Today begins a special weekend. Today begins Boys’ weekend. That’s right, a weekend with just me and the boys. Sally took her mom to a Dolly Parton concert in Connecticut today and since they won’t be home tonight, it’s just me and the boys. Now, I’ve been home with the boys before and while it’s a bit more work dealing with two of them, it usually works out fine. It’s always nice to know that one of us can handle both of them for an extended period without falling apart. But today is different. I’m with them alone, overnight.
Before we get to the overnight part, let’s talk about what we did so far. We got up this morning like a normal family, got the boys ready, and got the boys ready. Sally’s mom arrived and they left for Connecticut around 11:30. Then I was on my own. At this point there isn’t a lot of stuff that I can do with the boys. They pretty much only lay down or want to be held and since they are still discovering their hands, toys are minimal. That leaves us to sit and play inside, sit and play outside, go for a walk, go for a ride to a store, or to visit someone. I didn’t want to spend day inside, so the first one was out. We always do the second and third, so those were out. I didn’t have anything to buy, so the fourth option was out. The only option left was to find somebody to visit!
I sent a text to Rachel and Josh with the slim hope that they were sitting around and doing nothing and lo and behold they were! We originally planned to just hang out until they suggested something totally different – go up to White Lake! I’ll be honest, my heart skipped a beat at the suggestion. It’s one thing to take the boys on a 1 hour car ride up to a lake with Sally, but to go alone was a completely different story. They even wanted to share a car. Oh god! That means I’ll have to sit in the back between the car seats. I don’t even know if I’ll fit! What if they cry the whole way up?! Will I bring enough bottles? What if they are miserable? What if they get a sunburn? What if I run out of diapers?! What if I forget something?!
After running all of those questions through my head I decided to stop myself and get a grip on reality. I was going with two responsible adults who knew the boys, were good with kids, and were willing to help. It would be fine. I texted back, grabbed a bunch of stuff, grabbed the boys, and headed over.
The car ride wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought – we didn’t use the bases and just used the seatbelt to strap the seats in, leaving me enough leg room to survive without getting crippled. It was kind of neat to be in the back seat with the boys, though they didn’t understand why I couldn’t pick them up when they were crying since I was back there… I guess they don’t understand laws and safety yet. I ended up feeding both of them on the way, rocking their car seats when they cried, and had good conversation when they were asleep.
We arrived and found a nice spot on the sand. There were a lot of other families there, some of them (and their bathing suits) quite interesting. We ended up staying for a few hours and I think the boys had a great time. The weather was great – it was warm with a nice gently breeze. We spent time playing on a blanket, strolling in the stroller, and hanging out in the bjorn. Rachel and Josh were a great help, spending a bunch of time with the boys so I could eat. All in all it was a fantastic experience. None of the stuff that I worried about happened and I’m proud that we went.
Now back to the overnight thing. It’s definitely weird not having Sally home at night. I think the boys have picked up on it (the dogs certainly have). It’s not that I’m worried that I won’t be able to take care of them, it’s just that I’m used to doing it with someone else. I’m extra sensitive to their safety – it’s just me and them and I want to make sure they are safe. I’ll also have to put extra effort into waking up when they cry since they are now in their own room. It will certainly be an interesting night and I won’t be surprised if I wake up on their bedroom floor tomorrow morning. I’ll let you know how it works out.
Relatively Ambitious 