Rental car, AirBnB, Vrbo, flights, staying with friends, staying with family, money, hotels, food, packing, unpacking, time off, days to arrange, Google, Google, Google. It's all planning and no fun make Alison dull and cranky.
It's so weird to be at this level of adulthood. This is my life now. I fantasize about time away and different trips. One day we will actually choose a vacation that is just ours, instead of centered around visiting...one day.
As an anxious planner, I used to think I was too early on this things. "Oh, that's 6 months away." Now you pay the price, both figuratively and metaphorically if you don't get your shit together and book early. Or so I'm learning. Everything is a work in progress, including my ability to adult.
We went from years of doing nothing and going nowhere but Disney to getting back into social lives again and are now full steam ahead into wedding attendance, flights and finding our comfort zones with travelling. It ain't easy!
I take on a lot because I can handle it and I'm obsessive about arranging. We had one bad trip last year with bad flights, bad bookings, bad rental car stuff and bad hotel drama, topped with a case of food poisoning that made me forever see the light. I am willing to pay extra for comfort and ease, instead of save money but not my sanity. I'm one year away and one more trip out west away from finding a way, I hope, to an actual vacation.
I'm not an international traveler fantasizer. I spent many great years driving across the country with my dad, but he's not a big city guy so I dream of places he never took me like Chicago, Boston, Austin, and maybe even L.A. I will see all of those places, eventually.
I'm starting to wish everyone would just come visit us. We finally have a real house with a real guest room. We've had some visitors, but we could definitely host some more. Getting away with our little one is an adventure, of course, but my best friend asked if we ever take trips for ourselves and sadly, that was a huge no. Again, maybe someday.
As the planner, by the time I get to the vacation at least, I try to relax, over indulge in coffee and treats and live it up while we're away, but there are usually stressful elements everywhere around me. I'm working on eliminating those, one trip at a time. I've recently just openly embraced that there's only so much I can do, and I paid for some vacation, so I should enjoy it, despite any drama. Some attempts are more fruitful than others.
When we had Disney passes we took like 10 mini-vacations, or "Minnie" vacations, if you will, throughout a year because we were less than 2 hours away. I miss that. You can't have a crap time at Disney, especially since there is always, always, always a family having a worse day than you are there. It's like Murphy's law. For every annoyed moment you have at Disney, there is a family that is spending thousands and having more annoyed moments than you, that always puts it into perspective. This is the sad truth!
I used to be jealous of other people's vacations and adventures as posted on Facebook and Instagram through my aging, I realize everyone just does their vacationing completely different and that's beyond okay. Some people can go to resorts and have a blast. Some people do big skiing trips with family or retreat to island destinations. My favorite trips in my childhood usually involved other family, like cousins, but they always involved road trips with my dad.
I'm finding my way through that now, and figuring out how to translate it to our lives. Last year we drove from Oregon to Napa. We went to one really cool winery for a tour and tasting, enjoyed the town of Napa, and saw two wonderful friends get married. We drove to San Francisco and were tourists for a day. We had fun blasting old tunes in the car. We also went through cool parts of Oregon we'd never appreciated before and I remembered some old travels with my dad in the midst of it all.
This year will be my little's longest car ride of 6 hours to Savannah, again to watch friends get married. Also, we are heading up to PA and NYC. We are mixing family, a friend's wedding and some actual travelling experiences for us. I'm pretty excited for it all and ready to embrace tourist status.
I've considered travelling for Christmas but I love being home too much. We watch Christmas movies all day and have Christmas quiche and mimosas, and my favorite, Christmas nap time. I'm learning my travelling balance and boundaries bit by bit.
To plan, arrange and devise all the things is new levels of adulthood. Some of it is un-fun and obnoxious. Most of it is necessary. Some of vacationing is better than other moments. Getting to the destination is half the battle, but enjoying the destination is the rest. Good company is everything! At least the next few trips will be great for blogging!
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