It’s pretty surreal that we have now successfully launched a child to college. It’s one of the greatest accomplishments of parenthood, and yet it’s a messy process to get there. We felt nothing but excitement her entire senior year. She was ready, and we were ready to see her move on to the next adventure. However, the idea of sending her to college versus the reality of sending her to college is two different things.
We started collecting necessary items to fill a dorm room. Mark took her for all the big stuff- futon, fridge, microwave, etc. Then I did the fun stuff- bedding, containers, decor, etc. We had to have a come to Jesus in the middle of Target. Dorm rooms are small. You must choose everything based on a dual storage purpose. Also, you might not be able to take all your shoes at once.
Once it started getting closer, emotions got a little out of whack. What I mean to say is Adrienne was being an asshole everyone was a little testy. We planned one last Friday hang out night with the cousins. The cousins didn’t care that much. But Em and I cared and we decided that everyone else WOULD care too! Let’s just say some people Adrienne were not very cooperative about the whole thing.
*pictures all taken under duress
I can’t tell you how easy it was at this point to imagine dropping her off at that dorm room. I had visions of coming to a slow roll in front of the door and kicking her to the curb. I was researching low interest loans to pay for early move in. I considered some sort of Uber/U-Haul combination to have her picked right up in our driveway. Kidding, kidding. Not really.
However, the next morning there was new perspective. Em and I DO NOT mess around when it comes to these 6 girls. We are a pack, and we will behave that way. So, re-do. We went out to dinner and had a lovely evening.
The next morning was go time! We loaded up everything and headed off to MSU!
Adrienne’s dorm is a smaller one, so move in was very smooth. We pulled up in a parking spot, got a bunch of rolling bins, and loaded everything in them.
Her roomate and her family were delightful. Both Mark and her dad are handy, so they got to work right away moving around beds and such. Everyone jumped in and did a little something. The girls were both very agreeable and not too picky about anything!
It wasn’t long and it was all put together! The girls opted not to match each other, but rather coordinate colors. It turned out perfect!
We all went down to the cafeteria to eat together. Lexi and Sof were in heaven when they realized there was a dessert bar there! We had a nice time eating and chatting, but as we were winding down I could feel the tears start to come. I enjoy Adrienne’s company around the house, she’s the leader of our tribe, the role model for the others. Knowing she would thrive in this next phase of her life makes it exciting, but still a little sad. We miss her daily presence.
The ride home was pretty quiet, mostly because of this…
I couldn’t resist going home and finding pictures from when Adrienne was a baby visiting Emily’s dorm room at MSU!
I’m not crying, you’re crying.
I can rest assured that I did something right. She texted me on her first day of classes, and said, “Don’t worry. I took a picture”!
Train ‘em up right, and you will never be without pictures.
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