Can you believe it? Our official wait began 7 months ago yesterday. Of course, we've been waiting in some way much longer than that, but our job was done in terms of trying... paperwork, homestudy, etc. With our classes being finished and a couple months going by in between meetings or get togethers with our agency, it's at times very easy to slip into an every day routine of just being us, and at times, it's very difficult to just be us. We spent a week alone together in the Adirondack Mountains this past week, followed by a really nice, really quality get together and dinner with family last night. The mountains were great for all of the reasons that vacations are great... a break from reality, a time to kick back, relax, and enjoy. For us, though, I think this trip was pretty significant. It took us away from a tremendous amount of regular, every day stress, and speaking for myself, some mounting anxiety about how long we've sat and waited for that most important, life changing phone call. We stayed in a little house on a beautiful, private lake called Loon Lake. One of the highlights was sitting on the porch our first night, in the pitch dark, and hearing the call of the loon. Pretty haunting sound, as Brian said, but also pretty beautiful in it's own way. After that, we were always listening for them, and when canoeing on the lake, looking for the little guys that seem to be quite evasive. (Hmmm... now that I'm describing it like this, it reminds me of something else we're searching for that feels very evasive. Wonder what that could be?). We did spot some loons, and got some pictures and some awesome video. They are facinating creatures! Anyway, the week away was just what we needed. We like to believe that this is our last vacation together, just us. We like to think that our next vacation will include our first child. It was so important to have this time. At first, I was a bit resistent to taking a week off when I need to save all of my time off for when the baby does come. Because I'm not giving birth, I don't require a "recovery" period (so says CHOP), and so, no "maternity leave" so to speak. Any time off has to come from my vacation time, which seems totally discriminatory to me, but that's another story for another day. I agreed to go on this trip, though, and it was so good and so important! Just to have "our" time together, to regroup and appreciate our relationship was perfect. I never get sick of him, you know... I just don't. I loved spending every second of my days with Brian. It's very comfortable, very comforting, and very much... being at home. We spent a lot of time reading and hanging out, but had a good time playing tourist and doing things we don't otherwise have opportunity to do. We took a Gondala Ride up White Face Mountain, did a sightseeing flight (itty bitty 4 passenger plane), did a raft trip, some hiking, biking, canoeing, and swimming. We also checked out the Olympic Center at Lake Placid, walked down the Bobsled shoot and took a boat tour of Lake Placid. We had some "events", as no vacation is totally perfect. For starters, the cleaning crew had forgotten to do their jobs this time, and so the house was dirty when we arrived. The amazing owners made things right though, by driving a couple hours to come clean it themselves and giving us a discount on our rent for the week. It was nice. Then, I took a small tumble as we hiked down a mountain and bruised my tailbone pretty good, as well as bruised my shoulder as I tried to catch myself. Oh, and there was the crow that stole our steak dinner as we let it defrost on the front porch while we went out in the canoe. I NEVER would have dreamed that a crow would ruin a meal for us, but he sure as heck did. We just have to laugh at those things, don't we? Other than those, it was perfect. Thoughts of the baby were close, but not front and center. As one wise person put it to me tonight... we were living in the present, not living in the past or for the future. Just being together, in the present. It was a relief.
Brian and I are so good together... we are great companions. We really appreciate each other. I know that our dynamic will change so much once the baby's here. I know it'll change in ways I can't even begin to imagine. We'll change how we are by ourselves as well as how we are together. I'm anxious about it, but mostly in really good ways. I'm sure we'll learn a lot more about each other and ourselves, and we'll learn from each other. I can't wait! I was watching family members together last night (I'm sure you're reading this and you know who you are) and I was really loving and admiring the way they are together. Always quick to joke and laugh, always ready with a hug. Their dynamic is beautiful, their love for each other right out there and so clear. They're a family of friends, and it's special. I just can't wait for our- little family to come together, and to become a family of friends like that.
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