tripp and i were hoping to make the transition as painless as possible, so we basically recreated her bedroom from our old house in the ‘burbs into this room. we painted it the same color of warm beige and arranged her daybed in the same basic position. then we unpacked her pottery barn kids bedding and tried to make it feel like home…or at least as much as a new house can feel like home.
a few months later, kelsey asked if she could move into the bedroom on the front of the house. she liked the carpet and the coziness of the smaller room. so we happily obliged and took the opportunity to redecorate to suit her evolving teenager tastes. then redorcorated again a few years later. which is how it stayed until she graduated from college.
after graduation, we moved all of kelsey’s bedroom furniture to the house she shares with her roommate. we accepted a hand-me-down bed from tripp’s mom, just so kelsey would have place to sleep when she came home. but other than that, my girl’s room was just an empty shell.
a couple of months ago, we finally had the last bit of wood floors refinished upstairs. when it was time to move all of the furniture back in place, i decided to put my office in kelsey’s old bedroom. this served a couple of functions…1) more room for my stuff (mother of the year!) and 2) having her room in the back bedroom would give kelsey more room and privacy.
once we got the bed and the chest put back in, i hung a few pictures and added a few other accessories (including a darling nightstand i bought at vintage market days). even though i know it isn’t exactly kelsey’s more modern style, i still think it feels homey.
my girl came home this past weekend to visit and gave it a big thumbs up. although it was a little unfamiliar, she found it to be very cozy and comfortable. which made my momma heart really happy. but when she left to go home yesterday, i went upstairs and sat on the edge of her bed, wiping back a few tears. it’s still sometimes hard when she leaves.
my daughter doesn’t live here anymore.
this is much harder to say and to type than you might imagine.
her permanent address is the one she shares with her roommate. but she will always have a room in my house. this will be the room that she will someday share with her husband when they come visit. this will be the room that she will someday (a long way down the road…ahem) bring her own child(ren) to. even if it’s not in this exact house, my daughter’s room will always be ready and waiting for her whenever she needs it.
so even though my daughter’s room isn’t currently occupied, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is empty. but rather it’s here…ready for whatever comes next…wherever her journey leads her.
peace, kelly
You are a nice Mom. My parents always have a room ready for me and it gives me a sense of security and comfort so I’m sure your daughter feels the same way. Every time we leave the house even if we will see them the next day my Mom stands on the window and waves until she can’t see us anymore. I love my parent’s home.
thank you so much beka….so appreciate these kind words. xoxo
As the mother of grown and out of the nest children I understand your emotions. It’s nice when they come home, but so hard when they leave again.
hi kathy! thank you so much for stopping by and sharing your thoughts. it is so comforting to know that i am not the only one. xo