Applications, essays and acceptance letters, oh my!

Since my oldest is now 18, the next logical step for our family is college.  Well, logical for mom and dad.  ALP, on the other hand, not so much.  Until recently she would have been just as content to stay home with us, garden and sew and help out around the house.  And believe me, part of me would have been just fine with that.  As a matter of fact, we finally did tell her she could stay home as long as she was pursuing a degree of some sort. Enter duel-crediting classes.

Since last summer ALP has been taking one to two classes every 8 weeks and by this summer will have finished her freshman year of college at home.  Through that experience she has gained the confidence she needed to continue on campus in the fall.  She has since decided to attend a small baptist college in Wisconsin...a million. miles. from. home...I mean, we are so excited! ;)

And our days have been filled with applications, essays and acceptance letters!  Can I share with you these things I have learned:

1-  I do not care how old your child is now, start filling out forms.  Any forms, doesn't matter.  You will need the practice. 
2-  Know you child's social, your social, the neighbor's social.  Really, they just might ask. 
3-  Know who will write reference letters and then get them to do so now.  You cannot keep friends if you ask them last minute to supply a letter...tomorrow!
4-  Keep a calendar with deadlines on it...especially for scholarships.  See number 3! (Thank you L family!)
5-  Have your child practice randomly generated and completely off the wall essay questions.  Again, start now!  One of the ones ALP had to write was this... (my paraphrase)  If you could pick four faces to put on a new Mt. Rushmore, who would they be?  No made up people!  (After that scholarship is announced, I intend to post ALP's response...I know I am biased, but I think she did a great job and it made me cry!)
6-  Keep track of every extracurricular activity your child does to include hours participated.  If in doubt, write it down anyway!  Your memory is not as good as you think it is...trust me on this one.
7- As long as you have your calendar out, just go on and clear the year of any other plans not related to THE COLLEGE SEARCH.  This eats takes your time, people!
8-  And lastly...but maybe most important for some of us...warn your friends, family and maybe even the neighbors that you are going to be a little on the emotional side..say, for a year or so while.

She is my firstborn, you know...and I kinda like her!  ;)

"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."

Proverbs 22:6