The dos and don’ts of Family Weekend

By Natalie Proulx in Entertainment, Water Cooler on Sep 28, 2011 4:30 / comments

Make the most of these three days by following CUI’s dos and don’ts of Family Weekend at CU Boulder.

DON’T go off with your friends all weekend. Really, your family came here to see you. Hang out with them.

DO go on a hike in Chautauqua. With a weather forecast in the 80s for this weekend, there is no better way to show your family the beautiful city you live in. Make your way up either Royal Arch or the First Flatiron for an all-encompassing view of the red-roofed haven that is CU.

From left, Barbara, Paul and Megan Daversa share a laugh outside the UMC on the Friday of Family Weekend. The Daversas traveled to Boulder from Wilton, Conn. (CU Independent/Robert R. Denton)

DON’T take your parents and little sister to a 200-person kegger. This might be a part of your normal weekend routine. But let’s save Mom from watching you dance on a coffee table with a lampshade on your head singing along to Katy Perry’s “Last Friday Night.” She raised you better than that.

DO let your parents take you and your friends out to dinner. This is a great way to introduce your parents to your friends and your friends to your parents in a neutral setting. Check out The Med for happy hour between 3:00 and 6:30 p.m. Split a round or two of reduced-priced tapas and try not to cringe as Dad tells your buddies how you loved to run around the house naked when you were five.

DON’T go to Cosmo’s with your parents at 2 a.m. Yes, the spicy ranch is to die for, but Mom and Dad don’t want to see that they spent the last 18 years making you eat your vegetables for nothing.

DO go to Pearl Street and the Boulder Farmers’ Market. Not only will your family get to experience the fresh and local food Boulder has to offer, but they will also get a taste of Boulder’s unique culture beyond the CU campus. After you get some lunch at the Farmers’ Market on Saturday, head over to Pearl Street for some Glacier Homemade Ice Cream and the best people-watching in Colorado.

DON’T visit your favorite party spots. To you, that 13-push-up keg stand you did at Marty’s house last weekend may seem like one of the greatest accomplishments of your college career. To your parents, not so much.

DO visit your favorite study spots. Your parents want to know that you are doing something worthwhile with all that money they’re dishing out for you to go to school here. Take them on a tour of campus, show them your dorm, where you have classes, where you like to eat lunch, and where you spend a few hours every other week cramming for your math test.

DON’T show your parents the spirits you get with your fake ID. Need this be elaborated? Just don’t do that.

DO show them your school spirit. Go with your family to cheer on the CU Buffs as they take on the Washington State Cougars at 1:30 p.m. this Saturday. Your parents will love that you’re involved. Plus, you’ll get to sit in the good seats for a change.

DON’T tell Mom about the $20 Dad slipped you on the way out. He does it in secret for a reason. Plus it’s more likely that she’ll slip you one as well.

DO thank your parents for sending you to the greatest school on Earth! Seriously, where would you be without them? Show them how grateful you are by spending time with them this weekend and giving them an idea of what your life is like now that you no longer live under their roof.

Contact CU Independent staff writer Natalie Proulx at natalie.proulx@colorado.edu.