Last Trip Before Baby!
Kayla and I made one last trip as just the two of us to visit my parents before baby #2 makes an entrance! Kayla has been in a really difficult stage the last week or two, really questioning authority, refusing to listen to any request, hitting, biting, kicking when getting changed, throwing tantrums, etc. I was really looking forward to this trip so that I could get a break from her! Getting there was quite exhausting, spending time in airports and then in planes, cooped up. Thankfully we just got an iTouch, so I was able to let her watch a movie on the long plane ride. But of course, you have to wait until after take-off to use it, and then have to turn it off when it's time to land. Add that to the fact that it was well past her nap time and you make for an exhausting afternoon! But we made it and that's all that matters! :) On that 2nd flight, as we were getting off the plane, the man who sat behind me tapped my shoulder and said, “You’re doing a great job with her. I know how tough and stubborn firstborn girls can be, and I just thought I’d tell you that you are doing a great job with her.” That made my day, especially since he was able to see and hear the many tantrums she threw and how I was handling them in a confined area!!
I was able to get a really nice break from Kayla. My mom took over all of Kayla's duties (diapers, putting her down for naps/bed, playing with her, disciplining, etc) and I was able to read a book, relax, meet up with some friends and just chill. Of course when I was around, I was reading books to her and playing with her, but overall I was really able to get a much needed break from her. Especially since she is going through a rough stage right now, it was much needed and appreciated! She was really testing things while in MA too... she was just a piece of work, throwing tantrums and being rough (physically) and such. I feel so bad that she acts like that.
While there I was able to attend my good friend Christen’s baby shower. It was so fun to be able to see her and her hubby there. I was able to catch up with her over coffee another day too. At the shower I also saw my good friend Katie, and had lunch with her another day. It’s always such a treat to be able to see friends and pick right back up where we left off, even after months of not seeing each other and rarely talking.
My dad also had a huge wrestling tournament (50 schools) that LCA was hosting, so he was gone quite a bit while this was going on. We took Kayla to watch some of it and she was extremely interested in everything that was going on!!
It was a really nice trip and I treasured being able to get some time to myself. Traveling there with 2 kids will definitely be a greater challenge than with just one, but I hope I’ll be up for it, because it is so nice to be in MA and see my parents and get together with friends and relax. Thankfully, Kayla seemed to pass that extremely challenging stage a few days after we got back from MA. I don’t know what exactly was going on, but I am very thankful that we seem to be on the other side of that particularly naughty stage!