a peek inside the fishbowl

08 Feb, 2020

the best kind of surprises for us empty nesters

By andrea tomkins in Misc. life,parenting

As some of you know, Mark and I are pretty much empty nesters now. It’s kind of weird. Not just WEIRD, to me, but it might also be weird to you, especially since some of you have been following our family adventures from the day the girls were born. (!)

Life is different in a bunch of ways. The house is quieter. And tidier. The dishwasher takes ages to fill up before it needs to be run through. There are no debates around the dinner table. We spend less on groceries. No one eats the bagel I was saving for lunch or drinks juice out of the container. There are no dirty socks gathering dust under the couch or boots to trip over in the mudroom.

Of course it goes without saying that I miss those extra kisses and hugs. I miss playing Uno and I miss our conversations. I even miss fighting over the blanket while we all watch a movie together.

On a Friday night about a month ago, I was alone, at home. Mark went out with friends and I was eating my dinner while hunkered down in front of the television. I was just about to take a big bite out of my slice of pizza when I heard the side door open. I wondered why Mark was home so early. I had just dropped him off at the LRT. Why on earth was he home?

And that’s when I realized it wasn’t Mark. It was our ELDEST CHILD. She had decided to pay us a surprise visit and totally unbeknownst to us she had grabbed a bus in Kingston earlier that afternoon. (!)

Of course, because today’s kids are so digital, she recorded her arrival on her phone, but she cut it off just as I walked over to give her a big hug. As I wrapped my lonely arms around her, the tears immediately overflowed. I didn’t quite expect that, but then again, I didn’t quite expect a surprise visit either.

I knew I missed her, but I guess I didn’t exactly know how much I missed her.

I miss her. I miss both my girls, very much. It’s as if a part of me is away from me, all of the time now. I’ve adjusted to this new reality, but sometimes it hits me. Does that make any sense?

02 Feb, 2020

The risk that paid off

By andrea tomkins in travel talk

The Thailand diaries continue! To read past posts in this series, click here.

In the most recent chapter in this series, the youngest daughter and I had just visited Big Buddha, a religious site in Phuket, Thailand. Thankfully, we found our driver waiting for us in the parking lot, just as he had promised. (Phew.)

Until that moment I wasn’t exactly sure how I was going to book the return part of our little excursion. I assumed I’d just book a ride on the Thai-Uber app and that he’d be the driver, but I wasn’t 100% sure.

As we approached the car, he turned to me and made me an offer: If I just paid in cash, he’d take us back to our residence but include a stop at Wat Chalong, a historical landmark and Buddhist temple in Phuket. The dollar figure would be the same as what we’d paid for the drive there.

I briefly conferred with the youngest, checked my cash reserves, and agreed to the deal. After all, we were planning on visiting a temple at some point, right?

THIS IS TRUST, MY FRIENDS.

But the youngest was not happy with me.

“Mum,” she said afterwards. “If I accepted a ride in a foreign country and paid under the table for it you would probably be mad.” Then she pointed out that ride-sharing apps have security features built into them. If we went missing we’d have a record of the transaction as well as our route. (In other words, plenty of clues for the Thai police to follow if we went missing.)

Of course she was right, but this conversation didn’t happen until we got home.

The drive to Wat Chalong was as scenic as the drive to Big Buddha. And when we arrived, well, let’s just say I was agog the entire time. It was so gorgeous I have no words to describe it. It was a postcard come to life.