First and foremost, during the holidays we were graced with a visit from LawSchoolGirl. Baby of the family, over achiever, more than willing to accept being the center of familial attention and activities for The Duration.
More to the point, LSG had missed Mommy but not Mommy's Cooking, which she is quite adept at reproducing on her own. When LawSchoolGirl hit Austin she was craving her favorite home town take out and restaurants.
So, over the past three weeks we have been spending our time eating (in no particular order) P. Terry's, Popeye's, Whataburger, Magnolia, and Chinatown rather than chowing down on whatever I was willing to rustle up at home.
This morning it all came to a predictable end with that awful trip to the airport to deposit LSG on a plane to fly back to SchoolTown for the start of a new semester. So Hub and I are doing all kinds of things to be busy and to be NOT stressing about how much fun we had and how much we already miss having her around. If there are 50 ways to leave your lover, then how many ways are there to distract Mommy/Daddy Hearts from missing a child winging her way back across the continent? Our list so far....
•Take Down Christmas Lights
•Vacuum floors - thoroughly
•Take Down Christmas Tree Ornaments
•Fold a load of laundry
•Start load of towels/sheets from LSG's room
•Post to Blog
•Watch football playoff games
•Make list of new shows to DVR in next 2 weeks
Truth be told?
Every one of these activities were at least partially necessary, required some modicum of attention to complete and yet not one of them was ultimately able to fully distract this Momma from actively missing our youngest. Ignoring that youngest is now a fully competent adult out doing precisely what she should be doing, there is some piece of me that just can't quite get past saying "goodbye".
It sucks.
Every.
Single.
Time.
Don't get me wrong. I have a great life. I have my wonderful Hub and am truly grateful our ChefSon lives here in town. I have marvelous friends and I like our house and our garden. A lot. I try to fully appreciate how fortunate I am for a good part of each and every 24 hours.The days will pass and the Mommy/Daddy pangs will lessen. Soon we will be back to our routine, eating home cooking for lunch and dinner. Just me and the Hub. And, of course, Bijou the kitty (currently prowling around LSG's now closed bedroom door yowling to be let in and spoiled by what was previously pretty much nonstop loving attention).
Travel safely young one. Enjoy your adventures in Law School. Enjoy real winter (written non-ironically I promise). And, please, don't forget to call your Momma.
