Inspiration Monday - Keeping the dream alive

We have been back from our odyssey  for barely one week and I almost feel as though we never went.  Unfortunately , there was no trying to gently slip myself back into an easy reality.  Just a slamming,  hit the ground running and we are back.  Although we are all unpacked, I am still sorting though laundry and adjusting to my tried and true east coast time.  I don’t want the trees and flowers and friends visited to be a distant memory – I need them to stay fresh in my mind.

Some thoughts and observations on travelling with two children on a cross country flight and journey throughout the Golden State of California

1.        Xanax is very helpful for smoothing out the edges, but nothing keeps my mind off a stomach dropping, shuddering plane 30,000 feet in the air more than my kid turning to me and saying, “Mommy, I’m hot.”  Which is code for , “Mommy, I’m gonna puke!”  I fanned Sophie with a barf bag  as our plane dipped and rolled its way into the Denver airport.  I was able to focus on keeping her from barfing which kept me from freaking out and playing the first episode of Lost over and over in my head.  Sophie didn’t puke and I am not part of the Dharma Initiative.

2.       When going through airports and security, a smile and a sincerely direct inquiry to the TSA agents toiling away, such as “Hi!  How are you today?”  Makes for a much nicer and humane experience.  I made a point with the girls to have them do the same – and let me tell you,  people who I  thought wouldn’t  be friendly – think extras on Hillbilly Hand Fishing – actually struck up conversation with my girls.  It’s not like we got upgraded to first class, but it sure made the experience way more pleasant.

3.       It’s not a family vacation until I get all blubbery and cry happy tears at how grateful I am for my children and husband, and how much I love my friends and how beautiful the trees are and…

4.       It’s also not a family vacation until Mom threatens to pull the car over if “You girls don’t keep it down and stop kicking my chair and I cannot drive with you two screeching in the back like a bunch of crazy people!”  Then said Mommy actually does pull the car over on the Freeway to follow through on threat.    And it calmed everybody – including said Mommy – down.

5.       When traveling to a different time zone, all time becomes meaningless.  Being on vacation, most nights everyone stays up later anyway, which to Sophie and Katie’s little bodies felt as though they were up until midnight most of the week.  Now with Daylight Saving, we are all totally screwed.

6.       It is fun to say, “Sure!  It’s vacation!” “ Mommy can we have ice cream?”  “Yes!” “ Daddy, can we play Angry Birds again” “Absolutely!”  You get to be the greatest Mommy and Daddy is the whole wide world numerous times a day with this strategy.

7.       Make sure you have logical conversations like this –We were getting dressed for a day of running around Los Angeles with friends and the girls both wanted to wear shirts they just got at Disneyland the day before.  I sucked my breath in and replied, “Oh, yeah – No.  No way girls – you can’t.  You don’t want to walk around LA, looking like a tourist.”  Sophie looked at me funny and said, “But Mommy – we are tourists.  What does it matter if we look like what we are?”  “But you don’t want everyone to know it.  You should look like you live here.”  “Why?”  “Because Mommy is from New York and I don’t want to look like a tourist.”  “Oh. OK!”