Monday, June 13, 2011
Road Trip!
So if you were in the Hampton Roads area last week and heard racking sobs coming from the western side of Norfolk - that was me.
One of the things we have set up to insure my survival is a babysitter who comes one morning per week for 3 or 4 hours. It is to do important things like grocery shopping, responsible things like dentist appointments, or flippant things like pedicures (though, if you saw my feet right now you would probably file a pedi in the "important" file). Last week on Tuesday night my phone rang. It was the babysitter. I instantly knew it wasn't good. Her car had trouble, she had to cancel. She was very sorry.
I almost died.
At that moment I understood how crucial having a few precious hours to myself are to my sanity. I called my mom on Wednesday night and just whiiiiiiiined. I needed a break. At that point it had been 9 straight days with no husband, no family member, no babysitter. Just me. I know some superhero women do it much longer with less help, but I was starting to get a little edgy and I know that in order to be a the best mom to my kids that I need to have solo meal (or cup of coffee!) once in while.
If you had asked me 5 weeks ago when I would pack both of my kids up into the car and do a solo road trip I would have had a simple answer. Never. The idea of two pack 'n plays, all those clothes, toys, bottles, sippy cups, not to mention packing for the road, the risk of meltdowns, blowouts, and traffic... alone... I just figured that people would just need to come to me. Oh the power of the cancelling babysitter.
So last Thursday morning I piled our small army into the car and made my way to my mom's house. Things went a lot better than I expected actually. The kids were rock stars in the car and adjusted very well to unfamiliar sleeping arrangements. I got to see my grandparents for the first time since Christmas and my sister was also there. I got to have two meals with friends while my mom kept the kids. We went shopping and swimming and played on new-to-us playgrounds.
Lots of family moments like this:
One of the things we have set up to insure my survival is a babysitter who comes one morning per week for 3 or 4 hours. It is to do important things like grocery shopping, responsible things like dentist appointments, or flippant things like pedicures (though, if you saw my feet right now you would probably file a pedi in the "important" file). Last week on Tuesday night my phone rang. It was the babysitter. I instantly knew it wasn't good. Her car had trouble, she had to cancel. She was very sorry.
I almost died.
At that moment I understood how crucial having a few precious hours to myself are to my sanity. I called my mom on Wednesday night and just whiiiiiiiined. I needed a break. At that point it had been 9 straight days with no husband, no family member, no babysitter. Just me. I know some superhero women do it much longer with less help, but I was starting to get a little edgy and I know that in order to be a the best mom to my kids that I need to have solo meal (or cup of coffee!) once in while.
If you had asked me 5 weeks ago when I would pack both of my kids up into the car and do a solo road trip I would have had a simple answer. Never. The idea of two pack 'n plays, all those clothes, toys, bottles, sippy cups, not to mention packing for the road, the risk of meltdowns, blowouts, and traffic... alone... I just figured that people would just need to come to me. Oh the power of the cancelling babysitter.
So last Thursday morning I piled our small army into the car and made my way to my mom's house. Things went a lot better than I expected actually. The kids were rock stars in the car and adjusted very well to unfamiliar sleeping arrangements. I got to see my grandparents for the first time since Christmas and my sister was also there. I got to have two meals with friends while my mom kept the kids. We went shopping and swimming and played on new-to-us playgrounds.
Lots of family moments like this:
My sister, Grandmother (who turns 90 in a few weeks!), GP, and me
And my son got lots of cuddle time with his Auntie:
JoJo and Connor
And my daughter got a staple of summer: pool side junk food!
Kate at the pool
We got home this morning and I am feeling good. J has been in touch because the Carnival Cruise Ship USS George HW Bush pulled into Naples, Italy for the weekend. Tomorrow we will be back to the regular routine and he will be back at sea and on the way to much more serious business. Hopefully my sitter will make it this week. I'm not sure my mom is ready for me again this weekend!
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Hi, I'm Jill!
Extrovert. Mom of two. Wife of a cute Naval Aviator. Lover of wine. When I'm not chasing my two kids around town you will find me writing, taking too many photos, and researching the ten future areas the Navy could potentially (but probably won't) PCS us. We are fish out of water, landlocked at 7,000 feet. For now.
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5 comments:
We are always ready for you! And we know that an hour in the pool = 3 hr nap for K!
Yay for surviving your first road trip. I traveled a lot with my little guy and dog during our deployment. It really does help to get away some. Where are you going to go next?
Karen
Oh Jill...that cracked me up...the Carnival Cruise Ship part--we used to call John's boat (on his last deployment) the Good Ship Lollipop. Of course, they left long before and were still out on September 11, and that obviously changed things...like you said--on to more serious business.
That said, I'm glad they at least get a little relax/vacation time (if that can be said of time on deployment without the family.) It's totally deserved.
AS IS your time with your sitter!! Ouch! So glad the first major road trip went well. I anticipate many of those in the next year or so myself!!!!
xoxoxoxox
I never truly knew disappointment until I had a babysitter cancel! So glad you were able to spend time with the family and that you had a little change in scenery! Good luck this week!
Looks like you made good out of a bad situation. If the babysitter hadn't cancelled, you wouldn't have made a weekend of awesome memories with your family. So kudos to you for jumping that hurdle! Do you have a membership to a gym? Does it have a day care? Because that could be a few hours a week where you not only get solo time but at the same time get a workout in. Two birds with one stone, you know? Not sure about Navy bases, but Marine bases have the Child Development Centers where you can drop off your kids for a couple hours and its super cheap and trustworthy. Maybe that could be another option? Because I agree whole heartedly, that having alone time makes us better moms!
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