A mum and a wife and sometimes just me


Thursday 17 May 2012

One boy, one mum and a 9 hour flight

It's been a long time since I have had to fly by myself. I remember being rather nervous about this as I was heading off to University to "discover the world" on my own. Now I was flying alone with my son...on a 9 hour flight! I know that he is pretty good with flying as we have done two trips so far to Italy but that is a two hour flight and such a different thing. My son finds it soooo difficult to sit still so my imagination was running a bit wild thinking of being stuck on a plane for 9 hours with little options of places to go. Now he can walk as well he tends to exercise his right to do so.

So my recent post on facebook was  "one boy, one mum and a 9 hour flight" with 24 hours to prepare I was asking for a bit of advice. I got a pretty interesting list some which made a lot of sense and some slightly more controversial and of course some which were humorous:
  • Lots and lots of snacks.
  • Books and toys.
  • Be prepared to walk up and dow the aisles.
  • Something for the ear clogging.
  • Use your flight attendants...especially if you need the loo.
  • Carry lots of nappies...lots more than you think you will need.
  • Child friendly head phones for watching TV.
  • Don't let him sleep in the airport
  • DPH (controversial)
  • Drink lots of rum punch (humorous...I think?)
Anyway needless to say that my carry on bag was pretty full...maybe even heavier than my luggage. Most of it as well came in handy! We had a short flight from Glasgow to Gatwick which went without a hitch. Phew stage one over. Gatwick airport is great as they are nice and child friendly (at least I was treated well) and have a special lane to get you through security without I guess having to worry about other impatient passengers. My son them promptly loved running around the airport. The play area there is a great idea but he quickly got bored...I don't think it was made for a 5 hour stop over! So the plan of not sleeping in the airport quickly eroded as mummy became a bit tired.

I was surprised at how quickly the 9 hour flight arrived. Eek! If your wondering no I did not give him any DPH. After travelling with Ryan air to Italy though, travelling with British Airways kind of felt like travelling first class. I was put at ease from the start with smiling air hostesses who were ready to do my bidding! I also travelled with a very good mindset of we had every right to be there as every other passenger. I had reserved a bulk head seat, got my "bassinet" (British airways offer a toddler friendly seat which can be attached to the bulk head which meant no sleeping in my arms...amen!) and was ready to go. I managed to get my son to nap whenever I was eating which was great! It might not have been a rum punch but the cold beer went down a treat. I refused to fight with him when he wanted to walk up and down the aisle and I think this sense of freedom made the whole flight a lot easier! Other passengers were actually pretty friendly and everyone is ready to chat to a cute baby instead of having to listen to the miserable ones who were being forced to stay in their seats. There were moments as well when he was happy to sit in my lap and read through books and sing songs and even just sit on the floor and play with his toys! We did have a few groans but the snacks worked great for that and I'm afraid I did let him have his dummy throughout the flight.

Our arrival in Jamaica was made a bit tiring by the heat and having to manage a lot of luggage and a baby but then once we were out of the airport there were the smiling grandparents on the other end! Phew I survived...now I just have to manage the jet lag!

Friday 11 May 2012

The Friday Song Choice

Ok so honestly this post is not meant to depress but I just had to share this song. Hubby recently bought two albums by Ludovico Einaudi. This song is from his album Divenire called "Svanire" which means to disappear. When I first heard it tears just came to my eyes without me knowing it...I have realised this is good for you and an organic reaction to things. Anyway good for me or not it is so beautiful it moves you...at least I hope you find it does.......

Thursday 10 May 2012

Who's a smarty pants?


Yes that is my son...a smarty pants. I stopped reading the books about my son's development a long time ago so if he is not keeping up and doing what he is supposed to be doing then I don't know. I guess a small part of me hopes that if something is going wrong my gut would tell me or at least nursery. The point is though that all his new developments have caught me by surprise. What is happening is truly amazing to observe and see and I guess no book could have really explained to me how I would feel as I watched it happening. It started with the way he played...he was no longer my little destroyer but actually started building things! Then when we were in Italy his Nonna showed him how to blow a whistle and it only took the once for my son to turn into a rather contented little raver. 


It's the way he only has to see how something works once now and he is off doing it himself. It's so much more difficult to hide things and nothing these days appears to be out of reach. If he sees it and wants it...trust me he knows how to shout for it. Which now means I so have to watch what I do and I know very soon it will be watching what I say?! Often he appears to have lengthy conversations with himself and the best is when it's obvious that he is singing along with us and clapping his hands to all our favourite nursery rhymes and songs...we are all happily out of tune together. 


I'm loving every minute of my Mr Smarty Pants even if a little sad that he is growing and changing so quickly.


Wednesday 9 May 2012

Home

I'm going home. It sounds so simple when I say it but it's been so long and complicated to happen and be able to book this journey that it was like being on a very emotional roller coaster ride. I had planned last year to go home at Christmas and when I got my job in October I found out that it could not happen. I was pretty disappointed...actually sometimes it was kind of hard to hold back the tears but I did. I then planned to go home in May until I found myself in a place I was not sure I would ever escape from. I'm on a journey to a better place now and have finally been told that I can go on holiday. As soon as I booked the tickets my heart and my steps were lighter. There is the slight disappointment that hubby won't be able to come but he understands this need.

I guess this need comes from needing my mum and my dad to take care of me. I have never felt so far away from home as much as this year. I want to be their little girl again.  It's also partly to comfort them and let them know that I am getting better. Of course they have not seen their grandson for over a year now and well Skype isn't the same as a real hug. They have had to watch his growth and development from afar. I want to take him home and show him off and let them see how proud I am of him and how proud of him they should be too. The bonus of having babysitters and a break is really just an added plus....honest!

I'm not fooling myself though. After all the initial excitement I know that there will be demons to face. You see I left Jamaica for a reason. I had always felt so claustrophobic at home and never comfortable in my flesh to be the real me. A lot of my insecurities started from puberty when I suddenly found it easier to live on the outskirts and what I had always thought of as true friendships were maybe not as strong as I realised. Thinking of a beach holiday at home in Jamaica has never been the same as other beach holidays, it matters how you look and how you present yourself, and if it really didn't that is the assumption I have always lived with. I managed for so long with these insecurities and only now have I faced them that I feel maybe I am comfortable in going home and relaxing and spending time with friends.

Of course I am also dreaming of that first patty with an ice cold Red Stripe.

Wednesday 2 May 2012

First steps

Yes my son has officially taken his first steps. He has finally taken the plunge and decided to try this walking thing. I was rather pleased that he did decide to do it at home rather than at nursery and we were even talking with the grandparents on Skype! Strangely enough I have avoided tying to capture it all on film. We are not overly confident about it all as yet and are rather wobbly when we do it so crawling is still definitely the preferred mode of transport. I guess that gives me time to get used to the whole idea of it. I do think that part of this lack of interest is that my son appears to be more interested in climbing to higher heights than to walk long distances.



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