Gone Too Soon...

I have come to the conclusion that this letting go business is for the birds!  There, I said it! If I had my way, I wouldn't have a single thing to do with it. Everything would remain completely unchanged and  that lump in my throat that keeps popping up when I least expect it would be gone for GOOD!  Unfortunately, though, LIFE just isn't that simple. You see, when your kids go away to college, they do return, but only as visitors. They don't, generally, come back to stay for long.  They have BIG DREAMS to chase after...not to mention boyfriends!  

Now, Britttany was home for one glorious month! We had the best time EVER!  Lots of late-night talks and sharing of secrets.  Oh, and who can forget the laughter because we never fail to find something to laugh about!  Well, on Tuesday night, she got into the mode of wanting to pack up her stuff.  Pretty good idea, I suppose, since she left yesterday afternoon. However, I was still in a state of denial.  Surely, she wasn't ready to leave just yet!  I mean, classes don't even start until the 17th...what's the hurry?  Oh, trust me, she was in a hurry alright!  She HAD to get back to see the boyfriend...Connor, remember?  The one who gave her Tony's Creole Seasoning for Christmas.  Oh, brother!  Well, she was in one happy mood, I tell ya! She was dancing all over her room! Me?  Not so much.

Here's what our kitchen looked like yesterday morning when she brought all of her "stuff" down to take out to her car. What fun she must have had unpacking it all!

She, of course, had to give Bella some last minute lovin'.

And Maddie had to give her one last SLURP!

Now, this is the part that gets a little tricky. All morning long, I had been doing fine.  Not a tear fell from my eyes...miracle of miracles!  Then...Chris and I walked her to her car and the flood gates opened wide.  As soon as we embraced to say our goodbyes, I was a babbling mess!  I could hardly utter a single word. What nearly did me in is when Brittany started crying.  She's never really done that before, but this time was different, for some reason.  Oh, how I hated to see her leave!

She hopped in her car, backed out of our driveway, and in a matter of a few seconds, waved goodbye and she was gone.  I couldn't have run fast enough to catch her if I'd tried...though I thought about it!

I walked back in the house...QUIET house...to find that she'd left this note for me, as she always does. I cried some serious crocodile tears, believe me!

I LOVE being a mom, but being an expert in the art of letting go...probably never going to happen.