The late-day window
She Follows You From Room to Room: How to Tell the Late-Day Trip Has Become Shadowing
When she stays at your elbow and turns toward the door each time you move, the late-day window has changed shape, and you can see it before she is out.
Some evenings the trip to the door does not start with a coat or a bag. It starts with her standing close behind you. You move to the sink, she is at the sink. You step into the hall, she is in the hall. Then, each time you turn, her body is already pointed toward the front of the house. This guide is about recognizing that pattern early, so you can slow it down before it becomes the walk out.
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What the pattern looks like
Shadowing is not the same as ordinary company. Plenty of people like to be in the same room while someone cooks. Shadowing has three marks that show up together. She stays within arm's reach no matter what you are doing. She moves toward the door, the hall, or the window each time your position changes. And when you pause or sit, she asks where you are going, or stands up as if she is waiting for a signal. If you see one mark, watch. If you see all three in the same hour, you have the pattern.
Check the timing and the change
Write down the hour when it starts and whether it started on this same schedule the day before. Then ask what changed in the day. Was there a nap that ran long, a visitor, a meal at a different time, or a stretch of quiet? These questions do not diagnose anything. They tell you whether this is the familiar late-day window or a new pattern that deserves a call to her doctor, who can ask the right follow-up questions. If the pattern is new, bring your notes and the hour it starts.
Give her a seat in the middle of the work
In the moment, the goal is to keep her close without letting closeness become the exit. Pick a chair in the kitchen or living room that sits where you are working, so she can see you without following you. Give her a small, seated task: folding a towel, sorting a basket of clean socks, shelling beans, or setting the table one place at a time. Keep your own steps short and predictable. If you need to leave the room, say so in a few words, name where you are going, and tell her when you will be back. Then return on time.
Compare who can take a turn
Shadowing is hard on one person. Before the next evening, decide who can take the role of the seated companion for an hour. It may be you, a second adult in the house, or a neighbor who is comfortable being there at that hour. If a second person is available, agree on the swap points in advance so neither of you is improvising while she is watching the door. If no one else is free, plan the hour around the one task you can keep going for her, and do not try to do everything at once.
Where to go next
If the pattern has been showing up for a while, read Start Here: Dusk to Morning, in Order to see how the rest of the evening fits together. Each claim in this guide traces to the pages listed on the Sources page.