How I Spent My Summer Vacation

Okay, it’s not summer yet. And I haven’t gone on vacation yet. But I’m planning to go if and when this stomach virus decides to vacate my house. I’m also not really sure how much of a “vacation” it will be.

We’re packing up the car, the kid, the dog, and half our kitchen and heading up north to visit the family. My husband’s family lives up in the Northeast so I do enjoy visiting and pretending that I live in some quaint New England town and that I’m a writer with a deep secret in my past. And I buy the old McAllister place that hasn’t been used in years. I’m only renting instead of buying because I seem a bit like the transient type. It adds to my mystique. Oh, sure they like me at the local diner and I know the pharmacist by name. But I don’t attend the white-steepled church every Sunday morning because I practice a more non-traditional style of religion. Then, one snowy evening, the power goes out and a handsome widowed neighbor comes to see if I need anything….

WHOA. Okay. Getting carried away. We’re actually visiting my mother-in-law in Fishkill, New York. It has a few quaint churches but that’s where the fantasy ends. Here’s where reality starts: my mother-in-law has dial-up internet.

Read that again. Dial-up.

Did you know that anyone still has that? Remember when you could pick up an AOL CD anywhere and get started on your dial-up account? Now when I mention that, I either get loud laughter or looks of scorn. After ten years, I’m used to it. At least she has TV now. Seriously.

Luckily, times and technology have changed. We can sometimes pick up the neighbor’s wifi signal. And as a back-up, we always have our 3G network on our trusty iPhones. I’ll be okay. I can make it. In fact, I’m looking forward to pulling myself away from the technology world I love so much. I may even rediscover some of the other things in life I love.

Here is what I’m hoping to do on my vacation:

Read. My MIL always has a stash of Enquirers to catch up on. And I have stacks of books I’ve been wanting to read: fiction, nonfiction, parenting.

Walk my dog. My little dog Emma loves to be outside. She loves the sunshine and loves to just sit in the grass. It might be nice if I shrug off my laziness and fatigue and actually walk her. Maybe I’ll enjoy some of the sunshine too.

Drink more tea. We always drink a ridiculous amount of tea when we visit my mother-in-law. Did I mention she’s from Ireland? I guess if you’re not drinking whiskey, you’re drinking tea. I don’t mind. It forces us to sit around, relax, and chat. And eat cookies.

Play with my son. My little Evan is as bright as the day is long. He makes up elaborate stories with his Toy Story action figures, or Spiderman dive sticks. He turned a United Airlines jet into Spiderman’s rocket pack. But he loves it when we really play with him. Not just say “oh wow, really?” as we’re getting dinner ready.

Play outside. Lately, I haven’t been doing a good job of this. I want to play kickball in the backyard (it’s a great yard for it). Take nature walks. Explore some of the old houses on the Hudson.

Sleep more. At home, we have so many distractions keeping us up late or getting us up early (or in the middle of the night). Hoping to get a solid 8 hours every night. Thinking about my 30 days of sleep experiment? Don’t worry. I’ve got the finale in the works.

Write more. I love to write. Since I starting taking the time to write more, I find that I observe the world in a new way. I think about things in new ways. I find inspiration where I wasn’t looking. I may not be able to post while I’m gone but it won’t stop me from being able to write.

That’s it. Pretty simple. But then it’s the simple things we always seems to complicate.