So, this week I travelled overseas to Germany for my first business trip in my new job. I got to meet my fabulous new colleagues who were so very friendly and helpful and not at all as intimidating or as scary as I had worked myself up to think beforehand.

As it happens – I’m not so good at packing light! I was only able to take hand luggage and totally messed it all up. Not that it didn’t fit into a bag as hand luggage mind – more that the only reason it ended up small enough to be hand luggage was because I’d failed to pack loads of what I needed!! Little things like my hairbrush, hairbands, some pretty important tablets, and a whole change of clothes!! (Don’t worry – I did remember my knickers!!) Not entirely sure what in fact I did pack. All I do know is that I had my straighteners!! Phew! All was good in the world again!!

I stayed in a quintessentially German hotel, complete with shutters on the windows, enjoyed a wonderful German meal and tried my best at speaking the language -although all I can say is that I have a headache and I need to go to hospital – so not sure entirely why I remember this, let alone where it may come in useful at a later date!!!

It put me to shame when, every time I approached the group, they would immediately stop speaking in their own language and just switch mid-sentence to English, just so that I would understand, could join in on the conversation and not feel left out.

Then, after only the one night and two full (but long and tiring) days of meetings, it was time to head home, but that was not before my lovely new boss absolutely insisted on buying pressies for my girls and for Mr B!!

One funny thing that struck me though whilst travelling was how extremely strange and quiet it felt to be flying without my family in tow!!!!! A whole different experience!!

For many reasons!!!………..

The joy of flying without kids

1. You can sleep
2. You don’t have to pack all the usual children’s baby regalia including the kitchen sink!
3. You can take the escalators and stairs.
4. You can sleep.
5. You can relax and read a book or magazine in the departure lounge without having to chase the kids as they run off in different directions!
6. It makes a change not to have to ask a fellow human if they need a ‘poo poo’ or ‘wee wee’ every half an hour!
7. You can sleep.
8. You can browse the expensive and designer shops with no fear of sticky fingers grabbing everything in sight and the inevitable glare of the shop assistant!
9. Once on board, you can actually watch the movie!! All of it!! In one sitting!!!!
10. You can sleep.
11. You can leave your tray table down and even put your red wine or hot cup of tea/coffee on it as meant to, without it being jogged by little people and spilling everywhere.
12. You can look sympathetically on at other families travelling with screaming kids – all the while secretly feeling rather smug at your new (albeit rare and one-off!) situation!
13. You can sleep.
14. You don’t have to scrabble around on the floor trying to find all the cr*p you’ve lost underneath the chair.
15. You don’t have to apologize to the people behind for the kids playing peek a boo every five minutes or just rudely staring and gawping at them!
16. You can sleep.
17. You can merrily use your phone or your tablet in peace without your 4 year old demanding to watch Dora or your 2 year old trying to snatch it off you.
18. Your hand luggage can actually be packed with things you want to take for you, like magazines and make up, rather than colouring books and raisins.
19. You can sleep.
20. You don’t need to take a spare pair of clothes with you in case of spillages and other nasty messes.
21. You can actually leave the wet wipes at home!! (Unless you forgot to buy face wipes, in which case these are a perfectly good substitute!)
22. You can sleep.
23. You don’t have to become a contortionist and dislocate an arm or your back in desperate search of the dummy which has fallen under the seat in front of you somewhere, all while your toddler screams blue murder!
24. You don’t have to constantly keep telling the kids to:

 

• Sit still and stop jogging the tray table!
• Keep out of the aisles otherwise you’re going to be run over by the trolley cart!
• Get down from the baggage belt right now!
• Put your clothes back on!
• Stop kicking the chair in front of you!
• Stop just nibbling the edges and eat it properly otherwise you’ll get chocolate everywhere!!!
• Stop hitting your sister with that and give it to me!!
• Leave the window shutter alone!
• Stop switching the light on and off!
• Sit still and stop jogging the tray table!

Oh and…..

YOU CAN SLEEP!!!!