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Once your baby has crossed that threshold of his college dorm room and managed to convince you that he's a full-fledged adult, you find yourself challenged to come up with holiday gift ideas for him. No longer can you stand in front of the toy train aisle and thing that possibly this year he just might like them for one more year. No, he's living large with big boys now. Or, she's staying up all hours of the night in a continual slumber party for all you know. She'll never, even in secret, want another Betsey Wetsey doll. The toy store is long gone from your repertoire. So, now that your baby's grown, what do you get for a college freshman?

DORM GEAR
Christmas break is going to be their first major visit home, unless they graced you with their presence for a brief few-day stint at Thanksgiving, and with luck, they've regaled you via e-mail, text and phone calls with a long list of all the things that their roommates, suitemates and friends have that have made their lives all the more easy. Read: they wish they had these items. These are things like shower caddies, longer robes for trips to the communal showers, a better computer for those willing to really shell out the bucks, fuzzy slippers, organizer bins, fluffy beanbag chairs, cool bedding, whatever. Listen to the conversations your freshman has with you over the weeks preceding Christmas or Hanukkah, you'll get some insight on what dorm gear they crave. It might be something simple like a better loofah sponge, or something really expensive, like the aforementioned computer.

GEEK GEAR
Okay, we can't deny that freshman is freshman where...at college. What are they there for? To learn. We wouldn't be parents if we didn't remind them of that one in a while. You can always stuff their stockings with requisite extra notebooks, pencils and educational goodies. But, your freshman isn't ten years old anymore and remember that this is the age of technology. Pink sparkly notebooks are more than out of style, they are out of sync with today's youth. Think outside of the box of your college experience and go techno. Try a palm pilot to help them keep organized with all their classes and homework, or a software calendar program. There are countless ones on the market.

Chances are, you've provided your freshman with a computer before he left for college. There's probably not much need to upgrade just yet, but maybe a new mouse, something fun to outfit it, like one of those cool skins that can stick to the back of a laptop

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