<p>Am I the only parent experiencing their kid suddenly getting sassy just weeks before leaving for her freshman year? We have been so lucky and haven't had a day's worry but all of a sudden we can't do anything right. Is this just the natural process of separation?</p>
<p>Sounds like she’s ready to go out and rebel upon any and everything. Drugs, sex, party, raves, etc… </p>
<p>Sent from my HTC HD2 using CC App</p>
<p>It’s called “fouling the nest.” It’s so much easier to let them go after they act that way! Be happy that you will only experience it for a couple of weeks, some people get it for the whole summer!</p>
<p>Totally normal. We experienced the same thing. She probably won’t admit it, and may not even be aware of why… but of the surge of emotions, anticipation, anxiety, nerves, etc. is major. Just take a deep breath and give her space.</p>
<p>It’s certainly will get better. D1 is now a great kid again :D. We told D2 that we’re too old to go through it again. Not sure she will take that into account when she finishes from high school.</p>
<p>^^same. D1 is also a delight again. D2 on the other hand is getting a jump start on the fouling the nest thing. she doesn’t leave for college until fall 2011!!</p>
<p>S started that in Soph/Jr year. Continued through most of Senior year. Gotta say that this past 6 month have been pretty good and he heads to college next month. He does want to make his own decisions and when he feels I’m stepping in where I don’t belong, it can get a little testy. Agree with posters above me (except studentengineer). Sounds perfectly normal.</p>
<p>D1 must be experiencing sympathy pains from d2. They r both trying my patience right now. Rising senior in college and rising freshman both “fouling the nest”</p>
<p>Miche99 – check out all the comments on this thread
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1175297-not-diggin-sassiness-summer.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1175297-not-diggin-sassiness-summer.html</a></p>
<p>My D is the same. I asked her if she wanted to go to BB&B to pick out things for her dorm room. She looked at me with the flat eyes of a shark and said: “Or you can just give me your credit card and I’ll go myself.” So much for mother/daughter bonding.</p>
<p>“flat eyes of a shark”–what a perfect description, to be alternated with the rolling eyes of complete exasperation, of course</p>
<p>but, to the OP, a completely age/situation appropriate stage, which they outgrow just like the terrible twos.</p>
<p>Mine did the same thing last year before his freshman year. This summer he’s pretty much the opposite. He’s been very nice this time around and we’ve been having a great summer. According to him it’s because he appreciates us and home so much more after living on his own.</p>
<p>Thanks. I feel so much better.</p>
<p>@studentengineer LOL not my daughter. Of course things can change but I am one of the lucky ones. No drinking no drugs no sex…</p>
<p>@ classof2015 
I had a t-shirt quilt made for her and while I know she loves it she still wants to go shopping for something else. So far it’s work and friends. I’m a last thought and mostly when she needs some cashola.</p>
<p>Its nature’s way of making it easier on everyone when they leave for college. :)</p>
<p>That’s happening in my house too, with my son. “You can’t tell me what to do”. “I’ll come home when I want to”. “You’re treating me like a 10 year old”. Etc., etc. We had a major blowup yesterday. It looks like I have two choices–try to enforce some rules (with lower curfew, take away the car, cut off finances, etc.) and have World War 3 for the rest of the summer, or put up with him coming and going at all hours and not always knowing where he is for the next month until he goes to college.</p>
<p>Frankly, I’m not sure I’m up for WW3 and I don’t really want to send him off to college hating me (more than he probably already does). He does generally let us know where he’s going initially, we just don’t know when he’s gone somewhere else, when he’s coming back, and whether he’s made it back safely from wherever he went. All are things which I (and especially his mother) would like to know, but which he views as an unacceptable infringement on his “freedom”. I’m glad to hear it generally gets better because if this keeps up next summer I’m going to suggest that he find another place to live.</p>
<p>I guess I was lucky. My D had been pretty independent from age 16 and we worked with very few rules and regulations (she could make her own decisions pretty much, but I was in the loop and we communicated a lot). So she did not feel the need to act any differently last summer before her freshman send-off. This is probably her last summer home (summer stock or an internship next summer) and she has been working two jobs, plus has a boyfriend. I am grateful for the time I get with her and certainly want it to be pleasant. As long as her choices are not deadly or potential devastating, I just here when she needs me. Much more pleasant than trying to take away the freedom they have when they go away and then come back for a “visit.”</p>
<p>hornetdad, is this the summer after freshman year. We never had to monitor her hours but coming home around 3:00 A.M was unacceptable. H&I told her flat out that CC was a good option if she continued. Something must have clicked.</p>
<p>Omgosh, this same thing has happened to us with our son! Finally last night I said sternly, “sit down, we’re going to have a talk”. Then I vented a little about how he’s not the only person living in the house, he needs to be more considerate, ect. </p>
<p>He told me he’s been trying to have a fun summer since he knows he’ll be going to college, and that he’s done most of the things, like chores, that we’ve asked of him. Plus he found a job this summer, and he is thinking we should be happy about that.</p>
<p>All in all, after we had this “talk” I felt much better about things. Kids see things from their perspective and don’t always realize they’re behaving differently or defiantly at times. Our son is a terrific kid, but still having the normal nervousness/excitement about going to college. I am also experiencing some nervousness/worry about it.</p>
<p>It helps to know others are going thru similar situations.</p>
<p>I have a class of 2014 Daughter and we went through this with her last year…unfortunatley, we are going through it with her again this year…only it started a couple of weeks ago…not all summer…even my H is complaining about her…usually it’s just me…some days I get teary at the thought of her going back to school and other days Im ready to push her out the door :)</p>
<p>I think that I am happy that my d is a Girl Scout camp counselor all summer, from May 30- August 8. She will then have about two weeks to shop and pack to move 16 hours away. She doesn’t have time to shower more than once a week (it is shower or sleep at camp and she chooses sleep), let alone be disrepectful.</p>
<p>@DrGoogle: It’s the summer between senior year of HS and freshman year of college. I’ve resigned myself to putting up with it for the next month until he leaves, but am going to set some clear expectations before next summer. Part of the problem is that the job he expected to have didn’t work out through no fault of his own so he hasn’t had a reason to get up in the morning. I will insist he have a job for next summer, so having to be somewhere fairly early in the morning should take care of most of the late night issue.</p>