I’ve seriously missed blogging while on vacation and I miss keeping up with my blog friends as well! I’m excited and surprised to have an internet connection this week. We are on such a long vacation for a variety of reasons, but it’s definitely made for a busy August! Today a part of me wishes I had an anonymous blog because I have a few things on my mind, but I don’t want to hurt anyone by sharing them here. I also need to find a way to upload some photos from our vacation, but I’ll probably need to wait until I finish my vacation.
I love being with my family, even with the limited space, crazy kids, and sometimes conflicting personalities. Watching your daughter hold hands with a cousin she’s instantly made friends with on a walk you remember from childhood is magical. Seeing your son play with toys you loved thirty years ago is indescribably sweet. Looking in the backseat of a car and suddenly seeing a cherubic baby face in your fourteen year-old niece’s makes you simultaneously long for the past and excited for the future.
I’ve looked forward to our trip home to the Seattle area for quite some time now. I have a long list of “must eats” – beef Teriyaki at Manna, Alfy’s Pizza, Taco Del Mar, the local Mexican restaurant and “must dos” – see the sunset over the ocean, dip my feet in the water, take my kids on the Mukilteo ferry. They’re too little to appreciate some of the more popular Seattle sites, such as the Space Needle and Pike Place Market, but the kids did loved the Woodland Park Zoo. Ultimately, it’s not really about any one place or thing – it’s simply wonderful to breathe in the fresh air, see the mountains, and be home again.
The hardest part of this all is being separated from my husband. Due to some unexpected work commitments, we’ve been apart for way too much of this month and it’ll be another week yet. If he’d continued on one assignment, he’d be here on the weekends, but that didn’t work out. And I miss him terribly. Some things just aren’t the same when you can’t share them with your best friend.
Right now, the kids and I are out by a Bay about an hour and a half from where I grew up for our family reunion. It’s amazing here and the sun has thankfully made an appearance! I love seeing my kids dig their hands in the sand and wade through the seaweed to get to the water and discover sand dollars and clam shells. My favorite things are watching how much they adore their grandmother and staying up late playing games with my sisters.
You are making me excited for our trip up there next weekend. I too am going to eat Alfy’s and Teriyaki. Along with Chang’s and Azteca. I can’t wait to take the girls on a ferry ride, walk along the beach, visit the zoo, and see family and friends that we haven’t seen in a long, long time.
I’m so sorry that you are away from Tim at this time. It is so hard to tavel with out a husband. I hope he gets to meet up with you at some point!
It all sounds so fantastic…aside from the part of being away from your husband. But with so much going on, I bet this week will FLY by! This has got to be such an amazing experience for your children too! I wish that my family ever had these sorts of reunions when I was young.
Enjoy your time with them!
Sounds like a great time, Mindy, although I’m sure you miss your husband. I relish my trips home when my girls can play with their one and only cousin….I love the photo ops, the time together, and creating special memories….