I’m proud to say I’m raising a daughter who is independent, outgoing, determined and confident. Despite leaving her friends of 15 years and moving across the country, she has adjusted well, made lots of new friends she adores and loves her new school. I’m really happy for her.

At the same time, I miss the girl who used to love spending more time with me, whether it was just talking, watching TV together (“Dancing With The Stars” was our thing for quite a few years), cooking or shopping. Yes, we still do spend some time together but not nearly as much as we used to. And I get it, because she’s a teenager, and she wants to have fun with her friends. I’m happy she’s got so many friends.

But lately it’s been been making me think about when she leaves for college, and how empty the house will be without her. I used to think I couldn’t wait until all the kids were out of the house — how nice it would be to be empty-nesters. But with husband working nights and me on days (and neither schedule likely to change), I’m faced with the fact that most nights it will be just me and darn dog Chloe.

And that makes me kind of sad.