I've been mulling a lot lately. Some of it is about family and friends and community. One concrete thing that bothered me today: I don't think we could afford to send almond joy to the summer journalism institute that I went to when I was her age. That makes me feel awful. Was it that much less expensive a few decades ago? Was I able to get enough scholarship support? Shouldn't I be able to do that for her -- we have only 2 kids, not 6. and way more education than my parents had. makes me really wonder what we'll be able to do for the kids when it comes to college.
sigh.
Does she want to go to this institute, or are you just doing a then/now cost comparison? I don't have any cheerful comment to make and don't want to minimize things, but do you think that your education has given your kids a different kind of experience that money can't quantify?
Posted by: joanna | March 03, 2008 at 08:33 PM
she's applied to some very selective ones that, if she gets in, don't charge. I was just checking what some of the rates are for things some of her friends have done.
yes, I know my kids have done different things (esp travel). I also know that I did lots of things my parents didn't do -- and some of the result is the me I am, and some is the need to catch up now on some retirement savings!
she'd probably rather swim and hang out if she doesn't get into the ones she applied to!
Posted by: timna | March 03, 2008 at 10:19 PM
Yeah, and swimming and hanging out and having some unstructured time is fun--she'll be a senior next year?
Posted by: joanna | March 04, 2008 at 11:39 AM
yes, she's a junior. she did say kind of wistfully that, yea, she'd like to go to that program.
Posted by: timna | March 04, 2008 at 05:25 PM
fingers crossed that she gets into the selective one she wants. This kind of wanting is hard.
Posted by: Susan | March 04, 2008 at 07:03 PM