After we put GC on a plane to his summer program, Mr NP and I set off on one of our first childless vacations ever – a summer respite at a spa in the mountains.  Which mountains?  The ones in the state where CJ attends college, of course.  That way, after three days of restorative romantic alone time, we could return to the joys of parenthood.  So here we are at our favorite hotel in CJ's college town, waiting for our son to wake up so we can help him put his belongings in storage after his stint at summer school because he's going abroad for the fall semester.  We thought we could make ourselves useful doing laundry and taping boxes, but it seems we only need to wash two towels (the other four are missing), one sheet and one duvet cover.  And the schlepping will involve just a few books, a fridge, a t.v. (which he somehow acquired without purchasing) and a floor lamp.

Everything else is already packed in two medium-sized duffles.  In fact, it was never unpacked after spring semester.  CJ has survived the summer semester in an apartment on campus with no tempurpedic pad ("it fell apart") no clip-on reading light, no message board, no shower caddy, no pop-up hamper, no tool kit.  Virtually all of the supposedly-essential items that we enthusiastically purchased for him when he started on this journey two years ago have disappeared, and our son has embraced the Simple Life.

Parents of rising freshmen take note: Donate your BB&B coupons to the homeless, purchase two towels, give your kid a hug and head to the mountains.