Elle just got her dorm assignment. She has one roommate (who she has never met), and the room is an overflow triple. So...two kids in a triple...for the price of a double. Way cool! Space! U of M has switched meal plans to a universal system where you can have all you can eat at any of the seven dining halls between 6AM and 9PM. (No keeping track...just a flat rate included with the dorm) Lots of snack bars and places in the city to eat, for cash. The bus system is amazing. They go all over the city, so the kids can get to all their classes, get to grocery stores and department stores and down town on the busses...all for free with the bus pass that comes with their room. If I go to visit and we ride the bus, it costs me $1.50 per ride. THE BEST PART!!!!!!!!!! Elle's dorm is less than ONE MILE from the Ann Arbor Amtrak station! There are trains that leave on Friday evening and that return on Sunday early afternoon. The Amtrak station where we live is walking distance from hubby's work (just a few miles away...with my mom's house on the way), and the ride between the two cities is less than two hours...direct...no changing trains! This means Elle can come home any weekend she wants. She'd have to plan ahead a couple of days and order a ticket with her credit card online....but it's VERY doable...and costs less than the gas to do a pick up and drop off run. Am so excited she can get home on her own anytime she wants! Would also make a fun and relaxing day trip, if I decide to go visit and bring her some goodies. Just take the train. Would be gorgeous in the fall. Grandma's still fit enough to walk a mile (though we'd probably catch a cab for her sake)...she would LOVE that sort of day out. SO EXCITED about this! Has seriously improved my mood about my baby leaving the nest.
Other cool amenities....she has an arboretum in her back yard! With a river that has kayak rentals! She gets free medical services if she ever needs to be patched up or gets sick. They also have free mental health services for kids who get too stressed or blue. If she gets the flu, someone from the medical clinic will visit her at her dorm and take her vitals, make sure she doesn't have signs of meningitis, and make sure she's not too dehydrated, and this adorable volunteer Jewish organization will send "A Jewish Mother" to her dorm with homemade chicken soup, ginger ale, and a box of tissues! (Seriously!) There's a volunteer organization that brings puppies and kittens to the student center during exam week...because interacting with pets is supposed to be a great stress buster. All the dorms have fitness centers, and all the dining halls have "responsible choice" meals with calorie counts for those who are working on weight issues. Doesn't really apply to Elle, but it's nice to know I could visit and not have to blow my diet! They have full vegetarian options, all sorts of foods, really good coffee, typical American grill stuff, sushi, Indian food, authentic Mexican, middle eastern, some really amazing choices. You can take fresh fruit and cookies with you for snacks, too. U of M has the ninth largest library in the nation. They have about a third of the books that the Library of Congress has! Close to 11 million! Looks like such an amazing place to live. What an adventure! (Ok, I'm done now. Don't mean to be obnoxious...LOL....am just so excited for her!) Anyone ever feel kinda jealous of their kid's lives? Has occurred to me so many times that I would have sold my left kidney to be in Elle's shoes at her age. I never went away to college, I studied locally, always had a job. Took me almost five years to get a two year degree working full time, drove junk, had to give my dad 25% of my income for rent! Bought my own everything...right down to glasses and shampoo. Moved out at 20 and lived in a tiny apartment over a garage. LOL. Had a lot of fun, though. Wonderful times. Hope Elle has them, too
Wow, what a setup! We thought we had it good in college when the local pizza place would bring over the "mistakes".
You're not being obnoxious! (At least, no more than you usually are ) But seriously, it sounds like a GREAT situation!!! I know Rachael would love having a kayak rental right outside her dorm!!! The meal situation...eh. Honestly, that's to the advantage of the school. Most kids are charged WAY more money than they actually eat. It's much cheaper to actually pay per meal or per item. But the triple room with only two girls is a REAL blessing!!!
The whole dorm thing...is insanely expensive. But compared to other schools in the area, it's on par. Elle would have elected to live in an apartment (freshmen are allowed to live off campus at U of M)....but she's trying to set herself up to apply for a Residency Aid position for her Junior and Senior year....Residency Aids help take care of new comers and get free room and board...so she's thinking ahead about keeping costs down. Also, her financial aid and scholarships will be easier to apply to the school bill with board, than asking them to pay a landlord, etc. I'm being goofy obnoxious as can be. I know it. (Probably more than usual, Jackie. LOL! :wink Just.....she's my baby! And this whole thing was so unexpected...wow! Up until this year, I always figured she'd be going to school locally (we live within 20 miles of two very good universities). I just kinda have to keep reminding myself of all the good parts...so her leaving home is easier. I'm getting used to the idea, but man I have my moments when it's tough. :cry: But the train situation has definitely helped me to feel a little better about it. They have to grow up. But why? LOL!
U of M is a great school. My step-mom used to be on faculty there. Beautiful campus and Ann Arbor is a wonderful town. She will have a good time there.
I never realized how expensive the dorms were..until I decided to count up the weeks and divide. It is near $400 a week for a shared room and not very good food service where my children go. Going in to the college search, I insisted that they be on a campus where they live on campus and most people live there. Now I would rather if I could just get an off campus apartment. For the two of them, we are paying $800 per week. The college does not allow it. In the future, with the rest of the kids, I think we will go with colleges that allow students to live off.
