Guest post: Words from Mom, part 3

Mollie's childhood was pretty normal. We have always lived in the country so until she and Josh got older and were able to drive, they were stuck out on the farm with each other, which isn't so bad. We are all very close and did things as a family most of the time.  As parents we all know how hard it is to raise children.  The crying, the fights and headaches. As a pre-teen Mollie had a few time where her mouth got her into trouble.  Well one day I had all I was going to take from her, and when she realized it, she tried to run to her room. I said "tried" because she didn't quite make it.  I tackled her on the steps and sqwirted Dawn dishsoap into her mouth. To this day feel guilty about that, but she found out that I was not making idol threats.  

 

But the proud moments you have as a parent help you forget all the times you threatened to beat their asses.  Jumping forward to 2003, this was a year full of some of the happiest moments of our lives and the saddest.  Watching Mollie get ready to start a new chapter in her life was traumatizing for me.  On one hand it was good to see her so excited about her future, but on the other hand I was terrified that I was losing her.  So of course, the happiest moment that year was Mollie's high school graduation. We were all so proud of her,and of course, we all cried.  Mollie planned to attend AIB in Des Moines so that summer we kept busy by getting her ready for college, and for me it was trying to prepare myself for life without seeing my baby girl every day. 

 

 

The day we moved Mollie to college was one of the hardest things we had to do. We all went, Mollie and Josh driving her car full of her stuff and Dennis and I in our truck hauling the rest of her things.  As we helped her unpack and went shopping to stock her up on groceries, I wanted the day to last forever. I didn't want to leave her.  We stood outside her building, our close little family, huddled together holding each other and crying, not wanting to let go. It was a long quiet drive home that evening. 

 

Mollie had been in college for a couple of weeks when one day she called home say that she wanted to come home, she didn't like being so far away, she wanted to drop out of school and move back home. My first thought was how happy I would be to have my girl back home, our family together again.  Then I realized I could not let her do that, she needed to stay in Des Moines, to stay in school down there.  So even though my heart was breaking I gave her the speech, that this was her chance to start a new chapter in her life, learning from new experiences and grow as a person.  Mollie didn't take long to adjust to life in Des Moines and it didn't take long for me to realize that she would never move back home, she belongs there. Mollie had become a wonderful, confident, and independent woman.  I don't think I had anything to do with it.....it's just who she was meant to be.

I remember that morning, pulling away from my house to move to Des Moines. I remember it as one of the hardest days of my life. I was excited to start college and meet new people, but leaving home was a hard day for me. And Mom is wrong..she did have a lot to do with who I am!