Last weekend I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to book a super last-minute flight to spend a few days with my family. I had only been back in Charlotte for just shy of two weeks but really needed the support of my family. I am grateful that American Airlines Super Saver mile redemption + Allegiant’s low fares make travel back and forth very accessible.
Finn and I flew out on Thursday morning. Thanks to the time change, we touched down in Florida at 9:30 a.m. and my mom was waiting for us at the airport. By midmorning I was on my grandmother’s balcony.
I did nothing from Thursday through Sunday except sit with my grandmother on her balcony and in her living room, write a little, take care of Finn, eat dinners with my parents and spend time on the beach. I never even left their condo development. It was perfect.
My sweet Finn is so relaxed when we are in Florida…which I fully attribute to his mama being more at ease. It’s crazy how much babies can feed off of your emotions.
One night he even gave me his very first seven-hour stretch of sleep. It was amazing!
I was able to get out to the beach for a couple of hours solo when Finn was napping. Side note: my grandmother loaned me an extra Kindle and I am a huge fan! As I’ve shared recently, I’ve always been kind of anti-Kindle but I’m loving how easy it is to handle when traveling, beaching and breastfeeding. What I’m not a fan of is the book The Last Anniversary by Liane Moriarty. It took me forever to get through it and I just didn’t enjoy the story or the characters.
That afternoon my mom and I brought Finn out on the beach and he hung out in the shade with us for a couple of hours. He’s going to be such a beach baby! 🙂
Finn and I usually take an evening stroll after dinner. If I walk on the beach I wear him in the Ergo and he loves it. I can’t recommend babywearing enough for the evening fussy hours.
We got to take in a lovely sunset on this walk. I felt better and more like myself on this walk than I had in many, many weeks.
The most precious part of my time in Florida is staying with my grandmother and getting to share some of these little baby days with her.
I sit on the balcony with her after my walks and we either sit in silence or chat. On this night there was a couple on the beach taking sunset wedding photos. It was hard for me not to feel a twinge of “wow, this is their wedding day” in contrast to my current reality…which feels far from a wedding day (to say the least).
We started talking about being able to hold happiness, joy and celebration for others when they are experiencing their best days during a time when you are having some of your worst.
It reminded me of this passage that I deeply love that expresses this thought so accurately. I’ve read this in my yoga classes a few times in the past (and I may have shared it on my blog previously but I can’t remember…and want to share it again!).
The crazy thing about where I am in this moment is that I’m simultaneously living the best and worst days of my life.
Finn is the best thing that has ever happened to me. Being his mom is the most rewarding and fulfilling job that I’ve ever had. It has put into perspective what is truly important and the love I feel for him gives a whole new meaning to unconditional, pure love.
I won’t lie when I say that I don’t understand what is happening right now and why it’s happening at this time but I do trust that I will learn a tremendous amount from it. And I know without a shadow of a doubt that one day my turn will come again.
