Jonesy & Amanda talk letting their kids become adults

Let’s get ready to rumble! Each week, WSFM’s Brendan ‘Jonesy’ Jones and Amanda Keller will battle out the big issues for New Idea. This round, it’s one of the toughest pills a parent is forced to swallow – allowing their children to become adults…

Jonesy says…

‘I’m gonna be just like you, Dad…’ – so the words of Cat’s In The Cradle prophesied. When my kids were little, you’d sometimes wonder when you were ever going to get a good night’s sleep. My middle one, the girl, didn’t sleep through the night for six years. She’s 19 now and seems to have got past the need to climb into bed with Mum and Dad. The thing is, I now realise I don’t want the kids to move out! It’s getting harder and harder for my wife and I to hold a conversation when we go out for dinner without the kids. Plus, my daughter doesn’t often drink, so we have an instant designated driver.

Amanda says…

When your kids are little, there are many times when you seriously need a break from them –
a chance to clear your head, and spend a night away from nit treatment. But now they’re teenagers, I really miss them when we spend a night apart. My elder son has gone to a country campus with his school for six months, and it’s been unbearable. For me, not him. It’s reminded me of the many times I too left my own parents. The casual (and possibly thoughtless) way I let my own excitement take me out the door, with nary a backward glance. Maybe if I’d seen the sadness they struggled to keep in check. Today, I’m trying to do the same. It’s tough being the grown-up.