Ding Dong the kids are gone…

Do you hear that?

Silence.

And it's weird.

Really. Really. Wierd.

I was the odd parent out today as we shipped 10 youngin's off to summer camp.  There were tears.  There were looks of worry, wondering if their children would be okay for 5 days.

But not me.

I was the excited one.

For two reasons.  1 - my kids are going to have an AWESOME time.  It's an experience that I can't personally give them.  They are going to meet new people, new friends, and make memories that they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.  They are going to learn more about the AWESOME God that we serve… they are going to grow stronger in their faith and seeds will be planted.  I'm so excited for them.

But 2 - I am going to have some space.  Some much needed space.  I have a lot to get done this week to prepare for our trip to Mississippi and there's going to be time for me to focus on that.

Don't get me wrong, I love being here with the kids during the summer.  I have an opportunity that not all single mothers have.  And I love it.  But my work schedule needed some adjusting to incoporate them and my days and nights are all screwed up.

I just assumed other parents would look forward to the quiet as well.  So when I left church this afternoon I started to feel bad about the fact that I was so excited about it.

I started questioning whether or not I was a "bad mom" or a "selfish mom" for wanting some time for me…. for my work actually as I have no plans right now to do anything social.  I just wanted some time for me.

But when I walked in the house, a storm brewing outside, I realized just how quiet it was.

And then the storm hit… lightening, thunder, hail… and it was scary.  But it was nice to sit on my porch and not have to calm fears.

But it sucked because I had no one to hollar into and yell, "Come check this out!"

Unfortunately, the dog and the cat don't care.

But they're gone.  I have 5 whole days where I can work on my schedule.  I have things that I want to knock out. I have things that I want to get done.  And I'm excited.

And the only thing that I AM really bummed about?

I have to wait until Friday to hear all of the cool things that they did.

But they'll have all weekend in the car to share them with me.

Until next time…