As our little babies prepare to leave the nest, it amy seem like there is nothing they would like better than to be rid of us. But once the initial novelty of being on their own has faded (give it between 3 days and 2 weeks), they usually realize they miss home a lot more than they thought they would.

Here are a few tips to help keep lonliness at bay, especially if your duckling has decided to get as far away from you as possible by attending school in another state or even another country.

1. Wash their bedding before they leave home. Familiar smells are extrememly comforting, especially when your child is settling down to sleep or (heaven forbid!) study in bed.
   
2. Send a 'starter box' of the kind of laundry soap and toiletries that you use at home.
3. Put little 'hellos' or 'love notes' in the pockets of their clothes. So that they will find them later when they least expect it and are probably wishing you were there.
4. Send them a letter or postcard to arrive just after they do. Even if it means sending it before they go off to school. They will probably feel an initial pang of homesickness just after they arrive and realize they really are on their own.
5. Send them notes in the mail regularly. Even if it is only a quick postcard, there is something about opening an empty mailbox that is disheartening.
6. Send them a care package after a couple of weeks with their favorite goodies inside. They will have had ample time to miss your cooking (or ordering) by then. Also include little things to show you have been thinking of them all the time - newspaper clippings, local high school newspapers, doodles. . . even if they don't read them, they will know that you miss them.
   
7. Send them and their roomie a care package just before midterms and finals. Throw in a few healthy high-protein goodies too, like nuts. Not only will they be super-stressed out about now, but they will probably be surviving on pizza and m&ms. A little effortless brain food would probably help them out.
8. Give them a calling card. Even if they e-mail you every day and have a cell phone, there is something about a calling card they can keep in their wallet or on their keychain that can help them feel connected. Even if it isn't for very much money and they never use it, know that they always could can help their lonliness.
9. Save some holidays for them. Schools let out usually just before the holidays start, but a great part about them lies in the getting ready. Wait on your child to finish putting up the decorations or preparing the meal so that they don't feel like you're doing just fine without them.
10. Create a tradition that you will only do with your child. Maybe it's a meal at a special restaurant, or a secial dish you will only prepare the first night they come home from school.
11. Send them off with pictures of the fam. And their best friends and the house and the dog. These are all things they will want to share with their new friends as soon as they meet them.
12. Supplement with pictures of familiar things they may not ordinarily take photos of. Like the front of their favorite restaurant or shoe store or their high school coach. Their favorite dinner, bedroom, mom cooking, stuffed animal, bike, and if they are from another country don't forget cultural things: these are all the less superficial things they will be taling about and missing after they have been away for a few weeks. They will love to have visual aids for their stories.
13. Don't rearrange their room at home. What they are really going to want when they come home from school is familiarity. School is hectic enough without having to worry about being replaced or your parents suddenly realizing they can have more fun without you.