We're off in the morning for the Admitted Students' Day at the chosen college. I'm betting I'll get all choked up at some point, thinking about Jake being there for the next four years. As if he's not coming home lots in between, but you know what I mean.

final rundown on the colleges

So, Jake's three choices were all basically the same size. All within our state. Two are private liberal arts colleges and the third is a state honors college. Well, since he didn't choose it, I'll go ahead and say the third one is St. Mary's College of Maryland.

All three offer small class sizes and a well-rounded liberal arts education. Each has a nice variety of majors from which to choose, a good option for someone undecided, as Jake is.

College A is just under 42k per year
College B is just under 32k per year
College C is 24k per year

He was accepted at all three and College B has offered him a 12K per year Presidential Merit scholarship.

College C was the last to send us the financial aid package and I have been both excited and worried that they might end up costing far less than the first two. Excited because, you know, less money is less money. Worried because it's Jake's third choice.

With all of the financial aid packages in, College A will cost $900 more per year than College B. College C will cost about $2500 more than college A. How nuts is that? The one that is 18k less than the most expensive would end up costing the most.

Looks like the boy gets to go to his first choice. I'm still in shock that he's old enough to be going off to college at all.

Emma and Vita and Jake (oh, my!)

Emma went back to school today. No fever (yea!). The only thing we know, so far, from the urine test is that she was pretty dehydrated Wednesday morning. That didn't surprise me as I'm having a hard time getting her to drink. They threatened iv fluids and I think she's taking it seriously now, making herself take more sips.

We all went to see my sister and the babe at the hospital tonight. They are set to go home tomorrow. You know that newborn test they do to check the hip joints? The poor wee girly's hip popped right out of the joint when they did it. They will head over to Children's tomorrow to see an orthopedic surgeon for a more thorough diagnosis. Hopefully it's something that will just correct itself.

I forgot to take my camera (argh!), but with a lot of the swelling down in her face she is looking less like a clone of her daddy. Not that she wasn't adorable that way, but it was really cool walking into the room and immediately seeing something of my sister in her.

Oh, and Jake got his third college acceptance letter. This is for choice #3, so it's unlikely that he'll go there but it's fun to know he was accepted at all three. Choice #1 is looking very good as they put together a financial aid package that brings the cost to within 1k of Choice #2. It will be interesting to see what Choice #3 puts together. We should have that within the week.

something else to consider, but in a good way

Jake got a letter today from one of the colleges that he applied to (not choice #1) offering him a presidential merit scholarship that will cover nearly half of his tuition (and room & board). And it's annually renewable.

Go, Jake! Yea! Free money!

Here I was thinking that as long as the financial aid stuff works out for choice #1, he would definitely go there. But wouldn't it be nice to have that much less to pay back in the end? This school is already about 8k less per year (but it's still more than the other college he applied to). Oy. Just last night he said that if the money doesn't work out for choice #1, this college would be choice #2.

All three schools say that the financial aid information will be revealed on or about April first. Come on, spring.

bah, no pictures.

There has been too much occupying my brain lately to post much. I finally got my tax papers from my test proctoring job so that I could finish our taxes and complete the FAFSA information.

I didn't realize that the FAFSA site would spit out a number immediately to tell us what our expected contribution will be for Jake's first year of college. It's a lot of money but we will somehow manage it. The information is now forwarded to the schools he has applied to and they will let us know what can be put together to make up the difference between our expected contribution and student loans/grants/work study. Hopefully the numbers will work.

His first choice is by no means an inexpensive school so I will be holding my breath until we hear from them. He has applied to two other schools. One is a bit less and the other is much less. I just really, really hope everything works out for his first choice.

I do our taxes and use either TurboTax or TaxCut, depending on which way the wind blows. I love the way it figures everything out for me. I can't believe I did our taxes on paper for so many years, especially when I was a licensed daycare provider and had a gazillion more forms to fill out.

This year, however, there was some weird glitch with e-filing through TurboTax. To do an electronic signature, you have to input your last year's adjusted gross income. TurboTax was nice enough to grab that from our stored info and I sent it off, along with our state. Then I got an email saying the big guys had rejected our return because last year's agi number )for the electronic signature) didn't match up with what they have. Um. Well. It matches up with what I sent them last year.

I ended up calling the big guys and spoke to the nicest lady (thank you, Ms. Parrish, for being so friendly), who checked their records of my life history looked at our 2005 return and pronounced that TurboTax had been smoking crack a glitch in their software and to call them to find out why they are so annoying when they're high how to correct the problem.

In the meantime, our state return was kicked back to, because if the big guys don't want to know us, they don't either. Let me tell you, this game is so much fun for someone with an abnormal fear of authority.

In the end I decided that the faster course of action would be to submit the return electronically and send in the signature on paper. Glory hallelujah, the return was accepted. I should have my refund in my hot little hands bank account by February ninth.

In knitting news, I've now made six hats in Fig and Plum's pattern and have started a hat for Clara based on the Fake Isle pattern on Magknits. It's Kureyon and black, like the pattern, but has a skull motif around the main part (from Hello Yarn's We Call Them Pirates) instead of the diamond pattern in the original. Speaking of pirate hats, I finished Jake's pirate hat (love the lining--I used a milk chocolate brown cotton) in that pattern but, as I feared, it is too small. He can put it on but prefers to have blood circulating to his brain, so he won't be wearing it. It's adorable on Ben and Clara has worn it a few times. I'll have to knit it again using larger needles.

I've also started Sweater Babe's Beautiful Cabled Baby Jacket for Lydia for next year in (what else?) pink. The pattern cracks me up. It's written line-by-line with little boxes to check off beside each one. Idiot-proof. I'm just about down to the divide for the sleeves (it's knit from the top down) and it's going really quickly. I worked on it for a little while last night and a few times here and there today. Gotta love Cashmerino Aran on 9's.

I need to decide on what to knit for my sister's baby girl, due on April Fool's Day. I told her that she should aim for delivering at least a day late as she could have so much fun all day long on the first, telling people she is in labor.

Oh! And if you are in need of yarn stash organization, Costco has a cool shoe organizer right that is very cute for yarn. I'm not seeing it on their website, but it's very cute and about $23. I'll take a picture of mine when it's prettier. I'm in the process of addding yarn to it.

There is something else exciting going on but I have to check with someone to be sure I'm allowed to talk about it. Laura? Can I?

the big envelope means good news.

click to biggie size it.

This came from college choice #1. Tears of joy. He got in.

Prayers for the financial stuff working out gratefully accepted.

Jake! Yoohoo! Don't miss this post. I talk about you.

Ok, first off, I have a mini-brag. Jake missed out on the sat's last spring because he had mono. So we paid our penalty fee and rescheduled for September. And December, because they say it's good to take it more than once. We got the September scores and they were pretty good. The site tells you the average number of additional points kids with your particular score are likely to get with a second test. Jake's was around nine additional points per section (three sections). So we got the December scores and Jake scored 150 points higher! Go, Jake! Of course, this makes me wonder whether he slept through the first one.

The scores were actually available a couple of weeks ago and recently the essay details were made available and we were able to actually see the essay that Jake wrote. Jake argued his side with examples from Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein and Joe Strummer. :sigh: I'm not sure whether to be worried or proud that he can incorporate his music into damn near everything.

Oh, and his application essay for the second college includes a bit about his decision to learn how to knit. My boy.

insert witty title here

Tonight is Hope's eye appointment to see if she needs glasses. Frankly, as bad as my eyes are, I'm surprised none of the kids have needed glasses, so far. Hope is desperately hoping that she's not the one to break that streak.

Jake is navigating his second and third college applications (remind me to tell you something about the second one that's funny) and I am about to delve deeper into FAFSA. I'm hoping that FAFSA won't turn into FAFSA HELL. Here is a situation where our large family size could work wonders for us.



I have photos from Chanukah, Christmas and New Year's to post but haven't gotten them off the camera, yet. Here's one to tide you over. Bedhead Lydia on Christmas morning.
Now we're off to pick up prescriptions, kitten food, hay for the bunny, a "kind" mousetrap (Squelge the gerbil has escaped and does not feel inclined to nicely jump into our hands and back into his home) and deodorant. Don't you wish your day was this action-packed?

A big welcome to the world to my cousin, Debbie's brand new baby boy, Caden Charles, born yesterday. I can't wait to see photos!

college, schmollege

We went to visit the third and final college last Saturday. It was just Jake, Lydia and me. It was much further than either of the other two colleges. A bit over two hours. Lydia was a dream in the car, both ways. Jake slept the entire way there (can't blame him--it was way early and I would have like to trade places with him).

It is definitely in a less developed area than either of the other two schools. By a long shot. But it's a beautiful campus, right on the water.

It's interesting to see how the different colleges handle these days. Shortly after checking in the split the kids and parents up. We were sent to opposite ends of the building and had basically the same presentation, but in a different order.

The parents were sequestered in a smallish room with a stage set up and rows of chairs around three sides of the stage. By the time I got in there with Lydia there were very few seats left and we ended up in a corner seat with no easy escape. I was really nervous that we might have to make a quick exit if she got noisy and wouldn't be able to (seriously--we would need two people to stand up and then we would have to walk right across the front of the stage), but it went ok. There was a moment when she made a sound like she was about to sing and once she threw her head back and bonked it on the rail and started to wail, but I got her to nurse quickly and it worked out. There were many cheerios eaten. Lots of moms came up to us afterwards complimenting her on her behavior.

The teachers and students seemed enthusiastic (but not in a weird way) and it all sounded really good. Funny stories were told and the general small campus feeling was similar to First Choice College.

In the students' room Jake had actually talked at length to a girl on the student panel afterwards. She had mentioned that she works at the campus radio station and organizes coffee houses with musicians. He asked about the types of music played (not really his type, though she said she is trying to get a more varied thing going), and asked about the radio station. The kids we saw were less creative in their attire than we had seen at First Choice College and Jake wasn't happy with that. He did mention that when he talked to his hs counselor he said he thought Jake might be happy at this school because a lot of nonconformist students go there. I laughed.

"So he said all you weird kids go there?"

"Yeah." Smirk.

By appearances the weird ones must have still been sleeping, though. Jake said that he thinks this school would be his second choice, if not for the remote location. He will apply to all three and then make his decision (unless it's made for him by acceptance/rejection letters).

My favorite part of the visit was the ride home. Two plus hours to talk to Jake. In our daily life, time runs too short. He gets home, exhausted, and either takes a nap or does homework. Dinner is a noisy affair with five other kids full of stories and Lydia clamoring for More Food In My Mouth NOW. More homework time, or whatever and the day is gone.

But on the ride home it was just the two of us (Lydia slept), and it was great. We talked a little bit about the school but more about other things. Whatever came up. Tattoos (please put years of thought into it and don't ever get a name tattooed on your body unless it's that of a family member--someone you know you'll want there your entire life), music, learning disabilities (he knows someone with a certain one and wanted to know more about it), Darfur, and I don't know what else. He likes to go through his cd's picking songs out here and there that he thinks I'll like because of the lyrics. Times like that are nice reminders of the fact that I don't just love that boy. I like him and think he's pretty cool.

Have you noticed that there hasn't been any knitting content? I'm really feeling the pressure of completing the Christmas knitting and it's just not funny.

aargh! (in a good way)

Just a peek. This will be relegated to drafts later today to keep someone from seeing it.

I was able to block it out enough that I think it will be fine. I'm fairly certain that his noggin isn't bigger than mine and I can get it on. Honestly, I would prefer that it be a bit bigger, but it works. Now I just need to do the lining and it's all set.

I'm right on track with that other hat, too.

Today I will start (and maybe finish) the fingerless mitts for a shorter person. Those are going to be quick and fun. You'll see why when I take a pic.

Meanwhile, Clara came home from school yesterday and burst into tears. She (and I) had completely forgotten about her school's audition for Stomp the day before. Her theater teacher spotted her in the hall in the morning and asked her why she hadn't shown up. Poor thing. I felt like the World's Worst Mom for not remembering but I made it clear to the kids this year that if they are responsible for writing their own commitments on the calendar. Even so...

Oh, and my worrying about the Jake's teacher recommendation letter(s) arriving on time was for naught. Jake told me yesterday that one of the teachers told him on Monday that she had mailed the letter. Thanks for sharing, Jake. So as long as the counselor got his stuff in, it's taken care of. Now, if the college would only use the weighted gpa for honors and ap courses. Bah.

can you see me in this house?

Because I can. Painted up right pretty and chickens milling about the yard, of course, but I can see it. Just a thought.

I've been working on Christmas knits. I have a sick feeling in my stomach that a certain fair isle hat is going to be too small. If I were the type of knitter who works on one project until it's finished I would have known (one way or the other) sooner, but I'm one to do a little on this one and a little on that one (and so on), so I'm just now realizing. I even checked the gauge, but apparently I tightened up my gauge once I got going. Think good thoughts for me. The worst that could happen is it gets gifted to a smaller-headed child (goodness knows I've got plenty of sizes to choose from), but I am really hoping I can block it out.

Tomorrow is the early action deadline for Jake's first choice college. We've turned in everything we can and now are relying on others for their submissions. As of last week the college had still not received his hs transcript, counselor letter and teacher recommendations. As of yesterday the counselor said he will have the transcript and letter to them in time. I'm not sure about the teachers' letters. Technically he needs just one, so even in one falls through it will be fine.

Breathe. Let it go. Let it go. Breathe.

A, B or C

Ok, so about that second college visit. If you were in charge of planning a day for prospective students and their parents to come see your school, get a taste of what it has to offer and maybe get excited about going there, how would you decide which professors should speak? I wouldn't start with two who clearly did not want to be speaking, but maybe that's just me.

And, say those kids and their parents were being invited to have brunch there. Wouldn't you remove the basket of moldy, shriveled up oranges sitting right at eye level by the pizza? Oh, College B, honestly. Did it not occur to you to glance around one last time before the guests arrived?

The first three quarters of the presentation was boring to the point that we were falling asleep. After that the dean of students did a good job of waking the audience up and the students who spoke were interesting.

We left feeling like it was a (college A) wannabe. To be fair, maybe they were just having a really off day. After plowing through the boring delivery, the core of what they were trying to say seems pretty good and I can't help but wonder what my impression would be if we had gone there first. Maye without College A fresh in our minds, College B wouldn't have seemed so...lacking in presentation. Their location is also in a place that Jake would like to be as happy with as the location of College A.

Having said that, Jake now feels strongly that he would be very happy at college A. He is in the process of getting everything together to submit to college A for early decision. We do still have college C to visit in December, but the location has him thinking that he will be happier at college A.

Now, if we could just fast-forward to the financial part and see if it will all work out.

I'm underwhelmed by your enthusiasm.

So, the college visit. Jake felt it was all "fine." Nothing jumped out at him as outstanding, but I think that, having nothing to compare it to at this point, that could change.

Billiam and I heard and saw lots of things that made us feel this particular school would be a good fit for Jake.

He could enter as undecided without a portfolio and still take lots of cool art courses. Because he's late in deciding art is probably the direction he wants to go, he is not likely to have one together in time.

It's a small school and the students and teachers really emphasized how well they get to know each other. At a larger school with huge classes I could see Jake easily letting assignments slide.

The kids seemed to be artsy-fartsy-weird-in-a-good-way enough that I could totally see him hanging out with them. "Look, Jake! It's your peeps!"

Students from all areas of study are really encouraged to explore other things. Because Jake is not 100% decided on what he wants, this atmosphere could only help.

They have a radio station. This was on Jake's list of things he wanted, so I'm including it in mine.

It's close enough to a city where he could go see local bands that would be of interest to him. At the place where Jake is with his music right now, I don't think he would be happy at a school in Podunk, USA.

Another cool thing about the school is that they have a requirement for all undergraduates to study abroad at least once before graduation. This could be in the form of a three week trip with preparatory study for seven weeks before travel and follow up study for ten weeks afterwards, summer abroad study or semester/year abroad programs. In their words:

We believe that international awareness is a requirement for anybody who wants to lead a satisfying and successful life in the global community of today.

The parents all got a chuckle when one of the teachers speaking about this program pointed out that he likes to expose the kids to a certain level of discomfort during the trip. To have them get a feel for how how life is in other parts of the world. The next speaker, a student who went on the trip to India last year, started his portion with, "And I was on the receiving end of that discomfort."

Ok, and they also had their coed a Capella group perform three songs at the start of the program. The first song, with a guy singing the main part was really nice. As was the second, with a girl. The third one brought tears to my eyes. A freshman girl sang the lead part (it was Gnarls Barkely's Crazy) and I told Bill that her mama must just cry and cry with joy each time she hears her baby sing. So why is this a reason for Jake to go there? Maybe he could become friends with this girl, eventually date and marry her, and she can sing for me at every family get together. A mom can dream, right?

End result, he has a few more schools he in interested in visiting and I think he needs to look for other schools to add to the list of possibilities.