Can we talk about how it’s already the second last weekend of summer? I don’t know how that happened. One minute we’re firing up the Kamado Joe for a long weekend and the next, for so many Island families, it means kids are packing up and heading out before school even technically starts.
I’ll be honest with you. I don’t have a kid going this year, our two older ones already went through this stage, but I’m watching university move in dates pop up on the calendar and I know exactly what’s coming. Our youngest is still in high school, a year out from this, and it’s already getting to me. We just got back from a back to school shopping trip to Halifax, his last one before he’s out of high school, and I caught myself getting emotional in the middle of a mall of all places. It’s in the small things, making his favourite meal for no reason, that catch me off guard lately.
So let’s do both. Here’s what I’d want to send with a kid heading off to university, and here’s what I think every mom needs to let herself feel first, whether you’re in it this year or just watching it get closer.
1. A deep freeze full of home cooked food (and Mom’s cookies, obviously)
This one isn’t negotiable in my books. There’s a reason every Island mom’s deep freeze looks like a small grocery store the week before drop off. A container of something homemade, a lasagna, mason jars full of soup, whatever your family’s go to comfort meal is, means one less night of cafeteria food and one more night of tasting home. And don’t get me started on the cookies. Mom’s cookies hit different when you’re three provinces away and missing your own bed.
2. A cozy MacAusland’s wool blanket
If you know, you know. There is nothing like wrapping yourself in a MacAusland’s blanket on a cold night, and for a kid who’s never lived away from home before, that kind of cozy is grounding in a way that’s hard to explain. It’s not just a blanket, it’s a little piece of Island comfort they can pull over themselves whenever the homesickness creeps in.
3. A Berry Best crew neck
Every university kid needs one piece of clothing that feels like their comfort uniform, the thing they reach for on the days that are too much. A Berry Best crew neck is soft, it’s cozy, and it’s a little reminder of home tucked into their closet between the textbooks and the laundry pile.
4. A handmade mug for their favourite coffee or tea
We’re spoiled for choice on the Island when it comes to local potters, and a handmade mug is such an easy way to send a piece of that with them. There’s a comfort in drinking your morning coffee out of something made by hand, especially in a new place that doesn’t feel like home yet.
5. Jars of preserves for the fridge
Toast and preserves might be the easiest, most comforting late night snack a homesick kid can make in a shared kitchen. I’d pack a couple jars for the fridge, our Wild Blueberry and the Raspberry Champagne, so there’s always a taste of home within reach.
Now, the part that’s actually for the mom
Here’s what I keep coming back to. We spend so much time preparing our kids for this and almost no time preparing ourselves. So if you’re the one about to do this, or like me, a year out and already dreading it a little, give yourself permission to feel all of it. The pride, the excitement for them, and yes, the grief too, because it is a kind of grief, even when it’s the good kind of change. You’re allowed to cry in the car. You’re allowed to sit with a cup of tea and just feel sad for an afternoon before you pull it together again.
This is where I think the Nourished line was really made for, not the kid heading off, but the parent staying behind. A quiet ritual with something from the self care line, a few minutes on your own terrace or your own porch, whatever grounds you, so you can actually process what’s happening instead of just powering through it because everyone else seems fine.
One last thing before they go
If you’ve got any time left before drop off, I’d use it. Bring the whole family in for brunch at the Preserve Company and order the PEI Potato Pie. If there’s time after, even a short walk through the gardens is a nice way to stretch out the morning a little longer. No agenda, no errands to run, just a little more of that quality time while everyone’s still home. Those are the moments you’ll actually replay in your head later, not the packing lists.
Whatever your countdown looks like this year, I hope you find a way to hold onto these last few weeks a little tighter. And if a care package with a deep freeze full of comfort food, a MacAusland’s blanket, and a jar of our preserves helps soften the goodbye, even a little, that makes me happy too.
Lots of love,
Marsha
