It definitely was the best of times even when it seemed to be the worst of times . . .

I remember struggling through the grocery store one day, years ago now. I had one baby in my arms, one toddling at my side and one in the shopping cart. It was hard to shop trying to keep a distance from the shelves so my ‘helpers' wouldn't add things of their own choosing to the cart. I also had to keep an eye out for items the cart dweller wanted to discard along the way.

The baby, who never slept at home, snuggled into my shoulder for a nap successfully keeping that side of my body numb. The toddler wanted up like the baby and the cart dweller had decided to bite into each and every carton of yogurt.

Being an overachiever or a good deal younger at the time, I was also trying to use coupons. The baby decided to have her ‘moment' of the day and we left an unpleasant aroma in our wake. The toddler decided it was half past whining time and was hitting an earsplitting decibel. I persevered and had the check out counter in my line of vision. The grocery total was tallied up, and I turned to grab my hefty wallet of coupons in time to see the cart dweller turn it upside down, squealing as coupons took off in the breeze of the automatic doors nearby. He suddenly looked up and said, "Oops!"

A customer behind me was smiling and said, "Enjoy! These are the best days of your life and they will be over sooner than you can imagine!" Murder was in my heart but my arms were full of baby.

I was sitting with a friend at the airport one day a year or so ago. We weren't going anywhere but we had just put our daughters on their first flight, their first trip away from home. I suddenly understood the sentiment behind that woman's words. One of those babies was now old enough to board a plane on her own and go half way across the country . . . without me! She no longer needed to toddle along beside me, screaming for my attention. She was a person unto herself. I had to vie for her attention now! The baby on my shoulder is applying for college. The cart dweller lives in Taiwan. I enjoy their accomplishments but look back on my shopping days with them with a good deal of sweet nostalgia. Who would have thought it?

My friend and I stood outside the airport and watched the plane take off with our daughters. Our daughters did come home again. It was our little girls who had been left behind.