When Max was first contacted about the Alabama job offer by an executive recruiter earlier this year, neither of us actually took the situation very seriously. There were a lot of what-ifs (like if he'd even be the one chosen) and we were happily enjoying springtime in the desert (by far the best time of year here). However, come April when my husband was actually offered the job as CTO, it finally became real. Within a few days of the job offer, Max's now-new company had us on our way to Huntsville so that I could check out the town (I had previously never set foot in Alabama, or in the south at all for that matter!).
We decided to leave little man behind in Scottsdale. It was a super hard decision, as this was the first time we'd be leaving Parker overnight and it would be for three days. While taking him along with us would have been better emotionally for me, we felt that he would do better being at home and on his own routine, rather than being carted through four flights and a two-hour time change. I may have cried on our morning drive to the airport, but by the time we were there, I was fully enjoying all the perks of child-less travel. Max and I had packed our clothes into one duffel that he was carting, and I simply carried my purse. I had forgotten what it was like to fly without a carseat and diaper bag, what it was like to not have to check bags. We arrived at the airport twenty minutes before our plane was scheduled to board, walked through security with TSA pre-check, and even had time to pick up a coffee before boarding early with Max's priority status. My purse seemed so empty without baby toys and baby snacks (I'm not sure what I used to carry in it pre-baby?) so I had plenty of room for my hardback copy of Gone Girl. Yes, I realize I'm about two years behind on jumping on the Gone Girl train. Sadly, this book had been left in my nightstand drawer since summer 2012! I'm so happy I remembered it was there and picked it up for this trip.
