Empty Nest

The house is quiet...too quiet. Momma and I are empty nesters this week. My parents came to visit this weekend. When they returned to San Antonio, both the princess and the tornado went with them. We'll be catching up come Thanksgiving. But, for now, it's just Maw and Paw at the homestead. We're both taking off of work tomorrow to get some projects done around the house that we just never manage to have time for with the kids around. Still, it will be good to get back with the kids again.
In other news - the car. No, back up a minute - yesterday I went to the doctor as I had picked up some kind of eye infection. The visit went well and I got a prescription for drops, which are helping. On the drive home, I noticed steam venting from under the hood and got the car home quickly. An inspection showed the source to be a failed hose. I filled the radiator and got the car over to our trusted mechanic. After 190,000 miles, its no surprise the hoses needed replacement. Alas, it turned out to be worse - the radiator is also cracked and that needs to be replaced as well. But, with the holidays gearing up, the shop can't get a replacement until Monday.
In truth, it's working out for the best. It was only a matter of time before these things wore out. With the holiday trip and the kids out of school, it's about the best possible time for the car to be unavailable. So, overall I'm thankful that I was able to get the car to the shop w/o destroying it and that we have a good opportunity to get things fixed. I'm counting on another couple of years service before I put this one out to pasture.