And now she's off~

  

Emily and I left Wednesday after lunch and it was quite the send off.  AC and Kate were sobbing uncontrollably,  and then Ellie joined in.  So we pulled out of the driveway watching Bill trying his best to console his 3 littlest girls.  :)  We drove to Atlanta for the night (in 2 cars) and stayed with my SIL and BIL. I am telling you, they are the BEST when it comes to hospitality.  Truly, it is my SIL's gift! We had dinner together at CFA~ naturally we wanted to support them on their "Appreciation Day!"  We got to dinner about 7:30 and not surprisingly, there was a long line for the drive through and it was bustling inside.  Several from corporate, knowing there would be crowds, were there lending a hand and it was fun to hear their views regarding the "situation."  Linda had wanted a salad for dinner, but they were sold out of salads.  Thankfully, they were not sold out of chicken!

We then headed to the house and had a yummy dessert of angel food cake, fresh strawberries, and home whipped cream.  YUM!  We watched the American girl gymnasts win GOLD, and we chatted late into the night~ it was 1:30 by the time we hit our pillows, and our alarm was set for 6:30 the next morning.

We arrived at Auburn at 8:00 AM, which was Emily's scheduled move in time. (it was quite helpufl that we gained an hour)  The move in went smoothly and efficiently, and many of the maintenance crew were on hand with carts to aid the families.  We took full advantage of that, and were moved in in no time.  We also appreciated the golf carts that periodically came through offering iced water bottles, as it was HOT!

Just the sorority girls were moving in that day, and at Auburn, the sororities do not have actual houses, but a dorm is set aside where the different sororities are given different halls and floors for their sophomore girls to live with their "sisters."  The setup is a large living room/ kitchen area, with 2 bedrooms and a bath to the right, and then the same configuration to the left.  4 girls share this area. The girls Emily is living with are all as sweet as can be, and all are from AL. I think Emily is happy to have her own room this year and just to be sharing a bathroom with one other.  We very quickly got Emily's room set up~ clothes hanging, bed made up and wall decor hung and then we headed off for a nice lunch together.  My girl was SO happy to be back, I could just tell. She saw lots of familiar faces, and did  lot of hugging~ she was right back at home. I love that Emily LOVES where she's at.  It makes it easier,though still not easy, when it comes time to leave, knowing that she is happy and thriving where God has placed her.

At 3:00 (Auburn time) we had finished with everything we needed to do, and it was time for hugs and kisses and goodbyes and maybe a few tears from mama, and then I hopped in the car and headed back to Atlanta for a little Hanna shopping for the 4 littlest. (a little retail therapy is good for a hurting heart) I was there about 1 1/2 hours~ the ladies there are SO nice and helpful and friendly.  They even managed to find me a 20% off coupon to use for my items that were not on sale. (it was still a costly little visit, though) I was back in my car by about 8:00 and not home until midnight.  The last hour of the drive, I was really fighting the fatigue.   The long day, the heat, and the little sleep the night before really hit me hard there end! 

Ahhhh, it is so bittersweet sending off this daughter of mine.  But I know that God has BIG plans for her! I know he's going to continue to use her in a mighty way!