I looked out at the frozen pond and tried to muster a deep breath. Jordan and I had just received notice that Jack’s class would be closed for another week due to COVID protocols. The update was one of many disruptions in a winter which has been filled with childcare issues, quarantines, and sick days. The daycare email left us frustrated and ready to get the hell out of the house. It was also looking like these frequent work disruptions would require us to skip our trip to Florida to visit my parents in March. I was becoming tired of reacting to these inconveniences, so I chose to take some action.
I sat back down at my computer and checked my work calendar. I took out my phone and peeked at the weather app. Then, I looked over to Jordo and said, “Screw it. Let’s go to Naples…like tomorrow.”
I consider myself a fairly rational person. But as we frantically searched flight options less than 24 hours away while containing Jack and juggling scheduled meetings, Jordan and I were fully operating on emotion and desperation. And in our rush to book flights, organize logistics with my parents, arrange cat coverage, pack our bags, and get clearance from our colleagues, we only had time to think of the “Pros” side of our Pros/Cons list.
Pros list
1. Get down to my parents’ house in Florida for the first time since Charlie was a newborn.
2. Practice flying with toddlers before our trip to California for Casey & Mikey’s wedding in June.
3. Turn another disruptive daycare quarantine into a positive.
4. Leave the snow on the ground for 82 and sunny.
5. Capture a few extra days of sunshine over Presidents Day Weekend.
That was good enough for us. With availability winding down for the last minute flights, we haphazardly clicked “Book your trip.”
But immediately after receiving our confirmation numbers, the “Cons” side of the list crept into my conscience.
Cons list
- The expensive last-minute Holiday weekend flights
- Lack of preparation
- Unnecessary stress of all the rushed arrangements
If I went back a few hours and had a little more time, a busier day, a little less emotional fuel, or a bit of resistance from Jordan or my parents, I would’ve easily passed on the spontaneous idea. But now that the sunshine has come and gone, I’m glad that I wasn’t acting 100% rationally when we booked the flights.
Because I just couldn’t pass up an opportunity to hear Jack cheer “Yippeeee” when Pop-Pop plays with him in the pool. I couldn’t miss Charlie’s giggles on the beach or dance moves with her Mimi. I got to break up a dreary winter with 9 holes at sunset with my dad. Jordan and I enjoyed the quality time with my parents. And we got a glimpse of a world in which the biggest worries seem to be whether the community will build pickleball on one the tennis courts. So despite having to wrestle a 27-pound bear for a few days on planes and in a non-child proofed condo, our trip provided the rejuvenation that we needed.
I don’t anticipate approaching all future family travel as spontaneous as we did for this trip, but we’ll cherish this one for a long time. It felt good to turn a “why” into a “why not?!” And thanks to our colleagues’ flexibility, my parents’ hospitality, and South Florida’s serenity, when life threw Jordan and I a few lemons, we were able to shake ‘em up to make fresh, poolside, spiked lemonade. And sometimes it tastes extra special that way.
The Janiec Reflection 