Tomorrow afternoon, the kids and I will fly to California to visit their grandparents. They have known about the trip for a while, and the fact that my mom counts down the days, hours, minutes and seconds for them makes it that much more exciting. Some days, Alex lets me know he wants to go on a plane, others… not so much. It’s more like “Mom, I have my bag and I am going to the airport. I see u there.” Oooooooook. My girl, much more aware of the countdown, is slightly more patient. She talks on and on about the things she is going to bring, what she is going to do once there and drills me with questions about the plans and activities that will take place that only my mom could tell her.
I, on the other hand, am on survival mode. My to-do list is SO long that I haven’t looked at it in days. It’s been MUCH harder to work from home with the kids here for the summer than I anticipated (even with hired help). I haven’t been feeling my best recently and the hours at the pool, park, and doing things with the kids in 94+degree weather surely take a toll on this momma. Siesta anyone? I wish.
Long gone are the days where I would hop on a plane because I woke up and decided I had a free weekend and would go visit my mom that day (my step dad used to work for an airline and as his dependent I could fly free on stand-by). I took many trips on a whim because I would look at the flight schedule, plane fulfillment reports, stand by lists and evaluated the odds of getting where I wanted to go without much delay. Crazy, I know…. but it was fun!
Unlike some moms I know, I don’t think about the “single” days… I only think melancholically about the small details that made things like traveling, simpler. Tomorrow, I”ll be at the airport with the double stroller, two car seats and a suitcase to check in, a carry-on filled with toys, plane snacks and a change of clothes just in case I don’t make the last flight of the connection… oh yeah, it’s happened before.
This time around, however, I feel like I am slightly ahead of the game. For the first time ever, I’ve had my kid’s suitcase packed ahead of time. Usually, I throw things in there the night before, even the day of! Not this time! Only MY stuff is left to get ready. My kids have had passports since they were 3 months old and my daughter will soon need a second one. They love airplanes, traveling, and everything else involved. They behave really well on planes (even to Europe) and for that, I am thankful. Let’s just hope that tomorrow goes well, I can play endless hours of in-flight tea parties, play-dough time, and travel aqua-doodle. Wish me luck! I’ll keep ya’ll posted of all our adventures… stay tuned!
Ishy
Can I come?