Last day at day care

Exactly eight years ago, I was in complete turmoil. My mother-in-law, who had moved to the area two years earlier, decided she wanted to move back to Oklahoma where my two brothers-in-law lived. She told us in early June, and was planning to leave in August. When I had my first daughter, I was in a job here where I could work from home, but when my mother-in-law moved out here, she said she'd sit for us -- daughter number 2 was on the way. That enabled me to take a promotion that required me back in the office.
After a year and a half, my MIL was homesick. My brother-in-law had originally moved out with her and they shared an apartment, but New Jersey life wasn't for him, so he went back after a year. Not happy living on her own, and no apartments available at the senior residences in the area, my MIL followed him. (By the way, she eventually moved back, got into senior housing and is happy as a clam out here now!)
That left us in search of day care. We had the summer to find someone, and I was an absolute wreck. Policies changed, the work-from-home option was no longer there, and the not-working option wasn't there at all. So who could I trust with my kids?
We tried ads. We looked at various centers but weren't happy. We started asking absolutely everyone we know. Then, in mid July, my mom happened to be mentioning it at my uncle's house while his garage-apartment tenant was there, and she said, "I know just the place you're looking for." That's how we met Carol and Eileen, a mother and daughter day care team. A minute after going into their house, I knew they were perfect for us. And it's been eight years of so much more than day care. They've become very close friends -- we've leaned on each other, done favors for each other, socialized with and without the kids, etc.
Today is my son's last day with them. All the kids start camp next week, so we don't need any day care all summer. Then they're all in school next year, and my mother-in-law said she'd stay with the little ones for two hours after school. If she decides it's too much, we've got a young teen lined up.
But it's the end of an era, not going to Carol and Eileen's anymore. We'll still see each other regularly. We go to the same church, and usually the same mass. My daughters and Eileen's are in Rainbow Girls together. My younger son's going to marry her youngest daughter in about 20 years or so. We'll still trade e-mails, phone calls, alternate on rides to different activities, invite each other to barbecues. But it'll be strange, not having the kids there.
It's so hard, going to work, especially the first time you go back when you've got an infant. But knowing you've got someone you trust, who you know will give your child the best care possible makes it easier. But it's also more than that. There's also a huge sense of relief when you know the person taking care of your kids has the same moral outlook on life, similar values and outlook on the world. I've been really blessed to have them in my life, and in my kids' lives.