Home Again

I realize I am not saying anything profoundly new but wow; one really does need a vacation from their vacation before going back to the daily grind. We made it home from Scottsdale late last night and awoke to a very large to-do list. Unpacking and washing a week's worth of laundry for four, cleaning a house that you left clean but invariably did not stay that way, a checkbook that has not been glanced at, let alone balanced in way too long, pictures to download and share, toenails that need to be polished after spending too much time in pools, toddlers and preschoolers who are sleep deprived and off schedule therefore throwing more tantrums then usual. Oh, and did I mention both Joe and I are working our paying jobs this fine Saturday? Where to begin?

Ah, but to reminisce about all the fun we had this past week. Now I know why people take vacations. I tried to remember the last time I went somewhere for longer than a weekend or the occasional 3 day trip down to San Diego when Joe gets sent there on business. I could not recall a time I have been away from home for this long. You actually get into a routine, even while on vacation. You sort of get settled into your new home away from home. Even the kids occasionally slipped and instead of it calling it the "big hotel" would refer to it as home.

We started each day at the big resort, stopping first at the Pumpkinville playground where the kids would climb and slide and get all sweaty in the already sweltering heat. We would then head over to the adventure pool, which the kids called the beach because it had a wading pool that crested up against sand and slowly got deeper the further you went out. The pool then fingered off in several directions, never getting more than 5 feet deep. Just across a small bridge was the lazy river, where I somehow managed to board a tube and then have the kids jump on top of me so we could all float around and under waterfalls. Around lunchtime we would head back to our room for lunch and Jadyn's nap, during which time Jake still got his video game time, giving me a chance to dive into my book on the balcony (usually with a pint of Ben & Jerry's by my side). After waking, we would all get suited back up and venture out to our villas' putting green for a short round of put-put, followed by a dip in the kiddie pool and possibly (if Joe could join us) we would wander into the family pool, which had a volleyball net, basketball hoop and rock slide. Surprisingly enough, Joe convinced Jake to go down the slide with him once. However that would be the only time since Jake did not particularly like going under, even if briefly after the initial drop off. Finally in the evenings we would get cleaned up and explore the city of Scottsdale with its various restaurants, shopping and places of entertainment - a treat for us to have all this at our disposal since it is such a drive to get anywhere from where we live. Of course, all this fine dining (not to mention the Ben & Jerry's) has left me feeling like I surely gained back some of that 20 pounds I had recently lost but atlas - I was on vacation!

My only complaint (if I even have the right to) is that I wish Joe was there on vacation too and not stuck at work for most of the day and even still some evenings in the room after dinner, dilligently working on his laptop. While I would have really wanted him there just so he could be relaxing and having fun as well, selfishly it would have seemed more like a vacation for me too if he had been there with us (read: 2 adults + 2 kids = divide and conquer). At any rate, we had a blast, would go back in a heartbeat but are glad to be home. Even if it means tackling that ferocious to-do list, it's still nice to be home. Pictures to follow!