But I don't want to give the impression that having Grace away at college is all bad. I've found one silver lining to this gray cloud.
Since she left in August, I have used the exact same ponytail holder every time I needed a ponytail holder. For morning runs or P90X, that ponytail holder was waiting for me. Sometimes, I might have needed to move a brush out of the way to find it, but none of the males in my family took it.
It didn't disappear from my shelf to be lost in a swim bag or pulled from Grace's ponytail in a bedroom to be laid on a bedside table and later swept under a bed. It didn't find its way into a cupholder in a car. I wore it when I exercised, then I would take it out and put it back on the shelf where it remained until I needed it again.
Amazing. One ponytail holder for the entire school year.
Still, for the reward of having Grace back, I guess I'll buy another pack of ponytail holders and welcome her home. It seems a small price to pay.