Flying solo

I did it...I survived my first overnight trip without my boys! Another first in the books. I hadn’t been up to visit my Seattle office since having Isaac last year, so I was well overdue for a visit. I’d held off booking this trip for a number of reasons, scheduling conflicts with my Seattle based attorneys, too many projects going on in NorCal, but the topper was ensuring I had enough milk in the freezer for me to do an overnight trip solo. My preference would have been to bring Isaac with me, but plane tickets were outrageous, and it just wasn’t feasible to fly my mom and him up with me. So, when Isaac hit the 6 month mark and we introduced solids, my milk storage began to instantly improve, and it was time for me to head north.

My flight left at 7 a.m. Thursday morning, and I was back on a plane home the next afternoon. Mark and Isaac dropped me off at the airport, and yes, I did cry. Once I was in the terminal it was easier to hold the tears back; maybe it had something to do with the baby blanket I brought along. I managed to get a few looks – even in San Francisco, where weird is a way of life – walking around SFO with my laptop, a small suitcase, and a blue baby blanker. LOL.

The trip was short and sweet, and just enough time to make my rounds in the office, show off pictures of my little stud, enjoy lunch with an attorney (at Mario Batali’s Dad’s restaurant – yum!), and then spend the evening with a dear friend, her fiancé and his two daughters. Spending the night at Tania’s house definitely made the trip much easier. We had a lovely dinner, drank lots of great wine (probably way too much – hello lady, you can’t drink like you used to!), and played Wii with the kids who were on summer break. Lesson learned – I am far too old to be up that late on a work night!

Some friends described it as a “night off” and I guess it was, but honestly, even though I had a ton of fun, there is no place on earth I would have rather been that night than at home with my boys. There is something about motherhood that really does change something inside you. Maybe it’s being introduced to a level of unconditional love that is indescribable, and completely unknown until you have a child of your own.

My reunion with Isaac on Friday was priceless. Yes, I’m silly to have really thought he would have forgotten who I was after just one night away, but God does that boy know momma’s scent. He was on the boob so much last weekend, when Monday rolled around, I swear I was back to producing like I was when he was two months old. OK, that’s an exaggeration, but he definitely made me feel like he NEEDS his momma.

I’ll be heading to Portland in a few weeks; same scenario, only one night away, and Isaac, Mark and grandma will be staying home. I definitely feel like I’m back in the swing of things with work, and my travel schedule is getting into a consistent routine, too. This fall I have a week-long trip that starts in Seattle and ends in Portland – that one Isaac and Mark will definitely be with me…and maybe we’ll even make it a road trip and see Nan and Grandpa while we’re in town.