Two mornings this week, my alarm clock has gone off at 3:30AM.
The first was Tuesday morning and I had a flight to catch.
I could have had a travel day on Monday.
But instead I left early Tuesday so I could have a full work day at home on Monday, make a family dinner, enjoy time around the table visiting with my husband and kids, “encourage” Hunter to play piano and put the kids to bed.
I then hurriedly packed for my week of three days of solid meetings, finishing the last of the laundry and finally falling asleep four hours before my alarm woke me at 3:30AM.
My husband had the coffee timed and ready to go for me when the house was silent. I peaked in at each of my kids before leaving and wrote each of them a note to find when they came down for breakfast.
It was pitch black and ridiculously windy by 4AM as I drove my 92 mile cut across the prairie to the airport.
I had plenty of drive time to think WHY I get up at 3:30AM but my coffee woke me up and I was ready for my days of meetings. I also thought about my mommy friends who had babies waking them up at this time and how much cozy that is that driving on the windy prairie to the airport.
By Tuesday night I was staying in a home away from home in Sacramento. Little did I know how much of a home it would become for me.
After numerous Wednesday meetings from sun up to sun down, three colleagues and our client ventured to a popular downtown restaurant in Sacramento. The dining room was quiet as everyone in Northern California was focused on the two televisions in the bar for the first game of the World Series with the home team Giants playing.
Maybe it was the scallops I had for dinner or maybe it was a yucky flu bug but by 3AM Thursday morning I was a wreck in my hotel room.
Horribly dizzy, feverish, aches, heaving, puking and everything else.
My colleague and mother of two girls, KS, came to my rescue with a liquids and crackers, telling me my face was the color of my hair.
My body couldn’t keep anything down but I was thankful to have someone looking out for me. I spent the morning in and out of consciousness as I crawled to the bathroom or just stayed in there on the floor. I did pray for a moment my hotel room didn’t have bed bugs. Thankfully it did not.
By afternoon, KS was back from client meetings and I had bit more color to my face. I could even sit up vertical for short bits of time.
She walked to the pharmacy returning with Advil, anti-dizzy meds suggested by my mother a thousand miles from my hotel room, Pedialyte and Gatorade.
I had thoughtful phone calls, texts and emails from my colleagues, clients, husband, son and mother last night to check on my well-being. Miss E called to say that if I would come home she would rub my tummy until it was better. Soup from room service and KS’s full concoctions of liquids and meds had me making progress and I set my alarm once again for 3:30AM.
At 3:30AM this morning, I have never been so happy to get out of bed, out of my hotel room, a bit wobbly on my feet but happy to rise and get to the airport. No coffee was needed and my touchy tummy is doing just fine on this flight home. (Flights have internet now. I love it.)
I am going home.
This working mom is ready for home, smiles, hugs, my own bed and ready for a family weekend of Halloween and fun. But I know I will set my alarm for 3:30AM again in the near future. It is for my family, my kids, my career and my sanity that I do.
Whether you are working mom, stay at home mom, empty nester, single or dink (dual income no kids…that it the term my friend told she wants to be referred to) what do you miss most about home when you are away?
The four non-kid images came from Google Images.
Oh Katie! I’m so sorry you were sick on your trip! Glad you’re home, nice and cozy with your family:)
I love that KS..she is a gem! Glad she was there for you!
uck! I hate that you were so sick…sounds like food poisioning to me 🙁