Buzzfeed has a list that is all Tumblr posts about becoming an adult. This one kind of spoke to me. For the last ten years or so, I was always known as the weird mom because my kids had way too much freedom and responsibility in the eyes of other parents. My girls had friends who weren’t allowed over to our house because of it. So many of their friends couldn’t go places, couldn’t do that, etc.
Then you launch your kids into the big world, and Princess’ housemates are coming to her asking for advice on cooking, driving, using a bank account, reading a map, etc. Gothgrrl’s friends who have already left for college are floundering in confusion and boredom and come home every weekend, while she has arranged to start college as a sophomore and has already registered with an employment agency in the town she’s going to. You can’t just be a helicopter parent and stop one day- you’ve got to prepare your kids for adulthood.
5 comments:
Your kids are the luckiest kids in America, I hope they follow your lead with your grandkids, and the attitude spreads. Kudos for doing it right.
Thanks, Bruce. I think it has a lot to do with my being much older than the average parent to start with. And being a single parent for a few years.
I completely agree. I do a lot of counseling and I've seen too many cases of "failure to launch" first hand. It's truly sad, actually.
Amen, Sister Cellania!
My father always used to say to us: "We didn't raise you to keep you as a pet."
I always say, "You spoil your dog because you want him to stay home; you don't spoil your kid because you want them to move out."
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