Jamaica was fabulous! We spent five nights
here in Negril. It was the trip of a lifetime! Our villa had its own bartender and chef available from morning till night! Anything you asked for, they provided! We ate more lobster on this trip than I ever have in my life! We would wake up and roll out of bed to a breakfast of pancakes, eggs, hash browns, fresh fruit, bacon, sausage, and mimosas every single morning! Well, we did switch up for french toast a morning or two ;) We ate and drank our way through the week and it was exactly what we needed. I told Andy I think I was making up for 18 months of lost sleep because I slept most days away at the beach.
Leaving Olivia was traumatic. Actually, the actual leaving was not bad because I had agonized over it for weeks prior so by the time we left her I had pretty much dealt with the range of emotions that came my way. I had many concerns - I worried she would be in poor spirits and difficult for our friends to manage, I worried she would cry herself to sleep every night, I worried she would wake up a lot through the nights and stress my girlfriend out, I was worried she would cry for 'mama' a lot, I was worried that I would be so preoccupied with missing her that I would not have fun!
Let me just say that none of those things happened! Olivia was a perfect angel; she ate, she slept, she played, she obeyed, she rarely cried for 'mama', and our friends genuinely enjoyed having her with them (even though it meant 4 kids in their house 4 and under! yikes!). My girlfriend said she was pretty quiet the first few days, but she never protested to anything. She fell right in line and loved playing with the baby and following the big kids around. We already spend a lot of time at their house, but we did naps and an overnight stay (where Andy & I stayed too) in the weeks leading up to our trip to help acclimate Olivia to their house. It all must have worked because she had a great time on her "vacation"!
I, too, was able to completely enjoy myself! I thought and talked about her everyday, but I was never preoccupied with how she was or the fact that I was missing her. In reality, I enjoyed the break and the time alone with Andy! The one great thing that helped was to get a daily email from my girlfriend where she gave me a quick recap of their day. It was nice to know what Olivia was up to. However, there were never any phone calls or Skype calls while we were gone. We thought it was best to just make a clean break and enjoy our vacation. My advice to any mother/father/couple/parent that is contemplating a trip away from the children is GO!! It will renew your energy and your marriage in ways that you didn't even think about. Your baby will be fine (even if you agonize for weeks that he/she won't be like I did!).
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Only a best friend would loan
me her fuzzy leg warmers!
They are a huge trend in Taiwan
where she lives! |
It took my best friend from all the way back to kindergarten getting married to give me the courage to leave our baby behind, but it was one of the best decisions I've ever made, so go for it! Your soul needs this! Parenting is hard work so take a break and make that hard decision to go on a quick getaway with your spouse...you won't be sorry!
The trip was filled with so many wonderful moments...
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| Welcome to Jamaica mon! |
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| Spirit Toes!! We are SO happy to be here! |
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| Relaxed toes....I think I'll take another nap. |
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| Andy getting some much needed rest |
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| we may have done a little drinking too... |
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| A Kodak moment at the Rehearsal dinner |
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| The silly bride and her soon to be husband! |
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| Mimosas for breakfast?! Luetta was sure a fan! |
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| A special moment between sisters |
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| A proud dad walks his youngest down the aisle! |
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The big moment! Look at the beautiful sky behind them...
made me wonder if we should have been married on the beach! |
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| I love him. |
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| Friends from high school and college that were there. |
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The view from our room! I would go straight out
to the balcony every morning! |
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we had a hot tub on our
balcony too! |
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and a swing. Both got lots
of use! |
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| the big tree right out from our villa |
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| feeling the love! |
What an amazing trip! I highly recommend both Negril and Moon Dance Villas where we stayed. Both are top notch and won't disappoint!
What fun to see Christmas through the eyes of children! Thanks, Santa, for taking time out of your busy schedule to help make our Saturday fun!