“Start spreading the news, I am leaving today, I want to be a part of it New York, New York…”

The day before our road trip was full of good energy and excitement.  Both Stan and I took the day off from work to let Michelle’s excitement and joy soak in.  We started the day off with breakfast at one of our favorite local eateries.  We ate, we talked, we laughed and both Stan and I fully enjoyed our time with Michelle.  We ran endless errands that day and at the end of the day came home to finish packing and do laundry.  Did I say laundry?  Oh yes, I did!  Well, an unfortunate event happened that night in the midst of MANY loads of laundry… our dryer stopped working!  Michelle was busy packing and getting things ready for the trip, I was preoccupied with cleaning and organizing the house since my friend Kelly was coming in from out of town to stay with Bella while we were away and then out of nowhere (well, actually he must’ve seen a tear nearing the corner of my eye at that point) Stan spoke the best sounding words I had heard in a long time “I can go to the laundromat and finish the laundry!”  For a second, I thought I’ve heard the voice of angels… no, really.  He left with more bags that I could count with the fingers of my hand, and he stayed at the laundromat until they closed.  After a long day and a few bumps in the road, we went to bed waiting for the alarm clock to go off for our exciting road trip.  Before we started loading the car with suitcases, boxes and more boxes of college stuff, Michelle and Bella said their goodbyes before Bella got on the bus for school.  Many tears were shed, more mine I think.  Bella left and we continued loading the car.  Finally we were done and ready to hit the road (Jack! sorry, I had to throw it in there, I couldn’t help myself), but not before saying goodbye to Daisy.  I don’t think the Niagara Falls hold as much water as tears Michelle shed for Daisy that day.  A weeping goodbye it was. 

As soon as we pulled out of the driveway I turned around to the middle seat just to look at Michelle.  I wanted to see her expression, I wanted to see if she looked happy.  We had driven her to two different colleges before and every time I sensed a certain sadness in her eyes.  I turned around this time and all I could see was joy, big smiles and excitement.  I snapped a quick picture, I turned around and a few tears came in contact with my cheeks.  I never thought I’d ever see that glorious look in Michelle when leaving home for College. 

Stan packed a big cooler with sandwiches, drinks and snacks.  I wish I could’ve bottled up the happiness we all felt that morning.  We had many laughs and conversations in the car and a couple of rest stops to fuel before making it to Ohio, our overnight hotel.  We woke up the next morning ready to conquer the day, we got on the road again shortly after breakfast and by early dinner we were in New Jersey where we would be staying for the next few days.  Upon arrival in New Jersey we were all tired from the road trip and all we wanted to do was get dinner and relax at the hotel and recover for the next day which we had planned on dedicating for some sightseeing.  Well, upon check in Michelle started feeling sick and before we knew it, Stan was making a trip to the nearest drugstore to get her some over the counter medicine.  We decided to grab a quick bite to eat at a local Mediterranean restaurant near our hotel and let me tell you… I might book another trip to the East Coast soon JUST to eat there again!!!  Ok, and to see Michelle again, OF COURSE! 😊 The food was delicious, and the restaurant super cozy.  We had some of the most delicious lentil soup I’ve ever had, homemade humus, pita bread and falafel, can we say, YUM!!! All with a side of hot tea for Michelle.

 We went back to the hotel to get some rest and praying (mainly me) to still be able to do some of the sightseeing we had planned to do the next day.  Stan and I made it to breakfast the next morning, but Michelle didn’t, she just didn’t feel great… bummer!  By noon, Michelle gathered enough energy and started to feel up to par so we decided to explore one of my favorite towns in the East Coast, Hoboken, New Jersey, ah, how I love this little town!  Stan mainly wanted to visit Carlo’s Bakery and eat one of their famous Cannoli.  After visiting the bakery and having half the sweets they sell at their place, we made our way to Erie-Lackawanna Park in Hoboken.  That park is just BEAUTIFUL!  By the water, overlooking New York’s Skyline and surrounded by ferry boats, greenery and the people there always seem to be having the best of days, maybe because they are by the water, overlooking the New York Skyline and surrounded by the natural beauty of the park, makes sense.  After spending some time at Erie-Lackawanna Park we headed to Central Park, that place is one of the most beautiful and enchanting places I’ve ever visited.  We took a fun bicycle tour -mainly because Michelle didn’t feel well enough yet and her energy level was less than desirable and Central Park is the size of Texas- but it was definitely worth it.  We visited a few of the park’s landmarks, took a few pictures and then drove to Little Italy to have dinner at Lombardi’s (it’s all about the food with the Borla’s!), the first pizza place in America, and let me tell ‘ya, it’s worth it!!!  Delicious coal-fired, thin crust Neapolitan pizza!  Little Italy was having their annual festival that weekend to celebrate the Feast of San Gennaro, the streets were more vibrant and even louder than when Michelle and I visited back in June!

Shortly after dinner at Lombardi’s, we headed back to the hotel to get some rest since the next day was move-in day for Michelle at school.  Michelle went to bed that night taking cold medicine, and feeling less than desirable, but hoping to feel better the next day.  We left the hotel around 8:15 a.m. and by 9 a.m. sharp we were pulling up by the front of the school with all of Michelle’s school stuff.  It was a beautiful day, the sun was shinning in all it’s glory and it was warm and perfect.  The school (like all schools) had lots of people helping with the move, and their system was quite impressive.  Michelle was asked to check-in right away while her boxes and suitcases were being transported to her floor.  After check-in, she had a few other things to do and then the setting up of her room started.  She was assigned a room on the 4th floor and she shares that floor with 10 other girls.  The floor has six bedrooms, four bathrooms, a huge kitchen and large living and dining space.  It’s an open floor plan and everyone has complete access to the rest of the apartment and a private elevator, that definitely caught my attention, I am easily impressed what can I say.  Michelle’s roommate Sarah was very welcoming and sweet from the moment we met her, and that was very reassuring for me to see.  During the short time Stan and I spend in her apartment helping her with the move, we met some of her roommates, four of which are International students.  One girl from Australia with the most delightful of accents, another girl from London and a student from Mexico and one from South Africa.  I loved seeing the diversity of the school, definitely a highlight for me.

While Michelle was finishing up her room, Stan and I ventured out to get her a few cleaning supplies and staples that she needed.  Her school is in the heart of Manhattan, and everything is right at your fingertips there.  We walked a couple of blocks and found everything that she needed right away, for triple as much as we would’ve found it in Chicago, ay, ay, ay!  Rewind… before going shopping for her things, Stan and I decided to visit Time Square, I really wanted him to see it.  I’ve been to New York a couple of times before this trip, but this was Stan’s first time in the Big Apple.  Needless to say, Times Square is not going to make Stan’s 10 top places to visit again, or anytime soon, I think it was sensory overload for him.  We walked around for a few minutes, took a couple of pictures, bought a few souvenirs and left.  Knowing Stan, I knew Times Square would not be his kind of place… mine either to be honest.  BUT, it’s fun to see!

We went back to Michelle’s school, dropped off the things we bought for her and then Stan and I headed to a parent meeting presented by some of the school’s faculty.  The moment they started sharing information about the program, I knew Michelle had landed in the right place.

After the parent meeting, Stan and I met Michelle for dinner before going back to our hotel to go back home.  We dropped her off at school and then I felt her forehead and she had a fever, I knew she didn’t look right.  She still wasn’t well, even after taking all that over the counter medicine.  At around 8:00 p.m. I started searching for an immediate care center.  It was Saturday, and it was late and the couple of places I called first were already closed for the day.  How could we leave her at the new school with a fever, not knowing what was wrong and/or if she needed antibiotics?  I searched and searched and finally was able to find an immediate care center not too far from the school that was closing at 9:00 p.m.  We took a Lyft to the immediate care center right away and were checked in and ready to see the doctor in a few minutes.  Nicest ICC I’ve seen in a while.  The place was spotless, the medical staff was amazing and the doctor looked like a movie star, I almost felt like we were in a Grey’s Anatomy set… it could have also been all the drama I had been exposed to at AADA on move-in day or a combination of my exhaustion, adrenaline and emotions! 😉 Soon after Michelle was seen, she was diagnosed with a severe case of sinus infection and prescribed three different meds.  Prescriptions were sent to the nearest 24 Walgreens who had to allow two hours to validate our prescription order before filling it since Michelle was a new patient there.  You heard it right, TWO hours, and it was already 9 something and we were exhausted, Michelle didn’t feel well, and well, it was just too dang late.  We braved the streets and like the best of sports, found a place to eat (again with the food!) while we waited for her prescription to be filled.  Finally, the call came in and we could pick up her medicine.  That Walgreens was the size of Texas, four stories high, just HUGE!  Prescriptions and water bottler in hand, Michelle took them all and we headed back to her school to drop her off.  We walked her upstairs and we said goodbye.  I didn’t cry then, but I’m crying now, real tears, because it’s all just starting to sink in.  I didn’t cry that night, because I was ecstatic for her and despite the fact that she didn’t feel well at all, Michelle was glowing!!!  She was smiling from ear to ear and already talking and socializing with her floormates.  I could see the happiness through her cloudy, blurry eyes from the nasty congestion she had.  We left the building knowing that Michelle had found her home away from home at school.  As Stan and I drove back to the hotel that night we both reflected on the fact that Michelle looked so happy.  Ok, why am I crying again?!  Apparently, I had been saving all those tears for this moment.  Happy kid, happy parents!

The next morning Stan and I had breakfast and got on the road again.  We had the best time, chatting, laughing, stopping at a couple of rest stops for snacks and then an overnight stay in Ohio and dinner at a yummy Italian place before getting on the road again for the last leg of the trip.  We had so much fun that we decided to go on another road trip soon, who would’ve known!  Based on this experience, I think Stan and I will do just fine as empty nesters when Bella goes away to College, I was a little worried about that to be perfectly honest, ha!

We dropped Michelle off at College exactly a month ago today and from the day we dropped her off, fever and all, we’ve heard nothing but great things from her.  She is LOVING her classes, the friends she’s made and the places she’s visited.  Just a few months ago, I wondered if Michelle would ever get her spark back.  Her spark is back and multiplied and I am the happiest mom because SHE is happy doing what she loves!!!

Michelle Marie… we LOVE you!!! ♥