Moms to learn from

I was stting on the plane Sunday afternoon, holding my precious boy as he slept, and I overheard a mom of an infant tell her husband, "that mom thought of EVERYTHING. Here I thought I did good bringing enough diapers and formula, but she's got books and toys and stickers and everything. I need to take some lessons from her"

I wanted to run to her and say "Don't beat yourself up, you did a great job!!! It's a work in progress". I didn't say anything, though. Sometimes I think its best if we don't let strangers know we're eavesdropping :) I also feel like she'll learn over time that we, as moms, will never achieve that perfection for which we strive. I know this, because I felt just like her.

I thought I had done a good job. I got William his cool new backpack, I filled it with fun new toys and activities to occupy our 5 hours of travel, I packed lunch and snacks and enough diapers for a small village. And that was all just in my mary poppins style carry on! In our suitcase we had plenty of clothes, a reenforcement stash of books, a couple more new toys to introduce on the way home, and some treats to reward William for the good behavior I just knew he'd bless me with.

In preparation for flight I let him run around the airport while not getting in anyone's way. I let him push his stroller around, ride the people movers back and forth, and let him climb all over vacant benches just to let him exert his energy.

I was just about to pin myself with the Mother of the Year award when William taught me some humility. About 2 hours into our first plane ride William all of a sudden had enough of it. He's thrown tantrums before, but I think they are usually short lived because I walk away and ignore him. However, when you're stuck on a plane with a few hundred people, a terrified single man sitting next to you, and your feet are crowded with all of the above mentioned goodies, you have no choice but to hold on tight to the screaming baby.

And I do not use the word "screaming" here lightly.

He was wailing. Face bright red. Snotty nose, globbery eyes. He was a mess. And do you know how long he let this kicking, hitting, screaming match go on? 45 minutes. NONSTOP. I was so embarassed, so frustrated, so defeated, and absolutely sure I was getting OFF The plane in Nashville and getting right back on the next plane to Denver. vacation CANCELLED.

Then, God with all the grace in the world sent Stephanie to us. At first I was even MORE humiliated when I heard a woman ask the man next to me to trade seats. "I just want to sit next to that sweet baby and his mama, would you mind trading seats with me?" The poor gentleman nearly hurldled over the seats in front of us, he couldn't get away quick enough. I was humiliated that someone else was going to have to help me with my own child. This is MY son, MY job, MY problem. Then I mentally asked myself which would be worse: her succeeding, thus making me feel like a failure, or her failing, thus making the next 45 minutes even more unbearable as now a stranger is in on the misery?

Well, I didn't have much of a choice so I tried to hide my tears behind my hair as she took one of William's shoes off and started scratching his feet and talking so sweetly to him. She asked what his name was, where we were headed, and mostly just carried conversation with me in a calm, soothing way. She told me that when she flew with her son he was behaving that way for almost 2 hours and the people around her were so nasty, so she just wanted to comfort me even if we couldn't calm William. After about 15 minutes, though, either my tummy scratches, Stephanie's foot scratches, or his own exhaustion from his fit took its toll and he fell asleep. Stephanie and I talked the rest of the way to Nashville. Turns out she is in the Air Force and had spent the week at Buckley for a conference. She asked me if Austin's email was on Buckley's email listing because she wanted to send him an email and tellhim that his wife deserves some flowers and a big hug, but his email is not on that list. Guess I'll have to buy my own flowers :P She was so sweet and even though I wasn't eager for her help, I'm not sure I could have kept my sanity without it.

The rest of the flight went well. Herb got on our plane in Nashville and flew with us to Charleston, so when William woke up he was excited to see a familiar face and he played with the fun toy Herb brought him. That's when he enjoyed his lunch, and I once again felt like I had successfully planned for the trip.

That is until I saw the CLOSET FULL of food that Herb's daughter Nicole had packed for her family. They drove to Charleston, which makes the food-storage a bit easier, but she had forgotten nothing. I think she had enough food to feed her family breakfast, lunch and dinner for a week. And plenty to spare! William LOVED her healthy, homemade pancakes and he ate a couple pb&j sandwiches on her delicious bread. I may or may not have stolen a hard boiled egg or 2. Really...it was like she was my mom and I was just another kid. My exact thought to myself as I left a thank you note on the table was, "I have a lot to learn from moms like her"

So when I heard the woman on the plane say that about me it all came full circle. As moms, I guess we just have a lot to learn from each other. And no matter how prepared we think we are, there's always going to be something we could have done better. On our next trip I'll remember how soothing scratching William's feet can be (worked like a charm on the flight back, by the way), I'll remember to pack more than just lunch, and I'll remember that little boys don't need multiple pairs of shoes on beach vacations; save the extra space for more toys!

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