Stretching Those "Wings"

About a week or so before Lauren came home for the Easter weekend, she asked me if I wanted to go with her to see My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 at the movie theater.  After  I double checked with the hubby that he could watch Dominic for a few hours,  I told her yes, we were on! One thing I've learned now that Lauren is about a month away from finishing her first two years of college - if she wants to spend time ALONE with me, I clear my schedule and make it happen! Lauren's first semester of her freshman year was a HUGE adjustment for me because we are very close. When she was little and a kid cut her off at the slide on the playground, I instantly stepped in and was rectifying the situation for her. Riding her bike to a friends house for the first time, I made her promise she would call me when she got there! The time she told me that she wanted to call me "mom," and not "mommy," it was hard, but I understood. As she went through high school, I had a pretty good handle on how she was doing, but at the same time kept out of her business. When it came time to shop for things for her dorm room, we did it together. Since she took her car back to college in August of last year, we haven't seen her that often. Lauren will tell me she is sorry, but I tell her, "don't be sorry, I'm glad you are having such a great time at college!"  My Mother's Day gift last year from Lauren was a poem that she wrote herself:

Mom, You're so inspiring

Your wisdom's never tiring

There's never a day that goes by

That something you do doesn't catch my eye

Whether it's making something scrumptious to eat

Or patiently asking Dominic to take a seat

Or giving me advice

Even when I ask for your opinion more than once or twice

Your endless support

Is irreplaceable, and in short

I admire you so much

And in being a mother, you have a special touch

I cannot thank you enough for all that you do

Mom, I love you!

Okay, now that I've wiped the tear from the corner of my eye, I know that as she gets older, turns 21 and graduates from college, she will continue to stretch those "wings" even more. But, you know what? This "momma bird" is okay with that, because Lauren knows I will always be there for her, just as I always have been.