Daughter is settled.
Mama is adjusting to the new reality.
Hubby is exhibiting signs of missing the girl, too, which is to be expected. They were joined at the hip from very early on. Share a love for soccer, a similar sense of humor, and pretty much no patience for BS.
It's cool, their relationship. A girl with a strong bond with her dad is in a good place, in my mind. I loved my dad fiercely, and there was never any doubt he felt the same about me. It made my decisions early in life easier knowing no matter how badly I botched things, Daddy would be there with a hug, a smile, and some good advice for me while I brushed my skinned knees off.
While there, I stayed in a hotel in Sekonk, Mass. Daughter goes to school in Providence. It's really not that far, just about 20 minutes on the freeway, but a state line is crossed. And recrossed, and crossed again on the late night trip back.
Daughter has a really sweet roommate, who also plays soccer, and honestly seems to be the ginger version of my girl. They're like bookends, and I'm pretty sure the relationship they forge over the next year as roomies, and the next four as soccer players, will bind them for life.
We ate very well. Federal Hill, the locus of Italian cuisine in Providence, netted Mediterraneo, a wonderful place serving sumptuous, delicious food and which also serves as a favorite haunt for Billy Joel. He had dinner right across from us the night we were there. We enjoyed pork tenderloin, Caesar salad, amazingly yummy ciabatta, garlic mashed potatoes, a light gravy that literally made our eyes roll back in our heads, chilled green bean salad, then tiramisu for dessert. With espresso. Um.my.
Thayer Street is also hip and cool and full of deliciousness. We found an amazing Greek restaurant, Andrea's, that served up gyros, lamb skewers, amazing Greek salad, moussaka, and apps of calamari and a dip tray that delighted our palettes and put smiles on all our faces (we went with Daughter's roommate and her lovely Mama...).
We hit Thayer Street again on my last night there, and enjoyed seared scallops, French onion soup, and another version of a Greek salad, this time with avocado and fresh mozzarella. The Hess cabernet was nice, and accompanied the various spices well. Daughter had tea as she was coming down with a bad head cold. Ugh.
Another night...we enjoyed dinner at Wildfire, a Mediterranean and brick oven concept that filled our bellies with nicely seasoned pizza with sausage, marinara and carmelized onions and a Greek pasta boasting homemade linguine, feta, the freshest, biggest shrimp I've encountered in forever, kalamata olives, a bit of olive oil and garlic, and sauteed grape tomatoes. OMG. I had a glass of the Ravenswood Zin with that, which was amazing.
Saying goodbye, was ridiculously hard. I didn't pull over and completely lose my composure until I'd driven out of Daughter's sight; I knew she'd be watching my taillights recede into the darkness.
Now it's the following week, she's getting through her cold, and I'm back home where I'll be for some time to come.
It's time to settle in, breathe deeply, count all of my blessings, and get on with the new reality.
Mama is adjusting to the new reality.
Hubby is exhibiting signs of missing the girl, too, which is to be expected. They were joined at the hip from very early on. Share a love for soccer, a similar sense of humor, and pretty much no patience for BS.
It's cool, their relationship. A girl with a strong bond with her dad is in a good place, in my mind. I loved my dad fiercely, and there was never any doubt he felt the same about me. It made my decisions early in life easier knowing no matter how badly I botched things, Daddy would be there with a hug, a smile, and some good advice for me while I brushed my skinned knees off.
While there, I stayed in a hotel in Sekonk, Mass. Daughter goes to school in Providence. It's really not that far, just about 20 minutes on the freeway, but a state line is crossed. And recrossed, and crossed again on the late night trip back.
Daughter has a really sweet roommate, who also plays soccer, and honestly seems to be the ginger version of my girl. They're like bookends, and I'm pretty sure the relationship they forge over the next year as roomies, and the next four as soccer players, will bind them for life.
We ate very well. Federal Hill, the locus of Italian cuisine in Providence, netted Mediterraneo, a wonderful place serving sumptuous, delicious food and which also serves as a favorite haunt for Billy Joel. He had dinner right across from us the night we were there. We enjoyed pork tenderloin, Caesar salad, amazingly yummy ciabatta, garlic mashed potatoes, a light gravy that literally made our eyes roll back in our heads, chilled green bean salad, then tiramisu for dessert. With espresso. Um.my.
Thayer Street is also hip and cool and full of deliciousness. We found an amazing Greek restaurant, Andrea's, that served up gyros, lamb skewers, amazing Greek salad, moussaka, and apps of calamari and a dip tray that delighted our palettes and put smiles on all our faces (we went with Daughter's roommate and her lovely Mama...).
We hit Thayer Street again on my last night there, and enjoyed seared scallops, French onion soup, and another version of a Greek salad, this time with avocado and fresh mozzarella. The Hess cabernet was nice, and accompanied the various spices well. Daughter had tea as she was coming down with a bad head cold. Ugh.
Another night...we enjoyed dinner at Wildfire, a Mediterranean and brick oven concept that filled our bellies with nicely seasoned pizza with sausage, marinara and carmelized onions and a Greek pasta boasting homemade linguine, feta, the freshest, biggest shrimp I've encountered in forever, kalamata olives, a bit of olive oil and garlic, and sauteed grape tomatoes. OMG. I had a glass of the Ravenswood Zin with that, which was amazing.
Saying goodbye, was ridiculously hard. I didn't pull over and completely lose my composure until I'd driven out of Daughter's sight; I knew she'd be watching my taillights recede into the darkness.
Now it's the following week, she's getting through her cold, and I'm back home where I'll be for some time to come.
It's time to settle in, breathe deeply, count all of my blessings, and get on with the new reality.
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