I wanted to write about the rest of our Spring Break, since the cruise was only half of it. We had driven all night (I kept singing Celine Dion’s song “I Drove all Night…to get to you”) after work to get to Jacksonville, FL. That’s where Nkere’s sister lives, and where the port was for the cruise. We got to their house about 3 pm the next day (16 hour drive) and hung out with the fam. Nkere’s sister, Nkese and her husband Maurice cooked dinner for us while we played with the kids. Our oldest niece, T’nai, is now 8 years old! She was only 5 when we got married. Kennedy will be 2 in June, and little “Reece” (short for Maurice) was 6 weeks old at the time.
Obviously, this was the first time Nkere and I got to see our new nephew, so we were very excited, and both baby hogs! I didn’t know how Nkese would be with letting us hold him or be alone with him. Since we don’t live around them, I don’t know her as well as I would like, so I didn’t know how she would react. So that being said, we had all gone to Wal-Mart (4 adults, 3 kids= chaos) real quick for a couple of things. Kennedy was in the back of the cart and Reece was in his car seat in the front. Well, everyone soon left me with the cart and kids in tow. I was fine until Reece got hungry and started screaming in his car seat. Now remember, I didn’t know how Nkese would be with me getting him out, so I just let him scream. It was kind of uncomfortable for a minute, with people staring at this white girl and two “random” black kids by themselves. Everyone probably thought, “Who is she, and what is she doing with those kids?” Fortunately, Nkese wasn’t too far away, and yelled “Gracie, you can get him out.” I was very thankful because he calmed down and I was able to walk around with him the rest of the time. So I quickly realized that she didn’t care where or when I held him, and she trusted me with her son. What a relief! Plus, I figured since it’s her third kid, most moms seem to be a lot more relaxed than they were with their first. Maybe I’m just assuming.
The next day we left on the cruise, so when we got back, we stayed with them again for 2 days. We went and picked up T’nai from school and hung out with them at night. It was pretty quiet during the day…Nkese was back at work from maternity leave, and Maurice works nights, so he tries to sleep and do house work during the day. So we didn’t do much, but it was nice being there for a few days. I always feel bad for Nkere because his family is so far away. His mom and Nelson are in Washington, his dad’s in California, and sister in Florida. I would be devastated if I only got to see my family once (maybe twice) a year. I can always tell that Nkere’s kind of emotional when we leave his family. He doesn’t let me see it, but I know he is. I just hope his family comes to see us when we have kids. I already told Nkere that I’m not flying with little babies or 3 kids with me! He’s probably going to have to take a few trips up to Washington by himself. I guess we’ll just deal with it when the time comes.
Obviously, this was the first time Nkere and I got to see our new nephew, so we were very excited, and both baby hogs! I didn’t know how Nkese would be with letting us hold him or be alone with him. Since we don’t live around them, I don’t know her as well as I would like, so I didn’t know how she would react. So that being said, we had all gone to Wal-Mart (4 adults, 3 kids= chaos) real quick for a couple of things. Kennedy was in the back of the cart and Reece was in his car seat in the front. Well, everyone soon left me with the cart and kids in tow. I was fine until Reece got hungry and started screaming in his car seat. Now remember, I didn’t know how Nkese would be with me getting him out, so I just let him scream. It was kind of uncomfortable for a minute, with people staring at this white girl and two “random” black kids by themselves. Everyone probably thought, “Who is she, and what is she doing with those kids?” Fortunately, Nkese wasn’t too far away, and yelled “Gracie, you can get him out.” I was very thankful because he calmed down and I was able to walk around with him the rest of the time. So I quickly realized that she didn’t care where or when I held him, and she trusted me with her son. What a relief! Plus, I figured since it’s her third kid, most moms seem to be a lot more relaxed than they were with their first. Maybe I’m just assuming.
The next day we left on the cruise, so when we got back, we stayed with them again for 2 days. We went and picked up T’nai from school and hung out with them at night. It was pretty quiet during the day…Nkese was back at work from maternity leave, and Maurice works nights, so he tries to sleep and do house work during the day. So we didn’t do much, but it was nice being there for a few days. I always feel bad for Nkere because his family is so far away. His mom and Nelson are in Washington, his dad’s in California, and sister in Florida. I would be devastated if I only got to see my family once (maybe twice) a year. I can always tell that Nkere’s kind of emotional when we leave his family. He doesn’t let me see it, but I know he is. I just hope his family comes to see us when we have kids. I already told Nkere that I’m not flying with little babies or 3 kids with me! He’s probably going to have to take a few trips up to Washington by himself. I guess we’ll just deal with it when the time comes.
