I am really not good with goodbyes….

Whenever the grandparents visit for a weekend, my kids have a hard time saying goodbye to them. They won’t pass out hugs and kisses; they hide behind me or my husband. They hate saying goodbye and realize the fun they had with Grandma and Grandpa (plus all the little gifts they always con them into buying them) will be gone.

And I hate saying goodbye as well. I remember when Audrey was born, and my husband’s Mom stayed with us for a few days while we got things settled. Ashley was only 2 ½ and needed some coaxing into believing the needy baby was here to stay. My mother-in-law cleaned and helped with bedtimes and was just a big sigh of relief.

And when she decided it was time to leave, I cried. She had been so helpful and I didn’t think I could do it on my own. Of course, I obviously have, but still. It was hard.

But the goodbye that takes the cake? When we relocated here to North Carolina, leaving close friends and family in Virginia. Saying goodbye to family was harder; saying goodbye to the friends who had been with us through thick and thin, who laughed with us, cried with us, even lived with us for a short period of time, that was hard. I knew I would be back to visit, but there would be no more late afternoon of my kid is driving me nuts let’s have a playdate and try to make it to dinner. I, of course, found unbelievably supportive and amazing friends here in North Carolina, and I am not going to say goodbye to them.

And now, I have to say goodbye to writing here weekly. Oh, it’s not a final goodbye and hopefully you will see me here on the Mom2Mom site every once in a while, but my weekly posts will be replaced by someone new. Just be nice to her…just as hard as it is to say goodbye, sometimes it’s hard to say hello…

Amy has appeared on Mom2Mom on Wednesdays since last spring. But she'll be back at least once a month to write about food. And she'll be back even more than that too. Right Amy? You can always read about her at her own blog A Family Story.