The Drop Off

There was a lot of prep that went into it and a lot of emotion, and it was the DROP OFF.

And considering all of that, it went really really well.

I was teary all week leading up to the Drop Off. At random things like the trash (which was Emma's chore) or her wet towels, or but mostly at the sentimental things like Hanna telling her she needed Emma hugs everyday, and Rachel throwing herself in Emma's lap, and family prayer time when we prayed over Emma on her last night. I was sad at the idea of not having her regular physical presence.

But we were prepared. We had Emma pick out and order her bedding early in the summer and she and I both started gathering and putting things aside that were on her list. Then at the beginning of August, Jim and I took Emma out on the big shopping trip. We started at Bed Bath and Beyond and checked off the must haves. Then we went over to Target and filled in the rest of the things that she would need in her dorm room.  Emma is in a 2 person room, that has 3 girls in it. Because she is in a triple we tried not to over buy and Emma tried not to over pack.

She used graduation money and split the purchase of a Mac Book Pro with us. She started to set it up and get acquainted with all of the systems at TU. Slowly Emma started to make piles in her room. Move in Day was Thursday and when I checked on her Wednesday morning before work there was still a lot to do. I decided to come home from work early and we spent the afternoon running a few errands of last minute stuff. Wednesday also happened to be the first day of school for the middle 3 girls. We were able to have a more relaxed evening and the sisters got to spend some time together. We brought Emma out to dinner at her choice, the Cheesecake factory. The meal wasn't the best but it was great to be squished into a booth together. While we were waiting for our cheesecake Emma was holding Hanna in the waiting area and Hanna clung to her and protested not getting hugs everyday. Emma offered to eat Hanna, so she could bring her with her and that turned into a funny exchange of silliness, all while Emma snuggled her close.

When we got home, the girls shared cheesecake and sang songs together. We said family prayers and prayed over Emma. The sisters all clamored for hugs and Rachael melted into Emma's lap. It was hard to send everyone to bed. I joined Emma down stairs and helped with odds and ends as she packed her clothes. It wasn't all done by 11 but Emma was: so we went to bed. I cried that night before bed but woke up feeling peaceful and resolved.

Thursday morning Emma finished up with the packing and I got all of the girls off to school but not before they each said goodbye to Emma and got a few more hugs. Jim and Emma loaded the back of the van. We had plenty of extra room and we hit the road right on time.

Everything went smoothly. Emma got her room key and building access while Jim and I unloaded the van. Jim moved the car while the football team helped load Em's stuff into carts. When we were back together, we got an elevator to the eighth floor. One of Emma's roommates had moved in a few days earlier, Ali, but wasn't there and her 2nd roommate, Maatie, hadn't arrived yet.

The 3 of us got started unpacking and making up the bed. Jim and I asked a lot of questions (probably too many) as to where she wanted things, and Emma got settled without any problems. There were a few awkwardly stored things and we decided that as she started using things she would decide how things worked best and rearrange as needed. We went and got lunch in the dining hall together and then headed back up to her room. We took the steps because there was a long elevator line and Jim and I caught our breath while Emma worked on wifi access and downloading the Office suite on her Mac.

Ali arrived and we got introduced and she gave Em a few tips on getting settled. Then the 3 of us headed out to the library to the tech center to fix an email issue and then we walked through campus to the Union Center to get her mailbox info. We stopped at the bookstore and with that our to-do list was complete. There was a parent send off reception scheduled but Rachael was locked out of the house. With the to-do list complete there wasn't any reason to go back up to Emma's dorm. We took pictures and we said good bye and I got a send off hug. I shed a few tears and Em's eye filled up too but we smiled and Jim and I walked to the van.

I am so proud of her and I am so excited for her. But I am also scared for her and I will cover her in prayer. I will also miss her. I look forward to developing a new mother /daughter relationship with her and I am so blessed to have that opportunity. And I am so blessed to have her as my daughter.

Emma,
May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May His face shine down upon you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace.

Love and Prayers,
    Momma