On Friday afternoon we packed up the family truckster and drove south to the GRT Temple Bay Resort, in Mamallapuram, where I attended the annual three-day AISC School Board retreat. Oh yeah, I did mention that I was recently appointed to the Board of Directors by the Consular General at the US Consulate, right? Since this two year commitment to the board is unpaid, a lot of work, and a totally thankless job, the Head of School holds the retreat at this Chennice resort so the families can hang out by the pool and enjoy the weekend for free while their spouse is pent up in a board room on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. To lessen the burden on Matt watching all three kids by himself, we asked our friend's 12 year old daughter to come with us and take care of the girls. She was responsible for bathroom duty, helping them get dressed, watching them in the pool, and mealtime. She also shared a room with them, and babysat them while we were at dinner. In short, she was amazing, a lifesaver, a total relief. She left Matt completely free to take care of Grady. Take a wild guess how well THAT went.
The baby was a little off this weekend... not quite himself. He didn't nap very well, he didn't eat when he should have, he was perpetually cranky... and so was Matt. Now don't get me wrong, he is a fabulous father, amazingly patient at times when I would totally lose my cool. But taking care of the baby is SO not his thing. Sure he loves Grady. But he much prefers the kids when they're old enough to engage in activities, communicate, walk, talk, and poop on their own.
There's no sense in detailing the entire weekend, so let's just recap it one sentence by saying that everyone (aka Matt) survived and is no worse for wear. The girls had a blast being with Holli, and Matt now has a much greater appreciation for my ability to juggle just about everything. Much, much greater...
Here are a few photos of the weekend.
Grady hanging out around the infinity pool - overlooking the Bay of Bengal. Tough life, eh?
The girls swimming in the largest pool I've ever seen!
It took Matt over 3 minutes to swim from end to end.
9 comments:
Wow, your photo looks so official and fancy.
I keep threatening to leave unexpectedly for a weekend so my husband can't call his mom for back up. He has no idea what it takes to get through my day. He's a great father, just has not understanding of the day to day stuff. I guess you have to live it to really get it.
They don't realize just how much work it is until they have to walk the walk in your shoes. Good to hear everyone survived!
I'm glad all survived. Mark would have been a grumpy mess by the end of that as well. Mark dearly loves his children, and he's a really involved dad, but he does better when I'm here to help things run.
Aren't you going to be crazy busy? I hope it all goes well.
Hope you got to enjoy the resort a little bit too, it looks gorgeous!
How fun for Matt and the kiddos!!! I hope your weekend went well : ) Congrats on your appointment, you I have no doubt will excel in it.
That pool is amazing!! I have the same rash guard for my girls only in long sleeves as we are truly lily white and burn at even the mention of sun : ) I knew I liked you, good taste~
Being the in charge parent for a while is good for the hubs. Makes him appreciate you more. The best thing I ever did for my marriage was flip my bike and break both arms while I had 2 kids in diapers. By the time I was back on diaper duty again my husband had a very clear realization that my job was a lot harder than he thought.
Yay Matt! Congrats on your new position Jill. That resort looks like it is somewhere in the CARIBBEAN. Whoa... cool.
Jill, congrats on the Board position. Great blog. Enjoy reading - and empathize quite a bit. XO!
Great photos. I think that its good for Dad to play 'Mom' for a while lets them know what we grow through, only my kids are always perfect for him *sigh*
I'd like to take this opportunity to volunteer to help wiht the kiddos next year :-)
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