When the acceptance letters started rolling in a few weeks later, that’s all they were, acceptance letters. Some more personal than others, but nothing in any of them that even hinted at scholarship money or otherwise. Then, to our surprise, we came home from church late last Wednesday night to an envelope from my son’s number one college pick. He’d gotten his acceptance letter from them a few weeks earlier so we knew it wasn’t that. We opened the envelope and were amazed to read that he’d been awarded two scholarships for a total of $8,000, renewable for up to 4 years. We were so excited and so grateful. It made immediate believers out of us that applying early is the way to go.

But it makes sense really. Schools have a certain amount of scholarships available each year. It just makes sense to award them not only based on merit, but also on a “first come, first serve” basis. Colleges are looking for serious students who know what they want to do and where they want to go. Turning in a quality application well before the cut off date speaks volumes to the ones making the decisions about who gets the money.

Once scholarship money is given out, that’s all there is. Financial aid packages and final financial letters come our after FAFSA forms are completed in January, but the dollars that don’t have to be paid back can be awarded well before that date. So, in this sense it really does “pay” to apply early.

Receiving a scholarship doesn’t obligate you to a particular school, but it does make the decision making process so much easier. In our case, it’s confirmation that we’re on the right track as far as his top pick. It gives us one more reason to believe the place he’s already chosen appreciates him for what he’s accomplished in high school. It’s pretty clear he’ll be more than just a number, and that’s what we’re looking for.

So, as you look ahead and make lists of what you need to do as senior year approaches, put “apply early” somewhere near the top. If we weren’t sure how important it was when we started, we certainly are now.

College Visits

It is a good idea to start these during your son or daughter’s junior year. That way it is not so early that she forgets what she likes about a particular campus, and she is not so busy with senior year that it is impossible to get away. Senior year is a busy time right out of the gate. By the time November or December rolls around, applications really need to be in. If you have not done any visits by then, plan to visit campuses as a way to make final decisions between top college choices.

ACT/SAT Testing

You can never start this learning process too early. Many school systems even offer practice ACT/SAT testing in as early as 8th grade. Take advantage of every opportunity to practice these tests, but find out which test your state looks for most often. We learned that not every state offers both tests in convenient and easy testing locations because states tend to prefer one test to the other. Michigan is predominantly an ACT Test state, so our son took the ACT Test for the first time at his own high school. Not only that, but our school has the entire junior class take the test together over the course of two mornings, while the rest of the students have a late start. It was a great testing environment in familiar surroundings.

Another ACT Test note: Do not send out your scores to any schools until you are happy with them. You have no way of knowing how your son or daughter will do on the test the first time. If you send those scores to colleges automatically, you may not be giving the best first impression. Use as many test opportunities as you need to get a first score you like. Some schools even combine scores from the various batteries to come up with the strongest composite score for admission and scholarship consideration, so it is a good idea to know what the scores are before you send them. It costs a little bit more to do it this way, but it can definitely be to your advantage in the end.

College Application Budget

One thing we did not think about ahead of time was how much money it costs to submit applications and take ACT/SAT tests. College application fees range anywhere from $35 to $50 dollars (and more in some cases), and must be submitted with the application for processing. If you apply to seven different schools as we did, this number adds up quickly. We found one school that waved the application fee if we applied before December 1, but this is the exception rather than the rule.

College tests cost each time you take them, so if you are going to test multiple times, that needs to be in your budget. In addition, if you choose to wait to send out scores, there is an additional fee for that as well.

Do not forget printing costs and travel expenses for resumes and college visits! A resume is not a requirement, but it looks good when one is included with the college application. As far as travel expenses go, try to visit more than one college per day if you are traveling a good distance that requires an overnight stay. I would not recommend doing more than two visits per day. College tours tend to be very similar, and if they begin to blend because you have tried too much at once, you will not get the maximum benefit.

Well, that is all for today. Check back again soon for more advice on surviving senior year and getting your child ready for college. We are learning as we go, and believe me, it is quite an adventure so far!

I knew after about 10 minutes into the movie that once again, Star Trek writers, producers and directors were monkeying with the space-time continuum. For Star Trek novices, that’s a kind way of saying we’d “been there, done that.” I couldn’t believe Captain Kirk, or at least what would be Captain Kirk, would meet the old, and can I say, very, very old Spock. Leonard Nimoy is the only Spock I’ll ever respect and love, but this was just way too much. Of course, Gene, my husband, pointed out to me after several lengthy conversations that we’re now set up for a new story line for a new generation of Trekkies everywhere, including a romance between Spock and Uhura (OK…yuck, and BTW, Gene didn’t like the movie either).

Now don’t get me wrong, I certainly joined in with the rest of the audience’s laughter at the antics of Bones, Chekov and Scotty, but seriously, did the under 40 crowd really get it? I certainly did because I’ve known and loved these characters since I was a wee Trekkie watching the show on Saturday afternoon reruns. Today’s budding Trekkies can’t possibly understand what they’re laughing at. So, that leads me to believe the Trek team assumed an awful lot when they really should have been thinking about the big shoes they had to fill.

I’ll agree with Gene, the action was good. But this certainly wasn’t a Star Trek I’d send my kids to. The language, and I mean the four-letter word kind, was out of character for Star Trek and gratuitous at best. And please, seeing young Kirk in his underwear making out with the green goblin’s cousin, was absolutely out of place and unnecessary. I guess the rebirth of Star Trek is no longer of the family friendly version, and I won’t even give the darkness and violence of the Romulans any air time in this review.

As I’ve said, my relationship with Star Trek goes way back. I am still a big fan of The Next Generation, and Captain Katherine Janeway of Voyager is tied for first with Jean Luc in my opinion. I missed the utopian feel that Star Trek movies always promise. This one was gritty, moved way too fast to establish any real story line and I’ve always hated sideways camera angles. But then again, I’m my own type of dinosaur, so to people who know me well this should be no surprise. I still like real wood in my fire place, the feel of well worn book pages turning in my hands (much to the chagrin of my Kindle carrying environmentally conscious friends), and on top of that I’m a Christ following, stay at home mom who sends her kids to (gasp) public school! So, this trip into the future didn’t suit me at all. I guess I’ll have to be satisfied with my Star Trek reruns whose continuing mission is to seek out new life and new civilizations, not back track into the past, which happens to be a present already too full of violence and instant gratification.

See, I told you this was too long for a status update! Live long and prosper…

I guess when you think of the five most important things, the sixth question of “How” seems like extra information, a few more juicy details, the icing on the cake. But this weekend when I learned of the impending death of a dear friend, “How” was suddenly the most important thing in the world to me. It didn’t matter how she was dying, what mattered was how she lived.

This friend wasn’t one of my “go out to lunch with” friends, or even one of my “call on the phone” friends. Nevertheless, she was a source of light in my life. And it wasn’t just the story of her 30 plus year battle with cancer. It was her countenance when we stopped to visit on Sunday mornings at church. Her sunny smile, the light in her eyes when she talked about her family, they way she spoke of her sweet husband and his tender care for her, her pride in her grandchildren and her thankfulness for each day. Other than right before this last trip to the hospital all those weeks ago, I don’t think I ever saw Caren down or discouraged, even though she had so many reasons to be. She was a person to whom others went when they were discouraged or frightened, knowing they’d leave her presence feeling better, lighter somehow. She carried so much of Heaven with her that her going seemed like the most natural step in the world. The how of her life was her faith in God, her love for her family and the way she took people into her heart. It was as if I had known her my whole life. The Five Ws just never seemed very important after a visit with Caren, but the “How” was everything.

In whatever we do, writing, teaching, loving, living, “How” follows us wherever we go. Walking through this world can be like crossing a minefield, so many places to trip and fall, so many opportunities to make the wrong choices. It’s not about the book contracts, awards or even finishing a first draft, it’s about how we walk in the this world while we’re doing whatever we do. It’s about faith in God, family, friends, love. If “How” is in the right place, everything else will fall in line. Caren knew that, and she wrote the story of her life well. I’m just glad I had the chance to be a very small part of it.

What do you do when the doldrums put a damper on your writing? Any ideas?