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05 December 2008

my apron strings

are loosening just a tiny bit.
I let my son go to his nans for the weekend when the kaiser scrap off was on. He had to go by bus. Big deal I suppose, except for its nearly a 2 hour trip.
Then last week he came home from school asking to go swimming the next night with his mates. Not such a big deal either....but he would normally be at after school care until I finished work. I spent that night making sure that everyone I knew was programmed into his mobile phone (no matter how far away they lived). I rang my work no and my mobile so that he only had to press the resend button to get me if needed. When I dropped him at school that morning he had all his swim gear, some cash and the phone. I had spent an hour drilling into him what he had to do. He knew if I wasn't able to get away to call him at 3.30 then a 3.45 he was to ring me at work. It really freaked me, and not cause he was doing something with his friends, this has happened plenty of times. It was me needing to trust that he was able to get himself from school to his mates and then walk to the pool, and know when to leave and walk back to his mates. Safely. But he did it and I survived.
Tomorrow I have the crop 4 a cause day and it all happens again. Off to the train station for a bus trip to my sisters this time. Its the only time ever that my son is allowed to play his ds at 8.30 in the morning. Apparently, according to him, all he needs for his 2 hour drive is his ds, a bag of chips and an ice coffee big M.
Gee I'm getting brave, must be growing up at last ..... although I know I will still cry when the bus leaves, and not because I will miss him (that is a given) but because once again I face the reality of my baby growing into a young man.
......tuesday I have to face orientation day for high school :)

3 comments:

Melissa said...

OMGosh, you are brave Ros,I have all that to look forward too.I think the giving a little and letting them begin to make their own decisions and show that they can be responsible would be the hardest thing of all.We get so used to looking after them and being their primary carer, making their life decisions all the time, and then we have to let them go gradually.I am not looking forward to that...On a much better note.Have a fantastic weekend yourself.Scrap up a storm

peachy said...

oh ros, im not looking forward to those days, im having enough trouble now and jake is only 4, at least you will have great company tomorrow and hopefully take your mind off it a little bit

Anonymous said...

Ros, I'm going through the same thing with my 15 yr old dd. I'm having to let go a little [she would say A LOT]....oh, the 'joys' of parenting.