The First Getaway

I did a quick lookover to make sure everything was in place. Camera. Check. Toiletries bag. Check. Travel pillow. Check. My friend, Katie, would be here any minute to pick me up and, for the first time in over six years, I would be making my way out of town without my husband or children. Two months prior when I registered for this weekend women’s conference in Minneapolis it sounded very far off and exciting, but here in this moment I looked at my luggage and then at my husband, holding our 9 month old son in his arms and felt conflicting thoughts. Is our baby too young for me to leave for three days? Should I really be doing this? How’s my husband going to feel after caring for our three young children for an entire weekend on his own? Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all.

“We’re going to be just fine.” My husband assured me. “And you’re going to have a great time, too.”

We both heard the sound of a car pulling up into the driveway. Katie was here. An early morning departure meant that our three- and five-year-olds were still sleeping while my husband and I said our goodbyes and I gave our baby boy a kiss on the apple of his cheek. He reached for me, expecting me to pick him up and cuddle, but I instead gave him another kiss and grabbed my bags. A giant tear rolled down the twice-kissed cheek and his cries were the last sound I heard as I left the house.

“You ready?” Katie asked as we loaded my luggage into her car. I nodded as I waved at my husband who was standing by the storm door, waving back all the while trying to soothe an unhappy camper who was clearly less than thrilled about my leaving. Soon after, I would find myself with a full car of women (over twenty ladies from our church were making the trek up to Minnesota for the conference, most of which decided to caravan between four cars). We bantered back and forth about anything and everything which helped pass the time on the eight hour drive north. For a handful of us, this was our first overnight away from our children and husbands. My friend, Lauren, and I found ourselves retreating every 4-6 hours to pump since we were still nursing but baby-less for three days. Trying to find public bathrooms that had an outlet and a place to put our pumping supplies proved humorous and sometimes challenging throughout the trip.

My itinerary was full with conference sessions and social activities and yet the time felt very restful. I chalk it up to getting full nights’ sleep and not having to tote around a car seat, diaper bag, or any other baby gear. In fact, I felt so light as I walked around with one of my smaller handbags that several times I questioned whether I forgot something. Nope, I had to remind myself. I was just childless!

I called my husband throughout the weekend to get updates on how his time with the kids was going. Every time I caught him, it seemed he was out. Out doing the grocery shopping, out taking the kids to the park, out at the arboretum enjoying another warm spring day.

“We’re all doing great. Have fun, Sweetheart. You deserve it.” He told me. Man, if there’s a Husband of the Year award out there, he was going for gold. I always knew he was a good father, but his confidence in his own parenting, along with his encouragement for me to enjoy a much needed break, sealed the deal.

As the weekend came to a close I found myself renewed and refreshed and eager to get home. All the girltime was fun, but I was looking forward to seeing my husband and three little ones. As I entered our home late Sunday evening, I dropped my luggage in the entry and tiptoed to our boys’ rooms. They were all sound asleep, looking much the same as I left them three days prior. My husband and I discussed the events of our weekends- for the first time different from one another’s- and we retired for the night.

It was good to be home.