Mommy!

Well Jen is closing in on the Middle East right now and soon will arrive in Dubai. Weird.

She had a busy Wednesday as she finished packing, attended a parent-teacher conference and made sure her daughter and husband were set up for 10 days. And if you're wondering, she did set aside Ema's clothes again except for her socks. But matching socks isn't as hard as matching a top with a skirt.

Ema's parent-teacher conference went well. We were told that Ema is "very smart and very bright." But our little girl needs to work on following directions. She's very focused when she's doing something and tends not to hear others. This is a problem we also have at home, but the teacher decided it was more out of determination than stubbornness.

We are very proud of her progress report and there's talk about her moving to the next level with the big kids.

We drove to the airport around 4 p.m. During the drive, we reminded Ema about mommy's trip. She didn't reply.

We also talked to her about it the night before.
"Mommy is going on a big trip tomorrow."
"No little trip."
"Mommy will be gone for a few days."
"I want strawberries."

It wasn't until Jen walked to the security queue and gave Ema a big hug that our little girl realized we weren't joking. Mommy indeed was going on a big trip. Ema's eyes welled with tears. Her lips shook. She extended her arms to her mommy when I took her.

"Mommy! Mommy!"
Her wails seemed to echo through the airport.

Jen was strong. She gave Ema one more hug and walked toward the metal detectors.

"Mommy! Mommy!"

Jen looked back a few times and waved. She walked through the security gates but was told to do it again. She left on her shoes. Jen explained to the guard that she was a little flustered. Apparently the guard was not deaf and understood.

"Mommy! Mommy!"
Ema's cries broke my heart. A female guard walked by and said, "She makes me want to cry."

Jen waved one final time and disappeared. Ema continued to look for her mommy. I put our daughter back into the stroller and gave her Blankie. She held her friend close and sucked on her fingers.

Jen called us on our ride back home. Ema talked to her mommy and felt better. Then she asked for Dora and Diego and strawberries.