The Big 18 has finally arrived!

On February 5th, 2009 my baby girl turned 18 years old. It's the big one! Now she can vote, she can open a checking account and she can even get sued...just like an adult. It's funny because to me, she's still a baby and that will probably never change. She has been sheltered but I'm trying to raise her right and help her avoid all of the pitfalls that sucked me down. By the time I was her age I had already married, had a baby, divorced and was working full-time trying to be a Mom when I really still felt like a kid. I was raised with a steady stream of money and never, ever had to work for any of it. I was given checks, written out to the store of my choice, with the amount left blank. I never even knew what a power bill was until the first one came to mine and my husbands apartment. I thought, "What is this? So we're supposed to have the money to pay this?" I was as ignorant as an oak tree when it came to things of that nature. I don't blame my parents. My Father was successful and he shared it. He was busy and gone a lot and my Mother wasn't exactly a disciplinarian. She cooked and cleaned and washed our clothes and drove us and our friends wherever we needed to go, until that is, I got my first car. Brand new off the showroom floor at Jim Burke Buick ON my 16th Birthday! In less than 6 months it was taken away from me because I was irresponsible and stayed out all night without even a phone call to my worried parents. Looking back now, if I had been my own parents first of all, I wouldn't have bought me the car and definitely would have taken it away. On my 17th Birthday, I got a used Toyota Corolla hatchback with a dull paint job. Now that's more like it Daddy!  I drove that car until the engine locked up (because I had never gotten the oil changed)! Nobody had ever told me about that, I guess they just assumed I knew....ignorant as an oak tree! This story goes on and on but this post is about Hailey's 18th Birthday so I'll just leave it here...

My baby girl was born in 1991. In that same year a very poignant song was released by Suzy Bogguss called 'Letting Go'. I distinctly remember sitting in a library in Moody, Alabama doing research on Greek philosophers for a paper I was writing for school (only the rich and geeky had the World Wide Web back in 1991). A radio station was playing softly over the speakers in the library and this song came on. I got this huge lump in my throat and had to blink back the tears. Now, 18 years later, this song still causes me to react the same way...

All I can say is.....DON'T BLINK PEOPLE!

For the past two years I've thrown Hailey very successful (but expensive) parties.

Here's a pic from her Sweet Sixteen party!

 

 

Here's my big honkin blog entry about her 17th Birthday!

Make sure to read the last paragraph!

 

This year she decided she didn't want a party because she's busy working and her BFF has moved to West Virginia. That was really fine with me because the fundage just isn't available for a party anyway. I did sink my entire Alabama tax refund into a new TV, my gift to her because her old one went kaputz.

I got it in and replaced the old one while she was at work one night and just kind of let her find it. She was very surprised!

On the night before her actual Birthday I put her card inside her Cheerios box because I knew that's the first place she would look when she got up. She thought it was a cute surprise!

 

 

We planned to 'celebrate' her Birthday on Saturday night. It was the night of the Bud Shootout (as her Birthday parties usually land on). She had to work until 10. We invited Michael and Alyssa to come over for a late dinner of spaghetti and meatballs and crusty bread (no jalapenos this time Alyssa, I promise). It worked out fine for them because they were also working late. Dinner was very, very good! Although we didn't have a party I did buy flowers because I just think Birthdays are deserving of a few flowers and I always buy some.

 

I also made cupcakes for her 'cake'. I've done that for both of my kids for the last couple of years. It's a lot easier and there's no slicing of the cake. They were chocolate with strawberry frosting and a strawberry flavored Hershey's kiss inside each one. The kisses didn't melt which I thought was VERY strange!

 

 

And CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES that were out of this world good!

 

 

So we lit the candles and we sang Happy Birthday to miss Hailey and she blew them out and made a wish! She wouldn't tell me what it was...but I'm pretty sure it had something to do with what is soon to come...

 

 

 

 

 

Now for the biggest and bestest part of Hailey's 18th Birthday.....that's right.....as promised one year ago....she finally got her car! I didn't buy it, her Father did and she was ecstatic! It's the cutest little 1998 Honda Accord with a sporty little spoiler.

 

 

 

So now my baby has her own car. Finally, she can drive herself to school and to work and to the mall and to get her hair cut. That's about it for now because she is still learning to be a good driver and I will still ride with her as she gains more experience and branches out into more difficult driving situations. 'Alive at 25' is our motto (look it up) and she's with me on that (for the most part anyway). But just her being able to drive herself around locally is such a change for me. Driving Miss Hailey has been such a huge part of my identity for such a long time....it's kind of strange but a little bit liberating. I still worry and pace when she's on the road, but she's a very good driver and it's a very good car.

So that's it....my baby is an adult now....she will graduate from high school in a few months and that chapter of her life will be over...and she will begin her journey into real adulthood...college, career, marriage, children....I will be there to guide her and gradually I will be 'letting go'...