This empty nest thing is weird, but cool at the same time. I thought I would be sadder about both kids being away at college, but I am not. While I was used to Laura being gone, I thought that I would be devastated to have an oddly quiet house when John left as well. What I did not realize until they were both gone is that I am actually so excited for both of them because they are figuring out how to live life on their own.
Of course, I miss both of them, but there is also something to be said for not having to wait to use a bathroom in my own house. Also, I can try new things like making lip balm because I actually have the time now. Entering this next stage of life seemed very overwhelming, but it is definitely beautiful too.
I spent the day making soap for Secret Haven Apothecary as I attempt to distract myself from the house being too quiet. This is Tranquil Grove. The scent is “Stress Relief.”
This is Velvet Bourbon. The scent is a mix of “Midnight Bourbon” and “Vanilla Bean.”
This is Quiet Dawn. The scent is lavender, peppermint, and tea tree essential oils.
I only have one more soap to finalize, and I will officially have a product line.
Our day started early. We moved Laura in first because she has a marching band leadership team meeting at noon. She is back in Room 712 Towers South.
After getting Laura unloaded and her bed and computer set up, we left her and Jack to unpack. Then, we headed to John’s dorm. He is living in 208 LaFerla Hall, which is a suite-style dorm. Each suite has two bedrooms and a private bathroom. Right now, there are only three people in their suite. John’s roommate is Drake, and he will move in on Tuesday. When we got to the room, the door was open and Blake was there. It turns out that Blake is also in marching band, and he is part of the Band Council.
After unloading the trailer, we got to work on unpacking. I kept laughing at John because he thought all the functional extras like the detachable bed shelf and desk organizers were so cool. Of course, I have been through this before, so making sure John had what he needed was easy. While Andy started with setting up the computer, John and I worked on getting the mattress topper in place and unpacking clothes.
Once Andy was done with the computer, he left to return the UHaul trailer and pick up lunch. While he was gone, John and I worked on setting up John’s bathroom area and getting everything else out of the bags.
When Andy returned, we took quick showers and then went to Target and Menards to purchase a few things like clips to hang John’s headphones and a few organizer bins. When we got back to the dorm, we finished unpacking. This is John’s bed area.
This is his desk area.
This is his closet.
We told him before we left that if there was anything else he wanted like decorations for the walls, etc., to let us know. We have a few more things to bring both kids next week, but Andy and I were pleased with being able to get John fully set up. We dropped him off at Dobbins Center for the new marcher meeting and then we headed home. The empty nest begins.
