Moving Back Home

After living on her own for the past eight (or is it nine?) years, Caitlin has just moved back home. She is in school full-time, and next month, she’s going to Mexico to study for a semester. The lease on her apartment ended in November, and it didn’t make sense to pay rent on a space she wouldn’t occupy for several months. She spent most of November moving, cleaning and organizing.

A lot has changed since Caitlin and I lived in the same house. First, I sold our old home about seven years ago, when I moved to New Mexico for about five years. (We moved back about two years ago.) Second, Chuck, the guy that was my boyfriend those many years ago, is now my husband. Caitlin and Chuck hit it off from the start, but after knowing me as a single mom from the time she was two, Caitlin’s still adjusting to the concept of her mom as a married woman. Third, and probably most challenging for Caitlin, we live 20 minutes from the center of Denver.

Caitlin’s trying to make herself at home in our townhome, in this suburban neighborhood of mostly retirees. I know it’s difficult for her to explain to people that she lives in her mom and step-dad’s basement. (How many times have we heard about creepy ax-murderers who live in their parents’ basements?) But I love having my daughter around. It’s an adjustment for all of us, but we’re making it work.