Road Trip

Last week Jude and I ventured up to Santa Rosa to visit Grandpa and Nani. I realized that if we didn't take the opportunity to visit now, it would likely be five months by the time Jude and Grandpa got to hang out. The last time they cuddled was Christmas. It is important to both Tim and I that Jude know, love, and learn from his grandparents.

In an attempt to break up the drive time, I stopped and visited a vineyard manager I used to work with along the way as well as Big Lots in Salinas on my quest to find inexpensive outdoor cushions. Although, it was nice to catch up and I did find the cushions I was looking for, in the end it turned out that extending the total trip time was not a wise move. A combination of a late leave time, multiple stops, and hitting Novato, north of the SF Gate Bridge, at 4:30 pm created the perfect storm inside the Whitacre mobile. At precisely the moment, we hit stop and go traffic, Jude announced his absolute displeasure with my drive plan. He was done. The crying began and so did my search for an alternate route. I called my Dad and he instructed me to take an exit about 20 minutes from where we were. I almost pulled over on the freeway to play with Jude in the median just because neither of us could take it anymore - Jude, the car, and me, Jude's crying. We made it to our exit and instead of the median we played in the parking lot of Progressive insurance in Petaluma. There was a cool wind that felt lovely on Jude's hot cheeks. After about fifteen minutes of jumping, tossing, standing, and bouncing, I put Jude back in his car seat. He complained but refrained from breaking into a rage. Dad was right and the back way was much quicker. Within thirty minutes we were pulling up to my parent's house and Jude was free from the car - for now.

For the next day and a half, Jude got kissed, hugged, cuddled and played with by his wonderful grandparents and his Aunt Kristy. They fed him solids, helped him sit and play (with pillows all around just in case), went on walks and the most fun of all "swam" with Jude in the hot tub.



The trip south went much smoother than the trip north. We had a great time in Santa Rosa. I am so thankful for supportive, involved, and loving parents and grandparents. Since having Jude, I am coming to a better understanding of the benefits and joys of having family close. I wish there was a way for Nani and Grandpa to be a daily part of Jude's life, but in the meantime I am very thankful for the time he gets with them.