They grow up so fast! Mom-of-four Ree Drummond just documented her tearful goodbye with her daughter Paige as she dropped the 18-year-old off at college — and the Instagram pic is so sweet and relatable for moms everywhere. 

“Red nose, trembling chin, tight throat, aching heart. Leaving your child at college is no picnic. I’ve done it once before and thought maybe this time would be a little easier. I think it’s a little harder. But through all the tears, I see this clearly: What a joy it is to usher her into the next stage of her life. Paige, I’m so grateful to be your mom,” Ree, 49, captioned the emotional mother-daughter snapshot

Just a few days earlier, Ree posted another pic of her daughter on Instagram and wrote that she was gearing up for their emotional goodbye as Paige stars her freshman year at the University of Arkansas. 

“My sweet beautiful girl leaves for college this week. I have no words. I actually do have words, but I can’t let them out right now for fear the dam will break. More later,” she wrote at the time. 

Many of Ree’s 2.3 million followers are also moms and totally understood the emotional time the celebrity chef is going through. “I know the feeling, I just left my baby at law school,” one person wrote with another similarly adding, “Never gets easier.” Another fan commented, “Privilege and a heartbreak leaving our kiddos at college. Cried all the way home.”

Paige is just one of Ree and her husband Ladd Drummond’s four children. The longtime couple — they tied the knot in September 1996! — are also parents to daughter Alex Drummond, 21, and sons Bryce Drummond, 15, and Todd Drummond, 14. 

View this post on Instagram

My babies.

A post shared by Ree Drummond – Pioneer Woman (@thepioneerwoman) on

Despite their tear-filled college drop-off, Ree’s daughter Paige seems to be settling in nicely at her new school. On Friday, Aug. 10, the teen took to her own Instagram account — she has more than 26,000 followers! — to post a picture of herself posing in her adorably decorated dorm room. “Finally in my favorite place!! College, I’m ready for ya :),” she captioned the pic. Have a great freshman year, Paige!