I hope you’ve had a great summer! I’ve been sprinkling some of my favorite posts throughout the month of August while I’ve been taking some downtime to enjoy summer with my family.

Reading through this particular post brought me to tears.There’s a P.S. at the bottom, here’s how I was feeling…

Summer Vacation

We spent our vacation with eight high school seniors soon to be Freshmen in college, sounds crazy, I know, but it was the perfect way to end our summer. We soaked up every minute of it.  Spending time with all these really great kids on the cusp of starting something new was special.

College drop off

A couple weeks later we brought our son (first born) to college. I’ve been more or less preparing for this for the past year or rather 18 years, I don’t think though, that will ever cushion a parent from the heartbreak of saying goodbye to their child.

Everyone will ask, how was it and honestly all I can think to say is heartbreaking. He is 10 hours away and won’t be home until Thanksgiving. His presence is missed daily even with another sibling still at home.

They all have that special something they add to the home and it will be missing. I’m sad but it’s a double edged sword.

Our job as a mom

He is really happy where he is. This is what we’ve been getting him ready to do for the past 18 years. To go out on his own, find happiness, make good decisions, stay safe…

When I watched him walk back to his dorm as I sat in the car with tears streaming down my face all I could think was that he has become a young man who has exceeded my wildest expectations (in a good way!). It’s hard to be sad about that.

So to all those parents who have sent their kids off to college my heart is with you. It gets easier with time.

P.S. After 5 years my son is living back in New Jersey. It was 5 years of watching him grow exponentially, hitting speed bumps, picking himself up, making friends…

My friends and I were talking the other day, most of them with kids (adults!) older than mine and we all agreed. You will never stop being their mom. The good, the bad, worry, heartache- it’s life and despite how much it hurts saying goodbye sometimes I know they always know I’m here and my world is so much better with them in it.

What does this have to do with Senior Pictures? Absolutely nothing and everything. You can find out the everything part here.