What I [definitely] didn’t miss:
- Face licks. Robbe, for some unknown reason, has been really into attempting (and sometimes succeeding) to lick my face lately. I think he likes that it gets a “ewwww” reaction out of me that he can elicit on demand. Kisses? Yes please. Super slobbery face licks? I’ll pass, thanks.
- The Frozen soundtrack. Chase has been really [excessively?] into the Frozen soundtrack since Santa left it in his stocking. I do really love the music so I don’t want to complain too much about it, but the break from the constantly repeating seven songs was very welcomed.
- Dirty clothes. Before kids, I could go at least two days, if not three, of wearing the same pair of jeans before needing to wash them. Dealing with constant drips, goos, spills, and wipes from children really amps up the amount of dirty clothes (and therefore laundry loads) on a daily basis. It was lovely to not feel like my clothes were unwearable again upon taking them off at night. I miss that.
- Drippy noses. I didn’t wipe one drippy nose in the three days I was gone. It’s a miracle for this time of year.
- The schedule. This one is tough for me. I’ve said it before but having a [fairly] strict schedule is my biggest blessing and toughest challenge in my daily life. I couldn’t function as a stay at home mom without this rigidity so that we’re all on the same page about what’s going to happen when in our house. That being said, does the monotony drive me crazy? Yes! Do I long for more flexibility and spontaneous adventures? Yes and Yes! I do have to say, I’ve come a long way in loosening up in the last few months. I’m still lightyears away from being deemed “flexible” but I’ve made some baby steps.
- The process of getting out the door. It’s so luxurious and gratifying to decide to leave the house, grab a purse and a coat and be out the door. With kids, you decide it’s time to leave the house and there’s a bathroom trip involved, snack and/or lunch packing to occur, shoe hunting/affixing to accomplish, coats and hats to be attached, toy collecting to be decided (our boys really enjoy taking one toy each on a the road with them whenever we leave the house), baggage schlepping (there always seems to be the diaper bag plus additional items every time), car/stroller loading, and finally (finally!) we’re on our way. Whew.
- Playing the role of pack mule. See above. Every time we leave the house, I feel like I can’t possibly carry another thing down to the car or to the stroller. My upper body just may be the strongest it’s ever been. My back hasn’t been such a fan, however.
- Picking up. Life with two kids under four = constant picking up. If I don’t stay on top of it every second of the day (luckily, the wee ones are pretty good at helping), I turn around and every toy is scattered around the room. This weekend was an enjoyable break from the constant toy-tidying that I’ve become accustomed to.
- Night wakings. I mentioned to Mary Catherine during our visit that the last time I slept through the night (fell asleep and didn’t knowingly wake up until morning) was the week of Thanksgiving 2013. Since then, every single night has been interrupted with one of the following: Robbe squawking with or without needing an intervention, Chase needing to go to the bathroom (no more diapers!), Chris being startled awake (and then waking me), Miga crying and wanting attention (especially after our trips to Wisconsin), me needing to go to the bathroom (especially frequent during pregnancy), weird house issues (think alarm mysteriously going off or smoke detectors needing batteries), etc. The list goes on. I swear I cannot catch a break. Although I still woke up every night I was away, I slept so much more soundly knowing that even if I woke up, I wasn’t responsible for attending to anything during the night and I’m feeling much better rested.
- The negotiating. I think I spend at least 50% of my time with my kids negotiating. How much they should eat, how many minutes of playtime left before bedtime, why brushing teeth is important, etc. Talking things to death tends to work very well for us and our boys but I’ve welcomed the break from the fairly constant negotiating and coercing.
When all is said and done, there's no place I'd rather be than right here with my three favorite boys. Vacations are wonderful (no doubt) but so is this life we've created.
I totally understand about the getting out the door part, unlike you, I often decide it's easier to just stay in and that ends up meaning feeling like the walls are caving in on me.
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