Vacationing with out a baby is relaxing. When we packed the van when Jane was staying home, we had so much space left over. No stroller, playpen, etc. Now, don't get me wrong. I love Jane as though she is my own daughter (ha ha) but it was much more of a vacation for ME without having to worry about her. The boys seemed to appreciate not being kicked out of the room during nap times, too!
Baby socks make me smile. We had inadvertently left a pair of Jane's socks behind in the room when we left the first time. I found them behind some towels and it made me smile. I really did miss her. I was going to put them in the laundry bag, but I left them out where I could see them and be reminded of my little baby Jane.
It is hard not to take things the kids do/say personally. Thursday morning as we were packing to go back up to Snowbird, Mark came to me tearfully and said that he didn't want to come up with us. His skin was really rashy from the pool water, he was bored up there, and he said that he missed playing with his friends. I told him that I really wished that he would come with us, but I respect his decision to stay. Since Daniel was home, it was possible for him to stay. I felt slapped in the face that he didn't want to spend time with me. But that wasn't what he was saying, it wasn't because of me that he didn't want to go. I didn't want to force him to come and have a terrible attitude to deal with. He said that he was staying home and we went over some rules of him being home (he'd need to help out with Jane more than normal so Daniel could get some work done, chores, computer time, etc.)
Giving kids options (when available) helps them to feel in charge of their lives. About 1 hour after Mark decided to stay home,I started to load the van. Mark came upstairs with his bag packed, and told me that he had changed his mind. I gave him a hug, and threw in a few extra bits of food to accommodate our new member. We left quickly thereafter so that he couldn't change his mind again! He had a good time and we were all glad that he decided to come.
Kids can surprise me. It was 9 pm and I suggested that we get a movie and watch it before going to bed. Mark, my night owl, said that it would be better if we went to bed and watched the movie in the morning. What? Seth agreed. What?? I wasn't going to argue, so we all got ready for bed and turned out the lights.
People talking on cellphones don't realize how loudly they talk. A guy was walking up and down the hallway talking loudly on his phone. I finally went to the door and asked him to be quiet. It was nearly 10 pm and it was driving me crazy.
Slinky toys don't work on all stairways. Big bummer because we were excited to race a Slinky down the stairs.
Dominoes is a fun, relaxing game to play. Mark and I played with a group at the lodge. Mark was the youngest member of the group and the oldest member was 91 years old. It was fun to finally learn how to play a real game of dominoes (we played Mexican Train)
If you don't want to copy down a recipe, take a picture of it with your phone and you have the recipe with you!
It is so nice to be home from a trip and sleep in your own bed. Seth does not share a bed very well.
All in all I am really glad that we took some time to go on a family vacation. It was a lot of fun and the boys are still talking about our trip and thanking us for going. We plan on going up there again for a day trip to see everything when the snow has melted.
My friend is looking to sell his timeshare, so if you are interested, let me know. We will need a bigger room as the years go on, otherwise we would be interested in buying it.
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