Way back in August, I traveled to Boston to visit my dear friend Anneke, her husband Steve and then four-month old baby Mary Lou. Last year, in May, I took the trip with Manny in tow; he was still nursing and was fairly portable, it was free for him to fly as a “babe in arms,” and I couldn’t imagine leaving Gabriel with an almost two-year old toddler and a seven-month old baby. This year, I planned to take Manny with me, registering him as “in arms” (no longer a “babe,” at least to my mind) with the airline ahead of time and beginning arrangements with Anneke to find a car seat and pack ‘n’ play for Manny’s use during our visit.
However, just over a week before we were set to depart, I experienced a Manny Meltdown while homeward bound from a pool outing, during which I was gently reprimanded by a fellow passenger. This incident was preceded a just several days before by a Manny Meltdown following a trip to the zoo, in which he screamed on the bus because he dropped his sucker; that time, I was reprimanded by the driver. Both incidents, and especially the combination of incidents, left me a little shaken: How on earth was I supposed to travel in the confined space of an airplane for more than two hours with a toddler who screamed when tired and hated to sit still? Not to mention the fact that my lap was becoming non-existent with the growth of the third Sanchez child.
My wonderful husband, upon hearing my distress at the prospect of traveling with the Moo, hit upon a brilliant solution: Leave Manny home with him and Jonah. At first, I said, “No, there’s no way.” I actually looked forward to showing Manny off to Steve and An, to having him around Baby Lou, and to spending the weekend with just one child. It didn’t take long, though, for me to see the wisdom of my husband’s advice. Going child-free would mean that I could actually enjoy some adults-only time with my friends; I wouldn’t have to worry about Manny annoying the other passengers (as he undoubtedly would); and I could have “one last hurrah” before, well, it probably wouldn’t happen anymore. It would be like Magical Laura Saturday for three whole days! The turnaround from thinking, “That’s a nice offer, but it’s not going to happen” to “Hurrah! A trip by myself!” was the matter of only a few days.
Once on my way, it didn’t take long to realize what a treat it was to be traveling solo. I could sleep in; I worried only about my own naps and not toddler naps; and I could sit down to read or to chat with Steve and Anneke whenever they weren’t busy tending Baby Lou or their home and garden. While I did miss being able to show off how much Manny has grown over the past year, leaving him in Chicago was well worth whatever minor regrets I may have experienced about that. What’s more, Jonah and Manny were able to have three whole days of bonding time with just Dada, which was a treasure for all three of them. It’s lovely to be missed, as Gabriel told me I was, but I like being missed just enough to know that I was in their thoughts and not so much that the home couldn’t function without me. Bravo, Husband!
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