Common bonds

We've been home for a week now... having returned from an almost week long trip to the South and the beach in Florida. The time felt like a whirlwind in some ways, but we had a really great time.

One thing I noticed while lugging our family of five through the airport (along with our 3 checked bags and 5 carry-ons) was the sympathetic, nodding, smiling faces of other parents 'suffering' right along side of us.

We'd pass another stroller pushing, child managing, luggage toting family and give each other a "five high of the eyes" kind of expression. You almost cannot not have the sympathetic eye for the other families traveling the same way you are. It's near impossible.

And then you have the not-so-common-bonds. The people that hem and haw at you as you are literally trying to disrobe and un-shoe yourself during the security check.

Or the people in the airplane who you can almost clearly see in their eyes the prayer of "Dear God, please let the family with the small children and wiggly baby sit anywhere near me. Amen."

I love when we meet people who can relate or are willing to help in some small way. Even the people that sit next to you and act like it's no big deal when the baby won't stop playing peekaboo with them. Of course, I think it's darling, but not every one else does. I am glad we had some good company around us some of the way.

It's situations like these that remind me to always be relatable and to never forget where I've been. So that one day when Ken and I are world travelers (oh yes!), we can be courteous enough to help the little family fold their stroller, or stow their carry-ons overhead, or play peekaboo with the baby for the thousandth time on the flight.

For now, I am glad to have my feet on the ground and my family tucked safely in their beds, napping away. We all had the after travel adjustments when returning home... fully including a body breakdown and a round of colds. I'm happy to report that it finally seems as though its phasing out now. We are ready to dive head first in to 'all things Summer!'