Going Away to Relax is a Lot of Work

Tomorrow I will be here.

Actually I'll be there later today. I will be leaving for the airport in a little less than four hours. So why am I awake writing to you?

I have been relatively frantic the last few days, trying to get everything ready for our departure. Do you know how difficult it is to leave directions to care for a very particular two-year-old? It is a lot of work! I wanted to cover all of the bases and have spent the last couple of days putting a binder together with everything anyone might ever want to know about maintaining Harper. And really, I barely scratched the surface. What will she eat? How do we handle a food allergy emergency? What is her bedtime routine? Where are the markers? Why does she wear sunglasses in the house in the middle of the day? These are just a few of the questions that a person might have when caring for our daughter. Not to mention that our television setup is more complicated than a mission to Mars and there are things to know about the dog as well.

It's like writing substitute teaching plans, but worse. At one point I was thinking it might just be easier to smuggle her into Mexico with us. Then I remembered that I don't know the Spanish word for peanut. Actually I don't know many Spanish words, and I am being a typical American in hoping that won't matter too much. Otherwise I'll be stuck asking what time it is and counting to ten for the next five days.

While we will do some sightseeing and probably attempt to shop one afternoon, we are mostly planning on relaxing this trip. Food and drinks of all types are included at our resort, so we could basically go from bed to beach and back, grabbing food on the way, for four entire days. Actually we have a few events to attend, so that's not entirely true, but believe me there will be much lying around before Sunday.

I am bringing five books with me. Yes, five. Um, I don't really believe I'll read a book a day, but I could. And there's that long plane ride, and waiting in the airport, and the lying on the beach. And wouldn't it be horrible if I were relaxing in Mexico for a few days and I ran out of something to read? I'm like a chain smoker that way, I already have the next book (or, you know, seven) lined up before I finish the one I'm reading. And of course I don't know what I'll feel like reading once I finish my current book, so there's that to consider too.

Then again, I'm awfully tired, so sleeping on the plane sounds good. There might be a movie on the plane, and I love movies. So maybe I won't make it through all five books. . . but the idea alone is simply delicious. Instead of reading for a few minutes in my bed before falling asleep at night, I can read for a few minutes on the beach and then fall asleep in the afternoon. In the sun. Did I mention we're going to Mexico?


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I know that Harper will be very well cared for by our parents for the next few days. But man, when I was putting her to bed tonight, I really started feeling how much I'll miss her, and worry about her, while we're gone. It won't stop me from having a great time, and I could certainly use the vacation, but darn it if I don't love that child more than anything else on earth. Makes it just a little hard to leave.