All I can say is wow!  Not only do they expect “teenagers” to arrive at school in perfect shape, they also expect those first year students to adjust perfectly.

First there was the May mailing of the summer workout plan.  It was laid out perfectly.  It made sense and included a nutritional plan also.  It was complete and a great start.  Did it work?  Yes and no.  Self-motivation, unless involving shopping or hanging out, is not necessarily my 18 year old’s forte.  She went gangbusters at first.  Then, senior activities from high school got in the way.  It was hard to pick back up.  She knew she had to be to university on August 10 but high school graduation was June 23 so that was barely seven weeks of saying goodbye to lifelong friends.  On top of that, when you add in everyone’s family and work schedules, she was feeling the pressure already.

She worked and worked.  Held down a 15 – 25 hour a week part time job so she would have some spending money at school.  Got up to workout at 8 am so it fit in with the family car schedule.  Ate as healthily as you can expect with all the parties and picnics going on.

Then, came the packing.  She didn’t really concentrate on it.  Rather, she thought everything should go.  Big mistake.  First, she was in a temporary room for four days (more on this aspect of being an early arrival athlete on another day) so packing consisted of what was needed for four days of double sessions and what would be in storage.  This is where the downfall was.  She didn’t really check things out.  Her sister and I did a lot of packing for her.  She was too busy saying goodbye.

Well, the list of things left behind grows daily.  Every trip up there is filled with at least a bag of “her” stuff.  We are not talking a quick trip.   She is four hours away at university.