Emotions and the family reunion

Am I emotionally unstable?

Or is motherhood just expanding the range and intensity of my emotions? I feel like I've gone from having the emotional reaction of a baby piano, to that of a baby grand Steinway.

One example of this was on the four flight legs this weekend, to and from PA. Each time the flight attendant would relay the cursory, FAA-required schpeel about "if the pressure drops in the cabin, the airbags will drop, please put the air supply on yourself before assisting your child...". What I never knew before is that they walk through the cabin getting eye contact with mommies. Just this act, and the thoughts it produced , gave me an intense response. That I am responsible to save my own life, so that I may save Amy's, in the event of a disaster, is awesome. On each of those four legs, this rote, repetitive message, evoked involuntary tears of previously unknown emotion.

Amy, Daddy and I flew into Buffalo, and drove to St. Mary's, PA. We had a grand dinner at St. Mary's best, probably, dinner restaurant. We then went to the hotel for an evening of non-sleep, due to Amy's hyperactive kicking, hitting, talking and other activities in the (on vacation only) family bed.

On Sunday, Amy told everyone she saw, "a two airplanes, sleepy, bumpy". She was treated very nicely by Aiden(sp?), Cliff's 10 year old grandson, who was thrilled to take responsiblity for watching over her and putting her sunscreen on. Alicia knocked me over, with her movie star beauty, and Kate was just and kind and beautiful as I expected her to be. Amy had a blast singing with Aunt Kathy and Aiden on the 3 mile walk, and getting a view from Cliff's shoulders in the 1 mile walk. She participated in her first egg toss event, and we successfully carried off about three rounds of tosses. She ate more junk in one day than she has in our first whole year together, including a late night snack of two chocolate pop tarts.

On Sunday night, we had the same hyperacative non-sleep pattern, so I took the opportunity to get home a day early and work on sleep routines. Amy was an absolute Angel in the airports and airplanes, including a frantic trip from one end of BWI to the other to "fly" to the plane we had to catch, after the door had already been closed. I cried (once again) upon boarding the plane, at the intense relief of not having to wait 5 hours in BWI for the next flight with a 2 and half year old.

Alicia, or Amy, please send pix for me to post! Thanks.