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Did you just drop your college student off at school?  Are you bawling your eyes out, wondering if life will ever be the same again?

I feel you, mamma.

What’s more-your kid is not the one getting schooled-you are.

My vicarious college tenure

My baby entered her junior year of college last week. My fourth-born. My accidental child (because the minute I decided three kids were enough, she showed up in the form of a pink plus sign).

*This post contains affiliate links.  Should you choose to purchase certain advertised items, I will receive compensation, which will help keep this blog up and running!

Last year, I had three in college.

This year, she’s the only one (praise Jesus).

I remember dropping my first child off at college nearly ten years ago.  It’s a big step for moms; the first one out the door, signaling the beginning of new era.

Retaining children still tucked in the nest softens the blow somewhat, yet one gets the feeling life as you know it will never be the same again.

(One would be correct in that assumption.)

You may have seen the video of a mom hanging off the back of a car as her daughter and peers ride joyfully off to college.  If you feel like that right now, I’ve got news for you.

It gets worse.

Today, I’m sharing sixteen choices your child may likely produce in college.  The following events may or may not have happened throughout the span of our children’s college tenure.

Who am I kidding-they all happened.  I can’t make this stuff up.

Without further ado, I give you The Surprising Sixteen.  You can thank me later.

Sixteen choices college students make (or at least that’s what happened to me)

While attending college, your child may:
 
1.)  Change majors 6-10 times
 
2.)  Exhaust meal tickets while running up your credit card on “groceries”
 
3.)  Spend the day shopping instead of attending class (again-your credit card)
 
4.)  Opt not to text or call for weeks (“Mom, I’m sooooo busy!”  Read:  “I can’t talk right now, there’s a party in my dorm.  Actually, it’s in my room.  Brb.  Jk.”)
 
5.)  Participate in a “compost pile” by tossing cafeteria fruit out dorm windows onto front lawn,  possibly (accidentally) hitting parked cars in adjacent lot.  Also possibly shattering a windshield with a melon.
 
6.)  Change college institutions 3+ times
 
7.)  Treat friends, Romans, and acquaintances to dinner at Olive Garden not once, but multiple times (again, courtesy of your credit card)
 
8.)  Accidentally graduate from a college not currently attending (professional student, anyone?)
 
9.)  Drop out of college after one semester on the guise of attending beauty school, (yet never actually attending beauty school) producing a bachelor of arts two colleges later (“I never really liked that first school, mom.”)
 
10.) Make a surprise visit home, complete with refrigerater raiders school pals and speeding ticket(s)
 
11.) Call to announce a just-witnessed a crime scene-of which they were an accidental victim,  bullet hole in apartment window notwithstanding. (“Hey mom, I just got interviewed by the police!”)
 
12.) Ask you if quitting college is an option every.single.day. (“just checking, dad”)
 
13.) Take on a “summer job” lasting fourteen months, enjoying an unexpected hiatus from college (“the job lasted longer than I thought it would”)
 
14.) Switch colleges to major in the choice YOU suggested in the first place because “my boss said I’d be good at it”
 
15.) Move back home after graduating college
 
16.) Graduate college and land job having nothing to do with college degree

Dear mom, here’s the rule of life:  nothing will happen the way you think it will.

Just stop right now with the stressing.  Help them make decisions as best you can (when they allow), fill out the FAFSA, pay the college bill, send the rest to Sallie Mae, and sit back and wait for surprise number 17.  It’ll happen.  I guarantee it.

After all, your parents survived, didn’t they?

What golden nuggets have you gleaned from your college student?  I’d love to hear!

*Next week:  Why 21st-century college is a racket; aka throw your ’80’s philosophy out the window.

Featured post from last week’s Link up!

*NOTE:  Be sure to click the link to read the rest of this sweet post!

This week’s feature comes from my dear friend, Valerie from Cord of 6, called, Stepping into a Dream.  In this post, Val candidly shares something I think we all struggle with when first starting to blog-transparency, and exposure to well, only anyone who reads the internet!

Writing has always felt like a second language to me. I feel like I speak two languages and am only fluent in one.  I can’t seem to speak the thoughts I’m able to write down. They are only expressed when they flow from my mind to my fingers.

But starting a blog meant I would share my writing with the big-wide-world of internet viewers and up until then, no-one had even read my writing.

“If God is setting your boat on the ocean, then all you have to do is let him lead the direction of the boat. You just have to take the risk and take your boat off of the dock and put it in the water. Then trust God to lead you where he wants you to go.”

When I look back at each step I’ve taken over the past year, I see that God paved a path for me.

To read the rest of Val’s exciting story, click here!

Welcome to Tuesday Talk!

I co-host with these wonderful ladies

each Tuesday at 8:00 AM EST!

This is a warm, inviting space to gain encouragement, ideas for crafts, DIY, and homemaking, or share your recent posts and show support for your fellow bloggers!

Please join me and let’s get to know each other!

Here are our lovely Tuesday Talk hosts!

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I’m excited to have you here today!  Please follow me on Facebook, and be sure to leave a comment so I can connect with you!

Can’t get control of your temper?

In Count to Nine, moms discover a Scripturally sound, methodical approach for taming the temper. Ruthie Gray, mother of four and grandparent of two, gently guides frazzled mothers of all ages toward God’s Word, His view on anger, and the nine steps to overcoming wrath.

In this book, you will learn

*The surprising reasons behind your anger

*The mind-blowing truth of God’s view on anger

*One eye-opening tactic for changing your reactions

*How the staggering power of unbelief can keep you from change

*How to triumph through one key attitude adjustment

*How to gain victory over a life-long stronghold

*And much, much more!

The author, Ruthie Gray, transparently shares her own motherhood struggles, instantly connecting with moms through her “been there” approach. Moms will find victory, new hope, and support through this encouraging method of actionable Scripture verses and Scripture prayers.

Dear mom, isn’t it time you Count to Nine?