Ok, so now what?!

Well my daughter successfully completed the first year.  When I say successfully I mean dean's list on top of getting a good resume together from internships.  Then. . .she dropped out. So now I have a VERY independent young lady LIVING HOME!  Help!  I'm happy she didn't continue on a path she felt was the wrong one, spending more money on a college that didn't fit her future plans.  Unfortunately she has no future plans.  She is now in limbo.  Great.  So now what is a parent to do?  Hard to help her find direction when she is so uncertain.  How about a nice liberal arts degree, then you can get a job in whatever.  To top this all off the next kid is getting ready to apply (if he'd ever finish the application).  Here we go again.  Wish me luck.

helicopter parents

Have you heard the term "helicopter parent"?  It's the term colleges are using to describe those parents who simply cannot disconnect from their children when dropping them at college, they "hover".  This is a very real thing, I've seen it and I think it goes beyond the initial drop off and not being able to leave.  I feel it continues on with the phone calls and texting, trying to keep your child within reach. I am not one of those. My daughter doesn't have to worry about me keeping tabs because she is blessed with, not a helicopter parent, but a helicopter aunt!  Makes me look good!  I just know that if anything is amiss I will be informed by dear auntie.  Gotta love it!!  It is very difficult to "let go" at first but we all do survive.  I will survive, her father will survive and she will survive.  I don't know if auntie is going to survive, however.  That we will see with time.  My advice is to let them be, eventually they will touch base, usually when they need something, but they will communicate more in the future.  I am learning that already, early on.  That's all for now, (I have to check her facebook status).  LOL!

What to expect when they GO TO COLLEGE!!

So you read all the books, the one on what to expect when you’re pregnant ,and the one when you give birth and the baby is seconds old.  Then there is the book about the first days. Weeks. Months. And finally the year.  Where’s the one "what to expect when the little darling GROWS into an 18 year old college kid"?  What should I expect?  I didn't expect to be dropping her in NYC!  A nice suburban college campus setting, that’s what we were looking for.  After all "mom I don't like the city", exact quote.  But lets back up a bit, if you really want to know what to expect you have to go to the end of their junior year possibly beginning of senior year, that’s when a sudden transformation takes place.  Your relatively normal child starts to act like something from the "Exorcist", head spinning, pea soup spewing (ok I'm exaggerating).  You get my point.  There are mornings when I tell her brothers to tread lightly because we don't know who is getting up that morning Jekyll or Hyde.  One moment there is ranting and the next all smiles.  The professionals tell us it's their way of separating, I get that, it doesn't help.  Hang in there though this too shall pass.  By the end of senior year a fairly sweet girl reappears (with a detour or two, three or more).  But progress has been made.  Although some of my friends had a longer battle, I consider myself fortunate.  That is until summer arrives.  Now accepted into college she feels she is a grown up who doesn't need to follow all the rules.  Okay, more separating.  Great!  If I survive this she may not.  We get through the summer and we are both okay, her father on the other hand feels like an alien has possessed her body.  He just doesn’t "get it" I suppose. ( Lol..) So off to college she goes.  She's been deposited in her room and "now you can leave mom, love you, bye".  More to come. . .