- my iParenting
- quick clicks
- iparenting canada articles
- iparenting canada q&a
- message boards
- research baby names
- prepare a birth plan
- content channels
- ip channel rss feeds
- read birth stories
- read parenting stories
- recommended books
- e-newsletters
- safety recalls
- ip diaries
- ip store
- mom of the month
- dad of the month
- editor's letter
- letters to the editor
From Our Sponsors
 |
- e-newsletters
- Sign up to receive our free weekly e-newsletters
- award-winning products
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
Leaving Home
Tips to Help You Say Goodbye to Your College Freshman
By Laurie Nadel, Ph.D.
As a single parent whose daughter leaves for college in two weeks, I, too, am becoming familiar with the rocky roller coaster ride of getting my child ready for college. On good days, we bicker about the price of linens and towels. Does she really need Egyptian cotton sheets? I don't think so. (Mom, what do you know?) Well, you get the idea. She procrastinates on calling the credit card company and making her final doctor's appointment, preferring to spend as much time as possible at her boyfriend's house. (Mom, what do you know?) Well, you get the point. 
I've come to see the benefit of all this, although I can't say I like it. Mothering has been a way of life for 19 years.Maybe it's a good thing that she hasn't been home most nights. After all, you have to get used to coming home to an empty house sooner or later. As for the bickering, maybe that's her way of separating so that she doesn't feel guilty about leaving me. If she provokes an argument here or there, she can use my anger as an excuse for distancing emotionally. At least, that's what I tell myself. When I'm not crying.
Judy Grimner says, "There are two things we're supposed to give our children: a wonderful home and wings to fly."
