Aaahh I'm so stressed: packing

[ailbhe]

Imagine you're almost three years old.

Imagine it's almost your dinner time.

Imagine you have to wait an hour at the airport and then get on a plane and sit still for another hour.

Imagine that your supervising adult is unwell, in a wheelchair or the seat of the plane, with a six-month-old on her lap.

So.

Would two books, two fingerpuppets, a car, coloured pencils, a hand-puppet, a draw-on-wipe-off monochrome thing, and the dog from the children's show "The Tweenies", with apples, raisins and biscuits, be adequate compensation? How about if there's also a giftwrapped book you've never seen before and some chocolate?

I hope the wheelchair-pusher is good about letting me buy a bottle of water once we're through security. And with any luck I'll be able to buy extortionately priced sausages while on the plane; they worked well before.

Comments

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

I don't know if there's any way to predict whether that would work. But it sounds like as good an attempt as anyone could be reasonably expected to make.

[ailbhe]

Linnea will behave well anyway - if sitting still being bored and miserable is what's required, she'll do it, because she knows I'm not well.

That makes me want to keep her happy even more.

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

Would it be fair to her to ask what she'd like to bring? I can think of reasons both for and against that idea, depending entirely on the particular child in question.

[ailbhe]

I'm going to have her check the bag so she knows what's in it and can ask me to unpack things for her; the choice of soft toy was hers already.

[baratron.livejournal.com]

I was going to say you're so lucky to have the child you have, but I'm not sure luck has much to do with it. Seems more likely the reason she's so well-behaved is down to the quality of your parenting. She doesn't have to throw a tantrum to get your attention, because she already has as much of it as she needs.

[merryhouse.livejournal.com]

awww, what a sweetie

I'd be inclined to do the chocolate and the new book ;-)

(oh and my goodness, I appear to have been offline since the end of January)

Hope you feel better soon. Rob missing out on most of a month at this stage is a bummer, obviously, but if that's what it takes to make the rest of the year ok then it will be worth it.

[tiggsybabes.livejournal.com]

The gift wrapped book & chocolate is a fabulous idea. I always intend to have a surprise present for mine when we're travelling, but always forget. They of course always have their own bag with snacks & books / 1 favourite small toy in, packed by themselves.

I hope it all went as smoothly as possible :)

[baratron.livejournal.com]

It sounds like plenty of food and distractions, which will be the two things she really needs.

Good luck with the travelling! and especially, good luck with getting better! I imagine we won't be seeing you in the next month? I'll miss you, but it's for the best if you're getting your mum's love to recover.

Do you want to post the address where you'll be staying friends-locked so we can send you letters to keep you informed of what's going on? (I don't know whether i'll have the energy to write you a specific letter, but I could print out my livejournal entries and mail them to you :P ).

[perceval.livejournal.com]

I would think so. Does Linnea go for action rhymes? Does she like you to sing to her? There's also a game where you say "I see something that you don't see, and it is yellow. What is it?" She has to guess what it is. Or find all the people with red coats. Or find all the babies ...

[supermouse.livejournal.com]

Cheese strings are good too. They're protein and filling, and fun to play with but not smeary.

[baratron.livejournal.com]

Not much use for the severely dairy-intolerant, though :)

[supermouse.livejournal.com]

Aaaargh! No, no use at all. Doh! I did know, but I forgot.