Traveling to Texas Top Ten

1. Going into Atrain’s room to remind him (for the fourth time) that he must go to bed or we will never make it to the airport on time.
2. Watching him jump with excitement and say, “It’s time?! We go to Texas now?” every time I entered his room.
3. Snuggling baby J to sleep, knowing that he may not get much of it tomorrow.
4. Finishing the packing while the husband slept soundly with the webcam on. I love listening to his soft, heavy breathing.
5. Hauling my sleepy, beautiful boys out the door at 5:30am to wait for our ride; realizing that our ride had missed her alarm; then chasing the rainy sunrise while Atrain yelled, “Wow, Mom! You’re speeding fast as the storm!” My anxiety felt like acid brewing in my veins.
6. Skycap. I wondered whether or not I was having an angelic visitation when I watched the old, white-haired man take the bags from my hands. Two kids, two bags and two carry-ons is two too many for two hands to carry. The “fast-pass” family security line was also rather glorious. Halleluiah.
7. Watching Atrain soar his toy plane up and down through the airport corridors, trying to find an exact match for it out the windows. Luckily, the Southwest planes were a near-perfect fit.
8. The moment when I could finally tell that Atrain’s vertigo-like eyes closed, head-stuck-to-the-armrest position was incited by his fear of take off take off. Fear is easy to conquer. Whip out the lap-top and show Atrain how Darth Vader lives in the sky and *bam,* fear is gone. On the other hand, I definitely would have lost the battle with a mid-flight, pressure-change induced, vomiting episode of vertigo.
9. Rita, the grandmother of 16 who sat beside me. She snuggled baby J as I adventured with Atrain to the airplane potty; she let Jdog kick her during every mid-flight feeding; she helped me strip him down to his bare necessities when he pooped through everything (for the second time that day); and she endlessly ensured me that she loved every minute of it.
10. Seeing the husband’s face as we walked toward baggage claim. Then kissing it. Then watching it alight with joy as he enjoyed the boys. Jdog kicked and squealed at the sight of his dada. Atrain acted as if they had never parted. I began dreading the day we will have to return without him. He is our home. I hate leaving it behind.