A Norwegian Cruise to Paradise....

The World’s Greatest Husband and I are contemplating a cruise to paradise to celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary, a grown up kind of vacation, the kind where it is just the two of us for seven nights and eight days.  I must admit, in my mind this is big, B-I-G, bigger than big.  I deserve this little excursion for many reasons but over the last few days it has become clear that a little break with sun, sand, exotic drinks, vacation sex and a bit of shopping will make me a better wife, mother, employee, volunteer and heck I even think… driver, cook and catholic. Life has suddenly overwhelmed me.

So I want the World’s Greatest Husband to consider the top ten reasons why I need a vacation:

1.    I need a vacation because I would like to not have to listen for footsteps to the bathroom door with a lock click to know our kids actually, finally did get out of bed after visiting their rooms eight times with a big “Time to rise and shine for school mantra” 
2.   I need a vacation because our eight year old cub scout’s  4 AM bathroom wake- up call often comes with a “I can’t fall back asleep” situation that lasts until 15 minutes before my alarm goes off.
3.    I need a vacation because although nothing is really truly lost unless mom can’t find it, I am tired of looking. 
4.  I need a vacation because starting next fall and for the next 12 years, our five kids are in the college pipeline, our only vacation will be tuition payments, all while knowing 7 out of the 12 years we will be making payments for two children at a time and that is only if they all do it in the allotted four years. 
5.  Ok, do I need to repeat number four?
6.  I need a vacation because over the last 4 weeks our September, October schedule has kicked in with art lessons, track and field, gymnastics, marching band, book club, fall softball, tennis lessons,  zentangle class, CCD and ALGEBRA HOMEWORK.
7.   I need a vacation because we have not one but two twelve year old seventh grade girls. 
8.   I need a vacation because no matter what night and what meal I am cooking someone has the nerve to say, “Ewwe, I don’t like that”
9.  I need a vacation because I am tired of monitoring hand held devices with timer on our microwave.
10.   I need a vacation because five years in -- and  I still really like the World’s Greatest  Husband , I enjoy his company and like to laugh and learn with him and I don’t want to lose that butterflies in my stomach feeling when we focus on one another.  Over the last many years we have never had more than a few days without our children and that has never coincided with no work or home responsibilities.  We honeymooned for two days in Providence (now granted it was a grand sweet with spa treatments and amazing dinners but still only 48 hours!)  A blended family, like any family is exhausting but hey, for extra credit points we have two other sets of parents that factor into the equation constantly.  It takes flexibility, patience, a ton of money and a sense of humor to make it work.  Lucky for us we have a partnership that works and kids who genuinely like each other.  My cub scout recently said, “Our best days are the days we are all together” Now really who can ask for anything more than that?  Well beside a romantic seven day Norwegian cruise out of New York Thanksgiving week with the World’s Greatest Husband who I love deeply.  Honey, I hope you are reading this.

Flowers for Obama, Thorns for Romney

My 2008 buttons - still have the campaign sign in my garage.

They say that the winner of the presidential election coincides with elementary school mock voting all over the country. Today I learned why.

Our family of five is working together this afternoon.  The older kids are helping to close the pool and the younger kids are helping to move some brush as we prepare for a trip to the dump.  To my surprise, every time our 8 year old cub scout turns the corner with a pile of sticks in his hands he announces an election tid-bit.

With a bunch of hydrangea in his hands he states... Flowers for Obama thorns for Mitt Romney (who in our house we affectionately call Mittens.)  Next trip through he says.... Obama creates jobs, Mitt Romney takes jobs.  You may not think the kids are listening to the dinner table conversations, but they obviously do.... as illustrated so clearly today.  When asked, "how do you know all this?" he stated, I heard my mom and dad arguing about it in the driveway when he came to pick me up on Friday.  Yep, that's me and my EX- husband - classic.