07/11/2025
Parents, allow me a moment. Sitting here watching Reese hang out with her friend has me thinking. Am I the only one who feels slightly liberated when my children select their own friends, determine their own activities, and schedule a day and time to engage in them?
If you have middle-high schoolers, recall the elementary school days when you had to organize the events, invite all the kids so no one felt left out, interact with people you didn't necessarily connect with, and tolerate cringy situations for the sake of play dates and birthday parties because your children were friends or classmates? If you're still 😬 cringing, raise your hand.🤣
Since Royce drives and has a car, I only need to know where he’s going. However, with Reese, I need to know who you with, what you doing, when you going, and where you headed. She's free to make her own plans, but I continue the role of her Uber driver.
Reese and her friends engage in weekly or biweekly conversations, which has enabled them to stay connected over the summer, plan outings, hang out, and genuinely enjoy each other's company. One of her friends convinced her to sign up for Algebra 2 Honors Camp in a couple of weeks😮 AND she is thrilled about it! If I had asked her to sign up for that, she would have participated, but grudgingly. See what happens when they find their people. It’s a win
