I had an amazing opportunity to present a paper at a conference in San Diego this summer. For the first time since I've had stuff I could present, I wasn't moving, pregnant, or on maternity leave. It was an excellent career opportunity, but it meant spending a week in California, and I just wasn't ready to leave Tommy for that long...so I took him with me instead!
Tommy is still very much my little shadow. He follows me around the house, glues himself to me when he's scared, hurt, or tired, and has not yet spent a night away from me. In fact, since he's only slept through the night a handful of times, he usually sees me every few hours! Since he's young enough to fly as a lap baby, he didn't require a plane ticket to come with, and the hotel I was staying at offered a babysitting service with fully background checked and vetted babysitters. I could attend the conference and still not leave my baby.
I was more than a little concerned about bringing a very mobile 1-year-old on a 6 hour plane ride as a lab baby with no one to hold him but me, but as usual, Tommy never ceases to amaze me. We left for the airport just after his nap. We parked, checked in, and got through security without much fanfare (though I'm sure I looked ridiculous coming from the parking lot with a stroller, giant suitcase, carseat strapped to my back, diaper bag over my shoulder, and laptop hanging off the back of the stroller). Once inside the terminal, we had just enough time to get some food and drinks for the plane and give Tommy a little time to burn off some energy. He really liked watching all the planes and trucks and other strange vehicles out the airport window. Before we knew it, it was time to board the plane. It was a 5pm flight, so he pretty much ate through the first hour, then we read some books, sang songs, and ate some more. Then I got him into his pajamas, and I sang to him until he fell asleep. He woke up with about 1 hour left to go, which worked out perfectly. By the time we got to the hotel, it was 9:30pm west coast time, but Tommy was holding strong due to the nap he took on the plane. He crashed in the hotel as soon as I got the crib set up, and then slept until 8am the next morning (with about 4 wake-ups in between, but we'll focus on the 8am part)!
We enjoyed a relaxing morning. We strolled around downtown, found a place to get breakfast and some other supplies (fruit, milk, etc.), and enjoyed the nice views and weather. That evening, I went to some talks at the conference and Kathy came to take care of Tommy. She was a very sweet, nurturing mother of 4, who made Tommy feel so comfortable that he didn't even notice me leave! And that was pretty much how the next few days went. Tommy and I would go out to breakfast and dinner together, and Kathy would be with him during the day while I attended the conference. Tommy enjoyed the pool, pushing his stroller in the park, and watching all the dogs. He was so well behaved when I needed him to be it was amazing.
While we were out there we got to see both Great Uncle David and Uncle Chris (on separate nights). It was really nice to get to see family we don't see enough of, enjoy a delicious dinner with them, and have a dining companion who spoke in a language I understood! Tommy really talked a lot while we were out there, but aside from "doggie" and maybe "train," I didn't understand a word of it.
The flight home was almost as easy as flight out. There was a little more fussing involved, probably because it was during a more "active" time of day, but all things considered Tommy was still amazing! Even when we got back to my car and battery was dead, Tommy held it together. He was SO happy to get home and see Daddy and his brothers, though.
And speaking of them, while I missed them all terribly, they survived just fine. We left on Saturday night, and on Sunday, Dave and the boys had a full day of Kimball's fun. They went on the bumper boats (Aaron had been wanting to do that all year), played mini golf, ate ice cream, played in the arcade, etc. On Monday, they went on a field trip with daycare, and then that night they went to Grammy and Grampy's house for the rest of week. There they were spoiled with junk food, movies, toys, and outings. They got home just before Tommy and me on Friday. It was a fun and exciting week for everyone.
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