Spring Break - Family Time

We are planning our spring break trip this year, at the last minute, just like a lot of people. Because of the uncertainty of the economy, we decided to wait to plan our trip. John is big on family vacations. Even though he is frugal as all get out, and this economy is likely causing him major anxiety issues, he will give up almost anything before a vacation with the whole family. Sometimes I curse him for this, as at times, I have really wanted such things as a new refrigerator, hardwood floors, new washing machine, and he puts that off, yet has no problem splurging for a family vacation. It makes me crazy, but I do love this man for this. When I was pregnant with the twins, and still in the throws of my corporate HR career, a co-worker who officed next to me happened to have 2 year old twins. She quit before my twins were born, but we have stayed in contact. She was like my mentor into parenting twins. I was shocked at the thought of one baby, much less two, so she really helped me a lot. One piece of wisdom I will never forget is that when she goes with the family, it is a "trip", but when she travels without kids, it is a "vacation". She told me never to confuse the two things, because, though family "trips" are fun, they are far from a vacation. How true this.

John has been all over the map on this trip. He first thought we should go skiing like we normally do at Spring Break. He recently visited his friendly orthopedic doc who gave him some bad news about his knee that he neglected back in college and has already had ACL surgery on -- surgery is looming here. We then had a Grizwold style family meeting to discuss our options, and the kids threw out things like Hawaii, and Disney. John explained that this is last minute, and would need to be a driving trip, so these were not options. Even without last minute, with a family of 6, we rarely fly. At the end of the meeting, we were looking at Grand Canyon, or Big Bend National Park in south Texas -- oh, and the kids wanted to bring Marshmallow the puppy along. My mom told me she would be a nervous wreck if we were to take "busy Ben" to the Grand Canyon. She said the barriers are not Ben-proof! We then considered Big Bend. I started searching for vacation rentals near Big Bend. We do better in a cabin or condo, so we can cook, etc., but options are limited. I finally narrowed down some choices, and John tells me that we should stay a few days, then head on over to Baseball Spring Training in Arizona, like it is in the next city over or something... we just have to cross through New Mexico, into central Arizona -- that's all! John makes me crazy on vacations, because he cannot sit still. He like to move 24/7. I just want to have the opportunity to finish a book or something. He is a great dad -- almost comical, he is so enthusiastic about go, go, going to show his kids everything he can possibly fit in.

I really like to find a place to stay, and set up "base" and do activities from that one location, vs. packing up every couple of days. The packing is stressful. I always pack more than John would like, and to punish me, he sometimes puts the things I need the most in the most difficult place to access, and claims it was an accident, but I know... man do I know. One year on our ski trip to New Mexico, we had to put the roof carrier on our SUV to get all of our gear in. I strategically packed the items we would need in our hotel on the way to go inside the car so we would not have to mess with the roof. In packing, my beloved hubby "accidentally" put my bag in the roof carrier. This meant that when we stopped at midnight in freezing temperatures, and I said that I really needed my bag, the stinker said, do you want it badly enough to go out on the roof and get it. The truth is that I did! It had all of my cosmetics, etc., and when mommy doesn't have that, it isn't pretty -- not that I am a big make up person, but I am 40+ now, so I need a little something. I was out in the cold, on the roof of my Ford Expedition, looking in the dark for my bag. I am sure it was a funny sight to passers by! I got it, and was not so happy about the mission. The next morning, the whole clan accused me of making a dent in the roof -- the kids got on board. After discussing this for the entire trip, we ended up at the conclusion that there was no dent -- it was just the natural contours of the ceiling. They all had fun accusing me though. I can laugh about it all now! The truth is, we have a great time on our vacations, but we always have some interesting event, whether a child in the emergency room, a problem with our car, lost luggage, a child with a major break down...We love it all though. Hubby is right in that we will not remember the new appliance, but we will always have memories of our time together on these vacations.
I am very tired right now, and I start to wonder why, then I tell someone what we are doing, and I hear myself spouting off this insane schedule that even Wonder Woman would struggle with. We have a solid 6-7 days per week of baseball, horseback riding, basketball, cub scouts, brownies, my part time teaching gig, John's full time plus career... help! I have fallen... and I can't get up. And little 3 yr old Ben keeps asking when his soccer coach is going to call. When we are racing from one activity to the next, out of the blue, Ben will blurt out "We are going to be late for my soccer practice". I have not signed Ben up for soccer. He is just used to tagging along to sports and he is ready to get into the mix -- poor guy. The insane thing is... we will likely get him started in soccer next year. We are to the point where we will have more than 2 places to be at one time, so we have to call in relief of family and friends. This is a great life, but I never knew it could be this crazy. I hope I still have my mind when I am older so I can remember these days.

The search is still on for Spring Break 09 in the Thomas / Grizwold familia, and we have made no decisions, and Spring Break starts in 2 days. I have comfort in knowing that if I don't make the plans, they won't get made, so I do have a little control here.