Mr. Mom

I had to travel to Las Vegas this week for a three-day, work conference.  Monday morning started at the ungodly hour of 3:15 am and I arrived safely in Vegas at 8:15 am Pacific Time.  Yikes!  I am not even sure how I managed that.  Then we rolled right into meetings and dinner and before I knew it, it was 10:00 pm.  This means my body felt like it was midnight and I was absolutely exhausted.

Normally I would be concerned about leaving Jentry and interrupting her routine, however this time I was not worried about her at all because she was home with Nathan. He has definitely learned her routine over the past nine months and to my surprise he was ready to undertake my roll ...for a few days anyway.

They sent me a video message on Tuesday and I was able to call home and chat with them a few times.  I even utilized FaceTime and caught Jentry in the tub.  I knew that leaving Nathan to take care of everything was a huge request, because I know what it truly entailed, but he certainly stepped up to the plate and did an amazing job.

I was very busy the week prior to leaving and therefore I hadn't even thought about what they were going to eat while I was away.  Nathan said he would just make his bachelor standards like spaghetti, mac-n-cheese and pizza.  That would have been easy and great except for the fact that we didn't have hamburger, noodles or pizza in the kitchen.  What kind of a domestic engineer was I?  I left them with a shopping list and wished them luck.

I think Nathan started to worry just a bit when he realized his mother was not even going to be around for back-up.  I never doubted him and everything went very smoothly.  He never once forgot to pick her up from preschool or daycare, and as far as I could tell they had been eating something while I was gone. He even remembered to find something that started with a K for Jentry to take to show and share on Thursday.  He was kind enough and perhaps trusting enough to let her take his keys!  Jentry was so excited.  He was even took the time to wash her favorite pair of red pants so that she could wear them again the next day.  It was nice to see that even Nathan caves to the requests of a four-year-old once and a while.  Nathan said that Jentry behaved much better for him than she does for me, which was not shocking at all.

When I arrived home, I had a special note on my desk from Jentry that said, "I love you Mommy!"  I could not have asked for a better welcome home gift.  I think Nathan was just as happy to see me.  He did an awesome job being Mr. Mom, however I think we all realized just how much we appreciate each other and all of the small tasks that go unnoticed on a daily basis.  I am reminded of the advice the pastor gave us on our wedding day. "Never, ever take one another for granted!"