We’re baa-ack! A full week of vacation for the kids, parenting away from home for me. Was it relaxing? In a way. Was it stressful? Yes. But I’m glad I went, and I’m glad I didn’t take the dog. I’ve a new appreciation for my involved-dad husband, and I learned that I can do this alone if and when I have to. And though they weren’t really home all that much, I was glad to see my parents. Since Jamie was born, I haven’t been able to see much of my mom, and even though she was working, we got to have some time together, and she got time with her grandsons. All good things.
On the Saturday before last, Tony and I loaded the kids into two cars (because I was heading to the beach and Tony was heading back home) and drove down to visit my aunt and uncle, my cousins, and my cousin’s new wife in Sumner. We only had to stop twice during the (normally) two hour drive to change diapers, feed, and have potty breaks, so I call that a win. Once we were there, Charles demonstrated his vast ability to get hurt even when there are no obstacles nearby and everyone loved on Jamie.
And then we pushed Charles waaaay out of his comfort zone and my cousins took him tubing:
Charles called them “the boys” and probably would have tried to get them to take him with them to college if he knew what college was.
That is a look of sheer terror on his face, but if you ask him, he wants to go again. Now. Anytime. C’mon, boys!
Tony also got a chance. I understand he also attempted wakeboarding with less successful results.
You can totally tell which one works inside all day every day.
It was a beautiful weekend filled with great family and hot sunshine. Charles only got a few owies (he smacked into Tony’s knee and his tooth, the latter resulting in a bruise on his forehead that has yet to fade), only choked on his peanut butter English muffin once, and didn’t have any major meltdowns. I call it a win.
Charles took this out-of-focus photo.
Truthfully, there’s something just nice about not being in your own home for a bit. For the most part, the new environment helps Charles to behave himself – largely because he is unsure of everything. And my aunt and uncle are fantastic hosts who made us feel so welcome. By the time we finally left on Sunday, Charles was fed and ready to zonk out in the car, Jamie had been held by someone the entire time, and Tony had been good and beat up by the water.
When I get another chance, I’ll tell you all about the trip to the beach, during which I almost gave up and drove home three days earlier than planned. Who had a meltdown? I did.
4 comments:
Glad you had such a great time! You give me hope that our first long (8.5 hours without stops) road-trip with three kids will go well.
Charles took a great picture of you guys! Budding photographer perhaps?
Jennifer, all three car trips (the final one lasting from 10:30 am until 7 pm) went much more smoothly than I had any right to hope. Charles used to be just plain AWFUL in the car, but the combination of snacks, Raffi (oh, yes, we do), and car games seems to get us through, thank God.
We need some new car games! The boys are finally old enough to do the ABC game and I spy, but those can only last so long. What games do you play?
Since my kids are pretty young, our car games are limited to: "What color is the sky?" "Bluuuuuuue!!!" But I always enjoyed license plate games, abc games, and twenty questions when I was a kid. Twenty questions is good because you can vary the difficulty as the kids get older.
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