Quiet...

The cats are sleeping in sunbeams. 

Brent is sitting on the couch reading news stories.

I'm in the office writing. 

The girls left a couple of hours ago to drive back to Bend after spending the holiday weekend with us and the house is quiet. 

Very quiet. 

It was nice having them here. Katie enjoyed her Thanksgiving more this year than she did last year when she came on her own. It's hard when you start establishing your own family away from your birth family. You have to find the balancing act of time with each set, or time with both. She's figuring it out. 

I've mentioned before that we feel really lucky to have had her to ourselves for so long, but at the same time I am very happy for her that she's finding her own way now as well. Friends and girlfriends and a life of her own. It's all very good for her. 

So this year she had Amber and Slushy come with her to our house instead of leaving them behind and visiting on her own. 

Granted last year Brent had Covid and Katie and I were in the wait and see mode hoping we didn't catch it as well. She was really worried because if she tested positive she would be rehabbing up here instead of at home. And not only would she be missing her people, she would be missing work. It was all a little stressful. 

This year she is off work until next Friday. She brought her girlfriend and her roommate. They came up Wednesday evening and left this afternoon. The weather was good. The roads are clear. They ate, they watched football with us, we played a couple of board games. They fussed over the cats. She didn't miss anybody or wish someone else was here or she was someplace else. 

So it was a good holiday.

All of that being said, I love my quiet house. 

I love my lazy sunbeam worshipping cats.

I love my quiet husband sitting and reading his news.

And I love being able to sit and write without feeling like I'm being a rude host. 

We all have adjusted to living our own lives. 

I never would have believed it if you had told me 12 years ago when I did the ugly cry when she flew back to school after being home for the holidays. To believe that we would all adjust to living apart from each other. I mean, logically, I knew it would have to happen. It had happened for Brent and I when we left home, but surely it wouldn't happen with Katie. She would come right back to us and live in our house for the rest of her life after college. That would be fine, right? 

Of course it wouldn't have been. 

But 12 years ago me had not yet fully embraced that her job was done. The day to day part of it anyway. I tell everyone that you work yourself out of full time and into consulting as a parent. And then eventually even the consulting gig is very rare. We are well into that part. She might ask an opinion but most likely she won't. 

She's a full grown person living a full grown life. 

And it's a lot noisier than ours. 

The house is quiet again. 

It was a good weekend.