Letting Go of Worrying . . .

Anyone who knows me knows that I.WORRY. It's what I do. From the minute Audrey was born my brain filled with the what if's. . . "What if she starts crying, what if she's hungry, and the biggest . . .what if I CAN'T calm her down???" I am constantly worried about Audrey's state of mind, her developmental progress, how my discipline strategies are working, etc. But I think that this Spring Break has taught me to just LET IT GO. My child is pretty go with the flow, I am not. I need to loosen up ASAP to let her figure out her personality.

Case #1. Trip to Tulsa, a 5 hour drive. The day before we left I called James and asked for the portable DVD player so Audrey would be entertained on the trip. He said it broke on his last trip to Houston with Auds. WHAT???!! I immediately freaked out and was planning my early morning trip to Walmart to buy a replacement. How in the world would Audrey behave in the car for 5 hours without her movies? My mom brought me back to reality. She reminded me that back in the day kids *like me!* traveled for longer lengths of time with just . . .toys to keep them happy. So off we went, and lo and behold Audrey did not whine even once on the trip to Tulsa. She was just fine playing with her dolls and coloring.

Case #2 The Fancy Restaurant. When we got to Tulsa Eric decided that he wanted to take our Mom out for her birthday dinner at this nice Italian restaurant across town from his house. Of course I vetoed it right away because one, Auds was tired from the drive and wouldn't do well in the car again, and 2, HELLO, it was a quaint, Italian restaurant, not meant for kiddos who had been traveleing all day! But . . . I lost, so off we went. Oh my goodness was Audrey great at the restaurant. She loved the fish tanks at the front and had to go see them a lot, but overall she was amazing. I couldn't believe it.

Case #3 No White Noise Machine! Once it was time for bed at Eric's. I realized I forgot the White Noise machine that Audrey sleeps with every night. I was sure she would wake up at every noise, especially since we were sharing a room. NOPE. She fell right asleep and slept for 12 hours straight, no white noise machine needed! (Now me on the other hand needed one, Audrey is a snorer!!!)

Case #4 The All Day Trip to the Zoo. I have been wanting to take Audrey on the Light Rail around town, but wasn't sure due to potty training issues, how she would sit still, etc. I have also been wanting to take her to the Zoo, but hadn't yet. Well, yesterday my friend called and invited us to the Zoo. She said we would be taking the train down there. Before I could even think about it I said YES! How fun! So I fretted all last night about Audrey having to potty while on the train, having to potty while at the zoo, and a million other things that could go wrong.

Goodness. It was one of the BEST experiences I have ever had with Audrey. TOP 5. She loved the train ride (50 minutes one way!) and loved sitting by her friend Amanda and watching the buildings go by. When we got to the Zoo she couldn't contain herself. Audrey was running around with her friend to every exhibit. We all packed a lunch and the kiddos loved eating while watching the animals. AND Audrey pottied when needed. NO STRESS! We caught the train back home, and it was just as easy. The kids LOVED IT.

Lesson learned my friends. Being a kiddo is full of fun and no stress, unless the adults in your life bring it on you. Which this Mama won't be doing anymore!