Jeff and I at his 2000 graduation. I know. 12 years later, he still looks the same. I, however, do not. Boo hoo.
There are two things that have encompassed a greater part of my marriage to Jeff-one is how much of it I was pregnant or nursing.
The second was the 6 years we spent as poor college students.
Yes, poor. Weren't we all during college?
Our parents helped a lot in the way of gifts of money here and there, buying us groceries when they came to visit. But the cost of college itself? The tuition and books and rent and food and living?
We did that.
The first time for Jeff's undergrad, we had two children by the end.
The second time for his master's degree in business, we graduated with 5 kids.
There were times that we weren't sure how we were going to pay for the things we needed. We had a lot of miracles, a lot of scrimping and a lot of meatless dishes.
But we did it.
Some people think that if you go to college it's because you are rich, or that your parents pay for it all.
That may be true for some. And my best friend's ex-husband thought that about us. She was trying to convince him to go to college, a kind of, "Look, Jeff and Amy can do it, so can we."
But he told her, "No, their parents pay for it."
I actually laughed when she told me that. No folks, we paid for it, we're still paying for it. And we will STILL be paying for it when Kate goes to college.
So when I got an email last week from a company whose aim is to help college be less expensive, how could I not get behind something like that?
The company is www.CampusBookRentals.com.
Here are some of the wonderous things they offer.
-save 40-90% off of bookstore prices-no joke!
-free shipping both ways
-can highlight in the textbooks
-flexible renting periods
-etc...(you can find more perks on their website :)
The other great thing about them is that for each book rented, they donate to OperationSmile.
This is an organization that touches my mother's heart in profound ways.
My children have beautiful smiles. But if any had been born with a cleft palate, I would have been able to, through insurance and my husband's good job, to have that fixed. I wouldn't ever have had to look at my child in sorrow and worry that they would never be treated equally or with kindness.
But many mother's throughout the world, and their children, must endure this.
Operation Smile's mission is to help these children one donation at a time.
And CampusBookRentals.com has committed to donating enough for 1000 life changing surgeries.
So lets see, Campus Book Rentals helps make college less expensive and they donate money to changing kids lives, how much better can it get?
I'll tell you.
To one lucky Spoonful reader, they are giving a 50 dollar coupon towards books from CampusBookRentals.com.
So if you are going to college, enter, enter! And this time of year, as kids are graduating from highschool and setting off for higher learning, wouldn't this be a fantastic graduation gift?
I think so.
To enter, tell us one great memory from your school experience-it can be high school, trade school, beauty school, what have you.
Today is Tuesday, right? sure. You can enter to win through Sunday at 9 pm Pacific time.
Good luck!
Well, I'm not really in need of the certificate (even if I do end up going on for my PhD) but I thought I'd tell you about a great school memory anyhow! So, here goes:
ReplyDeleteI was in Junior High and was over near the swings when I noticed a kid from a grade above me picking on one of the weaklings from my grade. Never one to tolerate such behaviour, I went over and demanded Big Kid leave Little Kid alone.
Well, BK was there with her Cool Kids group and was unhappy with my intrusion. So she told be to mind my own business or she'd knock me so hard that by the time I woke up my clothes would be out of fashion. Without thinking about the repercussions, I replied: "Oh, like yours are now?". I immediately regretted that statement and braced myself to be hit. However, the Cool Kids started laughing which embarrassed BK and she stormed off. (Thank goodness!)
BK is still a bully to this day and I understand that her kids are, too. Very sad. LK, however, grew up to be a little less awkward than she was back then and is happily married with a couple of adorable children. And she's not a bully.
A similar thing happened in High School but with a different weakling and a different set of bullies. Years later I learned that the bullies respected me for standing up for the girl when no one else would. They, thankfully, grew out of their bully ways and are very nice now.
I hope that you find a deserving individual to give your certificate to. As a self-funded student, I know just how difficult it can be to pay for university. I owe thousands for my education, but it was well worth it!
Of course this would happen a year after I graduated :) But...I know several seniors and several people in college currently that would certainly benefit from this. I would love to pass it on to one of them.
ReplyDeleteHey! I posted on 2 of your blog posts and they didn't show up! Let me try this again...
ReplyDeleteI went to a community college for my post-high school education. My parents paid for some, small scholarships (ie $2000) paid for some and I paid for the rest. I remember being shocked at the price of books. So this website sounds great to me! I'll defifnitely be spreading the word!
I would have to say my most memorable moment in college was riding a friend's dirt bike, crashing it and dislocating my elbow. It was just 2 weeks before my brother's wedding and so I was in a sling at his wedding and reception. I took it off when I could for pictures.
Good luck on your contest!
It would have to be the first time I went to a basketball game and it was an away game for our division championship and it was my very first time attending a high school game and it was so much fun hanging out with my friends and not having to depend on mom and dad for transportation.
ReplyDeletetbarrettno1 at gmail dot com