Lisa Endlich's Blog, page 61

I Don’t Know How to Process My Daughter Leaving for College

Every year, starting around her 13th birthday, I did the math in my head. 5 years until she leaves for college, 4 years, then 3, you get the point. I sobbed on her 16th birthday. I pictured the Days of our Lives hourglass, taunting me with its ever-present threat—”Like sands through the hourglass, so are…

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Three Lifelong Messages From a Ninth Grade Teacher to Your Teen

I’ve been a high school teacher for almost two decades, and one of the most common messages my freshmen seem to have absorbed by the time they walk through my classroom doors in September is this: “Now it counts.”  By “it” they tend to mean grades, and as for who or what those grades “count”…

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Sorority Recruitment: Nine Things No One Talks About

Sorority recruitment is the vibe right now, as potential new members (PNMs) are trudging up and down hot streets in full hair and makeup, trying their best to avoid blisters, sweat stains, and inappropriate conversation topics. If you have a college student going through a sorority rush, you know just how stressful it can be, even if…

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It’s Drop-Off Time; Breathe Because It’s Really Going to Be Okay

As a mother, I often find myself going through experiences where I say, “I wish I could read what I need to read right now.” I’m the oldest child, and my kids and I are often the first to go through any seminal experience, whether it’s childbirth (me), potty training (my kids), or college applications…

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The 10 Best Things to Buy from lululemon for College Students

With buttery soft leggings and water-repellant accessories that are perfect for active (and clumsy!) lifestyles, there are few athleisure brands quite as popular as lululemon. And it’s safe to say that the brand has a ton of items perfect for college students. Originally touted as a yoga brand, the retailer consistently releases apparel and accessories…

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How I Finally Found a Way to Fulfill My Dancing Queen Fantasies

I’ve always harbored a secret dream to be a dancer. To move with poise, confidence, and power like the characters in A Chorus Line or Fame. I’m pretty athletic. But I wasn’t one of those girls who grew up taking dance lessons. I was way too self-conscious for that. I was blessed with strength. Endurance.…

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I Know I Need to ‘Let Go’ of My Son and Allow Him to Keep His Secrets

My son and his friends are of the age where they are spending considerable time exploring new places, some of which involve trespassing, often at night, and I find myself having to restrain too much judgement about this for a number of reasons, but primarily because when I was his age, I did this too…

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New FAFSA Rules Create ‘Grandparent Loophole’ for 529 plans

The long-awaited changes under the FAFSA Simplification Act will finally see the light of day in December when the U.S. Department of Education releases the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) for the 2024-2025 academic year. One of those changes will be welcome news for grandparents who have the means and the desire to…

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I Knew I’d Struggle When My Kids Left, I Didn’t Realize How Much

When my oldest daughter, Maggie, called from the hospital near her college two weeks into her freshman year, I panicked. I dread these calls because my husband and daughters all have life threatening food allergies. But when she said, “I’m fine. I have some sort of pneumonia,” I let out my breath. Then, I thought…

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The Summer Of Letting Go Is Here, and I Feel It More Deeply Now

I’ve known it was coming for a while. Each year the undercurrent of change ripples a little more strongly in this house full of teenagers. The letting go is here. The quiet of the house is resounding. The pile of shoes by the door was missing-stacking up only at curfew, waiting impatiently for the next…

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