I have a major dilemma.....
A group of my online friends are having a Convention in the UK - Blackpool it be exact - in June. I had already resigned myself to not being able to go. My kids are too young to be without me for long and also too young to travel overseas.
So, the other night, out of the blue, my hubby says that he can rearrange things and - that if I want to, I ought to go to Blackpool.
If not for the kids, I would have already bought my plane ticket - but I am feeling really guilty about even thinking of going, let alone actually doing it. First of all, I am having a hard time justifying spending the money for airfare to only stay in the UK for a week. Airfare costs the same whether you stay one week or three and I, frankly, would rather stay for three but that is absolutely out of the question. I cannot be and do not want to be away from my kids for that long. Secondly, if I spend this money on this trip, that might mean we cannot go to DisneyWorld and take my Mom and Sister with us next year. While that is not certain, I am having a hard time risking the chance for my kids to spend some time at DisnseyWorld with their Auntie and Nana.
On the other hand, I have given up almost everything I like to do - job, travel, several hobbies - to stay at home with my kids. A small get away would be Heavenly!
Ugh!!! Any pointers??
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Thursday, June 07, 2007
North Carolina - Part 2
The next leg of our trip to North Carolina involved a lot of driving. I rented a mini van. Let me just say that I had always thought that I would hate driving a mini van and I did. It was not a vehicle that I would ever purchase or drive if I have a choice. I appreciate that mini vans have a lot of room and that it is easy to get everyone in and out, however, I really hate the actual driving of them. I really had a hard time with parking in particular. How do all of you who own and drive mini vans do it? Seriously.
So, we all load up in the loathsome mini van (I should not complain. I have been blessed with the resources to have been able to go on this trip - including the money to rent a mini van. It is not that. I just have a thing about vehicles and mini vans do not measure up for me) and head off for Virginia. We were on our way to Williamsburg and Busch Gardens. My brother and his friend were on their way from Kentucky that same day and we all met at the hotel in Williamsburg.
Right off the bat, we discovered that Busch Gardens had had a schedule change and were going to be closed. So, no Busch Gardens. That did not seem to bother anyone, so we just went right on with the business of enjoying Williamsburg.
Williamsburg was awesome! I loved it and the two days we spent there were not enough for me. I could have spent a week there. While we were in the area, we also took in Jamestown, which the kids loved, and Yorktown Battlefield. Both sites were very educational and full of stuff to look at. The kids really enjoyed both of those sites, a thing which really surprised me!
As for Williamsburg specifically, we had a great time. We all went on a horse drawn carriage ride and a lantern lighted ghost walk. We must have walked 8 miles! There was so much stuff to look at, houses and buildings to tour and events to watch. Williamsburg is like being transported back in time a couple of hundred years. There are citizens of Colonial Williamsburg dressed in period clothes walking around talking with people. Then, at scheduled times, scripted events happen. You get to watch a skit so to speak and be an active part of the audience. Maya, in particular, loved that!
After Williamsburg, we spent a couple of days hanging out at the beach in Wilmington, North Carolina. Beautiful place and I could have stayed there for much longer than we did. Everyone loved the beach. I have never seen my kids have so much fun! That was just a couple of days of hanging out. Nothing scheduled. We did go the the aquarium and do a bit of local shopping.
Then, sadly, we headed back to Raleigh for a couple of days of visiting with old friends and packing up. We just rested because we were all exhausted from all of the sight seeing and driving.
The flight home was relatively uneventful. We arrived back in Montana about 10:30 PM and the kids and I loaded up in the car and drove the hour and a half home so that we could all sleep in our own beds. We were so tired!
In the end, we all had a great time. Now, I find myself home and totally swamped with work regarding our add on. In addition, my mother in law has arrived from Kentucky and so we are spending some time with her as well. Whew! I am tired again :)
**I tried repeatedly to load a slide show for this post and was unable to get it to work :(**
The next leg of our trip to North Carolina involved a lot of driving. I rented a mini van. Let me just say that I had always thought that I would hate driving a mini van and I did. It was not a vehicle that I would ever purchase or drive if I have a choice. I appreciate that mini vans have a lot of room and that it is easy to get everyone in and out, however, I really hate the actual driving of them. I really had a hard time with parking in particular. How do all of you who own and drive mini vans do it? Seriously.
So, we all load up in the loathsome mini van (I should not complain. I have been blessed with the resources to have been able to go on this trip - including the money to rent a mini van. It is not that. I just have a thing about vehicles and mini vans do not measure up for me) and head off for Virginia. We were on our way to Williamsburg and Busch Gardens. My brother and his friend were on their way from Kentucky that same day and we all met at the hotel in Williamsburg.
Right off the bat, we discovered that Busch Gardens had had a schedule change and were going to be closed. So, no Busch Gardens. That did not seem to bother anyone, so we just went right on with the business of enjoying Williamsburg.
Williamsburg was awesome! I loved it and the two days we spent there were not enough for me. I could have spent a week there. While we were in the area, we also took in Jamestown, which the kids loved, and Yorktown Battlefield. Both sites were very educational and full of stuff to look at. The kids really enjoyed both of those sites, a thing which really surprised me!
As for Williamsburg specifically, we had a great time. We all went on a horse drawn carriage ride and a lantern lighted ghost walk. We must have walked 8 miles! There was so much stuff to look at, houses and buildings to tour and events to watch. Williamsburg is like being transported back in time a couple of hundred years. There are citizens of Colonial Williamsburg dressed in period clothes walking around talking with people. Then, at scheduled times, scripted events happen. You get to watch a skit so to speak and be an active part of the audience. Maya, in particular, loved that!
After Williamsburg, we spent a couple of days hanging out at the beach in Wilmington, North Carolina. Beautiful place and I could have stayed there for much longer than we did. Everyone loved the beach. I have never seen my kids have so much fun! That was just a couple of days of hanging out. Nothing scheduled. We did go the the aquarium and do a bit of local shopping.
Then, sadly, we headed back to Raleigh for a couple of days of visiting with old friends and packing up. We just rested because we were all exhausted from all of the sight seeing and driving.
The flight home was relatively uneventful. We arrived back in Montana about 10:30 PM and the kids and I loaded up in the car and drove the hour and a half home so that we could all sleep in our own beds. We were so tired!
In the end, we all had a great time. Now, I find myself home and totally swamped with work regarding our add on. In addition, my mother in law has arrived from Kentucky and so we are spending some time with her as well. Whew! I am tired again :)
**I tried repeatedly to load a slide show for this post and was unable to get it to work :(**
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
I'm Back - and Boy, Am I Beat!!
Just a quickie post to let you all know that I have finally returned to Montana - safely and in tact - compete with a starter sun tan, some killer threads from Ann Taylor and about a thousand pictures and fun stuff to share.
We had an amazingly smooth trip that was jam packed with lots of fun. There are lots of stories and pictures to share - and I will - over the next few days. Right now, I am exhausted and need to go to the grocery story and work on the laundry, so the fun stuff will have to wait.
I will leave you with this though: I was 86 degrees and sunny in Raleigh when we left, and 32 degrees with a couple of inches of snow on the ground when I pulled onto our private road at about 1:00 AM today! What a contrast!!!
And, in case you were wondering - the kids did GREAT!! I am so proud of them. They were awesome and were duly rewarded with a trip to Toys R Us before we left North Carolina :)
Just a quickie post to let you all know that I have finally returned to Montana - safely and in tact - compete with a starter sun tan, some killer threads from Ann Taylor and about a thousand pictures and fun stuff to share.
We had an amazingly smooth trip that was jam packed with lots of fun. There are lots of stories and pictures to share - and I will - over the next few days. Right now, I am exhausted and need to go to the grocery story and work on the laundry, so the fun stuff will have to wait.
I will leave you with this though: I was 86 degrees and sunny in Raleigh when we left, and 32 degrees with a couple of inches of snow on the ground when I pulled onto our private road at about 1:00 AM today! What a contrast!!!
And, in case you were wondering - the kids did GREAT!! I am so proud of them. They were awesome and were duly rewarded with a trip to Toys R Us before we left North Carolina :)
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