family Archives - Mom in DCity

Be Kind to Traveling Families… Or Else

June 26, 2014 by momindcity 12 Comments

Have you ever been comfortably sitting on a plane, minding your own business when someone asks you to move? Did you do it?

If you did, you probably felt good. Like you’d just done that person and/or their family a favor. If you didn’t, well… the rest of this post is for you.

As my family and I dragged our way to the back of the plane last night, we looked around hopefully. The 3-hour delay had left us cranky and tired. The girls pulled their princess suitcases and fought over ratty haired dolls while Dave and I tried not-so-subtly to make eye contact with potential seat-trading strangers. Our assigned seats were all over the plane, and Zana was already crying at the thought of not sitting with one of us.

People just stared. Most people, anyway. One man did jump up and offer to move saying, “I remember those days!” He even took a middle seat to help us out(thank you, thank you!).

But not everyone was eager to help, including one guy who had the pleasure of sitting next to Zana.

Good luck sitting next to this kid — Why wouldn’t you be nice to this face?

He learned a hard lesson. Since I don’t think anyone else should have to learn this the hard way, I’m going to lay it out for you.

If you’re not nice to traveling families…

1. You might get coughed on. (a lot)

2. You might get kicked. (hard)

3. You might be forced to listen to a very loud rendition of “Let it Go.” (on repeat)

4. You might get sprayed with vomit.

5. You might then be forced to eat your Lunchable while smelling that vomit.

6. You might be referred to as a “magar” (that’s donkey in Albanian) while you’re talked about right in front of your face.

Or if you’re the lucky guy sitting next to Zana during the flight because you wouldn’t change seats… you might just get the grand prize of all of the above!

So what have we learned?

When a family asks you to move so they can sit together, just do it.

And remember… you’re not doing them a favor. You’re doing yourself one.

Get Out the Wine Glasses: I Miss My Mommy!

August 2, 2012 by momindcity 6 Comments

If you’ve ever had a kid, other than your own, stay with you for an extended period of time, you know there always comes a moment when they miss their Mommy.

For my visiting niece, that moment came today. I almost missed it, thanks to all the screaming going on at my house full of girls. But when the sobbing lasted more than a minute and wasn’t followed by any finger pointing or tattle-taling, I knew something was wrong.

I picked her up, sat her in my lap and asked what the problem was. “I miss my Mooooooooooommmmm sob sob snort mmmyyyyy!”

After attempting to call her parents, who were both at work, I had to come up with some other way to make her smile.

I thought about what would make me feel better if I were sad… ah ha!

I pulled out the fancy glasses and the red stuff (V8 Splash), and let the girls drink their sorrows away. They clinked glasses, giggled and said things like “this tastes magnificent!” Then they asked for more, and more, and more…

And soon, my niece’s frown turned upside down and the whole day got better. Drinking has worked for me for years now, so why wouldn’t it work for them?! College taught me so much. And these girls are already ahead of the game. What will they possibly have to learn when they get there?!

Quick and Sappy Roadtrip to Chicago

June 19, 2012 by momindcity 6 Comments

If someone told me a few weeks ago that I’d be driving 1,403 with two kids over a long weekend, I would have punched them in the face. Luckily for them, it was a game day decision.

My brother told us more than a year ago about his MBA graduation from Northwestern yet, in true delusional fashion, we kept telling ourselves we’d find flights for under $200 a pop. Wrong! So, after quick trip to the ER, we packed up the ol’ Prius and began our journey. Google said it was a 12 hour drive, so we figured that (with kids) meant 16.

Two Disney movies, three lattes, one Olive Garden, four rest stops and 13 hours (total) later, we arrived in Chicago. We spent a quick 6 hours in a sketchy hotel (Hotwire deal) and then headed over to meet the rest of the fam downtown.

“The rest” includes my parents, brother, sister-in-law and nephew– that’s nine of us, if you’re counting. It’s hard to do much with nine people– especially when three of them are munchkins. We hung out at our hotel a lot– the W Hotel, which was a hilarious choice for our party. We were the only people not wearing Feragamos (well, my brother was), sipping cocktails at 9am and rocking too much self-tanner. It was entertaining, though, and Zana certainly enjoyed the lobby.

All the kids enjoyed the fancy bathtubs:

And the rest of us enjoyed some quality time together. The graduation itself went on for longer than necessary. I somehow managed to cry three times during the ceremony. I always forget how sappy I am, but nobody else seems to– my dad just laughed. And that somehow made me feel better because, come on, who wants to talk about their emotions? Not me! But I do want to write about them, so here goes…

Besim, I am so very proud of you. I don’t think I told you that enough (or ever) while you were flying back and forth from Houston to Chicago every week for two years. It’s a big deal to get an MBA. An even bigger deal to get one from Kellogg School of Management. And an even bigger-est (sorry, I don’t have an MBA) deal to do that while maintaining a job and a healthy family. Hard work is inspiring, and yours has not gone unnoticed. I am so thankful that we could be there to celebrate you, and can’t wait to see what you do next.

So, MomInDCity readers, what kinds of things turn you into a sappy, weepy mess?

Concrete Jungle for the Weekend

May 26, 2012 by momindcity 2 Comments

It’s Memorial Day weekend, so just like most other Americans, we’re focusing less on the the whole “memorial” thing and more on the 3-day weekend. (Don’t worry,we remember our fallen soldiers quite often thanks to my former-Marine husband).

We decided to leave our tourist-infested city to go bother some other snobs who also hate tourists– New Yorkers!

We usually take the bus or Amtrak, but chose to drive this time; that meant a lot of “I’m boooorreeedd,” mostly from me. The girls were fine. I did take some cool pictures along the way to pass the time…

IMG_3626[1] — Some other bridge in Jersey

And finally, 5 hours later…

I started embracing my inner tourist just minutes after we got here, blasting the Rent soundtrack while snapping pictures of Avenue C. This weekend is going to rule!

There are a few things you’re probably wondering about, so let’s clear them up right now:

Did the girls wear tutus for the trip? Absolutely. Swimsuits, too. Which is a good thing because we got caught in an afternoon thunderstorm.
Are you still doing your vegan thing? You betcha! Fortunately, there are delicious vegan options on every corner. If I ever decide to do this permanently, we’d have to move here.
Is that purple cast still on your arm? Yes, but only until Tuesday! (side note: if you ever accidentally wear a dress that matches your cast, you will hear about it. All.Day.Long.
What kind of shoes are you wearing for all the walking in NY? Ok, you’re probably not wondering this but Dave was after noticing my flip flops. Since I didn’t bring any good walking shoes (hehe) we were forced to stop at DSW tonight to buy some… and also some platform wedges. What?! They’re comfortable!

Stay tuned for updates on National Lampoons New York Vacation…