Alana jumped out of her bed and ran into my room yelling with the same excitement I woke up with this morning. With great tone and expression in her voice, she yelled, “Mommy, mommy, mommy…Daddy comes home today!” Ariah echoed her sentiment by saying, “Daddy. Daddy!” They didn’t wake up this excited on Christmas morning. To see the love and adoration they have for their Dad is absolutely beautiful and touching.
As you read in an older post (7 Sleeps- Tips for Nurturing the Kids when Daddy is Away), I do different things to further develop the bond between my hubby and the girls while he is gone for work. Once the girls count through the sleeps, we all wake up uber excited for the day he returns. A few things I try to facilitate on that day includes:
- A morning text/voice message- “Happy Kobie Day!”- is what the message will say that I send as soon as I wake up. Sometimes this is a joint message that the girls and I send together. Depending on where he is and the time zone of that area, it could be one-three hours before he wakes up and sees it. Once he’s up, we FaceTime him to express our eagerness to have him return home.
- Have the house clean and smelling good- It’s something about walking into the house with a good scent and sleeping in a fresh bed that enhances your relaxation. I have a candle burning, sometimes a meal simmering (depending on the time of day and if I’m home), and fresh sheets on the bed as well.
- Switch roles- after a period of traveling for work, I try to decrease the amount of work at home for him to return to. The chores he usually does at home, like taking out the trash or running his errands, are completed upon his arrival.
- Prepare his favorites- making a grocery run to get his favorite drinks, snacks and food are little things that mean so much. Imagine the smile you have when you open your refrigerator or pantry to your favorites after being away for a while. You enjoy them even more.
- Waiting with a hug- my hubby travels at various times of day via plane and car. Therefore, he sometimes returns home during the day or at late hours in the night. No matter what time it is, when feasible, I’m waiting at the door to greet him with a hug. Sometimes, this even involves meeting him at a random location to see him. One instance that comes to mind was when he was in route to another work assignment and I was between speaking engagements so we met at the first gas station off the interstate just to spend literally ten minutes together and it was worth every second. When we pick him up from the airport, the girls will make signs, have flowers, give him a teddy bear, and other gestures to greet him when he enters the baggage claim area.
- Quality time…and rest time- I schedule time periods for him to just rest and relax when he gets home, hence why I try to make sure he walks into a clean home that smells good and with all of his favorites so he’s able to mentally and physically relax. I also plan activities for him to do with the girls, another as a family, and a last one for just the two of us if time will permit.
- Prep for the next trip- sometimes, he’s home for a 24 hour period (if not less), before it’s time for him to go to the next work assignment. When this happens, I begin to pack his suitcase for the next trip with the basics (toiletries, number of underclothes for the duration of his upcoming trip, and other necessities). This helps him feel a little more prepared during the quick turnaround. To add extra love, I hide a “just because card” or another item that he will find once he unpacks when he arrives to his destination.
Disclaimer statement: with hectic schedules, time doesn’t always permit that I do all of these every time he returns home from a trip. I strive to do as many of these as possible with the girls when we can.
We are so excited to have him return home today and even more thrilled that he will be home for an entire week before his next work assignment. I truly believe in giving people their flowers while they are alive, expressing your love for others while they can enjoy it, and spending quality time with the people who matter the most while you are able to do so.
The pics used in this post both represent the frequent trips my husband takes in his career. The top photo was the first day of school for the girls. Kobie returned home just in time to meet me for dismissal. The girls were so excited to see him when they jumped in the car. The second is a selfie he sent me when we were in the early stage of long-distance dating eight years ago. It is still one of my favorites that means even more to me now.
Happy Kobie Day! We will soon scream “Daddy’s home!”
Xoxo