As you might know, like a lot of women out there, I have a busy life between being a wife, mother, and a Business Owner. Recently I spent a week away from home, and still managed to keep all of the balls I juggle in the air, so I was feeling pretty proud of myself by the end of it! Here is how my week has gone:
Along Came a Storm
It started with celebrating my baby being 5 months old and attending the wedding of a dear high school friend of mine. But as we arrived in Canberra, a massive storm hit. I pulled over on the side of the road to wait out the hail, rain, and strong winds. With a crying and scared baby in the back, I had to climb into the back to comfort him. No easy feat with a car full of luggage, and given I’m almost 6ft with a Ford sedan.
The storm hit again at the wedding (in the middle of the vows) so the whole ceremony was moved inside. Guests were begging to take baby off my hands, something I’m not used to, but I loved having my hands free, and BK loved the attention! The storm held off on our drive home, but little did I know I would soon have another storm to deal with. The biggest poonami I’ve ever seen. Soaked through three layers of clothing. Late night shower and we were finally into bed – it had been a seriously long day.
Over the next couple of days I managed to have a fair bit of time out, going shopping and relaxing, with just a little bit of work here and there. Launched my blog this weekend, and did a couple of live videos, so felt productive despite not spending hours working.
Spent loads of time over the rest of the week catching up with friends and family, getting out and about, and generally enjoying time with BK. Managed to get a fair bit of work done while he slept too, and with an in-house Nanny on the job (thanks to my sister in-law), anything urgent was able to be done without stress!
Friday was work free day! Apart from a few emails, I organised myself well enough that I didn’t need to work Friday through to Sunday, so I could really enjoy the final days of our trip and I’m so glad I did, because I’m one of those people that doesn’t always know when to switch off.
Another Wedding!!!
My hubby joined us – he got the bus from Sydney to Canberra – we both missed him very much, and it was so great to have our little family reunited again. This time African – a mix of Sierra Leone & Ghana – at the old Parliament House ‘Senate Courtyard’ – so beautiful – the vibrant colours of the bride and groom were just fabulous! We then danced the night away until my feet hurt. Anyone who knows me knows I love to dance – doesn’t necessarily mean I dance well, but I love it nonetheless, and I did just that on Saturday night – my husband Fodaya brought me a change of flats because he ‘knew I was going to go crazy on the dance floor’ and he was right! It had been a while since I let my hair down and really danced – especially to African tunes and I wasn’t going to let this night go to waste! Last time I danced was at the couple’s engagement party, and I was 6 months pregnant – that didn’t stop me, although I worried a few people who were sure I would give birth on the floor haha… Oh, and I’m not going to forget the food! Delicious West African food, fish, spicy delicious food – the jollof rice was the bomb.com!
Home Time!
The drive home was pretty smooth, only one stop in Goulburn for fuel and to feed bub – can we talk about how expensive petrol is at the moment?! we would normally get a full tank for $45, but this time is cost us $80 – that is ridiculous. We are lucky hubby can get the train to work, and with me working from home, we don’t drive the car too much during the week, but I feel for the families that need the car daily for work, school drop offs etc. Hopefully the prices drop soon, especially coming into the holiday season.
It was great going away, catching up with friends, being able to dance, unwind and everything in between but there is nothing like home, and home for me is having both my hubby and baby with me, and being able to sleep in our own bed helps! Overall, the week away with bub was a success. I manged to work, but didn’t over-do it – so I was able to enjoy some pretty special moments. Hopefully hubby will be able to join us for a longer time on our next trip, as we missed him very much, but the time away has made us appreciate our family that little bit more.
Top items to pack when working away with bub:
- Pack more clothes than you think you will need for bub (don’t get me started on the poo explosions + bub is teething so we go through sooo many bibs!)
- Light pram – great if you’re out for long periods and bub can nap in it. And I have found that my single friends love pushing the pram- so it’s great for me get to be hands free haha
- Baby Carrier – Capital Pancakes has lots of stairs so pram would have been a pain, I wore bub in the carrier facing out so he could see everything and he just loves it! (I have the Ergo Omni 360 – have been using it since bub was a newborn, very supportive to both bub and mum)
- Laptop/Computer – I took my all-in-one computer, as my laptop is due for an upgrade and I couldn’t risk not being able to do some work
- Have all your files in the cloud – we have a blog on the benefits of this and working away is a perfect example of why this is necessary
- Small toys – I took a rattle, and a shaker but his favourite toy at the moment is the empty baby wipe packets haha