I will be the first to admit that there are times that my son drives me absolutely insane, and that despite the fact that part of me thinks he's perfect (at least perfect for me!) he can be an absolute terror. Aware of this, I was somewhat petrified when I started to fully understand what I was getting myself into when I chose to take a Mother-Son trip to Norfolk, VA to visit Lakely, Lea & Tony while Jason was at Daytona.
Just as stubborn as Charlie though, (and really excited to see our good friends), I loaded up the Yukon with enough snacks for an Arctic expedition, a wide variety of books and toys, Daddy's iPad and the Fireman Umbrella -- plus I dangled a special pancake lunch at Cracker Barrel in front of Charlie -- and we were in business.
Yes, my car is full of crumbs. Yes, Charlie went through the entire toy bag before we hit the NC line. No, the movies on the iPad didn't entertain him for more than 20 minutes at a stretch. Yes, we got stuck in tunnel and drawbridge traffic on the way there and heavy rains on the way home. No, Charlie wouldn't use the gas station or South of the Border restrooms..
Nevertheless, Charlie and I had some of the most hilarious and interesting conversations we'd ever had while we were on the road, he napped each afternoon while we were there, he slept in bed with me two of the nights, and we made it home alive!
So you might be thinking that the best part of the trip was our Mother-Son bonding, right? Nope! The best part was Charlie & Lakely's blossoming friendship. It's hard to describe -- they are just 2 after all, but they had an absolute ball together. They laughed and chased and ran and roller-skated and snacked and hugged and played hide-and-seek together for two plus days.
Both Lea and I are convinced that not only will they be friends forever, but they will be that oh-so-critical opposite sex friend for each other (and yes, both Tony and Jason rolled their eyes at this). You know, though, the one that can tell her when the boy she likes is a jerk and offer to beat him up or tell him that even though his girlfriend is cute, she's superficial and not good enough for him or let her know that even though she and her "true love" broke up, there are way better guys out there (just not any of his friends) or gently buy effectively convince him that girls do not think bodily noises are cool...
And the icing on the cake? While Charlie and Lakely were building their life-long friendship, Lea and I were catching up on old times, talking about all her plans for baby Cashton, and relaxing to HGTV...in many ways it was the perfect vacation (if only Daddy had been in on the fun).
We can't wait to see them again...but until then we have some amazingly precious memories...
Driving away from Lakely's house...
Mommy: So Buddy, what was your favorite part of our trip? What are you going to tell Daddy about?
Charlie: Just a minute. I have a hangnail... ... ... Ok. I got it.
Mommy: Ok then...so what was your favorite part of our trip?
Charlie: Lakely.
Back inside, following a super-sweet hug and kiss on the cheek...
Lakely (hand to her cheek): More.
Lea: More what?
Lakely: More kisses.
Not sure if he's more excited about the trip or his McMuffin at this point...
Saturday Morning Cartoons
What could be sweeter than turning around to this?
Bumper Carts!
Maxxed-Out!
Roller Babies
Yes...we actually stopped here...
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