Friday, July 5, 2013

Relishing in our time together

The kids and I have been spending some quality time away. We had our two weeks of uninterrupted time and we (in my own view) had a blast. We went to my hometown visiting with my family. We visited the beach. We spent a day at a fair that is set up for 3 weeks each summer. We ate at a bunch of different places. We ran around. We slept. We talked and laughed and had a grand ole time.

I actually drove the Prius out. I recently realized that my daughter is now tall enough to now sit in the front seat. She's 12 and she'd been relegated to the back seat(s) until three weeks ago. Yes, I was being cautious. It's a safety thing, so I can't help but be overly protective in that regard. Anyway, she sat in the front with me while my son was flying solo in the back. My son loved being all alone in the back. He could stretch out and not have to be next to his sister, who gets feisty during the drive out. My daughter loved being up front because she could really see where we were going. She also was very chatty (when she was awake), so we had some good discussions. But MAN can she talk up a storm! My brain did want to shut-down a couple times as I couldn't focus on what she was saying at times. Especially that first morning when we drove out and I only had four hours of sleep. ARGH! Don't you hate it when you can't sleep the night before you travel?

We didn't spend the entire two weeks in my hometown. I couldn't leave the office for that long, so I did log in for a few days. We actually spent the 4th of July holiday at a local resort. Yes, a stay-cation. It was one of those "secret hotel" deals on one of the travel websites. I didn't know what hotel it was until I booked it. It was a nice getaway, for sure. Not one I'd do again with the kids, but definitely one I'd take a special someone to (if I ever find a new person to add into my life that is). The only reason I wouldn't bring the kids there again is because it was more of a spa experience catering to adult pampering. Granted, they did have a large pool but only one pool and no "lazy river" or water slides. I'll try to book one of those for next summer. For the two days/two nights that we were there, the kids got into the pool four times. FOUR! The evening we arrive, in the morning and in the late afternoon of the 4th, and then the morning we checked out. My son can now do a handstand and forward rolls underwater. We saw more than a couple bunny rabbits hopping around the grounds as well which tickled the kids to death.

It's funny when it dawns on me how similar (and dis-similar) the kids are to me. My daughter is shy, quiet, and observant of people - the way I was as a kid. My son is open, talkative, and more adventurous - the way I am now. I had so many "a-ha" moments during these last two weeks. Like I was looking in the mirror and I would smile to myself. While there are many times when I want to shake them silly for being so obnoxious to each other with the crappy arguing, I love those kids with every fiber of my being. These two weeks have been good for us. I feel that we've bonded so much more. Something we (or should I say "I") needed since the papers were finalized.

My new logo is one of the good memories from our trip.

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