You may have heard I have a daughter in college now. She is in her first semester and adjusting to it just like any other student going 1000 miles away to school during a pandemic. So hard!! It was a difficult decision on our part I’m sure we went back and forth like a thousand times. Let’s just say we pray a lot!! Every day she calls, it’s a different story and we never know what we’re going to hear. Sort of like the weather in Florida. One day she’ll report that she has had the best day and everything is going great. The next phone call, she’s frustrated because she’s not experiencing the ‘real’ campus life she had always imagined in her head. I totally get it and we try to be a sounding board for her and give her the best advice we can. She’ll be coming home at the end of November and till then I thought sending her a weekly care package will comfort her.
This whole child in college is a new experience for me. A few questions for you…Is a weekly care package too much too often?? If you have gone through this process before please feel free to help a girl out. In the time being, I enjoy it and it gives me something to do in my spare time. One thing I try to do is listen to what she is telling me during the week. Is she feeling stressed? Is she craving certain snacks?? Does she miss something specific from home??? If any of these things stand out I will include it in the care package.
I am grateful I work from home and am my own boss. This allows me some flexibility for gathering, boxing up, and mailing out all myself. I understand many of you work outside your homes and this may be hard to do given your busy schedules. I recently found out that Amazon, Etsy, and Wal-Mart have college care packages ready to go and shipping is free. This is a cool option, especially, if you’re short on time and don’t want to spend the extra money on shipping costs.
As for shipping supplies, I use any boxes or bags that come in from my Amazon or Nordstrom packages. I also get sent lots of PR products so that also provides me with air pillows or tissue, more boxes, etc…I always have shipping tape on hand so that is not an issue either. Another thing, I set up an online account with USPS, and use the Click-n-Ship option. I can store my payment method on file, create/print a shipping label, and schedule a pick up for free if its at the regular mail delivery time. It is literally the easiest thing ever!
Here are some ideas of what you can pack in your next care package to your student!!
More package ideas: spa/self-love kit, hair + favorite books, gift cards to a nail salon + dinner at their favorite restaurant, a gift certificate to get a massage, a new video game.
This experience is actually a great thing for them…
A few things I learned in the last four weeks, every day does get easier. Your kid is resilient! Even though you are scared for them and they are scared for themselves, they will survive and learn their way around campus + city. They will master time management if they want to pass their courses. They will actually miss you so have an open ear when they call or when they need to vent. Try not to be judgy more so be encouraging. I’ll be honest, there might be a few things they may tell you that you didn’t want to hear or may not like hearing. It’s one hundred percent okay to feel ALL the feelings. Just keep in mind, it is a season of life, not a forever thing. Believe it or not, through this process a very hard process they will learn one important thing, how much they appreciate you! At the same time, you’ll notice they will gain confidence + independence + college degree and ultimately this is the end goal. Yes??
I hope you found this post to be helpful as I wish there were more blogs out there that talked more about college stuff. Please feel free to leave me a comment below with any ideas you may have or anything really. Have a great week and let’s chat soon!