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50 Things You May Have Forgotten
- Snacks
- An electric tea kettle, if it is allowed, think hot chocolate, soup, and tea.
- Reed diffuser, no one needs to smell a dorm room
- A stocked first aid kit or a store bought one.
- Brita water pitcher
- A series of legal documents you should have in place after your student turns 18
- A strong fan, unless they have A/C
- A long cord surge protector, the outlets can be anywhere and extension cords are often not allowed
- A door stop, open doors help make new friends
- A lap desk if your teen likes to work sitting on their bed
- A big backrest pillow, see above
- Flip flops, showers can be even worse than the mattresses
- Desk lamp, if it isn’t provided
- A letter from you to leave at drop off
- Laundry basket or bag that travels well to the machines
- Blackout curtains if your teen struggles to sleep with sunlight
- Dorm bed shelf especially if you don’t have a night table or for bunk beds.
- Mattress topper, our teens told us this was the best thing we bought them for college after their laptop
- Bathmat if using a shared bathroom
- Rug if the climate is cold
- Air fryer, if allowed (downside-takes up a lot of space)
- S hooks for hanging wet towels
- Coffee maker, Keurig makes a slim one
- Laundry pods
- Extra toiletries
- Headboard
- Safe, if your child uses medications
- T-shirt quilt, lots of teens like these
- Posters or wall hangings
- Family photo including the dog
- Raincoat or umbrella
- Lint roller
- Weighted blanket, if your teen prefers one
- Ottoman for storage, friends to sit on, and a step stool onto a lofted bed
- Small flashlight, if there is a power outage you don’t want them using their phone
- Ear plugs, white noise, something to make sleeping easier
Why you can trust us
The Grown and Flown team includes three moms who have raised 8 young adults and have been working on product lists for over 12 years now, making them experts. When selecting products they survey the Grown and Flown Parents Facebook group of over 300,000 parents of teens, tweens and young adults. We do opinion polls, surveys and ask open-ended questions. We look for products that combine reasonable prices with high quality and are recommended by the large following. With recommendations from major retailers, trustworthy publications, and social media influencers, this post selected a range of products, paying close attention to reviews and price tags.More Great Reading:
