It wasn’t originally my plan to post again so soon about putting my daughter on a plane to Italy last past weekend. But I heard from so many of you incredible people, I wanted to let you know that I’m ok, really!?
No really. I admit I flew directly from New York after her drop off to a trade show where I knew I wouldn’t have a moment to exhale (and I didn’t). And last night when I got home, I wasn’t sure how empty our house was going to be with just my husband and me (and the full animal kingdom).
But we are good and here is a link to last week if you missed it. It is our new normal. Seeing the joy on her face as her host family welcomed her as a long-lost relative made it easier. Watching her experience the beauty of Italy without the usual laser focus of time and schedule required on a vacation. Hearing her stories of silent discos in the street, telling us about giving her host family the gifts she chose especially for them and seeing her happily acclimate to a new life gives us great relief.
The first few weeks she is there is more of an immersion versus what most of us would consider a traditional school schedule. They roam the city, learn how to order cappuccinos, explore, attend festivals and then go on a three-night trip to the coast. It’s going to be a big change for her when she “officially” starts “traditional” school again and gets back into a routine. She’s also on a financial plan where she can’t just go get an expensive latte at the overpriced coffee shop (Italians don’t do that anyway). How she figures out the negotiation what is needed to prepare for college applications and SAT studies. And how she learns a new language.
We will visit but she will not set foot in the States until May 27th. Video chats help but we are a close, affectionate family and movie nights will not be the same.
Since I got back, I loaded some of the cases of wine that needed to go into the Eurocave. I updated CellarTracker. This weekend, we load several cases of wine into our storage facility at our new wine club. We have more time to spend together, go to wine events, see friends and travel. But we miss her. We really do.
I’m ok. Really! And she’s just awesome. She will thrive. We will survive.
