As luck would have it, W's Mum had arranged some time off to coincide with half term. She jumped at the chance to look after her (as we knew she would - she adores B and regularly finds reasons to come over and visit). B already has a knack of turning on the charm when she needs to and this is even before she knows what she is doing. I'm thinking a high-powered job beckons for her, directing people from up high and getting the underlings to do her bidding. As long as she gets paid a huge wedge of cash which enables her father to be the oldest professional videogame player on record, then I'm happy. Before the complaints come flying in across cyberspace, yes, of course I am kidding!
I must admit I was slightly annoyed that this would mean a change in routine for B already. It's hard enough for a small child to deal with being separated from her Mother, to then chuck it all up in the air again. Still, she would be spending most of her time at our home anyway, so it was not as bad as, say, giving her to another child minder.
Yes, I did say 'most' there, as on two of the days, she would be up at Gran's (furthermore referred to as 'G'). This involved a routine of such military precision, it would put many Army Generals to shame (to which W must take a bow). B was picked up in the morning by G at the train station near where W works and, during rush hour, getting the train and tube to where G lives. Unsurprisingly, this didn't pose any sort of problem for B and, according to G, she happily grinned at as many commuters as possible and made them all feel uncomfortable (isn't that just one of the best things about small children? They can stare out even the most hardened of Hypnotists without even so much as a flinch). Suffice to say, the tube journey was just as easy, with B even hanging on to one of the grab rails all from the comfort of her buggy.
A passenger, obviously faking sleep to avoid eye contact with B - probably.
I must admit, I was slightly nervous about the whole thing, as I got further and further away from her on the train to work so I was indeed a relieved man when I heard about the above shenanigans on public transport and again when I heard that she had made it to her destination safely. I assume it's just a parent thing to be unnecessarily concerned about the welfare of your child when you don't have complete and utter control over everything. It's a strange thought to know that as long as I live, that feeling will never go away.
So, with B sorted at G's place and work done and dusted (yes, nothing interesting happened unsurprisingly), my thoughts turned to the evening. W had taken full advantage of our evening off and booked a table at a restaurant. As the day had drifted by, I found myself getting more and more excited about it all and (gasp) even looking forward to the train journey. Halfway through the trip, I was taken over by a feeling that I hadn't expected - a feeling of dread. For it had finally dawned on me that my little girl would not be waiting for me at the other end and my total time until I next saw her would almost be 48 hours. I felt like my heart was going to break in two. I got off the train and, head slightly slumped, I shuffled my feet one after the other down the two flights of stairs and poked my ticket in the general direction of the machine (as luck would have it, my aim was good and the barrier sprung open).
Of course it was not all bad. W was there waiting for me and we had some time to ourselves, but the entrance hall had never felt so empty. We both had the same look on our faces - we missed her so much! A welcome kiss and a hug made things a lot better though. We walked to the car and headed home, talking about how weird it felt to not have this small person with us - someone who has been a part of our everyday lives for over 9 months. Never has the phrase 'you don't know what you have until it's gone' been more apt.
After talking about it, I certainly felt a lot better and once we had got in, I realised, somewhat guilt-filled, that the flat was empty and all my time was mine again! No playing with B, no bath for B, no changing for B and no feeding and putting to bed for B! I sprung through the flat, sending cats off in various random directions. I fired up the Xbox 360 and on went Pro Evolution Soccer 6 (more about this very soon). W put on the laptop and we begun to get comfortable. Almost too comfortable, for our 'lazy' gene begun to kick in.
Fortunately, W is stronger willed than I am and after a couple of games (defeats of course), we got ready and went out. I'm glad we did though as the restaurant was lovely and the food was plentiful. It shows that the Chilli Con Carne that I make at home is at the spice level known as 'wuss.' I had Chilli Meatballs and they were hot! This served me well as it helped clear the remnants of a cold away into the night sky. I also discovered a combination that I must revisit - cabbage and bacon. We had it as a side dish and it really did surprise me. So full was I that I could not even find space for dessert or coffee (hangs head in shame).
We went back to our empty flat, having had an excellent night out. I played a bit more PES6, and W trawled the internet looking for bargains on Ebay. We didn't stay up too late, as it was a school night. B spent the following day at G's, but was waiting for me at the station that evening, arms flapping, possibly creating a small tornado in the process. I felt complete again.
While I did miss her while she was away, I think it is definitely important to spend time away from B every now and then. It gives W and I a chance to be people as well as parents and I look forward to the next time we can do it.
