(written from airport yesterday on way to Turks and
Caicos)
When you travel quite a bit you realize that every trip
has a flavor. Something that even before you leave defines it and makes you remembers
that time in your life in particular. Sometimes it can be the “just after Bear
had his surgery” trip….other times the “the time we all had Gastro right before
we left and almost didn’t”. The one where you “were so stressed before you left
you didn’t know if you could actually unwind at all”.
Hubby and I are at the airport now on our way a two week
luxurious beach vacation! Without the kids.
And everything went super smoothly leading up to this
trip (almost scary smoothly in fact!). But…and big but here…this will be
defined as the trip as we are the most tired we have every been and have been
the most busy. It will be defined as the
crazy busy fall before our trip. I realized yesterday and the day before as
I tried desperately to tie up everything at work and home before we left ..how
much we have put on our plates and how much we do. Right up until 1:30 am last
night (ps we left at 5am)…we were running including Hubby going back to office
for his phone that was not even there.
In the last two days I honestly had not a spare moment.
It was really ridiculous. My last 4 months have felt that way. But man we got a
lot done. Hubby and I have this thing about Spring and Fall that we cram
everything into about 10 weeks each of these two seasons. And I mean
everything. Besides the fact that our work is at its peak at those times too
and so is the three kids exam periods, extracurricular stuff and schoolwork. It
feels like over stuffing and over-stuffed turkey. Plus we try to see many of
our friends and family during that time too as not skiing season where we get
to see none or summer where our schedules and everyone else’s are all over the
place.
So this Fall we had some major things going on besides
all the normal carry busy stuff:
We painted and redecorated
fully all three kids rooms
My husband is almost complete phase 2 of his new office
renovation
We put stairs in at the cottage and changed the roof
We have started each tackling big development areas for
us as people individually with some outside support which has been a major
focus for both of us
Beauty wrote major entrance exams, attended many open
houses and did auditions for her high school
We started CEGEP visits with Chase (ya that went really
well..not!)
I got ¾ of the way through a massive picture project I am
doing that has been on the to do list for three years (framing, albums,
collages etc..)
We lost our housekeeper and have fully trained ourselves
and our kids to take on WAY MORE at home (kids do all the laundry now even
Hubby’s.. (not mine)…they do all the folding..Clean the entire bathrooms…cook
simple meals on their own…fully in charge of kitchen etc…
And surprise of all surprises I found out last week I
have changed roles at work and have taken my current role on and now and other
50% of a new very large bucket and will be adding a new direct report. I leaned
in and now it is coming to life (in some different ways that I had initially
hoped for mind you…but the larger picture will all work out somehow I am hoping
for this big promotion)
Oh ya and PS…I kinda took on this role yesterday (vs the
planned Jan 1)as I was trying to get ready and set for my trip.
So this flavor is definitely: tired…stressed..exhausted..and
in need of some serious sleep kinda trip.
The only thing I picture on this trip is sleep beach and
reading. And can you believe that my amazon order of 13 books never
arrived!!!!!!!! I desperately ran to Chapters and bought 8 of the 13 at full
price nonetheless as a trip for me without my books is like asking most people
to take a trip without a margarita in their hands most times of the day (PS I
take the books any day in case you need clarificationJ
PIS-today as I looked at my 8 books vs. 13 I cried this
morning-not a joke. I am totally serious I wept because I did not have my 13
books and I would rather die than read on an I pad. It is day one and one Is
already finished so in my calculations that means I will have 5 days without a
book!!!!! I saw a girl at beach today reading one I want. I might steal it (not
sure if I am even joking)
I am very proud of myself though with the fact that the
busier I am and the more stressed the more I seem to also make time for the
biggest priorities in my life too as impossible as that sometimes feels to do.
On Monday between clients, works, packing and organizing I managed to take Bear
out for a 1-1 lunch…Beauty took me out for my belated bday frozen yogurt date
and Chase almost went earring shopping with me ( before he cancelled on me and
dumped me for his buddyJ).
Hubby also had a 1-1 date with Beauty for Indian lunch and we sat down to a
long family dinner last night and I watched
Greys’s Anatomy with Chase before I packed fully.
Everyone got a “switchy” last night for tucks ins (our
long time experession for both of us tucking the kids in for long tucks ins.
Beauty cried her eyes out that we are leaving which she has done last three
years (never did before that and she has been left for vacations since born!!).
Chase worried about us and warned us of every precaution under the sun (do you
have number of police, locate the embassy as soon as you arrive, don’t go in
forest with strangers, keep vodka from Dad, stay in the richer areas, text us
every couple of days to check in, don’t relax too much and forget you are in a
foreign country, make sure you spend a lot of time in the lobby of the hotel as
it is safer, and bring lots of medications) Don’t worry he is generally a
pretty normal kid and pretty relaxed although he sounds like a basket case
reading this!!!! He is just the safe one in our family and doesn’t take any chances
when it comes of the safety of the ones he loves. Bear wished us a great trip
and told us he was super jealous and wished he was going on the beach.
As usual we came an hour and a half early to the airport
and wish we were in bed. I cannot wait to be in Turks and Caicos (yes there
again we lied last year that not coming back!!) Wild horses can not seem to
keep us away apparently. This is a hard limit from my hubby: I want to go to
Turks again. You got it baby!!!! Take me to the Beach mister!!!
And this trip is even more special as it might be our
last “Alone trip” for a bit (I know famous last words eh?) We came to the
shocking realization today that after next year Chase will be on completely
different schedules for vacations in CEGEP that our other two kids. November
break won’t be happening…March Break won't be happening….Easter Break won’t be
happening. Christmas is a no go as our kids are huge skiers and summer is out
as in our books never a good time to travel and way too hot. So of course we
will still travel with our kids but likely the five of us together will be unlikely
on an every year or every second year basis as we do now. And as of highschool or CEGEP we would never pull kids out of school to travel-it is a value of ours that is important. Primary yes-but not after that. Education is priority.
Travelling together has always been a bit part of our
family life.
All that to say we pretty much decided that because of
this fact in the next 2 yrs. before that fact actually arrives-if we go away it
will be with the kids. We will have plenty of time for alone time in the
future. The clock is ticking!!!!! I cannot believe that we are at the stage
that this is even happening. I honestly cannot. Our kids are turning into
adults one day!!!
So this trip’s flavor is: Rest, relaxation and savoring
every single delicious moment. Heaven is about to happen-or that is how I feel
anyways. These two weeks are heavenly-I would be shocked if there is a real
heaven if it gets any better than thisJ
