![\"Airport-Layover_1mb.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/cdn2.hubspot.net\/hubfs\/3295812\/Imported_Blog_Media\/Airport-Layover_1mb.jpg\")
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While stuck in an airport due to a delayed flight, I found myself feeling things I hadn\u2019t felt in a while. To my surprise, I realized they were the same emotions I had experienced during the early days when my kids were infants. Inspired by this, here is a list of similarities between caring for a new baby and having a long airport layover:<\/p>\n
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You\u2019re bleary-eyed and tired. Truth be told, \u201ctired\u201d doesn\u2019t accurately describe it. It\u2019s the kind of bone-crushing fatigue that you feel in every part of your body.<\/span><\/p>\n The passage of time ceases to have any meaning. You are in a constant state of bewilderment where you have no idea about the date or the time of day.<\/span><\/p>\n If someone takes a photo of you, you beg them to delete it, explaining that you don\u2019t want to be recorded in this disheveled, grimy state.<\/span><\/p>\n Your focus is purely on survival and tending to your most basic needs, such as going to the bathroom and finding coffee.<\/span><\/p>\n Your eating schedule is all messed up, but you barely notice. Previously, you would have never considered eating a ham sandwich at 10:00 in the morning, but in this situation, it\u2019s delicious.<\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019d give your right arm to sit down to a hot meal prepared by someone else.<\/span><\/p>\n Your back aches from the uncomfortable chair you sit in for hours at a time. You walk around gingerly in an effort to stretch your legs.<\/span><\/p>\n You end up falling asleep on hard surfaces, in the most uncomfortable positions. You dream about having a soft pillow and a cozy blanket.<\/span><\/p>\n You have to carry a bunch of heavy stuff with you everywhere you go.<\/span><\/p>\n A TV is on, but you can\u2019t absorb any of the information. It seems foreign that there is a whole busy world outside of where you are.<\/span><\/p>\n You feel worried that you don\u2019t really know what you\u2019re doing. This is made worse by the fact that everyone around you seems to have a clear sense of purpose and direction.<\/span><\/p>\n You tap into your deepest reserves of patience, but there are still moments of pure frustration and helplessness.<\/span><\/p>\n There are qualified experts there to answer your questions, but they\u2019ve been through this many times and have a dismissive or blas\u00e9 attitude. You wonder if you\u2019d be better off figuring things out for yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n Even when encouraged to \u201csit back and relax,\u201d you can\u2019t.<\/span><\/p>\n You look over at your companion in hopes of getting some support or relief, but realize with a sinking heart that he or she is just as tired as you are.<\/span><\/p>\n At some point, it dawns on you that there is no guarantee that things will turn out all right. Still, you hang in there with a sense of resolve you didn\u2019t know you had. It\u2019s a wild ride, but you eventually get through it. And if you\u2019re lucky, at the end, you\u2019ll hear the words: \u201cThank you for choosing us.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n And you\u2019ll think: you know, it wasn\u2019t so bad after all. Maybe I could even do it again sometime\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" While stuck in an airport due to a delayed flight, I found myself feeling things I hadn\u2019t felt in a while. To my surprise, I realized they were the same emotions I had experienced during the early days when my kids were infants. Inspired by this, here is a list of similarities between caring for<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-673","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-parenting"},"yoast_head":"\n