Kyle Richards Is Already Prepping for an Emotional Goodbye When Daughter Sophia Leaves the Nest

Do you remember the emotional goodbye Kyle Richards gave her daughter Alexia Umansky as she went off to college in Season 5 of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills? Well, as the RHOBH mom of four prepares to see another daughter leave the nest, she's already getting ready for the tears to fall. 

Kyle's third eldest child, Sophia Umansky, just turned 17 in January, so she's getting ready to graduate high school next year and head off to college after that. "I have never gotten better so far," Kyle recently told The Daily Dish about getting emotional as she watches her kids start the next chapter of their lives. "I'm not gonna change. A leopard does not change its spots. So I know I'm gonna be tortured when Sophia leaves."

Kyle said she anticipates the Richards-Umansky household to feel quite different overall. "Sophia has a very strong personality. When she's not home, the house just feels very quiet. Like, oh, Sophia's not here. You can tell the second you step foot in the door," Kyle shared. "So when she goes to college, it's gonna be a very big adjustment."

That's one reason why Kyle is trying her best to convince Sophia to stay a little closer to home. "Sophia is really smart. She's very advanced in math, and she's a very strong student. So she just went and looked at colleges. She looked all on the East Coast, [but] I'm trying to encourage California, hello, you've got some really good schools there," Kyle said. "But she loves to tell me, 'No, I'm not going to stay here. I'm not.' All of the schools, I think, encourage going off, which I know is a wonderful thing, it helps them grow, but they've got really good schools and a nice, cozy bed at home." 

Of course, all of Kyle's girls have grown up since we first met them in Season 1 of RHOBH. Her eldest daughter, Farrah Aldjufrie, 28, is a real estate agent with The Agency, which was founded by Kyle's husband, Mauricio Umansky. Daughter Alexia, 20, is currently spending a college semester abroad in Barcelona. Kyle's youngest daughter, Portia Umansky, will turn 9 years old on March 1, and she is now in the third grade.

If fans can't believe how much Kyle's kids have matured while watching RHOBH over the years, they can only imagine how their mom must feel. "It's so crazy. Somebody posted a picture the other day of Season 1 of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, and my kids were so little. Portia was still in diapers sleeping in a crib," Kyle said. "So I just can't believe how my kids are growing and to see it documented on the show all of these years. It's really, really crazy. I mean, Portia has no memory of her life before the show, which is so wild." 

Relive Kyle's tear-filled send-off for daughter Alexia, below.

Kyle Says Goodbye to Alexia