Holy shit show. Between friends visiting and my own involved travels, I haven’t posted. Here’s some notes I jotted from my trip to Bankok:
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20 Nov 2009
5 am I wake up, WBoy is still asleep in his little bed on the floor (friends in his room). Ugh Max is gone and today I travel to Bangkok with these two.
5:10 WanderGirl awake.
5:11 WanderBoy awake.
6 The three of us go for a bike ride.
7:30 Breakfast at Casa Mia. Pancakes, eggs, bacon, the works. Coffee for mama. Here’s a crazy fact: I have never drank coffee till this time around in Thailand. Ever. Not in France or Italy. Brazil or Costa Rica. Or New York or Boston for that matter. I’ve drank more coffee here than ever before — and 1/2 of it is Nescafe instant. It’s the kids.
8:15 We pedal home through a parade: tiny Thai girls in outrageous satin tutus and hair and makeup to match. Boys in flashy suits. A marching band. All to commemorate the “exercises at the palace” according to someone that I asked. Cool.
9-11:30 Packing. Feeling alternately ok and crazy. House is bedlam with 4 kids running/yelling.
11:45 Take taxi to the now-defunct Mae Sot Airport. There should be a bus/minivan waiting for me to take me to the airport 3 hours away in Sukothai. There isn’t. Panic. Thirty seconds later I negociate a $100 fare from the taxi company all the way to Sukothai.
12:15-3 White-knuckle ride weaving up and down the mountains to Tak (1/2 way to the airport). As I am losening my grip on the seat handle in front of me, WanderBoy vomits all over himself, me, the minibus. At a pit stop, I literally throw away all clothes involved.
3-5:15 At airport. Answer “When are we leaving?” three hundred times.
5:30 Thank the lord we are in the air.
5:45 Vomit everywhere. Compliments of the girl this time.
6:20 Got bags, got kids. Where the F&*%!!! is the F&*%ing rep from the Best Western. He should be waiting. I track him down.
6:40 On van. WanderPapa calls from China. (that is another story) He is fine.
7:40 Totally exhausted. Screaming at whinging, whiny WanderBoy who wants _____ (juice, Diego, something to eat) NOW!!! Total child abuse moment. Ugh.
8:40 Washed and fed, asleep in bed. Only 48 hours till WPapa and the grandparents arrive. Please let me survive.
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I survived barely. Sunday my parents and husband arrived. By Monday, after giving over total responsibility for the kids and sleeping, I felt ok again. But man sometimes this never-ending trip of ours seems like the stupidest idea in the world.
“Single” parenting is the hardest thing, I think. I am a total wimp whenever it happens. Glad your parents made it safely. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!