In case you missed it, my girls were away at their grandparents house last week and the week before. Two whole weeks. In another state. For them, it was a visit to a magical land where the word “no” didn’t exist and their every whim was entertained. For my husband and I, it was a much needed break where we only had one child to take care of, and in all reality, he is the easiest child.
While I once wondered if I could actually send my kids to their grandparents for an extended period of time, I think we all did remarkably well…although re-entry has proven difficult. Just as they got used to not hearing the word “no”, it turns out I also got used to a few things while they were gone. Here they are, in no particular order:
1. Actually getting to eat the food that I order at a restaurant.
2. Privacy in the bathroom.
3. Getting a piece or two of bread from the bread basket when eating out.
4. Not having to fight with a slightly OCD preschooler over what order you must brush your teeth and hair. According to her, it’s teeth then hair…there’s no leeway.
5. Getting blogging work done at night.
6. Not having to hear Frozen’s “Let it Go” a minimum of 8 times per day. I needed the 2 week break from that song more than anything else.
7. Not arguing about pink and blue toothpaste (one of the girls only uses pink, the other one uses blue, and apparently, I’ve messed it up twice since they got back on Sunday – if only we could go back to a single tooth past system).
8. Putting a child to sleep in their bed and actually having them stay there as opposed to getting up 18 times for water, a tissue, and all the other stuff they don’t really need. The whole 8 months old and not walking thing really worked for me here.
9. Getting out the door in less than an hour each morning. Okay, it didn’t happen everyday that they were gone, but it could have.
10. Driving to work in a quiet car.
11. Privacy in the shower.
12. Only running the dishwasher 2-3 times per week instead of everyday.
13. Making the grocery store an occasional thing.
14. Not having to worry about the fashion whims of a 5 year old each morning when I’m trying to rush out the dooR. I never missed the sight of a preschooler streaking naked through my house because she decided that she hated the clothes that I put her in, so she just decided to take them off…2 minutes before we were going to leave the house.
15. Privacy. Period.
So the kids are back now, my house is noisy, no one goes to bed when I tell them to – I guess that means all is back in order. Until next year when I get used to these things all over again.
Who wants to start a countdown with me?
They are the best kids ever lol
Ah, the privacy I can’t even imagine what that’s like! Even when I get the privacy, I still don’t enjoy it because at least one child must find a reason for a meltdown. Good for you letting them go, I’m not sure I could do it yet (our weekend away a few months ago was stressful enough!)