(a) He left for months and I had to deal and (b) now he's their most coveted treasure...
Alphabet soup, mine.
You're a very smart woman and I'm sure you see the cause-and-effect connections between (a) and (b). Yeah, you'd think they'd know better ..... but .... they're kids.
"Show me a completely smooth operation and I'll show you someone who's covering mistakes. Real boats rock." -- Frank Herbert