tells me, and it has been true of all I've asked, that men cannot wear monovision contacts, but women can. Men cannot handle it. My right eye is for distance and my left eye (which is VERY nearsighted) is for reading. I say that means I don't see well either way. But, I can't bear the thought of doing anything else. I have progressive bifocals I wear in the early morning and later evening, and surprisingly, my eyes don't seem to have any trouble switching between the monovision contacts and the progressive bifocal glasses. However, I find that if I want to read the paper or a book in the early morning or later evening, that it's easier without glasses or contacts. Go figure!

Exactly.

I am sorry to report that it's bad news. Dh took him to the orthopedic surgeon. Apparently, by feeling around and looking at x-rays, he suspects torn ACL and MCL. MRI done today will confirm. MCL takes 4-6 weeks to heal. Then, surgery for the ACL and 6 months recovery. This is not how we envisioned his last semester... :tongue_smilie: I suspect grad school will not look so appealing anymore. Will discuss with him next week after doc visit.

Talked with ds yesterday. Eeek! He is now considering grad school in order to play another year of college basketball. He had decided against it a year or two ago, but it looks like he's changing his mind... ETA: Well, maybe not. Ds injured his knee in a game on Sunday. We've got an appt with an orthopedic surgeon tomorrow morning. :crying:

Wishing you the best of luck. Do your two 3/4 jobs know that you are job hunting? I suppose that could be tricky. I've worked for the same company for 28 years. For the most part, I've been happy with it. I work 30hrs/wk from home (started full-time in the office) and have medical and dental benefits for the family. Which is very fortunate because I hate job hunting. Sending positive thoughts your way.

Some massage therapists, chiropractors, and cranial sacral (sp?) folks have Tens Units. Can't really remember the chain of events that led me to the person who used it on me, but likely it started in an alternative health "newspaper" from a local health food store. ETA: Maybe I'm thinking microcurrent - not sure that's the same as Tens Unit.

Aww! Y'all are so kind. It was fun to talk about college, retirement, and the great possibility that we'll find out our ds's are getting married thru facebook (well I'd have to find out thru dh who finds out through fb). :laugh:

That stinks!

I'm sorry to hear that your housing is becoming so much more expensive. I grew up in Chicago and am sort of considering moving back to live near family again. I really don't relish the winters though. I'll have to ask the sibs about property taxes. We moved to FL the summer 4 storms blew through. Insurance was a nightmare. Fortunately, a local cautioned us to buy in a location that did not require flood insurance. Flood insurance has gone through the roof in the last few years. At one point, I decided that homeowner insurance shopping was going to be my new, part-time, temporary, unpaid, volunteer job. I found the FL insurance commissioner's website and made many phone calls for assistance. I called several independent insurance agents and had them get quotes for me. I investigated the companies they suggested. I've stayed with the same insurance agent for years, but call her on a yearly basis to see if there is something less expensive with a decent company out there. I look at insurance as an annual contract up for review. My sister tells me that when you stay with the same company, they can increase the value of your house a certain percentage each year (like 3%). She has had to call and have them re-evaluate the value to stay more in line with reality. That doesn't sound like your problem though. Good luck! Would you consider moving to a non-flood zone?

Where do you buy heavy duty gardening gloves?. I've been to Home Depot and the local garden center. The garden gloves are all thin and cheap. I bought a pair of heavier work gloves, but they only have a narrow strip of elastic around the wrist and they're rather short, so the dirt gets on the inside. I had a pair of gloves that I thought were for rose gardening. I liked them because they were heavier and had wide elastic(*) around the wrist, but they've worn out. When I search on rose garden gloves, I get these gloves that reach all the way up to the elbows. Not interested. I really hate getting dirt under my fingernails on a daily basis, so I need something heavy. Of course, that's not something that I can tell on-line, so I want to buy them in person. This is why I am a terrible shopper. (*) There is a word that escapes me for the wide elastic. Descriptions call it elastic knit wrist. :banghead: