Well, I got home around 1pm today. I stopped at mom's last night. I haven't posted about her recent plans because she didn't want anyone to know until she had done it. I doubt anyone I know ever reads this but didn't want to take the chance.
Mom retired from the state yesterday. She is going on an "extended visit" to my sister's for the summer.

She has really been struggling with whether she should retire. She is too much like me and needs to stay busy. When she is home alone, she doesn't get much done and that leads to depression.
If dad were still alive, it would be very different. She would have retired 10 years ago (less than a year after him). They would be travelling the states. Oh well, I guess things don't work out as we always hope. It is just so sad because they spent their lives planning for retirement. They saved and scrimped so that they would have a great retirement and then never got to enjoy any of it as dad died 6 months after he retired and several months before mom was due to retire.