Bad Mommy Blogger

I need to get myself on a blogging schedule to update this at least once a week. I don't dread writing...on the contrary, I often find it a little therapeutic much to my husband's dismay (read his comments about hijacking the boys blog). Blogging is free. Seeing a therapist is not.

We obviously survived the plane ride to NC last month. It was fine and Pat and I both retained our sanity. Travelers luck we do not have. Something always happens and if by chance it doesn't we find ourselves frozen in fear not knowing how to function. It makes us more resilient I say!

This particular trip, we arrived without a hitch and safely back to Elmira. Our luggage and CAR SEAT however did not make it. My mom was nice enough to drop my car off at the airport so we could easily drive home without making family or friends go out of their way to pick us up. But we didn't have a car seat. I hope the po po isn't reading this because Pat drove home while I nervously tried to keep Aedan seated in the back seat with me. Don't be fooled...17 month olds don't sit quietly in the back seat without being firmly strapped into a car seat. It was awful but we eventually arrived home safely.

The luggage made it home too at about 11pm.

It was a nice little weekend visiting with our NC family.

Aedan and I are about to embark on our 2nd solo flight - the 1st time he was 6 months old so really, all I needed to do was attach him to me and all would be well. This time, he's 18 months, I can't attach him anymore because, well, he's over that, and now all he wants to do is explore, on his own, away from me, and obviously not be confined in a small cabin flying half-way across the country. God bless the poor schlub who has the bad luck of sitting next to us. As usual I build myself up for the worst case only to make the reality seem a little lighter. Welcome to my brain now get out as fast as you can!

We're going to visit my sister in Texas and I am super excited to see her.

That's our life as of now. The fall is bringing all sorts of new adventures and beauty that Upstate NY has to offer. We went apple picking and to Farmland where little billy goats were nibbling on Aedan's hiney. In a few weeks we'll be going to Iron Kettle for our pumpkins, candied apples, apple pie and kettle corn! It's so much fun doing the things I remember doing as a kid. Whats more fun is experiencing them through little boy's eyes. He is amazed by the world...ladybugs, airplanes, rain falling, his pop-pop and Go Dogs Go books. I need to try and help him hold on to that amazement for as long as he can.

Another Adventure

Last time I flew with Aedan he was only 7 months old. Tomorrow Pat, Aedan and I are flying to Wilmington, NC to visit family but this time Aedan isn't a sedentary 7 month old, he's a rambunctious and highly active, silly 17 month old!

We're both a little nervous about the flight. It'll be fine. I'm sure it'll be fine but I envision tantrums - the back arching kind that make you grind your teeth and smile attempting to make people believe that this kind of behavior is out of the ordinary for your kid when you know all along that making him sit for a full hour is just not logical. Ugh, I say!

I imagine trying to get though security with our jogging stroller and them not letting me gate check it.

I imagine our checked car seat getting lost somewhere between here and there.

I imagine the darn pack-n-play getting lost by FedEx Ground because ya know we had to ship it for 40 stinkin' bucks!

I've considered drugging him for the flight but that just doesn't seem right. I've got to deal with it sooner or later because in October I'll be flying with him BY MYSELF ALL THE WAY TO TEXAS! This adventure is like a preview of what I'll be doing in October. It'll be fine. He'll be fine. I just might lose my mind though.

I know what it's like flying on a plane with "that parent with the kid(s)." I used to get really annoyed at them and mumble to myself that I wish there were planes just for people with kids. I would count to ten to make myself not turn around and give the kid who's kicking the back of my seat with an evil eye. When I flew to Africa there was a kid probably about 10 sitting next to me who ended up needing the puke bag in the pocket of the seat as we were making our decent. I felt really bad for him of course but couldn't help to think WHY OH WHY do I always get stuck sitting somewhere in the vicinity of someone's kid nevertheless a puking kid? You know what happens when you're next to someone puking? You start to get the dry heaves sort of like in the movie Stand By Me but thankfully I didn't need my puke bag.

It's all come back to bite me in the ass. Doesn't it always? I always say, "Don't put something out in the world if you don't want it to come back to you!"

So between now and our flight I'll be trying to do everything I can to make this trip go as smooth as possible. Wish me luck. Wish me sanity.