Freshman year of college, whether you like it or not, you ‘adult’ a bit. You’re finally on your own, your parents aren’t there to tell you what to do anymore. You can go wherever and do whatever without checking in every time. The freedom is exhilarating and at first you can take it a bit overboard. And after you have your first big, “Uh oh, probably shouldn't have done that,” moment, you pull in the reigns a bit.

Yes, having more freedom in your life is great, but it’s also the dreaded wake up call that it’s time to do some growing up. It starts with the little realizations. Like realizing that your mom did do a lot of your laundry, as you lugged your laundry basket up the stairs back to your dorm room. Also that her nagging about studying a little extra could have come in handy when you didn’t do so hot on your last exam.

Then the bigger realizations comes along... You realize that you now have larger, riskier decisions to make. And the worst part is that this time, if it ends badly, only YOU have to deal with the consequences. Long story short, there was a lot of unexpected growing up I had to do freshman year. So when I came home for the summer, I was a tad excited to take a break from being hard core responsible for a while.

However when I came home, I was in shock from what I realized. I wasn’t the only one that grew up within the past year, both my younger brothers did, too. Not only were they both fully taller than me now, but their personalities changed incredibly. They were no longer fighting over the TV remote to turn on their favorite show. The bickering had lessened tremendously. And the best part? They would actually listen to my advice when I gave it to them and trust me; this felt as good as the win over Michigan last year.

But, I had to face the fact that every big sister doesn’t want to face, that my little brothers are growing up. Girls now play a big factor in their lives, they have a different sense of humor, play different sports and sleep for about 75495 hours a day. But of course, being the ages they’re at, 17 and 13, it isn’t always easy breezy sailing each day.

The classic 'teenage rebellion against the parents' is now at full swing at my house. Asking to go new place and hanging out with new people seems to be the new trend. I realized though that every time they ask my parents for or to do something, they are asking for more freedom. I kind of laughed a bit when I realized THAT’S the truth behind it all.

During my senior year of high school, I felt like I was trapped in a cage and I did everything in my power to try to pry the cage door open. I remember straight up telling my parents that I wanted more freedom. So with that being said, my dear little brothers, I have a message for you:

Don’t be in a hurry to grow up. Appreciate the time you have still at home. I know it may seem like you're trapped in a cage with our parents guarding the door, but trust me, once you get to college you’ll understand why they guarded that door so intensely. Having more freedom is fun, but with it you NEED to be responsible. You’ll find yourself in some pretty sticky situations if you aren’t careful enough. If I had the freedom I had now my senior year of high school, it probably wouldn't have ended very well. So just wait. Don’t try to fly out of the cage just yet. Because once that cage door is open, it’s open for good.