Well, we turned Megan loose yesterday. At about 1:30pm we left home, the van and her car loaded up with her stuff, off to college for her first semester away from home.
To say that yesterday was a stressful day would be an understatement. Megan was a mess all day long up until we left her last night.
It started bad. She decided that she was going to meet Caleb for breakfast so she could say goodbye to him. Granted, they broke up a couple of months ago, but they have remained close and have spent time together. We have no problem with this. Evidently she does. She came home just wailing and crying. I guess he gave her a note and she was so distraught she couldn't even read it. I felt bad for her, but I think she will find out that she did not make a mistake when she decided to move away to go to school.
When I got home at 11:30 I asked Angie and Megan if they wanted something to eat and that I would run to the store to pick up something. Megan said that if she ate anything she would throw up (she was stressed/nervous). She actually broke down and started crying when we were clearing out her room, saying she was afraid and scared to death because she didn't know what to expect. I tried to make light of it and tell her that she could come home anytime she wanted but nothing would help, other than letting her cry herself out and get over her fears.
Anyway, we made it to Ball State. Wow, the traffic was horrible. It seemed like a million people were moving in at once. Megan actually got to move in a day earlier than the rest of the population because she signed up to live in the dorms for two years, otherwise move in days start today. Let me tell you, I think everyone is staying in the dorms for two years and everyone has a last name that starts with an A-E because it seemed like the whole student body was surrounding Studebaker West (the dorm Megan lives in). Megan's designated time (3-5pm) was based on the first letter of her last name, with all the people before her supposedly being gone when her group moved in. Not the case, I assure you.
We pulled in and was told by campus police that we were to back into a space, pull everything out of our vehicles and throw it on the grass, then move our vehicles 4-6 blocks away at the field house parking lot. Well, I told Megan just to leave her car and that I would move the van after unloading. I did that, came back and met Kendra's parents (Megan's roommate). Luckily her dad had brought a dollie and helped move all of Megan's stuff upstairs. We waited for an eternity in the building elevator bay, taking our turn to ride up the 5 floors in the cramped car to Megan's floor. We went all the way to the end of the hall where Megan had her room overlooking the same lot we just unloaded in.
The room seemed small. It is probably a couple of feet smaller than the rooms a Adrian. She really would have benefited from a loft, but with the new furniture they were not allowed one. They did stack their beds into bunks and were able to get each of the two drawered dressers under Megan's bunk, freeing up some room. After about an hour of moving furniture around we were able to get the beds made and everything put away.
Their room looks nice. Not a lot of free space, but a decent enough room. They each have really nice desks and armoires to keep their clothes in, and surprisingly had plenty of room for their stuff. They could actually bring a lot more clothes than they did, so that is a good thing. The room looks cute. They still have to decorate a bit, but I'm sure they'll take care of that over the next couple of days.
Megan got to meet a couple of the girls across the hall, one of whom is a scholarship softball player. The dorm was hosting a Popsicle on the Patio event that night, so Megan was looking forward to that. They wanted to give the residence the opportunity to meet the other people from the dorm.
After getting everything put away we took Megan's car over to the stadium so she could park it. It was about a mile away, so I doubt she'll be driving it much. After that we took her to Burger King to get something to eat. She had a terrible headache (from not eating since breakfast combined with the stress she had put herself under all day). Afterwards we took her to Wal-Mart and bought her a few things like a case of pop, some Pop tarts, granola bars, a desk lamp and bulbs, thumb tacks, double back tape (to hang her cute little valance they were hanging over their windows), crackers, and cable for her TV. I learned that Wal-Mart was not the place to be on move in day as there were a million BSU students in there buying stuff for their dorm rooms. Live and learn.
With that we took Megan back to her dorm where she intended on getting a nap before Popsicles on the Patio. I think Angie was going to call her today to find out how she was doing. Megan intended on spending the entire day today wandering the campus trying to figure out where everything was. I told her that she just needed to make sure she asked questions and learned her way around. I know with Kendra there they will figure things out.
It was a little difficult leaving. I wanted to stay with Megan and encourage her to push ahead and not to be scared. I wanted to assure her that she was going to have a great time. Caleb was really weighing on her emotions, it was pretty apparent.
I also wanted to stay because I just love the campus atmosphere. Every little nuance took me back to my days on campus. I loved every second I was in college. I miss that time of my life more than any other time I've been alive. It is such a joy seeing one of my children get to experience it as well.
We left campus at 7:30 and made our way home. Angie got a little teary-eyed on the way home. I didn't feel sad, but happy that Megan was finally take a huge step in her education. I will always contend that college has a lot of scholastic learning to offer, but being away from home provides the greatest learning experience.
Megan will be home over Labor Day weekend and I can't wait. Not because I miss her already (she hasn't really been gone long enough yet for that to happen) but because I can't wait to hear what stories she has already began to accumulate. I will soak up every word and through her transport myself back to my four years. I hope that her's are as adventure filled and wonderful as mine.
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