Grand Canyon

I've always wanted to go to the Grand Canyon.  I've only ever flown over it.  Last spring I flew out to Las Vegas and we drove to Bullshead Arizona for the cross country adventure but I wasn't able to go to the Grand Canyon. 

My son's dad and I each have two weeks of parenting time with our son during the summer, which we are suppose to identify those weeks by May 1, 2010.  He hasn't exercised those weeks, in years, but this year he notified me of two weeks.  Subsequently I picked the weeks in between his two weeks.  Whatever.

One of the weeks, my son will spend with my parents.  I will be with him part of the time and allow him ample time with just the grandparents.  The other week, I hope to find somewhere to go for vacation.  This morning I started looking for options through my timeshare.

Last minute availability for my timeshare will provide a week in Scottsdale Arizona, BUT the week begins on a Friday.  A Friday that would have normally been my weekend, but it is a week he is with his dad.  A great direct flight is available Saturday - Saturday.  So we would arrive a day later and pick up a night in a hotel on the tail end.  I can almost taste the air of the Grand Canyon...stifling hot in the dead heat of August, but so close to fulfilling another one of my wants.

I called my son's dad this morning to see if we could change weekends or something.  He said that he has plans for our son to be with his grandparents.  I offered to transport my son to them the weekend before.  I'm basically offering anything!  To be sure he understood the conversation, I emailed him the details, which he responded...that he gets the week vacation but weekends are still with the scheduled parents.  NO.

He really has no idea about the parenting time.  He switched at the last minute, a week that my son was primarily with me.  Which so happened to be the weekend that I was chaperoning three 13-year old boys in a hotel room for the weekend, because afterall it was my weekend.  So I said that he could have him for the week, but it was my weekend - I surely wasn't going to chaperone if my son wasn't with me! 

Now I wait.  I wait for him to call me.  I wait to see if he will be nice enough to change a weekend with me to allow my son and I to go to Scottsdale Arizona and take a day trip to see the Grand Canyon.  I'm willing to offer him almost anything!  This could be a once in a lifetime experience, especially with my 13-year old son (when he still likes me). 

I hate being at someone else's mercy.  I hate not having control.