The munchkin is napping and it's two days before we leave for Vegas. It's been a memorable time for me. Coming down to Trinidad for 4 months while Norris was gone has not always been an easy or fun thing, but on balance I would say that I made the right decision.
Miles has gotten to spend more time with his Grandparents than he will probably ever spend again. He has gotten that "raised by a village" experience that Hillary Clinton spoke so eloquently about. This has made him into a very friendly, happy little infant. When we came down here he could just sit up a little. In our time here he has gone from rolling around to crawling to standing and even riding a little fire truck.
This visit has also injected new life into my parents. I know they will be at a loss for a little while after we leave and Miles will also miss seeing his Ga!'s every day. He loves them and when he sees them he throws his arms up to try to grab them and have them hug him.
I have gotten a lot of help in raising him. I don't think I would have done as good a job if I had toughed it out in Vegas by myself. This experience really showed me how insanely hard the life of a single parent is and I honestly have no idea how they do it day after day if they know there's no end in sight. Knowing this was temporary made it easier.
The hardest part may be coming up. When we came down here he was a wee, malleable 6 month old. He actually slept for most of our trip down and people commented about how well behaved he was on the flight. Now I have an almost 11 month old who is a veritable ball of energy stacked on chubby legs. The idea of having him be still for two four hour flights is so laughable that I am just keeping it out of my mind as much as possible. That coupled with the fact that I have NO assigned seat and as it stands now will be assigned to middle seats the whole way also makes me think that this journey will be epic.
Our trip down here would not have been the same if not for the help of my friend Sandra and her sweet son Nicky. They babysat Miles and loved him and treated him as part of their family. He is going to miss them so much and I wonder if he will understand when we leave everyone behind. The culture and the life we are returning to is so different. We are going from an extended family system to a pretty isolated nuclear family dynamic and apart from playgroups or other activities like that Miles will spend all his time with just Norris and I. Rarely if ever will he experience other families, other ages of people and the sheer amount of people in everyday life as he does here. But as everyone says, children are resilient. And when we get back he will have three great constant companions who will worship and adore him (Norris,Bella and I) and one who will have a passing interest and show occassional love (Pace).
