Dallas!

I have come to the conclusion over the past week or so that I worry too much. 

After returning from our long weekend trip to Dallas, as I look back on the amount of time and energy I spent worrying and planning for every possible catastrophe, I realize that I steal my own joy by letting anxiety get the best of me.  And I'm really going to try to work on that.

I read a devotional every morning when I'm doing my Bible time called "Jesus Calling".  It is somehow always exactly what I need to hear, and today's entry talked about how worrying and excessive planning is just a manifestation of not trusting God enough.  To say I felt convicted after reading that is an understatement.  And I think our trip to Dallas was just the exclamation point for the lesson for me.

I was a wreck before we left on Friday- mostly because of leaving the big kids behind for so long, and for being that far away from them.  I knew that they were in more than capable hands, as my Mom and Jason's Mom were planning to take shifts with Joshua and Lauren while we were away.  But still, one of the things about motherhood that has been the strangest thing to adjust to is that it never feels right when I am away from the kids- whether it's for 5 minutes or 5 days.  I was anxious beyond all belief about cooping Mara (our little tornado with a temper) on an airplane for as long as it would take to complete the two flights to Dallas.  I had visions of a screaming baby who wanted to be down walking around and who couldn't understand why she was stuck in one spot.  I also hadn't flown since Jason and I went to Disney World when I was pregnant with Joshua, so things have changed quite a bit with rules and liquids and security and a whole bunch of other things that had me a ball of nerves.

But once we got going, everything worked itself out.  Or should I say, everything got worked out by the Master Worker Outer.  Boy was I ever grateful to Him.

We had a very nasty flight from Williamsport to Philadelphia.  We should have known we were in for it when the person boarding the plane grinned at us all and said, "I sure hope you took your Dramamine!" as we walked out to the plane.  Me, who gets sick just LOOKING at a ride in an amusement park--- I was nervous.  We all had a rough time with that flight and were sufficiently sick by the time we landed in Philly.  We had a quick run from gate to gate in Philly, and before we knew it we were up in the air on our way to Dallas.  Mara slept for a good chunk of that flight, and happily played at our feet for the other two hours, making friends with the lady sitting beside me and nursing quite a few times.  She didn't seem to love landing and got pretty nauseous both times, but all in all, it was much better than I anticipated.  Jason was wise to book us in the rows in the plane that had the extra leg room.  We definitely made good use of the space to play with the goodies I had packed in the diaper bag, as well as play iPad games and eat snacks. 

Our hotel, the Gaylord Texan, was gorgeous!  You'll have to Google it to see some pictures.  The atrium of the hotel was beautiful with fountains, a river running through it, a replica of The Alamo, shops, restaurants and anything else you can imagine.  We wanted for nothing.



Saturday morning, we woke up slowly and took our time getting around.  Both Jason and I commented that travelling with one child is ridiculously easy compared to our normal logistics of getting out the door to go anywhere.  I doubt that we will sing the same song after our Disney trip in a few weeks, but I guess we'll see.

After we were up and around, we decided to get some breakfast and take a walk through the hotel.  Mara LOVED walking around and exploring.  Her favorite passtime was checking out all of the fountains in the hotel-- and there must have been 70 of them.  She had to put her hands in the water in each and every one, every time we went past.

We were blessed to get a call from my Uncle Jerry, who lives very nearby to where we were staying.  He offered to pick us all up and take us for a ride around the area so that we could see more of Texas than just the hotel grounds.  Mara slept in his vehicle while we explored a bit.  He showed us the town of Grapevine and Southlake.  He showed us the gorgeous homes in the area, as well as a great little shopping district in Southlake.  Honestly, if we would have had a stroller for Mara, I would have requested that he drop us off for a few hours and come back with a UHaul to pick us up with all of our treasures.  Needless to say, Jason was happy that we did not have the stroller!

Sunday morning, Jerry and Carol picked Mara and I up at the hotel to spend the day with them.  Jason was involved with a golf tournament, so we were thrilled to have some company.  They took us to church with them at Gateway Church, an awesome church in Southlake.  They have multiple campuses, but just the Southlake site holds 5 services each week, with 4000+ in attendance at each service.  We attempted to put Mara into the nursery, where she lasted about 20 minutes before I was being paged to come and rescue her.  That was long enough for me to participate in the praise and worship part of the service with my aunt and uncle, which was great.  Then I took Mara into the most beautiful nursing room in the children's wing (yes, you read that right...WING) where there were beautiful rocking chairs, cold bottled water and snacks waiting for anyone who was using those rooms, and we watched the sermon from there. 

After church, we headed back to Jerry and Carol's beautiful home and had lunch with them.  It was so nice to get to spend some one on one time with them- something I don't think I have EVER gotten to do with them.  It was awesome and I think Mara and I both had a wonderful time.  They dropped us back off at the hotel at supper time and we started to ready ourselves for the long journey back home on Monday morning.  While I was packing, this little ham was raiding the fridge and enjoying having the run of the place!

We travelled all day on Monday- beginning with an 8:30 take off in Dallas.  After a 3 hour lay over in Philadelphia, we headed back to Williamsport and landed around 4:15.  I was pulling into the house around 5.  The only near catastrophe on the whole trip was the fact that my luggage stayed in Philly and didn't arrive in Williamsport until the final flight of the day.  I was pleased that there was a courrier who delivered it to my doorstep around midnight on Monday.  Not having it gave me every excuse to just enjoy the kids on Monday night and not worry about the unpacking and the laundry that would have been calling my name otherwise.  I had missed them so much.

I was greeted by this banner when I walked in.  Joshua and Lauren both contributed to the sign, and I think I will keep it forever.

We ended our night with something they have been asking to do every night since we moved into the house- take tubs in the BIG bathtub in our bathroom.  It was horribly awkward- just picture me hanging over the side trying to scrub all three of them, while they were splashing and giggling and carrying on.  I secretly loved it---- just hearing them all together enjoying each other was music to my ears.  Needless to say, though, we will be getting our nightly baths in the normal sized tub most of the time, but it was a fun treat.

Sorry for the long windedness.  But unless this is your first visit to this blog, I am sure it comes as no surprise.  Hope you enjoyed the pictures!