Meeting the Parents

“So my mom wants to meet you,” 7 words that made my heart sink. In high school, meeting my boyfriend’s parents early on was a given, especially since I’d go to the house to hang out or drop things off. But coming into a college relationship, meeting the parents is a big deal. How was I supposed to act? What do I wear? What am I allowed to talk about with them? What has he already told them about me? Am I going to live up to past girlfriends he’d brought home? Questions raced through my mind for days. I was so stressed out. 

At first, I’d said no. I told him to wait a few more weeks. But once the time finally came to go to his childhood home and meet his mom, step-dad, and grandparents for dinner, I was a wreck. All morning I couldn’t stop thinking about it- what were they going to be like? Would it be awkward? How can I present myself well to them? I wrecked my closet trying to find the perfect outfit, but suddenly I hated every piece of clothing I owned. Is a dress trying too hard? Are jeans too casual? Do I wear flip flops or vans? I shot a text to my boyfriend asking what to wear and raced over to Target. Bless his heart, he sent me pictures of previous outfits I wore and said not to worry about it. As if! After probably an hour of walking through the Target womxn’s section, I bought a new pair of jeans, a matching belt, a cute comfortable T-shirt, and because I was at Target, a few other essentials. After leaving the store I felt so much better- at least I knew I’d look cute! 

On the drive home, I got a call from a hometown friend with whom I was catching up with. She calmed my nerves and distracted me from time growing closer to the imminent meeting point. I decided to straighten my hair and put on makeup and watch an episode of my new favorite old-show, Greek. 

Suddenly, the time was here. I was literally shaking the whole car ride over. Something that helped me calm my nerves was asking my boyfriend a ton of questions: what are we going to do there? What are your parents like? What are they going to ask me about? Is there anything I shouldn’t talk about? Knowing what to expect calmed my nerves a massive amount.  But as I continued to nervously chatter through the car ride, my always calm boyfriend started to become as nervous as I was. I guess energy is contagious! 

We pulled up into this cute little farm-house and the time was here. I said a silent prayer and we walked into the house. His mom greeted me with a hug and all his dogs ran up to me. Instantly I was at ease and I knew that all the nerves were in my head. As the night went on, I was really glad that I didn’t let my emotions get the best of me and that I took a leap of faith to meet his family. From laughing at the dinner table to pouring over baby pictures to walking around his little farm-town neighborhood, it felt like a Morgan Wallen country love song. 

 

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