Our house is quiet. It is clean. There aren't any piles of miscellaneous books and papers and shoes or dirty socks. The cereal was not left out of the counter. There aren't any dishes in the sink. The laundry is actually all caught up!
It's weird.
The dog is moping around and keeps glancing hopefully at the door as if she is thinking, "Are they back yet? Huh? Huh?"
Mr. Wonderful and I sipped our coffee and read the paper in a leisurely fashion. We were not interrupted and no one pilfered the sports section or the comics.
This peace and calm feels both wonderful and awful at the same time. I love it...and I hate it.
Yesterday was camp day. We drove to Camp Weed.
We took Kelsey with us. Kelsey used to live here and went to church and youth group with the kids. Then her family moved to Japan. They just moved back to the U.S. but live in another state. She was able to attend the senior session at camp with The Boy and the rest of the youth group and is also LIT-ing (leader-in-training) this week.
The Boy seemed different at camp. I've been looking at him in a whole new light. He spent a week at camp as a camper, then came home for one day before heading back to camp as an LIT. During the last session, he called to tell me that he had been invited to work as a counselor next week. Most of the counselors are in college.
I think the staff at camp must see a more mature and responsible young man than his parents see. We tend to focus on the messy bedroom, the unmade bed, the homework that wasn't turned in, and the grades that could use a bit more focus. I think it is good for us to see him the way the world sees him. He is a good, moral boy. He has integrity. He is kind. He is funny and smart and hard working.
I am so proud of him.
The Princess was thrilled to discover that Kelsey was her LIT when she walked into her cabin.
She was also thrilled when I stopped fussing over her bunk and unpacking her bag and announced that I was leaving. Her teenager tendencies had made it all too clear that she was quite ready for mama to vamoose.
And so I did.
And now I plan to revel in my freedom by doing absolutely nothing.
