fear and letting go

As a mother I am protective sometimes almost over protective, I care way too much about trimmed clean nails, high fructose corn syrup, flossing, fish oil I could go on and on. The bottom line is I want my kids to be safe, healthy and happy. I pray every day a prayer I heard years ago I pray that God will bless and protect them and keep his hedge of holy protection around each and every one of them. To be honest mostly I started praying this when we lost our health insurance, that kinda freaked me out, with three boys in the house I know it's when and not if one of them will get hurt or sick. I am learning however in the last few months a very simple but very hard faith building lesson. I'm learning to let go a little more of my kids, to let them venture out a little more. I let my oldest go on a four day road trip with my dad last week, that's something that scared me so bad. I think it's because I feel that if my children aren't with me they aren't as safe, mostly I think it's a control thing. And that is what I think this fear with my children is all about, I can't control everything and them ( mean to a certain point I can, we all have to be cautious with children but things are going to happen) and the older they get the less control I have over them and situations. I really want to find that balance of being cautious but also letting them be free. I really really don't want to be the mother that is the root of 25 years of therapy for them down the road. It's so simple it reminds me of something I hear on finding Nemo....If you don't let anything happen to them nothing will happen to them. Wise words out of that fish face, if I'm constantly trying to control their world, protect them from everything...I'm really hurting them, they won't learn important lessons, or have amazing experiences, or more importantly realize that mom is right, ok ok maybe not so much that one but I will be hurting them and keeping them from experiences that might be some of their most precious memories or from incidents that will teach them priceless lessons they will remember all their lives. So I will continue each and every day to pray for them but in that prayer I also pray that God will help me let go of my fear because with faith there can't be fear.