getaway

It's dark. It's quiet. I can hear the steady buzz of the crickets outside the screen door right now. It's a lot quieter here than at home. I am away for the weekend visiting my in-laws and enjoying every minute of this down time.

I've been trying to get up here, to New Hampshire for weeks, even months. But there always seemed to be something preventing the trip. Being on-call for my doula client, who, by the way, was nearly two weeks overdue. So instead of being on call for two to three weeks, it was more like four to five. You just can't leave the state at that point.

Then is was two weeks of steady swim lessons for the children. Every week day for two weeks back-to-back.

Let's not forget that thrown into this mix was my return to my pre-motherhood position as a Nutritionist working for the my state's capital city's Health Department. They called me in March to offer me the part-time position before they publicly posted the job opening. They told me that they had grant money from the USDA just sitting there and that they had to use it. This was a no-brainer on my part. Part-time work? In a position that I could hold without any additional training? While my husband stayed home with the children? A chance to help bear the financial load? Yes, I could do this.

So then came soccer. Yes. I think that this is where I got myself in too deep. Two kids. Two separate teams. Seven weeks of practices and games each week. This equals four total visits to the soccer field in one week's time. I could feel my heart twinge and adrenaline shoot into my veins as I opened those e-mails from the coaches last week and realized what lie ahead of us from now until mid-October.

This pretty much re-confirmed my strong, unshakable belief about not over-scheduling children. Because let's face it, they will probably love the activity and fare just fine, but it will be us, the tired, frenzied, over-iced-coffeed mothers and fathers who will feel the effects of having to juggle dinner times and shift bath and bedtimes all for the sake of wanting our kids to have that "team sport" experience.

No. It will be fine. Really.

So here I am. I finally made it. Has the wait been worth it?

Well, let's say that our days have been filled with leisurely afternoon swims, extended sway time in hammocks, delicious home-cooked meals, a visist to a butterfly atrium with hundreds of butterflies, a trip to purchase some adorable fall shoes for the children and lots of extended bedtimes.

Everything required to make a perfect summer weekend.