VH is due back the day after tomorrow. Oddly enough, I’ve found myself lately wondering where did the time fly? Before his trip, the thought of a month-long solo parenting stint was overwhelming. More than once I worried how I’d handle thirty long days without anything resembling “Me Time”.

Truth is, it wasn’t that bad.

Oh, sure, I haven’t been able to lounge in a bubble bath before bed, reading a good book and sipping on wine. I haven’t spent one single leisurely Sunday morning reading the newspaper, cover to cover, followed by sitting on the deck working the crossword puzzle in my PJs. Mornings have been more like a mad dash from the instant I put my feet on the floor with the first two hours of my day involving a race to get things done before my son gets up and needs my attention. All of my attention.

That, if anything, has been the most difficult part of this past month: not having another pair of ears to listen to my son’s non-stop chatter, another mouth to mumble “Uh-huh” and “Oh really?” when my son launches in to the umpteenth repetition of that day’s Teen Titans episode, another pair of eyes to watch him in the backyard and make sure he stays out of the poison ivy. (A task, obviously, which I failed.)

Not that I’ll be readily admitting this to VH when he gets home. Oh, no. He’s going to hear a litany of ways I’ve been deprived and how very exhausted I am. After I unpack his luggage and get caught up on laundry — and other “Welcome Home!” matters (*ahem*), I’ll be chronicling the things I haven’t had a chance to do while he’s been gone.

This, of course, will only serve to emphasize how important his role is here. How much we need him. How much more smoothly the house functions when Daddy is home. Can I help it if it also serves to emphasize how very much I need, say, a weekend to myself to rest and recuperate before we resume homeschooling next week?

Something VH and I had agreed on before he left: that I’d be doing that rest and recuperation in a nice, clean hotel room somewhere nearby. One with room service and a bar that allows smoking. One where I’d have free Wi-Fi and the ability to stay up as late as I want — and to sleep in the next day as long as I liked — so I could catch up on reading, writing and other things I haven’t really had much time for.

Unfortunately, I have yet to actually find the hotel that meets all of those requirements without breaking the budget. I called around to a few places to inquire about rates and let’s just say the deals haven’t been all that impressive. Most hotels, I’ve since learned, offer one rate to folks calling in and a wholly different, much better rate through their corporate offices.

So I’ve been watching the hotel listings at Deal Locker I hoped to score an even better deal. While the majority of the coupon codes are for places out of town, I did find a $50 off coupon to use for a 3+ night hotel stay booked through CheapTickets.com.

Looks like I’ve got an added incentive to get VH unpacked now: I need those suit cases!

Monday, August 6th, 2007, 8:48 am   |   My Venomous Life  |  RSS feed Comments and pings are currently closed.