Last week, Tim and I went on our very first “Parents Only” vacation. I say first- because I hope that there will be more in the future! I can’t begin to tell you how wonderful it was to have my spouse just to myself. Since Grayson’s birth, we have only BOTH been away from him on 3 nights…and those were not consecutive. So to leave for 6 fulls days was something of a challenge, to say the least. Tim’s mom, who is called Nagy (pronounced “Nudgie” which is short of Grandmother in Hungarian) agreed to stay at our house and do the baby sitting. I can’t begin to tell you how lucky we are to have Nagy and Pop-Pop living so close to us now. Without them, I would not have been brave enough to leave for so long. And to leave the country at that….
It’s funny how I spent more time getting things ready for Grayson than I actually spent packing for my own trip. I made countless trips to the grocery store to make sure I had all of his favorite goodies. I wrote out a three page note on his schedule, where to find food, nap times, bed time routine, etc. I stocked the freezer full of meals from “Dinner Done”. We prepared a Will, cleaned the house, stocked up on more than enough diapers, wipes, etc. I printed out maps to Grayson’s daycare, wrote directions to his pediatrician. I pretty much tried to think of everything. Not that Nagy couldn’t have figured it out, but more because it set my mind at ease.
Anyhow, as expected, Grayson did very well in our absence. He ate like a horse, took great naps, and even started sleeping until 8 am again (since taking away the paci- he had been getting up at 6:45). Nagy is called the Baby Whisperer for a reason. She LOVES little ones and they, like-wise, LOVE her. I think spending 6 days together served as some bonding time for the two of them. Grayson has asked for her everyday since.
Tim and I were not sure what to expect from Grayson upon our return. By the time we got back from our vacation, Grayson was already in bed. So we had to wait for the morning to discover his reaction. When he woke up, he shouted out “Daddy” which is a bit unusual. He always shouted “Ma Ma” before. Anyhow, Tim and I raced upstairs as fast as possible. When we walked in the room- he seemed like his normal self. Bouncing in the crib, naming items around the room. Didn’t seem to notice that we had been missing for 6 days! However once we took him out of the crib, he proceeded to throw a tantrum. “No diaper change, mommy.” “No jammies on!”, “No powder!” “No shirt!” “No pants!” “no, no, no!” I pretty much put up with a major “No!” tantrum for about 30 minutes. It was almost as if he rememberd that we had left and wanted to let us know how mad he was at us! After the 30 minutes of two-year-old hell, he was back to hugs and kisses, tickling and laughing.
But the best thing happened tonight. After Daddy finished reading him a book before bed, Grayson sat on my lap in the rocking chair for our nightly songs. I asked him what song he wanted to hear- “ABCs” -and as I sang he laid his head down on my chest, facing me. (He usually just sits in my lap, with his back to my chest.) Anyhow as I got to the third line of the song “E,F,G”, Grayson sat up and planted a wet kiss on my lips. As I continued singing, he put his head back down. About three lines later ” L,M,N,O,P”, he sits up and repeats the kiss. And he does it again at the end of the song. I hug him and ask what song he wants to hear next. “Ba Ba Sheep” So I start singing and what do you know- he does the cute kiss thing all the way through that song too! And again for our final song “The wheels on the TRUCK go round and round.” (FYI-we sing truck instead of bus because Grayson prefers trucks.) When I finished the truck song he sat up again and this time puts his arms around my neck and says in the softest, sweetest voice: “my mommy.” I tear up and say “Yes, I am Grayson’s mommy.” He plants another kiss on my lips and again says “my mommy”.
I couldn’t have said it any better. Yes, Grayson I am your mommy and I missed you too. Just ask Daddy.
