Weekend Moving, and Jasmine's Birthday

This past weekend was a busy one! Jasmine moved her "Stuff" from my house in Modesto, down to her new apartment in Fresno. This is the very first apartment that she has totally on her own. No housemates, roommates, or any other shared living condition. It is very exciting for her.

And Sunday was her birthday. A big 26 years old. I can't believe so much time has gone since she was a newborn! It's a real sobering thought that so much of my life has flown by.

Jasmine rented a U-Haul. It was the same size as the one we rented for our Davis to Upland move. She didn't come close to filling it up, but that was about the smallest they had for us to use. I drove the truck down to Fresno, while she drove her own car. It's been quite a while since I had driven an "Adventures in Moving" vehicle. And this time, unlike all my other moves, it was rather uneventful. It was a new truck with only 6,000 miles on it, no problems with the tires, or running into motel overhangs, or anything else. It was almost a bore.

I am not used to driving such a "big" vehicle. And even though I had driven much larger U-hauls in my moving experience, this vehicle seemed HUGE. I felt a solidarity with 18 wheeler truck drivers. I felt like calling them on a CB radio and honking a deep blasting horn. Neither or which the truck had. But still, I felt like one of the "boys". Silly, I know...this truck is a mere Tonka toy to those guys.

Jasmine and I unloaded the truck (with some help from one of her neighbors) rather quickly and then returned the truck. Which left the rest of Saturday to explore. Fresno is much more metropolitan than Modesto (about a 90 mile separation). They have a Whole Foods, they have every store imaginable. Unlike the black hole of Modesto that only seems to erect drug stores, and the locally headquartered grocery chain. It has much more of a Bay Area feel than Modesto or even Stockton will have.

I wonder why Modesto is such a no-man's land....

We window shopped, talked girly things, and laughed. Later we started to put things away in her little apartment. I had to laugh at how much like me Jasmine is. She has her own fledgling collection of cookbooks, and cooking toys, she has her art books, and various mini versions of this and that as I have at home.

Sunday was her birthday. We explored some more, cooked dinner together and went to a girly movie that was fun. In the midst of all this, Jasmine made me cry. She said " As long as I have you, I could have no better Best Friend!".

I just cried...silly old mom that I am. I know that every sacrifice, every bit of time where I chose how I acted and what I did with how it would be best for her has paid off tremendously. I could not be happier or prouder of the young lady my daughter has become.

What a gem, Jasmine is.