4 Days and Counting . . .

til Jamey goes off to college. What a tough week for both him and I. Sunday was a great mommy and me day though. We pursued a spur of the moment idea to go up to Woodbury Commons Outlets and do some pre-college shopping. The main reason for going was to get him some kind of all purpose, all weather jacket which he could layer over his North Face fleece in the dead of Winter. We got the jacket and proceeded on to the Nike outlet, Jamey's ultimate favorite. We were in there for quite a while; when we were ready to leave, of course, unexpectedly, the skies opened up to a torrential downpour. We were both in shorts and t-shirts, with no other cover of any kind. Except for Jamey's all weather jacket. Needless to say, he wouldn't put it on, guess he wanted to keep it fresh for school (something I would do also). After waiting for as long as we both had the patience for, we decided to make a run for it. Our car was quite a distance away from where we were; we knew we were going to get soaked to the skin. And we did; what a sight we were! Mother and Son running in the rain, dodging huge puddles, water literally running down our faces. It was refreshingly fun, and a special memory in the making for us, although I didn't even realize it at the time. It didn't hit me til much later on at home. Yes, I'll definitely freeze that moment in my bottomless pit of a child-memory bank. And yes, in the days weeks and months to come, I'll recall it with longing for my college son.
Last night I fell asleep at about 10:30 but woke up an hour later to brush my teeth and get a drink of water. Once I climbed bck into bed, I couldn't go back to sleep, which is so unusual for me. I am a great sleeper, but this was not to be last night. I tossed and turned, worrying about Jamey, worrying about me without him, just thinking and worrying in a vicious cycle of non-sleep. I guess I finally drifted off about 2:00am; but even then, did not sleep in my usual rock-sytle; it was very light and broken, a really crappy night's sleep. I know in my heart that he'll be fine. And I guess I will too, eventually. This is just one really tough week. Stay tuned.