Most mom's I know dread when their son turns 18, mainly because of having to register for the draft. Me...well I was, I don't want to say thrilled, but I'd rather take that option than Jarom joining the military at age 18. It took a lot of convincing, but he decided to go straight to college instead of joining the air force, HUGE sigh of relief. Now please don't misunderstand, I am all for people serving, heck I think every 18 year old should at least have to go to boot camp. Boy would that change a lot of attitudes and give quite a few of them a huge wake up call...but that's another story/ post that will probably never happen! (At least I am honest)
Since we had to complete his Financial Aid before his 18th birthday, his Selective Service paperwork was already completed and he received his documentation on his birthday, along with quite a few other pieces of mail, a package from his girlfriend Heidi, cards from other family members, and a few pieces of mail from colleges...including one that I hid from him until the next day, the one he really, really wanted to arrive on his birthday because he only wanted one thing for his birthday...an acceptance letter from the University of Washington.
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| The mail that came...see that one at the bottom? |
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| The mail I gave him on his birthday |
I know it's hard to tell in this picture, but that letter that he so desperately wanted and told every person who called or spoke to him on his birthday wasn't the actual gift he had hoped for! Sadly, it was the one thing I couldn't make happen or give him, even if I tried. I was devastated, so much, I cried for him and still do. If you saw the way he lit up as he told everyone "the one and only present I want didn't come today", they would then ask what that gift was and he'd reply "My acceptance to Washington"...and then I would have to leave the room because I would be in tears. With how 'crappy' his senior year has turned into, why or why couldn't he just get this one thing?
Surprisingly, when I did give him the letter the next day...he already knew what was in that envelope based on the look on my face. Believe me, I really did try to give the big smile, positive attitude...but he knew...I was crushed. He did open the letter and it stated that this was the largest amount of freshman applications they had EVER received, over 31,000 applications and only about 6,000 available slots for the freshman class. Still we were both disappointed, it didn't matter what they wrote, it was still a denial.
But just like he has been through this 'crappy' senior year, he turned this rejection into a positive. He had already decided that if for any reason he wasn't accepted to Washington, he knew what school he would chose to attend...but I will save that for another post...that post will happen!
Now back to his birthday...besides that dreaded letter he had asked for 'stuff for college' and steak for dinner. Since I didn't have much notice on what 'stuff' to buy him (there is a completely different I need/ I want list based on what school he was going to attend), I focused on his dinner! I don't want to brag, but it was amazing! Bre and I had gone to the store after getting that dreaded letter and found 3 LARGE steaks, one each for the boys and one for Bre and I to share...with leftovers! We also bought some ice cream, picking out some of Jarom's favorite flavors to add to the stash of flavors we already had at home. We were also going to make either cupcakes or waffles with cake mix, but Jarom wasn't really in the mood for them since we had quite a few other sweets in the house.
Overall, besides me having to excuse myself several times that night to compose myself, I think he enjoyed his day. Sad to think that next year, I will have to make a 'surprise' appearance at his college to celebrate with him.
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