The End of an Era

Today marked the end of an era for us.  As of this evening, Miss D, our loving and caring babysitter for the past 6 years, is no longer in our full-time employment.  It was much more emotional for me than I anticipated.  She has taken such good care of the boys and I have seen how much she truly loves them.  And the boys love her, too.  She's been a really important part of their (our) lives.

I have always appreciated how much she is fully engaged with the boys - doesn't matter if they are "bear hunting" (running around the house while singing a song she taught them) or "flying to the moon" (swinging super high on the swings) or doing whatever silly thing the boys think up - she has always been there 100%, playing and imagining right along with them.  She took good care of all of us, always insisting on picking up or loading the dishwasher during the day or before she left, though we told her daily she didn't need to.

After a tearful goodbye this evening between she and I, Gabe ran over and buried his face in the couch and started crying. Miss D came in to our lives when he was just 9 months old, and they have become close, close friends.  It's given me such comfort over the years to know that when I wasn't here, the boys were with someone they truly enjoyed being with, and who truly enjoyed being with them. 

We will still see Miss D; she will always be part of our family.  We are looking forward to this next stage in our lives, but are thankful for the genuine love and care we have received from her over the years.  She has truly been a blessing.