Well, We Said Our Good-Byes...

This photo was taken on our first weekend with Albin. We took him up to The Cameo, a favorite eatin' place in NW Portland. It was here that we discovered his passion for all things pineapple and coconut. He ate one of their famous "Acre Pancakes," covered with toasted coconut. In his honor, on his last morning breakfast in our home, I made HUGE pancakes with toasted coconut on top and fresh pineapple in little ramekans.

Albin left today. He's on a plane to Stockholm.

My son and I got up at 3 a.m. and drove him to the airport. Albin was excited because he knew he was going to get to drive part of the way. As an exchange student, he wasn't allowed to drive in the USA...but, since he was leaving today, he'd asked awhile back if he could drive.

As we said our good-byes at the airport, my son began crying. He and Albin have been best buddies for over 4 1/2 months. They'd been friends since last September, but when Alvin moved in with us in March, they became best friends. Basically, since school's been out, they've awakened each morning, scarfed down bowls of cereal, and headed out for a day of adventure! My son like having an older brother. In the car, as we were driving back he said, "I feel sorry for ___ (his sister) because she really didn't get to say good-bye." Right then, my cell phone rang. It was her. She was crying pretty hard, too, saying she wished she'd gotten to say good-bye.

As a mom, my heart hurts so much when my children cry. They were both quite attached to this Swede. Both intend to get to Europe whenever possible in order to see him again. He had quite an impact on our lives.

There were some times that I bitched about him, sort of the way we bitch about teenagers. He didn't help around the house much. He was kind of whiney to me, at times. He ate a lot of food. But, if possible, I'd agree to let him live with us forever...seriously. It got to the point of him getting up in the morning (usually around 11 a.m.!) and coming to hug me good morning. He called me, "Val-Mom" a lot and teased me constantly.

We'll miss this boy, yes indeed. But, with Skype, and a new webcam, the kids will be chatting as often as possible. However, it's not the same...