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Ours is like that too. When she went to camp the first time, when we picked her up, she said, “I forgot what you looked like!”</p>
<p>I know the feeling of when kids are leaving for college…we sent four off. The hard part comes when they graduate college and they really leave the nest. When all of a sudden home is where their stuff is, and where they lay their head at night. It sounds good to hear “I will be home for the weekend” but when they leave they say “I’m heading home.” </p>
<p>Going away to college is just preparation for the next phase of life. If your kids are just heading out this fall be happy that they will be home for Thanksgiving or the long winter break, and most do come home for the very long summer break. Most of you will even complain that the little darlings are slobs when they are back this winter. You get used to the change and it really isn’t so bad after you stop crying long enough to realize you actually have less laundry and some milk in the house.</p>
<p>Hunt…“I forgot what you looked like.”…love it!</p>
<p>m3-Now you’re really scaring me. Please follow up your post with a sunny rendition about how rewarding it is to receive visits or phone calls from your completely emancipated adult children.</p>
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Right–you can console yourself by reading threads with titles like, “My S is home for the summer; how can I avoid killing him?”</p>
<p>Skyhook-
It IS rewarding to receive calls and visits from our emancipated adult child! We have different ways of connecting now. Now that his independence is established, he is more apt to discuss things that were “none of my business” when he was starting out at college (relationships, for example). We play a scrabble-type game with each other on our smart phones. I get sarcastic political commentary by text. </p>
<p>I love this guy and wish he could visit more often, but we are making it work. I am very proud of him.</p>
<p>I’m not worried about my son (much). I’m worried about me. In addition to missing him and losing one of my best friends and hoping he has high grades and low weight gain, I now have no real <em>purpose</em>. I’m employed full-time at a good job, but what am I supposed to do/be? My purpose was to launch him. I’ve gotten a good start (he left 5 days ago for a month-long pre-orientation program and will start the semester immediately afterwards), but now what do I do? A hobby just isn’t important enough to replace Raising a Child.</p>
<p>^^^Well said. Hopefully you can find an activity in your community which can impact the lives of others. Youth, the elderly, the homeless, there are many causes which can fulfill the need for important and significant involvement.</p>
<p>And you can stay on CC, and launch OTHER people’s kids!</p>
<p>Shrinkrap you devil. You just outed me.</p>
<p>I’ve been terribly sad at the thought of my daughter going to college, but as it gets closer, I am feeling some peace with it. I think what has really helped is that she has ‘met’ many kids already on facebook.
First there was a page for the entire incoming class, then the kids narrowed it down and made a facebook page for incoming freshman that will be at their campus. She has made friends and shared laughs with so many kids already, and has so much in common with a lot of them, that I am much less worried about her making friends. She was always very shy, but has learned to overcome it, and it is nice to have one fewer thing to worry about.</p>
<p>I will miss her terribly, as will her dad and her sister, and I will be a mess on move in day, but I know I am sending her to a good place.</p>
<p>Have your daughter try to find a facebook page for her incoming class, or start her own.</p>
<p>I’m glad to read that other moms are going through this. My son is starting his freshman yr way across the world at Penn State (we r in Saudi Arabia), and I am <em>freaaakkking out</em>. I’ll be taking him to Penn next week and will miss him immensely. I’m blocked from his twitter account, and am on limited profile of his facebk account lol, hopefully he’ll want to Skype. </p>
<p>One poster talked abt not calling too much, but where’s the balance between not smothering and being sure you are providing enough support? It’s been my experience that when I get involved in his issues, things turn out better. Sigghhhhhhhh</p>
<p>Yes having the same issues. Sad and teary, worried, nagging, stupid quarrels. Gonna miss them so much</p>
<p>Gosh, not only am I excited to see my boychild off in a few weeks I doubt I’ll worry much over him either, but them I’m the mean mom who sent her kid away for 2 months every summer starting when he was 7. And there were no phone calls allowed the first 10 days and only one visiting day in 8 weeks. </p>
<p>Dropping boychild off on the 29thAug, parents weekend is 30th Sept, he’ll be home in Oct for a week, Nov for Thanksgiving break and then 4 weeks or so in Dec/Jan. He’ll be home every time I turn around, fgs! ;)</p>
<p>not even my first child to launch, but the panic is rising.
I am trying to stay somewhat sane.</p>
<p>best thing I ever did for both D’s is send baked cookies every week! (yes some were premade mixes i used). they LOVED them. I laid off them for a while but I was reminded they were missing. They made alot of friends with the stash. when we visited the dorm, guys and girls came by to see who was sending the goodies and told us about their favorites! i actually did this for ME- to feel like i was sending a little love their way. it made me feel better and had the positive effect of helping them.</p>
<p>Just wanted to drop by and give you guys a group hug…</p>
<p>This time last year was totally in a panic. And if it makes anyone feel better, son will be leaving next Saturday to start his sophomore year and I haven’t done a thing (other than buy some microwavable food and snacks for him to take). Things are so much more relaxed after you have a year under your belt.</p>
<p>Miss him when he’s gone, I enjoy it when he’s here but there are downsides also- for example, you are then having to contend with a person who now operates on ‘college student’ hours - up and out all night, sleep all day. At some point you realize it’s easier on you when they’re away at school. Good luck to everyone as they make their launches and say their goodbyes.</p>
<p>Hugs everyone. Mom of only S…he’s heading off to PA Aug 27th (we’re going for move in). But the little nightmares (what if he loses, doesn’t have, can’t find, etc) have started. I know I did my job…but somehow didn’t realize it would change so “soon” (where did those years go?).</p>
<p>What is it in Nature that makes us love them so much? All I know is, it is the sweetest, sweetest feeling I ever experienced.</p>
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<p>Care packages are the best thing ever! We love sending, they love getting. </p>
<p>For those like me who aren’t bakers (and whose kids thus have lowered expectations :)), don’t feel like a care package must be from your oven to be worthy. I sent D store-bought healthy snacks, little HABA items, seasonal items (tacky Christmas socks), cheesy toys from the dollar aisle, comic strips clipped from the paper. Anything that says “I saw this and it made me think of you.” </p>
<p>And you’re right, rockymtnhigh, it gives us something to do, a way to take care of them from long-distance, a special little connection. I loved doing care packages so much that when D told me as a rising sophomore that I didn’t need to send so many, I was disappointed.</p>
<p>I still send an occasional care package, and my D is a rising senior. I like to send theme packages - Easter, midterms, etc. Sometimes it’s no more than I-know-you-had-a hard-week package: earlier this summer, after a particularly brutal week at her internship, I sent her a “relax and enjoy your weekend” box, with girl-type magazines, freeze pops (a treat from her youth), chocolate bars, and a gift card to Starbucks. My reward was a text - “You are the best mom ever!”</p>